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Janine’s Tip of the Week #10: Area Rugs

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It seems like lately I have been asked how to transform a space with a reasonable investment.  Well,  given the economy that is certainly understandable.  If you have good “bones” in your space, you might consider a great new area rug.  Often that is the one piece to the puzzle that is transforming and will give you the “wow” you were looking for that can change everything. If you are at the luxury of starting your design project then I suggest you begin with the area rug. Area rugs ground an entire space and add texture, color, and pattern. They tend to give the entire space the much needed connection that was once lacking. It can set the stage for the rest of the  pieces  and help you select the wallcovering, furniture, fixtures, drapery and accessories. Area rugs truly are a great accent to any room…living, dining, hearth, and bedrooms.  I might suggest a few favorites that we carry in our showroom:  Jaunty Rug Company, Feizy Rugs, and Davis and Davis Rugs.  Happy rug shopping…as always, we are here to help!
Jaunty Rug

Jaunty rug

Feizy Rug

Feizy rug

Davis & Davis Rug

Davis & Davis rug

Janine
Images of rugs from Jaunty, Feizy Rugs and Davis&Davis Rugs.

Switch Up The Seating

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While churning our design wheel, we realized how much we love the idea of unconventional dining room seating. Last Tuesday, our post Beach Blues showed a dining room with contemporary sofas as the seating. The sofas brought a different level of comfort to the room while maintaining the formal mood. In addition to using unconventional seating, mixing various types of seating will allow you to please more than one of your design ideas. Having a bench, a chair or two and a sofa all within your desired color palette brings personality and texture to your room. You can even pick the different seating based on your family member’s preferences. As long as there are common elements among each piece, your room will flow perfectly. Call us today so we can help you switch up your dining room seating!

Dining room with mixed seating

Dining room with with mixed seating

Dining room with mixed seating

Fruit and Flowers

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Yes fruit has been placed in vases before, so I am not going to tell you to place a couple pieces of fruit alone in a vase for a modern look. Instead, I am going to help you take your fresh floral arrangement up a notch to brighten and liven up your space. Since you need water for fresh flowers anyways, add some fruit  to brighten the bottom of the vases (the picture displays lemons and oranges). I suggest adding the fruit first so you won’t have to worry about the water overflowing. Toss in your fresh flowers and voila, you have a unique bright mix of fruit with your arrangement.

Vase with flowers and fruits

Beach Blues

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Before you even hit the beach this summer, bring it home to your dining room. When we first saw this photo the first thing that caught our eye was of course the brilliant blues. Each shade brings about a different thought. The candles reminded us of the little blue Tiffany&Co. box in different hues. The turquoise of the chairs (how modern and elegant to use sofas as dining room seating!) and sea foam place settings make us think of the water at a tropical beach. This design incorporates shades of blues showcasing how everything doesn’t have to be matchy-matchy. The green printed wall paper creates a beautiful contrast along with the gold of the mirror. What do you think of this design?

Dining room with turquoise decor

Use What You Have

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Do you have some mix match vases or other figures and you don’t know what to do with them? Instead of buying new things just transform what you have. This DIY project found at Style Me Pretty was intended for a wedding, but can be used as a table centerpiece. All you need is your items of course, and a bottle of spray paint.

  1. Make sure your items are clean and dry.
  2. Lightly coat each and allow time to dry
  3. Repeat step 2 until desired shade is reached.
  4. Fill with flowers and arrange closely together on your table.

After your seemingly pricey DIY project is complete, all you have to do is field raves from your guests.

Before DIY vases

Before

After DIY vase

After

Yellow and Gray Combo?

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You may think using gray to decorate will make your room dark and gloomy, but it doesn’t. Mix in some yellow and both colors pop. The brightness of yellow paired with the starkness of gray contrast amazingly. If you aren’t into extremely bright yellow, go for a darker shade. Check these pictures out for ideas on how to incorporate gray and yellow in your home.

Gray and Yellow Living Room

Gray and Yellow Bedroom

Jennifer Aniston’s Stylish Platform Bed

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Sometimes I run across something so interesting that I can’t wait to share it with you, and this is one of those moments. A friend who follows this blog sent this to me and this bed is such a beauty. This is Jennifer Aniston’s very-own platform bed, just was featured in the March issue of Architectural Digest. Isn’t it great?

What really makes this bedroom so great are those oversized lamps and the tile headboard. The bed is enormous, so you would have to have a large enough bedroom to accommodate such a large piece of furniture, but it sure makes a stunning focal point. A bedroom like this is clean and sleek, without the look of old-fashioned “matching” furniture. It’s just another way to think about the bedroom as a true haven!

Janine

Janine’s Tip of the Week#7: No Space for a Dining Room?

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After having recently read this post on Apartment Therapy, it reminded me of a project a did a while back for one of my clients. My client wanted to create a dining space, but just didn’t have the room for a formal dining area. To modify the client’s small space into a more functional dining area, I had a contractor build-in a long bench that could accommodate more people at the table. My client’s breakfast nook was wide but narrow, so we built in a 10’x18″ bench that also doubled as a great storage unit. The contractor made it with 3 compartments that have hinged openings that she can hide any rarely used kitchen items, and it really created a win-win solution. Now her kitchen table nestles into the nook, and she has 4 other seating spots around the other sides and a large “bench” that could seat as many as 6 in that family. The finished result? A functional dining area that this family can really enjoy!

Janine

CRLaine Furniture Spring Preview

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To my young-at-heart followers: take a peek at what CRLaine Furniture has in store for you this Spring as part of their new introductions. How fun is this new look?  Try taking a spin off that old wing back chair and oversize it. Then, jump-up the fabric scale and here comes one for the trendy folks out there!  I love how they paired it with a more conservative yet “young”  gorgeous sofa that will be very timeless.  This room welcomes you to 2010. Time for you to make your home your haven!
Janine

Janine’s Tip of the Week#6: Designing the Basement

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I just saw this blog post on Colour Me Happy (one of my favorite design blogs out there) about basement design and thought I would share some of my own thoughts about decorating the basement with you:

When doing a lower level, darker is definitely better! Remember that you generally have to turn on the lights anyway, so why not be a little more adventurous with your color scheme? Just go for it. Why not try something that may be out of your comfort zone? One step darker then you might usually go for, or even darker, makes the space seem cozy will be more like an extension of the upstairs vs. a regular ol’ basement.

Keep in mind that the basement is one area you can bring out your inner “designer” and go for it!! You will be glad you did. Here are a few tips to get you started:

  • Adding mirrors will help expand the space, and be sure to incorporate the all-important TV for the relaxed viewing pleasure.
  • The basement is also a great area for the “man cave” with a woman’s touch. (He may get the 60″ television, you have to love being there, so the fabrics should be a reflection of both of you!)
  • Another way to create some ambiance is to install dimmers. Dimmers make the space cozy, which is perfect for movie viewing and entertaining.
  • Forget that cold cement slab. New flooring can also add some interest to the space. Carpets can really go from standard to fun here and could even be the starting place of your design theme.

You want your guest to walk in and say WOW, right? So, think a little “out of the box.” Remember, comfort, warmth and function are your goals here, so have fun with it!

Janine