The room above is pulled together with a great mix of styles: Modern cow hide chaise with chrome, Renaissance chair with tattered upholstery, primitive chippy paint pedestal, antique illustrations, leather books, raw-wood door.
In this day and age of collecting, junking, and re-purposing, it is easy for all of us to call our interiors "eclectic", but what is eclectic really? And how can we pull an eclectic interior together to be something more than just a glorified hodge-podge?! In the words of my mentor Carol Bolton, "It takes a lot of work to make something look undecorated." Amen sister. I found some images that I feel kick eclectic into a true decorator style.
Modern desk, retro style sofa, Asian table, Persian rug,
traditional painting.
traditional painting.
Don't be fooled: eclectic style should be carefully handpicked; ask anyone who does it really well. What you assemble is very important: the textures, periods, shapes and styles may look haphazard, but keeping your eye sharp to see what will coordinate together is key.
Touches of black tie this eclectic mix together: Rug, bust, pillow and chair as well as the gold frames and crystal chandelier working together and the pink throw with pink art.
Yes, eclectic can be all white too: 50's chairs, modern table, contemporary art, crystal chandelier, ethnic chair, primitive handmade tables, industrial lamp.
Keeping it minimal can also be eclectic by choosing large objects with big drama: Graphic art, Buddha statue, leather club chair, ethnic fabric.
The room above is more of what we think of as eclectic style: a room full of every shape, size, color and style imaginable but still edited with a keen eye: Something gaudy and gold, something modern and clean, something worn and used; a pattern, a solid, square shape, round shape, wonky statue. This works above because of using items on a larger scale. I also like the giant branch in the corner to soften all these gallery-like objects. And notice how the giant mirror was left on its shipping frame! Love that.
