Inside the western home - Special Section - Cover Story

FROM THE HOT HUES enlivening a pair of painted pigskin stools to the monochromatic minimalism of a poolside pavilion, interior design ideas on these pages reflect the cultural richness of our region. Influences come from the wild West, from south of the border, from across the Pacific.

We show rooms splashed with broad brushstrokes of color, and rooms in which color is only the exclamation point. Practical tips suggest ways to shop for new choices in both the furniture and floor coverings of the '90s. Interior design in the West has never been more exciting.

MERGING INDOORS

AND OUTDOORS ... BORROWING

FROM JAPAN

WALLS SLIDE out of sight to marry the interior of this house with its surrounding patios and garden. The resulting rooms resemble open-air pavilions. The barrier-free sight lines challenged the owners to choose indoor and patio furniture that looks good in the same scene.

The house, designed by architect Steven Ehrlich for a narrow site against a steep slope, borrows a Japanese principle: joining interior and exterior spaces makes both feel larger. Two walls of the living room (shown on the previous page) and one wall of the dining room (pictured here) consist of floor-ceiling glass panels that slide on tracks, telescoping into wall pockets.

Further borrowings from Japanese design are translucent shoji panels, used as window coverings for the glass walls and as room dividers between dining room and kitchen. These lightweight panels also slide into wall pockets. The natural ash of their 46- by 93-inch frames blends with the bleached tones of oak-strip floors.

The shojis and floors provided an airy white-and-wood framework, carried through in furniture selection.

The curved white lacquer frames of the dining room chairs are compatible with the curving arms, backs, and legs of the patio's aluminum-frame chairs and lounges. Thin, tailored pads of all-weather polyster mesh on the patio furniture tie visually with the sliver-of-leather seats on dining room chairs.

The natural oak of the patio umbrella's pole and spokes picks up the wood detail of the dining chair cleats (right) and the frame of the shojis.

In the dining room, two lucite pedestals support a beveled-glass top to create a near-transparent piece of furniture. Glass also tops the patio table just ouside.

THE HOME GALLERY IDEA

FOR FAMILY PHOTOS

FEW OBJECTS can add more character and pleasure to a home than records of our own past. Yet most displays of family photographs--endearingly irregular in their mix of wedding, school, team, baby, and vacation pictures--end up a visual hodgepodge.

The displays pictured here create effective home galleries that allow expansion. Each puts some of these basic design principles to work:

* Group photographs for impact.

* For a wall display, choose one simple framing style and try to stick with it.

* Hang multiple rows so all bottoms and/or tops align (see hallway above).

* For a tabletop, keep frames all one material--silver, wood, plexiglass.

* For black-and-white shots, use white or pale gray mats, black or white frames.

* For color shots, use white, gray, or very dark mats; black, wood, or metal frames.

* Sepia tones look good in wood frames with warm-toned mats (but not the same tone as picture background).

Design: Joseph Terrell, Van-Martin Rowe, Ron Christensen.

STEREO

SPEAKERS

THAT HIDE

FROM VIEW

MUSIC is as much a part of many homes' interiors as furniture, floor coverings, or artwork. But few people besides audiophiles want a room punctuated by a pair of boxy speakers perched on pedestals, poking out of bookcases, or functioning as end tables.

Designers and equipment manufacturers are now addressing the task of subtly incorporating stereo equipment--particularly loudspeakers--into a room.

Many stereo stores now carry built-in speakers (they vary widely in quality and price), and some will install them or recommend an installer to you. Make sure the installer is licensed and insured. Better yet, call the Custom Electronic Design and Installation Association (CEDIA) at (800) 233-4230 for the names of qualified designers and installers in your area.

A home electronics designer knows the range of built-in speaker options available and can help you select the most appropriate model for your room--and your budget. A designer can also make sure the speakers are installed in locations that will yield the best possible sound. Speakers built into the wall generally need to point right at the listening area, so placement is important.

Interior designer often work with home electronics specialists to develop ideas for inforporating an entertainment system into a room. Some speakers, such as the one pictured at left, are designed so their outer frame (or bezel) can be plastered right into the wall. Joint or spackling compound is applied over the frame, sanded smooth when dray, then painted to match the surrounding wall.

Speaker cover options and