Tag Archives: home decorating

Style “resolutions” for your home

Posted on January 2, 2017 | Leave a comment

declutter

There’s no better time than the New Year to review what’s going on in your life – and why should your home miss out on the love?

Here are several New Year’s resolutions that are perfect for creating the home you want in 2017:

Keep, chuck or reuse

The simplest thing you can do to refresh your home for a new year is to declutter. “When you take away the clutter you see what you love about the house,” says Sophie Kost, Director and Lead Designer of My Beautiful Abode.

Get into each room and consider the things you want to keep, those you want to get rid of and the items you could repurpose. “Do it in 15-minute bite size pieces,” adds Kost, “if you keep this up, it can be an amazing transformation.”

As a bonus, decluttering is completely free – and if you’re lucky you might even make some money from selling the things you no longer love.

disclaimer: for information and entertainment purposes

9 decorating mistakes

Posted on November 21, 2016 | Leave a comment

Switching up your decor can make a surprisingly huge difference in the way you feel at home, but beware of common decorating traps. Before you tackle these bold design updates, be mindful not to do these nine things:

1. Don’t Forget About Lighting

Even the most beautiful of rooms can be thwarted by bad lighting. The most welcoming spaces are filled with soft layers of flattering lighting at various heights (a chandelier, floor lamp, desktop lamp, etc.), not just one harsh light source. If the space has little natural light, use mirrors to brighten it up by reflecting what natural light there is around the room.

2. Don’t Hang Pictures At The Wrong Height

You’ve found the perfect picture, paired it with the perfect frame, and now it’s time to hang it at the perfect height. The centre of the image should be at eye height, about 144cm — lower than most people expect. If you’re putting up a gallery wall, you not only need to be thoughtful with the height of the image but also the layout. Take care to mock up where each picture will go before you start putting nails in the wall.

3. Don’t Have Lots Of Throw Pillows

They’re affordable, easy to swap out, and a great way to transform the look of a room; however, it’s easy to get carried away with them, picking up one or two every time you’re shopping until you have no space on your sofa left to actually sit. If throw pillows are deflated and flat, or more tired than trendy, it’s time to toss them. As a rule of thumb, only buy a new pillow if you’re willing to part with an old.

Tips and Tricks from Professional Flippers

Posted on October 10, 2016 | Leave a comment

1. Quotes and contracts – Make sure you get at least three different quotes for every trade that is required. It might sound like overkill, but you will be surprised by how different they will be. It doesn’t always pay to go with the cheapest; in fact you often get what you pay for with this kind of work. Take the time to check your tradespeople’s references, have a look at their previous work and be sure that you are very clear about what is included in their proposed contract and what is not. Also, find out how much work they have on at the moment – you don’t want to be locked into a contract with someone who has taken on too much work and keeps leaving your job to finish others. So have an agreed timeframe for the completion of the work.

4. Lists and spreadsheets – Taking on a renovation can be overwhelming, so divide the project into rooms and then each room into tasks. Having a list that can be ticked off as you go along will help create a sense of achievement and allow you to focus on what still needs to be done. Creating a spreadsheet for the project to list costs is crucial for keeping on top of your budget. Try to update it daily with every penny spent.

disclaimer: for information and entertainment purposes only

Tag Archives: home decorating

Style “resolutions” for your home

9 decorating mistakes

Tips and Tricks from Professional Flippers

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