Design Advice With Your Pet In Mind


By Triana Griffith

Associate Interior Designer

Read Time: 5 Minutes

I can still remember spending time as a child in our den with the windows open, the sunlight and cool breeze flowing over me as I read, using my very large golden retriever as a pillow. We spent many days joined at the hip. I remember Chancey as part of our daily activities. To this day, when we find pictures of him we remember him as a passed on family member. 

So when I meet our clients’ furry friends I know how important it is for us to consider them in the design of our client’s homes. It can be anxiety-inducing trying to achieve the space you want with pets; no one wants to invest emotionally or financially in their home if it won’t hold up to all of Bailey’s shenanigans. Nor does anyone want to keep living with dysfunctional pieces that have outlived their prime. We’ve compiled our top tips to help you include your four-legged companions without sacrificing style worth showing off.

Successful Interior Design Tips That Any Pet Owner Can Master

 
Ten designer tips for a beautiful home with pets.
 

How To Choose The Best Upholstery So You Can Feel Comfortable With Your Pet

Canine Camouflage

If your pet is just as comfortable as you are on your sectional for movie night, consider selecting an upholstery fabric that blends with  their coloring. Shedding will be less visible and less likely to catch your eye every time you walk into your family room. This doesn’t have to limit you to sofas the color of a Golden Retriever or a French Pug. The trick is selecting a fabric that is about the same value (dark to light scale) as your pet’s fur.


Long gone are the days of covering furniture with plastic. With advances in technology it is now possible to buy a fabric for your upholstery and pillows that is both comfortable and durable.

Fabric Technology For Piece Of Mind

Long gone are the days of covering furniture with plastic. With advances in technology it is now possible to buy a fabric for your upholstery and pillows that is both comfortable and durable. There are many products on the market for washable fabrics, but one of our favorites is Revolution, which is made in the USA and helps divert oil waste. It is made from a yarn that is extruded rather than dyed, meaning the color goes all the way through, allowing it to be cleaned with a mixture of water and bleach.

Sometimes it isn’t just a stain on fabric, but an overall layer of use that leaves pieces looking dingy. By choosing a slipcover tailored to your upholstery or zippered pillow covers, you can refresh and sanitize your fabrics from general wear. Some manufacturers offer custom slipcovers for their pieces, but a local upholsterer can also make one to fit. Know that they should take the upholstery piece to their workroom to tailor it perfectly.

If you're worried about staining on upholstery or rugs, choose something that has a lot of depth to the weave. The reason that some impossible-to-clean stains are so obvious is because the texture of the fabric is flat. By mixing it up, your eye won’t expect color to remain constant over a stretch of surface.

How To Choose The Best Carpeting or Rugs That Resist Pet Stains

When choosing wall-to-wall carpet or bound rugs, consider cut-pile selections made of cleanable materials. Cut pile rugs aren’t as easily snagged by pet nails as looped pile. Just a good vacuuming will refresh the lay of the fibers. Further, choosing a rug made of nylon or wool will ensure a level of cleanability not afforded by more finicky choices like silk. While wool has a natural lanolin content that resists staining, nylon products can be treated to have a similar effect.

 
How to design your home with pets in mind. Living and working and doing basically everything else at home these days prompted us to write specifically about how we recommend designing a beautiful home with pets in mind
 

Why It’s Worth Investing In Long-Wearing Furniture

One of the traps of designing around pets is to sacrifice quality because of expected damage. It is tempting to not invest in furniture that you feel will just be beat up by your animals. I would advise the exact opposite. By choosing a well made piece, you are also giving yourself an insurance policy for the future. Sure, no fabric is indestructible, but a well built frame can be recovered over and over and provide style and comfort for many years to come. We also promote this sustainable strategy as a way to keep pieces out of the landfill. 

The same is true for your other furnishings. We love it when our pets show their excitement for a treat or walk. We don’t love it when their excitement leaves a lightweight accent table on the floor in ruins. It's important to vet accent furniture, floor lamps, and accessories for their tip-ability. This is especially true in high traffic areas. Buying solidly crafted furniture and accessories reduces the likelihood that they will fall to their end during life’s commotion. When a lighter piece like an heirloom floor lamp can’t be lived without, think of placement to keep it out of harm’s way.

 
How to achieve a beautiful home when you have pets.
Living and working and doing basically everything else at home these days prompted us to write specifically about how we recommend designing a beautiful home with pets in mind
 

Pet Friendly Treatments For Your Windows

Window Toppers

Maybe you have a dog that runs back and forth between your windows waiting for you to come home, or an adventurous cat who likes to climb. Both can be a threat to the Instagram-worthy drapery of your dreams. Opt for alternative window treatments like relaxed roman toppers or structured cornices that can add beauty well out of reach of your pets.

Shading Systems

Alternatively, well made and stylish shading systems that address privacy and light control from within the confines of the window frame are a less likely to be disturbed choice.  If you omit decorative treatments like drapery or toppers focus your attention instead on great art, wallpaper, or paint color to give your walls some excitement.

Drapery

If you have your heart set on drapery because you love the luxurious look, consider carefully which rooms to put it in. Perhaps the lesser used spaces such as formal dining or a guest room are treated to drapery, while the windows in spaces where you and your pets spend most of your time, like the kitchen or family room, are outfitted a bit more practically.

Pet Friendly Treatment For Your Walls

Easy To Scrub Paint

This is a must. For everyone. If you own a home, you need to make sure your walls are painted with a scrubbable paint. Flat finishes will irreversibly show every scratch and stain. Save yourself multiple coats of paint by choosing a washable eggshell finish which easily cleans up with a damp cloth or eraser sponge.

 
Living and working and doing everything else at home these days prompted us to write specifically about how we recommend designing a beautiful home with pets in mind.
 

[Gracefully] Sticking The Landing on Your Home Details

Opt for less but better accessories. Every time my mother-in-law’s cat, Goldie, slinks past the many colorful accessories on the kitchen shelves, I get so anxious my palms itch.  If you have your own climber, I suggest less accessories in these high traffic areas to avoid a domino effect. Bigger or heavier accents are a better bet for when your pet is having a less-than-graceful moment.

Of course, we pet owners know what we sign up for when we bring our adorable pets home. At some point, despite all of our best efforts, something will happen. Just like we may accidentally break a dish or spill a sip of coffee. The best thing we can do, aside from making thoughtful decisions at purchase, is to roll with the punches. To that end, I recommend learning the best products and methods for cleaning your home and caring for your furniture (get your research started with the Care Link we send to our clients after installation). 

 
10 designer ways to make your home with pets feel put together and beautiful.
 

If all else fails, look at these oops moments as an opportunity. Maybe a broken sentimental vase from past travels can be repaired a la Kintsugi. Or if the pillows that your pet likes to roost on are on their last legs, perhaps introducing a new cover would re-energize the design.

Designers take all of these lifestyle considerations into account to give you a beautiful realistic home environment. We want you to enjoy your favorite activities with your pets by your side. Life is too short for your home to not bring you joy. Share this with a friend who loves their furry companion and would find this blog helpful.