Washington - The stripe is the ultimate fix.
Need to make a room to look taller? Paint or paper vertical stripes on the walls. Need to make a room look wider? Try horizontal stripes. Need to pull together a disparate colour scheme? Find a striped rug that incorporates each colour.
“Stripes are a problem-solver,” says Annie Selke, a Massachusetts-based designer and owner of textiles companies Pine Cone Hill, Fresh American and Dash & Albert Rug Co. (the last of which is popular for its approximately 150 striped rug patterns).
They can make a bold statement when wide or act as a textured neutral when thin. They can read as nautical when blue-and-white or classy when used tone on tone. It's no wonder that while other patterns come and go in popularity, stripes are here to stay.
“You might change other things in a room, but you can use the striped item again,” Selke says. “Stripes never go out of style.”
We talked to Selke and two other designers for tips and tricks when using the versatile pattern.
* Selke loves the way that British designer and boutique hotelier Kit Kemp uses stripes, remembering the ones used on a headboard in one of her hotels: “She used them in the headboard to create a focal point.”
* Although Selke generally likes her stripes to be bold, Maryland-based interior designer Dana Tydings likes her stripes subtle. “Use them carefully, use them sparingly. I'd much rather have them look low-key and elegant,” she says.
* For another twist on the classic striped pillow, Bethesda, Maryland-based Samantha Friedman recommends pillows that mitre together stripes to be borders or squares.
* If a room needs a focal point, Selke recommends wide, bold-coloured stripes. “I love stripes on most any piece of upholstered or slipcovered furniture,” she says..
* Stripes can even help with a blank, empty room. Find a striped pattern that you like, Selke suggests, and pull out colours for paint and accent colours in the room. .
* Stripes of different thickness can have different effects. A wide stripe draws the eye, while a thin stripe can act like a neutral, Selke says.
* “I love stripes on dishes, coffee cups, glasses,” Tydings says. ”
.
Lindsey M. Roberts, Washington Post
* Roberts is a freelance writer.