Articles and tips about interior decorating and design. Organize and decorate your living space to reflect your tastes and functional needs.
Decorating is the purchasing and placement of furniture, fabrics and related elements of your interior design.
Once the structural plan is in place for a building or a remodel project, you'll need to determine the "look" you want inside the rooms. Interior decorators are specialists who offer advice on furniture, wall coverings, colors, styles the overall physical appearance of your project.
Why use a professional interior decorator? Use this guide to find out.
Critiquing a floor plan is one of the most important aspects of choosing a home.
Feng shui, which means "wind and water," is an ancient Chinese study based on the belief that energy flows in the environment of a home, office or any other place. According to this belief, every building has unique energy characteristics that need to be individually addressed.
The three basic concepts of feng shui:
The art of Feng Shui, or the arranging and positioning of different objects to let the energy flow better in your house and work space, is said to promote health and energy. Here are a few small things you can do in your home to make it as harmonious as possible:
Q: We have fieldstone surrounding our fireplace and it covers a large section of one wall. We would like to hang a picture above the fireplace but we cannot figure out what to use. The stone extends up to 3" in places, so whatever we use has to reach beyond that so that the picture will hang flat. Any suggestions?
These days, more and more people are taking the bold step of doing at least part of their job at home. A 30-second commute has a lot of appeal, but increasingly, people are opting to work at home in order to create a more humane schedule that allows for more flexibility to attend to family joys and responsibilities.
This information can clarify and help answer some questions about how to install a mirror.
Mirrors are a very functional product in terms of design, but also have a lot of decorating potential. Mirrors, which started out as simple and functional, became a hot trend in decorating when manufacturers added sandblasted and beveled characteristics.
The trend seems to be moving away from hiding the washer and dryer in the distant dark depths of the basement. Most people now want direct access from main activity areas of the home. Here is a checklist of a few key elements to good laundry room design:
It's dark and clammy. The air is so steamy you can hardly breathe. There's unknown stuff in your path and hanging in your face. Strange noises are coming at you from all directions. Welcome to the average laundry room!
As life's pace quickens, people are finding it more critical to build time into their lives for rest. But rest has never been a more elusive goal. The lines between work and home are fading, with many people doing substantial portions of their work at home. In fact, nearly everyone brings home some work, the home has lost its status as a sanctuary.
Moldings (or "trim work") are both functional and decorative. Although they give a room distinctive style and detailing, they also serve a purpose: to hide the joints between walls and floors, ceilings, doors, and windows. Many different patterns and styles are made from a variety of both softwoods and hardwoods. These profiles can be used individually or in combination-called built up moldings-to create intricate patterns.
Professional organizers assist with many areas of organization including residential, business, time management, paper management, chronic disorganization, space planning, filing, wardrobes, closet systems, event planning, errands, personal shopping, financial management, packing/moving and many more areas.
If a cluttered environment reflects a cluttered mind, then organizing living and work space should help one become more efficient.
Organizing your closet space is almost like adding additional floor space to your home or office. The more that fits into the closet, the less need for dressers, armoires and other furniture in a room.
Here are some storage accessories to consider for your closet organizing project.
Before entertaining, get organized and find a place for all your stuff. No one wants to entertain with clutter everywhere. Not only does clutter look messy and unappealing but it also takes away valuable space. Today there are many options that come in a variety of colors and styles.
The longer we live in a home, the more belongings we accumulate. Day by day, our house seems to shrink. Stuffed closets, crammed cabinets, and a basement jammed full of who-knows-what - but there is still more we want to stow!
With a surge of new interest in textiles and fabrics, selecting draperies is an invitation to give your windows a beautiful new presentation. Draperies can provide a complete window treatment, or they can be integrated as a design element when combined with other treatments.
Common Drapery Terms:
Here are some definitions of common drapery terms.
Q: What credentials or licenses are necessary for interior decorators to work within California? Do they have to be ASID? Do certain credentials or licenses indicate a different amount of training or schooling?
Windows of every conceivable size and type have opened up a wide array of decorating possibilities and elevated them to an important status in every room. Window treatments have followed suit, and today there are many options for designer looks.
Q: I am interested in finding out how I can do a cottage looking wainscoting in a small bedroom (12 x 9). Can I get something in sheets or tongue and grove? Would it be applied like paneling?
This information can clarify and help answer some questions about window shades and blinds.
Consider a house call: Because projects such as installing new blinds or shades throughout a house are a major investment, both for re-sale value and emotional satisfaction, you may want to make all your decisions yourself.
This information can clarify and help answer some questions about finding an interior decorator or designer.
Few things fill a professional paper hanger's heart with more dread than hearing a potential client say, "My walls are already smooth and ready for paper."
Few modern wallpapers are actually made of paper. Today's wall coverings may be made of vinyl, vinyl-coated paper or cloth, textiles, natural grasses, foil or mylar.
Q: Is it possible to color ceramic tile? I just bought a house that has a new white ceramic tile floor in the kitchen and I hate the fact that it constantly needs cleaning. Any ideas?