Design & Decor
Deluxe is in the Details
The elements of a luxurious home include set principles of design and a few self-determined choices of your own.
BY
Corinne L. Casazza
PHOTOGRAPHY
Steve Sanders

Luxury. What does it mean to you and how do you bring it into your home? Is it gold-plated faucets and voice-activated technology? Designer carpets or faux finishes? Or simply personal convenience?




John Wind of Piper-Wind Architects, part of the team that won our 2006 Home of the Year grand award, kept his design of the 14,000-square-foot house steady in scale and proportion. That, he says, is the first sign of a luxurious home, no matter what its scale. 

“When dealing with a house this size, it’s important to be sure that when people walk into a room, they feel comfortable, not overwhelmed by a huge volume of space or exaggerated ceiling height,” Wind says. 

How one moves through the house, and the transition from one room to the next, are other key elements. Transitions “soften the abruptness” of the change and lets one feel they are moving into another space, Wind adds.

More tangible is the finish of the rooms. Wind’s idea of a completed look starts with a sense of harmony from the wall and floor finishes to the fabrics on the sofa and the accessories. With the Home of the Year, Wind says he tried to give each room its own identity.

“For example, the living room has a beamed ceiling with wood planking between the beams. It has a very different feel than, say, the master bedroom,” he explains. Yet the master bedroom carries on with wood floors to coordinate the same warm look. Wind worked exclusively with natural products in this home to tie it together and make it feel like a quality, well-built home. “I believe that contributes to its feeling of luxury,” he says.

Arlene Ladegaard of Design Connection Inc. would agree. Natural materials played a significant role in the luxuriousness of her latest project. The master bedroom features natural fabrics such as silk, velvet and brocade.

“All the draperies were done in silks. It was the finishing touch to the home and added a lot of drama,” she notes. There are also crystals in the drapes to reflect and refract the natural sunlight as it enters the room.

“When you’re looking at luxury homes, you’re looking at the finishes. And you’re looking at granite, or some sort of a hard surface, upgraded tiles, or marble. This house has travertine in the entryway and a small mosaic in marble to accent it,” Ladegaard says. She recommends travertine because it’s relatively inexpensive compared with other tiles. “It just gives you more bang for the buck.”

She also suggests using accessories appropriately. “There should be a few important pieces and they need to be just the right scale.”

There is no rule to understanding scale, just intuition. And like fashion, you don’t have to buy exactly what the mannequin is wearing but be careful when striving for your own unique look if you don’t have a sense of style.

“If someone’s wearing a plaid skirt and paisley top, you don’t know what to look at,” Ladegaard hypothesizes. “But designer pieces have different nuances of colors and shades that all blend in beautifully together. The same needs to happen in a room.”

Beyond cohesiveness, other factors that contribute to opulence are exclusivity and uniqueness. “Having a one-of-a-kind piece gives a feeling of luxury,” says Paula Leigh of Delaware Interiors. “It doesn’t have to be outrageously expensive, just different. Seeing the same thing every place else is not luxurious.”

To illustrate this point, Leigh recalls a client’s collection of antiques she showcased in their French-inspired home to express the owner’s personality. Other details in that home include wide, restored wood planks for the floor, a limestone entryway and iron chandeliers.

“A blending of old and new, antique and reproductions bring a feeling of warmth. Using the best elements one can in any fashion is what works,” Leigh says.

Kelly Stratford of Stratford and Foster thinks lighting also plays an important role in posh surroundings. “I like to use lamps, candlelight, sconces and chandeliers. Lighting always affects all the colors and fabrics in a room. These indirect lighting types are warm and inviting, not overwhelming.”

Proper use of lighting and materials are not easily achieved without professional help. Stratford believes homeowners are best served by using a designer and shouldn’t be intimidated by the idea of getting design help. A good designer will make you feel comfortable and will search out what best suits your needs and lifestyle, she says.

Leigh recommends having ideas in mind when you consult a designer. “We’re trained to help people consider different elements that they may not have thought of on their own. People often end up spending less money than they figured they would and get a much better overall job,” she says.

Even with the aforementioned philosophies and recommendations, there’s still no way to pinpoint “luxury.” It is achieved through a combination of the complete experience on the senses — “It has to do with what you see, what you touch, the softness of the fabrics, and even sounds that you hear,” Wind says.

And it is different for everyone. “It’s whatever feels good to you,” Stratford says.