This new generation of wall coverings includes a lot of creatively manufactured materials. From grandiose glass bead and crystal, light-emitting patterns, textures, mat and very shinny finishes. These are not the same wallpapers that our parents and grandparents used. Today wallpaper is upholstery for your walls. The wallpaper is art. Whether you are doing a whole room or an accent wall, it can be a very stunning way to add your creative personality to your home.

There are many natural fibers available today, arrowroot, bamboo, cattail, lots of different paper weaves and grass weaves even stone. With the laid back natural bamboo and grass weaves, there is virtually no material that cannot be artistically installed to please any homeowner’s desired look. Faux finish painters are even finding creative ways to add paint and glazes to these papers to come up with a stunning look.

Don’t forget to look up! Most people forget to consider their ceilings as part of the home visual décor. There are tons of options to decorate the ceiling, then just white paint. Try a faux finish or a shimming wallpaper, this will complete the look and add personality to your room.

Paint colors for men collections are coming!  Designed to excite men into doing their man cave paint projects.  Companies are renaming paint colors with a macho flair.  The theory behind changing the names are that research shows men and women relate to the names of colors not just the color itself.  CIL Paints in Canada is the first to launch “paint colors for men” collection.  Here are some of their names:

• Hockey Puck
• Beer Time
• Mo Money
• Deathstar
• Bro Code
• Beer Foam

Keep an eye out for more paint companies to follow with the idea.  I guess it is time to inject testosterone into painting projects.

Today’s Great Find is a cocktail table for only $289. The dimensions are 27×45.  To see more and make a purchase, visit the Great Finds page..

• Vintage decorating starts in an antique store, a garage sale or at the flea market. Here you can purchase furniture and different accessories that will help you create your dreamy vintage home.
• The best thing about vintage decorating is that you can take old pieces and use them in a very creative way.  For example, a hatbox can be an ideal place to store your hair accessories, antique luggage pieces can become a simple, cute way to keep clothes or other items, stack them for an end table or under a sofa table.
• Accessories represent one of the simplest methods to transform your boring home design into an inviting vintage place.  Vases, old pottery, lamps, chandeliers, and even an antique book can totally make a difference.  Use all your artistic skills and create real works of art with just a few postcards or letters.

Vintage means a relaxed, comfy, simple, and slightly imperfect style.  The best thing to do is to combine vintage with contemporary trends.  You can add some vintage accessories for a beautiful, one-of-a-kind impact.  The genuine vintage look means soft, delicate pastels or patterned wallpapers.

  Creating a healthier and more energy efficient home not only helps the planet, but also helps your home’s value. It is more than changing the light bulbs and energy efficient appliances.  You can decorate green and still match your style. There are many eco-friendly products now, and many are beautifully designed. 
  First an easy and affordable solution is bringing the outdoors in with plants. Be selective and don’t overdo it! Plants clean your indoor air and some remove toxins from the air. Be careful with plants in bedrooms, people with allergies could be sensitive to the soil which could contain mold. Make sure they are taken care of, not over grown and remove dead leaves.
  Another way to Go Green is to remove the wall to wall carpet. Consider replacing with a natural fiber flooring, hard wood, bamboo or cork.  To add softness use all natural area rugs made from wool, hemp, or organic cotton. Area rugs are nice that they can be changed and cleaned easily. If you really want carpet what about using carpet that is made from recycled materials. Some companies are making carpet from recycled plastic bottles. Several companies, like FLOR and Shaw Carpet, offer stylish carpet squares that use non-toxic dyes and are made from recycled materials. When you are done with them you can send them back to the manufacturer to recycle.
  New looks in counter tops are coming out. They are being made from recycled products from glass, ceramics and sustainable bamboo. Paint is also a great way to get a new look. And most paint companies are coming out with non-toxic paints in beautiful colors. Organic fabrics are everywhere. Use them in window treatments and on accent pillows. There are so many varieties of patterns and colors that are now available.
  When going green you can be creative. Re-using older items and giving them new life, with paint or fabric or by using them in a new way is a great way of going Green. There are so many eco-friendly products now, so start using them. There is so much in our homes that are not good for us. Eco-friendly approaches to your living space may cost a bit more initially, but the benefits in your health and improved global environment make it worth it.

Eastern Accents’ new spring intros include Barclay Butera Bedding debut

Eastern Accents announces several new introductions for the Spring High Point Market including “Desert,” a debut collection of bedding and pillows from Barclay Butera.

Also new for spring, Eastern Accents’ designers have ”captured the elegance of Old World beauty” with three additions to the bedding company’s line.

Leyla, a new collection of felt pillows, debuts as a playful combination of simplicity, striking color and clever design, hand-cut and individually pieced in Eastern Accents’ Chicago workshop.

New pillow additions to the Studio 773 line are Bon Voyage and Destination, both featuring map fabrics and block-printed burlap, and Jet Setter, a pillow in the shape of a suitcase.

Eastern will unveil six new Niche Bedding and Living collections (with a pillow program), pairing yellow and gray earth tones and metallic.

Color Theme

This year color is inspired by the earth.  A major focus is taken from the farm and colors found at a Farmer’s Market.  These colors come from pumpkins, eggplants, tomatoes and the greens.  Colors and tones from the earth; and from the tribe we get bold prints and bold color that are rich and earthy.  This also includes using animal prints, feathers and hammered finishes. The deeper more saturated colors are inspired from nature. 

Neutral Color

Gray is the new neutral color for 2011 and simplicity is the new sophistication that is timeless.  Use soft matte or glazed finishes.  Modern glamor from old Hollywood with metallic and shimmering finishes, with a huge focus on pattern and beading.  The hues are calm and clean and simple.  Wall paper has made a big comeback.  Use it either on a featured wall or in a whole room.  Using lots of texture and shimmering finishes is appealing.

Accent Color

Violets and dark mauve is the new exciting accent color.  The purple accenting from the earth tones or the metallic grays make a stunning palette.  Blues are still popular with the spectrum from warm blue to an ice blue.  If you accent with earth tones, then use turquoise for a pop.  If you use grays and metallic, then use a deep warm blue to set mystery.  Greens are very popular when going from opposite spectrums.  Warm olives added with earth tones or mix with bright white giving a clean refreshed look. For a fun unexpected room color use lime greens mixed with the gray or hot pinks.

Color Combinations

Color combinations that work together for this year are:

• Gray ~ stone ~ black ~ brown
• Turquoise ~ brown ~ gold ~ cream
• Blue ~ green ~ purple ~ gold
• Purple ~ silver ~ cream ~ gray
• Gray ~ turquoise ~ red ~ blue

Color stimulates comforts and inspires us.  Find color palettes you like from upholstery, a favorite outfit or a piece of art. Experiment…the possibilities of mixing colors is limitless.

There are lots of really neat, fun, refreshing and inspirational accessories from the sea. Most people love the summer and spending time at the beach so why not carry that theme to your cottage, patio and/or backyard. Changing themes within your home and backyard creates a feeling of “new” and everyone loves new things. Changing room themes throughout the year to reflect different seasons in your design and accents can breathe new life into a home. Whether you live in the tropics, live by the ocean or a lake, or you just simply love the beach – you can bring that feeling into your home. Lots of people decorate their patio, backyard or pool area with accessories that bring the ocean home.  

The theme is normally a clean, breezy look that is clutter free with cool colors and presents a relaxing atmosphere. 

*Click on the images to scroll through the carousel and see them bigger. 

Major areas to address include: 

Colors – color theme is very important to creating the beach atmosphere. The colors need to be soft shades typically of blues, greens, pinks and natural colors found in the sand. This color theme would used in accessories, paints, fabrics, and furniture. 

Window Treatments – keep it simple. Typically white or natural framing and blinds that are wood blinds with wide slats or even reed style roll-down shades. 

Floors – typically wood with throw rugs. Remember the beach brings lots of sand home, so you don’t want a rug that just collects the sand and makes it difficult to vacuum up. 

Furniture – casual with shades of white for slip covers or painted wood. Wood, wicker and Adirondack furniture goes best with this theme. 

Accessories – this is critical to any room theme. Accessories accent the room and really define it. For our “Inspired by the Sea” theme, accessories would include: 

Corals from the sea – corals come in a variety of shapes and colors. They can be used as accents on a table, to holding items like candles and can be used as paper weights so your newspaper doesn’t blow away in the ocean breezes. 

Seashells – there are lots of great decorating you can do with seashells, from framing out a mirror to containers with shells in them, big shells as accents on tables or as pots for plants, to shells in a bowl or used as tie backs for curtains. The biggest challenge is keeping the design from being too tacky. Also don’t forget about starfish and fish designs that are many times made out of concrete and present a natural seashore look. 

Nautical items – these can be rope knots as a keychain, signs, prints, sextants, compasses, barometers, ship wheels and anchors to name a few. 

Fabrics – there are lots of great fabrics with a variety of coastal designs and color themes that can be used in pillows, cushions, placemats and napkins at a table. 

Candles – these are a must in any theme. Everyone loves hanging out in the cool evenings after the heat has lifted. The candle holders and the candles themselves must still follow the sea theme in color and design. 

There are lots of things you can do and lots of accessories, but putting them all together isn’t always easy. Hire a professional from Decorating Solutions that can easily do this for you.

	Today nesting tables are being used for more than just the traditional stacked use but also in cascading and theme designs for a room.  Today many interior designers will cascade the tables and place various accessories on the tables to create a neat design with accents following the room theme.
Other ways of using them is to place them in various locations within the room to create different focal points and accent points.  The tables can also be grouped (not cascaded) by size to have different elevation effects using the height to emphasize different accessories, centerpieces and lamps in various locations throughout the room.

]]> http://www.decoratingsolutionsinc.com/DSI/nesting-tables-style/feed/ 0 http://www.decoratingsolutionsinc.com/DSI/mercury-glass/ http://www.decoratingsolutionsinc.com/DSI/mercury-glass/#comments Sat, 15 May 2010 01:51:51 +0000 jloporto http://www.decoratingsolutionsinc.com/DSI/?p=796 Decorating Solutions brings another Interior Design tip – this one on Mercury Glass:

Mercury glass originated in Germany in the 19^th century and is unique because it is clear glass, blown into double-walled shapes and then coated on the inside with a silver formula.  The appeal is the look of high-end silver, affordable price, doesn’t go dull or tarnish, and the unique beauty to it because it has a mirror effect in the silver.  There are numerous Mercury Glass products from the past that are collected as antiques, but in today’s decorating era a variety of new beautiful products are made with this design and presentation in mind.  You can decorate from fun casual outdoor themes to more sophisticated formal room interior designs.  Below are some examples of Mercury Glass products on the market today.

	These Mercury Glass Votive Holders are a fun way to decorate. Simply put small candles inside to create some unique and creative decorating accents.
These are some neat Mercury Glass Containers to be used in entertaining some guests.
	For more formal interior decorating, you can use these elegant Mercury Glass Pumpkins as accents in a variety of design themes.
A very common use of Mercury Glass is in lamps.  These two lamps below are more formal Mercury Glass Lamps.  Notice how these are an elegant design for use in a formal living room or any other room that you desire to have an elegant look.