Hello, everyone!

Welcome to the first blog post for Cummings Custom Interiors. Now that you’re here, you might be asking, “What am I supposed to gain from visiting an interior designer’s blog?”

Good question. My purpose for this blog is to give you easy and practical decorating ideas and inspiration that you can use to customize your home. So many of our homes today are builder-grade tract homes, and it’s not easy to make your home feel like it’s your own without spending a fortune on remodeling.

I’d like to invite you into my home to show you how I’ve done this by decorating our master bedroom in order to fit my special needs.

Many of you are aware that I struggle with migraines.

If you didn’t know that…

Hi, I’m Amber, and I have lived with migraines for over 15 years.

When we moved to Houston, Texas, in 2015, my migraines became chronic. This means I was experiencing migraines fifteen or more days out of every month. (The good news is that with a lot of work and help from doctors, I now only have a migraine 4-8 times a month.)

Now, this isn’t a plea for sympathy or a public pity party (I love accidental alliteration). Many people around the world live fulfilling lives while affected by migraines, me included. We each find unique ways to mitigate the pain we experience.

One of the ways I learned to lessen my migraine symptoms was with interior design.

“Huh??”

Yep!

You see, when a migraine attacks, I often need to retreat to my bedroom to lie down.

But the windows in my bedroom cover almost an entire wall. They let in a lot of light. And bright lights are the ultimate enemy to migraineurs.

For the past several years, the trend has been to decorate in “light and bright” colors. You can find any home on HGTV or Fixer Upper, and it’s likely going to look something like the image below.

I would love for my bedroom to look like this, but it’s not suitable for my specific needs. My solution?

A cave.

(Just kidding. That’s not my actual bedroom.)

We chose a dark purple paint color for all of the walls in our bedroom in order to make the whole room darker. (Remember, basic color theory tells us that light colors reflect light and dark colors absorb light.) I also purchased 6 blackout window curtain panels and installed them over the existing blinds. This effectively blankets my bedroom in darkness in the middle of the day.

But I didn’t want my bedroom to literally look like a cave…I don’t like bats.

As a result, almost all of our furniture and décor are light colored- the dresser, nightstands, bedding, and curtains.

We also have two large mirrors which give the illusion that the room is larger than it really is. These functional design choices make the dark walls feel less oppressive.

The big takeaway? Interior decorating is about more than just aesthetics and trends. It’s about making your home a place where you can live comfortably. My goal for our master bedroom was to create a room where I could escape the pain of migraines. I have accomplished that goal, and- even better- it’s a beautiful room in which I enjoy spending time. I love that decorating my home can give me practical solutions to the challenges I face.

What struggles do you have that interior design could alleviate?

Do you struggle with anxiety? Changing the color scheme of your home to something calming, like blue or green, could lessen your symptoms.

Do you have a child with a learning disability? Removing distracting elements like lots of bright colors and shapes may help them concentrate better. Installing atypical seating and lighting (a hammock seat and rope lights, for example) can be helpful for children with sensory processing difficulties.

Maybe you have a parent who has difficulty walking or is confined to a wheelchair, and different flooring would improve their mobility.

Accessibility is an important factor to consider when decorating your home, especially if you live with a disability. For me, one of the most rewarding parts of being an interior decorator is coming up with creative solutions to daily problems.

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