Designing with Stripes!

Striped walls is by no means a new trend.  Striped wallpapers have been around for over a century.  However, updated stripe styles are making a resurgance in today’s modern interiors.  Here I have created a gallery of various striped walls with descriptions.

My belief is that if you are going to stripe it up, you might as well do it to the extreme.  Make it bold!  Wide stripes look great just about anywhere- on headboards, painted on walls and ceilings, on wallpaper, on pillows, on chairs, on window treatments and on rugs!

Of course, wide stripes don’t look great everywhere- you certainly have to choose the right application.  Scale is very important in this case!  You need to make sure the repeat of the stripe isn’t too big and overwhelming for the piece you are putting it on.

Here are a few of my favorite examples of wall stripes:

Wide stripes create this very glamorous look and make the room look taller by continuing on the ceiling.

Here is a wonderful taupe and white stripe with a silver metallic edging.  Ralph Lauren makes a metallic paint that would be perfect for an application such as this.

How wonderful and daring!  The vertical stripe is continued onto both the floor and ceiling, becoming a horizontal stripe.  And to add a bit of the unusual, the two opposite walls are striped in the opposite direction to complete the look.

Here  this black and white theme is carried out all through this bathroom to create drama and a feel of space. What a beautiful look.

This black and white striped rug grounds the room by providing a darker shade to contrast the light turquoise walls. It also creates a sense of fun.

This bold blue stripe takes on an even bolder look when continued from room to room, and not just contained within one.  It also creates the illusion of a larger room.

In this room the white becomes the focus of attention when used in this manner.  The over-sized taupe stripe dominated the wall and adds drama in a subtle way.

And speaking of drama, continuing the stripe motif from the wall onto the ceiling is the best way to create drama in a room.  Additionally, the stripe is contained to the center of the wall and is not distributed throughout as in other rooms.

This traditional application of a stripe is a great use of color.  Navy, orange, grey and white combine to create a stunning look with stripes of equal widths.

Another always great application for stripes that liven up a space and create a fun and interesting feature: the window shade!

For more information about Interior Design and Feng Shui email Marie Burgos at marie@manobluedesign.com and visit our site on www.manobluedesign.com

Have you tried paint or wallpaper stripes look  in your home? Do you think that you are likely to add stripes in your home in the near future? If so please let me know about it by leaving a comment!