Divide It Up!

Room too big? Divide it up. Corner too dark? Awkward window? Screen it off. A room divider, which is made of tall panels that folds and unfolds, can be used in many ways. I used one when I used to have a space in an antique warehouse. We (my mom & I) bought some bi-fold closet doors, connected the four of them together, then upholstered it with two different patterns and finished it off with trim and upholstery tacks.  I used it to separate my space from the next space and hung paintings salon style on each panel. People asked to buy it all the time, although I wanted to keep it just for display.

You can find many ways to use a room divider, as seen in the following pictures below. You can close in a dark corner, or cover a window, or place against a wall and hang art on it like I did! You can buy an an antique or make one yourself. An easy way to make a home-made one pretty is to wallpaper the panels. There is amazing wallpaper available: hand-painted, hand-blocked, vintage and a host of modern options.

Interior: Richard Hallberg & Barbara Wiseley

Photograph: Miguel Flores-Vianna for Veranda Magazine August 2009

Can you imagine this room without the softly-painted landscape panels in it? If you put a screen behind furniture, such as a sofa, make sure there is space between the sofa and the panel, and the panels and the wall. Don't let anything touch. Give it some breathing room.

Interior: Joe Nahem

Photograph: Thomas Loof for House Beautiful Magazine October 2009

This divider is what gives the room an exotic flavor. You could start with a big screen such as this and pull your colors for the whole room from it.

English early 20th Century set of four hand-painted theatrical panels

The Antique & Artisan Center/1st Dibs

Faux Malachite 20th Century screen

Antiquario/1st Dibs

Interior by Ann Dupuy

Photograph: Lizzie Himmel, Veranda Magazine Winter 1996

This screen is placed directly in front of a french door or window, perhaps to block out some strong light or maybe just to give this room some depth. But this little space would definitely be boring without it.

A popular thing to do with Screens is to place them in the corner of a room, especially if the room is big. It just gives it some dimension and can help soften hard edges, especially with all this painted paneling.

Interior: Rob Southern

Photograph: Victoria Pearson, House Beautiful Magazine September 2009

Another example of a screen used to soften a corner, and in this case, break up some of the pattern on the walls.

Interior: Richard Hallberg & Barbara Wiseley

Photograph: Miguel Flores-Vianna for  Veranda Magazine August 2009

What I love about this room is the way you hardly notice the screen at all. It is placed almost entirely flush against the wall. Perhaps it is blocking out a window or a door? Or maybe it is just adding some architectural interest to the room? But I like how it is treated as a conventional wall, by putting a painting on it, and behind a sofa too.