interior design ideas: October 2008

Home Decorating-What To Skip and What to Splurge

Everytime we watch "Design on a Dime", we crack up. While we admire their creativity, some of the stuff just look absolutely terrible. Seriously, do you want an ottoman made from empty Coke plastic bottles? Sometimes cheap just look...cheap!

We think there is a better way. Your home can look nice without having to spend a lot of money. Here is a list of what we would skip/splurge on.

SKIP:

-New furniture that is not well-made or well-constructed.
-Cheap home accessories-plastic flowers, pink flamingos, gaudy fabrics fall into this category.
-Expensive remodeling jobs that are hard to change, like built-ins, hardscaping and the likes...

SPLURGE:

-A good house cleaner-a clean house is a relaxing house.
-Quality pieces that don't go out of style and will last for life. Focus on quality and not quantity.
-Luxury things that don't cost a lot but make you happy-like fresh flowers, scented candles and bubble baths...

Just like everything in life, there are many choices when it comes to your money. Spend it wisely...

Making Your Home Life Comfortable--Even During Hard Economic Times...

If you read newspapers and watch TV lately, you'd think the world is coming to an end. Seriously, the housing market is tanking, the stock market is spiraling downward, and every one is acting like we're all be heading for the soup kitchen soon.

While we don't deny that the economy is terrible--believe us, being in the luxury industry that is absolutely dependent on extra disposable income, we feel it. But here's the thing, is it all that bad? We can all eat a bit less, spend a bit less, drive a bit less, no?

We can't really do anything about the big issues, such as the budget deficit and the national debt and the housing crisis, but you can make your home life more comfortable without spending tons of money. You can, and you must--because a comfortable home life will protect you from all the craziness that' s going on.

Here's how:

1) Keep the house clean. A clean house makes you more relaxed, keep you organized, and just makes you feel better.

2) Plant a garden. Yes, grow something. Anything. Plant flowers so you can have fresh flowers in the house, keep an herb garden. You'll be amazed on how therapeutic it is...

3) Learn how to cook. Cooking is a creative process and it can be a lot of fun. It is also a lot healthier and more cost-effective.

4) Spend less. You'll be amazed of what you can find on Craigslist, the local consignment stores and the local classifieds. It's a great feeling to get something at a fraction of its original cost while saving the environment at the same time.

5) Be creative. Take some time to explore the inner creativity in you, and yes, everyone is creative in some ways. Sometimes just re-arranging the furniture can give a room a whole new look. Move your artwork to a different room. Group your accessories differently. Get a fresh coat of paint. You'll be amazed on how little things like this can change how you feel.

Hollywood Regency-Vellum New York

Have you ever met people that you instantly like? That you can tell the first time you talk that you'll love them for life? The people at Vellum New York are like that. Not only that their company makes great products, the people there are so awesome, so sweet. We hope they will do extremely well...

Vellum New York products fit into the Hollywood Regency look perfectly. Here are a few examples:
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This elephant status is large in size and looks very pretty in person...

We love these ginger jars...

This greyhound statue is our best seller. It's very Kelly Wearstler-ish...

All of Vellum products are made in Italy.

Modern Asian Decor-Jardins-En-Fleur

Asian decor is one of those things that can get cliche really fast if you are not careful. Really, how many Buddha statues can one take?

Today, the trend toward Asian decor is a lot more modern, more colorful, more fresh...

At the New York show a couple of months ago, we found a great vendor that does this look wonderfully. They are so pricey, oh my god! But their products are very pretty...

Here are some of our favorites:

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This pair of foo dogs, which supposed to bring you luck, is pretty large in size and come in white, blue and orange. It's just fun to look at...

We love this pair of hand-painted silk. Can you just see them in Elle Decor?

This is a nice new twist for an Asian stool. It also comes in a variety of colors..

This marvelous Chinese Pagoda breakfront is so pretty, we can hardly stand it...

You can see most of these products on the Jardins En Fleur web site. They are available for purchase through our home accessories store.

INTERIOR DESIGN

Interior Design Tools

Create a virtual version of the rooms you will be decorating by first arranging walls, then placing doors, windows, stairways, and furniture. It’s easy using automatic tools to create the right look and feel.

Interior Designs and Decoration

Create the look and feel before you build, remodel or decorate with actual colors, flooring, furniture, windows and more. Begin with a pre-defined Better Homes and Gardens Home Style Template or choose from one of 1,500 sample plans to inspire your own custom design.

Material Painter™

Point and click to choose from thousands of colors and textures or import your own for walls, floors, countertops and more!

Design Planning Center

The Better Homes and Gardens Design Planning Center provides expert advice, decorating guidelines, tips, and techniques from the editors of the Better Homes and Gardens magazine. We've gathered the information you need to plan the most important areas of your home in the Design Planning Center.

Kitchen Planning Center

Practicality and style blend seamlessly in a great kitchen. We’ve gathered the information you need to plan a perfect workspace, plus plenty of examples of kitchens that put those principles to work beautifully.

Bathroom Planning Center

Bathrooms may be the smallest rooms in your home, but that doesn’t mean you can make them an afterthought in the planning process. We’ll show you how to make the most of a limited space and explain the features that will add the most to your comfort and convenience.

Exterior Planning Center

Your home’s exterior is the face you display to the world. Discover the secrets that architects and designers use to create beautiful and easy-to-maintain exteriors.

House Styles Planning Center

Select a house style that fits your lifestyle and personality. You'll find six design styles for homes of today.

Design Kitchens

Design the Kitchen of your dreams - move walls, drop in cabinets, add fixtures - it’s easy to plan your perfect workspace.

Bath Designs

Plan the layout of your Bathroom with custom cabinets, sinks, showers, jetted tubs. It’s easy to visualize your ideas in 3D.

Master Bedrooms

Designs for your lifestyle and personality - change colors, add lighting, and choose furniture to accent your next room.

Cool Upholstery Fabrics

Isn't it hard to find cool fabrics for upholstering? It's really a huge investment! Most often the cost of upholstering is the same as buying a new piece. This is why you gotta choose it very carefully. The good news is there are SO many choices out there. Hundreds of thousands, literally....

Here are some of our favorite upholstery fabric. All are from Highland Court fabric, a division of Duralee. We like this line because it's very boutique-ish, and the patterns/colors are just sublime.

We are picking bright colors today because we want something cheerful to look at. Times like this, we can all use some pick-me-up, don't you think?

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We love this one for either a small chair or a small day bed. This pattern is called Cheaza, the pattern numberis 180512H Color 586.

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This pattern is called Heirloom, pattern number 180860H Color Tangerine

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This pattern number is 180830H color 707 Tomato. We can just see it on a decorative pillow, or a pair of occasional chair.

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We love, love Greek key...it's so modern and clean. This pattern number is 180826H and the color is Tangerine.

All of these fabrics are from the Philip Gorrivan collection (Philip who?) We don't know much about him, to be honest. But judging from the collection, we think it's better than Kelly Wearstler's, truthfully. She's a bit over-extended and over-exposed.

If you would like to see more of this collection, here is the link.

To get pricing for all the upholstery fabrics shown here, visit our fabric store.