Bedroom Ideas

My friends just added on a master bedroom, walk in closet and a master bathroom to their house. I can't wait to se it. Here are some pointers when it comes to decorating a bedroom.

Colors: Neutrals are a sophisticated choice for a bedroom and it creates a calming atmosphere. If you are brave throw in a little splash of a muted color. Dark colors such as charcoal, chocolate or olive are nice when used as a contrast with a light color. It will create a dramatic, warm and sensuous feeling. Think of your textiles (bedding, curtains and rugs) as part of your color pallet. Some people prefer all white. For the white color to look clean and crisp use a light gray or a light beige as an accent color, this will also prevent the room from looking flat. Avoid using bright colors in a bedroom.
Functions: Storage is essential in a bedroom. If you are not one of the lucky ones to have a walk in closet, built-in under bed storage is becoming very popular and it's very practical. Keep a low profile in a bedroom so instead of a high 6 drawer dresser, get 3+3 double dresser. A full length mirror is a good idea considering most of us dress in the bedroom, it will also ad some depth in the room and make it feel bigger. If you have a big bedroom, it's nice to ad a chair (ultimately an armless one). This can act as a reading corner or a place to sit down to put on socks and shoes.
Bedding: Spend the money to get thread count over 200, or get Egyptian cotton which is on of the softer kinds. If you are unsure what color bedding to use, you can never go wrong with crisp white and use throw pillows that will go with the accent colors of the room. When adding throw pillows, don't be afraid to use organic or graphic patterns.
Lighting: ...is what sets the mood. Rather then having one general light source use a few. Avoid using florescent light bulbs, they tend to give out a cool, blue light. Dimmers are essential, especially in a bedroom. Don't assume that lights next to the bed have to be table lamps. You can make it interesting by using Directional floor lamps which would also work as a reading light.
Inspiration: There are many places you can go to find inspiration. When I was looking to rent an apartment in Argentina, going there for vacation, I went on VRBO.com They have apartments all over the world that you can se pictures of. There's also some inspiration you will find in Designer Hotels. DO NOT buy a bedroom set when buying your bedroom furniture. You will risk that your bedroom will turn out looking like a Residence Inn.
What do you put on the wall above the bed? If you have a nice big head board the space above the bed will be filled out. If you chose to put a shelf, and you live in California, just make sure not to put things on it that can fall and hit you in the head during an earth quake. I personally prefer to use 2 larger or 3 smaller framed pictures.

Swede Dreams! ;)

BIG indoor plants

The time has come to get rid of the Christmas tree that added that extra light and comfort in your home. You will also have to deal with an empty space or a corner. Empty corners are sometimes hard to work with when decorating so why not replace your Christmas Tree with a big nice plant in a big pot. A big pot will make the plant look more substantial and give it some hight. Indoor plants are an important part of decor in your home, here are some suggestions below.

Buddhas Belly Bamboo

Chinese Fan Palm

Kentia Palm

Dragon Tree

Bird of Paradise

Creative framing

If you have a painting on a canvas that needs a frame, make your own! The one you see in the photo I painted about a year ago. First I hung it up without a frame, but I didn't like how it looked. I went to home depot, got 2 by 4's and had them cut to the exact measurements of the canvas, then sanded them a little and stained the wood in a ebony stain.Finally I connected all the wood pieces with flat brackets to each other and the frame. It enlarged the painting and gave it some substance to rest in.

Out with the Old and in with the New!

Starting a new year makes me feel like cleaning out my closets, re-inventing myself and re-decorating my place. There are a few things you can do that doesn't require that much money or work.

• Clean out your closet
  

If you haven't worn something the last 2 years get rid of it! There are places that will buy your old clothes like; Crossroads Trading Company
http://www.crossroadstrading.com/cm/Home.html They are very picky though, so don't get disappointed. There is also Buffalo Exchange http://www.buffaloexchange.com
If for some reason you don't get it sold, you can always take it to Goodwill http://www.goodwill.org or Out of the Closet
http://www.outofthecloset.org and donate it. They will give you a receipt that you can use to deduct when doing your taxes.

• Reinventing yourself

Get inspired, join a group that relates to your profession, like for example: http://designersnetworkinggroup.blogspot.com/ is a design networking group that gets together once a month it's founded by Interior Designer and Furniture Store Owner; Vanessa De Vargas http://turquoise-la.com/, or join Agape which in Greek mens unconditional love, an international spiritual center http://www.agapelive.com/ , get some guidance and spiritual lead way. If you just want to reinvent your self a tiny bit, read a book that will inspire you. I just got this book for Christmas called The Female Brain by Louann Brizendine, it suppose to be a road map for women looking for scientific explanations for their behavior that can effect everything from who we fall in love with to making career decisions. Thank you Tanja :)

• Redecorating
  

It doesn't have to be big projects. It could be anything from moving your furniture around and reposition them in a different way, to repainting one or two of your pieces in maybe a lighter color that will brighten up your place for spring. Maybe chose one room and repaint the walls or just one of them. Another thing could be to redecorate your closets or kitchen cabinets. Make it organized. Get see through plastic containers that are stackable. IKEA have some great options http://www.ikea.com/us/en/ and so does the container store http://www.containerstore.com/ How about changing out your textiles like your curtains, pillows, bedding or get a new rug. Have fun with it, take before & after pictures, send it to me at pkswede@gmail.com and I will post the make-over on my blog. You can also send me pictures of your problem areas to get advise on how to make it better and more functional.