Instead Of Spring Cleaning, Consider An Organizational Redesign

As we transition out of winter and into to spring, this is the time of year we think about spring cleaning. While giving everything in your home a thorough cleaning and assessing your items is always a good idea, what if you home always looked as though it were fresh from a spring clean? With the help of a great interior designer, this dream can become a reality.

Getting organized is a chore, but it can happen. However, staying organized is the real challenge. After all, clutter seems to build up like magic. We are inundated with “stuff” just about every day and it’s easy to become overwhelmed. This is particularly true if our home is not set up with solid organizational systems. Create a few concrete rules for yourself, though, and it can be much easier to reduce the clutter in your home.

For instance, we are always buying something new for our home or ourselves or our children. What if we made a commitment to get rid of something whenever we bought something new? So if you buy a new pair of jeans grab an old pair you no longer wear and donate them. If you purchase a few new books or magazines, grab a few you no longer want and donate those. This even works with bigger items, such as a sofa. Sell the old one or donate it when the new one arrives.

Much of the clutter that we store is in the form of paper, and this can be reduced easily. Some documents need to be kept in paper form, but many can be scanned and stored on a computer or an external hard drive. Even children’s artwork can be scanned or you can take pictures of it and store this digitally. You can opt for paperless bills and then pay your bills online. Be sure to go through your mail daily and immediately toss junk mail into the recycle bin. You can even enjoy magazines and newspapers digitally rather than opting for paper copies, which just pile up in our homes.

While reducing the amount of items and paper in your home definitely helps, what do you do with all of the items that you want to keep but have no place to store? The answer is to simply contact an interior decorator and hire them to create storage solutions for your entire home. They can design that perfect garage with built in shelving and storage, create attractive shelving units in your family room or office and even get into those kitchen cupboards and pantry and add useful design and storage features. Your closets are yet another area that they can tackle and transform into an easy-to-organize space.

Once your storage problems have been fixed and everything has a proper place, your home will truly look clean. You will be able to find all of your important papers and other items quickly. When friends pop over, it will take just minutes to tidy up and you won’t have to cram it all into a hall closet or an extra bedroom. Your home should be a respite, and if it’s organized, you will always feel relaxed the minute you come home after a hard day at work. So instead of struggling with the momentous task of spring cleaning, contact a designer and have them create an organizational system that works for you.

Vickie Daeley likes writing and sharing her knowledge in interior design. For further information about an Orange County interior design consultant, or to find a Tustin interior designer, check out the Interior Affairs site today.

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Living Room Design – Seven Keys To Success

Regardless of whether you are decorating your first apartment or regenerating your existing space, there are several points that you will want to consider before making your first purchase or rearranging your furniture. Unless you are fortunate enough to have a family room in addition to your living room, the living room definitely will become the heart of your home.

If your living room is going to be a combination living room and family room, then you will naturally make adjustments for a smooth and interesting correlation.

Before beginning any transformation, find your focal point. Usually the fireplace will be the first thing your eye moves toward. However, if you have no fireplace but you do possess a fabulous view from your windows, use that as your point of interest. If TV viewing is your most important usage of this room, then you are going to need an interesting cabinet that can conceal the TV when the room is used for other purposes.

If you have high, lofty ceilings, you may prefer to purchase fewer pieces of furniture but they should be larger in scale. Large rooms will simply appear overcrowded with dozens of tiny tables and miniscule seating areas.

Before purchasing or rearranging your furniture, it is always helpful to draw a chart to scale. This simply means that you measure each piece you are considering for your space and by reducing the size, create your own pattern for your room and furnishings. This will show you how to best take advantage of the flow of your space.

Neutral colors on the walls are a good background choice for most families. But if you want to express an outgoing personality or just feel great in yellows, reds or oranges, by all means, find the perfect bright and load your walls with color. If your schedule is hectic and you desire peace and quiet but don’t want a neutral, consider the softer, muted blues, greens, grays and browns for your wall color choice.

Don’t forget that floors and ceilings are also important elements of your room. Whether you choose carpeting, tile or wood, they should be an integral part of your design. Consider painting the ceiling a color other than pure white. If you have beautiful wood trim around your ceiling, consider a color that will complement your walls.

If you need a calming atmosphere, pattern may not be a choice for you. But mixing plaids with florals or stripes can be a fun and interesting way to add variety to your room. Just verify that your colors coordinate perfectly and remember, a little goes a long way.

Accessories are the final touch in any living room. Choose something that you have been collecting for a long time such as books or “objets d’arte” or just something that you absolutely love. This will complete your room and add a feeling of grace, charm and warmth.

Vickie Daeley enjoys blogging and sharing her knowledge in interior design. For further info about an Orange County interior design consultant, or to find an Irvine interior designer, check out the Interior Affairs website now.

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Choosing A Design That Fits Your New Smaller Home

If you have decided to sell your big family home and move into a smaller and more manageable house or condo, you might be wondering how to manage your furnishings and create a new interior design that maximizes space. This can be tricky, so consider the following suggestions.

The first step in downsizing really needs to happen prior to the day you move. It is important to organize and reduce your furnishings and other items before the moving truck arrives. Anything you sell or donate will not have to be moved, which can reduce your overall moving expenses. In addition, you won’t have to find a place to fit items at the new house. So take a good hard look at your furnishings, clothes, books, kitchen ware and accessories. Get rid of anything you haven’t used in the past 12 months, as well as anything you no longer like.

If you won’t have yard at your new place, sell your patio furniture, lawn mower and other no longer needed yard supplies. Be sure to go through the attic and closets, as well, and remove anything you don’t really need. Try not to attach sentimental value to each and every item. You have memories and photographs to carry with you, but items that have just been stored in the attic and garage for years just don’t need to make the move.

If you are not sure where to put your furnishings or really which items you should take, it can be wise to hire a professional interior designer. While you might think a designer just deals with paint and decor, this is just a part of the job. One of the important skills of a designer is the ability to create a space plan. This plan takes into consideration the size and shape of the room, as well as the furnishings.

In fact, you can easily find a designer that offers a design package that includes comprehensive space plans, as well as tips and suggestions for decor and lighting. This can be a less expensive option because the designer creates the plan, but you are one who executes the plan. You can hire an interior decorator to create a special plan for your main living space or perhaps select two or three important rooms.

If you just don’t have the time to do the design work, you can certainly hire the designer to complete the entire project from start to finish. This can be more affordable than you might believe. This is because designers know where to find the best value on high-quality furnishings and decorative features. In addition, a designer can truly envision the final project, where most of us might have to go through a process of trial and error before settling on a design we love.

Vickie Daeley likes blogging and sharing her knowledge in interior design. To get further information about an Orange County interior designer or to find a Tustin Interior Designer, check out the Interior Affairs website now.

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Create A Design That Is Friendly For Children, Pets

If you have house filled with children and pets, it is best to have a decor that is appropriate for a family. A professional designer can create a luxurious design that is both pleasing for the grown-ups but able to accommodate your family and pets.

When it comes to families with children and pets, being able to keep the house clean and clutter-free is a high priority. One of the biggest ways designers can help is by devising clever and attractive ways to store everything from toys to movies to video games.

For example, there are furnishings that can double as storage, such as ottomans and window seats. Built-in shelving units can be installed, offering places to store books, games, toys, videos and much more. Attractive storage containers and baskets can be used to ensure that the storage is appealing visually, as well as functional.

When it comes to choosing furnishings that are both kid and pet friendly, your designer will select furniture that can stand up to heavy use. For example, you will definitely want to shy away from fabrics that are delicate or light in color. Choose heartier materials and those that are stain resistant.

When it comes to flooring, make choices that are safe and easy to clean. Tile can be great in a family room, but you might be worried about infants and toddlers falling and tripping. If you do choose tile, keep it covered with area rugs to increase safety. Wood and carpet are softer for small children, but if you do have pets, carpet might not be the best choice. It is much easier to keep the room clean and fresh without carpet.

Choosing paint is another aspect of design, and semi-gloss paint is a great choice in a room with very high traffic, especially bathrooms and kitchens, but even a family room can look great with semi-gloss paint. High gloss is easy to wash, but will show marks and flaws in the wall and doesn’t really look as attractive in a big family room. Semi-gloss is a bit more versatile, a good middle ground between flat paint and high gloss.

Accessories are another important part of the overall design scheme, but when you have kids and pets, you have to worry about breakage. This doesn’t mean you can’t have some great pieces. Consider a few carefully selected items, placed higher up on bookshelves or some beautiful pieces of art. Even throw pillows will enhance a room, and these can be covered in strong fabrics that are stain resistant.

Vickie Daeley enjoys writing and sharing her knowledge in interior design. For further information about Orange County interior decorating or to find a Yorba Linda interior designer, check out the Interior Affairs site today.

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