4 Ways Lines Can Level Up Your Interior Space
When it comes to interior design, it’s often the subtle things that make the biggest impact. This couldn’t be more true when it comes to lines.
Line is one of the most fundamental elements of interior design. The concept generally refers to the natural boundaries between furnishings, lighting, colour, and architecture. They draw the eye in a specific direction, create natural boundaries and rhythm, and can accentuate certain parts of the room.
Serious designers know that lines play a huge role in how our brains perceive space and can affect the function and mood of any room. Lines can contain, transform, repeat, divide, connect and define all the details in our visual field.
Lines are simple in concept, but rather difficult to execute well. Here are four ways to use lines to truly level up your interior.
Lines can maximize or minimize a room
At its core, a line is any connection between two or more points. They imply a sense of direction, whether it's forwards, upwards, or even around. For this reason, interior designers often use lines to manipulate our view of the size and scale of a specific space.
Horizontal lines, for example, tend to elongate and stretch a space outward. They invoke feelings of stability and steadiness, and are therefore helpful in areas where people should feel relaxed.
Vertical lines, on the other hand, extend away from our visual plane, bringing the gaze upward and making the space taller. They convey a sense of strength, and can therefore work well in grander or more formal settings.
In the common area pictured above, we used lateral wood slats on the ceiling to give the room more length, while incorporating perpendicular lighting fixtures to guide traffic through space. The ceiling fixtures suggest an openness to the area, while the vertical lighting helps guide movement through the space effectively.
Lines create drama and playfulness throughout the design
Our shared notion about lines is that they are one-dimensional and flat. But in interior design, lines can be dramatic and dynamic, and can often turn a one-dimensional room into a visually rich and exciting space.
It’s important to use various types of lines to keep the eye interested. In the photo above, you can see how a variety of lines creates pockets of visual interest throughout an office space. In one meeting room, we used two diagonal, intersecting lighting fixtures, and ring-shaped fixtures in the adjacent corridor.
Curved lines are often associated with softness and relief, while diagonal or angular lines can evoke action and attract attention. A well-designed interior will have a mixture of these kinds of lines, creating a playful and energetic feel to the space.
Lines help furniture and fixtures pop
While lines help us gather information about the scale and proportion of a space, they also can help bring out other components within that space. Every room should have its wow factor, and lines help define those parts of a room that catch your breath.
Contrast is the secret ingredient to making anything from a sofa to an accent wall stand out. Creating contrast in a space by juxtaposing two elements that are each other’s opposites is a good way to maintain harmony without making everything look and feel the same.
When opposing line directions converge, they create a striking difference between two elements. In the office pictured above, you can see a wall partition with a vertical wood grain. The wall planters are similar in colour and texture to the wall behind them, but they have a horizontal grain, which distinguishes their shape and allows them to poke out.
Lines create rhythm and repetition
We often hear about rhythm in the context of music. Rhythm is the string that ties all the core parts of a song together; a strong, repeated pattern of movement. Interior designers also approach rhythm in a similar way.
Lines can bring a sense of movement to a space, carrying the eye throughout the room at a specific tempo through repetition and contrast. They create an ultra-fine cue that can make or break how we view and interpret what we’re seeing.
In the photo above, you can see rows of wood slats that intersect at specific angles. This repetition is interrupted by ovular light fixtures, that keeps the rhythm interesting and elegant.
Choose your lines carefully
Lines are a subtle element of a room’s design. The average person may go through an entire space without noticing its lines. Nevertheless, they are a crucial component of any project that can play a make-or-break role in how a room looks and feels.
An experienced interior designer will know how to use lines to create a sense of rhythm, balance, contrast, and scale, so your interior space can captivate and impress.
Looking for more insights on the fundamentals of interior design? Reach out to 34F Design to get all the information you’ll need for your next project.