Homeowners Tips For Residential Interior Design

Residential interior design should be looked at differently than commercial interior design. While people spend much of their time at their jobs, the home is the place where they go to feel comfortable and safe. Edgy design applications suitable for a business or workplace might not do so well in a home. This is, however, up to the individual person. Many people like an exciting design choice in their homes, whether it is an unusual color choice or themed decor. In the end, residential interior design choices are defined by the individual tastes and lifestyles of the people living in a given home.

When choosing residential interior design options, consider who will be using a room and what it is ordinarily used for. A room that plays host to only adults can have more exotic and fragile objects than one that is regularly used by children and pets. A light-colored carpet or silk throws would, for instance, be unsuitable if children are going to be using the room. They will be ruined within a few months, no matter how careful you are. A living room can have a more vibrant design than a bedroom, which is where most people go to relax and feel comforted at the end of the day. Strong tones, like red, are generally to be avoided in bedrooms.

Residential interior design should encourage easy movement throughout the room, but not allow it to feel like a hallway. One of the key examples of this design idea is the triangle arrangement in the kitchen. Major appliances and sites such as fridge, stove, and sink are arranged in a triangle so that there is little unnecessary walking needed to reach them. This also makes it less likely for two cooks to get in one another's way.

By paying attention to the wants and needs of the people who live in your house, you can succeed in residential interior design in your home. Go through the house and decide what purpose each room serves, and what design schemes would best complement that purpose. Make a plan for decorating each room, including the measurements of the room and any furniture you plan to keep in it. You can include catalog pages and color swatches in your plan, and take them to the store when shopping. This way, you residential interior design choices will be sure to balance one another when they are finally arranged in your house. Planning and attention to your wants and needs are important in successful residential interior design. With just a little care, you can create a stimulating and restful environment in your home that will appeal to everyone.

Lee Dobbins writes for Decor8ting - Home Decorating Ideas where you can get more decorating tips and find out more about residential interior design.

Retro Decorating For The Basement

Your basement might seem dark and dingy, but you can make it a cool place to hang out with a timeless and modern retro decorating theme.

No matter what your budget, you can have a retro decorating theme in your basement with a few changes such as wallpapering and putting together your wall art and pillows to give the room a feel of the past that is also modern at the same time. Some accessories to pay attention to when changing your interior decoration include floor coverings, fixtures, decorative items and wall coverings in conjunction with your furniture such as sofas, chairs and tables.

It's not critical to have coordinating sofa and chair set but the basement should have a variety of retro style pieces. To really enhance the retro style, go for pieces with a vintage look but in new condition.

Decorative items are necessary to pulling your retro decorating style together. You can even totally alter the look of your room merely by replacing the accessories! Concentrate on using wall art, pillows and nick knacks, in that match your retro theme. You'll be amazed at how simple and inexpensive it is, and what a large difference these changes make! You should try to incorporate a variety of antique store finds combined with vintage pieces and you could even try some reproductions of vintage nick knacks and wall art to get a professional look for your basement. Incorporating additional decor such as yard sale pieces from other eras can make your room appear like it was done by a professional.

Window treatments are important to your retro decorating design. To get a nice design in your basement consider working with a genuine curtain or drape from the era that can still be purchased at yard sales and auctions for reasonable money or new window treatment made in the retro style. There are several treatments that you can match up to this design style, particularly if you match them to other elements in the room, however you probably want to avoid anything too modern.

One big task to think about when decorating your basement with a retro decorating style is your wall paper or paint. For this theme the room colors make a big difference - think about applying vintage color combinations and colors specific to the era. For 1930's you want green and cream, 1940's - red and white and the 50's and 60's orange, avocado and blue and brown as a paint color. Try using a vintage pattern wallpaper on the walls. It doesn't need to cost a lot and if you want plain colored walls, just cover the walls in a neutral paint and add the color in your accents.

What you put on the floor can really pull the whole look together, but if new floors aren't in the budget for your basement then just buy lots of area rugs with a retro design. If new floors are in your budget, check out vintage pattern linoleum or wood floors, or perhaps even a shag rug if you are going for a mid century look.

Lighting is necessary in any room and the basement is no exception. To enhance your retro decorating theme, you should think about lighting in terms of style as well as type. While you will be going for a retro style, you might want to look at using vintage lights with reproduction lighting but Always stay away from anything which is in poor repair. Most basements can benefit from recessed lighting in addition to table lamps.

A critical decorating area that we often forget when redecorating is the wall space. You can make even the plainest walls look nice by incorporating great wall decor. Try adding hanging vintage paintings or posters - either from the era or reproductions. to your basement walls to enhance the vintage appeal of your retro decorating style.

Decorating your basement with a great retro look can be as difficult or simple as you want it to be. Either way, attention to detail and matching your accessories and furniture will help you pull off a groovy new retro decorating look that will turn your basement into your favorite room!

Lee Dobbins is an avid decorator and love to explore many different style of interior decoration. Find out more about decorating every room in the house at Decorating How To.com

Top 5 Interior Decor Tips For How To Decorate A Large Living Space

In contrast to the smaller living rooms that many of us grew up with, great rooms are perhaps one of the most exciting innovations in modern home design. Their open floor plans not only offer flexibility, but also a more efficient use of space.

They also come with a few interior decorating challenges. Many great rooms, particularly those in larger homes, feel more like an empty warehouse than an alternative to the traditional living room.

While too much space is never a problem, filling that space can be a real challenge. The proportions of the room can be overwhelming and furnishings that look right at home in an apartment or smaller home can look minuscule in a great room.

Some clever decorating tricks can help you warm up these larger rooms. Here are the top 5 tips on how to decorate a larger living space.

1. Settle on what the room is for, and then create living spaces around this.

Doing this will help you create either one space, or a 'series' of spaces to allow the room to fulfill this role. For example, if the room is to entertain, you can to create one or a few furniture groupings so guests can choose which setting to be in. If on the other hand, your room is for more than one function, you may want to create a space for each purpose. For instance, you may want to add a sofa and armchair grouping around a large screen television on one area of the room use the other area for more intimate gatherings.

2. Use large wall art to create a sense of atmosphere.

Large pieces of art such as paintings or wall art tapestries, are a unique way of creating a presence in any room including that large room. You feel as if you have walked into another world when surrounded by great works of art, as the wall art gives a focal point for the room and draws you into the picture. The entire feel and atmosphere of a room can be influenced by the use of large wall art.

3. Use pieces of furniture that will enhance a large room.

Great rooms will often require larger pieces of furniture than smaller living rooms. Use larger or wider sofas and armchairs, and coffee tables to fill the space. You can also use other 'feature' pieces of furniture such as a chest of drawers to fill an area next to a wall that require decorating. See which space needs filling in and then see which piece of furniture would suit that particular space.

4. You can be bold in your decorating ideas and scale.

Great rooms can benefit from expanses of color to make the space appear more intimate. You can compliment these with patterned curtains and soft furnishings to create a visual connection. You can use larger pieces of artwork, pottery or furniture than you would be able to, in a smaller area.

5. Try different arrangements of furniture.

When you have the space, try to arrange the decor and furniture in different ways. For example, try keeping the furniture away from the walls to create an intimate space in the center. You can experiment and arrange furniture in different positions to achieve both coziness and the freedom of enough open space, at the same time.

So there you go.

You now know the top 5 interior decor tips when it comes to decorating a large living space. By following these simple guidelines, you can create a great room that has the right balance of intimacy and open space for you. Take your time and use your imagination, and you'll achieve the interior decor feel that you're looking for.

Tom Matherson writes for Worldwide Tapestries which offers a wide collection of Belgium tapestries and throws to enhance any home. See the latest range of wall decor including a wide range of large tapestries to transform any room or home setting.

Learn About the Materials to Look Out in Interior Designing

We all want our houses to look the best at any cost. We use the best quality paints, furniture items, carpets, curtains, window blinds etc just to have a good looking house. We even go to the length of paying extra for hiring an interior designer. But these may not be enough to give shape to your dreams. You have to take care of a number of things to make sure your vision becomes a reality. Following a few steps here and there can help you a long way in helping you with the house decor.

Before we begin about how to design or redesign your house one thing has to be mentioned here. The entire ordeal takes some time and lot of attention. Therefore indulge in interior deigning only if you have the time and patience on your side. Designing or redesigning a house can be done only when you have a definite plan in your mind. Don't panic if you don't. The World Wide Web can be your savior in this respect. A number of websites offer valuable guides and advice on how to go about designing one's own house. While you are online also check out the online stores that offer decorative items for bathrooms, living rooms, bedrooms etc. You can also buy products from these online stores only if you are sure the website is genuine and not a fraud.

Many people choose their local market as a source of interior decorative pieces like door handles, curtains, draperies, mirrors, washbasins and much more. They consider these sources to be much safer than the online one. Be sure to check out the maximum number of home decor shops in the area before you make the purchase. Once you have good knowledge of the prices of products you can start buying them.

Never try to design the entire house's look at one go. Concentrate at one section at time. However you must always have a clear idea about the basic decor theme of the house. Most of us end up overdoing things that makes house look too congested. So try and stick to minimal purchase of goodies when trying to decorate the interiors of your house. This theory becomes even more critical when it comes to adorning bathrooms. Bathrooms should have enough space as that adds to the experience while you take a shower or relax after a long day's work.

Another mistake that people do is they end up ignoring their kitchens. You should never overlook the decor of your kitchen as it is one of the most important rooms of any house. Don't install too many gadgets as that might make the kitchen look congested. In fact a number of interior designing experts will opine you to try out compact gadgets and furniture goods for your kitchen. Whatever you modify or buy always remember your goal is to make your house look good without wasting too much money. Now that you know what to do get your ideas together, put them down on a piece of paper and start redefining interiors of your dream home.

Terrys Fabrics specialize in the distribution of blinds, roller blinds, vertical blinds and Roman Blinds within the United Kingdom.

Interior Design Decor - 4 Top Living Room Mistakes to Avoid

The biggest interior design decor mistakes do not come from buying the wrong color paint or even from misjudging the size of a piece of furniture by a few inches. Mistakes are easy to make so you want to try to keep them at a minimum. This is where planning becomes important. The more planning, the less mistakes. Here are some of the top mistakes to avoid:

? Don't allow your living room to revolve around your TV. Many people have state of the art TV's that they want to show off but doing so is a huge mistake. As a matter of fact, if it can be done, put your TV in an armoire or somewhere where it can be out of the way and concealed. Some TV's can even be mounted on a wall. The room will be much more attractive if the topic of conversation is not about your TV.

? Every living room needs a focal point, however they do not need two competing against each other. This can be a tough obstacle to tackle if you have a fireplace in your living room because the fireplace is an automatic focal point. The problem is that if there is also a TV in the room you are going to want your furniture and other seating to face the TV, creating a second focal point. If possible, set up seating so it is in the middle of the room to wash out one of the focal points. Ideally, you would want to create a situation where you could mount a TV above the fireplace, which would eliminate that second focal point entirely.

? Get rid of decorations that look cluttered. When it comes to decorations: less is more. If you have too many collectibles and want to display them a better idea is to do so but alternate them. It is better to just put out the best ones, and do so sparingly, so they look like they are presented attractively. The same is true for framed photos.

? Decorate according to your own styles and tastes rather than what the latest trend is. Remember that trends fade away and you are left with the aftermath of last year's trend. Don't try to mix your furniture with a different style of decorating. When changing your living room decor remember that contemporary stays with contemporary and so forth. Switch around the colors but leave the styles alone.

? Follow the rules when laying a rug in your living room. Never just throw a rug down in the center of a room. Always make sure that at least the front legs of all pieces of furniture are on top of the rug. This will show connection and that is important, especially in the living room. Tables and smaller chairs should be placed completely on top of the rug.

Interior design decor ideas do not have to be a hassle as long as you stop and remember that mistakes can happen but it is a lot easier if you could have avoided them in the first place.

And now that you understand the basic concepts of what not to do, I would like to share with you even more interior design decor elements & concepts here: Interior Design Decor. And don't forget to check out the latest interior design information here: http://www.interiordesignmadeeasy.net.

Simple Interior Decorating Ideas

So you're tired of looking at your house. It's looked the same for years and you just can't take it anymore. Should you sell it and find a new place to live? That's certainly one option, but if you happen to like your neighborhood then you could just do some home decorating and make it look like new. So if you've decided on the latter, you will need some interior decorating ideas.

Living / Family Room

It's time to get rid of the old sofa and, yes, even that favorite recliner that your father-in-law falls asleep in every time he visits. If new furniture is an option, great! But if it isn't, look for some great furniture covers. Furniture covers can change the whole look of a room for a fraction of the cost of new furniture, and the recliner will still be just as comfy. If you happen to have both a living room and a family room, try switching the furniture around. You probably spend more time in one room than the other and switching the furniture between the two rooms every so often will make them both last longer and give you a new look to work with.

Have your carpets cleaned and paint the walls. Don't be afraid of color! The best interior decorating experts will tell you that white walls are boring. Take a swatch from the furniture, or a throw pillow, and find paint that matches one of the colors in it. Make sure not to use the primary color of the furniture on the walls, you don't want them to blend. You do want good contrast. Get some new window dressings and nic-nacs and your room will look like brand new.

Kitchen

Interior decorating in the kitchen is a bit more difficult, but there are a few ways to make it look new. Start with some new window dressings, a throw rug under the table, and a nice new border on the freshly painted walls. If that's not enough, you could paint your cupboards and install new handles and pulls, or remove the upper cupboard doors if it's not too much of a mess inside. This will make your kitchen look much larger and more open. A nice, new faucet goes a long way in a kitchen, too.

Bedrooms

Clean the carpets and paint the walls. Replace the window coverings and the bed linens, and rearrange the furniture. You're not just sleeping in there, right? We all know that the bedroom is often our only retreat, so you want to make it a nice, new room to relax in. Put a comfortable chair and a small bookcase near a window and make a nice reading corner. For the kids' rooms, take them to the paint store and let them pick out their own colors and decorations. Let the kids go online and look for awesome things for their rooms. You will be the coolest parent around if you let the kids decorate their own spaces.

Bathrooms

There's not much interior decorating that can be done in a bathroom without replacing the fixtures. You can certainly replace the shower curtain, window coverings, accessories, and toilet covers and rugs. Make sure to put a fresh coat of paint on the walls, too.

For more Information on this topic visit http://www.buildwish.com a free Online Home & Garden Renovation & Design Directory in 100 Cities in North America. Featuring over 1 million free Real Estate Classifieds, Helpful Articles, Contests, Virtual home tools, Qualified Trades, Forums, a moving center, get free quotes for Insurance, Moving, Mortgages, Contractors, Find Foreclosures and Much More!