Home Improvement, Furniture and Gardening

Bathrooms are given more importance these days in terms of design and functionality. You can add a touch of sophistication and reflect your personality through the bathroom decor. One way to enhance the style and comfort is to add a shower cubicle. There are numerous varieties of shower cubicles to choose from. If you are planning to renovate or remodel your bathroom here are a few points to consider while buying one for your usage.

First you need to decide on the size of the cubicle. The size will obviously depend on the size of the bathroom. You should also decide the color and shape of the cubicle according to the bathroom decor. You have to decide on how much you would like to spend for buying one. Check out for shops where you can get good offers or discounts for quality products. Shopping online is also a good idea because you can come across many stores which offer good discounts.

You can look for cubicles according to the features. All products have different kinds of features. You need to select one according to your requirements and the budget. Choose features which will be very useful to you personally and other members of your family.

Some cubicles have music systems, waterproof digital touch panel for settings etc. Check for the warranty offered. Some products have 5-10 years of warranty while some have only about a year or two. This is an important feature to know the lifespan of the product.

All these points will help you to get the best cubicle according to your needs.

Beautiful homes are never complete without an equally beautiful and well made bathroom. The bathroom is a very integral and important area and is considered as one of the most attention demanding units by interior experts.

A big bathroom is more easily designed and fitted, what is tricky is, how to design a small bathroom and make it as comfortable to use as possible. Keeping a small bathroom clean is very difficult as the water gets splashed all over the place while bathing. The best solution to this problem is a walk in shower enclosure. It is basically an enclosed area inside the bathroom especially made for taking a bath in. It keeps the water confined to the limits of the enclosure, increases the usable area in the bathroom, helps keeping it clean and gives a very sophisticated look. An enclosure can be of many types. The classic metal framed one; frameless one and the semi framed one. It even comes in a lot of shapes like square, rectangular, diamond, quadrant etc. It has two parts, a shower tray that forms the base of the enclosure and the walls that surround it. The size depends on the dimensions of the shower tray. The shower tray comes in two types, low level and higher level, the low level trays are ideal for under the floor board drainage systems, while the higher level ones have the benefit of holding more water inside.

The best option for a small bathroom would be an 800mm shower tray. The size is such that though it takes really less space it provides very decent amount of space to bathe in. Perhaps that is why it is one of the highest selling sizes in shower trays. The best space saving shape has to be the quadrant shape. It not just makes the bathroom look bigger, but also takes only the space needed.
These trays come in a variety of makes like metal, stone, acrylic etc. A nicely done enclosure lends the bathroom a very modern look, gives it intelligent utility and an impressive functional space.

A frameless shower enclosure that has contrasting tiles for the inside and outside area makes a very stunning picture also; a frameless shower enclosure gives the feeling of a larger area than it actually is. However, an enclosure that used frosted or opaque glass has the utility of two people using the bathroom at a time. The rest of the bathroom can be used by another person while one takes a shower.

One of the easiest ways to make any room seem more spacious is to use iron mirrors or panel mirrors when decorating the walls. Mirrors are wonderful decorating tools that have long been used to catch and reflect light, creating a warm and inviting atmosphere in any room, and increasing the perceived size of the room.

In fact, one of the best reasons to use mirrors when decorating is to “open up” the available space, and make the best use of your walls. The simplest ways to do this are to hang iron nears in a foyer or entrance, on a bedroom wall, or at the end of a hallway. But mirrors can be used in many other ways when decorating your home — some that may even surprise you.

Apartment or condo dwellers often have a limited amount of natural light available because of the layout of standard apartments. Adding a group of mirrors to walls without windows can create an open space, which gives the illusion of full-length windows.

To take this faux window decorating tip one step further, you can even mount an iron mirror inside an old window frame on the wall, and use curtains or blinds to create the optical illusions of an actual window on the wall.

In many homes, the sitting room walls are traditionally used to hang art. Walls behind sofas or recliner chairs are often decorated with prints and paintings, but you can also decorate this space with a collection of mirrors. For a modern, minimalist style, try hanging various sizes of mirrors in an informal pattern on the sitting room walls.

Besides improving the available natural light in the room, this will also lend an artsy, eclectic style to your living room. You can choose to use mirrors with the same frame types, or mix and match the mirror frame styles for a more casual, attention-getting look.

If you love antiques, and have decorated your home with many classic pieces, you will likely want to use antique-style mirror frames that will complement your existing décor. Fortunately, antique iron mirrors are plentiful at many secondhand stores, yard sales and even flea markets. Sometimes, you may even find whitewashed frames, which can be easily spruced up with a coat of paint or by applying gold leaf over the frame.

Besides using the traditional “wall of mirrors” effect, you can achieve a similar but more modern design by placing a row of tall, thin mirrors spaced evenly across one wall of the room. This “on and off” effect can be striking, and as well as giving the appearance of a much larger room, it also creates a very original light and shade pattern that can be very appealing.

But you don’t have to limit your decorating with iron mirrors to walls. For example, custom fitted mirrors can be used to cover coffee tables, or even formal dining room tables. One well-known trick is to custom fit a mirror to sit on top of each lamp table in your living room. You will find that adding mirror tops beneath your lamps will substantially increase the amount of light available in the room and create wonderfully atmospheric shadows on the ceiling, similar to a “chandelier type” effect.

And there are many more simple ways to beautify your home using mirrors. Iron mirrors, in particular, are easy to decorate with, and will make the best use of any natural light available.

All of these basic principles are used every day by designers all over the world. They are all necessary and often interdependent on each other. When a room fails one or more of these concepts is at fault. Often we can walk into a room, even one we have never been in before and notice that something feels off. This can be a subconscious reaction or very obvious. If you were to use these basic principles as a template for the room, you would easily uncover the problem.

The basic interior design principles are the “tricks” all of us successful designers function with. The careful study and understanding of balance, scale, proportion, rhythm and emphasis is what makes it easy for us to walk into a room and often immediately fix a problem. It is not about taste or personality that creates good design. It is the appropriate application of these design principles.

Balance

Balance is a fundamental of life that everyone seeks, consciously or subconsciously, whether in your checkbook, relationships or home. This makes us comfortable, gives us stability, reduces stress and gives us peace. This is the most important element to achieve when creating or changing the design of a room.

For interiors balance takes into account the physical and/or psychological weight of an object. Balance is important in all facets of room design from the physical architecture to the furnishings, materials selected, and accessorizing.

There are different types of balance:

o Formal or symmetrical – This is very traditional and quiet. The focal point is often in the center. One side is the mirror image of the other. An example would be two sofas on either side of a fireplace facing one another with a large coffee table in the middle.

o Informal or asymmetrical – This is much more active but also more subtle. The focal point may not be in the middle. There is no mirror effect but the visual weights play a more important role. It could be as simple as having two completely different chairs sitting across from one sofa in the previous example.

o Radial – All elements radiate around, toward or from a focal point. There is a lot of repetition in form and color.

Scale and Proportion

Both of these relate to the size and shape of an object.

o Scale deals with the absolute size or character of an object or space when compared to other objects or spaces.

o Proportion is relative describing the ratio of one part to another.

Rhythm

o How objects relate to one another develops rhythm. This works the same way in a home as it does in a piece of music. Rhythm creates interest. It can make an area come alive. Repetition and contrast are key elements to use. A modern example of this would be a room that is mostly one color (monochromatic) and feels very harmonious and comfortable. This is achieved by using different textures and materials of this one color. The mix of textures (contrast) combined with the repetition of color provides rhythm.

Emphasis

o Certain areas or elements of a room need to be dominant or emphasized. Variety will keep an area from being monotonous and dull. The best analogy for this would be a movie. In a movie there are stars, supporting cast members and general cast members. All parts contribute to make a whole and all important to the telling of the story though some are more important / have bigger roles (emphasis) than the others. It doesn’t work if the movie is comprised of all stars, you don’t know who to watch or who is more important.

o A great way to handle this design concept is to make sure everything in your room isn’t a star or your “favorite”. Good design will be achieved when you realize you don’t have to “love” every item or element in your room. Every element has an order of importance, though all are necessary.

o You will achieve this through balancing color, placement, and proportion of items and materials you select.

o Contrasting color is one way to add emphasis to an element. To make a beautiful antique carved fireplace in a deep walnut color the focal point you would want to use a surrounding wall color that would show this off. You wouldn’t want to use a color in a similar hue or saturation because the fireplace would blend into the wall and would become its equal. For the opposite effect, if you had a really ugly nondescript fireplace you may want to make it the same color as the surrounding walls so it seems to go away.

These interior design principles are applicable in every situation regardless of home style. As you may notice none of these have anything to do with taste or money. Good interior design is the clever use and application of these design basics and can be achieved by anyone.

Like our home, our office or workplace is an important part of our life. There can be little denial of the fact that we spend a major portion of our lifetime in the office.

Based on this observation, you will be able to contemplate how to improve the facilities and design of the office. The concept of the home office is gaining popularity, with more and more people choosing to work from home.

If your office is a home-based one, then you need to select the suitable area and plan the interior decorating accordingly. The main criterion for selecting a suitable place for your office is silence. The area should not be disturbed by any other event in the house. Next, choose the suitable interior-decorating scheme.

Whatever interior decorating scheme you choose, you need to allocate enough room for movement and accommodation of all the necessary equipment and furniture. For example, your workstation should not be too crowded or muddled up. You can use smaller objects instead of large ones. For example, you can use old trays as stacks for piling stationery and other rough documents. The chairs and computer tables should be soft but sturdy, with as many compartments as possible. This will save you the much-needed space.

You need to have separate plugs and boards so that the wires and other cords are not messed up. After all, you cannot afford to waste your precious time, struggling with those jumbled knots everyday! You have got other jobs to do.

Talking of a general or commercial office, some guiding factors for interior decorating are freedom of movement, appearance, maximum space utilization, and so on.

There should be a separate workstation for each employee, where he or she can work with ease and comfort. Also, the lighting and air-conditioning facilities should be correctly fitted to cover all sides evenly. There should be enough air circulation through windows, which of course, should be beautifully draped with curtains or blinds. Only if the surroundings are comfortable will a person’s mind think freely and creatively.

For an office, starting from the entry point to the cafeteria lounge, interior-decorating ideas must be chosen carefully. Safety is also important in big offices, since a large number of employees work there. So, measures like emergency exits, automatic water sprays in case of fire accidents; fire extinguishers and alarms should be adopted in the designing stage of the building itself.

You can decorate the reception or guest room with beautiful bouquets, which will be refreshing to look at, and spread their freshness all around.

In big factories, interior-decorating ideas can be followed to reduce manual labor. You can opt for low-cost furnishings and furniture.

While framing the structure or design of your office, you can be immensely rewarded in terms of satisfaction and full value for your money, if you seek a professional’s help. He will be able to suggest what you need to include and what to avoid.

Lighting at the front door is an absolute must. However, homeowners frequently make mistakes when lighting this area. This article is an attempt to provide some basic guidelines to help you plan the kind of illumination that provides both safety and a “nice look” for this “first impression” area of your home. Light colored doors and walls around your entryway will help by bouncing your lighting outward.

Front door lighting should provide sufficient illumination for the walkway and steps that lead to the door. It should help visitors find the doorbell or knocker and help you find the keyhole. If you have one than one entry near the front of your home, be sure that the main entry (the one you want people to use) has the brightest lights and the most elaborate fixtures and make sure that there is enough light so that you can see who your visitors are.

The house number should also be illuminated for those first-time visitors.

Spend a little extra and purchase attractive, warm, appealing light fixtures that send a “welcome” message to your visitors. It’s also important to put identical fixtures on either side of the front door. It’s a design thing that provides a sense of balance to your main entryway and makes it look a little larger than it actually is.

A common mistake homeowners make is using lights that are too bright. Bright lights make the adjacent areas dark and that isn’t very appealing. Too much light also creates glare, which causes the visitor some level of discomfort. Your goal is to strike just the right balance of brightness so that safety is insured as well as a warm inviting glow.

A rule of thumb is to use 120V incandescent lights with low wattage bulbs (around 40W) or 15W compact fluorescents. The compact fluorescent will last about 10 times longer than the incandescent bulbs and will use only about a third of the energy needed for the incandescent lights that would produce a comparable amount of light.

Front door lighting fixtures that use colored or frosted lenses are easier on the eye and are generally more appealing than clear glass lenses.

Post lanterns are sometimes used as an alternative to wall mounted fixtures but can provide somewhat of a challenge in terms of getting the fixture that will do the job of illuminating the front door area.

Another option is to add low wattage lights under the overhang above your front door to highlight features such as your house number or some other decorative feature that’s near the front door. Remember that this is a second layer of light that should not overpower your primary front door lighting.

A word of caution: Don’t overdo your lighting arrangement near the front door area. Remember that the goal of front door lighting is to get visitors to the door and so the design focus should always have this as its primary goal.

One of the advantages in planning lighting for the front door is that you can take a look at what other homeowners in your area have done in terms of front door lighting with very little effort and without needing to bother them. Chances are that you will come away will a bunch of good ideas.

Learning interior design can be a simple or complicated task depending on a wide variety of factors including exposure, ability, creativity, and willingness to learn. This article is dedicated to explaining the basic elements that interior design is based upon so that you will have the ability to go out and research these elements on your own in order to advance you ability and perspective of the interior design world.

Lets begin with a few suggestions of where to properly conduct your research. A good beginning point for all of those interior design newbies would be television shows dedicated to the subject, books, magazines, other interior design professionals, ect.

Another resource that you have an unlimited exposure to that doesn’t cost you anything but time and focus are your eyes. Your eyes are wonderful tools for learning interior design and successful application of it. They are such terrific tools because eyes are the ears of the interior design symphony. They possess the ability to look upon any element of design and transmit information to your brain concerning the colors indicated in the design, textures, layout, and whether or not the overall effect is pleasing.

If you can master the ability of viewing a particular setting or scenario and delving from it the key elements of its visual success, you are enormous steps forward in your journey of learning interior design.

Find an example of a design setting that is pleasant or pleasing to you. This can be located in a book, magazine, or even in real-life. Close your eyes. Now open them. What do you look at first? The first item that your eyes focused upon is considered to be your focal point.

In television discussions or magazine articles it is sometimes wrongfully alluded to that there is one appointed (by the designer, of course!) focal point. This is simply untrue. For every person that views the room, that person offers a unique perspective.

One person might gaze intently at the fireplace due to the warmth and secure nature of that design element. Another might focus upon the sofa. Yet another person might elevate towards the remote control (ha!).

The point is, is that the focal point of a room is the area of the room that demands your attention upon arrival in it and generally you base your placement of activities that take place in that room on the location the that focal point. This is the reason why so much strategic planning is normally based on the focal points of a room when designing the creative outlay of the room. This is why your fundamental understanding of the focal points of a room is dramatically instrumental in learning interior design.

It is true that certain architectural elements of a room demand more attention then others. I think that this is one of the reasons that many people misunderstand the concept of focal points. Throughout your journey of learning interior design, you will come to understand the importance of balancing the understanding of architecture focal points, and living ones.

Certain people are naturally going to elevate towards different activities and objects in a room. This is why a basic understanding of both the human element and the architectural one are a keystone to successful interior design.

Once you have a basic to medium understanding of focal points and placement of items in and around those places, the other key feature of learning interior design is visual representation of objects.

Color, texture, and shape are the fundamentals in this category. When you view an object, the way that the light is reflected off of it onto your eyes is commonly known as color. Texture is the way that the object ‘feels’ to you visually. Shape is the basic makeup of the object reflected visually. The correct combination of these characteristics results in a visually harmonious atmosphere.

Let’s imagine a few terms you hear when associated with design. ‘Gaudy’ always pops into mind. A space with bold color representation, an overkill interjection of texture, and the overuse of modern or untraditional shape forms are all factors that would encompass that title.

‘Simple’ would generally refer to the use of light, neutral color schemes in combination with small interjections of light texture and straight lined shapes. Simple, in my opinion is the basic ingredient to a successful recipe of design. Begin simply and build to your comfort level of complexity. This will not be an area that will flow naturally with you when you begin learning interior design. It will more then likely become an understanding that you will develop over time and exposure to different aspects of design.

To wind things up, the road to learning interior design is filled with information and visual perspectives that will open both your eyes and your mind to an entirely different world. Observation is the key to better understanding this world. Open your eyes and begin the adventure!

Loft interior design is a world apart from interior design for a home or apartment. A loft creates a challenge because it has a wide, open space that needs to be made into separate living areas. Keep reading this article to discover some great ideas for loft interior design.

If you have a large area that you need to separate, try long, flowing, curtains. This will divide the room into two different living areas and give the room an elegant touch. If you don’t want the expense of curtains, you may try a folding room divider. These room dividers can be found in many different designs. You can even choose a divider that has hand painted decorative scenes to add an artistic flair to the room.

Furniture selection should complement the brick wall of your loft. Furniture should be somewhat plain with neutral colors. If you want to add a splash of color or design, you can do so by choosing a few area rugs for the floor.

If your loft has contains smaller rooms, a great idea to give the appearance of a larger room is to add mirrors. A mirror can make any room look bigger than it is. Just take great care to secure you mirror tightly to the wall. A lot of lofts have brick walls and therefore it may be a little difficult to hang any type of picture or mirror.

If you have excess lighting in your loft, play this up by adding bright cheery throw pillows and other accents. If you love plants, a loft may be the perfect place for them if you have skylights. Loft interior design should always reflect your tastes.

Don’t forget to decorate your walls with pictures and your favorite artwork. Always make sure that the wall decorations that you choose stay with the theme of the room. You may need special wall mounts to hang your wall decorations due to the fact that most loft walls are made from brick. You can check with your local hardware store for the needed equipment.

A loft will not have a lot of storage space, so it is important that you try to get a bed that has drawers underneath. You can also put a chest at the foot of the bed for added storage for bed linens and pillows. There are great companies out there where you can choose a custom closet to fit your loft area. These closets are attractive and easy to assemble.

Loft interior design is not that difficult once you get the “feel” for the loft. If you have a loft consider yourself blessed with a unique roomy space that has endless possibilities. Happy decorating!