The Sunday News
Yoliswa Dube
THE maximalist interior is a meticulously and thoughtfully designed style that puts an emphasis on opulent patterns, vibrant palette of colours and luxuriant accessories.
If you are used to sterile decor, maximalist is meant to drop your jaw. It is a rebellious reaction to rigid, austere minimalism, evoking excess, abundance, and extravagance. Now, if rigorous design framework is not appealing to you, you must be a maximalist at heart, with a bubbling personality and a taste for the eye-catching outlook of your home.
There is a thin line between clutter and eclectic aesthetics. With the first term, people are quite familiar, whereas the latter should be carefully achieved. The borderline is a visually appealing interior with captivating items that mix the old, new and everything successfully in between. Yanic Simard, the principal designer of Toronto Interior Design, says “A fusion of several styles, designs and periods will create a playful individualism, blending seamlessly.”
Simard also claims that you can achieve a pleasant outlook by mixing off-the-top-shelf pieces with vintage items and contemporary style with modern. Make a room for lots of brick-a-bra, knickknacks, and personal keepsakes, topping them up with holiday or travel mementos and family heirlooms.
Flea markets and car boot sales are perfect places for finding interesting accessories. Do not forget about modern art collection, bold graphic designs and attractive patterns to add that funny note to your decor. The styling secret of Maximalism is the new appearance of the space that can be accomplished just by moving furniture around, therefore being open and ready for a new, eclectic design.
Miscellaneous articles scattered aimlessly in the designated room are not our ideally achieved aim. My best advice is to sit back for a while and give some thought to the optically balanced decor. The concept of visual weight compromises symmetry by adding accessories in layers. So to fulfill a maximalist theory means to work on the interior design in small stages — little by little, yet consequently, staging the space through size, fabrics, patterns, texture, and colour. Remember though to allow free flow of foot traffic on the main paths. Take pride in art collection on the walls, sculptures, artisan lamps, luxurious rugs and small in size furniture, not to overdo the final result.
The world famous interior designer, Tara Fingold of Tara Fingold Interiors from Toronto, coined the term ‘‘visually impactful interior decor’’. She claims, by mutual experiences with her clients, that Maximalism is all about a purposefully selected collection of essential items, applied lovingly in the room.
If such a fascinating idea has sent shivers down your spine instantly but you are not confident enough, try the gold rule of thumb ‘‘More is more’’. You must not tread fearfully while embracing the maximalism style. Like wearing a red lipstick during the office hours, confidence is obligatory in this case.
Start being self-assured and dare to live your life to the full. That means wall decorations that expand and adorn rooms in your house with all-over astounding patterns. It can also mean having the guts to choose compelling yet fascinating contrast of materials and other surfaces between glossy mirrors in ornamented frames and busy floral wallpapers.
The style of chosen decor should reflect the homeowner’s personality and preferences. ‘Maximalist trend in house decorating incorporates a dramatic to the eye fusion of different, vibrant colours with overwhelming patterns’ says Rebecca Mitchell, an interior designer from Montreal. We ought to highlight rich, opulent fabrics with Indian or Moroccan roots.
Placing luxurious, patterned rugs, hand-sewn in Eastern Europe is a very thoughtful decision, having a massive impact on the overall effect. Meticulously chosen decorative cushions and pillowcases, handcrafted by Middle Eastern women will complement the room and put an emphasis on the exotic influences that inspire you. — decorlove.com
