living room style design

living room style design

pop groups and modular wooden

So, finally you have found a place you can call home. Love nest. The only problem is that your home is completely empty and disorganized, and what you are waiting is a huge job. Although you probably think that you will fill your home in no time whit some decent furniture and make a party to move in, this is usually not the case. First, the decor of your first home should not be limited to posters of pop groups and modular wooden cubes for sitting, as it has probably been the case while you were living with parents or in the dorms. With a little imagination and good advice of experts, you will tastefully arrange your home for a relatively small amount of money.Well, look at your home and objectively evaluate all its advantages and disadvantages. Do you have large windows and low ceiling?

piece of furniture

Well, look at your home and objectively evaluate all its advantages and disadvantages. Do you have large windows and low ceiling?In it you eat, you sleep in it... All in one room. Although the studio or dorm room can seem a solitary and claustrophobic, you will be much less suppressed if it is well arranged and pleasant to the eye. In these small, one-room space you have two options: to leave the area as barren and lighter, or to divide into small nooks and crannies for individual activities using some sort of screen or piece of furniture that apparently "separate" a whole than others. Depending on the size of space, décor you choose and your lifestyle (if that is space for work, or people often come to visit you, etc), you can choose one of these options. In any case, decorate your space simple. Use as few different colors and avoid crowded places and excess furniture. You should consider buying multipurpose items, such as two-seater sofa or the bed to save space.

décor you choose

to leave the area as barren and lighter, or to divide into small nooks and crannies for individual activities using some sort of screen or piece of furniture that apparently "separate" a whole than others. Depending on the size of space, décor you choose and your lifestyle (if that is space for work, or people often come to visit you, etc), you can choose one of these options. In any case, decorate your space simple. Use as few different colors and avoid crowded places and excess furniture. You should consider buying multipurpose items, such as two-seater sofa or the bed to save space.does not mean the room in which to develop photos. This refers to the rooms that resemble prehistoric caves. In this room do not even know what time of day until you go out. The best solution for this one rooms are bright colors for walls, thin translucent curtains and lots of plants. A lot can help, and mirrors that reflect light and reduce the presence of shadows. Give priority to Venetian blinds or curtains in the bar compared to traditional blinds and buy a chandelier with small translucent shade rather than the classic chandelier that creates a large shadow on the wall.

decorate using photos

Add to that family photos going back a generation or two and you have the makings for various wall art. All you have to do is choose the right photos, the right wall picture frames and put them together. Here are some great ideas on how to use hanging picture frames to enhance your homes décor.Wall collages are a way to decorate using photos of that special camping trip, anniversary party or even different members of your family. Placed over the fireplace with wall candleholders on either side this type of frame adds a homey yet, sophisticated touch to your living or family room. You can also use these frames for giving a room a more whimsical touch by using photos of various birds, flowers or other items found in nature. A picture frame tree is a great way to display different generations of your family as part of your wall decorations.

your picture wall decor

Bringing with it a feel of family and unity while adding a beautiful and sentimental touch to your homes décor.Trapeze hanging picture frames look great hanging over the long bathroom vanity or that serving sideboard in your dining room. All you need to do is choose the right set of pictures to place inside these frames to create the kind of atmosphere and décor you want. When used in your child's room, pictures of their favorite pet will add a child like touch to their room's décor. While an older child may prefer pictures of flowers, angels or even their favorite sports hero.Triple wall hangings are three vertical frames and are great to use when you want to display photos on smaller wall areas. These hanging wall frames work well in small bathrooms where wall space is limited, in hallways and even in the kitchen. Using wall picture frames and your imagination is a great way of decorating the walls of your home without spending a fortune. It also allows you to use your own pictures to create interesting and wonderful creations of art for your home.

enhance your home decor

All you need to do is choose the right set of pictures to place inside these frames to create the kind of atmosphere and décor you want. When used in your child's room, pictures of their favorite pet will add a child like touch to their room's décor. While an older child may prefer pictures of flowers, angels or even their favorite sports hero.Triple wall hangings are three vertical frames and are great to use when you want to display photos on smaller wall areas. These hanging wall frames work well in small bathrooms where wall space is limited, in hallways and even in the kitchen. Using wall picture frames and your imagination is a great way of decorating the walls of your home without spending a fortune. It also allows you to use your own pictures to create interesting and wonderful creations of art for your home.

Wall Picture Frames decor

it isn't easy finding inexpensive ways to decorate a home. However, with a little thought and imagination you don't have to live with bare walls because you can't afford great works of art or even reproduction prints. You can create a number of stunning wall displays by simply using wall picture frames and your own photos to make your walls come alive. There are numerous ways that you can use your own photos as part of your home decor. Even the worst photographer amongst us has a few exquisite pictures we have managed to take of that colorful sunset, that cloudy sky, the gaily colored field of flowers or the squirrel sitting in the tree.

Gorgeous Downsizing

Recently there has been a huge increase in the news that the era of the McMansion is coming to a close. It is said that as the baby boomers move into retirement many are wanting to downsize. Of course downsizing immediately conjures up images of a smaller cramped and uninteresting house, but not if you are acclaimed architect Peter Zimmerman. A master of proportion and scale, Zimmerman, generally designs larger homes, but was intrigued about developing a home limited to 2,500 square feet. This home is part of a community of smaller homes in Pennsylvania.
Notice his great attention to detail - the thicker clapboards, copper gutters and balcony millwork. Which is echoed inside in the loft millwork. Here is the view from the entryway Though not grand in size, the open floor plan gives the illusion of much larger space. The larger scale of the fireplace balances the cathedral ceiling height. Notice the wall of built ins; the home was thoughtfully designed with lots of storage. Furnishings are neutral, using primarily linens and seagrass rugs to bring more texture to the space and enhance the gorgeous barn beams and beadboard ceilings.
Right beyond the dining area is the small kitchen with center island. The window placement and the walkway/hallway between the two spaces adds to the illusion of a larger kitchen.
Off the great room is a cozy study with another fireplace. The master suite is on the first floor and the house has a loft with two additional bedrooms. With a home so thoughtfully designed and wonderfully decorated it seems to easy to downsize. To read more about this beautiful home click here. Readers, what are your thoughts, is downsizing the trend for 2011?
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Also thanks to Sherri of Inside Out Design for the Stylish Blogger Award - Head over to her blog for some great inspiration!
(photos New Old House Magazine)

Light Up The New Year with Fire and Ice!!

Happy New Year!! We will be outdoors tonight enjoying some fireworks on New Year's Eve. We will be watching them from a dear friend's beautiful outdoor patio. I was trying to come up with a wonderful hostess gift and decided to make some Ice Sculpture Luminaries.

I have always been fascinated by the the combination of Fire and Ice. I love the warm ambiance it creates. Of course they can be made with just water, but I love the rustic feeling the addition of evergreens and pinecones bring. Here is a wonderful how to pictorial I found:

You need two bowls, one much larger than the other. Fill 1/3 of the large bowl with water. Add pinecones and evergreens.

Place the smaller bowl inside the larger bowl

Weight the smaller bowl down with a large rock. Freeze several hours outdoors or in your freezer - it's been so cold that for us outdoors works fine!!

To unmold run warm water over the larger bowl to release ice sculpture. Add a candle and enjoy!

Happy New Year, my friends!! Looking forward to sharing even more wonderful things with you in 2011!!

(photos Southern Living & Bolig)

Swedish Winter Retreat in Vail

Several months ago a reader sent me these photos of a beautiful ski home in Vail, Colorado. She thought I would love the Swedish decor which is so unusual in a ski home. The dramatic entry immediately caught my eye.

Of course I fell in love the hand painting on the walls and the beautiful Swedish Mora clock.Most ski homes are predominately wood and stone, but I loved the lightness of this space. The cathedral ceilings and natural wood floors are enhanced by the pale green painted cabinets and soft yellow painted furniture. Notice the chairs are each embellished with the birth dates of owners and their children. I love the gorgeous natural light streaming into the kitchen area. The living room also has incredible light. The blue delft tile fireplace is lovely. Again notice the painted furniture, lace curtains, light upholstery and rugs - so unique for ski house.


I like how designer, Jan Chenault, mixed antiques with reproductions, like this amoire with a mirrored front to disguise the weight of the piece and to reflect light around the room. Very smart!

But my favorite is the Ski Locker Room. I love the paint combination on the ski lockers.
It also looks like the owners names are painted on them in blue. What a wonderful retreat for a lucky family.

To see more of this beautiful home click HERE

(All Photos Mountain Living )

Memories of Christmas' Past

Let's travel back to a Christmas forty years ago.

It's Christmas Eve in 1970. I am 6 years old and anxiously awaiting Santa's arrival! That is me in the front on the left, my Mother and other sisters are behind me and to the right. My Father is taking the picture of his wife and four girls.
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My Mother is a hairdresser and every Holiday we MUST have our long hair curled. My memories of Christmas Eve will always be connected with the smell of shampoo and the uncomfortable feeling of sleeping in sponge curlers. We do not have much money. We have just exchanged "Sister Gifts", small things we have bought or made for each other. Exchanging them on Christmas Eve makes them seem more magical and important.

I am dreaming of getting a Teeter Totter watch from Santa. It seems like a grown up gift for a 6 year old who likely can not tell time, but I want to be older like my sisters.

Unbeknownst to us my Mother has been saving oatmeal boxes...

(cyndeelynds)

And fashioning them into doll cradles, like this one above. Money is tight, but she wants us to have lots of presents to open on Christmas morning. Over the years it becomes a reminder to me of how blessed I was being surrounded by such a loving family.

I will be spending Christmas with my sisters and their families, as my parents have been gone for quite some time now. So I send on my Christmas wish for you: To be surrounded by people who love and care about you. Thank you, my friends, for allowing me into your homes for another wonderful year.

I am sending you all very heartfelt wishes for a joyful holiday from my family to yours.
xoxox - Gina

My Childhood Bedroom & Giving Back

Two wonderful bloggers, Claudia from StoneHouse Love and Beth from Hello Splendor recently announced their charity campaign: Blog for Digs to support Dwell with Dignity. This organization has a mission to help families escape poverty and homelessness and to help them maintain a standard of living they can be proud of and thrive in. To raise awareness they are asking over 55 bloggers to blog about their childhood bedrooms.

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The bedroom above is pretty close the bedroom I dreamed of having as a little girl. It was in the big Sears catalogue - a lovely confection of pink rosebuds and white. Above is a modern day version by Laura Ashley of my childhood dream.

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We were not a wealthy family but my mother was very resourceful - She found wallpaper very similar to this one for $1 a roll at a discount warehouse. Luckily there was enough to cover my entire bedroom that I shared with my younger sister.

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She also bought us two small desks and painted them lime green!

My mother was a great seamstress and fashioned us curtains that looked like awnings out of pink and green striped fabric, similar to the ones above. Though not my dream of pink rosebuds, it was a happy room and I have many memories of staring at the floral patterns and planning my future and dreaming my dreams.

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If you have a moment do visit Dwell with Dignity and perhaps help other families create a place for dreaming dreams and planning for better futures.

Also visit Doryn's Dish to see her childhood bedroom.

Simon Pearce Evergreen Trees and 3 Fine Grains Giveaway Winner!

Several Christmases ago Dave presented me a beautiful box tied with a purple ribbon. I unwrapped the most gorgeous crystal evergreen tree. I had never seen one before, but Dave spied it in the city and knew I would love it. It remains one of my most cherished gifts. Each year he adds to my collection. My Simon Pearce Crystal Evergreen Trees remain my favorite collection.

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I keep them out all year, but during the holidays I add my collection of antique mirror and mercury glass trees. All together they make a spectacular display in the Conservatory on our piano. They reflect the snow and sunlight during the day and Christmas tree lights in the evening.

They are really stunning and a true work of art as each one is hand blown by master artisans in Vermont.

This year Simon Pearce added the bubble trees. These have tiny air bubbles in them to imitate snow. They are very pretty too, and prefer them mixed in with the clear ones.

Simon Pearce has a wonderful video showing the intense process and mastery needed to create one of these beautiful trees. You can view it HERE.

The Boston store has this wonderful table display using the trees as an interesting centerpiece. I just may want to create a similar display on Christmas Day on my own holiday table. The way they sparkle and catch the light is just magical.

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Finally congratulations to Morning T for winning our Grain Sack Christmas Tree. Enjoy, Enjoy!!

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And another big thank you to Kymberley Fraser of 3 Fine Grains for such a generous giveaway!

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May you all enjoy this wonderful week!

Last Chance to Enter!

The 3 Fine Grains - Grainsack Tree Giveaway is winding down - don't forget to enter - you can enter HERE.

Also remember our blog friend Kristin at Covetable Designs? She has launched an on line design business. Kristin is an incredibly talented designer, check out her latest before and afters HERE. As a Holiday gift to here readers she is giving away a free design session. Wow- isn't that fantastic?!

To enter click HERE. Thanks Kristin and best of luck to all of you!! Have a great Saturday!!