Interior Design for the World of Babies and Children

I have said it many times — the children always come first.  When there is a design budget and prioritization needs to occur, 9 times out of 10 the design of the children’s rooms will come before the master bedroom design.

We are fortunate to live in a time where there are fabulous design options available to help us make our little one’s rooms look great.  One of our new discoveries is Pink Taffy Designs.  They have a great on-line children’s boutique where you can find everything from bedding to clothing for your little ones.

They are having a contest to win a set of their hand crafted wall letters. You can use the letters to spell out your child’s name, or a word of choice.  They also make great gifts for new parents.

Here is the link to click on to enter the contest.  Hurry though, it is only available a few more weeks.

 

 

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Don’t Be Afraid to Go Big with Graphics In Your Home

Below is a guest post about over sized wall murals and how they can be used to make a statement in your home.  I recently used a wonderful full size (10′ high x 7′ wide) wall mural graphic in a client’s guest house casita.  They wanted a tropical feeling so the mural depicted a beach scene.  So a plain wall became reminiscent of the Caribbean beach in no time at all.   These murals are quite a bit less expensive than having  an artist paint a custom mural on a wall.  Many companies will be able to use your own photography to create a customized graphic for you.  Imagine a life-size picture from your last vacation spot, or your wedding photo……..

Giant Graphics are Ideal for the Home

Creating a certain ambiance in your home can be achieved in many ways, but a very trendy, very artsy way to do this is to utilize full wall graphics with custom printed wallpaper. There are particular things to keep in mind as you decide what photo or art piece to use and where it will go. Keep in mind that you want this wall to be a focal point in the room, not the entire room being the wall.

Pick your Shot

Even amateur photographers can have fun with this decorating tool as long as there is one favorite shot to be chosen from a collection. If you had gone on vacation to tour the castles in Europe or just captured the perfect beam of light on your favorite lake in the mountains, you are able to transform that masterpiece into a sizeable work of art. Be sure to carefully measure the wall you are working with to get the correct dimensions. Nothing is worse than having to improvise after receiving the wrong measurements back (and it is your fault).

Where to put it?

Now, you may be wondering, what wall is the best wall to use? Well, it is pretty simple. You want people to notice this amazing piece of art, correct? So if you walk into the room you are dressing up, what wall do you see first? If that one has a window, is there another that might work better? Perhaps you have a short wall, like a wide column that has no function at all. Make that one the statue you snapped a picture of in Cancun, just on a much more impressive, more pleasing to the eye version. Scan that award-winning painting you have stored away and upload it. Avoid using areas that people will naturally turn their back on or never see, unless it is done for your pleasure only. And a real window can ruin the effect a mural has on a wall. Unless it will incorporate your window into the picture, choose a different area. It will cut into the graphic and make it look incomplete. Imagine looking at the sunset on the beach and missing one-third of it. No, just pick a wall that is free and clear of obstacles like doors and windows.

Color…

Color or black and white? That is completely up to your preferences. Personally, I prefer black and whites for personal photos, family shots, if the original colors were rich enough to make the shades vary enough for some depth. Scenery, I prefer to leave in color. They are very pleasing to the eye when they host an array of colors and can provoke emotions when they feel tangible. One of the main reasons people will put a mural up is to make a vacation or favorite place immortal to them…unchanging.

Décor

Now, when incorporating a large graphic such as this, don’t forget that it is a part of your home and decorate the room as such. Unless it is a useless wall that you are coating for effect, place furniture in front of it. I’m not saying to stack bookshelves right through the middle, but a nice ensemble of couch, loveseat and tables that complement the theme of the photo will do wonders for y our sanctuary. It then makes it a part of what is going on and less like a museum artifact. Many put graphics up on staircases because they are so difficult to decorate unless you just do a “gallery” of family photos that no one can see unless they go up your stairs. Something like this can be seen, even in a semi-open concept plan, from the main level and will be the conversation starter for the night.

Be bold when it comes to the bones of your home. If you set the bar with your walls in bright, lively, or serene fashions, the rest of your décor will follow.  Your guests will love the atmosphere you have created because they will feel how much you love being there.

Chris Garrett is a large format printing expert and online publisher for the customized wallpaper expert http://www.megaprint.com/wallpaper.php.  He frequently blogs on the topics of design, printing, and photography.

The Kid`s Rooms Always Come First

A dynamic I come across frequently when designing family homes is that the kids rooms always take priority .  As parents, we want our children to have wonderful rooms to call their own.  After the kids rooms are completed, the common areas of the home are most often next in the priority list.  And almost always, the parent’s bedroom comes in dead last.    When  I was asked if I would be interested in hosting this guest post about furnishing and designing  children’s bedrooms, I asked that it be written with this dynamic in mind.   S Interior Design added some comments which are show in green color font. Enjoy-

The Kid`s Rooms Always Come First

Decorating a kid`s bedroom is the perfect excuse to let your imagination run wild. The only problem, however, is keeping it all within budget. It can be all too easy to spend thousands of dollars creating the perfect kid`s play space, leaving very little with which to decorate the other rooms in the house. Don`t worry. There are all sorts of hints and tips you can use to create a magical kids bedroom without it costing a small fortune.(and have money left over to decorate your bedroom too!!)

This guide will help you create your kids dream room on a minimal budget. Get your kids involved.

One of the most important things to remember when you are decorating a kids room is it`s for them, not for you.  If you have always dreamed of creating an underwater world but your child is more into spaceships or jungles, then they are never going to appreciate all the hard work that`s gone into creating their space. Getting your children involved in the design process is the best way to ensure that they are going to love the finished effect. The more they love it the less likely they are to grow out of it in a short space of time. Choose themes that will grow with your child .  Centering your design around a specific theme is a great way to create an imaginative space which your child will want to spend time in.  The only problem with themes is that if your child`s interests change over time, they may consider their room too “babyish” and will want to redecorate again in a shorter space of time.

If you choose bright colors that will compliment a range of different themes then you can easily swap accessories to reinvent the space as your child`s interest`s change. You also don`t need to worry about creating a totally finished room once you are done decorating. By leaving plenty of space for your child to add their own drawings and ideas over time, your child`s bedroom will be a constantly evolving work in progress. This will help them to feel that the space is totally their own. Get Inspired!

You don`t have to spend hours poring over interior design magazines which are full of gorgeous, but expensive, accessories to get your inspiration. Sites such as Pinterest (and HOUZZ) are a great way of getting design ideas for kid`s room on a budget. You can re-pin all your favorite ideas onto your own pin-boards which will provide you with plenty of inspiration for creating that perfect kids bedroom.  It’s not just about pretty pictures either.

Every image on Pinterest links to a website and you will often find some amazing blogs and tutorials to help you recreate these ideas for just a few dollars. Using thrift stores to find interesting and unusual objects is another great way of keeping costs down.  Many things can be re-purposed into new and original ideas and the fact that they cost very little money makes it much easier to try out all those creative ideas that you’ve found on the web.  Choose good quality furniture Without a doubt, the most expensive thing in your child`s bedroom is the furniture. It is the one thing that`s really worth investing in as it will last a number of years. Even after they`ve left for college they`ll still want a decent bed to come home too.

Choosing good quality children’s bedroom furniture in bright colors will make the room fresh and inviting, yet they won`t grow out of it as the years go by. Good quality storage (check IKEA options)  is another essential for any kid`s room. After all if they have got somewhere to put all their toys away, you shouldn’t find them cluttering up the rest of your house.