Space in interior design element

The 7 elements of design – and how to use them in your interiors

(Image credit: Ophelia Blake Interior Design Studio/Alexander James/Natalia Miyar)

The 7 elements of design are designed to help you balance an interior scheme so that the finished look is aesthetically pleasing, as well as functional. Design is a science, after all, as well as an art.

Addressing each of the elements that make up every design can enhance a room’s best features, compensate for any flaws, and create an interior that satisfies the eye, the sense of touch, and fulfils its practical role.

The seven crucial ingredients of design are right here for you – read on for inspiration.

See: Interior design tips – decorating secrets for the world's top experts

The 7 elements of design consider space, line, form, light, color, texture and pattern. A balance of these elements is vital to every scheme.

1. Space

(Image credit: Stefani Stein)

'Space' refers to the distance between and around furniture and objects and their proportions within a room. Getting the balance within a room just right relies on using both 'positive' and 'negative' space just right.

Positive space is where the room’s objects – such as a sofa and armchairs – are positioned, while negative space refers to the gaps in between, and includes circulation space for navigating through the room, as well as the areas left open to prevent the room from feeling cluttered.

An appropriate balance between the two is vital for a room to feel well laid-out. One with more negative space will feel more spacious, larger and perhaps bigger – but too much negative space can also make a room feel under-furnished and impersonal. A room with too much positive space taken up can, on the other hand, feel crowded and over-furnished.

How to get this right? The beauty is very much in the eye of the beholder – if you like find a cluttered room homely, using more negative space will suit you. However, as a general rule, thoroughfares in a room need to be at least 1m wide, while gaps between, say, a sofa and a coffee table, is comfortable at around 50cm.

This open-plan living space by LA based interior designer Stefani Stein is a good example of how to get it right.

2. Line

(Image credit: 2id interiors)

Both the structural features and the room’s furnishings can create lines that profoundly influence the feel of the space, and they can also be employed to bring attention to a focal point. As well as horizontal and vertical, they can be dynamic.

Horizontal lines, such as those of tables, bring a sense of stability to an interior. They can also make a room feel wider. The vertical lines of the room come from features like windows and doors or maybe a tall fireplace. They’re prized for giving a feeling of freedom and can make a room seem taller. Choosing a tall piece of furniture, for example, can lead the eye upwards and visually heighten the room. In any scheme a balance between horizontal and vertical lines is essential.

Dynamic lines like diagonals, zigzags and curves could come from a feature such as a staircase, but also can be created with tiling laid diagonally. They’re eye-catching and they inject a scheme with energy.

3. Form

(Image credit: Stefani Stein)

Form is shape, and that includes the shape of the room itself along with the objects within it like furniture, artwork and decorative accessories. These shapes might be geometric – those that have precise lines and angles – or natural – not just the irregular shapes of nature but curvaceous pieces.

Key with these forms is – once again – balance and natural shapes can bring softness to an interior in contrast to the stronger geometrics.

4. Light

(Image credit: Paul Raeside)

The vast majority of interiors make use of both natural daylight and artificial illumination. While the quantity and quality of daylight might seem fixed, it’s worth remembering that it can be filtered with drapery and window coverings.

It can also be boosted where it’s lacking with techniques such as hanging mirrors, borrowing it from other rooms, and, again, with a window treatment, although in this case one that allows maximum light to reach the room.

Artificial light comes from the room’s ambient or background lighting, the accent lighting that draws attention to objects or features, and the task lighting that makes a kitchen safe for food preparation, an office desk bright enough for working, or an area of a living space comfortable for reading.

Dimmer switches allow changes of atmosphere to be achieved with the lighting, while the choice of the light fixtures and fittings themselves will contribute to the room’s appearance.

See: Living room lighting ideas – wonderful ways to light your living space

5. Color

(Image credit: Alexander James)

Color is important not just because it creates a mood in a room, but because it has the power to make a room feel larger, lighter, or cozier. Of course, it’s vital that the color selected complements the room’s use with more restful shades for bedrooms, for example, or energetic hues in a home office.

The hour of the day, and whether it’s seen in natural light or artificial will affect a color’s properties, so success in using it means considering this before making a selection.

Discover more about the importance of accent colors and how to use them in our guide.

6. Texture

(Image credit: Davide Lovatti)

Texture counts because of how it feels, of course, but also because of how it looks, and every part of a room scheme from furniture and floorcoverings to fabrics and decorative accessories contributes to the selection of textures in a room. Mixing textures and contrasting them add to the depth and interest of the room scheme.

7. Pattern

(Image credit: Natalia Miyar)

Pattern’s another element that adds interest and life to a room, just like texture, and might come from an area rug, wallpaper, soft furnishings and artwork. The style of the pattern whether that’s floral, geometric, abstract or any other design should be in harmony with the overall style of the scheme.

Also important? The scale of the pattern in relation to the space, and the area which it covers so that the interior doesn’t become hectic.

You can find out more about how to mix pattern in a room in our masterclass.

Room design by Natalia Miyar .

Sarah is a freelance journalist and editor. Previously executive editor of Ideal Home, she’s specialized in interiors, property and gardens for over 20 years, and covers interior design, house design, gardens, and cleaning and organizing a home for H&G. She’s written for websites, including Houzz, Channel 4’s flagship website, 4Homes, and Future’s T3; national newspapers, including The Guardian; and magazines including Future’s Country Homes & Interiors, Homebuilding & Renovating, Period Living, and Style at Home, as well as House Beautiful, Good Homes, Grand Designs, Homes & Antiques, LandLove and The English Home among others. It’s no big surprise that she likes to put what she writes about into practice, and is a serial house renovator.

7 Elements of Interior Design that define and refine your space

The 7 Elements of Interior Design are what make the preface to the process of designing an interior of a space. They are fundamental design tools or rules based on which a physical space is defined. Interior design as exciting as it is, can become a daunting process if you lack the clarity and knowledge essential to design your dream home.

Here, we discuss the 7 elements of interior design that make up for an interior that is both aesthetically pleasing and efficient in functionality:

Elements of Interior Design

Space: In simple terms, space is the area available to work within a room. It is in this defined space that an interior designer designs the structure, divides the space to serve the purpose of the room.

Space is divided into 2 types. While the length and width of a floor are considered as two-dimensional space, length, width, and height are considered as three-dimensional space. A defined space is divided to accommodate interior furniture, objects and create pathways based on these dimensions.

Apart from this, space is also divided into positive space and negative space. Any space that is filled with furniture and decor is defined as a positive space in interior design. Whereas negative space in interior design is the empty area around and in between all the décor pieces. Striking the right balance between positive and negative space in interior design is the true mark of an interior designer.

Space in Interior Design

Form: Form, or referred to as ‘shape’ is the shape of a room and the objects that go into the room. Form refers to the shape of any three-dimensional space or object. Forms are divided into organic/natural forms and geometric forms. Organic form refers to anything that seems to be derived from nature and has no definite shape or form. These forms create a natural feel in the space. Generally looking man-made, geometric forms are hard lines and square edges.

Form in Interior Design

Light: Light is a vital element of interior design. Be it natural or man-made light or a combination of both, without well-designed lighting, all the other elements and objects fail to show their full potential. For instance, living rooms usually go with a combination of softer light and natural light.

Light in Interior Design

Line: The implementation of line in interior design is one of the important 7 elements of interior design. Three types of lines – horizontal lines, vertical lines, and dynamic lines help shape the room and provide a definite structure to the room. An Interior designer believes that while interior furniture like tables makes up the horizontal lines, they give a sense of stability and security. Vertical lines comprise features like windows, doorways. Vertical lines, on the other hand, depict a sense of freedom and liberty. Dynamic lines which include zigzag, curved lines offer excitement and energy. Inculcating a strategic usage of horizontal lines combined with vertical lines reflects the skills of a talented interior designer.

Line in Interior Design

Colour: This doesn’t need a definition, isn’t it? As simple as the word sounds, getting the colour right for an interior is not a cakewalk. With myriads of colours and shades, interior designers need to be cautious about the colours they choose. Colour is an integral part of the elements of interior design as they define the mood, create and alter the perceptions of large and small spaces.

Colour in Interior Design

Pattern: A pattern is created by the use of a repetitive design and can be found in wallpaper, soft furnishings, rugs and fabrics of an interior. The Pattern comes in various types, such as stripes, geometric, pictorial, organic, motif and animal prints.

Pattern in Interior Design

Texture: Texture simply refers to the way an object feels. The feeling can be obtained without actually touching the object. For example, if you say ‘the living room is luxurious,’ you are implying the texture of the living room without experiencing any physical touch as such.

Texture in Interior Design

The 7 Elements of interior design play an important role in designing a physical space. Be it a house or office, without the seven elements of interior design, your dream home will remain a dream! Learn about the elements of interior with our 3 years BSc. in Interior Design and Decoration prograame.

why we need it and how to use it

Emptiness in our culture is perceived as the absence of something, a sign of trouble, spiritual and material poverty. But in design, the main property of emptiness is its neutrality. Empty or negative space is essential to balance the interior visually and functionally. And don't let the definition of "negative" confuse you - there is no negative in the usual sense of the word in such a space.

Why

In the interior, negative space is a place free from furniture, decor and any other items. In design, it is regarded as "air" or a blank canvas, allowing a deeper sense of colors, contrasts and boundaries of objects, combining elements into a composition and drawing attention to them.

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Even in spacious apartments and country houses, there is often not enough “air”. Our cultural perception of emptiness tells us to occupy every free space, if not with furniture and decor, then at least with a print on the wallpaper.

Often, the only negative space in our interiors is functional emptiness, that is: free space necessary not to bump into objects when moving around the apartment, so that cabinet doors do not knock down lamps, and the sofa can be expanded.

Elementary ergonomics calls for leaving free space between objects, the quality of life and household comfort directly depend on it. And the more such space, the more comfortable we are.

Empty space in the interior is a luxury that not only allows freedom of movement, but also allows you to achieve visual balance, while the lack of “air” can spoil the whole composition. Even if all the elements of the interior are in harmony with each other, it may be crowded for them to live next door. In addition, an overloaded background does not allow you to pay the deserved attention to any of the elements of the composition. No matter how good a designer sofa is, it can be visually crushed by the abundance of neighbors. Even the light is "lost" in a crowded room, encountering many obstacles in its path.

Negative spaces have an anti-stress effect: having the right background, we know where to look, paying tribute to each accent object, and not moving our eyes from subject to subject. Visual balance is calming, while feeling cluttered can cause emotional discomfort and anxiety. An unbalanced abundance of decorative and furniture elements is perceived as a mess, even if it is not.

As

If a living space doesn't boast infinite ceilings, open floor plans, spacious rooms, and other interior perks, negative space can be present in wall decor.

You need to understand that just a bare wall can cause a feeling that they have forgotten about it and a constant desire to hang something on it, a completely different thing is negative space, thought out in advance by the designer as an important element of the composition.

Negative space, along with an abundance of natural light, is at the heart of Scandinavian and Oriental minimalism, but is welcome in any interior style and becomes a good canvas for eclectic interior experiments.

"Air" is especially important in the living room and bedroom, where we relax ourselves, which means we are looking for rest for the eyes. Neutral white walls can be ditched in favor of a muted, sophisticated hue. A bright color will be too dominant - such a “canvas” can no longer be called clean.

Leave negative space between groups of objects whenever possible. This approach is the logic and order in the interior, this is especially important for rooms that combine two or more functions, such as a kitchen-living room or a bedroom-study. Negative space is the best zoning tool.

This is all good, but what if there are a lot of things, but there is really little space? Minimalism and real everyday scenarios in the interior can be mutually exclusive concepts. Hidden storage systems, “disguised” as the color of the walls, will help maintain visual balance on a small footage. In fact, such built-in solutions, of course, will “eat up” the space, but they will visually unload it and put things in order.

Fashion trends in the interior-2021

The main fashion trends in the modern interior were set for next year even in this year, which is generally logical. The activity of Greta Thumberg led to a great interest in nature and ways to preserve it in its original form, to the use of natural materials or, as they say now, to environmental friendliness in everything. The pandemic set the theme for mixing and flowing into each other zones for different purposes in an apartment, where most people now spend almost all their time - both during work and during leisure.

In pursuit of lightness, airiness, light and space, the main thing is not to give up the necessary functionality. A competent design project will help to visually balance the interior without compromising your convenience.

#Light #Decor #Ergonomics

10 expert tips • Interior+Design

Villa Savoy, Poissy, France, 1928-1931.

Le Corbusier, of the five principles of the new architecture: « Since the walls are no longer load-bearing (due to the use of a reinforced concrete frame), the interior space is completely freed from them. As a result, the interior layout can be organized much more efficiently.”

Mies van der Rohe. Villa Tugenhat. Brno. 1928-1930.

Mies Van der Rohe, architect: “Many people think that a free plan means absolute freedom, but this is not true. The free plan requires the same discipline and thought from the architect as the traditional plan."

TED Milan showroom in the interiors of a villa designed by Gio Ponti. 1930s

Gio Ponti , from the nine principles of the architect: “Apartments should have the maximum amount of built-in furniture. Each apartment should have three parts: service, day and night. Service rooms should not be in contact with front rooms. Balconies, terraces and windows should be considered as part of the apartment, curtains and flower boxes are a must.”

Room 606, Royal Hotel, Copenhagen. The interior and furnishings were designed by Arne Jacobsen.

Arne Jacobsen , architect, designer: “Proportions are the main factor. It is the proportions that make Greek temples so beautiful. And when we look at the most outstanding buildings of the Renaissance and Baroque, we see that they all have perfect proportions. This is the most important thing."

Joseph Diran, Parisian interior.

Joseph Diran, architect: “I don't like crowded rooms, it's true. I like to work with volumes, play with textures, I like to bring out the texture of stone and wood. My interiors only seem empty. You need to peer into them, then you comprehend all their beauty.

Related: Joseph Diran: New Parisian Chic

André Fu. Boutique hotel The Upper House.

André Fou , architect: “My approach is based on a new conceptual language of “imposing luxury”. I always like to compare the creation of an interior with a story, in which each new turn of events brings surprise and fuels curiosity. In design, three categories are important to me - image, memory and emotions. I'm working on their dialogue, writing a narrative that is meant to create memorable memories."

Francis Sultana. Mansion in London.

Francis Sultana, designer, gallery owner: “The interior should be sophisticated and at the same time cozy – comfortable for life. Despite the fact that I do high-profile projects, I pay a lot of attention to practical components. For example, storage systems. Customers usually forget about such “little things”, we have to remind.

Apartment on 5th Avenue, New York. Studio Bill Sofield.

Bill Sofield , designer: “The role of lighting in an interior cannot be overestimated. However, most designers rely too much on architectural light. The surest way to make a room smaller than it is is to mount spotlights in the ceiling (they look like smallpox marks on the face of a house).