Top 10 Home Design Tips

Jul 29, 2011 by admin    1 Comment     Posted under: Design Firms, Design Tutorials, Graphic Design Tips

Top 10 Home Design Tips … That will make your House Beautiful

Most people have very definite ideas about home design and believe they can turn every room in the house or apartment they live in … into an individual showplace.

It’s all about creativity … having an open mind … and preparation. While some folks prefer to spend big money to hire professional interior decorators and design firms, it’s really not necessary if you have a belief in yourself … and your ability to make each room in your home a “thing of beauty.”

Here are top 10 home design tips to help you achieve the results you want …

• Set Reachable Goals … this should be your very first step – the establishment of goals that are sensible and that you can accomplish. That means you should not be thinking about major renovation, but, instead, purchasing items you can afford that will transform your home.
• Set a Sensible Budget … you’d probably like to spend endlessly to get “the very best” furnishings, art and more to create “your personal palace.” But, if that’s going to cost too much, it’s obviously not realistic. Create a spending plan you can afford … and stick to it.
• Get “Samples” and Bring them home …Visit home design stores and ask for small samples and swatches of fabrics, patterns and colors, even window treatments, rug samples and more so that you can return home with them and judge them more accurately in the room where you want them. It will be easier to determine if a pattern or color is right when you hold it up in the room in your home where you want to use it.
• Use a Design Board … Employed by professional interior designers, it will help you to figure out if all the colors, patterns and fabrics you’ve acquired work well together.
• Sketch a simple floor plan … this is a critically important step because it will help you determine – in advance – if the furniture you want to buy will fit in the room where you want to use it.
• Update or improve your lighting … here’s another important step. If you’re going to “revitalize” the rooms in your home, effective, modern lighting will highlight the design changes you make. So, follow this Home Design Tip – remove your old lamps and replace them with new, stylish lamps and clever overhead lighting.
• Be aware of the square footage available to you … make sure you know the actual size of the room you’re working on before you spend money on furniture. It would be an awful financial loss if the couch you purchased didn’t fit in your living room.
• Use the 60-30-10- rule …this is another great home design tip. The “rule” says that you should use the “dominant” color in any room you’re designing up to 60% in all the furniture and furnishings you add. 30% of the colors you use should be for the secondary color … and the remaining 10% can be “spent” on adding a matching accent color.
• Mix and match with style … this is yet another very sound home design tip. When you mix and match colors and patterns, the result is a relaxed, eclectic “feel”. Does it work? Yes … and that’s why professional designers use the same formula.
• Develop a Specific Point of Interest … it is how to make your room noticeable when people visit. You can, for example, use a large piece of art on a dominant or primary wall … place an over-sized rug in the middle of the room … “build” a conversation pit with a couch and chairs – the choice is yours.

Follow these top 10 home design tips and you’re sure to create an environment that will impress people and become “the talk of the neighborhood.” Best of all, you can do it on a budget.

Kitchen Design; Make it the Center of your Home

Jun 23, 2011 by admin    No Comments    Posted under: Design Tutorials, Graphic Design Tips

Walk into any modern American home – that is a single family home – and, if it’s well-designed and carefully thought out – you’re likely to see a breathtaking living room … a functional and stylish family room … a magnificent, finished basement … beautiful bedrooms … even stunning and practical bathrooms.

But what will the kitchen look like? Too often, homeowners devote too much of their energy and most of their budget on all the rooms of the house mentioned above, but not on the kitchen. And, because a comfortable, well-conceived kitchen can be the center of the home – the place where family members get together for meals and “small talk,” that’s a big mistake.

The kitchen matters in a well-designed home … a lot. When properly laid out, it will be both functional and comfortable … attractive, too.

Importantly, you don’t have to hire a design firm to get a great kitchen. Kitchen design – a well-planned kitchen – is not “rocket science.” A little thought and a lot of careful execution should be enough to let you enjoy having a great “center of the house” for dining and entertainment.

It all starts with a good-sized room. You will need enough square feet of space to create a kitchen you will love. Here are a few kitchen design tips to help you:

• Start with top quality appliances … if room permits, install a large, “double-door” refrigerator … a microwave “tucked under a cabinet” so that it’s out of the way … a coffee pot … a toaster … a food processor … and all of your other appliances hidden, but easily accessible, in closets.
• Give yourself lots of counter space … plenty of room to keep counter-top appliances out in the open and readily available, but not to the point where your kitchen looks cluttered and unattractive
• Choose designer colors for your appliances … colorful wallpaper for the walls – two components that will give your kitchen a fresh, modern and inviting look.
• Include a “must-have” center island … make it the heart of your kitchen … the place where you prepare meals in complete comfort because you have lots of room to work. And a center island looks great, too.
• Remember to add lots of cabinets … because you want to be able to store non-perishable foods … utensils … pots and pans … storage containers … and more out of sight, but still easily accessible.
• Tile on the floor adds a dynamic finishing touch … and ceramic tile wipes clean easily and always looks fresh and new.
• One last thing to remember: your kitchen table and the chairs that surround it should be stylish, comfortable … and, most importantly, easy to clean and maintain.

That’s it. Do all of these things – on your own (no design firm needed) – and your kitchen will look great and become the talk of the neighborhood.

Best of all, it doesn’t have to cost a fortune to enjoy the kind of kitchen that will get “rave reviews.” Prove it to yourself. Get started today.