If I was a real designer and had a bag of tricks, this one would be at the top of my list! I’m such a visual person, yet indecisive at times, that when I have an idea I really like to see what it might look like for real in my space.
So, enter….photo editing! With a photo of the space I’m working with, I turn to this tool over and over again.
Recently when working on an arrangement for the artwork for my dining room, I played around on the computer before I framed one print or hammered one nail.
Trying several different arrangements really gave me a feel of the look I wanted. Clearly this would have been going overboard…
I liked this one okay, but it didn’t add any height-everything felt short and squaty.
I finally settled on this arrangement.
Then I used painter’s tape to put the prints on the wall, just to make sure I liked how it was looking in real life.
And, the final product:
Here are a few other projects that started with a mock-up photo. Yes, these are VERY rough mock-ups, but they confirmed my plans and motivated me to proceed.
I imagined what it would be like to have a big green box in the dining room…
and what the backs of the bookshelves in the living room might look like painted in a dark color…
and what the shelves in the office would look like if I painted the backs to match the walls and left the rest stained wood…
and what my daughter’s wall might look like with stripes.
I don’t have Photoshop which would give more detailed results, so I use my normal editing program, Picmonkey. If you’re not familiar with it, it’s an online, super, easy program. There aren’t specific drawing tools, but I use the “Overlays” tab on the left side and then the “Geometrics” category and choose the shapes I want to get close enough results. Most of the features are free, but there are some that require a membership. I get along just fine without it. Really all you need is a program that will let you play around with shapes and colors.
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These verses have nothing to do with home design, but they’ve been on my mind today and I hope they will be an encouragement for you.
“I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth. My soul shall make it’s boast in the Lord; The humble shall hear of it and be glad. Oh, magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt His name together.” Psalm 34:1-3 (NKJV)