Category: Decorating Ideas

10 Stylish Ideas For Introducing Antiques In Your Living Room

Michelle from Modern Architecture Concept

Creating an immersive living room is all about being bold and unique. In this article we show you how to bring character with ideas you may have not thought possible!

Photos Via: Pinterest Source

We take a look at the world of antiques and how the smallest of ideas can create the biggest of changes; how traditional elements such as colour schemes and paint ideas can bring changes that are easy to achieve.

1. CHOOSING THE BEST SKIN FOR A TRADITIONAL ROOM

The colour scheme of a room is the foundation of any design and the play on contrast is what makes everything so effective. Darker colours are always more traditional and work well when paired with more traditional materials. If you’re feeling like you want something less intimidating, it’s always an idea to paint one wall and contrast it with lighter tones or alternatively using whites and grey tones all round provide the perfect clean backdrop for your more traditional furniture.

2. EMBRACE PATTERNS AND TEXTURES

People always make the assumption that different patterns and textures don’t coincide. The joy of using antiques is that every room can be completely individual. You can of course opt for a more put-together design, but having everything clash isn’t necessarily a bad idea. Follow what your love and embrace whatever your heart desires. However, there is one rule – keep it 50/50. One should never overpower the other.

3. MAKE ANTIQUE FINDS THE HIGHLIGHT OF THE ROOM

If your home is already privileged enough to have a period feature, like in many cases an antique fireplace, let it be the centre of attention. By keeping everything around it neutral, there’s no doubt it’s bound to create a sense of awe when guests walk in. A fireplace is great as it can be restored almost effortlessly too.

4. A SPELL OF THE OUTDOORS

Plants are a great way to introduce a diverse air within a home (no pun intended). By adding different-sized plants and pots, within theme, you are not only making the room look fresher, but you are also providing a natural air filter for your home.

5. OVERSIZED ANTIQUES IN SMALL SPACES

When you’re playing around with a small room, big isn’t always best. However, not when it comes to antiques! By introducing items like saucer-shaped sofas or stripped down dining tables, you are creating a sense of grandeur into a small contemporary room. These focal items paired with the right modern accents can change the aesthetic of a room very quickly.

6. PLAY WITH LIGHTING 

Playing with light fixtures may be one of the easiest ways to combine the old with the new. Adding a small chandelier can create all different types of possibilities in what can seem like a simple contemporary space.

[perfectpullquote align=”full” bordertop=”false” cite=”” link=”” color=”#cf61ba” class=”” size=””]Floor and table lamps come in all different shapes and sizes too and when picked correctly can provide the right ambience for the right time![/perfectpullquote]

7. PLAY WITH REFLECTION

Mirrors have a great way of being able to open up a room. What’s also amazing is that you can play with the placing, big or small, there is always a place for them. Items like a French gilt mirror add instant character to a room and can be a great way of tying the room together.

8. EXPLORING THE UNDERNEATH

Exposed and reclaimed floorboards boast all the characters of which new flooring can’t compete with. It instantly adds a new look to any room and can provide a refreshing contrast to what lays on top. Whilst they look beautiful, they are also environmentally friendly and after a job well done, it will look like a brand new floor. Re-purposed rugs can also add an element to a room that a carpet never will. Take a Persian rug for example, whilst they can be bought new, antique rugs really show the craft and technique and will most definitely add to the aesthetic of any room.

9. DECORATING YOUR WALLS 

Whilst some people may find the task of delving into antique furniture a daunting prospect, pictures are something that everyone can relate with. In a world that’s so heavily obsessed with photographs, why not invest in some frames that will visibly alter the look of any room. With this, many is never enough, and playing with different shapes and sizes is a work of art in itself.

10. RECYCLE & RECLAIM

If you ever feel like something you own is an obstacle in your road to reinvention, recycling your old furniture with a lick of paint or even just a fresh varnish will be the best thing you can ever try. Cheap but very cheerful, re-using worn furniture is the best way to spark a new joy in your living room. Websites like Craigslist provide endless amounts of items that are ready for a new home and with a bit of work will feel like they were there all along.

Simple Ways to Improve the Appearance of a Room

Michelle from Modern Architecture Concept

You don’t have to spend bucketloads of cash on home refurbishments to make individual rooms look nicer and better. Here are several straightforward tips that would help you revamp unsightly rooms without overspending!


Photo By: Mary Cook

Repaint

Repainting is a probably the most common way to renovate or refurbish a home. Covering up old, grimy walls with new paint would certainly make a room shiny and new. But paint can add more to a room that just a fresh new coat.

If the room look rather boring, you can brighten it up with a new paint colour. But don’t choose anything that looks nice. Choose according to the existing colour palette in the room. Or you can make a new one. Depending on your preferences, you can either pick a wall paint that really pops, or stick to a softer tone that highlights brighter colors elsewhere, such as on the sofa cushions. A new colour theme could radically transform the looks of a room.

Allow in More Light

Light can dramatically make even the drabbest room décor infinitely better. There are several ways you can improve the light intake of a room. The easiest way is to get rid of thick curtains in favour or thinner ones, like sheer curtains. Additionally, move any furniture that might be in the way of incoming sunlight. To truly lighten up a room, consider changing the window design. Replacing old glass may give a clear view. If you have picture panes and the like, hire one of Winnipeg window companies to replace with clear glass to lets in more light. A minimalist window style might be the best.

Photo By: Savvy Interiors

Redo the Windows

You can also consider redoing the windows to make them bigger and let in a lot lighter. You may need to hire replacement window consultants for the job as it would require changing the windows wholly down to the frame. This option might be the best for older houses with smaller windows intended to insulate. A more modern design would incorporate larger panes for better views and more light.

Change the Curtain Style

Most homeowners like to keep their curtains for privacy as well as insulation purposes. However, you can change how a room looks with a new curtain style. The usual vintage, thick curtain style may give the room an out-dated look. Consider switching to a more modern style, such as with sheer curtains. You can add new colours to the room with new curtains too.


Photo By: Mary Hannah Interiors

De-Clutter with More Storage Space

For lived-in rooms, the biggest issue is not the décor but the clutter. No room can shine when there’s still here and there. A simple de-cluttering just might be what the room needs. Cleaning up is not enough. Give the room the storage space it needs to keep things in place without getting scattered all over. Buy space efficient furniture that double as storage to tackle the clutter problem from the root.

Try Minimalist Décor

Minimalist décor can remove clutter and increase the available space in a room. The style simply gets rid of excessive ornamental or unnecessary items in a room to maximize the available space. Minimalist rooms are highly accommodating and quite easy to clean as well. Try one or two of the above suggestions to improve any room in the house. The given tips work especially well for living rooms and similar gathering areas of the house.

Top Tips to Make Your Home Look Chic without Huge Spending

Michelle from Modern Architecture Concept

Though there are multiple reasons why people choose to revamp and decorate their house, it typically translates to improving the value of their property.

Photo by Martha O’Hara Interiors

Be it a new coat of paint, room renovation, new landscaping in the garden, or adding décor items, the aim is to make your abode look chic and expensive without spending much. If you have the budget, you can splurge on home décor. Based on the findings of a research, homeowners spent an average of $5,157 on home décor and improvements in the year 2016 and the trend will increase in 2017 and onwards. TrueCost Report by Home Advisor conducted the study. For many homeowners in the US, spending a huge amount of cash on home decor is not possible and not logical. There is no need to deplete your savings or use multiple credit cards to revamp your home. You should consider small yet significant changes to make your home look expensive and chic.

According to an article published on https://www.huffpost.com, you can make your windows look classy and expensive by hanging a few sets of drapes to make them look bigger, making your rooms look impressive and polished. There are many affordable tips and tricks to transform your abode and make it look appealing and inviting. You might be wondering how. Here are some top tips to make your home look chic without spending extravagantly:

Improve the look of your home with mirrors

Mirrors together with proper lighting take your home décor to another level. Place mirrors strategically and pair them with apt lighting to make your living area look bigger than it is. You can hang mirrors against a source of lighting such as a lamp or window light. It creates a beautiful illusion. Try this tip and you will be surprised with the results. You will get mirrors at affordable prices. You can adorn your rooms with a larger-than-life mirror to increase its functionality as well as to make your rooms look larger, reflecting the same space back to you. These tips are from home décor experts in the industry. You can also do your research on mirrors to make your home look chic and rooms bigger. You can hang an assortment of different mirrors of varied types, shapes, and sizes. It will help in creating an artistic and eclectic design on the walls. If you like simplicity, then choose one, big statement mirror to create a classy and neat finish on your walls.

Play with lighting

Yes, play with some lighting because it is the simplest and easiest way to make your house expensive and chic. Add fun lights, such as an LED sign from Neon Filter and modern light fixtures that look expressive and attractive. Based on the findings of Glamour, there are numerous ways to get a plush radiance in your house and rooms. Accessorize your living area with lights to make your home look sophisticated. You will get a variety of home lighting products at affordable prices at online or thrift stores. Look for lampshades that have interesting shapes, design, and finish. You can take a small loan for home renovation from Liberty Lending if you need the money at all. Else, you can use your money to complete the renovation project. Opt for lights that grab the attention of your guests. Make a style statement in your home. Install these lights at different heights and bulb sizes to produce a dramatic impact, thus removing unbecoming shadows. Use LED lights because they look smart in your home, and are affordable and energy-efficient. LEDs are also durable. It will save you money, as you do not need to replace them frequently like ordinary lights.

Decorate your living area with flowering plants

Add some greenery and color to your home, both inside and outside. You will get plants and flower pots at affordable prices. Green plants, flower pots, and plants with ornamental leaves will add some color and vitality to your abode in rooms and garden area. You can place a decorative flower vase with local garden blooms in your living room, thus adding some warmth and grace to your home sweet home. It will also add an element of comfort to your living space. You can arrange flowers and place them in vases instead of spending on fresh floral arrangements. You can use plastic containers for new plants that come at a wallet-friendly price. It is simple and affordable. These little things matter in making your home look classy and sophisticated. Add a lot of greenery to your home interiors and outdoors. Use your imagination and perk up your outdoor barbeque area with flowering pots and bamboo seats. Try these tips and tricks and take your abode to another level without breaking your bank. Make your neighbors envious of your home décor ideas and aesthetic sense.

Add floor rugs

When you have wooden flooring and want to perk up, include a beautiful floor rug to make your living area look appealing, inviting, and cozy. It will also help in adding some finishing touch to your living room or for that matter your bedroom. A well-chosen rug or a carpet if you have the budget will help in pulling the room together. Then, make it a point that your rug is relative to space or living area you want to add, as small-sized rugs for a big room will make your space look odd. Therefore, create an expensive look with proportionate rugs that also is eye-catching. If you place furniture on the rug, a sofa or a table, make sure the rug has some extra space with furniture placed on it. These little measurements and space aspects matter a lot to transform your room to another level. Imagine how your room will look if you have a couch placed on a rug that is too small. One side is visible and another side of the rug is hidden under the couch.

Conclusion

Now that you have these tips handy, use them and add figments of your imagination to make your home look expensive and classy. You can decorate your home without creating a dent in your wallet.

Avoid Falling To Debt Trap While Furnishing Your Home With Décor

Michelle from Modern Architecture Concept

It is true that decorating a house can prove to be one challenging trap. It is no doubt one expensive proposition. Whenever you are planning to shift to a new place from one BHK apartment, you might have little furniture to just décor your 4BHK house.

Photo by M House Development

As you are one new homeowner, you might always feel tempted to use the easy credit card and purchase new furnishing items from some of the reliable furnishing stores. It will help you to decorate your house and set it just right at earliest. But, there are some effective ways in which you can decorate your house by being totally free from debt. You will learn more about the debt-free trap from Nationaldebtrelief.com now.

Need to focus at prioritization and get to choose step by step decoration

There is hardly any laws available in which you can furnish your house totally and decorate in just one go before you move right in. Furnishing your place or doing up is more or less a long term procedure and with time consuming procedure.

  • You need to relax and then slow the efforts down. You must always allow all the decorating to just take place at one relaxed pace.
  • By furnishing and decorating the house at own relaxed pace, you might end up with amazing décor and some of the furnishing ideas that you are not working under some tremendous pressure and stress, for finishing that project in one tight deadline.
  • On the other hand, by just handling one part of house at one time, you are actually giving yourself enough time to boost the savings and put in some extra in renovation project.
  • You can easily try to save some up now and make some of the bigger purchases later on. You can get the living room done first as you are likely to spend most of the non-sleeping time over here for sure.

Next stop, you have to purchase the dining room space, which will make you use up all your time, energy and resources on the current master bedroom. The bedroom is likely to be your haven of peace, where you will get down after a tiring day. So, make sure to take as much time as you can for furnishing the bedroom. Then you are all set to enjoy enough savings, for covering the rest of the rooms in your house.

You can visit the auctions and get to purchase some items from the lot

If you are designing your first house, then it is true that your budget is limited to say the least. So, it is always mandatory for you to stick right through the frugal ways of just decorating homes, just for the sake of avoiding getting into some debt, which will be ever mounting right from now on.

  • One major way in here is to purchase from auctions and then the estate sales. Whenever the family hires services of any auctioneer for just selling someone off a loved one, you might end up getting good collections at quite affordable rates.
  • Auctions can beautifully range from items, sizes, setup and the general structures. You can always define the objective of your purchase clearly.
  • It is mandatory for you to understand the points or pieces that you are actually looking for to decorate your house. It will help you to make the right choice or end up with that perfect find of yours.

You can get for the garage sales

According to some of the pros in here, Estate Sales and Garage Sales are some of the perfect places for you, where you can score some of the cheaper home decor and furnishing items. But, you might end up with some items, which are considered rare to say the least.

For that, you have to know from where you can get it and try to get in there as early as possible to jut have any chance of just sorting the proper stuff in here. All you need to do is just allow the GPS of your smartphone to guide you through and help you settle for the location. This is on great way for you to enjoy some of the perks of technology!

Work on the Hands Me Down

There are so many hands me down or secondary furnishing items which you can try to save some bucks in order to complete home décor and go debt free in nature. But for selecting such furniture, you have to be a bit choosey.

  • As news have already spread of you shifting to a new place an you are looking for some home décor stuff, the parents, coworkers and even some of the casual acquaintances might wish to offer you with some of the old furnishing pieces as love of good gesture and love.
  • Most of the people you might know will work hard in extending their love in order to assist you in furnishing the new house. You might end up accepting someone’s furniture only after you get to answer certain questions regarding the furnishing pieces.
  • You need to see if the furnishing items are rather in a good condition or not. Moreover, you have to prove if the furnishing items are likely to be cohesive in nature and fit the style you are going for. Another major question is to check if you have any precise place in your home where you can keep the furnishing items you are planning to move in.

If you actually hesitate and even falter while responding any of the questions or queries that you have in your mind, it is always best to look for some other homes, from where you get to purchase furnishing pieces. On the other hand, you should not hesitate to get furnishing pieces from relatives and friends free of cost. It is one great way to save your money and be debt-free while decorating your house. Better help is always for you now.

How to Mix Modern & Traditional Design Trends

Michelle from Modern Architecture Concept

Create your own unique decorating look by mixing old architecture and furniture with new, modern pieces. Here’s how to do this the right way!


Photos via: Houzz

You may have heard from some period feature purist that mixing modern and old is sacrilege when it comes to making the most of historical features. However, mixing the new with the old can create a stamp to your home that is uniquely you. Renovating period features and laying down modern flooring and painting styles can really highlight design aspects of a historic home that keeping it in its former condition simply wouldn’t.

Get an Extension

If you’re currently residing in a Victorian terrace, for example, one of its historic features might be its unfortunate lack of space. Sometimes beautiful old terrace houses don’t quite have the square footage we’d hoped for, as they were initially designed for mining and factory communities who could only afford a two-up two-down property. If this is the case for your property, it could be well worth your while getting an extension to open it up and transform the look of the interior. This is particularly great if you’re looking to install patio doors or extra room for a dining room. Installing patio doors is a great way to make your home exterior look classy, while keeping the inside of your home bright and well lit. Of course, make sure to purchase high quality patio doors to ensure their quality.

However, if the idea of going wide doesn’t appeal to you – then think upwards. You can also add an extension in the form of a loft conversion. Adding an extra level to your house frees up plenty of space, but without having to add an extra block of building that wasn’t previously there. Not only is it discreet, but you can play around with how the staircase is situated, and any wooden beams that could be brought into the design.

Contrast curtains with window frames

If you have beautiful double glazed sash windows, it’s a good idea to make the most of them – after all modern builds don’t come with these charming features. If you’re incorporating modern features into your house, but don’t want to lose focus of your windows, then putting modern curtains up can draw attention to where the light is coming in. Using single block colours, contemporary patters or slate greys will immediately give your home a modern twist in a way that compliments its older features.

Don’t be afraid to go industrial

Industrial styling is perhaps one of the most modern aesthetics you can go for. Steel and metal beams and structures will instantly add a contemporary touch. You will be surprised by just how elegant industrial structures can look: what makes them look part of the house is how they fit into the whole picture. Putting potted plants and ornaments on a metal shelf or putting steel structures amongst wooden ones will create a pleasant and eye-catching contrast, not an obtrusive one.

Mixing modern and old is almost as old as time itself. What constitutes as modern now, might change a few years down the line. This is why you shouldn’t be afraid to experiment – mixing up the two is more about the contrast than making a statement about today’s trends. Keep the features that stand out as being beautiful, and be brave with parts of your property that can be changed.