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Finding Your Living Room's Focal Point
Author: Marci McFarland  | Posted: 17-06-2008 | Comments: 0 | Views: 18 | Rating: (132)  (?) 
People are visual creatures. We are attracted to color and contrasts cause our eyes to take notice. Focal points in a living room serve to draw the eye and hold it, preferably in a positive manner. This article is going to discuss some points on how to create a focal point in a living room that is restful on the eyes and invites examination.
Some living rooms are happily already graced with a feature, such as a fireplace or glass doors, that you can use to build your room around. Others, however, may require a focal point to be created. Often "big" features of a room tend to dominate it and catch the eye - furniture, bookshelves, or tables. If you want a certain "look" for your room, these are the first things you must examine to see if they will provide it. You can also create a focal point using artwork or sculpture or an unusual item of interest.
Let's assume that you have to create your focal point and for an example, let's say you have a collection of pre-Columbian Mesoamerican crystal skulls that you think would be perfect as a conversation piece - divination, anyone? You want a living room that shows them off, but you don't want them to overwhelm a viewer.
Scatter other items around the room that match the skulls or the backdrop, to emphasize their presence. Decorate starting with the focal point and slowly spread out around the room. Spread out accessories that harmonize with the focal point, to bring the mind and eyes back to it. Crystal candle holders might do well as accents, in this instance. Or other items, in the backdrop color. You can also make your furniture harmonize with the focal point, by choosing and decorating furniture in complimentary or contrasting colors.
Of course, not everyone has crystal skulls as a conversation piece. The application is the same. Think of something that would make a good feature for your living room, then design around it. Take a good look at the piece you have chosen and see how you can replicate it around the room, so that you can draw the mind back to your focal point and bring the room together.
The first thing is to choose a color scheme. In the case of the crystal skulls, dark, rich colors, like black, blue, dark reds, etc. set them off well. Since painting the entire living room dark blue would make the atmosphere a little too dark (unless you're going for the Madame Fortuna look), consider painting or buying a shelf in a rich color and use it as the backdrop for your collection. You could even go so far as painting one wall a dark color and painting the other walls a lighter color that really brings out the richness in the color you've chosen.
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Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/interior-design-articles/finding-your-living-rooms-focal-point-452202.html
About the Author:Marci McFarland is a Sarasota real estate agent with a broad professional approach. Her unique insight into the various lifestyle requirements of her clients, combined with an intimate knowledge of her service area including Casey Key real estate, make her an ideal choice for families and investors alike.
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