Tag Archives: interior design

Must-Have Family Room Furniture

10 Apr

Figuring out the essentials for your family room depends a bit on your needs. Here are some tips to ensure that you purchase all of the must-have family room furniture items for your home.

Buy a Great Sofa or Set of Chairs

The first piece of furniture that you should consider for a family room is a sofa. Whether you opt for a sectional, loveseat or chairs will depend on how much space you have. If you love to watch movies in the family room or you have small children, a sofa or sectional is likely a better option. However, if you want your family room to appear more formal, opt for chairs instead.

Choose an Entertainment Console

Your family room is not complete without an entertainment console. A TV stand with multiple drawers or compartments will help you to organize your family room and store all of the games, cables and other items that you need for leisure time at home.

You should also make sure that the option that you select is large enough to fit your TV. If you have a flat panel HDTV, you may prefer to mount the TV rather than place it directly on a stand. You should measure your TV and walls carefully to ensure that you will have adequate clearance for the TV after you have selected the stand.

Don’t Forget About the Smaller Furniture

End tables are helpful additions to your family room if you want to eat or drink as you relax. Consider buying two small end tables for the sides of the sofa. You can also set up an end table between two chairs if you are trying to decorate a family room that is smaller. For a relaxed style of lighting, you can consider placing small lamps on the end tables in order to increase the amount of light in the room if you want to read or relax on the couch.

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Elegant Bedroom Furniture Ideas

9 May

Obtaining a high-end look in your bedroom does not need to be difficult if you use a bit of creativity. Here are a few inspirational tips to help you select the perfect elegant furniture for your bedroom.

Take Inspiration From Far Away Places

If you want to create a luxurious bedroom that is full of every comfort you could possibly want, think of the time that you spent on your most favorite vacation. In addition, a movie or place that you would like to visit could spark your imagine. However, the key to using this idea successfully is to refrain from trying to literally recreate the style. Think of the textures and colors that might appear in this environment and select furniture items that reflect them. You can also use this idea to determine your color scheme for your room and select the furniture to match.

Colors

Opting for lighter colors in your bedroom such as white can bring a clean and revitalizing feel to your bedroom. Lighter colors can also be mixed and matched with natural materials such as bamboo and wood furniture.

Decorative Elements

Once you have selected the colors for your bedroom, consider the fabrics and linens that you would prefer to have in your bedroom. Solid colors can be used alongside patterned fabrics for variation. For a more traditional look, consider patterns that feature embroidered designs or floral patterns.

Elegance is Timeless

If you are still unsure which items are best for your bedroom, going for the items that are timeless is always a good option. You can create luxury in your bedroom by opting for deep, rich, finished woods and metals such as brass or copper. High bedposts and tall headboards are essential to creating this aesthetic. Opting for decorative carvings and fine upholstery will add a final touch that is sure to delight your senses.

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Three Pieces Worth Investing In

18 Aug

Everyone wants to save a little money. Sometimes that’s a great thing – a bargain on a few dining chairs or an end table is great, and if they turn out to be rubbish, you don’t need to worry about it too much. Other times, though, it’s a lot more important that you make sure your purchases are of stellar quality. Here are the three most important things not to skimp on.

  1. Your main bed
    It’s estimated that we spend about a third of our lives asleep, and when you put it that way, it’s obvious why you should invest in the very best bed you can afford. It’s easy to think that finding a good bed is all in the mattress, but in reality, the frame is just as important. It’s all about making sure that every part of your body is adequately supported, and that you’re not kept awake all night by creaking and squeaking or a bowing mattress base.

  2. Computer chairs
    Almost everyone in the Western world complains of back pain occasionally, and one of the biggest contributors to this is bad posture and unhelpful chairs. Look for proper ergonomic office chairs of a sort that give you all the support you need and are as easily adjustable as possible. With a little work, you’ll be able to tailor your chair specifically to your requirements.

  3. A sofa
    The three things we spend the most time doing by far are sleeping, working, and relaxing. You sleep in a bed and you probably work in a computer chair, but a lot of your relaxation is likely to happen on the sofa – whether you’re watching TV, surfing the internet, reading a book, or chatting with friends and family.  Make sure you’re comfortable enough while you’re there, and your back will thank you for it.

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When to Get it Wrong: Five Interior Design Mistakes You Might Want to Try

2 Aug

1. Dark Colors in Small Spaces
Everyone’s always saying that dark colors don’t work in small spaces – but if you like dark colors and you only have a small space to work with, that really isn’t much help! This is really where the ‘feature wall’ concept comes into its own; paint just one wall in your favorite hue, and pick a similar color in a few shades lighter for the others. Finish the look with woodwork in a darker tone, and consider accenting with the darker shade as well.

2. Overfurnishing and Overcrowding
If you’re going for a ‘bohemian’ look rather than a cleaner one, there’s no reason whatsoever you shouldn’t hang pictures, scarves, drapes and embellishments to your heart’s content. Just make sure that if you go for it you really go for it – what looks bad isn’t too much stuff, it’s trying to hit a middle note that is neither one thing nor the other.

3. Collections on Display
Don’t listen to all the nonsense about figurines and film posters looking too juvenile. If you love something, let your space embrace that love – just put in the effort to display and frame them well.

4. Kitschy, Quirky Style
Your home should reflect you, and if you happen to love lava lamps and 70s prints there’s no reason not to have them. The trick here, again, is to go all the way if you’re going there at all – a halfhearted attempt really will look out of place.

5. Brights That Clash
Carefully planned clashing can work just as well as thoughtful co-ordination. A bunch of disparate elements look careless if they’re simply all jumbled in there together, but if there’s something like a feature wall or a woodwork color to tie them all together, you’re likely to find it all works much better than you might have expected.

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Mimicking the Arts and Crafts Look On a Budget

25 Jul

The Arts and Crafts look is attractive to many homeowners but it has the reputation of being expensive to achieve in the home. Believe it or not, there are some ways you can create this look without breaking the bank.

Stenciling

Not all of us are artists. Stenciling does not require a lot of artistic skill. If you have a piece of furniture or a blank space on a wall for a border or similar, you can make or purchase inexpensive stencils in the Arts and Crafts style. These can be used many, many times and are almost always under $30. Besides that your main expense is paint. Stenciling can also be done to curtains, shades, and other textiles.

Linen

Linen is an affordable fabric that was often used in original Arts and Crafts homes. It can be used for stenciling for an even more authentic look. Just make sure to use good fabric paint.

Add Wood Furniture

Replacing furniture with its wood version can be expensive but if done one piece at a time, it can be very affordable. Start with a nice end table or something small and you will see what a huge difference it can make in the appearance of your home.

Upholstery

If you have a piece of furniture such as a chair or couch, it will likely save you money to have it reupholstered with cloth inspired by the Arts and Crafts style rather than buying an expensive reproduction. If a piece of furniture can be reupholstered, it makes it a much better value option if you like to change your decorating styles.

Add Simple Crafts to Furniture

Something as simple as a nice embroidered napkin can add a lot of character to a wooden end table. Or try your own hand at some simple crafts. Many areas have studios where you can paint your own pottery or learn a handicraft for an inexpensive price.

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