What should we pay attention to in American decoration?

Originally, I thought I was confident in speaking American. After all, I lived in North America, but when I really wrote it, I began to feel sad again.

From the industrial hole in Brooklyn, new york to the poaching of Alaskan animal specimens, from the white flat floor of Jobs' home in California to the country house with its own rose garden in New England, it seems that parents were not born!

Because the immigrant culture is too strong, "American" is as difficult to define as "American".

European style is probably a relative of American style, but in terms of the actual quality of life, Europeans throw out eight aspects of American style in the aesthetics of home soft clothes, such as porcelain decoration, painting, curtains and carpets. Because the American people who can afford it spend money on all kinds of big refrigerators, big color TVs, big ovens and jacuzzi!

There must be a simple and rude definition, that is, American style is the most casual and warm of all home styles.

This is related to the "comfort first" in American culture. LaZboy, an ugly and comfortable sofa mentioned in Friends, is definitely an American design.

Any style, if carefully said, can be said for days and nights. In the specific decoration practice, we can only try our best to grasp our understanding of the core of each style, and then find the solution of soft decoration according to this core.

The so-called American style, this core should be "comfortable and warm."

1. Can the Great Wall be American?

Since it is warm wind, the frequency of the Great Wall in American style is definitely much lower than that in Nordic style.

However, when it comes to American style, there is no need to persuade you to put up wallpaper. Painting walls is more common and practical. Think about it, too. Houses in the United States are basically spacious and love heights. How much does it cost to wallpaper?

The two most common colors of wall paint are as follows, both of which are particularly relaxed and pleasant. If you want to paint it in American style, that's fine.

Warm beige is common:

It is common for this kind of eggshell to be green and cool:

So it's better to paint the wall American. But home has been on the big white wall, okay? That's good.

But remember, American style walls can be white, but they can't be empty.

The above two pictures are both white, but the walls are not. They are all covered with paintings, wall lamps and vases.

Moreover, the decoration of the whole space is layered, from the chandelier at the top to the decoration of the wall, to the cushion on the sofa, to the candles and flower arrangements on the coffee table, to the carpet at the bottom, forming a vertical decorative chain.

The richness of soft clothes is a sign that "American style" is different from other styles, and it looks particularly "family", which is enough to make up for the monotony of the big white wall.

2. What are the representative elements of American soft clothes?

Since it is said that rich soft clothes are the core of American style, how do these soft clothes match?

Friends often send photos of their families to zebras. Sister zebra can always tell which friends live in North America with keen eyes.

Of course, the most obvious element is the fireplace, but the fireplace is really useless in China, so I won't talk about it today.

The walls are beige or egg white, the shutters are white, and the carpet is a fan-shaped chandelier. This must be a residence in North America.

The most valuable elements here, besides painting the walls, are 10 American-style fan-shaped chandeliers and 9 chandeliers.

The advantages of fan-shaped chandeliers are: firstly, they are relatively flat, which can avoid the heavy cloud feeling of many American wrought iron chandeliers. After all, the height of most American families is different from that of real North American houses.

The second is that the fan chandelier is really practical! When it's half hot and not cold, a small wind swishes in the room!

Another outstanding element in American style is decorative painting. For example, Mavis, the little friend of zebra sister, should conform to the "American style" in everyone's mind, and completely conform to the vertical decorative axis of "chandelier-decorative painting-sofa cushion-coffee table decoration-carpet" just mentioned above.

In contrast, the furniture in Mavis's living room remains the same. Let's try to change the soft clothes on the sofa and see what effect it has.

Ignore zebra's rough ps technology and see what happens next.

Gee, there used to be a strong American style on the left, so suddenly the right side is not so American, or the Nordic style is barely enough. ...

Look at the key to defining American style, the main light and decorative painting.

Nordic style decorative painting, characterized by black and white thin frames, with abstract patterns that can't be understood, and then mixed with sizes.

American-style decorative painting, with uniform tone and consistent format, is very common. The painting will cover the whole solid wood frame, and flowers and geometry are common themes.

Another element of the Mavis family is used correctly, that is, except for a few American styles that are mixed or retro-industrial. Most American styles don't like to use floor lamps like Nordic styles, but prefer table lamps with linen lampshades on both sides.

The above constitutes the simplest core collocation of "American style": "painted wall+pillow+founder painting+fan chandelier/multi-head chandelier+linen desk lamp".

This combination is suitable for both bedroom and living room.

Bedroom: light blue wall+fan chandelier+flower painting+mattress+linen desk lamp.

Living room: light blue wall+wrought iron chandelier+flower double painting+sofa pillow+linen desk lamp

As long as you master the core elements of this group of soft clothes, you can simply and rudely match an American style.

3. Can American style only engage in dark furniture?

"American style is all dark furniture" is a big misunderstanding. Many people are sad to say that Americans and China are stupid and can't tell the difference.

Americans like to use a lot of solid wood, leather sofas and dark wooden beds are also common, but whether it is the so-called American countryside or modern America, it is rarely dark, just a kind of "light".

If you don't believe me, look up at those pictures that just raised chestnuts. It's definitely not a few light colors. For example, the favorite RH sofa in American model rooms is light linen sofa.

The following is a real American living room built with RH sofa. Small apartments can be learned completely.

Have you seen the four-part painting with uniform tone and square format?

But why do many people leave a deep and dark impression on "American style"?

On the one hand, this is related to the marketing strategies of some domestic "American style" furniture manufacturers or design companies. They overemphasize the "dignity" of American style, and often make solid wood cabinets with black walnut leather sofas, which are darker and can be sold at high prices.

On the other hand, the American "country" style is really simple and heavy, and it is mainly used in suburban houses in the United States. It will be especially large, sunshade and occupy an area if it is placed in the urban family of China where the space is tight.

But even if an American is fat, he can be a white fat man!

Therefore, the small apartment should be American, and there is absolutely no need to take the dark route. There are many light-colored furniture to choose from.

Of course, the best way is to know what kind of American style you want first, and then find the corresponding furniture brand to learn.

3. What is country, modernity and beauty? How to distinguish?

The furniture industry in the United States is not as mixed as that in China. The home brands that you can easily see in American shopping malls were founded in the 1950s and 1960s, which accurately correspond to different styles and classes. Together, these brands can probably fully explain what is called "American style".

This is also a headache for many friends: how to distinguish "country style", "modern style" and "simple beauty style".

According to Sister Zebra's understanding, there are two mainstream styles in America. The first one is your most common "country style". The so-called "rustic" still inherits more traditional European aesthetics, so it can be regarded as a relaxed and happy version of rural European style.

The second is a more modern "modern style", that is, "contemporary", which was basically defined by the masters who promoted the great development of modern furniture in the United States fifty or sixty years ago.

But what is Jane's beauty? This China family's favorite American word seems to have no equivalent in American furniture stores! And many so-called "simple beauty" design cases, some are rural, some are modern, and some are like China's!

In the decoration practice in China, "Jane Beauty" has finally become a "slightly incomplete American style" more suitable for small apartments, which can be "simple country" or "simple modern style".

In fact, this kind of "American style with China characteristics" is also quite good, which is more suitable for the national conditions, but if you want to be more precise in style, you should first think about which beautiful way you want to simplify before you do it.

Let's talk about the first country style. Of course, the American country-style home brand is Taocang. If you want to be rustic, just follow this brand. It is said that they can buy them directly in official website and then ship them overseas.

The transparent blue handmade spherical flower arrangement shown below is also a particularly common decorative element in rural America.

Sister Zebra specifically said before >>& gt How to choose different styles of sofas.

For a country-style living room, you can choose this Lawson-style sofa with round armrests and a leather coffee table.

Small apartment can follow the following set: "round double sofa+rattan box coffee table".

In addition, the second modern style, corresponding to the typical furniture brand, is "Crate and Barrel", a symbol of the taste of the middle class in North America.

Sofa, armchair, coffee table and wall decoration are all square!

Modern style collocation of small apartment: founder double painting, cushion and carpet are still the same.

Generally speaking, modern style furniture is three times thinner than rural style, but is the wall still full? Therefore, even the same simple American modernity is much richer in visual elements than the Nordic modernity.

We can compare the difference between rural style and modern style. The pastoral style is "round sofa+leather or rattan box coffee table+yellow/green flower pillow", and the modern style is "square sofa+wooden or metal leg coffee table+solid color/geometric pillow".

Roughly speaking, the former is round and the latter is square.

In addition, you can use floor lamps in modern style, but you should choose standard ones and don't design poles with too sharp lines unless you want to mix and match northern Europe.

Another question is how to mix Nordic and American, so it's best to look at West Elm. Each one can be used as a case teaching diagram of small apartment "American+Northern Europe", which feels like IKEA+modern style in the middle of the century.

Nordic elements full of fishing lights, geometric carpets and abstract paintings:

Who says American furniture is heavy and dull?

Generally speaking, 99% of American families want to engage in American style, that is, the above three situations, "country style", "modern style" and "American Nordic mixed style".

If you want to remember the difference between them, just remember the difference between the three body types of "180 kg, 120 kg, 80 kg".

The rest 1% will go to RH to see "New Retro". Several RH signs such as "industrial fan long table" and "solid linen tablecloth" are typical elements of neoclassicism. The characteristics are very similar to a popular street shooting style recently, with monochrome and "homology".

Probably because of its unique style, RH's sales are quite hot. It is really remarkable that it can achieve an annual sales growth rate of 20% in the case of the continuous decline of physical stores in the United States. Once I went shopping, a sales grandfather told me that he sold almost $60,000 in one morning.

However, Sister Zebra personally thinks this style is a bit exaggerated, and privately she still likes another modern retro mid-century modern style in the United States.

Interestingly, many companies in Silicon Valley especially like this style. The chairs in the picture below can be seen everywhere on Facebook.