Creative Decorating Ideas

THIS POST IS FROM ROOM REMIX - THE BLOG .

BHG.com

Happy Monday! 

I can't believe Christmas is already over, can you?  Our weather cooperated for travel, thankfully, and we had a great time with our families!  Hope you all did as well. 

Traditional Home

From a decorating perspective, I'm actually a little relieved to be done with Christmas and moving on to decorating that will last all year long. 


BHG.com

With that in mind, here are some ideas to help jump start your decorating creativity with ideas for the upcoming year...

Use a rug to make a headboard "slipcover. Attach with clip-on drapery rings and ribbon.

Midwest Living

Another out-of-the-box idea for a flat-weave rug.  Use it to cover an ottman!

Midwest Living

Make a desk with a hollow core door, sawhorses and some fabric like Heather Chadduck did...

Finish the edges with decorative trim and nail heads.  Cover with a thin piece of glass...

Add custom detail with ribbon.  We've talked about it before - the details really do make a difference. Without the grosgrain ribbon detail, these pillows would just be pretty floral pillows.  Nothing wrong with that, but the addition of the ribbon adds a striking graphic element and the brown ribbon, combined with the brown lampshade helps ground the space...

Style At Home - Designer Virginia Macdonald

Paint a whimsical chalkboard wall in your bathroom like they did in this one featured on Design Sponge. Then paint the ceiling blue, of course!  (I think a mirror inside the chalkboard frame would up the functionality a bit.)  Probably not for every bathroom,  but I do love it...

I always love Tobi's ideas and this one is no different. Paint the back of your bookshelves, then add all white accessories, grounded by some black artwork attached to the front of the shelves.  A designer look that would be very inexpensive to achieve...

Designer Tobi Fairley via At Home Arkansas

Add interesting fabrics to your silhouette art...

Country Living Photo Susie Cushner

Think outside the box when it comes to places to put your magazines, books and other things you want to keep close at hand.  This aged urn adds so much more character to this space than your basic magazine holder would...

Womens Day Photo Michael Partenio

I've seen the numbered stairs idea before with painted steps, but I really like this idea of adding mismatched metal numbers with the rich stained wood...

traditional staircase design

Make it a great day!

Creative Decorating DIY Ideas and a Winner!

THIS POST IS FROM ROOM REMIX - THE BLOG .

Did you see the Martha Stewart show yesterday?  I record it and then end up deleting a lot of them because I just don't have time to watch.  I watched yesterday's episode last night,though, and  I'm so glad I did!  They showed how to make this Embossed Velvet Christmas Stocking which I was pretty impressed with, but my favorite part was the Project Decorate rooms.

I really liked decorating editor Rebecca Robertson's eclectic modern room!  Great use of color and pattern and awesome DIY ideas...

For example, she used sawn balusters and radiator grill material to make this graphic statement on the wall. For window shutters on either side, she chose radiator grill patterns that complemented the balusters' shape.

She used radiator grill material again on the front of these glass-front cabinets from Ikea...

Continuing to think outside the box, she made the coffee table from an army cot and then set 4 DIY trays on top to make a hard surface. To make the trays, she covered baking sheets with a zigzag fabric and topped them with a thin sheet of Plexiglas. Tutorial HERE. (she designed the fabric and then had it printed at Spoonflower.com - at the time of this post $18-32/yard to have them print your own design - not bad for custom!)

She pulled the aquamarine color from a stripe in the abstract painting hanging over the sofa and used it on the ceiling. To continue to tie the room together, she cut radiator grill material into wide strips, edged them with 1/4-inch trim, and mounted them several inches away from the molding.

Doors embellished with the same radiator grill material used for the cabinets ease the transition from the living room to the hallway.

Love the creativity and outside-the-box thinking in this room!  You can go here to see the rest of the images of Rebecca's room and Kevin's room, and even vote for your favorite if you would like.

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The winner of the $220 CSN Stores Shopping Spree is Danielle (other-option)! Congratulations Danielle! Hope you have a blast shopping... :-)

Have a great day...

Creative Decorating Ideas

THIS POST IS FROM ROOM REMIX - THE BLOG .

A french door room divider works great to divide these two spaces and create a cozy entryway...

Sept 03 Martha Stewart Living via Martha Moments

Speaking of room dividers, I absolutely love the way Emily at Jones Design Company used this salvaged window hung from barn door tracks to divide her dining room from the entry

More words on walls... Are you tired of them yet? :-)

elle decor

Keeping your favorite books out of the way but accessible on a tray under the coffee table/ottoman. I like it.

Pottery Barn

Architectural elements can add wonderful character and interest to a wall and, depending on where you find them, can be fairly inexpensive.

Pottery Barn

It looks like there's a large textural mat on this table covered with glass, doesn't it? A unique way to add texture and interest on the table and still keep it functional...

Coastal Living via myhomeideas.com Photo:Dominique Vorillon

Designer Amanda Nisbet covered this dining table with an acrylic top to tie it in with her Lucite stools. It gives this traditional table a fresh, modern twist.

Traditional Home

Have a great day!

Creative Decorating Ideas

THIS POST IS FROM ROOM REMIX - THE BLOG . House Beautiful Photo Simon Watson

I'll be taking a blog break until after Labor Day, but I have plenty of new posts in the cue for when I return (currently 1/2 finished, of course! :-) ) so I hope you'll stick around. For now I'm going to leave you with a compilation of inspiration and ideas to spark your decorating creativity...

BEDROOM IDEAS

Use a desk beside the bed instead of a night stand. The addition of a mirror and a decorative garden stool allows this to function as a dressing table as well. When not in use, the garden stool can be tucked under the desk, much like a nesting table and, if you're wanting to create some additional interest, why not layer several mirrors of different sizes on the desk top rather than hanging just one on the wall?

Designer Samantha Pynn Photo Virginia Macdonald

The upholstered wall in this bedroom designed by Caldwell Flake is fabulous, and I love the way they've juxtaposed the distressed corbels with the modern shade in the wall sconces.

MIRRORS

I know I've encouraged you to mix things up a bit (for example your dining chairs), but never your bathroom mirrors. What do you think? Of course the idea appeals to me just because it's different, but I'm wondering if I could actually do it. :-) Canadian House and Home

This wall is stunning isn't it? The bold wall color, mirrors outlined in molding, furniture and art layered in front... Inspiring.

Tobi Fairley/At Home In Arkansas

ART

More words on walls, because you know I love them. Can't get much more simple than this technique...

Veranda Photo Antoine Bootz

I love this vignette designed by Tobi Fairley and featured in At Home In Arkansas. I've seen a lot of people painting designs like these on their walls lately and I'm loving it, but those same stencils would be great for creating wall art on canvas. What a simple, sophisticated graphic statement!
I think using this mirror in the center of the plate display gives it a fresher, more modern feel. They've also used coordinating fabric and ribbon around the flowers on the table to tie them into the scheme...

myhomeideas.com

Rather than framing your art, you could clip it to clipboards and display it. This idea would look completely different depending on the type of clip boards and art used (for example, very colorful clipboards with kids art, or all black clipboards with modern art, or all white with botanicals, etc. Limited only by your imagination.)

Elle Decor Photo Pieter Estersohn

Outline a corkboard with ribbon and frame it in a statement-making frame, then hang your favorite necklaces from it. This keeps your necklaces within easy reach while at the same time functioning as "art".

Canadian House and Home

ADDING ARCHITECTURE

If you're not really a diy'er in the power saw sense, this idea from BHG.com could be for you. They suggest adding some simple architecture to your space using ordinary picture frames!

LIGHTING

We saw in this lighting post how

BHG.com

and
Dwellings by Devore

updated outdated chandeliers with drum shades (excellent idea, right?).

But BHG.com also suggests replacing the glass globe on your ceiling fan with a drum style shade for a simple update that will pack a punch. I agree...

Lamps on pedestals versus floor lamps...

Traditional Home Photo Colleen Duffley

Looking for more out of the box ideas? Click here...

Enjoy the rest of your summer. Hope it's FABULOUS!

Creative Decorating Ideas - 12

THIS POST IS FROM ROOM REMIX - THE BLOG .

If you're going to have a TV in your bedroom, this is a good way to disguise it somewhat. I believe this one may have been purchased this way, but you could also modify an existing dresser as a DIY project...

BHG.com

We talked in this foyer/entry ideas post about using an accessorized bench in your entry instead of a console table, but using two stools the way designer Timothy Whealon did here is also an interesting way to mix it up...

Elle Decor Photographer: William Waldron

I could be wrong, but it looks like they used a rug on this bench to give it a nice pop of striped color...

Elle Decor Photographer: Simon Upton

I like the way they took a phrase they loved and divided it between the two canvases. Simple, but it makes a statement. Another inexpensive way to decorate with words/letters when accessorizing your walls.

Living Etc.

Here a red shutter becomes art while cleverly hiding the fuse box. If shutters aren't your thing, think outside the box on what else you could use to make an artistic statement while covering an unsightly element in your space.

Southern Living Photo: Jean Allsop

Creative Decorating for a Tuesday

THIS POST IS FROM ROOM REMIX - THE BLOG .

Use two (or three) tablerunners horizontally across a table. Gives you a different look and they can double as placemats.

marthastewart.com

So let's just say that it's Tuesday (because it is :-) ) and you're looking around your house wondering what little thing you could do today to shake up your decorating a bit. Just a little. Not much. Just something fun or different that you may not have tried before. The list of things you could do is actually unending, but here are some ideas...

If you've never layered art on your fireplace mantel, why not try it for a different look?...

myhomeideas.com

If your artwork is too small, make it bigger by attaching a thin piece of painted wood to the back like Just A Girl did for her spring mantel...

Paint a chalkboard on a door...

Country Living Photo Keith Scott Morton

We've talked about painting the backs of bookshelves and papering the backs of bookshelves, but why not make it a little more interesting by doing a little of both and mixing up the patterns?...

idealhomemagazine.co.uk

Arrange your books by color...

Style At Home

Paint a funky mirror a fabulous color...

marthastewart.com

Add some lace to your favorite pillow...

Style At Home

Mix up your bar stools with different finishes or paint colors...

Style At Home

Update your family photos and make them a focal wall in one of your rooms or hallways...

myhomeideas.com

Think outside the box on a new way to accessorize your dining room walls. This dining room wall would be a great one to use for inspiration!...

Photo by Michael Partenio via House Of Turquoise

Paint your front door a bold or just different color...

houseandhome.com

There was a question in the comments on my decorating with mirrors post on whether I knew how to make a new mirror look old. I actually didn't, but found some sources that do....

e-how article How Do I Faux Antique a Mirror?
marthastewart.com How to Antique a Mirror
HGTV.com How To Distress a Mirror

Have an awesome day!