Sunday, August 17, 2014

Wallpaper: basic decorating guide


You can choose from all possible colours, designs and textures when it comes to picking a wallpaper. Wallpapers must be chosen very carefully. Keep in mind the size of your room, availability of natural light, and the ambience you want to create.
Light colours create a fresh, airy look and are suitable for smaller rooms. They are also preferable if the room does not get plenty of natural light. Darker shades can be used for a variety of purposes. For example, darker colours create a sense of intimacy and are suitable for bedrooms. They also reflect very little light and can be used for create a sense of tranquillity in study rooms, dining rooms, etc.
Cooler shades like pinks, purples, blues and greens can be used for making a place look less confining. Warm shades like reds, yellows and browns are perfect for kitchens and other such places like living rooms.



Kids Room Organization & Storage Tips

Kids' rooms have to fulfill some unique requirements. Besides being a place to sleep, they must provide space to play, study and store a mountain of clothes, toys and all other kinds of kid stuff. All this in what often is the smallest room in the house. Kids' rooms also get a lot of rough treatment. And if you choose the wrong furnishings, the kids could outgrow their rooms long before you are ready for the next remodel.
In addition to gathering a variety of inspired products that make creating the ultimate kid's room child's play, we spoke with veteran designers Dianne Carchesio and Kris Kaczynski, of Julian Katera in Freehold, New Jersey. Here are their tips for designing a kid's room that fits your child for years to come.
Tip #1: Look Down the Road


You can't decorate a room for a 2-year-old and expect not to update it for the next 20 years. But you can choose basic furnishings such as beds and dressers your child can use into young adulthood. So forget the red car bed or the bunnies painted on the dresser. Instead, select neutral colors and stains. And choose at least a twin if not a full bed.
For wallcoverings, stick with classic patterns that stay current longer, such as geometrics, stars and checks. Or choose a timeless theme like ecology, space travel or celestial motifs. You can also change looks instantly with Easy Ups wall appliques from Village, a wallcoverings manufacturer. These stick-ups are available in several themes and come off easily.
Tip #2: Start Thinking Like a Kid


Sheets and curtains are a great way to indulge your child's current interest in boats, ballerinas or dinosaurs, because you can change these soft goods when they wear out or your child's interests change. Then use your child's favorite items to decorate the room. For example, tack kites, model planes or stars to the ceiling. Build a decorative ledge or shelf from moldings to neatly display favorite toys, books and collections. And paint the room, or at least one wall, your child's favorite color.
Also provide a spot where your son or daughter can display an art project, an "A" paper and posters. One classic way to do this is to glue corkboard on an entire wall or a portion of it. Or buy a chalkboard at a school-supply store. You can turn all or part of a wall into a chalkboard with Benjamin Moore's Crayola Chalkboard paint.
The best way to think like a kid is to involve your son or daughter in the process—within reason, that is. While a child should have a voice in the final selection, protect your veto power by shopping on your own. Bring home samples of three or four colors, fabrics and furniture choices you find appealing and affordable. Tack them up. Then let your child choose. When shopping for furniture, bring a camera and let your child pick from photos.

Leather Sofas – Ideas and Inspirations





The Leather Sofa Company constructs the finest quality leather furniture at a factory direct price. Each piece is handmade by skilled craftsmen in our Dallas factory. Choose from a variety of traditional, casual, and contemporary designs with decorative options. The Leather Sofa Company puts a great deal of pride into constructing the finest quality leather furniture while maintaining a factory direct price. Each of our pieces is a one of a kind creation made in our Dallas factory. While we show a large selection of various designs, we also provide the ability to make custom changes to all of our pieces. Most of our clients are able to fall in love with the existing options we provide; however feel free to bring in your own design ideas and pictures. Click on any of the small photos for full size photographs and dimensions.

High Quality Manhattan Leather Sofa

Arezzo
Shown here as sofa, loveseat and swivel chair in a classic grade 600 amaretto tritone leather. Ottoman is also available in this style.



The Leather Sofa Company puts a great deal of pride into constructing the finest quality leather furniture while maintaining a factory direct price. Each of our pieces is a one of a kind creation made in our Dallas factory. While we show a large selection of various designs, we also provide the ability to make custom changes to all of our pieces. Most of our clients are able to fall in love with the existing options we provide; however feel free to bring in your own design ideas and pictures. Click on any of the small photos for full size photographs and dimensions.


Style: Britney

Also available in sectionals, loveseats, chairs and ottomans.





The Leather Sofa Company puts a great deal of pride into constructing the finest quality leather furniture while maintaining a factory direct price. Each of our pieces is a one of a kind creation made in our Dallas factory. While we show a large selection of various designs, we also provide the ability to make custom changes to all of our pieces. Most of our clients are able to fall in love with the existing options we provide; however feel free to bring in your own design ideas and pictures. Click on any of the small photos for full size photographs and dimensions.


Chicago




The Leather Sofa Company puts a great deal of pride into constructing the finest quality leather furniture while maintaining a factory direct price. Each of our pieces is a one of a kind creation made in our Dallas factory. While we show a large selection of various designs, we also provide the ability to make custom changes to all of our pieces. Most of our clients are able to fall in love with the existing options we provide; however feel free to bring in your own design ideas and pictures. Click on any of the small photos for full size photographs and dimensions.


Style: Italia











can make the room appear taller


One of the best interior design tips I have ever heard is to match the scale of the room with the scale of the furniture. Try not to choose dainty furniture as it will produce too much detail and make things a bit cluttered looking. Also think about using vertical stripes such as on wallpaper or even vertical lines in the room. This can make the room appear taller. If you are going to have patterns in either furniture or accessories, make sure that you have small patterns. At the same time limit patterns so that your space doesn’t look cluttered or overwhelmed.















Small Spaces Interior Design Tips

When it comes to interior design tips there are plenty that can be used when it comes to small spaces. Small spaces have to be done differently than larger spaces and the following tips will help you to make the most of your small space. One of the first tips would be to de-clutter your small space. Having clutter around will just make the space even smaller than it already is. Keep the clutter to a minimum. Clutter shrinks space and can make you claustrophobic if not taken care of immediately. This is one idea to think about.

Another great idea in interior design tips is minimize your accessories. Don’t have so many different objects on display. Too much on display and your small space will get cluttered very quickly. Placing a few things that are strategically placed as well as beautiful will decorate your space nicely. Make sure that you have a clear path around your place. Placing furniture in the hall is not a good idea as you won’t use it in the hall. Having too much around can make you feel that you are maze bound and that doesn’t help the space either.

Being minimalistic when it comes to furniture can also help a small space to look bigger. While you need comfortable furniture, you need to have just enough to furnish the room without making it look overcrowded. Pine furniture would be quite a good pick. Your pieces should be serviceable as well as functional. Another great idea from the interior design tips section is to choose lighting wisely. By choosing the right lighting, you can make the place appear bigger. Using lighting such as downlights and uplights as well as recessed lighting makes the space bigger. Choosing the right colors can also make a difference as to how large or small the space will seem after everything is done.

Mirrors are also great interior design tips to use to create the illusion of bigger space. You don’t want to feel claustrophobic in a smaller place. In regards to lighting, use full spectrum lighting in order to enliven and energize your home. You can also replace a full size refrigerator with one that is smaller and goes under the counter. You may also want to remove your interior doors and replace them with curtains to open up the spaces. Here are some other ideas when it comes to decorating small spaces.

One of the best interior design tips I have ever heard is to match the scale of the room with the scale of the furniture. Try not to choose dainty furniture as it will produce too much detail and make things a bit cluttered looking. Also think about using vertical stripes such as on wallpaper or even vertical lines in the room. This can make the room appear taller. If you are going to have patterns in either furniture or accessories, make sure that you have small patterns. At the same time limit patterns so that your space doesn’t look cluttered or overwhelmed.

Kitchen Design Layout

Kitchen Work Triangles

Kitchen Design - Kitchen Work Triangles
Locate the three essential parts of our kitchen designthe refrigerator, sink and range/cooktop. The kitchen work triangle close together but not crowded, from 5 to 8 feet (1.5m to 2.4m) apart. The work triangle has always been the very essence of good kitchen design. By kitchen design conventional rules, the kitchen work triangle is the shortest walking distance from the center front of each appliance, the kitchen work triangle should total 26 feet (8m) or less, with no single leg of triangle shorter than 4 feet (1.23m) nor longer than 9 feet (2.74m), and we should be able to walk in unobstructed lines from cooking appliances to sink to refrigerator. A large triangle would require too much walking; a smaller one would create a cramped layout. That why we need to consider seriously of the kitchen work triangle in our kitchen design.


There is some debate, today, among professional kitchen designer concerning the traditional work triangle. Although most agree kitchen work triangle is still an important element in kitchen design, may see the triangular space evolving as cooking habits and lifestyles change. These kitchen designers feel that the more actual living done in the kitchen, the more expanded the basic triangle will have to become and kitchen grow larger – which appears to be the trend – they will embrace an increasing number of activities. This will result in the need for several autonomous triangles within the room. We maybe need to plan a kitchen design for two or more cook, include an island with extra sink and cooktop and create multiple work triangles in kitchen design.
Go back to Top

Kitchen Design - Planning a Layout

Traditional layouts such as galley kitchens that have cabinets and appliances running down two sides of a room, single-line/one-wall kitchen design, U-shape kitchen design, L-shape kitchen design and larger kitchens that feature and island, are always functional and thus are ones still use today. But because modern home plans often feature open layouts that eliminate doorways between rooms, new arrangement styles are necessary. The traditional notion of lining the perimeter of a kitchen with base and wall cabinets might not work in a modern kitchen.

Single Line/One Wall Kitchen Design

Kitchen Layout - Single Line Kitchen Design Layout
  • Best utilized in narrow rooms.
  • Suitable for one or two people to use at one.
  • Suitable for small family stay at apartment or condominium.
This kitchen design layout arrangement places all equipment, sink, range, refrigerator and cabinetry along one wall. Because we cannot create a triangle in a one-wall kitchen design, maximize accessibility by locating the sink between the refrigerator and the range. Although a one-wall kitchen is more typical in a small apartment, it may be found in large, open-plan home.
Go back to Top

L-Shaped Kitchen Design Layout

Kitchen Design Layout - L-Shape Kitchen Design Layout
  • Versatile layout with cupboard along two adjacent walls.
  • Work well with sitting area that is integrated into the same room and overcomes any shortage of wall space.
  • Idea for a family and entertaining guest.
This kitchen design plan places the kitchen on two perpendicular walls. The L-shape usually consist of one long and one short “leg” and lends itself to an efficient work triangle without problem of through traffic. This kitchen design layout is flexible enough for two cook to work simultaneously without getting in each other’s way.
Another advantage to this kitchen design layout is the opportunity for incorporating an island into the floor plan, if space allows. If we do include an island in an L-shape kitchen design layout, plan the clearances carefully, walkways should be at least 36 inches wide.
Go back to Top

U-Shaped Kitchen Design Layout

Kitchen Design Layout, U-shape Kitchen Design Layout
  • Utilizes three full walls for maximum storage and work space.
  • Suitable for both large and small rooms
  • Suitable for condominium and terrace house.
Kitchen Cabinets, counters and appliances are all arranged along three walls in a U-shaped kitchen design layout. The greatest benefits to this plan are the easy traffic flow. A U-shaped kitchen design layout it is possible to keep traffic that’s passing through the kitchen from encroaching on the cook’s work space, an important asset in a busy household. A U-shaped kitchen design layout incorporates a logical sequence of work center with minimum distances between each. The sink is often located at the base of the U, with the refrigerator and range on the side walls opposite each other. The U shape takes a lot of space – at least 8 feet along the length and width of the kitchen. The U-shaped kitchen design layout is ideal for two cooks, the work areas may have to overlap somewhat in a smaller layout-meaning two cooks may have to share one leg of the triangle – but it can be done.
Go back to Top
-->

Parallel Kitchen Design

Kitchen Design Layout - Parallel Kitchen Design Layout
  • Comprises counters on both sides of the room with 1.2m width corridor down the middle.
  • This set-up saves steps and makes sense where food preparation comes before entertaining.
  • First choice of many top chefs.
The parallel kitchen design or galley kitchen design or also known as the corridor style, this compact layout locates the appliances, sink and cabinets on two parallel walls to create a small pass-through kitchen. It is easy to configure an efficient work triangle in this kitchen design layout, but this layout really caters to one cook. Parallel kitchen design is mainly the product of necessity. Small apartments often feature these kitchens to free up living space in other rooms. Allow a 48-inch wide aisle after all fixtures are in place so that cabinet and appliance doors can be opened easily while someone walk through. If possible, avoid situating the major appliances directly opposite one another. This would cause cramming in the event that two people wanted to use two things at the same time. Storage is a real challenge in this compact layout. The solution is to install tall kitchen cabinets that extend to the ceiling.
Go back to Top

Single Line Kitchen Design with an Island

Kitchen Design Layout, Single Line with Island Design Layout
  • Suitable for large rooms with lot of available floor space.
  • Easier for several people to work together at the sometime.
The island setup is only possible in kitchens that have ample room. When you set up an island, you must be sure to leave enough room for passersby on all sides of the island. Some islands provide additional counter space and seating, and many of them even feature cooktops, stoves, or sinks. Islands with cooktops offer the most efficiency, because they facilitate shorter triangles. Islands become not only areas on which to work but also places for socializing. Bar seating underneath hanging lights with dim control make people feel comfortable and relaxed. It becomes the ideal spot for wine and cocktails.
Go back to Top
Kitchen Cabinet, L-Shape Kitchen Design with Island
Kitchen Cabinet - L-Shape with Island