LIFE SPACES
Style & Function
Bringing Technology Home
By Traci McBride
Styling is my superpower; technology is not. Yet, I enjoy its efficiency. Here are ways I’ve found to introduce tech into stylish spaces:
Picture This
When my collection of photos of my adorable grand-kiddos grew, I discovered how challenging it was to find space to display them. After I downsized, I had even less room.
My solution was a digital frame with hundreds of pictures and short videos. Adding pictures from anywhere with my phone was a timesaver. Gone is clutter on every surface, and now I easily choose a few to frame. Not only can I enjoy photos at a glance as they rotate through the frame, but I also have found an unexpected bonus: the kids can see themselves and their faraway cousins and recall the fun activities we’ve done over the years. It has inspired conversations that would never have happened if the pictures stayed on my phone or computer.
Another techie item people enjoy, yet I’m too paranoid to own, is a voice command device such as Alexa, Dot or Echo. My sisters use them to control lights, play music, read books, remind them of things they must do, and do other tasks. The challenge is when something goes awry, a power outage, for example. They aren’t sure how to reconfigure their devices and call someone to help. These little marvels, while sometimes tricky, are small and easy to hide inside or behind decorative items on a shelf or table.
Hand-in-hand with form and function are concealment and camouflage. It begins with choosing products with excellent design, such as sleek air purifiers or bladeless floor fans and ceiling fans with invisible blades. Add a frame to a wall-mounted TV to add style and clever camouflage to an otherwise black hole.
Technology generates cords, and, while necessary, they can be messy. I suggest tying them together and tucking them into decorative items like boxes, vases and plants. Fabric cord covers, like those that hide chandelier chains, are another way to get them out of sight. Plastic cord conduit can blend cords into a wall. Try painting conduit to match the wall or shelf to help erase cord clutter.
Technology and style come at a cost, and choosing where to invest in each is a personal matter. A few years ago when I needed custom window shades, I opted for cordless top-down, bottom-up manual shades in our bedroom and pleated, cordless pull-downs in the living room. I now wish I had remote shades in the living room because, with a new furniture configuration, it’s tough to reach the shades.
Music speakers aren’t attractive, but you can use curtains, plants and other objects to disguise them, set them into a cabinet or paint the wall behind them the same color to melt into the background.
For many of us, our day-to-day workhorses are IRobots, Ring security, Nest thermostats, and WI-FI routers. We hide our WI-FI up high and out of our sightline while ensuring it gets a clear signal. Our Ring doorbell and cameras give a sense of security and are designed thoughtfully to blend into any aesthetic.
Favorite tech creature comforts are cordless and rechargeable lamps and wall sconces. With no complicated writing, we can put them anywhere we want to introduce style through lighting. Remote candles look authentic, with melted “wax” and realistic, flickering flames. These items have remote controls, so think about how and where you use them and if they need to be kept out of children’s hands. Almost anything can be used for a remote charging station that’s both practical and aesthetically pleasing, such as a basket, box or bowl. Remember to label the remotes.
Consider time, energy and efficiency when incorporating technology into your decor. Take it step by step as you retrofit into your current space. If you’re building a new smart home, the only limit is your budget.
Photo by Traci McBride
