Exciting Room Themes for Little Boys

Looking for a fun and exciting theme for your little boy’s room?  How about doing something different for your son’s room? The trick to having a themed room is to not overdo it. Otherwise it can become overwhelming and start to look redundant. It’s not difficult to work with a theme. You can simply mix up colors and patterns for a successful design.

Sports

The most common theme that comes to mind is sports. Luckily there are plenty to chose from, which is good for creating a unique look. Pick one, two or even three! Painted words, sports balls, equipment, team names, logos, flags and more look really great on solid colored walls.

If you choose to do all of this on the walls, pick a solid color for the bedding and add sports patterned pillows. Chose painted or light stained wood furniture. The light wood can remind us of wooden baseball bats while the painted furniture is great to add a pop against the solid colored walls. For a finishing touch, try framing some pictures of your little guy playing his favorite sport!

Sailing

Maybe you want to stay away from the common sports theme room. Well, what about sailing? Little boys love blue and what theme could possibly have more blue than sailing?

Striped, dark blue bedding and decorative sailing pillows are a great place to start. Pair this with white furniture, Paint the walls a light blue. Hang up sailing prints or even mount a lifesaver on the wall. Finally, add a dark blue lamp base with a white shade, sailboat accessories and photographs of your rugrat boating with his family.

Construction

For my last suggestion, what about creating a real manly man theme such as construction? Little boys love cement trucks, dump trucks and tools, so why not bring this into their room? I recommend painting the walls a solid light color with construction images. Add construction theme bedding and pair it with solid colored decorative pillows. Finally, keep the lamps, accessories and stuffed animals of a non-construction theme to change things up a bit.

What Makes A Dining Room More Comfortable to Eat In?

What elements of design make some dining rooms more inviting than others? When having dinner with friends, the majority of your time is spent in the dining room or kitchen, so let’s talk about how to make an eating area more comfortable.

Table Shape

The dining room is often one of the first rooms your guests will see when walking into your home. For this reason alone, it is important to make a great impression. Figuring out if a round or rectangle table is right for your space is a great place to start. If your room is more of a square shape, a round table is usually the right fit while a rectangle table will obviously fit well in a rectangular room.

Furniture Size

Make sure you buy the right size table for the room that will allow for a nice walking space behind all chairs. I recommend leaving at least two feet. This gives your guests one foot to pull out the chair and one foot for those walking behind.

Upholstery or Wood?

When deciding on upholstered or non-upholstered chairs, first think about the majority of your guests. Will there be many kids? If so, you may want to go with a wooden seat for easy clean up. But upholstered chairs add an element of comfort that lasts long after dinner is served.

Keep the Eye Moving

Rooms that can accommodate buffets or china cabinets offer a stunning effect. Having items for your guests to look at while spending time in your dining room will make their eyes move throughout the space, keeping them focused and awake after a big delicious meal. I recommend placing colored glass, intricate china or vibrant accessories on top of the buffet or inside your china cabinet.

Window treatments

Window treatments can be helpful in more formal dining spaces by adding splashes of color that can be repeated in the china cabinet, buffet, artwork or rug. When walking into the space, the window treatments will soften the look against the hard wood table and give off a comfortable feeling.

Flooring and Walls

It is a smart idea to keep the walls a neutral shade with colorful artwork. Rugs always look great under dining room tables. However, if you have a beautiful floor underneath, rugs may not be necessary. A rug can make sliding chairs in and out difficult and could collect stains. On a positive note, rugs will absorb sound that may carry out of the space and disturb others in the home.

How have you created a comfortable space to dine in?

Celebrating Earth Day with Interiors

Did you celebrate Earth Day on April 22nd? Did you do anything to make your home interior environmentally friendly? Here are some questions to ask yourself when considering a home improvement project or purchase.

1. Have you switched all your incandescent bulbs out for compact fluorescent light bulbs? If not, next time you are in your local hardware store, pick some up. You will have them ready when that next light bulb burns out.
2. Do you really need your heat or air set at the same temperature when you are out of the home or sleeping? Consider installing a programmable thermostat? It will save you money and help save the earth.
3. Is air flowing into your home under doors and windows? Plug them up! Air leaks allow air and heat to sneak outside, making it more difficult for us to control the air in our home. In turn, this makes the air conditioner or furnace work harder. It ends up costing you more money and wasting precious resources.
4. Buy local products. Products made overseas require tons and tons of fuel.
5. Buy items with post-consumer recycled content. This can range from clothes to fabrics, plastic containers to furniture, even coffee mugs.
6. Do you reuse? Reusing ensures less waste goes into landfills. Can you reuse that old piece of furniture? Can you reuse paint you already have in your basement? How about shopping at a thrift or antique store? It’s amazing what your mind can come up with when given the opportunity to save money and make something beautiful for your home!
7. Buy Energy Star Appliances. Replace old appliances with Energy Star models when they break. Your appliances will run more efficiently and can save you money in the long run. Remember to unplug your small appliances when they are not in use because they can still suck up energy.
8. Don’t forget to ask the experts. Decide if buying a sustainable product is an option for you before you buy anything for your home. If so, just ask the expert for more information. I bet you learn something interesting.

Celebrate Earth Day all 365 days in your home! How have you made the Earth better today?

Creating a Home Library You’ll Want to Visit: 5 Inspirations

If you’re lucky enough to have an in-home library, you may find it difficult to create a space that maximizes storage without sacrificing appeal. Celebrate your home library by creating an inspiring space.

Here are a few ideas:

1. Go classic museum. Give your space an art-museum feel by adding classic pieces. This museum bench is an awesome piece that would nicely complement stone flooring. As seen in the Pasadena Museum of California Art (PMCA) 2005 Biennial Exhibition, the Case Study Museum Bench was designed and developed at the Modernica Studio in Los Angeles. The Museum Bench is extremely substantial and appropriate for high traffic and commercial use.
2. Bring the world home. Brainstorm creative ways to bring your world travels home. Use your library as a place to display collected art pieces or a push-pinned map. Consider adding to that cultured feel by including a trunk for extra storage. It’s perfect for a small throw blanket or two.
3. Decorate with light. Warm overhead lighting will provide a comforting feel. Lights directed toward shelves or artwork draw the eye to the most inspiring elements of the room. Don’t forget to highlight your favorite hanging art pieces or statues. It’s generally pretty easy to find lights that can be fixed to the top of the shelves, angling over to display shelf contents. Consider LEDs for a bright, targeted, energy-friendly solution. Visit your local library to see how they lit their shelves.
4. Don’t skip art.
   Paintings don’t have to be confined to walls. You can mount these pieces right onto bookshelves. This is a great way to break up the continuous pattern the shelves provide. I suggest using contrasting colors to give it an extra “pop.”
   That look can also be achieved by placing art on the shelves themselves. This is a great way to mix up your collection. My favorite way to place art is in accordance to the way books are organized. For example, the popular “A” and “Z” shelf ends can indicate where author last names begin and end. For a fun option, consider choosing art pieces that describe the content of the books (such as: business, art, fun, reference, etc). If you have kids, consider using their pictures to indicate their growing collection on the shelf. Make it fun for them to interact with reading! Bottom line: Be creative in a way that makes sense for you and your family.
5. Stay alive with plants. Libraries are notorious for feeling dusty, their shelves stacked with titles from countless authors. Add a little life with plants. Large, leafy plants are good options. Of course, ensure the plant you choose has sufficient lighting.
   Unless you’re seriously disadvantaged at keeping plants alive, opt for live plants over their fake counterparts. This will side step the dust and provide a much more vibrant feel.

What have you done to make your home library – of office – more inspiring? Feel free to link to photos to share your space and inspire others!

Transforming Your Room to Include a Home Office

Today’s employees are more mobile than ever, often working from home. When you consider master’s classes, children’s homework, social media networking, and keeping current with changes in business, a home office is a necessity in today’s households. You may wonder how to fit a small office into your home, when space is at a premium.

Nowadays desks come smaller, suitable for our laptops and wireless networks. Your printer doesn’t have to be on the desk anymore. It can be in a centralized location for the entire family to use. Manufacturers are beginning to offer 40 to 48 inch desk work surfaces that are only 24 to 30 inches deep. This is the perfect size for a laptop user!

There are many places suitable for a small desk, aside from a home office. How about your bedroom? Do you have extra room in front of a window so you can look outside while you work? Pair the desk with a nice upholstered chair that corresponds with your bedding and the space can look amazing.

Find a spot in the laundry room. Or perhaps you have a small loft space upstairs? A desk might work perfectly there. A dead end hallway can allow for even more opportunities. Try fitting a small desk there and it will accommodate the entire family.

How about your family or living room? What a great way to keep an eye on your kids while they are surfing the Web or doing their homework. It can also be great way for you to work while watching your favorite television program.

Speaking of the television, did you know that your computer can hook up to your set and allow for larger viewing during conference calls or Webinars? Now that’s what I call functionality!

Whatever fits in your home, you can’t go wrong with a small home office. How have you turned your room into a work space?

Complementing Stone Floors: 5 Favorite Elements

Stone floors can be a gorgeous way to achieve a contemporary, earthy look but they often also have a “cold” feel. Warming up the floors with complementary pieces can take some creativity, but the work is well worth it. Here are my five favorite additions that are sure to warm up your home:

Eco-Smart Non-Vented Fireplaces: This is the most streamlined  fireplace I’ve come across that maintains the earthy feel of a stone floor. These fireplaces burn denatured ethanol alcohol and are naturally clean burning. Not only that, but the government offers incentives: Up to 30 percent or $1,500 in tax credits for the purchase of these fireplaces!

 

 

Chester Grommet Curtain: The Chester Grommet Curtain is a great option for softening the rigidity of stone floors, but maintaining a contemporary style. Grommets are in brushed silver or iron, to coordinate with the color of the linen.

 

 

 

Dover Artist Studio Rug: This contemporary rug comes from India and is made from 100 percent New Zealand wool. The stone-like circles are a nice contrast to the rigid lines of caulk stone floors sometimes have.

If this rug doesn’t match your style, consider how you can pull the subtle colors from your stone into a rug with contrasting colors. Many stone floors are darker, so lighter colors can both soften and better define areas of the room.

 

Cornice LEDs: LEDs are not only energy efficient, but they add the right amount of soft light to lift the textures of your stone floors. LEDs on top of a cornice gives the room a comforting, even romantic lighting effect. If you already have cornices, consider adding LEDs.

 

French chandelier: This chandelier dates back to 1920’s France. This total splurge (priced at $2,400) is a dream lighting piece. The ambient lighting is an earthier-feeling option than the contemporary style of the cornice LEDs.

Exciting Room Themes for Little Girls

Looking for a fun and imaginative room theme for your daughter? Little girls are our princesses. Aren’t some of the themes getting old, redundant and boring? How about trying something different for your little girl, something she will love and be excited to show her friends? The trick to having a themed room? Don’t overdo the theme. It’s actually very simple – just mix up the theme with corresponding patterns and colors.

Butterflies

Does your little girl love visiting butterfly gardens? If so, why not give her a butterfly room of her dreams? Try finding butterfly patterns in “girly” colors such as purple, green and even light blue. If you choose to reflect the theme in the bedding, I recommend adding pillows in solid colors or simple prints.

To select a color for the walls, pick your little girl’s favorite color from the pattern on the bedding and hang a couple of corresponding prints on the walls. Try painting the furniture in the room white or use purple, green or blue shades found in the bedding. Painted wood furniture is always a great look for little girls. This is an opportunity for you to refinish some old furniture you might have laying around.

Finally, keep the lamps, accessories and stuff animals away from the butterfly theme. This will actually help add emphasis on what pieces in the bedroom are displaying the theme.

Flowers

How about flowers? If your little girl loves shades of pink, purple, yellow or green, this just might be the perfect theme! The best thing about flowers is that they come in different colors. Try to keep the color scheme to three colors and utilizing them in different shades.

Finding flower print bedding is usually quite easy so you may want to start there. Chose one color from the bedding and paint the walls the same color. Did you choose a dark color? If so, outline a couple of flowers in white. They will stand out nicely against the dark walls. If you chose a lighter color for the walls, I suggest a dark color from the bedding for the outlined flowers. This is a great and inexpensive way to carry out the theme throughout the room.

Hawaii

If you are looking for less of a “girly” theme, consider a Hawaiian look. A Hawaiian theme leaves plenty of room for creativity!

Start by choosing bright pink, blue and yellow for your color scheme. Paint the walls a light color and choose one wall for a bright, bold accent color! Try mounting a surf board to the wall to add an unique touch. Bring in the grass skirt, bamboo shades and chair for a fun addition to the space. Choose a Hawaiian flower pattern for the bedding. Pair this with solid colored pillows and use light stained wood furniture throughout the space.

Do you have another creative theme for your daughter’s room? Share your ideas and pictures!

Changing the Face of Medicine

We have all been to see doctors in cramped examination rooms with a bed, a chair and a small counter with a sink. When we have blood work done, we sit in what reminds me of school desks.

As we have more serious medical issues, we go from doctor to doctor. For a mother with small children, there is just not enough space for all of us. It almost feels like no one has ever thought about this issue. When mothers who have more than one child need to have medical issues addressed, the room is easily crowded. Patients are left feeling like part of the process. Well, design has addressed those issues and more.

Steelcase has developed a new line of products called Nurture. Researchers at the Mayo Clinic observed how consultations were done and felt that there was a disconnect between the doctor and patient created by the layout of offices and examination rooms.

The desk between the patient and the doctor minimized interaction and created a situation where it was difficult to see test results and images. Steelcase found that many of the doctors also felt disconnected and wanted an environment that engaged the patients more fully in the understanding and treatment options available to them.

As more information becomes available, patients are researching and coming in to the doctors with their information and looking for answers. The relationships between patient and doctor are more a give and take than in the past, when a doctor would prescribe medicine and walk out.

With this in mind, spaces are being created so there are work surfaces that protrude and create mini conference spaces. Test results can be viewed on a computer screen and papers can be put on the work surface. Designers at Steelcase believe that in the very near future patients will be bringing in their laptops to show their research to the doctor.

Have you seen any changes in medical facilities at your doctor’s office or labs? Do you perceive medical treatment more as a partnership than a dictatorship?

Tablescape: What are the Secrets to a Great Looking Table?

I was watching the Food Network, one of my favorite weekend activities, and was listening to this one show when all of the sudden the host said a word that I flinched at in bewilderment. Tablescape… no, not landscape but tablescape.

The best way I can explain this is, it’s a made-up term that gives identity to the act of making your dining room table look pretty for an occasion. Think about wedding receptions, the act of designing the elements to work cohesively: silverware, centerpieces, plates, chargers, glasses, accessories, napkins…the whole kit and caboodle.

So tablescapes would be a way to enhance a space and complete the design package when company arrives.

Here are a few things I gathered as ideas for a successful tablescape:

1. There are two major routes – a single focal point or multiple points of interest for each individual. This means either you can design the table with one large centerpiece that acts as a focus with surrounding details – or you can make a focal point for each individual – adding a fancy napkin ring or something like that.
2. With the first point in mind, you have to think about height and what you want the emphasis to be. Using multiple heights can add variety to the table. Think about a city skyline and how the beauty lies in the changing shapes, their varying height and the change in materials.
3. Like any good combination, you have to think about texture. The plates are most likely smooth – and the glasses may follow that route. So what are you going to do in order to add variety in texture to add interest? One idea is the napkin texture, perhaps a unique candlestick holder, or even individual unique chargers beneath the plates.
4. Color and sheen is the last component. This is absolutely important and sets the mood of the space (along with the lighting). For instance, if I want a summer table, I am not going to put down a black table cloth. If we are celebrating the holidays, candy red and evergreen may be the way to go, or maybe not. Try a path of mixed metallics that emphasize the reflection of the materials and will reflect candlelight.
5. To theme or not to theme…I can just leave that one there. If you are looking to be very literal, go for it with your accessories. If you just want a “pretty” table, keep it simple and classy.

In the end, a tablescape will have all the same basic design principles as if you are designing an interior. Do you do anything special to dress your table?

Is Your Patio Ready For Summer?

I know that interior design is the name of the game, but as we approach warmer weather for an extended period, I think it is important (and I think many would agree with me) that you have to think of your patio as another room in your home. Our family home has this great screened porch. My mother talked about it for years, her dream of having a screened porch on the back of the house. Well, she got her wish about 7 years ago. Now, when our family gathers there. If it is over 50 degrees, we are on the porch. And I have to say, we love it. But what makes it so great?

Here are a few porch attributes which I think add to the value of your outdoor environment:

Lounging around AND dining. Having a great lounge chair to catch some rays is crucial, in my opinion, to a successful patio. However, you need to combine that with separate pieces that work for dining. It can be really hard to eat corn on the cob and lounge at the same time!

The vitality of shade. When thinking about all the members of your family, you need to provide some shade. I am not saying every porch should be built to the expense of being screened in, but a good adjustable umbrella is a great investment. Just be sure to put the money into a good one that will last. If you buy a cheaply made one, you may be investing in one every year. So just lay down the cash the first time around and you should get many seasons use out of it.

Rugs may sound odd, but they work! If you have a roof or awning that covers your outdoor space, consider an outdoor rug. I think this can really take an outdoor living space from Plain Jane to a high-use critical space for your home. There is some type of psychological effect that completes the space when you think from the ground up. Also, the softness makes the space feel more like a living room or even a family room. You can just add the patio to your vacuum routine. Just be sure that if you plan on leaving the rug outside that you purchase something indoor/outdoor ready. Or, just use an old area rug from inside that you have replaced.

I love summer, and I love porch time! So, what are your plans for outdoor living this season?

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