We wish we had, but no, we didn’t make upthe word!
Techorating” is a catchy term coined back in 2008 by interior designer, Doug Wilson, as a concept for the emergence of integrating home technology and home decor in balance with one another. Doug hosted Trading Spaces on TLC (DSTV Channel 135) and created the system as sort of feng shui for home tech, primarily outlining the importance of pre-planning and placement of tech elements brought into the home with visual harmony in mind, something your average Interior Designer is likely to overlook when helping you put together the perfect home entertainment room.
The techorating philosophy is a departure from the previous era of “bigger is better”, where homeowners would sometimes try to fit gargantuan projection screen televisions and furniture-sized home audio systems into living rooms without much consideration about the rest of their home decor. With so many designer-styled components readily available, there’s no reason to decorate in yesterday’s style with today’s technologies.
Here are some examples of how to techorate your own space. Measure for Viewing Pleasure!
The center of any home entertainment and media setup will likely be your HDTV, the 21st century digital “hearth of the home”. Hopefully you’ve upgraded to a flat screen HDTV model by now. But if not, or if you plan to upgrade, make sure you purchase the right size for the right space. Size does matter. Too big of a set in a smaller space can tire the eyes and actually degrade the quality of the image (if seated too close, you can see individual pixels), while too small of a screen in a large space can detract from the immersive effects we all seek while watching movies, sports and television.