Fresh and modern, the interior of this apartment located in the historical city of Bojnice, Slovakia surprises you with both, its warmth and a clean design line. Designed by RULES Architekti and defined by comfort and spaciousness, the place is, in fact, the result of a merger between two smaller apartments. With a wide living room and a terrace overlooking the city, the apartment was designed to fit the tastes of the owner, who wanted a place that breathes, uncluttered and at the same time, with minimal requests for maintenance. The day-zone (comprising the living room, the dining area and the kitchen) is envisioned as one unitary space.

Wood is quite present and it adds a sense of warmth. The living room area boasts two black fabric sofas adorned with white detailing. The coffee tables completing the décor contrast with the dark couches. This entire “section” is placed on a rectangular-shaped wooden surface. The interior simply opens to the outdoor environment through a wide terrace with a matching wooden “carpet”. Long dark curtains add a sense of privacy when needed. In terms of colours, black, white, silver and wood-like nuances are dominant. The strange mix of wood, lacquered surfaces and stainless steel confer to this place that modern feel. This is definitely one of the best interiors discovered so far in Slovakia!

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Ask any homeowner what the top amenity that they love about their home and their response is usually the views and the location. In fact, many homeowners can stand to live in a smaller home if it means they will have a great view, and the windows that deliver this view is essential. Every room in your home can benefit from beautiful windows and there is countless number of design styles to choose from. If you have been looking for ways to brighten your interiors, look to your windows. Here are 10 ways your home’s window design can influence your interiors.

1. Natural light is a source of healthy living: 
Humans are no different than green plants. When placed in a natural lit room they grow beautifully and when kept in the dark they wilt and will eventually die. Natural light is the source for our body, mind, spirit and connectivity to the outdoors and is a primary source for healthy living. Regardless of how your window looks, ensure your home has a source of natural light in every room, when possible.

2. Choosing windows that compliment the room:
If you are fortunate enough to plan out the design of your home with an architect or contractor, consider the space the window will be placed in. Tall ceilings and voluminous rooms could benefit from clearstory windows high above the ground or multistory windows that are typical in atriums and multistory foyers. Smaller rooms can still take advantage of plentiful sunlight and views with windows that have a lower sill height to the floor. Choose a style that takes into account your room’s best features.

3. Framing the perfect view outside your home:
There is nothing quite like waking up to a picturesque view of the ocean through floor to ceiling glass windows or enjoying the city lights below through your curtain wall windows of your urban loft. Windows are more than just openings in the wall, they help you capture the outdoors and bring them into your home. If designing your home from the beginning, determine what perfect views you want to capture first and then choose a window that will enhance it.

4. Opening your ceiling view with skylights:
Another wonderful way to take advantage of natural light is through skylights. Your ceiling or “5th wall” has always been a surface that many homeowners forget about when designing their interiors. Skylights offer privacy and a source of natural light to rooms that normally couldn’t because of lack of space for windows on exterior walls. Skylights also serve as a design feature and come in fixed and operable varieties and you can install window treatments over them for light control.

5. Consider a variety of opacities for your privacy needs:
Do you have that room in your home where you would love to have natural light pour in but you need privacy too? Bathrooms are a prime example of where privacy is priority but bringing in light is as well. Consider a variety of opacity levels for your window style. Transparent glass you can see straight through, while translucent glass is common in glass block windows in bathrooms. The view is obscured but natural light can still enter. There are many window manufacturers that offer a variety of windows for your privacy and design specifications.

6. Clerestory windows let in light but leave valuable wall space free
In many homes wall space is at a premium. Whether you are an art collector and like to display wall artwork or you prefer privacy on certain exteriors walls, clerestory windows are the perfect solution. Clerestory windows are located high off the finish floor level, usually close to the roofline to still enable natural light to pour in but frees up valuable wall space. They also are used as a design feature by architects to give the appearance of the roofline as floating above the structure and can be used in a variety of applications.

7. Design your windows around the orientation of your property
If you are in the planning stages of your home consider the geographic location of your home and how your house will be situated on your property in accordance with the sun. Architects and contractors alike will tell you to “walk the property” when choosing design features of your home. You may not want to put a window wall of glass in a bedroom where the early sun wakes you if you’re a late riser! Similarly look at climatic changes and seasonal changes for your area to maximize hot and cold temperature changes when choosing the right window.

8. Use a variety of shapes and sizes of windows for visual interest
There are no specific design rules when it comes to choosing window shapes and sizes and therefore let your design side come out when choosing the perfect ones! Many architects like to play with voids and solid space on walls and place windows in interesting configurations that are appealing to the eye as well as takes advantages of gorgeous views. From rectilinear and curvilinear varieties to custom shaped windows look to window manufacturers to see all of the options available to you.

9. Look to solar glazing to save energy and your furnishings
Another consideration when choosing windows is how much heat gain and loss through your glazing or windows is transmitted. Several window manufacturers sell solar glazing or windows that keep more harmful Ultraviolet or UV light from penetrating into your home. We already know the potential harmful affects of UV light when outdoors but the light can also fade your furniture and finishes as well.

10. Use your window wall as the “artwork” for your interiors
There isn’t any better piece of wall art than nature. When choosing colors and finishes for your rooms look outside to the view to get inspiration. A kitchen that overlooks a gorgeous garden through picture frame windows may not need a lot of color to compete with the beautiful view. Windows can help you reinvent your interiors by using the view as inspiration!
architectday readers we’d love to hear how your windows inspire your home’s design.

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Throughout architectural history architects and designers alike have had to find creative ways to address the issue of structure versus aesthetics in building homes. Columns are one of those design challenges that are essential for structural support to carry the loads from the roof, upper floors, or other weight bearing loads down to the ground to support your home. While you may think that columns have to be covered there are some gorgeous ways to display them proudly! Here are 10 creative ways to use columns as design features in your home.

1. When designing your home think about the structure first:
If you are fortunate enough to have a hand in the design and aesthetics of your home, talk to the structural engineer and architect about options for creatively addressing columns. Especially in large great rooms such as living and family rooms or open kitchens that may have a second story above, ask the design professionals if you can plan how you will use the space so large columns aren’t stuck in inopportune places if possible.

2. Plan your furniture layout around your columns:
For many homes columns can become the focal point of your space. Exterior decks are a great example of how wood, stone, stucco and brick can be creatively displayed as column wraps and outdoor furniture seating arrangements can use similar materials and colors to play off of the aesthetics. Don’t be afraid to try and plan your furniture around the columns for an enjoyable seating arrangement for guests.

3. Adding luxurious details with the addition of columns 
If you want to add grandeur and scale to your interiors, there is no better architectural feature than columns. Classical columns with eye-catching capitals (the top of the column) can be displayed as basic Doric and Tuscan style with simple lines or can be as elaborate as Corinthian style with intricate leaves, swirls and detailing. Used in a main foyer or even in your large master bathroom will create a luxurious and classical atmosphere.


4. What architectural style of columns could your home benefit from?
Architectural periods have come and gone and there are features from every period that characterizes how they addressed structure and columns. Consider researching architectural periods or asking an architect what style of columns would match the architectural theme of your entire home. This will help keep your home true to a specific design era.

5. Create a focal point using greenery around your exterior columns
While you may only think about columns for utilitarian uses they can also serve as creative focal points, especially on an outdoor patio or terrace. Trellises and arbors have always used greenery to vertically display greenery and so can columns. Ask a landscape designer what type of foliage is ideal for climbing or clinging onto your specific exterior materials. Climbing ivy is a popular climbing plant in the United States and can be used vertically and horizontally in outdoor applications.

6. Choosing the best material for your interior columns
Depending on the design style of your interiors, consider what type of material will work best in your home. For many chic urban lofts the appeal of exposed steel columns that can be painted or left unpainted is a design aesthetic many love for their industrial-inspired homes. While if your home lends itself more towards refined and traditionally appointed interiors then drywall wraps around columns are a beautiful way to finish off an open basement or large room.

7. Customize your interiors with faux columns
While the original intent of columns were solely structural, designers and architects have found that using non-structural or faux columns to create a certain aesthetic in interiors is a great design element. Non-load bearing columns look beautiful in foyers and entryways and look beautiful in a colonnade on your outdoor porch.

8. Using columns as design elements in your home
Another design element to consider: use columns as the base for bookshelves, display niches and other creative display areas in your interiors. Many architects use columns to flank a fireplace on both sides and use built-shelves to display books, entertainment center media, sculptures and more.

9. Don’t assume a column can just “be removed” in your design
Many homeowners when trying to renovate or modify their homes take the careless assumption that they can just remove a column in order to open up a room or create a desired look they are going after. Consult with a structural engineer before deciding to remove existing columns. Damage to your home can result if removed or you and others can get seriously injured in the process.

10. Add visual focal points to break up outdoor spaces with columns
While columns are used for structural purposes they also serve as wonderful ways to break up outdoor space. A colonnade of columns aligning an outdoor entertaining space or used on a veranda overlooking a pool can look gorgeous. Try using the same materials of your exterior home to clad exterior columns for a pulled together and integrated look to your outdoor home.

ArchitectDay readers tell us how you use columns in your home to create a home you love to live in.

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 3D SURFACE is an innovation which arose from a meeting between three experienced craftsmen: Romano Zenoni and Alessandro and Stefano Fazzuoli. The combination of texture, shapes and materials especially developed by the company led to the creation of artistic wall panels, ideal for any modern decor. Thanks to the clever use of ceramic coated fiber-reinforced mortar solutions for interior and exterior, the surfaces can be used in any environment. Have a look at the elegant designs below and let us know your thoughts:

 The dry land is a source of inspiration and gives life to a multiple variety of effects.

 A wall of bamboo canes covers the panel, a perfect example of organic design suitable for any environment.

 Caos is characterized by a precise geometry. Light plays a fundamental role, giving the panel a strong personality.

 This wall is covered with soft cushions that fill the texture with softness and elegance.

 he waves of sand created by the wind inspire Deserto. The texture recalls natural scenarios:

 TA living garden that climbs up the wall. Sinuous lines grow continuously creating elegant and refined effects.

 Thousand lines outline specific scenarios, the rigorous motif meets the harmony of the small waves that compose the texture.

 A wavy texture recreates an idea of the sea’s movement with horizontal surfaces that suits any ambient

 The surface moves and ripples as a fluid creating a continuous solid curtain. The non-uniform development of the folds allows the endless vision of this continuous surface.

 Thanks to defined cuts the decoration of this panel becomes a futuristic texture with a strong aesthetic feature:

 Like a curtain the surface of ONDA develops a soft pattern that easily blends with the architecture surroundings. It’s vertical texture creates an optical effect

A new coating composed by small, soft, square pillows. Elegance and gentleness freely express themselves. Thanks to its compact size the texture easily adjusts to any environment.

Arianna is a panel characterized by a continuous curl that grows on the wall with continuity:

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