Jan 17

More people decorate their homes during the fall and winter months than at any other time of the year, and with good reason! We spend more time indoors, we owe it to ourselves and our families to create a comfortable place to be! Here are the best ways to save BIG bucks on your home decorating

Start with plan. I know you’ve heard this before, but having a plan doesn’t necessarily mean you know exactly everything you want to do in your rooms ahead of time. What it does mean is having a starting point to keep you in the ballpark, and that will save you A LOT of money in mistakes in the long run. So start with the three things you need…Color, Style, and Formality. Color is easy…if you don’t already have a color scheme you love, find one in a book or magazine, and borrow it! Still unsure? Pick your favorite color, plus white, never fail combo. Style? Maybe you know you love Country Farmhouse. Or maybe you like a little of everything! That’s ok, just make sure you give the room style a name that includes the feeling you want in the room, and that will keep you on track. For instance, I have a Fresh and Sunny Cottage Room for my family room. (I use sunny as a feeling as well as a visual clue!) Keep the feeling in the name, and you will pick the right style every time! Finally, formality. Know if you like a more formal room, where things on both sides of the room match, or a more informal feel. So my family room description would go something like this…I want an informal Fresh Sunny Cottage style full of soft blue, green yellow and white. So every time I buy something, I know if it doesn’t fit in that description, it doesn’t fit period!

Look for alternatives to everything!!! Flat sheets on sale are a great buy…I can get one at my discount store for $2.89. A flat sheet is generally 66×96 inches…that’s over 3 yards of fabric for less than 97 cents a yard! Can’t beat that, and flat sheets come in so many colors. When in doubt, buy white! Use them for tablecovers, curtain panels, making comforter covers, throw pillow covers, or even casual slipcovers! If you find a great color, stock up during a white sale…you will always find uses for fabric that fits into your color scheme.

Look for furniture at yard sales and in the classifeds. You can get quality furniture this way for a fraction of what it would cost you new. Learn to make do with the furniture you have with the art of disguise. Slipcovers, paint and floor length tablecloths go a long way towards dressing up an otherwise forgettable piece of furniture. By the way, you can paint ANYTHING these days! The trick is to use a specialty blocking primer before painting…I recommend KILZ Original. Yes, you can even paint that ugly laminate bookcase or computer desk! All your furniture mismatched in style and form? Paint it all one color, and it will help marry and unify your furniture grouping. (I love white or black for furniture, depending on the style of your room.)

Finally, look for good resources to help you learn to create your own accessories, custom paint finishes, and inspirational ideas such as TheBudgetDecorator.com.

With a little advanced thinking and a bit of creativity, anyone can have a well decorated home!

Jan 16

Most people today use rustic items for their Western home décor. People like to use unique styles, designs and items to decorate their homes. You should try to outfit your western ranch or country home with some of our unique western home decor. Rugs made out of cowhide to southwest woven wool for your floor. Western bath sets in a variety of styles. Oil on canvas posters will make an attractive home decor. The great western lamps, wall sconces and extravagant chandeliers all make excellent western home décor.

You can accessorize your western bath with some fun collections of bath accessories. These fun accessories for the bathroom are made out of stainless steel to leather. There are western home décor which include complete collections of soap and lotion dispensers, tissue box covers, trash cans and more. Matching western home décor shower rings are available on some collections together with beaded silver crosses on a brushed stainless finish will make a bath set perfect for any bathroom. Cup and toothbrush insert made of frosted acrylic will add to the beauty of the bathroom.

Western home décor includes a selection of rugs for all types of rooms. There are mat rugs, made from 100% recycled plastic. These are great décor items for the indoors or outdoors. Add a touch of the old west to your favourite western room. This can be done by adding another attraction. This is the cowhide rugs, made from outstanding Brazilian hides in a variety of colours. These are available at most home decor stores that specialise in Western home décor.

Western home décor is incomplete without the warmth proper lighting. It is a part of the Western home décor. Look for unique western lamps. There is a lamp called the Double Steer Horn Lamp with its dynamic iron star centre and decorative base. This lamp has the look and feel of hand tooled leather with nail head accents on a resin base. Embossed faux snakeskin leather lampshade included will add to the beauty. This will make a perfect Western room.

You can further experience the old west with fabulous reproduction of western canvas posters done in oil from Double D Ranch. If you add a western wall mirror to your room the Western setting will be complete. The Old World Shelves and Window Cornices available in most home décor stores that stock western home décor in a variety of colours and custom sizes are a favourite.

Jan 15

There are plenty of reasons why so many people are attracted to rooster home decor. Perhaps it’s because the rooster reminds them of time spent at a grandparent’s farm. Or, maybe it’s simply because they like the casual, down-home look for at least some of the accessories and accents in their home. Whatever the reason, rooster designs and depictions can add a vibrant splash of color to a room, especially in the kitchen and/or dining area.

Rooster home decor includes a wide variety of items. There are accent rugs, wall clocks, framed prints, table decorations, key racks, and many more things that have a rooster as part of the overall design. Some designs are rather subdued while other designs are so bold and bright that they are hard not to notice.

This type of decor is most often seen in a home decorated in the country or rustic style. However, it can sometimes be used in homes that are furnished in other decorating styles, depending on what the other decor items are like. And, since rooster designs are quite common on things like kitchen canisters, spoon rests, utensil holders, wall tiles, and wallpaper borders, there’s a good chance to see rooster-themed items in the kitchen area, no matter how the rest of the house is decorated.

The popularity of rooster home decor can be partially attributed to the vibrant colors it can add to a home, as well as the idea that the rooster represents the beginning of a new day due to their early morning habits. Also, people like various types of decor that depicts animals, whether it’s dogs, cats, horses, wildlife, or farm animals. There are a wide variety of items, such as accent rugs, sofa pillows, table decorations, curios, wall art, and much more that might feature animals.

A popular way to add rooster home decor to any room is with window accents or small figurines that can be placed on a shelf. Such items make it easy to have this fun and colorful element in any room without overwhelming the other types of decor.

There are plenty of items that let you add rooster home decor to the bathroom as well. You will be able to find toothbrush holders, soap dispensers, tissue boxes, and other bathroom accessories that have a rooster design or depiction on them.

Whether you want just a few pieces of rooster decor here and there, or if you want an entire room decorated in this theme, you will be rewarded with a warm and welcoming feeling for your home. Plus, it adds a certain touch of country charm.

Jan 14

Equestrian home decor gives horse lovers a chance to show their love and appreciation for their four-legged friends. There are all kinds of home furnishings, accessories, and accents that feature a horse of some sort. It might be a table lamp with a horse sculpture on the base, a comforter that depicts horses running across a meadow, or a piece of wall art with a horse theme.

There are many reasons for the wide appeal of equestrian home decor. First, many people simply admire the form and beauty of the animal. Also, a horse might be reminiscent of time spent on a grandparent’s farm or a summer camp where you learned to ride.

You might have seen examples of equestrian home decor in all sorts of homes, but the horse-themed decor that we’re most fond of is found in homes with one of the casual styles of home decorating, such as western, rustic, southwestern, or country. Some people might be surprised to know that an increasingly large percentage of horse-themed decor is in homes of people that do not own horses.

Take a moment to think about your favorite horses from books, movies, or television. A few that come to mind for us are Trigger (the horse of Roy Rogers), Silver and Scout (the horses of the Lone Ranger and his sidekick Tonto), Black Beauty, My Friend Flicka, and the mischievous Mr. Ed. Back in the 1950s and 1960s, many children in grade school had a lunch box that featured one of these horses.

Okay, let’s take a little trip down memory lane. How many of us had a rocking horse when we were kids? How about a blanket with cowboys and/or cowgirls and horses? Anything else with a horse on it? Yes, there’s a chance that you had some sort of equestrian home decor back then and did not even realize it.

There are horse-themed figurines, statuettes, and pottery dating back centuries from different cultures that created the pieces to honor the horse. The pieces that still exist are often a real treasure for a collector.

Whether you want to decorate an entire room with equestrian home decor or just add a few pieces here and there, you can find a wide variety of items to accent your home, such as a horse-themed fireplace screen, wall art, bedding, rugs, throw pillows, and so much more.

Adding equestrian home decor in your bedroom can be accomplished with a few simple horse-themed items such as a well-placed picture or two, a comfy floor rug, and a lamp and/or lampshade. Let’s not forget the bedding and comforter. With their large surface area, they can show one or more horses in a pastoral setting or running free across a hillside.

Equestrian home decor is great for kids’ rooms as well. Here, you can brighten a child’s room with images of colts and fillies playing in a field. The kids will love a wooden rocking horse. Children’s bedding has many designs with horses to choose from. You can also take the room decor one step further with an age-appropriate lamp that has horses depicted on the base or the shade. The finishing touch would be a decorative, yet playful horse design on a wall border.

Whatever your reason for being attracted to equestrian home decor, you can be assured that you will have plenty of decorative items to choose from.

Joules,
Joules Gilets

Jan 13

There are many opinions on what will be hot or not in 2008 with probably many of the top designers arguing into 2009. However some of these ideas might get your creative juices flowing and give you some inspiration for your home decor this year.



No home this year can be considered hot without a wall mural, these “must have” accessories can dramatically change the whole feel of a room instantly. Don’t just go for the same designs everyone else gets either, most companies producing murals will offer a custom service which will allow you to use artwork, a photo or a landscape which is personal to you.
Minimalism seems to be out this year, some of the worlds top designers say that cosy and over-stuffed comfortable furniture is in, so at long last we can now relax in our living rooms. Bright colourful rooms featuring antiques and upholstered furniture will create this look without sacrificing elegance or beauty. There are many second-hand shops and flea markets where you can pick up some really good antique sofas and chairs at relatively low cost. Even if the upholstery is a little dated or worn, as long as the frame is of good quality (made of hardwood) then you can get the piece re-upholstered to suit any decor.
As we all start to consider the environment and our carbon footprint, it is only natural this should be reflected in our homes. There are many ways in which home products can be re-cycled, re-used and re-furbished, from recovering your sofa in loose covers to using bamboo flooring in your kitchen or bathroom.
Colour has a very important role to play in any home decor, it can be the difference between a house that flows from room to room complementing each other or a ghastly and possibly costly mistake which makes you curse each time you walk into a room. Both Asian and Spiced colour palettes will be big in 2008 with big influences coming from the Chinese Olympics. There may also be some unexpected colours and combinations such as browns with burgundy and deep purple with red, blue may also turn out be an unlikely candidate.
Lighting can be just as important as colour to a room by changing how the room is viewed. Using accent lighting and multiple light sources to emphasise key decor highlights such as objects or architectural features will be a big trend this year. But remember to keep green and use energy efficient products.
People will be looking to indulge their senses this year by adding difference textures into the home such as silks & velvets. Think of the different textures you can give your rugs, curtains, sofa covers, sofa throws, scatter cushions and even wallpaper.

No matter what any of the industry expects say this year it is clear that there are many ways for you to make you home individual and personal but the environmental angle does seem to be an overriding factor.

Jan 12

Is your house in need of improvements? Do you need ideas for redecorating your home? Do you need inspiration for decorating your home? Not to worry, help is already here. One great source of home decorating ideas and inspiration is home decorating magazines. These publications provide a look into the world of home decorating and offer suggestions and tips to help you decorate your home. Home decorating magazines provide pictures of homes and rooms that were remodelled which may inspire you to recreate that space in your very own home.

There are many home decorating magazines available. Most of these magazines not only provide pictures and ideas but also offers the customer an opportunity to buy directly from them items you like in their magazine. Many magazines are advertised on the Internet. With websites displaying their ideas and pictures, you can browse these sites in your search for a decorating style. These online magazines will likely offer you a chance to buy directly from them via the Internet.

Home decorating magazines are constantly in circulation. Some of the popular home decorating magazines are:

* Traditional Home – This magazine has its main focus on traditional décor and historical homes. Articles are written that allow you to visit historic places, gathering ideas and tips for decorating a traditional home. This home decorating magazine offers information on furniture, window treatments and colour schemes.

* Country Living – This magazine is published on a monthly basis and offers ideas about country décor, crafts, and antiques. It also provides tips for traditional cooking. This home decorating magazine provides details regarding furniture, window treatments, fireplaces and historic colours.

* Elle Décor – This home decorating magazine is published semi-monthly. It is a magazine dedicated to modern design with a French influence. Focus is on luxury living, furniture style and planning your room, this magazine intends to offer the average homeowner ideas and tips to achieve this terrific style for their homes.

* Better Homes & Gardens – This popular magazine provides the reader with information about various subjects relating to the homeowner and their family. This information includes ideas for home décor as well as garden decorating. Better Homes & Gardens also publishes a seasonal magazine which focuses on décor with a lot of information regarding specific projects.

* Metropolitan Home – Published six times a year, this home decorating magazine provides details about renovating and designing modern urban homes. This magazine focuses on contemporary design and current trends. It offers the reader information regarding transforming a traditional home or space into a modern, contemporary environment.

These home decorating magazines are great sources of inspiration if you are having difficulty coming up with ideas and techniques for your home. Providing detailed information and vivid photos, these home decorating magazines offer you instructions and often step-by-step directions to achieve the desired look. Each of these magazines also offers you, the customer an opportunity to buy directly from them. This can make your job so much easier if you see a room or space in the magazine that you like. Buying directly from them, you have a chance to recreate that beautiful space in your home.

Jan 11

Expecting guests very soon but in need of a quick home makeover? Are you trying to give your room a livelier ambience but aren’t willing to stretch your budget? Whether you’re contemplating of renovating your home or just trying to revitalize the look of your living room, here are some tips you just might want to consider.

Redesign your floor

As the room’s centerpiece, you’ll be surprised as to how a new area rug can dramatically change the look and feel of any room in your home. If there’s not much furniture in your living room, a dark rug with heavy pattern can make up for the lack of home accessories and furnishings. For a bedroom that looks a bit cramped and busy, a light colored rug with little or no pattern helps create an illusion of greater space. Instead of refinishing your floor, save time and money by purchasing a new area rug for your home.

Adorn your bare walls

Rather than applying a fresh coat of paint or peeling that expensive wall paper, hanging a new mirror or decor might just be a wiser and practical alternative. Effortlessly bring new life to your abode with a framed art painting or a wrought iron wall décor. Whether you’re trying to match your room’s Contemporary or Victorian theme, you don’t really need to dent your budget to enhance your room’s beauty. An inexpensive porcelain wall décor might just do the trick.

Reduce your clutter

Sometimes all you need to do is organize. Most homeowners get delighted of how much additional space additional storage accessories like cabinets and shelves can bring. Chest drawers can help you store and arrange reading materials that can be an eyesore when left scattered. Decorative coat racks and keyholders help adorn and bring order to your home.

Keep in mind that although you’ve set a cap on your budget, your options for redecorating your living room or entire home are virtually unlimited. Being practical doesn’t mean you need to compromise the beauty of your home. All it takes is a little research and imagination.

For other home decorating ideas, feel free to visit http://www.homedecorcenter.com

Jan 10

Every homeowner has the constant desire to want to create a presentable environment in their house. It is only natural – if you make such a large investment as a house, you should maintain it to the best of your abilities. Using simple techniques to decorate your house, you can increase the aesthetics by a huge amount. It can be very expensive to hire a professional home decorator, and it is quite frankly unnecessary. Professional home decorators are simply people who have learned to spot certain fundamental truths about home aesthetics. So if you feel the need to decorate or redecorate your home, you should consider all of the following aspects.


The first step to home decorating is having tasteful furniture and accessories. This doesn’t mean you have to buy a ridiculously expensive set from a furniture store. You can do with thrift store goods if you’re careful. When you first start picking (or replacing) your furniture, you should decide on a certain theme that you want to stick with. You can buy furniture that is mostly made out of wood. If you buy a can of wood stain from your local home improvement store, you can magically match all of your furniture when previously they completely contrasted each other. Alternatively, you may decide to go with a modern theme, or any other number of themes and sub-themes used by decorators. You can get ideas from decorating magazines, stores, or homes of friends.


Once you’ve got your furniture and accessories all generally matching, you can consider your walls and carpets. Of course, this stage of the decorating depends on how much you want to overhaul your home, and how much you are willing to spend in time and money. The fact of the matter is, your carpet and walls are most likely not the best match for the rest of your house, since the builders of your home could not have known what sort of furniture you would have. Painting the walls is a relatively easy project, and you can do it in a weekend if you plan it out right. A tastefully-colored wall can lend a lot of aesthetic value to your home.


The hardest part of decorating your home is noticing small touches that you can make to lend to and improve the overall mood and theme of the house. The reason it’s hard is that you can’t analyze any specific aspect of your house and figure out how to change it for the better. Instead, you have to look at the big picture and creatively imagine things that you could be doing differently. If this doesn’t come naturally to you, then you can use many different sources as inspiration. But a few magazines next time you’re at the store, and look at the rooms pictured within. Most of them have likely been designed by professionals. You can look for the small details that give the room its great style, and figure out ways to apply the same thing to your home. Just make sure that the small details fit the color scheme and style of your overall decor.


The lighting of your rooms is also a very important aspect. When you have a very well-thought-out furniture layout, and specific decorations everywhere, usually the default lighting layout will not suffice. Think about changing the lighting to a different part of the room to change the focus. Think about putting a lamp on a table or even a track lighting system on the ceiling. There are many different options, and if you choose the right one then you can masterfully focus the attention of visitors to the parts of the room that you want them to be looking at.


Home decorating is never easy or quick, which is why so many people are tempted to spend a lot of money for professional advice. But before you do that, find out what exactly you are capable of, and see what you can do for your house.

Jan 9

In search of an inexpensive housewarming gift? Are you planning to give home accessories for friends who are about to tie the knot? If you’ve begun to realize that the new ceiling fan you’ve just bought for your neighbor appears to be a prime candidate for regifting, we’re here to provide some cheap home decoration gift ideas which may just be worth your while.

Table Accents

Tables offer great flexibility when it comes to decorating. For dining tables, metal fruit baskets and wicker bread trays are excellent storage accessories that offer great decorative value. Pillar candle holders and cheap glass vases are excellent for coffee tables and consoles in living rooms and lobbies. The list for unique yet inexpensive table accents can go on and on. As with any room interior, the key is to match your décor with current furniture theme.

Wall Decorations

In lieu of expensive paintings, items like wrought iron decorations and full sized mirrors offer practical alternatives for both traditional and contemporary room designs. Sandstone wall decorations make great accents for both modern living room interiors and Asian garden themes. For contemporary walls, you may want to try to infuse a bit of African art by hanging decorative tribal masks.

Storage Accessories

Though your friends’ clutter free home may appear to be wondrous sight at first, they will eventually find the need to organize at one point or another. Every home always has room for a new wall mounted shelf. Chest drawers and metal magazine racks rarely ever outrun their use. Corner racks are cheap home accessories that are often assured of a space in kitchens and living rooms.

Traditional and Antique Décor

Though the terms traditional and antique connote ideas of elegance and luxury, you’ll be surprised of the number of ways you help spruce of your friend’s Victorian room theme without going beyond your budget. Resin vases and sculptures are steadily gaining popularity because of two key factors, “beauty and affordability”. As one of the most versatile synthetic substances today, resin can be fabricated to replicate the texture of wood or metal in any shape or form imaginable. When used as decorative fixtures or furniture, the difference between resin and wood is often hardly discernable.

For more home decoration tips and ideas, please feel free to visit www.homedecorcenter.com.

Jan 8

With the huge boom in interior designers and home decorating stores and businesses it is easy to feel unqualified to take on the decoration of your own home. The only thing is, people have been decorating their own homes for years, it isn’t until recently that we suddenly needed the help of interior designers and such to make our homes look like we want them to. You just need to know what you want and then think like an interior designer.

You first need to pick a space or a room that you are going to work on decorating. Only do one at a time, spreading your time over several rooms may lead you to become frustrated since the progress will seem very slow. Once you have your area choose a color that you like. If you are going with a bold or bright color it is better to make that an accent color rather than covering the entire wall. An entire room of bright red or deep purple can make the room hard to relax in since your eyes will constantly be trying to adjust to the extreme colors.

After the color, find yourself a theme. It doesn’t need to be anything crazy like cowboys or space ships, but decide if you want the items in the room to be modern or antique. Then head out and find a few items that fit into that theme. It is necessary that you don’t cram the room with figurines. Once you try to fit too many things in one room, whether it be too many colors or too much stuff or more than one theme the room just looks messy and unorganized all the time.

If you can’t come up with any ideas for what to put in your home, walk through a dollar store or craft store or simply search the web for interior decorating ideas.

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