| Love Your Loft | | | | space is short on square footage. Lots of bookshelf, |
| Congratulations, your space is as unique and | | | | closet, and cabinetry storage is essential to keeping |
| unconventional as you are! Now how the heck do you | | | | the clutter out of eyesight. The best part is that you |
| decorate it? I have been in hundreds of lofts of all | | | | can really take advantage of custom-made pieces in |
| shapes, styles and sizes and the common thread | | | | this area that would otherwise look out of place in a |
| between them all is that whatever worked in your | | | | traditional ceiling height setting. |
| Beach Bungalow or Hollywood Hacienda probably will | | | | The Great Divide |
| not work here. There are challenges that arise with | | | | Room dividers can be more than rice paper and wood |
| soaring ceilings, no separate rooms and all that open | | | | panels. Since many lofts do not feature closets, |
| space. Here are a few tips I have learned that will | | | | standing wardrobes with a finished back are great for |
| hopefully spark the inner space planner inside of you | | | | storage. They also serve to delineate living spaces, |
| and help you love your loft even more. | | | | lend privacy and custom units can be made in any |
| Anchors Away | | | | finish and configuration. Open bookshelves do double |
| In more traditional structures, the walls anchor the | | | | duty as a virtual wall that holds books on one side, |
| placement of furniture and dictate the set-up of the | | | | while providing a place for pictures on the opposite |
| room. However, in one big open space, most of the | | | | side. |
| furniture will have to "float" in the middle of the room | | | | Everything Must Go |
| and will be anchored by things other than walls. Area | | | | The colors need to flow throughout your open floor |
| rugs are a great way to anchor individual sections of | | | | plan, but they do not need to match. Each individual |
| the loft. Grouping items together such as two | | | | living space can have a separate color theme as long |
| armchairs, an occasional table and floor lamp can | | | | as a common thread runs between two or more |
| make an attractive vignette in an otherwise awkward | | | | exposed areas. For example, if your Plum and Slate |
| corner or unused niche. Remember that your couch | | | | colored bedroom is visually adjacent to your Teal and |
| does not have to be up against a wall - if it has an | | | | Brown living room, then use Lemony-Green accents in |
| attractive back it can be placed virtually anywhere in | | | | both areas to compliment each individual scheme and |
| the space at any angle in any configuration. | | | | carry a commonality throughout. |
| Living the High Life | | | | Most importantly, be true to yourself and true to your |
| We love our lofts high ceilings but rarely take | | | | space, most of the time your instincts will tell you what |
| advantage of them. Be sure to utilize tall storage | | | | feels right. Be bold, take a chance and for goodness |
| systems and oversized artwork to make a statement | | | | sake, do not play it safe! |
| and make use of the high ceilings, especially if the | | | | |