Room By Room

"Stylish rooms that are practical and beautiful"

Go through your vacation property room by room and try to envisage how your guests will use each one. Not only do you need to consider your own likes and dislikes but also those of your potential visitors.

Decorating the rooms of your vacation home is more complicated than decorating your own home.

You also need to remember that guests won't look after your holiday home in the same way that you would so some things - house plants for example that need regular watering - just aren't an option.

master bedroom black gold bedding You need to look at the property on a room by room basis but never forgetting that you will want to achieve a general style or look for the interior of your property that flows from one area to the next - particularly if it is open-plan. Whether your taste leans towards contemporary or antique, some element of style or color needs to bring the property together as a whole.

Room by Room

Also remember that visitors will have expectations of your property before they arrive. The person paying the bill is likely to be the person who also stays in the Master Bedroom and they will expect their accommodation to be more opulent than a Guest or Twin Room which will quite possibly be occupied by children.

guest bathroom blue stripe shower curtain

guest bathroom blue stripe shower curtain

The same applies with other parts of the house. A Master Bathroom should always be luxurious and ‘grown up’ whereas a Family or Guest Bathroom can be more relaxed and even fun.

A new shower curtain and towels is probably the cheapest and easiest way to 'lift' a bathroom using either a bright colour, as shown here, or a fun character like Mickey Mouse or Betty Boop.

Kitchen color schemes need to be given careful consideration – particularly if your kitchen opens onto a Breakfast Nook or Area and I think it is better to view the two as one.

If you are remodelling a kitchen, a bit of free online kitchen design help is always welcome.

Not a room to spend a lot of time or money on but the Laundry Room may benefit from a bit of decoration.

If your vacation property has a formal If, as was the case in our Florida home, they are open-plan to the Lounge or Living Area they all need to compliment each other.

formal dining room table and chairs We had a predominantly blue Lounge with a mainly yellow Kitchen which were brought together with the blue, yellow and green spring color scheme we used in the Breakfast Nook.

If your vacation property has a formal Dining Room you will need a color scheme that suggests that this area is perhaps more appropriate for adult dining than kids with ketchup-y fingers!

A Game or Billiard Room should be more light-hearted - likewise a Den or Loft Area – perhaps where you might provide things like a selection of books and games or a computer. These should be casual areas and you can have a bit of fun decorating here.

teak patio table and chairs white linen parasol Another area where you should aim for a casual atmosphere is a Conservatory or Garden Room. To give a co-ordinated look and a feeling of space, you may like to take your color scheme inspiration here from the view outside.

Not strictly a room but a much used part of the vacation property is your lanai, patio or garden area. The outside space at your property - particularly if it has a pool - is very important and will most likely be the part of your property where your guests spend most of their time.

Last but by no means least, let’s not forget of course the first impression a visitor forms of your home and the special care that need be taken in the Entrance Hallway.

To summarise, we need to view the property on a room by room basis but never forgetting that we must also view it as a whole.

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