The outside patio dining area isn’t all that different from the dinning area inside the house. Many of the same rules apply to placing furniture so that you get the most comfortable and functional space possible.
And, now that we’re spending a lot more time at home, it’s even more important to have a space that’s just as comfortable and inviting outside as you have inside.
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Chances are the summer of 2020 will be nothing like previous summers. A global pandemic has many of our favorite theme parks, concert tours and any large gathering activities closed cancelled and shelved. But before you go and get all bummed out, this could be the year of the epic staycation!
If you can’t or are unwilling to brave the usual summer fun times this year, why not invest in a sweet outdoor space instead?
Take a look around the yard and see where you might put down some paver stones or have a small cement pad installed. Maybe you already have a small patio space that’s been neglected or under used over the years?
If there was a year to put a little elbow grease into that outside space, this is that year!
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Ah, the small house… It’s often described as charming, cozy and quaint. But what you don’t hear it described as roomy, accommodating or versatile. That’s because unlike larger homes with space to spread out and grow, smaller homes are finite, and you have to work with what you’ve got.
There’s no “bonus” room that lacks definition, or a great room in addition to the family room and living room. Nope, the small house is purposeful. Bedroom(s), kitchen, living, and bath are all exactly what they are intended to be with little wiggle room for any other purpose.
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Small living rooms can be a P.I.T.A. Especially long narrow ones. It often feels like you’re playing Tetris; trying to maneuver a beefy couch next to a an even beefier chair. You lug and push until you’re too exhausted to care and you just leave your furniture any old way to avoid more stress. After a couple of weeks of “living with it,” you look at it and you know there’s a better way to arrange it so, on you go again, lugging and pushing, micro-positioning and tweaking angles ever-so-slightly…
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Maybe you’re fed up with the lumpy sofa and you can go through one more Netflix binge on something that feels like you’re sitting on a bag of sand and rocks.
But, if your room has a tricky layout or architectural obstacles, you may be hesitating to pull the trigger on new furniture.
Whatever the case, furniture shopping has changed for the moment and making the right decisions from home, when you can’t see or touch furniture, is more important than ever for determining a good experience from a bad one.
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What happens when you mix the relatively minimalist Scandinavian design aesthetic with the maximalist Bohemian look? Well you get Boho-navian or Sandi-hemian. Whatever you call it, it’s a pretty distinct pairing that’s as unique as you are.
You get to have all the color and whimsey of Boho with the restrain and curation of Scandinavian. And that can fit delightfully well in small homes.
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When a modern house is paired with rustic touches, there’s this phenomenon that takes the edge off the starkness of the modern style. Rustic’s texture and warmth contrasts modern’s simplicity and coolness by mixing in history with aged materials and worn in vintage charm.
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Throughout the years one of the most common stumbling blocks I’ve come across with clients is not knowing how to define their style. Many times I’ll hear, “I’ll know it when I see it” or, “I like different things form different decorating styles and it’s too hard for me to narrow it down.” I totally get that. You’re not a one-dimensional being and you don’t live in one-dimensional home.
Good design, just like a good partnership, requires give and take. You can take elements from one design style and mix it with another to give that combination a distinct look that everyone can enjoy. The same goes for one person with an affinity towards different design styles. A little from one style sprinkled into another makes for a dynamic and interesting combination.
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Congratulations! You just moved to your new house! You’re thrilled to finally be in after months of jumping through hoops and standing on your head for banks and lawyers. Now, the house is finally yours, just in time for the stay at home orders… You’re spending loads of time on your furniture, looking at it day in and day out. As you look around, you’re beginning to feel bummed because it doesn’t quite look like the Pinterest board of your dreams. Maybe you’ve just been cooped up too long lately and you are just plain sick of your old furniture.
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This is all about simplifying the compilation of a gallery wall. Learn how to unify an eclectic group of items in 3 steps with items that you have on hand right now.
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Here’s my 7 step process to easily and creatively get a new vignette styled with stuff from around your house. Now, this process can be applied to small spaces or big spaces, in any room of the house. There are no rules for where it should be.
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This week I’ll show you my step by step method for tackling a room refresh in your home. You can use these steps to update your current décor by adding in a few new pieces or you can start from scratch and get a whole new room planned while you’re social distancing.
If you’d like to go a bit further than just planning, then this post is the perfect chance for you to roll up your sleeves and get to work.
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As we navigate this strange time, planning out some little projects around the house can make a huge difference in how we feel each day. That’s exactly why I wanted to offer these 15 ways to decorate. They’re a compilation of easy projects – most of which can be done in a day or two. None of them will cost you much money, and some of the ways are even free!
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Not too many of us are leaving home to go shopping these days. As you’re hunkering down, you might be walking around at your house and cooking up some ideas to add in some accent furniture. Maybe you’re looking at the entry hall and thinking a small chest could add some functionality or style. Maybe that corner of the kitchen is crying out for a tall cabinet with glass doors? Perhaps the landing at the top of the stairs could use a short bookcase to display some treasures? Whatever the case, finding great accent furniture online can be just what you need to make your space look refreshed and new.
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Think about this, how many times have you bought new furniture instead of brought old furniture to a new place? There’s probably a pretty good chance that some furniture didn’t make the cut. Maybe it was too big or too small. If that was your experience, I would also bet that instead of donating it or passing it along to someone else, it ended up by the dumpsters or on the curb, right?
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Think about the last time you took a walk through a beautiful park you love, or hiked a mountain trail, or strolled through a botanical garden. I’m sure you felt invigorated after, right? You may have chalked it up to the fresh air in your lungs and that is certainly a part of it but, the real reason you feel great after is because you satisfied your biological predisposition to affiliate with nature.
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Small house living has a lot of positive implications: Cleaning can be a breeze, there’s usually lower utility bills because you’re not heating or cooling a huge house. If you’re well organized, then you probably have everything in its place and easy to find. Yes indeed, small house living can be awesome. But there’s always the exception, right? Like where will that third house guest sleep when you only have two bedrooms? Or, where do you put that mountain of shoes you just can’t seem to edit? Finding useful storage is the number one concern I get from clients living in small homes. The next is comfortable guest accommodations, followed by a myriad of functionality related questions. So, I thought what better way to cover some of these topics then by exploring some of my favorite ways to create more storage, comfort and function for your small house.
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I’ve dragged my feet on this one for way too long. I have this blank wall in my living room and I have thought about filling it since moving almost a year and a half ago. It’s one of the last hold outs in my house and I just can’t seem to find the inspiration to get it done. The worst part is, it’s one of the first impressions in my home. When guests enter my foyer, the living room is immediately to the left and the first thing they see is my giant empty sofa wall.
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There’s a lot of reasons to consider moving into a smaller place. Most of the reasons involve a life change: the kids are grown and on their own. A partner or spouse is no longer with you. You find that you can’t or don’t want to maintain a large house and yard. No matter what the reason, the potential to go small can be very appealing.
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Knowing how much money you want to invest in a room makeover is the not the creative part of the project. Budget engages a different part of the brain – the logical part. It’s the part that introduces doubt. Having a realistic investment range for your project is just as important as having an arsenal of Pinterest pictures that depict your goals.
Even though knowing exactly how much you want to spend is essential, it can also provide very important parameters that keep a project on track.
In my experience, there is no such thing as an unlimited furniture budget. Projects never failed to fall apart when the words, “If I like it, I’ll buy it” were spoken. It didn’t matter that they liked or even loved it, if the cost was over what they anticipated, the project would not go forward.
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