Simple Ideas for Decorative Storage

In other issues, we’ve covered organizing and storage options for our garages, but we certainly need storage inside our homes as well. The quickest way to ruin the look of a beautifully decorated room is to let it deteriorate to disorder and chaos due to a busy household. Let’s face it, we’d be happy if our things would sprout legs and walk back to where they belong. If you don’t have a storage spot for your items, they quickly disappear. Adding storage space always helps us maintain our sanity, but inside our homes, we want attractive, appealing, and stylish options. Here are a few ideas:

Shelving for your piles of books and magazines doesn’t have to look cheap. You can buy affordable, easy-to-assemble shelving kits that look attractive and pricey at discount stores and places like IKEA (all three of the shelving units pictured below range from $30-50). You’ll find a variety of sizes and “mix and match” pieces to fit any wall or corner you need to fill. If you’re a DIYer and plan to build your own wall shelves, here’s a tip–painting them the same color as your wall causes the shelving to nearly disappear and brings attention to your books as decoration.  Baskets are great catch-all containers that hide “stuff” and can slide easily onto bookshelves.  They are attractive, stylish and come in a variety of colors.

If you’re tired of dusting and trying to protect your treasured breakables, glass curio cabinets are not out of style. Secure these treasures behind glass so they are visible and dust-free. Glass-front dining room hutches or china cabinets can also double as display cases if you don’t have china or crystal to show.

Blankets, throws and pillows take up a lot of our closet space. Take advantage of wooden storage chests with lids to hide some of those things. They work well in any room, and are especially lovely in living or family rooms as coffee or end tables.  If cushioned, they can be used as extra seating in a pinch.

People are still refurbishing old trunks and using them as coffee tables, as storage at the foot of the bed, or just as home décor. They can hold some of that “stuff” that needs to be hidden away, or again, they’re perfect for blankets and bedding. Dust off and clean up that old family heirloom trunk and put it to good use. Naturally, you can buy them new in many styles and colors.

Ottomans have graduated into attractive accessories that come in many sizes, colors and fabrics, and even with storage capacity. This is another place to hide those couch pillows and throws that seem to pile up. A larger ottoman can also function as a coffee table, when you put decorative trays on them that will hold drinks and remote control devices.

Decorative trays are also useful on counter tops in kitchens and baths. They can hold some of that stuff that collects that you don’t want scattered all about. It can hold your mail, keys, cell phones. In the bathroom, you can manage the clutter of lotions, perfumes, make-up and hair care products on your counter.  

Storage benches are very attractive in entry ways (and other rooms, too) and can conveniently store umbrellas, boots and rain slickers…anything that you may not need very often. They can be refinished, stained, or painted to match your style and décor.

You may have some of these items in your home that are not being fully utilized.  Take a good look at all of your stuff, start reorganizing and begin storing in unique and creative ways!

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Small Changes, Big Results

Affordable Decorating Tips

Many of us can’t afford the luxury of hiring a designer, and look instead for inexpensive ways to make our homes look nice. It’s a challenge to try to decorate on a dime or even a dollar, but there are ways to make small changes that can bring about big results. Here are a few ideas to consider:
 
One of the easiest ways to change the appearance of a room is to rearrange the furniture. Consider moving away from the traditional squared-off arrangement we are all accustomed to and, instead, try placing pieces at an angle to make your room look completely different. Shift the focal point of the room to something different and arrange around it.
 
The second easiest way is to repaint the room. If you don’t want to make a color change, perhaps just add a new coat of the existing color to freshen and brighten it up. However, if your tastes have changed, you can either repaint in a new color, or paint only one wall an accent color to bring some new pizzazz to the room.
 
Decorate with nature by adding live or silk plants and trees to your rooms. Large floor plants can be used as screens to break up rooms if desired. If you already have plants, change the pots to bright, cheerful colors to enhance your décor.
 
Room screens are often overlooked these days, and can make a long, ordinary room more interesting when we can’t see to the other end. They come in many styles, colors, and materials. If you don’t want to completely obscure the view, use a screen that is lightweight, in a meshed or slatted style. To match your own décor, you can always paint your screen.
 
Area rugs add character to spaces that need it, and come in so many colors and patterns, you can really have fun choosing the right one for your space. Rugs also soften the appearance of a room and help absorb sound.
 
Consider changing your cabinet pulls and knobs  in the built-in cabinets in your bathrooms, laundry room and kitchen for a new look.  
 
If your kitchen towels are hanging and visible (and boring), why not change them out for towels in different, bright colors or new jazzy patterns? Add a new splash to your kitchen.
 
Create a new and interesting focal point on an uninteresting wall by making a collage that covers a lot of surface space.  Group several different pieces of artwork together or even a large collection of photos in a variety of attractive frames.  Be creative and abstract in your grouping.  
 
Change up your lighting. Bases and lampshades are fairly interchangeable these days, so you can do a bit of mix and match to change the look of your lamps. Some bases can easily be painted to alter their appearance.
 
Don’t forget to personalize your living space. Regardless of how well you decorate, your rooms will not be complete without YOU in them! Be sure to add items that relate specifically to you and your family, such as favorite photos or those great “finds” from fun shopping trips and special vacations. Your house guests will get a sense of who you are.
 
If you can loosen up a bit and occasionally step away from traditional ideas of décor, you may discover the creative elements of your own style and find you enjoy trying new looks. When you do shop for new items, include consignment stores, thrift shops, flea markets and garage sales on your itinerary for those special treasures.  Go crazy!

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ONE HOT TOPIC

Tips for Keeping Cool

We see extreme heat every year, but already, in June, it seems that record heat has touched several parts of our country, causing stress and sparking wildfires. In any degree of heat, it would REALLY be nice to have:
 
A swimming pool
                    A big shade tree
                                          An ice cold drink

But…if you don’t have any of these things, you need some options! Here are a few ways to reduce heat, conserve energy and keep cool in your home this summer:
 
Portable evaporative cooler (aka swamp cooler). Since this cooler is on wheels, it can follow you around your patio or garage, wherever you like to work on your outdoor projects, and is great for outdoor parties and gatherings. It is perfect in dry weather, but once it becomes humid, it is no longer effective.
 
Homemade air coolers. If your home is not air conditioned, you can hang a damp cloth or sheet in front of an open window to create your own cooler on those particularly hot days. The evaporating water cools the incoming breeze. This is a well-known trick of desert dwellers that goes way back. As above, it is only effective in dry climates. Another “old” cooling remedy is to set a shallow bowl of ice in front of a fan. As it melts, it evaporates, and cools the room.

Run your air conditioner at a higher temperature or lower power, and keep your ceiling fans running. The air conditioner removes humidity from the air, while the fan evaporates sweat and moves your body heat away.
 
Check your dampers. Hopefully, if you have a fireplace, you DO remember to close the damper at the end of the winter. You don’t want flow reversal, which is when the chimney with an open damper draws hot air down into the house. Not good.
 
Set your computer to go into sleep mode when you are away for 10 minutes or longer, and it will give off less heat. There is no longer any reason not to shut off your computer for the night. Your automatic updates and scans can be set for other times of day when your computer is not in use.

Here’s a “cool” gadget…a personal fan with a flexible neck that plugs into a USB port on your laptop! If you Google ‘Kensington FlyFan’, you can find this one and similar fans online from a few merchants, ranging in price from $10-40.
 
This is a favorite: Shut ‘er down! Try NOT to use your oven in the summer months. Use only your microwave, stovetop and barbecue for cooking. Don’t use the drying cycle on your dishwasher, just open the door to air dry your dishes…and give your dryer a break by hanging your clothes to dry, if you have a line to hang them on. Remember, it is best to run your dishwasher at night when the air is cooler. Of course, elbow grease is still in vogue–you can always wash dishes by hand!

Block the sun. As mentioned in other issues, black-out or room-darkening curtains and blinds cut the heat and light significantly. You want to be sure that the liner facing the window is made of a white, sun-deflecting fabric for best results.

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