March Journal: The Foundation of a Home

Welcome to our March Journal! This month, we’re taking a closer look at how we develop the design concept at the start of each project. The concept serves as the foundation for the entire home, guiding the direction of the design and informing every decision along the way.

Starting with a strong concept helps us ensure the home feels cohesive from room to room, while also making decisions throughout the project more thoughtful and streamlined. With a clear vision in place from the start, every detail works together to support the overall design.

Let’s begin!

The Inspiration

When we begin designing a home, the first step is gathering inspiration. We pull imagery from a variety of places such as past projects, Pinterest, Instagram, magazines, books, travel, and more. These references help us start shaping the overall direction and feeling of the home.

From there, we narrow it down to a small collection of about eight images that capture the style, mood, and atmosphere we’re aiming to achieve. The spaces in these photos may vary, but together they represent a cohesive look and feel for the project.

Of course, we may still reference other images later for specific details or ideas. But in the early stages, we prefer to keep the inspiration focused. Endless scrolling on Pinterest can quickly become overwhelming, so selecting just a handful of meaningful images helps us clearly define the aesthetic and keep the design vision grounded from the start.

The Feeling

Next, we focus on how we want the home to feel. Rather than relying on broad style labels like “modern,” we work with our clients to understand the experience they want to have in the space. Do they want it to feel calm and relaxed, or more vibrant and energizing?

The feeling of a home is incredibly important because it ultimately shapes how a space is perceived and experienced day to day.

The Palette

Finally, we turn to the color palette. These core colors help ground the entire home. While additional hues may appear in small moments, the primary palette stays consistent throughout the space, helping create a sense of cohesion from room to room.

Establishing the palette early also helps guide many of the design decisions that follow, from materials and finishes to textiles and furnishings. With a clear set of colors in place, each selection naturally works together, allowing the home to feel balanced, intentional, and thoughtfully layered.