Finding Southwestern-Friendly Designs
It can sometimes be hard to determine what will go well with southwestern style and what will fit well among southwestern pieces. Yet, you can save a great deal of time if you don’t have to take many pieces of furniture or rugs home with you to see if they fit.
One useful way of deciding whether or not something will fit with southwestern pieces is to see if the object in question has some of southwestern characteristics. Object with southwestern style often use clean straight lines, bright colors, rough and textured surfaces (almost as a mark of pride), and often are made by hand from natural materials.
An example of an object that has enough of these characteristics to fit well within a southwestern motif is a simple carved wood table. The table would be even better if the light blue paint is peeling off a little. However, as cool as that curvy aluminum chair may look, it probably won’t fit well in your southwestern motif.
Another example, and one that is not often associated with southwestern design, are apple computers. Many of their present designs involve very clean and straight lines. Their minimalist appeal can fit perfectly with southwestern pieces. This is also true with many Japanese designs. Often these designs use clean straight lines, and as such would fit well. The main point of contention between these two styles is the finish often used on them. Japanese minimalist style often utilizes highly polished smooth surfaces with a rather simple color such as white or black. However, in southwestern style almost the opposite is true; southwestern surfaces are rough and the colors are bright.
Another interesting style that southwestern design overlaps with quite a bit is the design of the caucuses. This is particularly apparent in the weavings that come from the area. The weavings from these harsh mountain climates often use straight lines and unflinching colors. A deep red rug can go quite well with southwestern floors made from flagstone or brick.
On the other end of the rug design spectrum are Persian rugs. These are amazing rugs to be sure, however, their extremely detailed curvilinear (or “floral”) designs do not often fit well within southwestern motifs. Another bone of contention between the urban Persian designs and southwestern design are the materials often used. Persian Rugs often use extremely high quality materials, such as silk, which does not go well with the rough edges of southwestern design.
There are many interior design styles that go agree with southwestern design quite well. Minimalist Japanese design and works of art, such as rugs, from the rural caucuses are some good examples of “southwestern friendly styles”. Knowing where and why these styles agree can save you a great deal of time when picking out items for your house or business.
John Geer runs the online rug store Hazaad.com at http://www.hazaad.com/ He is also a contributor to Hazaad.com’s blog (http://blog.hazaad.com/) and helps run Hazaad West, which specializes in southwestern rug designs, at http://stores.ebay.com/Hazaad-com-West
[tags]Southwest,southwestern,design,decorateing,motif,decor,interior design,rugs,clean lines,color[/tags]