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INTERIOR DESIGN VS. INTERIOR DECORATION: EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW

INTERIOR DESIGN VS. INTERIOR DECORATION: EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW

bedroom interior design with wardrobe Chennai | Tint Tone Shade

The age of Instagram and Pinterest has certainly refreshed our taste in design. But what we see in these pictures are often a mixture of styles and techniques that come under different labels like interior design, interior decoration and interior styling.

While interior designing goes deep into the space with customizations and design modifications, interior decoration and styling lay on the surface level—interior decoration often talks about the layers of décor that can be added on the existing design and interior styling talks about the aesthetic purchases and their fancy arrangements. New homeowners get confused the most about interior design and interior decoration, which is why we have this exclusive blog!

If you are looking out for interiors related work, give this blog a quick 7-minute read and make informed decisions about reaching the right professionals for your requirements! 

Interior design is more than the layers of decoration

Unlike interior decoration which plays with the layering of the elements, interior design binds everything together, from the layout to the composition of the elements. It makes way for the interior designer to take decisions on the alignment of the walls, placement of niches, planning of built-in furniture, dado works, false ceiling works and more that have the power to change the look and feel of a space.

On the other hand, interior decoration focuses on giving the picture-perfect look with surface treatments, interior textiles and more of material choices.

Here’s a secret: Home interior design calls for both interior design and decoration to make it look like one of those homes in top home decor magazines  

Interior design keeps everything bespoke unlike the other

The world of interiors faces the constant debate between bespoke and mass-production methods of approaching design—defining the sources of interior design and interior decoration respectively. Although the mass-produced, store-brought decoration items are economical and readily available to match the fast-paced millennial lifestyle, the beauty of the bespoke design always stands out.

Custom-made bespoke pieces in both furniture and décor used in interior designing add a different meaning to a space with their one-of-a-kind look and exquisite craftsmanship. It can be of any scale—as large as a pooja door crafted by a Kharghar in Rajasthan or as small as a hand-painted tilework imported from Turkey. Interior design tells a unique story with such commissioned works.

Here’s a secret: Mass-produced items fit into laid-back styles like Minimalism, Zen etc. that appreciate the commonness of items.

interior architect in chennai | Tint Tone Shade

Interior design can read your mood

Home interior design has always been a trending topic since it gets into a close association with us—our habits, mood and everything else that shapes us. The art of interior design experiments with the regular, rectangular rooms and surprises us with a design that creates a lasting impression. It can play both the ego and alter ego—it can choose to secure one’s privacy with partitions or celebrate the joy of living with open kitchens. There can be more room for conversations with sofa arrangements, quiet reads with window bays, rendezvous with bar cabinets and more that explores the lifestyle and mood of the people. On the other hand, interior decoration restricts itself to the smaller aspects of design like the prints on the cushion or the vases on the table that have a rather temporary effect on the mood of the setting. Here’s a secret: Top interior designers in India draw design concepts from the lifestyle of the people it is designed for.

Interior design lays its hands on the spatial shell unlike the other

When we talk about interior decoration, we talk about the fabric covering the couch, the choice of window treatments, the finish of the wallpapers, the addition of wall art, the selection of light fixtures and more that create a statement without disturbing the shell of the space. However, interior design challenges the design opportunities in a space and modifies it to create the desired ambience. With interior design, we can make a space feel larger with vertical shelving, brighter with glass windows, tidier with carpet flooring and trendier with feature walls, kitchen islands, dining peninsulas, elevated beds and more that illustrate the best of contemporary interior design. Here’s a secret: Interior decoration can give a spatial appeal as strong as interior design when brought as elements that create illusions such as mirror walls, 3D-painted floors etc.

Interior design is theoretical while decoration is personal

The quote explains why home interior design is seen as something that is close to the heart. Although the aim of design is to tell the story, it is often held back by certain thumb rules that have a theoretical way of incorporating that story—the 60-30-10 rule and the rule of 3 restrict the color palettes, among other aspects of design. There are more rules for furniture layouts, décor compositions, focal points, circulation and more that leave all of design at the hands of the interior designers. On the contrary, interior decoration enjoys the commoner’s way of working with a space, by making way for personal choices in color, patterns and everything else that strikes the eye. Here, personal taste overrules professional practices and throws a different perspective on a space’s interior. Here’s a secret: Top interior designers in the modern era are creating a buzz by breaking the rules and creating a signature of their own with colorful interiors. Are you looking for such interior designers who balance both interior decoration and design?