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Tips For Rose Comforters and Floral Home Interior Decor

Friday, March 12th, 2010

A rose comforter can add a refreshing garden feel to your room. This style doesn’t have to look outdated or old. It can work for a nursery or a master bedroom. Here are a few tips for decorating with a rose comforter.


You can really incorporate a rose comforter into the overall theme. This has a very country feel to it. You could even just go with a quilt instead of a traditional comforter. This is perfect for the late summer months. During the winter months you could fold up the quilt at the foot of your bed and use it with a white down comforter. This allows you to change up the look of your home inexpensively and meet the needs of the seasons. It is also a very different take on a traditional rose comforter.


Make it elegant. Rose comforters don’t have to be juvenile. Instead, find a comforter with a tone on tone pattern. The roses might be part of a jacquard design. If you keep this in a soft blue or gold it will feel very French. This way you’ll be able to get an elegant hotel feeling while at the same time bringing in your favorite pattern.


Go all out. This is the perfect pattern for a kid’s room or even your very own bedroom. The key is to just pick the items that you love while changing it up a little bit. You could go for a matlese look where it will just be a tone on tone sculpted rose. This can be very elegant and you can get it in a bright white. If you want to really be daring then go with a pink.


Look for craftsmanship. Rose comforters are a dime a dozen. You can even find them in different hotels. However, yours can be different by just going with quality. You might want to find hand embroidered roses that will really give a high end touch to your piece. Just by spending a little bit more money you’ll be able to get a piece that lasts and really change up how you think about floral prints.


Go with a fun or funky color. This can really change up how you feel about roses. It allows you to go with almost any color palette under the sun. For instance, in a teen’s room you could try a hot pink and orange comforter. In a master bedroom you could go for a more contemporary gray and white theme. This allows you to get the focus on the beautiful curvature and lines of the flower instead of it just being a cliché.

Learn more about rose comforter. Stop by Sara Gilmore’s articles where you can find out all about polka dot decor.

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Simple Kitchen Cabinet Decorating Tips

Wednesday, March 10th, 2010

If you have older cabinets in your kitchen and can’t afford to replace them or they are simply cabinets you want to keep, there are many ways to update them to make them look newer and fit the style of your décor. You don’t need to have a ton of time or money to do so. Check out some of these decorating options to update your kitchen cabinets.

Add New Hardware to the Kitchen Cabinets
Choose new hardware, for a very simple and inexpensive way to update your kitchen cabinets. By adding new pulls or handles, you can really change the look of a cabinet. Cabinet hardware doesn’t take long to install and it’s also inexpensive. Unique handmade or hand-painted cabinet pulls will really spruce up your cabinets and add a creative touch to your kitchen décor.

Paint the Kitchen Cabinets
It’s easier than you think to paint kitchen cabinets. You may not even have to sand them before painting, depending on the style and color of your old cabinets. To get the best coverage and make the job easier overall, be sure to remove the doors and paint them on a flat surface.

The great thing about choosing a new color is that you can completely change the look of the room. By simply painting the cabinets, you can quickly take a country kitchen and turn it into a modern one. Since painting usually only takes a weekend, by Monday morning you can sit back and enjoy a kitchen that looks brand-new.

Take the Doors Off the Cabinets
Another way to instantly update those kitchen cabinets is to take the doors off some of the units. You can use this space to show off what’s inside those cabinets or showcase a collection that enhances your kitchen’s theme or style. Exposing just a couple of open cabinets can change the entire look of the room, so don’t feel that you have to take off every cabinet door. If you do decide to take doors off, however, be prepared to keep the inside of the cabinets clean and organized. And before you remove the doors, you need to be sure that you are willing to show off the items inside. For example, a collection of plastic cups will not make as wonderful of a kitchen accessory as antique china.

Replace the Cabinet Doors
A great way to update your kitchen and have cabinets that fit with the style you’re going for is to replace your kitchen cabinet doors. These days, there are many different types of kitchen cabinet doors available. For instance, you can find doors that have designs built in to them. There are also doors that have windows. If you’re going to replace your cabinet doors, you want a cabinet door that matches the theme and style of your kitchen. This will make the cabinets cohesive with the rest of the room. Before you pick out your doors, make sure they’re going to fit properly by taking careful measurements  of your cabinets.

If you’re looking to take your kitchen from old to stylish and new, try one or more of these ideas for updating your kitchen cabinets. Any of these renovations can dramatically change the look of the kitchen without costing you thousands of dollars. Once you decide which option will work best for your cabinets and your kitchen, you can start updating your look.

About the Writer…
For over forty years Leon Tuberman has helped people with their home furnishings and interior decorating needs. He is the owner and operator of popular furniture store in California. They have a large inventory of handcrafted Amish built solid wood furniture for your bedroom, home office and living room. Are you looking for a wood filing cabinet for your office or a wood dining table for your dining roomthen they probably have everything you need.

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Wedding Memorabilia as Home Decorations

Tuesday, February 23rd, 2010

There’s no reason to put all that wedding memorabilia away where you can’t see it or even throw it away. You are going to be decorating your new home with your spouse, so why not reuse all your wedding mementos in the process. If you’re looking for ways to put your wedding items to good use in your home, then here are some tips to consider.

Decorate with Your Wedding Pictures
Decorate your home with items from your wedding the easy way: by framing your favorite wedding pictures and using them as decorations. Hang these on an empty wall, or they can sit on a fireplace mantle or a table instead. If you have a portrait you really like, consider blowing it up and hanging it on a wall in your bedroom or above the fireplace. You might even take a few different wedding shots or pictures from your honeymoon and put them into a collage to hang on a wall.

Make a Shadow Box with Your Wedding Memorabilia
Collect your wedding items together in a shadow box to create a unique decoration for your home. Some wedding mementos that work great here are dried flowers, a piece of the wedding dress, your invitation and program, and any favors. You can arrange all these items in the shadow box in a pleasing way. Then hang the box on the wall or place it on a shelf. This makes a great decoration piece for your bedroom and will remind you of your wedding every day.

Decorate with Your Wedding Flowers
If you used real flowers for your wedding, then consider drying them out to make potpourri. You can create a sentimental addition to any room by simply placing the dried flowers in a decorative basket or vase and adding essential oils.

If your flowers at your wedding were fake, then you have many more decorating options. Leave them the way they are, placing them in a vase or basket, for an instant decoration for the home. Or you might choose instead to alter them a bit. Take a number of different bouquets from the wedding and either create one large flower arrangement or split it up into two slightly smaller ones. When placed in just about any room of the house, these flowers will instantly add color and brightness to the décor. You will also be reminded of your wonderful wedding day every time you walk by.

Make a Decoration from the Wedding Dress
If you decide not to save your wedding dress, then consider transforming it into an easy home decoration. If you have a bridesmaid willing to part with her dress, you can also do this with a bridesmaid dress. First, take a nice piece of fabric from the dress and wrap it tightly around either a picture frame or a canvas. Then secure the whole thing with a nail gun and, presto, you have a nice fabric décor item to hang on the wall. When you hang one or more of these pieces on the wall, you can really add some style to your bedroom or other room.

If you’re working with a newlywed’s budget when trying to decorate your home, you need to work with what you have as much as you can. You can create unique decorations that have a lot of emotional impact by reusing your wedding memorabilia in your home.

About the Writer…
Leon Tuberman has four decades of experience in the home furnishings and interior design industry. He is the owner and manager of popular furniture store in Los Angeles. They offer a huge assortment of solid wood furniture for your living room, home office and dining room that’s built in the Heartland of America. It doesn’t matter whether you’re shopping for file cabinets for your home office or a dining table for your formal dining room then they carry everything you need.

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Tips for Staying on Budget When Decorating

Monday, February 8th, 2010

When decorating your home, working with a budget can sometimes present trouble, especially if it’s a small one. Although decorating budgets can be difficult to stick to, you need to realize that they’re necessary. As a homeowner, you should never go into debt decorating your home. By making sure to set a budget and by following these simple tips to stick with it, you can have a wonderfully decorated home that won’t end up costing you an arm and a leg.

Make the Decorating Budget Firm
It doesn’t make sense to set a decorating budget, only to forget about it when you start shopping. Keep in mind that you are setting a budget for a reason. It’s not necessary to do all your decorating at once. It might be better to do some of the decorating now, and then once you save some more money, revisit the room to add more items later. It’s best to stick to your budget firmly, no matter what comes up.

You Will Have to Give a Little to Get a Little
Sticking to a firm budget requires you to be flexible and willing to compromise in some areas. You’ll have to go the cheaper route for certain less crucial items, if you want any more expensive pieces that you just have to have. For instance, you might have to spend less on the window treatments or picture frames if you’ve fallen in love with a coffee table or lamp that takes up a third or so of your budget.

Don’t Worry What Other People May Think
It’s so easy to get caught up in what other people will think and say. After all, if the figurine you find is perfect for your décor, does it really matter if you found it at the local discount store? It’s not likely anyone’s going to know what you paid for items in your home unless you tell them. You need to keep in mind that not everything in your room needs to be of the highest quality. So if something is inexpensive but you like it and it fits your budget, then don’t worry about what others may or may not say—go ahead and buy it. It’s funny, but sometimes the least expensive item in the room will garner the most positive attention.

Invest in Quality for the Big Items in the Room
When you plan out your budget, it’s best to allocate the majority of your money toward the larger items like a wood bed in a master bedroom or a dining room table, thus making sure that you can afford quality that will last. You might need to put more money into things like wood furniture, flooring, and artwork, rather than window treatments or other décor. Investing in quality for the larger items guarantees that they will last longer and look better. In the end, you might have a high end sofa with inexpensive decorative pillows on it, but as long as you have kept to your final budget, then that will be just fine.

It can sometimes be tempting to throw your budget away and spend more than you can afford. Unfortunately, when you do that, then every time you walk into your redecorated home or room, you are going to have negative thoughts about that debt. In the end, negative thought might lead to you not being able to enjoy being in the space. If that becomes the case, then what was the point of spending all that money? Sticking to the budget will not only save you money, it will bring you peace of mind as well.

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5 Simple Tips for Working with Interior Decorators

Monday, January 25th, 2010

If you’ve never worked with an interior decorator before, you may find that it’s a real eye-opening experience. Although you’ll find that not all interior decorators and projects are the same, there are a few key guidelines for working with a decorating professional.

1. Express Any Ideas, Wants, or Styles You Want for the Project
Unless you’re planning on handing over your home to your interior decorator so they can do what they want, you need to make sure that you clearly communicate your desires for the project. So if you already have a certain style in mind for the décor, be sure to tell the decorator. Before the project starts, be sure you are both on the same pa ge when it comes to styles, ideas, and what you want. In the end, this will save you both time and money.

2. Set a Firm Budget with the Interior Decorator
It’s really important to set a firm budget with the decorator. Otherwise, you may find yourself spending much more money on your décor project than you wanted. Stress to the decorator that this is what you can afford and you don’t want to go over this certain dollar amount. Be sure to get this budget amount in writing. Then the decorator can’t come back and say you never told them a specific limit for expenses.

3. Be Honest with the Interior Decorator
You need to let the designer know right away if they come up with a design plan you’re not crazy about. You don’t want to go along with a plan you’re not happy with just because you don’t want to hurt the person’s feelings. Remember, this is your home that you are going to have to live in. You may end up regretting it in the future if you’re not honest with the decorator about your true feelings for any plans or ideas they come up with.

4. Gather Visual Aids for the Decorator If Possible
Try to gather visual aids of what design elements you’re looking for, such as photographs and diagrams of what you want. Visual aids are always the best way to express what you’re looking for in a decorating project. Handing someone a picture and telling them this is the style you want is always easier than trying to sit and explain it to them verbally.

5. Stay Involved with the Decorating Project
If you simply hand the interior decorator a few pictures and leave them alone for a week, don’t expect everything to be perfect for you. You don’t necessarily have to be constantly supervising the work being done. But you do want to be sure you monitor the progress daily to be sure things are being done the way you want. When you just let the interior decorator work without regularly checking out the progress, you may find that the result is not what you had pictured.

Working with an interior decorator can be a great experience. This is especially true if you have trouble coming up with great ideas and plans for your home. If you follow these tips, you can help ensure that you have the best possible experience with the decorator you have chosen.

About the Author…
Leon Tuberman has been in the home furnishings and interior design industry for 40 years. He owns and operates a popular furniture store in Los Angeles. They have a large inventory of handcrafted Amish built solid wood furniture for your bedroom, home office and living room. It doesn’t matter whether you’re shopping for a wood file cabinet for your student study area or an oak dresser for your bedroom  then they have everything you need.

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Easy Tips for Budget Decorating

Saturday, January 9th, 2010

Many people don’t realize that you don’t have to spend a lot of money decorating your home. It’s possible to have a nicely decorated home that you only spend a few hundred dollars on, when it looks like you spent thousands. Following are some tips for finding décor items for your home while staying within your budget.

Shop Garage Sales and Flea Markets
You don’t always find exactly what you are looking for at garage sales and flea markets like a wood file cabinets to keep your things organized or a wood dresser for your bedroom. Yet often you come across décor items that may be just as nice for your home. As you’re shopping at these types of places, you just need to keep an open mind. You may just find that there are a lot of ways that you can completely change an item to fit your needs. You can easily take your flea market and garage sale finds, and turn them into your own personal items for your home if you are crafty or even just creative. You do need to make sure that any items you acquire are safe and structurally sound, as these are things that you won’t be able to change or fix.

Shop Seasonal Sales at Department and Discount Stores
If you like to switch up your décor with the changing seasons, you can always find inexpensive items for this by shopping after the season when they go on extreme clearance. For example, department and discount stores need to make room for winter and holiday items and thus will clearance out their fall décor items around October or November. Thus, all you need do is shop when the items are on clearance and then store them away for the next year. Certain seasonal items can even be displayed year-round as part of your décor.

Trade Your Décor with Family and Friends
If you’re looking for a fresh look in your home, there may be certain items that your friends and family members may be willing to trade with you. Not only are you able to get rid of something that you may not have a use for anymore, but you also get a new free item for your home. Always be sure it’s okay with the family member or friend before you go taking the décor item from them!

Reinvent Your Old Décor Items
Be sure to go through your old items before tossing them into the garbage whether you are simply changing the look or a room or decorating a new home. Your own old items can be changed with a little creativity, just like things from garage sales and flea markets. Polish or paint an old vase to look like new, or repaint a picture frame to match the color scheme of your new décor. By reinventing your old décor items, you can really save money and stick to your decorating budget.

A little creativity can help you save money when you are working within a budget to decorate your home. This can mean shopping wisely, or it can mean coming up with some creative ideas on how items can be reinvented. There’s no need to spend thousands of dollars on home décor when by following these simple tips, you can stick to a budget and really save some money.

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Baskets for Decorating and Organizing

Wednesday, December 30th, 2009

By using baskets to accessorize and organize a room, you are keeping the room looking orderly as well as giving it some style. No matter what your style is, there are literally hundreds of different shapes and sizes of baskets to choose from. Decorative baskets also come in a variety of materials, from wicker to plastic to different types of pliable wood. Here are some great ways to use baskets in order to decorate and organize the rooms of your home.

Decorate with a Flower Arrangement
You don’t want to be able to see any foam through the basket, so you’re going to want to find a wicker or wood basket that has a tight weave. Then arrange artificial flowers in the basket to make a pretty flower arrangement. You can place this basket just about anywhere in a room. In the bathroom, a small basket will look great on a shelf or above a cabinet. A larger basket is perfect for the coffee table or a wood bookshelf in the living room. Or use a flower arrangement basket as a centerpiece for your kitchen or dining room table.

Place Baskets under a Coffee or End Table
That empty space underneath your oak coffee table or end table is a great place to put a decorative basket. The basket ends up doing double duty, as it helps decorate the table and adds additional storage space to the room as well. The basket might hold items such as blankets, magazines, children’s toys, and even extra pillows so they are readily available but out of sight.

Hang Baskets on the Walls
When you hang certain types of decorative baskets on the walls, they can look very stylish and attractive. Either use one large basket or create a collage of smaller baskets to fill the space. If you want these decorative items to draw attention, choose ones that are different colors and unique shapes. Be sure to select a shallow basket that doesn’t stick out too far though, as deep baskets don’t work so well for hanging. You want to be sure to hang the basket so that its bottom is flat against the wall.

Fill the Basket with Decorative Items
Filling a basket with assorted decorative items is one popular way to incorporate that basket into a room’s décor. Good decorative items to use include decorative balls, rocks, marbles, potpourri, foods such as fruits, and holiday decorations. Then you can place these baskets on tables, shelves, and counters, and even on the floor.

It’s important, however, to use baskets appropriate to the style of your room. In other words, don’t put an old-fashioned wicker basket in a modern-style room. Rather, a country-themed room would be perfect for that style of basket.

These are just a few of the ways you can use baskets in your home’s décor. Baskets are perhaps the most versatile of décor items. They look great, are great for storage and helping to keep a room organize, and can be used in every room of the home.

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Painting Your Walls with Whiteboard Paint

Thursday, December 10th, 2009

With Chalkboard paint, you can accessorize and add some personality to many different rooms in your home. Although people typically think of chalkboard paint for a child’s room, it actually can be utilized in other rooms of your home as well. Consider some of these unique ways to use chalkboard paint in the different rooms of your home.

Whiteboard Paint in a Child’s Bedroom
Using Chalkboard paint in a child’s bedroom is probably the most popular way it’s used. You can pick out an area of the wall to paint, so that your children can have their very own Whiteboard to play with and draw on.

Whiteboard paint can also be use on things in the room like tables and closet doors. In fact, with a little Whiteboard paint you can create personalized closet doors for your children, where they can design and draw any type of scene they wish. This can then be changed as often as they like, perhaps even with the seasons or holidays throughout the year.

Whiteboard Paint in the Kitchen
Another great way to use Whiteboard paint is to section off a wall in the kitchen to paint so that you can write down menus or grocery lists. You might also want to consider taking a piece of wood and painting it with Chalkboard paint. This can be hung on the wall and you can write your weekly menus on it for everyone in the family to see.

Chalkboard paint can also be used on the refrigerator, as long as you don’t mind your kids drawing there. Then you can have your very own personalized fridge with new drawings from your kids every day. The backsplash is another great place where you can use Whiteboard paint. This gives you a great place where you can write down messages and recipes, or just doodle while you’re cooking dinner.

Whiteboard Paint in the Home Office
In a home office setting, Chalkboard paint can be used in several different ways. Once convenient feature is to use the paint on a section of a wall to create your very own message board or monthly/weekly calendar. Rather than trying to keep track of things on a small desk calendar you might not even notice every day, you can use this larger space to write down your important tasks and items. This is also a great place for family members to leave messages for you. This way, they aren’t bothering you while you’re working.

Chalkboard Paint in a Game Room
If you have a game room, perhaps with a pool table, then Chalkboard paint makes the perfect place to create your own scoreboard. Remember, games such as darts and some card games often need a scoreboard as well. This is a neat permanent feature to add to your game room that can be played up with a nice wooden frame. When not in use, you can put a quote or an inspirational message on it as well.

Whiteboard paint is a great way to add a touch of personality to the walls in your home. Whiteboard paint gives you so many more options in your home, beyond the child’s bedroom.

About the Author…
Leon Tuberman has four decades of experience in the furniture and interior decorating industry. He is the owner and manager of popular furniture store in California. They have a huge inventory of handcrafted Amish built solid wood furniture for your bedroom, dining room and living room. Whether you’re looking for a oak dining table for your dining room or a oak bed for your master bedroom for your ROOM then they carry everything you need.

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Interior Design Resolutions – 10 Simple Redesign Ideas to Redecorate and Refine Your Home

Thursday, December 10th, 2009

It’s that time of the year again, when we resolve to make changes that will improve
our lives. Your home is a big part of your life and a comfortable, inviting space can
really make a difference in how you feel every day. It seems only fitting that we
should add some design resolutions to our yearly ritual.

So here’s my top 10 take on the design resolutions that I believe can make a real
difference in your home.

1. Designate a space for clutter and resolve to keep it cluttered. Surprised? While
it’s true most people would put getting rid of clutter at the top of their lists, I’ve
been in enough homes to understand that if clutter is part of your lifestyle, it will
just keep coming back. I do, however, believe that it’s possible to control the
impact of clutter in your home – and it’s simple. Choose a spot that’s not visible
from the public areas of your home and designate a surface, chest or cabinet of
some sort for the paper and other things that usually end up in piles all over your
home. Give yourself permission to toss anything you don’t want to deal with
immediately into your clutter area without even thinking about organizing, filing or
putting it away later.

Trust me, if you have no area for clutter you will spontaneously make one, and
another, and another. If you have a designated area, it will contain the clutter and
keep you from feeling overwhelmed by it. You’ll have a much easier time with
everything in one spot when you do decide to sort it all out and, in the interim, at
least you will know where to find everything you can’t find.

2. Try at least one new color in your home to break your “color habits”. Be bold, do
something unexpected or something you’ve always wanted to try. If you are really
hesitant, put the color inside a closet door – somewhere where you can see and
react to it. The room which makes me smile in my home is one in which the painter
made a mistake and used a color that I never would have chosen for myself. As I
was awaiting his return visit for a repainting, I discovered that every time I walked
into the room it made me smile. The room has been repainted a few times over the
years, but always with what I call “my happy mistake.”

3. Pick the room or area in your home in which you find it hard to relax and do three
things to make the room quieter. For example, think about replacing high contrast
colors with a monochromatic scheme or toning down the color with a more muted
version. Try simplifying the lines in the room and paring down accessories. Get
those bookcases in shape, with all books flush to the front of the shelves in size
order, and create some empty wall and tabletop space where the eye can rest.

4. Conversely, pick one room or area in your home that feels bland and the most
uninteresting and do three things to elevate the tempo and energize the room. Try
introducing higher contrast or bolder colors. Layer in accessories, some interesting
coordinated fabrics in the form of throws and pillows, and some new textures.
Replace large artwork with a grouping that will add motion to the room.

5. Make at least four changes in your home to freshen it up for the spring and
summer. Change or reduce the number of layers in your window treatment to let
more of the outside in. Do what your grandmother did – use lighter slipcovers on
upholstery and seasonal accessories such as bowls of fresh summer fruit and vases
of fresh flowers. Pick up those heavy rugs. Now is the time to send them out for
cleaning. Replace them with light floor cloths or leave the floors bare for a cooling
sensation underfoot.

6. Rethink the least used room or area in your home. It may be great to look at, but
if it isn’t serving any function, you can do better. s its formality no longer
appropriate for your lifestyle? Are your college-aged kids really going to miss the
playroom? Should you have retired that home office when you retired?

7. Walk through your home room by room and consciously gauge its impact on
your senses by isolating various aspects of the experience. What do you see, hear,
smell? What can you touch? How does it make you feel? Make adjustments in each
room as needed so that the experience is always pleasant and inviting, and
appropriate for the room and its function.

8. Create a space just for you. It can be as simple as a chair in which you can
escape with a good book or an entire room. Surround your space in your favorite
colors and textures. Make it a place you can use for your most relaxing activities
and the best spot you can imagine for just sitting and doing nothing at all. Sit in you
personal space at least 10 minutes every day.

9. Approach the design and decoration of your home with joy. Whether it’s a little
change or a major renovation, try to focus, not on the chores involved, but on the
vision you have and the progress you are making toward it. Appreciate the changes,
and appreciate yourself for making them.

10. Invite guests a least once a month. When we tidy up for guests, we reawaken
our consciousness of all the little things that we can do to make our home inviting
and comfortable, details that often get lost in the chaos of our daily lives. Your
guests will feel it, but more importantly, so will you.

Peggy Berk is an award-winning interior decorator and certified interior refiner who has worked with a wide variety of residential and commercial clients throughout the New York Metropolitan Tri-State Area and Florida. Her design firm, Area Aesthetics ( http://www.areaaesthetics.com), specializes in interior redesign, home staging and full service interior decorating. Peggy is the featured designer on the Home Decor Exchange where she answers readers’ decorating questions and writes a column for “HDE Monthly.” Author of many articles in her area of expertise, she also writes the monthly “Rental Redesign” column for Rental Decorating Digest.

To see before and after photos of her one-day room redesigns, read what New York’s top real estate brokers have to say about her home staging services, or submit your decorating questions, visit her Web site at: http://www.AreaAesthetics.com

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Decorate with Style by Choosing Appropriate Art for Your Room

Wednesday, December 9th, 2009

Like other accessories, artwork can either be disruptive and jarring to the eye or put
the perfect finishing touch on any room. You can find many books in your local
library or home decor store loaded with the “do’s and don’ts” of artwork. However,
one author’s do is often another’s don’t, so it’s not surprising that artwork can be a
source of confusion.

There are many aspects to choosing artwork to complement your room, but if you
get the two basic considerations right, you should be onl your way to a harmonious
display.

A formal portrait in oil can look very out of place in a casual family room. Likewise,
those posters that graced the walls of your college dorm probably aren’t right for
the living rooms of your post-student years. So the first step in choosing artwork
for any room is to make sure that the piece is in harmony with the mood and style
of the room. Evaluate the artwork by asking the following questions:

Is the piece suitable for formal or casual rooms?

While the formality of a piece can be modified to some extent with the type of
frame and mat used, there are pieces which just don’t make the transition well. On
the other hand, there are many types of artwork which work equally well in formal
or casual rooms. Artwork should always enhance the mood of the room and, in fact,
can play a major role in establishing the appropriate mood.

Is the subject matter of the artwork appropriate for the room?

While many advise restricting depictions of food or dining scenes to the dining
room or kitchen, I think it is more a question of the piece’s style and that each piece
should be evaluated based on its own character. It is, however, advisable to keep
erotic art in private areas of the home, usually a bedroom. Very personal photos
should also be confined to non-public areas of the home. If the subject matter is
disturbing in any way, try to place the piece a room where the viewer has physical
and emotional distance from it, such as a hallway. Never use pieces of this nature
in dining rooms or bedrooms.

Is the quality of the piece suitable for the room?

An aspect of harmony often overlooked is the issue of quality. A room will look
much more cohesive if everything in the room is of a similar quality. It holds true
for artwork, as well. Bear in mind that the style and materials used in matting and
framing can have a major impact on the overall quality of a piece.

The second basic consideration in choosing artwork for you room is the shape and
size of the area in which the artwork will hang. If you draw a mental box around the wall space available for the piece, its shape will become immediately apparent to you. Vertical spaces should be filled with vertical artwork whose relative
proportions approximate the shape of the wall area. Horizontal wall spaces take
horizontal pieces. Square spaces can be used for square or round frames. As to
size, be guided by the size of the wall space as well as the scale of the furnishings
immediately surrounding it.

Peggy Berk is an award-winning interior decorator and certified interior refiner who has worked with a wide variety of residential and commercial clients throughout the New York Metropolitan Tri-State Area and Florida. Her design firm, Area Aesthetics (http://www.areaaesthetics.com), specializes in interior redesign, home staging and full service interior decorating. Peggy is the featured designer on the Home Decor Exchange where she answers readers’ decorating questions and writes a column for “HDE Monthly.” Author of many articles in her area of expertise, she also writes the monthly “Rental Redesign” column for Rental Decorating Digest.

To see before and after photos of her one-day room redesigns, read what New York’s top real estate brokers have to say about her home staging services, or submit your decorating questions, visit her Web site at: http://www.AreaAesthetics.com

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