Question: Do I really need a backsplash?

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Arena Cove Model

A backsplash is a protective and decorative feature that is installed above the countertop and behind the stove or sink in a kitchen. It is often made of ceramic, glass, metal, or stone tiles, and it serves several purposes, including protecting the wall from splatters and spills, adding style and visual interest to the kitchen, and making cleaning easier.

But the question remains: Does a backsplash really make a difference in the kitchen? The answer is yes, it does. Here’s why:

  1. Protects Your Walls: A backsplash protects your kitchen walls from water damage, oil splatters, and other stains that are common in a busy kitchen. Without a backsplash, your walls can become stained and discolored, which can be difficult to clean.
  2. Easy to Clean: A backsplash makes cleaning up a breeze. Instead of scrubbing the walls or repainting them, you can simply wipe down the backsplash with a damp cloth or sponge. This saves time and effort, especially if you cook often.
  3. Adds Style: A backsplash can add a lot of style and personality to your kitchen. You can choose from a wide range of materials, colors, and designs to match your kitchen decor and create a cohesive look. Whether you prefer a classic subway tile or a modern mosaic, there’s a backsplash that will suit your taste. Take a look at the difference this backsplash makes in this kitchen!
  4. Increases Your Home’s Value: Installing a backsplash can increase the value of your home. It is a relatively inexpensive way to update your kitchen and make it look more attractive to potential buyers.

Overall, a backsplash is a practical and stylish addition to any kitchen. It protects your walls, makes cleaning easier, adds style and visual interest, and increases your home’s value. So, whether you are building a new Fulton Home or if you’re considering a kitchen renovation or update, don’t overlook the importance of a backsplash!

Tip for Designing Your Living Room

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Photo: Duncan’s Point Model

A living room is one of the most important spaces in your home, as it is often where you spend the most time relaxing, entertaining guests, or simply hanging out with family. A well-designed living room can also make a big difference in how you feel about your home overall. If you’re looking for some tips on how to design or update your living room, here are some ideas to get you started:

  1. Consider the layout: The layout of your living room can have a big impact on how functional and comfortable it feels. Before you start decorating, think about how you want to use the space and arrange your furniture accordingly. You may want to create separate zones for different activities, such as watching TV, reading, or playing games.
  2. Choose a focal point: A focal point is a design element that draws the eye and anchors the room. In a living room, this might be a fireplace, a large window, or a piece of artwork. Once you’ve identified your focal point, arrange your furniture around it to create a cohesive look.
  3. Play with color: Color is a powerful tool in interior design, and the colors you choose for your living room can have a big impact on its overall feel. Consider the mood you want to create and choose colors that support that goal. You might also want to consider adding pops of color through accessories like pillows, rugs, or artwork.
  4. Mix textures: Texture is another important element in interior design, and mixing different textures can add depth and interest to your living room. Consider incorporating elements like plush rugs, woven baskets, and upholstery to create a cozy and inviting space.
  5. Don’t forget lighting: Lighting is key in creating a comfortable and functional living room. Make sure you have a mix of ambient, task, and accent lighting to create the right mood and functionality for different activities.
  6. Add personal touches: Finally, don’t forget to add personal touches that reflect your personality and style. This might include family photos, artwork, or decorative objects that have sentimental value. These touches can help make your living room feel like a truly personal and inviting space.

With these tips in mind, you can create a living room that is both stylish and functional, and that reflects your personal style and taste.

Using Travel to Decorate Your Home

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Harris Beach Model

There is nothing quite like having the opportunity to escape everyday life and getting lost in a foreign place. If you have ever fallen in love with a destination, you know that a vacation’s end is often met with melancholy. So how can you bring a piece of heaven back to your home so that you always remember that special destination? 

Most travelers look to souvenirs to serve as a reminder. Often, when cheesy souvenirs are implemented in a home’s decor, which can tend to look tacky. How can you best embrace your love for travel in your home’s design scheme without overpowering the design? The key to implementing travel into your interior design without disastrous results is moderation. To help you master incorporating travel in your design, we created two simple tips. Let’s take a look! 

Using Souvenirs in Decor

When traveling, try skipping the cheesy souvenir shops that only stock tacky knick-knacks. Instead, you will want to select pieces that will fit in with your home’s decor. It can be a hand-painted bowl that you can sit on your kitchen countertops or a handsewn quilt that you can throw over the couch.

When using souvenirs from foreign places in your home’s decor, you want to do so moderately. Be sure to do so with sophistication and sparingly. That means if you went to a beach destination you should avoid decking the walls in seashells or accessorizing your tabletops with bowls of shells. Instead, display seashells like artwork. Select one unique piece and display it in a way that it stands out on its own.

Simple pieces such as a scented oil from the area or pottery plates that you bought to eat dinner on every night can serve as a reminder of your travels. 

Avoid Theme Decorating

As much as you may love Hawaiian colors, instead of painting the walls those bold colors and using Hawaiian inspired fabrics throughout the house, you can incorporate elements of the theme subtly. You can feature a large painting of your beloved destination. 

Your mementos from your travel should not completely alter the decor of your home. Instead, it should be individual pieces that add to it and causes you to relive that feeling of being on vacation.

Using Cool Tones in Your Design

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Timber Cove Model

Many elements contribute to making your interior design perfectly balanced. Ideally, you want your room to be functional yet also have a sense of style. To do so, you can choose a style like Rustic or Contemporary to help set guidelines when designing your space. However, you can also influence the mood of your room with color. In fact, there are three different tones that you can create with colors: cool, warm, and neutral. Today, we are going to discuss cool tones and how they affect your environment. Let’s take a look!

Color Psychology 

Certain colors can help depict specific psychological feelings or moods. Learning to use color psychology can help you design your space. For example, warm tones can make a room feel more inviting, whereas cool tones can allow a space to feel more relaxing. Deciding what you are trying to accomplish is vital before you choose your color palette.  

Cool Tones 

There are three types of moods you can set in a room: warm, cool, or neutral. Even though every color can have its own influences, having colors that work together can create a mood. Cool tones can make a space feel more passive and soothing. If you are looking to achieve this look, try using cool tone colors such as blue, green, purple, and violet. These tones can all work together to help create your atmosphere. A general rule of thumb is to add contrast.  If your room has primarily cool tones, feel free to contrast small areas with the opposing colors. This can also allow benefits from other color tones to affect the space. 

Using Colors to Set the Mood 

Setting the mood is more than just adding color. Decide how you plan on using each color in your space. Some colors work great with each other, so try exploring different color swatches, floorings, and textiles together. Just keep in mind the mood you are trying to accomplish. Designing your space should give you freedom, but should also feel planned and unified. 

Cool tones can have a significant impact on your environment and can help your space feel relaxing.  Do you like to use cool tones or warm tones more in your space? Let us know below in the comments.

Using Warm Tones in Your Design

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When designing a space, it is essential to consider the mood you want the room to portray. You can make a room feel more inviting by adding seating, carpet, and even certain sounds or smells. You can, likewise, make a room feel more relaxing by incorporating different design elements as well. However, nothing quite sets the mood of a room, quite like the colors we choose. 

Color Psychology 

All colors have individual psychologies attached to them. If you were to see pink in a baby’s room versus blue, it might insinuate something different. Likewise, the colors we choose in our homes can help depict certain images. Do you want a room to feel creative or sophisticated? Are you looking to make a statement or keep your space feeling neutral? These are all questions you should ask yourself before choosing a color. 

Warm Tones 

Warm tones can make a room feel more inviting. You may want to incorporate these in a room where you plan on inviting guests or hosting company. Warm tones include colors like red, orange, and yellow. These colors can all work together to help create your inviting space. 

Using a neutral tone that complements these tones is also ideal. While beige and tan are neutral tones, they can enhance the power of many warm tone colors. Likewise, grey is a subtle, neutral color, yet may be best used with complementing cool tone colors. 

Using Colors to Set the Mood 

A general color scheme is divided up into the 60:30:10 rule. These are the ratios in which you choose your colors. You can give one color 60% dominance over the room while the other two colors are given 30% and 10%, respectively.  Typically, you would give 60% to a neutral color; however, this is not written in stone. Creating a mood board prior to your design can allow you to envision a finished product of your design and give you more design freedom.

Remember, while colors are influential in your décor, and lighting will also amplify this effect. Be sure to add adequate lighting to help enhance any color scheme you choose. If you’re looking for ideas, be sure to follow us on Pinterest for inspiration!

5 Ways to Tidy Up Your Bedroom

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Timber Cove Model

A clean, tidy bedroom makes for a happy homeowner. Along with making your bed each morning, we have created five simple ways you can tidy up your bedroom. Let’s take a look!

Double-Duty

Let your nightstand do some work in your bedroom by using a small dresser as a stand. The dresser creates a great solution for keeping your room tidy and neat. You can store all of your necessities right next to your bed, and you will have easy access. Be sure to purchase a small dresser that will work well as a nightstand. You want to still be able to reach your alarm clock and cell phone on the top of the dresser. Also, if you are looking for a consistent look, you will want to buy identical dressers for each side of your bed. This will help tie the look together and gives you extra storage.

The Purge

The best way to “tidy up” a space is by going through everything you own. Now, this process may take a couple of days or even weeks. Once you have gone through everything, you will want to sort it into different piles. The general rule of thumb is that if you have not used it in a year, you do not need it. Try and keep this in mind while going through your items that you need to purge. Odds are that you will find a bunch of things that you do not remember owning. Once you have sorted through everything, be sure to donate your gently-used items.

Clear off Countertops

Surface tops can be one of the leading causes of clutter. To eliminate clutter and tidy up, remove everything from your surface tops. Try and limit yourself to three items per top. For example, your television stand may have a television, a remote, and a DVD player. Your nightstand dresser may have a vase of flowers, your alarm clock, and a picture. By displaying less items, you will feel begin to feel less cluttered.

The Great Divide

Drawer dividers can be an excellent solution for organizing your space. Try adding them inside of your dressers for extra organization and less clutter.

Stick to a Schedule

After you have organized your room, you will want to stick to a cleaning schedule. This will set you up for success. Be sure to make your bed each morning so that you come home to a clean room each day. Also, you will want to make a weekly cleaning and laundry schedule to help you stay tidy!

End your cleaning on a fresh note by adding a couple drops of your favorite essential oil into a diffuser. The refreshing scents will help promote a healthy and happy lifestyle and mood.

Helpful Hints for Organizing Your Bathroom

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Are you tired of looking at the clutter of products hidden inside of your medicine cabinet? Or maybe all the bathroom drawers are filled with items that make what you need hard to find? Taking the time to organize your hygiene products and other supplies will make your mornings run much smoother. Bring order to your bathroom by implementing these key tips:

Medicine Cabinets and Shelves

Start by organizing the medicine cabinet and open shelves. These are important areas and should be considered prime real estate. That means only your daily essentials should be placed here. Your medicine cabinets and shelves should hold essential everyday items like your favorite moisturizer, toothpaste, shaving cream, and other items.

Use attractive containers for open shelving units. Makeup, skincare products, hair supplies can be stored in pretty pouches, glass jars, and decorative cups. Store towels and larger items in decorative baskets. For products that are prone to leaking or spills, you can arrange them on trays, which makes them easily accessible and easy to clean.

Use Organizational Tools

Flexible drawer organizers are adjustable, and they can be easily cleaned by simply wiping them down. Organizational tools are necessary to keep the bottom drawers neat and clean. Drawer organizers are great for storing toiletries and any other supplies that you use often but do not want to leave out on the counters.

Clear bin organizations also come in handy when decluttering the bathroom. You can place these bins in the bottom cabinets or under the sink. Store extra supplies and products that you do not use all the time such as bulky beauty and bathing items. Be sure to separate each product according to its category and place these items in a bin of its own. Also, by labeling each bin, you will be able to easily find the product that you need without shuffling through a ton of products.

Don’t Forget the Hamper

A good laundry hamper is essential. Having a basket makes it easy to keep soiled towels off the floor and an ideal spot to place your dirty clothes. Opt for a lidded hamper if you want to conceal the items inside. Also, you will want to select a hamper that does not take up much floor space. If you have room in your linen closet, see if you can sneak one at the bottom for easy storage and quick access.

We hope you enjoyed these tricks for bathroom organization!

Transitional Interior Design: A Trendy, Traditional & Modern Home

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The world of design is everchanging; styles evolve and branch off into more tailored categories. Some interior design styles are timeless while others fade away and are just merely a trend. However, it is always something truly magical when two very distinct styles have the opportunity to mesh together into a new style, offering the best of both worlds. Traditional Design and Contemporary Design are prevalent yet very distinctly different styles, and that is where Transitional Design gives them the opportunity to shine together as one design. To better understand Transitional Design, we explored the two main outlets that power this style. Let’s take a look:

Traditional

There is something inspiring about the raw beauty of a Traditional Design. From its classic detailing through wooden trim to the rich, elegant environment it showcases, traditional homes easily highlight the inviting elements of comfort by integrating symmetry, boastful décor, and freedom of color to warm the atmosphere. With endless accessories, this has been a timeless style that balances a dramatic space with a refined yet elegant atmosphere.

Contemporary/Modern

On the other hand of classic, there is the new, edgy style: Contemporary Design. While Mid-Century Modern is an era that has come and gone, this is a style that is always adapting to its latest trends. Borrowing the open layout from Mid-Century modern is as far as these can relate. However, contemporary design is mainly influenced by today’s most trending design influencers. Patterns, colors, and styles are always becoming more unique and pushing the limits of design. This is a highly evolving design that can quickly be identified as very awe-inspiring. Modern Design will allow an open layout, and it thrives on sticking minimalistic with its décor and will tend to keep a neutral color palette.

The Balance

You can go three routes when combining the two styles in Transitional Design. First, you can choose to amplify Traditional Style through your home’s architecture, trim, flooring, and color palette. Find elegance and luxury in your home by incorporating woods and classic elements then you can add the sleek, more contemporary designs through furniture, rugs, and décor. Or, you can try to have a modern open layout home. Include contemporary design through the layout of your space but let your furniture incorporate more classic textures and patterns. Lastly, you can try the “even” blend–this is where your home has a little more of an eclectic feel. You let each design shine evenly throughout the space. Putting both Traditional and Modern design into the furniture, layout, and the décor.

When completing a Transitional Design, make sure your room always feels uniform and not unbalanced. Harmony is key when creating Transitional Design. Remember that this is an eclectic blend of sophisticated and new edge. Have fun with it!

Post Holiday Wrap Up

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Now that the holidays are wrapping up, it’s time to get everything organized and out of the way before the new year. Here are a few suggestions to make your post-holiday organizing more efficient and set yourself up for a great holiday next year.

Packing away the holiday decorations with some thought will make next year’s unpacking easier as well as nicer. To start, if you don’t have those special containers for protecting your ornaments, maybe this is the year to buy some. The after-holiday sales make their price inviting, and many boxes are pretty enough to leave out during next year’s holiday. Be sure to pack candles for storage where the heat of summer won’t damage them; and now is the time to discard any decorations that won’t make the cut in next year’s plans.

Holiday lights: Are your holiday lights still around from the last century? It’s time to let them go! The new LED lights come in beautiful colors, some that change color, and use much less energy. If your lights are showing any signs of age such as frayed cords or cracked sockets, don’t take a chance on a fire next holiday. Toss them and get new ones.

Electronic gifts: Did Santa bring you your favorite electronic gadget of your dreams this year? Test those gadgets out sooner rather than later to make sure you like them and they are working properly. You generally only have a couple of weeks before retail stores charge a restocking fee for returns and insist that you send any damaged products back to the manufacturer. While you’re at it, read the installation and safety instructions. Electronics change all the time, and yesterday’s safety and use assumptions may not fit today’s products.

It’s the last week of 2022. Have a great ending to this year by wrapping up your holiday well and planning for a great 2023!

Five Festive Christmas Activities

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Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year. There are so many ways to cherish this time with our friends and family. In fact, we encourage you to make time this holiday season to appreciate the wonders of Christmas. You can make the most out of this holiday season by participating in all the fun Christmas festivities this season has to offer. To help give you some festive ideas, here are five great activities to consider:

Christmas Caroling

Bring the Christmas joy to your neighborhood by caroling with your loved ones. You can find a group of friends or family and carol around your neighborhood. Just be sure to select some songs that the group can be familiar with and practice before your performance.

Baking Cookies or Building a Gingerbread Home

Nothing says Christmas like delicious cookies and treats. Get creative this holiday and bake some seasonal cookies. You can decorate your cookie-cutter snowmen or gingerbread men with frosting and candy. You can also let your creativity shine by making gingerbread homes. Plus, it can be fun for the whole family to participate in this activity.

Driving to See Christmas Lights

Christmas lights illuminate the night sky throughout the holiday season. Plus, it can always be fun to explore and look for entertaining light shows in your surrounding area. You can go to neighborhoods with a lot of Christmas lights or find areas advertised in your newspapers. Some light shows even have radio stations coordinated with them for the full package of entertainment.

White Elephant Gift Exchange

This classic Christmas gift exchange is excellent for seasonal parties. You will first want to set a budget. Next, everyone will go and buy a gift within this budget. The gifts can range from very useful to just plain silly. Everyone will draw numbers to determine the order of the exchange. Sit in a circle with all the wrapped gifts in the middle. As the game begins, each player can select a gift from the circle or steal another player’s gift. Since the rules are a bit detailed, we recommend reading the instructions before playing, especially if it is your first time.

Christmas Movie Marathon

There are so many great Christmas holiday movies. You can enjoy them by getting your friends and family together for a movie night. Select a couple of Christmas movies to watch throughout the day. It is always a good time to get to sit back with some popcorn and snacks and watch some of the classic holiday flicks.

What are some of your favorite holiday activities? We would love to hear from you in the comment section.