Decorating Tips & Advice
Where do I begin on my decorating project? Can I paint my walls a dark red? What colors and styles will enhance a romantic mood? What kind of carpet is best to have with small children and pets?Get personalized decorating advice to help you through your most troublesome of decorating problems.This website is dedicated to helping you get information that you need. For free resources please visit our design articles, secondly, you can look at advice that has previously been given to visitors by viewing our design advice answers, and lastly you can gain insight from The Decorating Bible, a comprehensive step by step look at decorating your home.
A successful lighting scheme that meets practical needs and
creates atmosphere plays an important part in establishing the style and
character of your home. There's more to
home lighting than a central ceiling fixture backed up by a couple of wall or
table lamps. A well-planned lighting scheme should be both practical and
decorative.
On the practical side, the right sort of lighting provides illumination for cooking, cleaning, sewing, reading, and many other day-to-day tasks. Decorative lighting helps to create a relaxed atmosphere, and should complement your color scheme and furnishings. A successful home lighting scheme is made up of several different elements. Most rooms will need a carefully thought-out mixture of these effects to work well.
Lighting Choices
General lighting provides overall or background light and should be used in every room. A hanging ceiling light is a common type of light fitting, offering a variety of shade styles in materials as diverse as fabric, paper, or metal. A ceiling pendant that is the sole source of light in a room is a limiting choice; it provides a bright central space with shadowy edges.
Recessed or semi-recessed low voltage down lights spaced across the ceiling will give a good level of clear light. Depending on the type of bulb used, and the housing, a recessed down light can spread light over a wide area or in a narrow beam. Semi-recessed down lights (sometimes called eyeballs) can be swivelled.
Controlling down lights with a dimmer system is a good idea because you can then have some of the lights off while others are on, and can vary brightness.
Task lighting is designed to give concentrated, directional light over a small area and may be used in conjunction with general and accent fixtures. The type of task lighting you choose depends on the activity you have in mind.
A desk light with a flexible arm is the perfect example, as it can be adjusted to provide light exactly where it is needed.
A reading lamp should be tall enough to shine onto the pages of the book, but not into your eyes. A floor lamp positioned behind the reader is ideal.
Light for writing, sewing, or any other hobby should be positioned so that it shines down onto the work. Rise and fall pendants are useful for this, especially if you work at the dining table. Recessed strip lighting is useful for providing countertop light in a kitchen. Accent lighting is used to show off plants, pictures, collections, and interesting architectural features. There are many different types, which can be used to light objects from above, below or behind, or at an angle.
A narrow beam halogen down light may be used to light a single vase or piece of china. The lower part of the object remains in shade, so this gives a dramatic floating effect.
Pictures are often lit from above. An adjustable eyeball or ceiling spotlight focused on the picture, or a special framing spotlight, which will flood the painting with light but leave the walls around it in shadow, are worth considering, as well as the traditional brass picture light.
A table lamp with a wide based shade will throw a pool of light onto the surface below it and is an attractive way to light a small collection or some framed photographs.
Floor standing drum torchieres can be positioned below large plants to create dramatic leaf patterns on the walls and ceiling. You can light objects on glass shelves very effectively by positioning a row of small halogen spotlights below the bottom shelf. Wall-mounted sconces, wallwashers, or tall floor lamp-style designs will illuminate the detail on an interesting cornice or ceiling.
Small floor torchieres positioned behind a sofa or armchair will wash the walls with light and make the room seem larger.
Tips for Your Front Porch or Sun room
Choosing just the right decor for decorating your front porch or
sunroom requires a combination of two things: Style and functionality...
Pillows, upholstery, slipcovers, shades and blinds, lighting, flooring, and rugs all make a sun room or a porch lush and comfortable. What you can use depends on how rigorous the weather is on the furnishings. In a relatively moisture-free hot climate, for instance, sun resistance is the quality you want to look for, but mildew resistance is not essential. In other areas, both sun and moisture (caused by dew at night) can damage the goods. Select products specifically resistant to mold and mildew and ultraviolet rays. Choices abound for products that work well in a protected outdoor environment. Here's some guidance on which are suitable for the outdoors.
On the practical side, the right sort of lighting provides illumination for cooking, cleaning, sewing, reading, and many other day-to-day tasks. Decorative lighting helps to create a relaxed atmosphere, and should complement your color scheme and furnishings. A successful home lighting scheme is made up of several different elements. Most rooms will need a carefully thought-out mixture of these effects to work well.
Lighting Choices
General lighting provides overall or background light and should be used in every room. A hanging ceiling light is a common type of light fitting, offering a variety of shade styles in materials as diverse as fabric, paper, or metal. A ceiling pendant that is the sole source of light in a room is a limiting choice; it provides a bright central space with shadowy edges.
Recessed or semi-recessed low voltage down lights spaced across the ceiling will give a good level of clear light. Depending on the type of bulb used, and the housing, a recessed down light can spread light over a wide area or in a narrow beam. Semi-recessed down lights (sometimes called eyeballs) can be swivelled.
Controlling down lights with a dimmer system is a good idea because you can then have some of the lights off while others are on, and can vary brightness.
Task lighting is designed to give concentrated, directional light over a small area and may be used in conjunction with general and accent fixtures. The type of task lighting you choose depends on the activity you have in mind.
A desk light with a flexible arm is the perfect example, as it can be adjusted to provide light exactly where it is needed.
A reading lamp should be tall enough to shine onto the pages of the book, but not into your eyes. A floor lamp positioned behind the reader is ideal.
Light for writing, sewing, or any other hobby should be positioned so that it shines down onto the work. Rise and fall pendants are useful for this, especially if you work at the dining table. Recessed strip lighting is useful for providing countertop light in a kitchen. Accent lighting is used to show off plants, pictures, collections, and interesting architectural features. There are many different types, which can be used to light objects from above, below or behind, or at an angle.
A narrow beam halogen down light may be used to light a single vase or piece of china. The lower part of the object remains in shade, so this gives a dramatic floating effect.
Pictures are often lit from above. An adjustable eyeball or ceiling spotlight focused on the picture, or a special framing spotlight, which will flood the painting with light but leave the walls around it in shadow, are worth considering, as well as the traditional brass picture light.
A table lamp with a wide based shade will throw a pool of light onto the surface below it and is an attractive way to light a small collection or some framed photographs.
Floor standing drum torchieres can be positioned below large plants to create dramatic leaf patterns on the walls and ceiling. You can light objects on glass shelves very effectively by positioning a row of small halogen spotlights below the bottom shelf. Wall-mounted sconces, wallwashers, or tall floor lamp-style designs will illuminate the detail on an interesting cornice or ceiling.
Small floor torchieres positioned behind a sofa or armchair will wash the walls with light and make the room seem larger.
Tips for Your Front Porch or Sun room
Choosing just the right decor for decorating your front porch or
sunroom requires a combination of two things: Style and functionality... Pillows, upholstery, slipcovers, shades and blinds, lighting, flooring, and rugs all make a sun room or a porch lush and comfortable. What you can use depends on how rigorous the weather is on the furnishings. In a relatively moisture-free hot climate, for instance, sun resistance is the quality you want to look for, but mildew resistance is not essential. In other areas, both sun and moisture (caused by dew at night) can damage the goods. Select products specifically resistant to mold and mildew and ultraviolet rays. Choices abound for products that work well in a protected outdoor environment. Here's some guidance on which are suitable for the outdoors.
Shades and
Blinds:
Simple matchstick or rattan rollups can protect furnishings from
some rain and sun. Other treatments might include fabulous see-through screens
and blinds that block ultraviolet rays while allowing breezes to waft through
the space. Shower curtains or simply made fabric curtains are decorative
solutions that add privacy as well as beauty. (Bed sheets are an inexpensive
alternative to fabric.) Remember, however, if the fabric isn't sun resistant,
the curtains will fade over time. Flooring and Rugs:
Tile, slate, concrete, and weatherproof
painted wood are floor choices that require minimal care. Soften the look and
the feeling underfoot with natural-fiber rugs, such as sisal or hemp, which by
nature resist moisture damage; this type of floor covering works best in
sheltered outdoor spaces. Another possibility is indoor-outdoor carpeting, which
can be left outside all year long. Fabrics:
Cushions and pillows with fillings that allow water
to drain through them take very little care. Add to this a wide range of new
fabrics--acrylics, woven vinyl-coated polyester, laminated cotton that feels
like uncoated fabric--and almost anything is possible. Look for these fabrics at
tent, awning, or fabric stores, as well as the porch and patio sections of
department stores and pool-supply stores. Don't overlook clear plastic to
protect some fabrics, and go ahead and use conventional fabrics that catch your
fancy if the area is protected. Store pillows when the weather turns foul.
Fabrics treated for stain resistance are more expensive but wear better. Lighting:
Outdoor
ground-fault circuit interrupters (GFCIs), built-in lighting, and fans make all
the difference for nighttime use of porches and sun rooms. Avoid conventional
indoor lighting unless your space is attached to the house. And be kind to your
neighbors: be sure lighting does not encroach on their space. (The same goes for
any noise you create, such as from a television, radio, or stereo system.) Don't
over-light, but do provide adequate transitional lighting from inside to
outside, allowing eyes to adjust. 