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Community Corner

Striking Stripes 'Always in Style'

Whether you're going for a modern or more classic look, these bands of color are timeless.

Attending a pattern-design demonstration at the boutique at Troy’s this past week inspired me to take a closer look at fabric – not only in my closet but around people’s homes, in design studios and in home-interior shops.

Paige Smith, the Pulitzer designer who grew up in Bloomfield Village, talked about how colors and arrangement of graphic elements evoke a certain mood.

Indeed, when we see polka dots, we become lighthearted; when we see botanical or organic shapes, we tend to calm down. Geometric designs seem edgy and energetic.

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A favorite interior-design pattern is stripes, say area homeowners and designers. Seeing stripes, especially when paired with bright-whites, evokes a summery or nautical feel. Somewhat patriotic and always classic, stripes seem familiar and comfortable. Think of beach towels, flags and candy canes.

Interior designer Amanda Wolfe of Huntington Woods opted for a stripe motif for her son’s bedroom. She chose Serena & Lily’s chocolate-brown stripe bedding.

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“His walls have stripes on them, too,” Wolfe added.

"I love stripes because they can be bold or subtle depending on the width and colors," Wolfe said. "The wider they are, the more of a focal point they become, and the skinnier they are, they become an interesting background for a space. They can be contemporary or traditional depending on how they are used. There are endless possibilities."    

Janelle Rogers of Ferndale also likes lines of color; she used a striped theme in her guestroom on the walls.

"The lower half of the walls is brown and white stripes. The top is a light mauve color,” explained Rogers, who runs Ferndale-based Green Light Go Publicity, which focuses on local to international bands.

“The wall inspiration came from a pillow, which had this sort of Neapolitan look to it."

Wall stripes also intrigue Randy Engle of Troy. 

“Stripes are classic and timeless, and they give verticality, which is why our designer wanted to paint the walls with them in our small entryway,” said Engle, pastor at

“He wanted us to have hand-painted wallpaper, but that was not in our budget, so we did a hand painted wallpaper look for a fraction of the cost.”

The designer, Jeffery Roberts of Grand Rapids, chose three different shades of taupe, each with a different sheen. Not only does the Engle family have striped walls in their foyer, but also up the stairwell.

There are also stripes adorning the walls to the lower level. “Same idea,” Engle said. “When you take the same paint color and play with different sheens, it’s like ‘shadow striping’.” 

There, he used Benjamin Moore Shaker Beige, Pearl Shaker Beige and a matte tone. The Engles even bring the motif into draperies, as well; their family room features taupe-on-taupe striped curtains.

“I think the stripes on the walls create a sense of height in what is a 1970s home that doesn’t have a lot of space upon entering,” said Engle’s wife, Kathy Engle, a substitute teacher.

They agree that light affects the look of the walls. “We love the play of light on the different sheens. Like in the morning, it’s completely different than at night,” Randy Engle said.

Kitchens with pizzazz

Stripes add charm to kitchens.

Right now,  (Troy, Rochester Hills) has some pretty pink-and-yellow striped aprons in stock, as well as classic striped dishcloths in claret, blue and khaki. Or, check out the brightly striped decorative baskets – also perfect for fresh-cut flowers or a picnic lunch – that are available at in Berkley.

Culinary Specialist Honey Longo’s kitchen wall colors are a pale green and a buttercup yellow, so she considered those hues when recently choosing a linen-like fabric with stripes for a valance and chair cushion. The fabric features her kitchen colors and a beige tone. 

“The stripes look fresh and crisp, maybe because we tend to associate stripes with breezes … flags … coolness … seersucker stripes ... and orderliness.

And thanks to a Lauren blue striped shirt that her husband, Tim Murray, wears, Longo now associates stripes with “affection, attraction and admiration for him,” said Longo, who works for in Royal Oak.     

Experts weigh in

Interior designer Kristen Armstrong of KCID Design Studio in Birmingham often draws inspiration from Missoni stripes.

“And I love stripes in carpets and rugs,” she said. “Stripes are playful and mixable; I wouldn’t mix linear with linear, though, unless I had different scale and texture.”

Armstrong says stripes can refresh and update an existing look and throw a nice “curve ball into an established interior.” The designer suggests that if you’re going to recover, say, a chair, consider stripes, but be sure to run them horizontally.

Jan Jessup, a publicist for , suggests the “Lighthouse Stripe” from the company’s Ralph Lauren Classics Collection for those who are after a nautical look.

“It's 100 percent cotton and the stripes run horizontally; each stripe is 6.75 inches wide, so it's a really bold stripe and we love it.”    

Jessup also says homeowners can consider a striped sheer fabric to create a faux canopy in a beach house.

Never trendy

“Stripes are always in style — and bold stripes, wide stripes or multi-colored stripes are particularly prevalent right now,” Jessup said. “I think it's because they are the perfect companion to so many contemporary graphic prints in floral, aviary or other patterns.

"They are clean-lined and streamlined and can look modern without being trendy. A two-color or multi-color stripe is a way of bringing more color into a room without a riot of pattern.”  

An  (at Troy's Somerset Collection) trend report states that stripes in any scale bring color into a space, especially one that’s being overworked in white or beige. The pattern can bring a room to life, especially a bold stripe like what Arhaus shows on its Platinum dining chair.

The traditional high-back seat features a modern edge in a platinum and cream-colored stripe combination. This is what the retailer calls “statement seating.” Stripes are also a great way to introduce another pattern to a space, the report said.

Calico Corners’ Jessup adds that stripes are usually run vertically on furniture and on window treatments, but they are seeing more and more stripes run horizontally, like a rugby shirt.

“It's a more casual application and it can be a fun look on informal furniture," Jessup said.

Calico Corners’ many fabrics show stripes that range from nautical, military and casual (think ticking stripes) to sweet and summery (think pinstripes and seersucker).

“Tailored and crisp, bold and graphic, even formal (regency stripes),” Jessup said. “It all depends on scale, color and texture. Stripes take the prize for versatility.” 

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