“Open any magazine like FABULOUS FLOORS and you’ll find a mix of colors, styles, textures and materials on just about every page. All homeowners want their space to feel just as glamorous, fun or ‘pulled together,’ yet still want their own décor to reflect their personal tastes, lifestyles and personalities.”

That’s the view of Leslie Shankman-Cohn, award-winning member of the American Society of Interior Designers and the recipient of the 2005 Tennessee ASID Designer of the Year award.

Leslie knows when customers say “I’m just looking” or her all-time personal favorite, “I’ll know it when I see it,” what she hears them saying is “Where do I start? How do I decide which colors to use? I know what I like, but I don’t know how to pull it together. Will the flooring I pick out in the store look different when it is installed in my home?”

As a designer, she’s constantly addressing these unspoken questions and offering guidance for selecting that perfect floor! It starts with color.

“Color,” she says, “is one of the most talked-about subjects in the design industry, and color impacts every kind of fashion, including floor fashion. Color is everywhere! It creates mood, atmosphere and ambience, so color evokes emotional responses.”

“Consumer demand in flooring is being directly influenced by the fashion industry and the Internet. We’re exercising our tastes in color by bringing in the colors that we’ve loved in clothing and shoes to use in our homes. Color palettes set by the fashion industry become the same color palettes used in interior design, which means that flooring now can coordinate with the rest of the home’s motif,” she says.

In flooring, Leslie points out that texture adds style, depth and pizzazz to any color choice. “Today’s advanced technology has produced beautiful offerings: bows, swirls, lattices, plaids, pin dots and fleur de lis that pop out in carpet constructed with cut and loop yarns. The textural interest in floors does not overwhelm you with pattern, but adds a subtle contrast that doesn’t compete with the fabrics in the room. Visual texture in carpet increases the perception of quality and value and offers a delightfully subtle contrast that gives extra ‘life’ to an otherwise flat color.”

Her advice? “Make color choices based on items you already have and love. For a monochromatic scheme select only one color with variations from light to deep. No matter what colors you choose, add interest to your design by adding proportion and texture.”

Varying the size and shape of accessories like pillows, photos, vases, lamps, etc., will add interest and balance, she explained.

“Be consistent by repeating colors, themes and decorating elements, and gravitate towards elements which add to your overall theme,” Leslie said, noting it’s why items such as a family heirloom side chair sticks out in an upscale, contemporary décor. She cautions that the home should be warm and inviting and not overwhelming. “Sometimes, simplicity can be most elegant.”

“Americans are opening up to the idea of mixing contemporary touches with antiques, dark woods (and that includes floors) and elaborate Continental styling we call traditional,” she said. “Designers call the mixing of styles casual contemporary, and it’s become the second most popular style right behind traditional,” she said.

Mixing old and new is where the biggest opportunity for real style lies and may explain in part the resurgence of pattern carpet, hardwood floors with the hand-scraped look, charming cork or rustic-looking laminate, ceramic floors, counters and backsplashes, updated linoleum and the masterpiece of the floor world, the area rug. Success in mixing styles is ensuring scale, balance, harmony, contrast and, yes, surprise –– yet with an element of simplicity.

“Mix it up!” she will tell you, and that means not only color and styles but also flooring textures. “There are no rules!”