Creating a Bedroom Haven

 

Luxury bedding, custom draperies, ample bench and pretty lighting create a haven in this transitional bedroom.

While most of us live too far from a meditative spot in the woods, all of us, at some point in our daily routine, yearn for a place of tranquil reflections.  Your bedroom is, or should be, that haven!  If your bedroom doesn’t offer you a respite from the hustle and bustle of the day, then now’s the time to transform it.  The time and money you invest now will pay off in big dividends in your future.  Especially, as it might mean you’ll be able to be a little happier and saner!

Begin by visualizing the types of activities you’ll want to conduct in your “get-away haven” – letter writing; reading; pursuing a hobby; morning meditation – all types of activities that require peace and quiet to complete.  Then ask yourself….can your bedroom, with the given amount of space you have, accommodate all these needs?  The answer is often yes, although you may need to take advantage of some clever pre-planning.

In arranging your bedroom, first things first!  In most cases that would be the placement of the bed.  Because this is usually the largest piece of furniture, chances are that available wall space will somewhat limit your placement options.  If at all possible, try not to place the bed so you’ll be facing a window, where morning light will wake you up.  However, if your bed must face the window, all is not lost.  Room darkening window treatments can screen out most of the light.   Once the bed has been positioned, you can determine how much space you have left for other activities.  Perhaps a sitting area for reading, or an open space for yoga or meditation.   

A chenille chaise and unobtrusive reading lamp create a cozy spot for reading next to the fire in this master suite.

In your search for solitude, you might consider your favourite boutique hotel.  They have popularized a very clean, simple look, where the luxury is in the quality of the furnishings and top-quality sumptuous bedding.  The foundation of any good night’s sleep is a quality mattress, topped by luxurious natural materials in the coverings.   Lighting that changes with your mood is a must, including overhead lights on a dimmer, plus bedside reading lamps. 

Pamper yourself with a décor that provides comfort and a sense of luxury.  There is nothing quite like the look of beautifully designed custom bedding.  It’s guaranteed to fit, regardless of the size of your mattress or the configuration of your bed frame.  And by adding a coordinating window treatment, you’ll end up with a totally inviting and peaceful room.

Where to start your decorating project

YOU WANT TO REDECORATE….BUT WHERE DO YOU START?

Thousands of harried homeowners face this dilemma each and every day!  Here are a few suggestions to help you make your redecorating task a fun project.

Most often the “public” rooms in your home are the logical places to start.  Living rooms, family room, entryways, kitchens and dining rooms are typically the rooms that visitors to your home will most enjoy.  Once you have prioritized your remodeling by room, the next step is to begin prioritizing the design scheme and products you will be replacing.

The easiest place to start is by selecting a favorite piece – or pieces.  Build your redecorating project around the pieces you want to keep in the room, or a piece that you especially want to add to the room.  Perhaps a special painting, sculpture, heirloom quilt or even a floral arrangement will aid you in determining your new color scheme.  If you’ve decided to start from scratch, select a dynamic fabric, area rug or wallcovering pattern and use it as your roadmap to harmonize your colour schemes.

Here are 6 additional tips to help you get the most out of your next decorating project:

1/ Dress the Walls — Paint  is  still one of the quickest, least expensive ways to give a room a lift.  Wrong colours cost the same as the right colours, so get professional advice before putting roller to wall.  And if you’re staying put for a while, leave the neutrals to the real estate agents, and do something interesting with your walls. Create a feature wall in a dramatic colour, or a fabulous wallpaper.   While you’re at it, put up some crown molding and bigger baseboards – every room looks better with nice moldings.

Custom drapery panel with luscious fringe and rich tieback completes the room

2/ Add Custom Window Treatments

– No room is complete until the windows are properly dressed.   A well-made-up woman wouldn’t leave the house without mascara; beautiful draperies are the mascara for your windows! 

3/ Upgrade your Upholstered Pieces – If your old sofa is a quality piece, have it stripped down to the frame and reupholstered.  It will look like a new piece, and you won’t be adding to landfill.  If your old sofa isn’t worth reupholstering, then invest in better quality seating, that you can reupholster in 20 years.  You don’t really appreciate how much more comfortable a sofa can be until you’ve lived with a better quality piece.  Custom sofas are worth investing in because they use better materials in the frames, in the foam (most are now ‘green’), and in the fabrics.  This is the hardest-working piece of furniture in a living room or family room, so it deserves to be the best quality you can afford.

4/  Update your floors – Whether you love hardwood, or broadloom, this is a surface that takes a lot of wear and tear, so it looks tired sooner than the rest of the house.  If you redecorate, but you don’t change the flooring, you may find that the new stuff makes the old carpet or floors look even worse.    In broadloom, go for textures; in hardwood, choose a classic stain that won’t look dated in a few years’ time (remember bleached floors of a few years back??)  If you need area rugs, choose natural materials, and buy the best quality you can afford. 

5/  Assess your Accessories – Change the lampshades on your existing lamps and give old lamp bases new life.  Take the lamp with you when choosing new shades, in order to get the right size shade.  Don’t forget to change the harp so the shade sits correctly on the lamp.  Re-frame your art collection.  Like lampshades, frames can really date a piece of perfectly nice art.  While you’re at it, rearrange your art whenever your paint.  You will often find that a change of wall colour will change the way your art looks.  Make sure that mantles and tabletops are cluttered with old junk that you no longer love.  Add a few new  toss pillows in the latest colours.  This is the place to explore new trends, with inexpensive, easily-changed accents. 

An electric fireplace with curved mahogany mantle cozies up the sitting area of a Master Bedroom.

6/  Add a Fireplace – Today’s electric models allow you to put a fireplace anywhere that you have an electrical outlet.  A fireplace creates instant ambience, and adds interest that may otherwise be lacking in a room.  It also creates a focal point around which you can arrange the entire room.

Theme Decorating

Got a favorite hobby?  Crazy in love with your pets?  Passionate about seashells, golf, cigars, music, movies, or even shoes?  Well, with today’s virtually limitless home furnishings product assortments, you can turn any room in your home into a wonderful thematic design!    

Where to begin?  Once you’ve made the decision on the “theme” of your new room, the next step is to lock in the colour scheme that best suits the rest of your home’s décor.   Of course, some themes will lead to colours that don’t mesh with the rest of your home.  These are best left to basement rooms, or bedrooms, where they are separated from the main area of the house.  Then, take stock of the pieces in your room that you wish to keep, and make a list of the items that you will need to purchase.

Since there are so many themes available for you to incorporate into your new project, let’s take a look at a few of today’s hot design themes!

 Seaside Beach House.  If the sound of crashing waves, walking on sandy beaches, and collecting seashells is your passion – then you’re in luck!  From wall covering patterns, to area rugs, to wicker and rattan furniture – your product selection is unparalleled.  Why not consider a lively multicolored beach-inspired print that could be used on your upholstered pieces.   Adding roman shades at your windows, in a terrific texture – say wicker or rattan —  would definitely complete the look.  Accessory pieces might include baskets of shells; lamps with rope entwined bases, candles complete with sea shells embedded; books on seaside living; even artwork featuring the surf and sand.  If you don’t have a cottage where you can feature this theme, why not try it in a guest room?   Then you can be a ‘guest’ in your own home.

Pet Palace.   Our love affair with our pets has never been at such a high!  Luxury pet hotels have waiting lists and doggie day cares are springing up everywhere!  Why not take one room in your home, and devote its design to your favorite pet!  From Poodles, to Westies, to Labs, accessories are everywhere.  And let’s not forget our feline friends – you’ll find lamps, rugs, artwork and an abundance of accessories that feature your favorite feline.  Perhaps a powder room or laundry room would be the perfect setting for this fun thematic room.  Just think of the possibilities – Soap dishes; tissue holders; switch plates; towels; soaps; even area rugs would create just the look you’ve been dreaming of!

Sports Shrine.  What you’re favorite sport?  For years, it was difficult for decorators to have an innovative and varied product selection for those homeowners who wished to incorporate their favorite sport – or team — into their home decorating plans.  That’s certainly no longer the case.  It’s not only fun to incorporate a great sporting theme into your decorating plans, but it’s easy and oh so very creative.  Just think of all the window treatment possibilities.   Perhaps you’re a passionate hockey fan. A professional interior decorator might help you design a window treatment that would be installed on criss-crossing hockey sticks.  Pucks could be used for finials – and your teams’ favorite jersey could be proudly mounted on a wall to complete the look.  Or if baseball’s where it’s at for you, how about a window treatment designed around a creative use of baseball bats.  Perhaps colorful pendants of your favorite teams could be incorporated as a clever top treatment.  Pictures of your favorite players – or better yet – your prized collection of baseball cards, could take center stage when artfully displayed in wall décor.

Gardening Year-round.   This design theme is a perennial design favorite!  By adding special touches of Mother Nature’s beauty to your home décor project, the peaceful tranquility of your backyard could be yours year round.  Floral fabrics are as whimsical or as realistic as you would like.  From there, you can pull out all the hues that are found in your garden.  Wicker or rattan furniture lends a true outdoor feeling.  With the addition of some watering cans, and other garden implements as ‘sculpture’, and your favourite gardening books and catalogues on the coffee table, you can enjoy the garden year-round.   This could be particularly fun in a sunroom. 

Hooray for Hollywood.   Are you a movie buff?  Why not design a home theatre that really captures the romance of an old-style theatre.  You could mount velvet drapery panels on either side of the movie screen.  Old movie posters, framed in traditional gold, will recall favourite films of old.  Comfy reclining seating, set in rows that step back from the screen, will blend the best of theatre style with modern comfort.

Outdoor Living

The line between indoors and outdoors continues to blur as many of us want to take our indoor comforts outdoors.  It seems that we want to make the most of our too-brief fair-weather months.   This concept is becoming more realistic as many more manufacturers of home products develop appliances, furniture, lighting and accessories that can be used indoors or out.

People are driven to find peaceful sanctuaries as a prescription for our stressful lives. Outdoor patios and porches are becoming more sophisticated and refined, and are becoming a living extension of the indoor spaces. Three-season indoor spaces are also making a come back.

Creating or renovating an outdoor space has many elements. Landscape design, stonework and carpentry are all critical components of designing your outdoor haven. Outdoor furnishings, lighting and accessories are also an essential element in your overall plan. As you begin the process of  space planning and design,  be sure to include the entire family. You may be surprised at the wish list that you come up with.

Your outdoor space should accommodate all your needs throughout the year. Do you entertain outdoors? Make sure that there will be enough seating for your larger parties. Do you plan to have your family meals outdoors often? If so, make sure that your dining area comfortably accommodates your family and then some.  Do you spend time outdoors in the evenings and at night? Make sure that you have adequate lighting and bug control included in your plan.  Is the outdoor grill used seasonally or all year round? Where you place the grill and whether it has a protective roof will make a difference.  If you are outdoors in spring and fall, a source of heat may be important to you.  What about a built-in fireplace, or portable heater?    

Outdoor furniture has greatly evolved from the folding, vinyl strap versions of the past, to beautiful pieces made of teak, steel, rattan, and wicker.  Many pieces look just like indoor furniture but are constructed and designed to stand up to the outdoor elements. 

Fabrics are being manufactured to resist fading from ultraviolet rays, to resist mildewing from damp conditions and to resist odor absorption. These types of fabrics are a must for any upholstery or drapery that will be used outdoors or in a screened-in location.   Outdoor fabrics have become so attractive that they have moved indoors.  They offer practical solutions for situations that call for durability and cleanability, or for very sunny rooms where regular fabrics might fade. 

Lighting is also a very important aspect in creating an inviting outdoor space.  Be sure you incorporate various types of lighting in your outdoor space, just as you would in your indoor spaces.  Landscape lighting, overhead lighting, ceiling fans or decorative side lighting are good ideas.  Torches or tiki lighting can also be a charming and functional element to your lighting plan. Developing a creative lighting plan can help you create a space with increased ambiance and functionality.

Remember to create a space that is perfect for you and your needs. This is a space where memories will be made so consider it an important investment.  I like to call an investment like this an emotional anchor: a space where your family gathers, shares and remembers forever.

Dining in Style

Dining Room completed for Cancer Showhouse fundraiser

You  probably think the dining room is the easiest of all rooms to furnish.  Once you have your table and chairs, that’s all there is to it!    And while that’s the biggest part of your overall dining room plan, it’s far from all.  It’s important to provide for the comfort of your guests, as well as practical considerations such as how to get food from kitchen to table.

Let’s start with the furniture.  Tables come in all shapes and sizes.  The size should fit both the room and your family.  Remember to consider how much space you will have around the room  when all the chairs are occupied and pulled away from the table.   If you occasionally entertain a larger crowd, your ideal table will be designed for easy expansion.   Expandable tables may come with drop leaves, built-in extensions, or board inserts.  Furniture makers are also designing console tables that take up less space, but open up to double their original size for impromptu dining.   These flexible pieces are ideal for folks with limited space, who don’t need a full-size dining table on a regular basis. 

Family dining room in open-plan main floor

Once you’ve selected the ideal table for your dining space, you will determine how many chairs you need.  Size and comfort are the most important considerations.  Be wary of massive chairs that take up too much space.  Likewise, skimpy chairs can be very uncomfortable.  Don’t be afraid to mix chairs rather than purchasing the chairs that match your table.  If you don’t want to mix different woods, upholstered chairs are a wonderful addition and mix well with various wood tones. 

It’s also extremely easy and convenient to have silverware, linens, and serving pieces stored right in the room.  A sideboard, chest or armoire will give you the storage, and provide another wonderful decorative element.  Again, think outside the ‘suite’, and look for unmatched pieces that suit your personality and the size of your space.  Don’t be afraid to forego these pieces if your room isn’t large enough – it’s no fun squeezing around all the furniture when serving your guests.

 Once the furniture is in place, there are the finishing touches to consider.  If you love the look of a luxurious rug under the dining table, be sure to allow enough space around the table for chairs to move in and out without falling off the rug.   A good general guideline is to allow at least 24” from the edge of the table to the edge of the rug, on all sides.  So, if your table is 42” x 72”, your ideal rug size is 8’ x 10’.   Chandeliers and wall sconces cast a soft glow that you can’t achieve with recessed lighting; be sure to have all lighting on dimmers, to achieve different effects for different moods.   Finally, window dressings can set the scene for the rest of the room.  Consider long, formal panels for traditional dining rooms, or more tailored, simple valances for contemporary spaces.

Elegant Dining Room in Luxury Condo