Introduction to Home Staging

When it comes to creating a simple, stylish and oriental look to the home, many people often turn to oriental rugs. They come in a variety of delicate, intricate patterns and they range in price so that everyone can have a chance of owning one. However, if you do choose to have an oriental rug to help give your home a Japanese Interior Decorating look, bear in mind that you will have to keep it maintained if you want it to last!

Cleaning Your Oriental rug

The most obvious type of cleaning you really need to do on a daily basis is vacuuming the rug. As with many other types of rugs, oriental rugs can look dirty quite quickly and some may even need to be vacuumed more than once a day. However, you do need to ensure that you have the vacuum on a setting which will not damage the rug. Usually it is better to have a setting which does not allow the vacuum to go into all of the fibers deep down in the rug; you only need to go over the top of it to keep the surface looking clean and tidy.

Keeping it vacuumed is usually sufficient enough to keep the rug clean, but what about if you spill something on it? Well in that case you really need to treat the spillage as soon as possible. As with anything, once a stain has had a chance to settle it is a lot harder to remove it. In case you are worried about ruining your rug, you may want to think of taking it to a specialist cleaner who knows all about your type of rug and who will know exactly how to clean it. Your local advertiser paper will allow you to find one close to your area. Failing that, you may be able to find out how to clean it on the rugs label if it has one. Some rugs do and that would make your life a lot easier!

Generally oriental rugs need specialist cleaners in order to remove the stains without harming the rug. It is possible to give it a wipe with water but overall it needs to be specially cleaned to fully remove all stains. If you do attempt to clean the rug yourself without knowing what you are doing, it is possible that the colors will run and that you will end up with a dull looking carpet.

So, overall treat your rug well by vacuuming it daily and try to avoid washing it yourself. Treat all spills as quickly as possible and you should end up with an oriental rug which lasts for years to come.

A.Caxton
http://www.articlesbase.com/home-improvement-articles/use-oriental-rugs-in-your-home-with-japanese-interior-decorating-88924.html

Window treatment hardware consists of the ornamental and functional components that turn plain curtains and drapes into beautiful and decorative window coverings. Curtain rods and hardware are offered in a variety of styles that include wood, metal, iron, ceramic, and even glass.

More about the decorative curtain rods

In the world of Home Decorating, window coverings are like icing on a cake. These finishing touches of color, texture, and design set a mood, reflect your personal style, create a feeling or mood, and impact the environment where you live, work, and play. A person looks for privacy, light control, function, and style.

Privacy: If so, then you want to consider a window covering that offers complete coverage. Some examples are lined curtains or draperies, fabric or roller shades, mini blinds or wood shutters. Avoid sheer curtains, unless you layer it over a shade for nighttime privacy.

Light Control: If so, you will also want to consider an opaque window covering like heavy draperies, shades, or blinds. Light-blocking curtains will also protect your rugs, furniture, and artwork from UV rays; however to prevent the curtain itself from breaking down; consider layering it over a non-fabric shade.

Function: Some decorative window treatments, like valences and cornices, are designed to stay permanently in place, while sheer panels, blinds, and shades are more functional. If you have children or pets it is also important to consider the potential hazards of floor-length curtains or shades with non-breakaway cords. Function will also determine the type of window hardware you will need to purchase.

Style: Color, fabric choice, and style of curtain help create a desired living or entertaining environment, as well as reflect your own personality. Decorative or unique rods and hardware can dress-up simple curtains. There are endless choices when it comes to style. Look for ideas in home decor magazines or online and then apply your personal creative touch.

There are several types of curtain rods, including:

Tension or pressure rods are used inside of window frame and held in place by the pressure of a spring inside the rod. This rod does not use mounting brackets and screws, and therefore does not damage the woodwork. Cafe rods are used for hand-drawn window treatments, usually with rings or tie-tab curtains. Sash rods use shallow mounting brackets so window treatments hang close to the glass. Finials are decorative hardware that embellishes the ends of drapery rods. A bracket supports rods at each end, and also in the center of extra long rods.

Allan Wilson
http://www.articlesbase.com/home-and-family-articles/home-decorating-with-ornamental-curtain-rods-94536.html

Here are some great Home Decorating ideas for bringing the freshness of spring into your home.

Sponge paint your walls, or a key piece of furniture. Blues, greens, pinks, and yellows in pastel shades refresh a room, and the softness of sponging gives an impressionistic appeal.

Take clippings from outdoor ivy, and root in water for FREE houseplants. Buy inexpensive shade annuals and pot them up for indoors- fuchsias, impatiens, begonias, and primroses are wonderful for bringing in color, and deal well with the lower light indoors.

Dress up candles as natural works of art instead of putting them away for the warm months. Use a glue gun to attach organic materials such as dried twigs, flowers, cinnamon sticks, worn out potpourri, pressed leaves, coffee beans…use what you have! Or, tie on raffia or ribbon and group candles on a shelf, tabletop, or on a mirror.

Paint inexpensive houseplant pots to give your room designer touches. Sponge paint over clay pots, or use a stencil or simple pattern to give interest. This technique can also be used on your outdoor pots. Hint: for a more elegant look, try using the new metallic craft paints over clay pots. Simply sponging on some metallic paint (try combining them) can look extremely upscale.

Got an old wooden stepladder? Use it as a great plant stand to bring the green indoors. You can paint it or leave it rustic and weathered, depending on the style of your room. Full size wooden ladders can look great on the patio.

Add spring detail to your window treatments by using small grapevine wreaths as tiebacks or swag holders. You can add more interest by gluing on a small bunch of dried flowers. This is a great way to reuse flowers from a damaged arrangement, or leftovers from another project.

Buy artificial plant vines at the craft store, and drape them over the tops of your window treatments, or wrap them around a floor lamp. Watch the craft stores carefully, and you can usually catch them on sale for just a couple of bucks.

Cover cardboard boxes with fresh floral fabric, and stack on a table like hatboxes. If you utilize scraps from another project, you will have creative, decorative storage, virtually free!

Kathy Wilson
http://www.articlesbase.com/home-improvement-articles/bring-spring-into-your-home-decorating-123888.html

What part of your home do you and your family spend the most time? In many households the gravitational pull of the kitchen area brings family members together at some point in the day for basic nourishment needs and communication updates.

Whether your meal times include snacks on the run or elaborate multi course settings, there are simple ways to transform your family’s hub space into an inviting and comfortable refuge.

Unless you’ve designed your kitchen space to suit your own specific needs, the placement of built in cabinets and appliances are immoveable without major renovations.

Start with what you have as far as the cabinet’s finish and the flooring and make the kitchen space your own with personalized decorating choices.

For efficient food preparation, lighting is important. A single overhead light fixture in the ceiling is normally all that is provided in the kitchen. Adequate for raiding the fridge at night, but this minimal lighting is apt to create shadows as you work at the countertop. Remedy this dim situation by installing low profile task lights under the upper cabinets. This lighting solution uses minimal electricity, is unobtrusive, and provides bright, directed light where you need it on the work surface.

Now that you can more easily see your kitchen space, notice how unremarkable those tired kitchen cabinets are looking. Refinishing wood doors or painting them is a big job, but may be worth the effort if the finish is seriously marred. A simpler solution is to re-accessorize your cabinet doors and drawers with new handles or knobs. Just as you change your own jewelry, or add an accent scarf, the new cabinet hardware may be just what your kitchen cabinets need for a revitalized look.

Countertop clutter in a busy household can make your kitchen seem small and unusable.

Start by removing any small appliances, canisters or containers that are rarely used. That time saving gadget you had to have is costing you productive minutes if it’s taking up counter space you could be using for meal preparation. Give yourself some elbow room by storing unused items in a cabinet, closet or even another room. Better still, pass the indispensible gadget on to someone else- with more counter space.

Horizontal surfaces throughout the house, and especially in the kitchen, frequently become catch alls. Toss your keys, newspaper, the daily mail and other easily dropped items into a useful countertop basket. A divided basket with a space for each family member is ideal. Make this practice a household rule and you’ll never have to search for misplaced items again. And, you won’t have to clear a space to begin meal preparations.

Increase the cozy factor of your kitchen space by adding an area rug over your hard surface flooring. The rug will cushion the cook’s stance while it adds a dash of color. A printed area rug breaks up the mostly solid colored cabinet, countertop and flooring surfaces of the kitchen. Select a small rug for where you stand the most or a room sized rug to visually expand your space. The colors and design of the area rug will set the tone. Are you looking for a country kitchen, a modern décor, or traditional mode? You’ll find a delightfully appropriate area rug that describes the look you want.

Carry the colors and designs from your area rug up onto the walls by adding a coordinating wallpaper border above your upper cabinets or in the space between your cabinets and countertops. For a more artistic look, try out a do-it-yourself stencil kit to create your own, one of a kind, decorative touch.

The center of your home, the hub of numerous family activities, can be designed as an efficient and attractive gathering space. Try these simple updates create comfort and livability in your kitchen space.

Sarah Crosset
http://www.articlesbase.com/home-improvement-articles/kitchen-decorating-the-center-of-your-home-677668.html

A home theater needs to be functional before it’s anything else. Those who have put in the expense to build a “theater” in their home need to be sure the sound and visual and placement of seating is just right before they’ll delve into decorating, but when that time comes, there are some tips to add to the room aesthetically without taking away any of the functionality.

A room of this sort is bound to have floor speakers, and speakers that surround your peripherals and centrally located speakers for both the front and back of the sitting area. In some of the newer homes or the more expensive remodels, some, if not all, of these speakers may be placed in the walls of the home. Yet usually the floor speakers will remain out and near the television. The tops of which may be a prime opportunity for knickknacks when decorating. There may be shelving on the walls in this room for speakers or for remote controls. Those shelves are also a great place for decorative touches.

A typical theater room is designed something like this: The television is centrally located either mounted on the wall or standing just in front of it. There are floor speakers on either side of the television and another smaller speaker centrally located above the TV. There will be more speakers either mounted or on stands placed on either side of the seating area and one more speaker centrally located behind the seating area. Finally, there will be a special speaker called a subwoofer placed somewhere to the side of the seating area. The seating area is located around what some refer to as the “sweet spot” because during the action scenes in intense movies when the music swells, the vibrations of that sound are felt in the seating area. All of this is necessary for the functionality of the theater room. What’s left is what you have to decorate.

In order to keep the functionality of a theater room, you must realize that the room needs to be dark. This is no room for growing plants or bright colors painted on the wall. Rich earthy tones will work here. Along with this, keep knickknacks to a minimum. This room is for viewing the television, not your china collection. Do not place fragile things in this room. There will be much vibration in this room and that may cause a fragile item to fall from its perch and break. Keep your decor simple here. Use rugs to add color to the room and hang pictures to add depth to the walls. Do not clutter up this room with much more than this.

Before anything else, a home theater needs to be functional. If you’ll also entertain in this room, keep your decor to a minimum and use unbreakable items. Add color through the means discussed above and be okay with a sparsely decorated room. It will provide much enjoyment and sometimes simple really is best.

Lee Dobbins
http://www.articlesbase.com/home-and-family-articles/home-theater-decorating-tips-for-comfort-and-function-121216.html

i do not subcribe. but follow whatever falls under my hand. if i need a specific info then i buy the how to do it — small booklet. magazines carry too many advertising to my taste. the best way to follow the renovation trend is to go their annual show — they hold one in every major city — and of course to visit often the major hardware stores– they have instituted "how to do" seminars — try to get into those presentations. hope it helps.

Thanks in advance.

Here are some ideas from HGTV:
http://www.hgtv.com/hgtv/dc_design_feng_shui/0,1792,HGTV_3371,00.html

In addition, I would buy a book. "Feng Shui for Dummies" is a good one.

Hi there! I just bought a beautiful new home and all the walls are off-white and neutral . . . anyone have any decorating tips or sites I can refer to to spruce it up and give it a feel?? The model homes had amazing color schemes like navy blue with pewter and burgundy with gold . . . any ideas or sites I can refer to??

First congratulation on your beautiful new home .next go to benjaminmoore.com they have the best paint site and full of tips and color options along with the option of putting pictures of your rooms on and virtually painting them

I have simple taste, and I hate clutter. I know what looks good, I just have problems putting it all together.

Ok. I can understand and relate to that. Here are some ideas:
http://www.jiancai365.cn/decorating/Tips-For-Decorating-A-Clutter-Free-Home.htm

http://www.interior-design-it-yourself.com/minimalist-interior-design.html

http://www.gharexpert.com/articles/Home-Improvement-1948/Clutter-Free-Bathroom_0.aspx

http://www.hgtv.ca/articles/articledetails.aspx?ContentId=2939&cat=1&by=1

http://ezinearticles.com/?Using-the-Minimalist-Decorating-Style&id=806266

http://www.home-decorating-reviews.com/minimalist-style.html

http://home.howstuffworks.com/home-improvement/decorating/bathroom-decorating-ideas3.htm

http://freshome.com/2008/10/23/modern-minimalist-bedroom-interior-design-ideas/

Enjoy!

From time to time, everyone wishes they could change the décor in their home and create a more personal atmosphere. However, this task is often one that brings on confusion as to how to decorate without spending lots of money.

This task is really easily done just by adding new items to the various rooms in your home. Some of the items you can add range from wall plagues, mirrors and furniture, to lighting or other items. Just adding a tabletop figurine to a room gives it a certain awe that will surely enhance the atmosphere of that room. Depending on your preferences, a unique crystal figurine in the shape of an eagle, a stallion, dolphins, or a wolf might be just the touch you were looking for.

Of course, if you have a certain theme already in place, you might want to decorate accordingly. A “Western” themed room could include such items as a stallion figurine, southwestern styled mirror, metal cowboy wall hooks, or a feathered hand axe. Not only will you be able to use wall plagues to add to the western theme but such items as southwestern themed lamps, clocks, vases, pots, candles, candleholders, and photo frames can also be great ways to accentuate the feel. In just a few short minutes, you have given your guest bedroom a southwestern atmosphere.

If you are going for a nautical theme, the dolphin table would also be excellent in a bathroom. You could place the table in the corner and place bath sets such as the spa bath set or the pralines & honey bath basket to decorate. Along with these items, you can find other under the sea figurines and accessories to enhance the feel and give your guests a beautiful bath time experience along with providing them all the essential bath accessories.

Instead of hiring an interior decorator or throwing out everything in a room and starting over you can find all kinds of unique items that can be added to any room in your home such as decorative screens, wall décor, clocks, vases, bookends, figurines, photo frames, linens and even various accent furniture pieces. Just by adding or replacing a few items with new ones, you will be able to decorate your home without the added expense of redoing the entire room.

The idea, when it comes to decorating, is to choose a theme or atmosphere you would like the room to have such as a wild safari, under the sea, country, southwestern, or even just a calm and relaxing mood. Then you can find items to add that will ultimately change the room, giving it a unique, exciting, and fresh look with only a few items.

The fun comes in when you can envision the room the way you desire, begin adding all the items associated with your theme, and then watch it come to life before your eyes. Each room can have its own personality and awe instead of being the same throughout the home. Have fun! Enjoy finding the unique items to decorate every room in your home, or just create your own little getaway with one room.

Ron Jan Stager
http://www.articlesbase.com/interior-design-articles/home-decorating-tips-726533.html