Home Decorating Blog

Here are some more home gym decorating tips from designer Kelli Ellis:

Use colors and accessories to create an inviting mood in the space.

Bright, warm tones such as orange and purple can infuse an aerobics space with energy.

Use sage greens, aquas and bamboo for a peaceful yoga or Pilates room.

Hang mirrors to open up small spaces and let you see your progress.

Make sure the space is well ventilated.

When equipment doesn’t blend in easily, try using screens or tucking away hand weights, workout DVDs and bands in a basket. Just avoid installations that cannot be easily removed.

My children taught me a few things about interior design this week, like how to work with what you already have.

I’ve been researching the psychology of temporary spaces — how we make ourselves at home in hotels, dorms, apartments, etc. — and something about the topic bothered me for days until I watched my daughter perform her chores on Thursday morning.

After dusting the living room, she began rearranging my ubiquitous piles of books, papers, candles and correspondence. Organizing my detritus doesn’t normally fall under the heading of kid-tasks in my home, but on this particular morning my daughter was inspired. Loath to interfere with her aesthetic instincts and hoping she might make some sense of the mess, I buried myself in my office, where I stumbled across the following quote:

“Native American design and artwork are intimately linked with spiritual associations. The process of creating art is an exercise in prayer and worship.”
— Elmo Baca,
“Introduction to Western Design”

As I listened to my daughter humming with happiness in the next room, I thought about an aspect of home decorating that I rediscovered while traveling recently with friends. We stayed in Brownsville, Ore., a town of 1,600 nestled between low hills and a winding stream, bursting with wild blackberry bushes and overhung with trees. Every morning I leaned out the bedroom window of our brick homestead — what used to be a bowling alley, a hardware store and a railroad boardinghouse — to gaze across Main Street and smell the rain.

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There is a silver lining out there for homeowners who, despite being eager to sell their homes, have opted to sit on the sidelines and wait out the current market’s malaise.

They’ve got months, rather than weeks, to ready their houses for listing next year. That’s good because there’s some work to be done.

Bonnie Massa is moving forward with getting her two-bedroom South Loop townhouse ready to sell, although she’s not sure whether she’ll put it on the market this year or next.

She realizes that the current environment is a much different one than when she sold her last home in 2004; that time, she sold it by herself and in three weeks.

“I didn’t do squat to it but clean it,” Massa said. “But this is a very different ballgame now. There’s a lot of competition, and it’s a sophisticated buyer.”

This time around, she already is planning to put some belongings and furniture in storage and get rid of the cherry-colored paint, that she adores, in a half bathroom.

Experts say Massa is taking the right approach in a market that likely will continue to favor buyers. Despite how perfect a home may be for its current owner, it’s not ready to show prospective buyers, say real estate industry professionals.

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Is your bedroom a place to nurture your soul? Is it conducive to romance? If not, the decorating experts at Calico Corners and Calico Home offer some ideas for improving the most personal, most private room in the house. “When everything in your bedroom is beautiful, it will make you feel more beautiful when you’re there,” advises Jan Jessup, national spokesperson for this specialty retailer. “This is the space where you spend the most time,” she notes. “Create a romantic bedroom with luxurious fabrics, great sheets, good lighting, a spot for reading–and most important, a sense of intimacy and privacy. It will improve the quality of your life!”

Here are ten Do’s and ten Don’ts to help create a bedroom that will become a special sanctuary–even if it’s just for you:

PLEASE DO:

1. Have lovely soft fabrics and textures on your bed–velvets, chenilles, soft silks, faux suedes, silky cottons, puffy matelassés, quilted textures and down comforters. Calico Corners - Calico Home has thousands to choose from–and their in-home design consultants can even bring fabrics to you and suggest custom bedding options.

2. Make a statement in the bedroom with either the bed or the fabric chosen for the bed and decor. If you have a stunning bed, it should be the focal point of the room; allow everything else to be subordinate. If your bed doesn’t have much presence, select a fabric that will add visual interest to the room and complement the bed frame.

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Van Millwork, New England’s leading millwork supplier and interior specialist, is pleased to present the fall Home Design Seminar Series - three (3) informational presentations by top experts in the home design and construction industries. Geared specifically for homeowners, this series is presented in conjunction with Design New England Magazine.

Van MillworkThis series offers practical advice on how to create the home of your dreams: From learning the process of small and large renovations to choosing the right window treatments and paint colors, plus innovative ideas on creating dream kitchens. All seminars are free and take place from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. at the Van Millwork Showroom located at 65 Crawford Street, in Needham. Complimentary brunch is also provided.

The first seminar on Thursday, September 18th is presented by Mitchell Construction Group, Inc. The Total Remodeling Workshop addresses what one can expect when embarking on a renovation project. Mitchell’s experts will explore small to large renovation projects, answering questions that will help you understand the process, as well how to correctly budget, while still getting what you really want for your home.

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Home buyers, designers, builders and dreamers will all be flocking to Lower Gwynedd over the next month to check out Philadelphia Magazine’s 2008 Design Home, a $2.8 million, five-bedroom home set on 1.5 acres in the Enclave at Gwynedd off Sumneytown Pike.

The home, designed by McIntyre Capron and Associates of Paoli and built by Guidi Homes of Blue Bell, will be open for tours from Sept. 4 through Oct. 5. Tickets cost $20 and all proceeds will go to this year’s beneficiary, the Ronald McDonald House, which provides a place to stay for families of critically ill children receiving treatment at local hospitals.

The first Design Home was showcased seven years ago as a way for consumers to visualize products from retailers, designers and architects in the context of a home, said Philadelphia Magazine publisher Marian Conicella. All construction, design and furnishings in the home are sponsored by local companies, and most items in the Design Home are for sale - right down to the Lincoln Mercury cars parked in the driveway.

This is the first Design Home to be built in Eastern Montgomery County. Conicella said that Philadelphia Magazine chose Lower Gwynedd this year because of its strong position in the housing market.
“I think Lower Gwynedd is the best kept secret in this market,” she said.
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Shares in Strategic Retail fell 15 per cent after the Salford-based home decorating company reported a full-year loss compared with a profit a year earlier and said the rollout of more of its Texstyle World stores has been put on hold because of worsening retail conditions.

In a statement to the stock exchange, Strategic Retail (AIM: SRR) said it posted a net loss of £145,000 in the year to March 1, compared with a profit of £194,000 in the prior year to February 24. Revenue fell 7.6 per cent to £19.9m. It attributed the declines to a smaller portfolio of stores and the negative retail environment.

Ian Currie, Strategic Retail’s chairman, said fiscal 2008 had been another difficult year in the home-decorating and home-furnishings sectors because of pressure on consumer spending. As a result, he said the company had reduced the number of Fads home-decorating stores by seven to eliminate loss-making outlets.

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Buying a house is the first step; after the move, it’s about making it your home, with personal expressions and affordable, easy-to-execute upgrades.

When I moved into a new home a few years ago-a spec home finished with safe, neutral-and-marketable décor-I was happy to be there but soon realized that I had some work to do to add character to my new spaces. When it comes to home décor, a just-purchased home falls into two camps: new but somewhat benign, like mine; or older and in need of updating and refreshing. With a new house, simple changes such as more expressive color, more unique lighting or window treatments may be all that is needed. If the home is older, there may be some serious “un-decorating” to do before the re-decorating begins. Either way, to avoid a random approach and also create the most impact, I usually organize the first level of planning around a few basic themes: colors, finishes and lighting.

Colors and finishes are the first two keys to unlocking the door to personalization. Creating a coordinated palette is one of the most cost effective and efficient ways to personalize a home because it also provides a map for planning everything else. When selecting colors, it’s important to consider wood and metal finishes as part of the palette, too. For example, wood tones may have yellow and orange, red or pink tones. Metal finishes range from warm, dark tones like oil-rubbed bronze to cool, light tones like brushed nickel. Considering the compatibility among all the elements as well as the contrast between them is the best way to achieve the look and feel you want.

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Dear Debbie: My partner and I just moved into our first apartment and have little money to fix it up. You are so great at decorating on a shoestring; can you give us some tips, please? We have hardwood floors and both like earthtones. Thanks. — Robin

Dear Robin: Setting up your first place together is exciting. It might seem a bit of a challenge when money is tight, but you will be amazed at what you can accomplish with a little imagination. Paint will set just the right backdrop for your style, but start by picking a sofa and one or two comfy chairs. There are inexpensive options that will make an inviting setting, and you might discover a red sofa or pure-white wing chair that you can’t resist.

Your wall color can easily be changed, so don’t be afraid to experiment. Look at warm grays, golden browns and the tangy shades of green that are popular right now. A few simple storage solutions, baskets and boxes, will keep you organized. Create a focal point on one wall with a group of prints, photographs or a collection of artifacts you’ve brought home from holiday. Even the most minimal wall display will personalize your room, and this is the key to a home that makes you happy.

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Sure Fit Inc. (www.SureFit.com), the leading provider and marketer of ready-made furniture covers, has announced the launch of its 2008 Ugly Couch Contest, the search for the ugliest couch in America. Photo entries for the contest will be accepted until September 30th at www.SureFit.com and by mail for a chance to win a $5,000 living room makeover by Kim Myles, designer and host of HGTV’s Myles of Style, courtesy of Sure Fit Inc.

If it’s old, worn, unsightly, revolting, repulsive, lumpy, grumpy or just plain ugly, Sure Fit wants to see it. As the leading creator of stylish, easy, affordable decorating solutions to quickly transform your home, Sure Fit created the “Ugly Couch Contest” to illustrate that Sure Fit slipcovers can turn any couch into a stylish sofa.

“Every year we look forward to sorting through the hundreds of hideous entries, searching for the ugliest of the ugly,” said Laura Hilburt of Sure Fit Inc. “But Sure Fit covers couches nationwide, and we can give even the ugliest couches a total transformation.”

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