home design

Tag: home design

09
Oct
2013

Decorating “Slowly”

The best things come to those who wait OR

……blessed by having less

Ya know, sometimes it’s not always the best thing to have all the money to do what you would do if you had all the money.

Decorating slowly can have its advantages. If you have needed to wait until you could afford an item or the means to accomplish a small re-decorating project the advantage to that is by the time you’ve completed a project or room, you tend to discover your very own style rather than a “dime-a-dozen” showroom style by Ashley or even Thomas. Your new room is truly YOURS.

We have always needed to redecorate or remodel or finish a basement one board, table, or picture at a time. But you know what? We ended up with a home that is unique from anyone else’s and fits us perfectly. If we would have had the money to have our builder finish our basement at the time we built our house we wouldn’t have anything like it is shaping up to be. Having the time or I guess I should say, having to TAKE the time whether we want it or not, GIVES us the time to think and ponder about our finished project, even if it comes 10 years later.

Decorating in one fell swoop leaves us at the mercy of the popular trends of the day. Having the time to piece together a family room can create a space that has our own imprint and becomes a room that will withstand time.

Decorating our home is a journey, not a weekend trip!

30
Sep
2013

Layering Decor Ideas and Styles

categories: DIY Projects, Home Decor

Layering décor, leaning décor, and even stacking décor ……

…..an evolution I love

Wow! This is such a great decorating technique. It makes me laugh out loud though. Never in a million years would that have been “OK” when I first began decorating a home. Everything had to have its own space and not shared by anything else. And you would never have considered hanging a picture off center to make way for a tall table lamp or other decorating items. I now have a clock hung off center over a night stand to share visual space with a dried flower arrangement and LOVE IT!!

I love the evolution of decorating! It keeps things interesting and it allows for envision outside the proverbial box.

These 3 techniques in decorating are fun to practice because you can use literally whatever it is you have around the house. Do you have a table top or the top of a chest of drawers or something?

Okay, go right now and grab 7 items that you like. Preferably ones with different heights, shapes, and textures, but for now just go grab 7 items you like.
Put the biggest one to the back on the side,
If you chose some books, stack them in front and off to the side of the first one.
Put a smaller one on top of the books or a taller one in back of them and lean one next to the books or to the opposite of the first piece. (you don’t always have to have a leaner, but you get the picture)

What do you think? If it didn’t work, go get some more items to work with and keep practicing.

This is one of my favorite ways to decorate and change things up a bit. And when you get bored with one grouping, switch it out with something else you have.

These starfish have leaned against my mother’s favorite bowl, hung on a wall, and topped my Christmas tree.

01
Aug
2013

Unique Ceiling Treatments

categories: DIY Projects, Home Decor

Ceiling treatments? What a cool way to add some unexpected pizzazz to your room.

You’ve seen the ceiling medallions around a light fixture, right? (I didn’t know they were called ceiling medallions, did you?) They can really add an element of elegance to a dining area and enhance that already beautiful crystal chandelier. I will admit, it’s not me but it sure would have been my mom. She loved crystal, bling, and bangle. I always used to say that she was crystal and I was barn wood. And I’m okay with that:)

Re-doing a ceiling is maybe something most of us don’t think about when re-decorating a room. It’s a great way to fix flaws or cracks or just add a coziness and warmth to a space.

Here are some other ideas to think about and ponder:

Pressed-Tin Panels. Very popular for a country look. Not just country though. I love mixing and matching genres. And, done properly, can look really cool. I can picture a tin ceiling in a very contemporary black and white kitchen. They are not expensive at all if you’ve priced them. I have seen them at Lowe’s and Home Depot. Of course, they are plastic not tin, but who will know? Authentic tin and copper ceilings can be very pricey, but if you can, hey, go for it!
Wallpaper. Very cool on a ceiling. Definitely a two-man job, with at least one of those “men” being very patient.
Beams. My personal favorite. We’re doing a couple in our basement even though we have low ceilings. There are a couple of support beams that we are transforming to look like we planned them…he-he.
Tongue and Groove. I love this look, especially in an inglenook (fancy word for small room off the side of another larger room) or a bedroom.

So next time you’re in the mood for a change or if you are already in the middle of renovating, don’t forget the ceiling. It might offer a fun opportunity for an unanticipated change.