What makes a home truly a pleasant space to live in can be attributed to its basic interior design and decorating elements combined to create a harmonious atmosphere. When devoid of these, the house becomes nothing but a shell of empty space that even its owner cannot stand a minute of staying in it.

Design is the artful way of combining all the interior design and decorating elements in a pleasing way. While each individual element has a unique characteristics that stands on its own, an altogether different outcome results when they are put together to create a theme either for the entire house or a specific room. A knowledge in how to use them as reference for laying out a plan to coalesce furniture and accessories can bring out the best out of the limited space.

• Line: Lines may appear as simple streaks that can go vertically, horizontally, diagonally, and other various directions. However, when drawn in such artistic manner, they can suggest different emotions, meanings, and expressions. For example, vertical lines can create the illusion of height, stability, and uniformity while horizontal lines can suggest cohesion and balance. Lines that flow along the space evoke gracefulness and femininity.
• Texture: Texture is perceived by the sense of sight and touch, but the appeal is best felt by touching it. A rugged surface creates an ambiance of informality while a smooth and glossy overlay suggest opulence and softness. Texture can create the desired atmosphere and can make a room appear more interesting by the manner they are applied.
• Shape: Shape is about form, silhouette, and contour. Different shapes can bring about different effects depending on how they are placed in a room. Rectangular or square objects suggest masculinity while objects with curved shapes can soften a room’s ambiance.
• Space: Space can be deceiving. A room can appear smaller or larger than its actual size by the choice of colors splashed on the walls or ceilings. It can also be made spacious or cluttered by the manner how furniture and accessories are placed around. It can be divided into small areas or enlarged to create bigger area. Space has a way of creating illusion and can easily produce different perspectives through minor movements of other interior design and decorating elements in the room.
• Color: Color is the most visible of all elements of interior design and decorating. It is the easiest to see and produces the major effect on the overall appearance of a room. A space instantly comes to life with color. Color can also create illusion through its different tones and hues. Choosing the warm colors of yellow, orange, and red can make a room hot, vibrant, and lively. Painting the room with the cool colors of blue, purple, and green makes it calm, serene, and soothing.

It is always a challenge to incorporate and combine all these elements to bring out the best effect for the allotted space. There are more things to consider including factors such as lighting, flooring, ceiling, or window treatment. However, when decorating a room, it is always best to work with the basics of interior design.

• Functionality – Interior design and decorating jobs involve providing solutions on how to achieve a creative interior environment without stripping its functionality. All ideas, plans, and executions must be geared towards creating a functional space that is also attractive to the eye and pleasant to stay in. Interior designers must include in their objective to prioritize combining both utilitarian function and visual appeal of a room.
• Balance – There are three basic styles to create balance: symmetrical, asymmetrical, and radial. A symmetrical balance is the equal balance of the elements found in the room. This is best exemplified by providing the exact or equivalent counterpart of an object to create a mirror look for a room. An asymmetrical balance means items of different qualities are positioned around the room to stand out on their own without reference to the other items in the same space. The radial balance, on the other hand, involves arranging items around a focal point, like an antique table or a grand piano.
• Mood – Mood is created depending on the room’s function. From there, the choice of color, furniture and accessories are decided upon it. For example, choosing a deep red color for the bedroom invites passion and romance that the occupants hope to feel while inside it.
• Harmony – The element of harmony is what fuses all items in the room into one cohesive functional and aesthetic combination. Through harmony, an entire room is characterized as a single space with bits of articles that fit together.