Manolo for the HomeDecorating | Manolo for the Home - Part 2



Archive for the 'Decorating' Category


Inspiration: Simply Beautiful Bedrooms, Now Easier

Tuesday, July 12th, 2011
By Christa Terry

Unless you are rocking the loft life, the bedroom is the one area of your home a guest may never see. So of course it’s going to come in last on the list of areas to pretty up when you’re decorating or redecorating. But come on now, how much time do YOU spend in your bedroom? That alone should prompt you into making your bedroom decor a priority, even if that means keeping things simple for the time being. Making your bedroom a refuge doesn’t have to cost a lot or take up hours and hours of time if you focus on creating a calm atmosphereusing stuff you already have. Analyze your existing possessions. Pick a general color scheme. Borrow / repurpose from other rooms instead of buying wherever possible. And end up with something like this:

Low tables, a lamp, some books, and a bench. The end.

Cool rug, tiny table, and some framed mirrors - nothing fussy here

A jug of flowers, the bright table, and a casual photo collage make the space.

Sometimes light is all you need.

And we're back to those tiny touches, framed pictures, etc. that are so easy to do.

Yellow, white, and red - and I might even lose the energetic print.

Need a more specific how-to? I’ll share my recipe. Grab that little side table or unused chair and you have a bedside table. Paint it if necessary – a sample size can is often just enough for a furniture redo. Turn old sheets into an awesome duvet cover. Think creatively: What can an old filing cabinet be? What can you put into those picture frames. What lamp do you have that would look amazing in another color with a redone shade? Don’t overstuff your bedroom – keep the art elsewhere, out for the guests, and don’t overwhelm yourself or the space. End result: You’ll have a calm, comfortable, swoon-worthy bedroom that cost you nothing but some time.


Inspiration: Billowing Curtains, Just In Time for Summer

Tuesday, July 5th, 2011
By Christa Terry

AC can’t be beat, especially when there are triple digit temps on the weather map, but in milder weather there’s something to be said for an open window shielded by a gently billowing curtain that’s a sure sign of a cool breeze. And unlike a bulky window AC or an invisible central air system, billowy curtains are beautiful to look at and are, in many cases, an improvement over plain bare windows. Here’s a little inspiration to get you going if you’ve been thinking about changing out your wintertime window dressings for some sheer curtains for summer.

by Jimi Jones, on Flickr

from House to Home

via Cottage Dreamers

via source4interiors.com

via Coastal Living

by A bunch of beans, on Flickr


Inspiration: Lace and Doilies

Thursday, June 30th, 2011
By Christa Terry

Let me tell you, ladies and gents, it does not get more girly than lace and doilies. What can one do with doilies and lace as decor? Anything you damn well please, that’s what I say. I’m no fan of the doily on the armrest aesthetic, but there are fantastic uses for these old fashioned embellishments, and lace patterns are none too shabby, too. Here are some sweet images I pulled during my online adventures that may inspire you to take that old lace or your gram’s doilies out of storage once and for all.

doilies as art at oh dee doh

lace chairs *drooool*

adorable doily pillow by Sparkle Power

diy doily vase via Country Living

lace stenciled floor via loftlife

doilies as decor via Apartment Therapy

a touch of lace on a pillowcase

Lace… doilies… too old fashioned? Or cool for that very reason?


I Have Only One Thing to Say:

Wednesday, June 29th, 2011
By Christa Terry

There’s nothing stopping you!

via http://deepakawesome.tumblr.com/


Defying Gravity, Saving H2O

Friday, June 24th, 2011
By Christa Terry

Boskke Sky Planters, which recently won a 2011 Red Dot award in the product design category, may change how you take care of houseplants. Especially if, like me, you have any kind of pets in your home with a serious lust for greens (or kids with a thing for dirt). Currently, we can only keep plants in the bedroom, which is a no cats allowed zone, so I have some Sky Planters on order. I know for a fact that as crafty as my animals are, they cannot jump as high as hanging plants. Problem, research, solution, and here we are:

Chance of over-watering = slight.

Counter space, available.

Rethink how you decorate with plants.

Beautiful with an orchid, but perhaps even better with basil!

Designed by New Zealand designer Patrick Morris.


Two Touches of the Turq

Thursday, June 23rd, 2011
By Christa Terry

Turquoise is on its way out – or possible already gone among the early adopters concerned with color – but still pops up as a notable, usable hue. I like the turq like I like my pink, in small doses (again, this doesn’t hold true in nurseries or children’s rooms but that hardly counts), and here are two great examples of how one strong turquoise accent can play a starring role in an otherwise less intense space. I heart the impact of colored furniture!

As seen on Apartment Therapy

As seen on Educate Your Sofa


Inspiration: Pianos!

Wednesday, June 15th, 2011
By Christa Terry

A piano is a useful item all on its own, but the size of the instrument almost necessitates it becoming another piece of furniture. At least, I’ve never seen a piano in someone’s home that wasn’t sporting something on top – from stacks of books to framed pictures to lamps and vases and so on. And it’s difficult to decorate around a piano, especially when it’s a large piano in a small space. Often, a piano becomes the centerpiece of a room, but if you do the right things, it can become the STAR of a room. Here are some piano decorating ideas that are making me want to go out and buy one right this second:

Make your piano a focal point of the room by keeping it bare and decorating around it

A boring piano becomes exciting with a simple coat of paint

(more…)


How Small/Simple Can You Go?

Wednesday, June 8th, 2011
By Christa Terry

Every now and then I run across something like this, the story of a man living simply in a clever dwelling of only 258 square feet. How’s it possible? A transformer-like space with many of the necessities of daily living hidden away in the walls, only coming out as needed. Like the kitchen. And the bed. It’s small, but would you call it simple? That small space has been optimized for a serviceable amount of *stuff*. Oh, and style, too.

Simple living or simply living?

But what about super SIMPLE living? A bedroom, sans accessories, with a wee kitchen. The basics, without a lot of style. A home base without most of the comforts of home… I could swing living in Christian Schallert’s pad, provided I was single. But could I embrace the extremes of simple living, a la this book? I don’t really know – part of what keeps me sane is surrounding myself with beauty and fun. Not expensive beauty and fun, or new fun and old beauty (which tends to be the more expensive sort). But beauty and fun, nonetheless. How about you? Could you go small AND simple?









Disclaimer: Manolo the Shoeblogger is not Manolo Blahnik
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    (a.k.a. Never teh Bride)

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