To accommodate the changing needs of today’s lifestyles, we’ve designed kitchens like this one located in Ash Creek (Harmonique) to allow for:
Does your home allow for these changes in your life?
The first thing that greets your guests at the front door is the door mat. These functional mats can keep mud, dirt and water from getting tracked in to the house. Doormats can also be a stylish introduction into your home.
This entry hall nicely illustrates how a colorful and patterned doormat can liven up the space. The British Union Jack is a classic pattern that gives the hall a touch of Anglophile style. The red, white and blue of the mat coordinate with both the exterior and interior colors. Adding color and pattern with a door mat creates a cheerful greeting for guests and family.
Doormats can be placed on both sides of the front door. Outside mats should be a durable weather resistant material like jute or rubber. A boot scrap next to the front door is a good way to remove thick dirt, and mud from the bottoms of your shoes before entering the home. The interior door mat can be a more traditional wool throw rug, sisal or something that wicks moisture. There are so many options for patterns, prints and sizes that there is a door mat to match your decorating style.
Having a mat on the exterior and interior of the front door or kitchen door will help cut down on dirt and moisture being tracked into the home. Getting in the habit of removing your shoes by the front door is another way to prevent extra dirt from getting onto your floors and carpets.
Escaping to a spa weekend or a meditation center is an ideal way to relax and shed the stress of our everyday lives. Unfortunately it is not always a reality for us that we can leave our real lives behind and follow our bliss to a spa or ashram. Creating a place of calm in our homes can be the next best thing to a weekend away.
Finding a space in the home for meditation and quiet can be a little tricky for a house that holds a busy family. A corner of a home office or spare bedroom, a space in the master bedroom or even outside could be used as a place of quiet and reflection. It is all about cultivating calm energy no matter where you find the space.
Designating a space in the home as a meditation or quiet place can be done with simple decorations and a soft place on the floor to sit. A soft area rug or floor cushion can create a comfortable place to sit and meditate or have quiet time. Placing a small table with a candle or incense or even a beautifully scented fresh flower can designate the space as special. Silence may be preferred but you can also have music playing that calms your heartbeat and your breathing.
Having quiet and calm for five, ten, or twenty minutes can restore your focus and energy so that you can face the rest of your busy life.
The primary color red is one of the strongest colors on the color wheel. Red can intimidate some people for its bold, rich color. Small doses of red can be used as an accent color to spice up a room. Buying or painting a single accent piece of red furniture is a fun way to add a pop of red to a room.
A red chair or ottoman in a living room or a red console table in the entry will create a focal point. Red accents can be in furniture, rugs, lamps or soft accessories like pillows and throws. A red bowl on the dining table or kitchen counter is a nice way to incorporate the color into a room. Even a bowl of red apples can add a little burst of red to a kitchen.
If you want to make a bigger statement, use red on furniture or the walls. Red area rugs or or multicolor rugs that have red in the pattern are less overwhelming than red walls.
Red painted furniture can be done with spray paint or traditional oil based paints for furniture. To get a good saturated color, multiple layers will need to be applied. A red lacquer is great for its deep color and hard surface—perfect for a coffee table or dining table. The shiny, glossy surface of lacquer can be imitated with a high gloss enamel paint. Durable enamel paint is a good choice for chairs and surfaces that will get a lot of wear.
We are all aware of the power of color. For both our personal fashion and homes, color can be transformative. While neutrals and black and white are great foundations for a wardrobe and home, nothing changes the look and feel of a room like color. This is the reason that paint is such a powerful decorating tool.
Paint is one of the easiest ways to decorate a room. Paint can open up a room, make a space feel cozy, raise or lower the ceiling, and personalize a space. When you paint your walls, you will transform your space. This is true even if you are painting in neutral colors. Going from a deeply colored wall color to white is just as transformative as the other direction.
The power of paint doesn’t stop with walls. Painting the ceiling can also change the feeling of the room. A darker color on the ceiling will lower the feeling of the ceiling and make the room feel cozier.
Beyond the architecture of the home, paint can change the look of furniture, fabrics, and even solid colored rugs. Painting furniture is a wonderful way to give it new life. Inexpensive solid neutral fabrics can be turned into interesting patterned materials with textile paint; the same is true for area rugs.
Next time you get the urge to change your room, start with paint. A new paint color on the walls or old dresser can give you a new look without spending major money.
Sleek high end appliances are not always easily recognized in the kitchen. Some are chameleons that blend in almost seamlessly with the surround cabinetry. Others like ranges and wall ovens stand out in the room as focal points.
In this kitchen the beautiful pale wood on the cabinetry is carried onto the back of the island and probably the floor, wrapping the room in warm wood tones. The grey counter tops and chrome handles coordinate with the stainless steel range and hood on the island as well as the oven and microwave on the back wall. The fridge is another story.
Counter depth refrigerators are designed to create a more uniform sight line in the kitchen. No bulky fridge sticking out beyond the counter in this kitchen. In fact the refrigerator is cleverly disguised as a tall cabinet, blending in with the other cabinets. The seamless look between the fridge and the cabinets could not be achieved with a standard depth refrigerator. Counter depth is key to achieving this look.
Not every fridge can be mounted with the same wood facing as your cabinetry. Some brands are especially designed to accommodate this type of front. Matching the wood of the fridge door to the cabinets creates a seamless look that highlights the wood of the cabinets rather than the fridge. This gives the kitchen the ultimate in cohesive design. Cabinet fronted refrigerators can be used in most kitchen styles from traditional to contemporary to blend the fridge into the space.
It is not too early to begin planning and decorating your outdoor living space, sun porch or front porch. The cooler months and beginning of spring are the perfect time to assess what you have, what still works and what you will need to replace for this summer.
Outdoor furniture may need to be replaced more frequently than the furniture inside your home since it is exposed to the elements. Rain and sun can both do damage to outdoor furniture that is made of wood, plastic or painted. Outdoor fabrics are designed to be water resistant and less likely to fade but will eventually show the wear and tear of life outdoors. Outdoor rugs are similar to outdoor fabric in terms of fading and resistance to water.
Wood and metal furniture can be given a second life with a coat or two of spray paint. Prepping the chair or table to remove any dirt and rust is a must for the paint to adhere. A light sanding can also roughen the surface to accept the new layer of paint. There are even spray paints designed to work on plastic that can be a great option for plastic patio furniture.
Once you know what outdoor furniture and accessories you can still use this coming summer you’ll know what you need to buy new. Planning your budget and shopping early will help you get the right piece and stay within your budget.
This dining room is a great example of having all the right elements. The four dining room essentials are all in place: beautiful table; chairs; chandelier; and sideboard. Other dining room design elements like a traditional area rug, art and additional lighting all help create a polished and put together dining room. Yet the room still lacks a little bit of drama or pizzazz. A few additions and changes can help create more of a sense of drama in this formal dining room.
Shutters on the windows can control the light during the day and provide privacy at night but do little to add to the formal feeling of the room’s style. Rather than take down the shutters, curtains could be added to the windows. The curtains wouldn’t need to cover the whole expanse of the windows and could even be dummy panels that just frame the window. Hanging the curtain rod closer to the ceiling can also make the windows feel bigger.
Paint color in the walls and ceiling could help make the room feel richer. Deeper colors are nice in a dining room that is used primarily in the evening. Soft light from the chandelier and other lighting creates a dramatic look in the evening. Coordinating the wall color with the existing rug would pull the two elements together. Adding linen napkins in another color picked up from the rug is another way to enrich the look and feel of the room. The painting above the sideboard is another good source for color inspiration for accents and wall color.
Wood floors are one of the most popular choices for flooring in the home. Today’s new home construction often boasts of hardwood floors and wood floors which are highlights of older homes and remodels. Wood floors are durable and add a natural beauty to the home. The array of choices of wood, plank size and finish means it is easy to find a wood floor to suit your home’s architecture as well as your décor style.
All these wood floors need basic upkeep to keep them looking beautiful. New wood floors and floors in good condition can be swept and gently mopped to keep them clean. Wood floors should not be soaked in water and any puddles should be promptly wiped up. Harsh chemicals are not good for the finish on wood floors. Gentle cleaners are the best choice. There are cleaning products designed especially for wood floors. If you have a question about cleaning products, you can ask your flooring retailer for suggested products and cleaning methods.
If your wood floors are not in good condition with a peeling or flaking finish, stains or marks, it may be time to have them refinished. Refinishing involves sanding and reapplying a top coat, typically polyurethane. The color of the wood can be changed with stain. Often light scratches can be buffed out before the top coat is applied. Stained boards or boards that are in very poor shape can be individually removed and replaced with the same type of wood and stained to match. Ask your flooring professional for advice on the best way to handle worn or damaged wood flooring.
Neutrals are the workhorse colors in the home. If neutrals were a food, they would be chicken, the versatile meat that can work with a thousand combinations and is liked by nearly everyone. Builders favor neutral walls, tiles and flooring for new construction for a reason. The right neutrals can work with so many colors as well as be layered together to create interesting design.
To create an interesting room design solely in neutrals requires some creativity. Decorating entirely in one neutral can create a flat feeling design. Laying neutral colors with pattern, texture and form on the other hand will make for a stylish and interesting room.
This picture is a good example of layering neutrals. The sofa and carpeting are both soft neutrals in the beige and tan family. There is a slight variation in color between the carpet and sofa, but nothing too drastic. The lighter carpet has a nice shag texture that nicely contrasts with the smooth upholstery of the sofa, creating visual interest.
The beige sofa is paired with a pattern throw pillow. Pillows are a great place to add pattern and texture and if you choose, color. This pillow adds pattern and two additional colors in addition to the taupe. Camel and grey are both neutrals but add richness to the tan of the sofa and the beige of the carpet. The throw picks up on the camel color and adds a larger swath of color to the group. The textures of the pillow and throw also add another level of style to the overall design.