Blue and Brown Living Room Decor

Ideas for Decorating in Blue/Turquoise/Teal and Brown Colors



Incorporating Brown and Teal For a Living Room That is Modern and Appealing
By Leon Tuberman

Today, modern decor is refreshing and attractive. Two decades ago, most people would never dream of decorating a living room in shades of brown and teal; now, it's one of the most appealing looks you can have if you love a clean, modern decor. In this article, you will find many useful tips for incorporating these two colors for a look that is vibrant and beautiful.

Starting point: Walls

In order to prevent your living room from looking closed in or small, you want to use a light, neutral shade for the walls. Consider light sand, a pale, soft aqua or a muted caramel color. To add further interest and appeal, paint baseboards and trim in a contrasting shade such as bold aqua or dark chocolate brown.

If you're feeling particularly creative, consider texturing the walls through various techniques such as stamping, ragging or rag-rolling to add a wallpaper-like finish that is original and eye-catching.

Choosing the furniture

To achieve balance in this style of decorating, it's best to choose furnishings that are scaled to a larger size. Tables, entertainment centers, chairs and sofas should all be the same deep brown shade if possible. Leather furnishings work especially well in this decor, and add rich texture.

Accessories are where the fun begins

Once walls are completed and furnishings are chosen, it's time to start adding colorful accents. Choose 3 shades of teal; a pale shade, a medium shade, and one that is dark and bold. The medium shade will be the dominant teal color for the room, while the others help balance things out.

When shopping for accents, let anything teal catch your eye and consider if it will work with your decorating theme. Throw pillows, picture frames, vases, window treatments, candles, tapestries - all of these things will add color and visual appeal to the room.

Vary patterns for further appeal

Long gone are the days when everything had to match. In past years, if you chose a floral pattern for your living room, you would not dare use stripes or abstract patterns. Today, it is very common for savvy decorators to mix stripes, plaids, swirls and all types of patterns together, and the look is creative and attention grabbing. Consider a plaid throw, along with striped pillows and abstract paintings for the walls to create a room that is full of life. Mixing patterns adds depth and originality, making each room striking in its own unique way.



For those who love modern, contemporary rooms, this look is ultra-chic and absolutely beautiful. Incorporate hues of dark, chocolate brown and shades of teal for a rich look with bright splashes of color that bring the room alive! Decorate with accessories that are unique and capture the attention of the eye. Once you see the finished results, you will want to show your living room off to everyone you know!

Leon Tuberman has been in the home furnishings and interior decorating industry for 4 decades. He owns and manages a popular furniture store in California. They have a large inventory of handcrafted American built solid wood furniture for your bedroom, home office and living room. Whether you're looking for a oak tv stand for your media room or a arts & crafts coffee table for your family room then they carry everything you need.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Leon_Tuberman

Blue and Brown Home Decor Inspirations

Blue Brown Bedroom Home Decor

Blue Brown Living Room Home Decor

Blue Brown Bedroom Home Decor

Blue Brown Draperies Home Decor

Blue Brown Retro Sofa
Perfect for Nursery Room Home Decor

Bathroom Towel Racks

One of the more essential things in the bathroom, is the towel rack. The place where you can hang up the wet towel to dry after use - yes, and not placed in a heap on the bathroom floor like your loved one does!

Below is an expert take on choices available when you lack space for a built-in towel rack; turn to the free standing towel rack.

A Free-Standing Towel Rack Solution
By Jennifer Akre

Sometimes I've run into a design problem that I knew I could solve with a simple solution. My story explains my quest to find a free standing towel rack, and how it changed my master bath from almost perfect to exactly right.

Several years ago I was involved in a challenging home renovation project. We bought a 120-year-old Queen Anne Victorian, a house that had been the victim of several non-sympathetic additions and adaptations. Our goal was to restore the house to something close to its original state, preserving its character but still updating it so it would be comfortable for a modern family to live and work in.

I discovered that is more difficult to work within the confines of an existing building than to build a new one. It wasn't impossible, mind you, and a surprising number of details fell into place quite easily.

Free Standing Towel Rack



I was particularly happy when we were able to create a traditional master bath with contemporary features. We found reproduction tile and re-used solid wood doors original to the home. Our new master bath was as perfect as I could imagine.

Perfect, that was, until it was time to install a towel bar. We had no place to screw anything into the wall within reach of the shower. Pocket doors, plumbing, lack of a reasonable expanse of wall-I had no place to hang a towel. But I knew there had to be a solution. I was on a quest to find a free standing towel rack.

Although I hadn't seen them anywhere at the time, I knew the free standing towel rack couldn't be a far-fetched idea. I was thinking of a quilt rack, but none were narrow enough for the space I was trying to fill. Eventually, I found a free standing towel rack in an in-flight catalog. It was a rare and lucky find.

The idea must have had merit, because today, you can find a free standing towel rack in a wide variety of sizes, finishes, and features. If you have limited floor space and need a place to hang the terrycloth, you can find a simple free standing towel rack on post and a weighted base. The post is topped with an S-shaped hanging rod, or a set of free-swinging bars on the top of the post, or an open oval rack. With this free standing towel rack, there's plenty of room to hang a few towels while taking up less than a square foot of floor space. And if you want to hang hand towels and don't have the nearby wall space for a conventional towel bar, you can get a countertop version of the free standing towel rack, too.

An elegant solution follows my instincts about using a quilt rack. Today you can find a free standing towel rack in all the popular hardware finishes. They are now readily available, and they provide two or three hanging rods--enough space to hang towels for a whole family. A base shelf on a free standing towel rack can store folded towels and spare bathroom essentials.

Another innovative design for the free standing towel rack is a towel ladder. Even if you have limited passage in your bathroom, the floor space that the ladder takes up is minimal, and you can hang four towels is less than two feet of wall space.

If you have space in your bathroom, another free standing towel rack takes its design from the étagère. Rather than having open shelves, this rack uses side bars for hanging towels. It gives you hanging space on four sides, and might give you hanging space for outside for pool towels.

Author Jennifer Akre is an owner of a wide variety of online specialty shops including that offer both items and information on how you can easily furnish and decorate your space. Whether it is bath accessories for your bathroom or chairs for your kitchen there are many tips you can use to make those spots both functional and beautiful. Click today and indulge your senses.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jennifer_Akre

Bathroom Towel Racks Ideas

Bathroom Towel Rack

Bathroom Towel Rack White

Bathroom Towel Rack

Bathroom Towel Rack

Off Season on the Island!

This weekend Dave and I are in Martha's Vineyard to attend a wedding. What a beautiful place the island is, especially during the off season when most of the summer crowds have gone.
Here are a few photos of the Harbor View Hotel in Edgartown where the wedding will take place.
Weddings always stir up feelings of happiness, hope and excitement for the future. It's turning out to be the most spectacular day for a wonderful couple.

And some great R&R for Dave and I. Wishing you a wonderful and relaxing weekend as well!

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(all photos Harbor View Hotel)

A Quick Cambridge Kitchen Redo!

Not all projects that I am involved with are huge in scope. Remember the Cambridge Workman's Cottage? You can read all about it here. It is a wonderful home that my dear friend, Leonard, renovated. Years before when budgets were tight a simple renovation was done to the kitchen. Here is the before. Cabinets were painted and new stainless appliances were purchased but the kitchen was largely as he had acquired it. In truth I really did not think the kitchen was as awful as Leonard did. Yes, the red counters were bad and I agreed that counter space was limited. Also, the stove seemed strangely out of place with about 24 inches of unused wall to the right. But Leonard's choice of cabinet color was really great. I especially loved how he refused to put in any upper cabinets. It kept the space wonderful and airy.
Here is the after - At first glance not terribly dramatic until you really take a closer look at all the details. First notice the gorgeous apron front soapstone sink and counters. A wonderful addition to a house seeped in history. We also moved the stove under the window and extended the counter to the doorway, this added significant workable counter space. Now he has two longer spaces of counters which definitely allows for more prep area. Drawers were chosen over cabinets for extra storage of pots and pans. The corner cabinet was outfitted with high quality pull outs to maximize the usable interiors. New KWC faucet and Cliffside cabinet hardware latches and pulls added the wonderful accent and ties in the stainless appliances wonderfully.

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Not terribly expensive to do, but a huge impact in terms of workability! And if you take a much closer look, I think you will agree it is an excellent improvement - a kitchen worthy of a house with so much charm and history!

(all photos Willow Decor and not to be used with out permission)

A Maine Coastal Jewel By Linda Banks

Designer and architect, Linda Banks, has been creating some of my favorite coastal homes for many years. She just sent on to me one of her recently completed projects to share with you. Once again Linda has created a wonderful ocean oasis for her clients in Maine.

On a spectacular property on the coast of Maine, Linda worked with her clients to create a shingled styled home from a new construction design. The goal was to create a casual feeling in a formal plan, but still retain the warmth and history of historic home. As such the home is filled with Linda's distinct attention to detail, including the client's antiques and collections, as well as nautical references of boats, fish and seashells, indigenous to the Maine coast.

The entryway above is a wonderful example of how Linda created the sense of history and age. The 24 foot hand hooked rug was custom designed with ships, lighthouses and other local references of Maine, sure to become a family heirloom. The bamboo bench is a beautiful reproduction and looks gorgeous with the framed hand tinted vintage map of the area.

The mudroom above provides a thoughtful location to keep everything in its place. With so many children and friends visiting the second home, this allows a wonderful spot for organization.

The dining and kitchen area above are designed in the classic New England tradition with white cabinets and blue/black granite counters. Wonderful slate floors, and butlers chairs create the perfect compliment of old and new.

The living room is the most formal room in the house. Linda used a beautiful palette of whites and creams and several classic pieces from Hickory Chair. Chairs are slip covered in Belgian Linen and the hand hooked rug was custom designed. The painting is by Stephen Bach.

The octagonal family room is part of a three level octagonal wing which captures the incredible ocean views . Above this room is the master bedroom, and above that is the client's home office which you will see in the photos below. Lovely shades of blue enhance the ocean views.

The master bedroom continues the soothing soft palette of gray blues, creams and whites.

The attic office provides the most spectacular views. Created to mimic the inside of a sailing yacht all the furniture is built in. Notice the beautiful ceilings.

The master bath is an oasis with cast iron tub perfectly positioned to capture the ocean views.

One of the boys rooms with signature Banks Designed horizontal panelling called "nickel gap", because the boards are spaced a nickel's width apart - common in ship building. The blue tone really brings a richness to the room.

The boys bathroom provide a space for each child. Nautically inspired lights and a whimsical whale rug bring a youthfulness to the space.

Another bedroom on the third floor located in the wonderful attic boasts arched casement windows. The zinc topped table was designed by Linda and her shop, Simply Home.

Another bath is awash is beautiful pale blues and marble. The mirrors are custom designed by Linda and also available through Simply Home.

The Maine coastal home is another wonderful example of Linda Banks' beautiful work and attention to details that make a house into a home. For more information on this house and to read the full article in Maine Home and Design click here. For information on Linda Banks Design click here. Finally to browse Linda's wonderful store Simple Home click here.
Thank you Linda for another fabulous home tour!