Designer Barry Dixon thinks surroundings should invite and comfort.
Look around your home and take note of what you see and how it makes you feel. Is it beautiful and practical? Does it make you look good and feel happy? Are the colors and textures inviting?
Then, urges renowned interior designer Barry Dixon, look out your doors and windows. Are the colors, shapes and textures you see outdoors also inside your home?
Dixon, who collaborates with C2 Paint, Vervain, Arteriors, Avrett and Tomlinson/ErwinLambeth for paint colors, fabric, lighting and furniture, thinks everyone should live in surroundings that are meaningful to them.
Of course, he lives on a 300-acre Edwardian farm in Virginia and designs homes all over the world. But his approach is both organic and simple: Each home should reflect its setting and how its owners plan to use it. Their personalities should be evident; the design, classic.
Dixon will be a keynote speaker Thursday at the Decorative Center Houston’s annual Spring Market. The Decorative Center — with more than 550,000 square feet and 1,200 manufacturer lines — is usually open only to trade professionals but opens to the public for this week’s free event.
His approach to his projects is less as an interior designer than as a cultural historian, blending centuries of trends in fabrics, colors and textures throughout a home’s furnishings.
A multinational upbringing in India, Pakistan, New Caledonia and South Africa informs his worldview. His inspirations, however, are often rooted in the tiniest of details.
“I started in my first collaboration inspired by colors on my 380-acre farm in Virginia,” Dixon said of his line with C2 Paint. “I photographed things I liked and Pantoned the colors.”
The color of a darkening sky became “Storm Approaching.” The pink of his favorite goat’s nose became “Belle’s Nose.”
A pendant light was modeled after the shape of a hornet’s nest, and the stilettolike legs of a mosquito inspired a table’s legs.
Dixon doesn’t dictate many design rules, but he does have recommendations for those wanting help at home:
Color: Moving from all-white walls to something with more color can be frightening. Dixon suggests using color in a room you don’t use often, then painting other rooms after you get used to it. Not sure what to try? Green is hot right now, he says, and his yellowish-green Viburnum from C2 Paint is one of his favorites.
Opposites: Selecting and arranging everything to be alike will likely put your home in a category with matchy-matchy bridesmaids. Instead, employ the tension of opposites, pairing masculine with feminine, organic with sleek and urban; shiny with matte, he says. In his own home, Dixon positioned a boiled willow chair next to a baby grand piano to mix crafty with elegant.
Layers: Layering clothing is a current fashion trend, but it works in your home, too. “I see a big trend in mixing and layering patterns, colors and cultures and things put together,” Dixon said. “It can be Bohemian or cerebral from the lowest to the highest level in pursuit of being individual. Make your home truly your own.”
Metals: Gone are the days when every faucet, doorknob and switchplate have to match. Feel free to mix your minerals: copper, brass, pewter and nickel.
Updates: Buying a new mattress or sofa is different from updating an entire room. Go for timeless design and you won’t feel the need for a complete overhaul so often. But if your room — or your home — feels dated, it may be time for a bigger project.
“If I walk into someone’s home, and it looks like a time capsule from an ’80s sitcom, it’s time to change,” he said. “If it looks like the set of ‘Friends,’ it’s time to change.”