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Archive for September, 2010

For the past few decades, area rugs have been designed to protect the flooring and add a decorative touch to the home. But for a growing number of designers, they serve a new purpose: to accent existing décor, dramatically changing the look of a room in a single step. In an economy where jazzing up their home is the last thing on most people’s minds, accent rugs offer a great opportunity to get creative without going over budget. If your home looks drab but you can’t afford a makeover, shopping for rugs is definitely your best bet.

But what really sets an accent rug apart? For one thing, they’re not meant to stand out like conventional rugs—their purpose is to highlight what’s already there and draw attention to bigger elements. You can use them to draw the eye to your focal point, such as a window or a piece of furniture, or simply bring out your current color scheme. It takes a good eye to see which rugs will work at a glance, but with the range of designs available, you’re sure to find one that fits. Here’s a quick guide to give you a few ideas.

Complementary colors

One of the best ways to use accent rugs is to complement your room colors. Sometimes a room has all the right color combinations, but lacks that visual kick to make it really stand out. By throwing in a rug in a complementary color, you can make your walls, floor and other surfaces look much brighter without actually changing anything. As an example, consider a room with solid white or beige walls. The colors might look plain on their own, but with a few red area rugs on the floor, they’ll look a lot more attractive.

They don’t necessarily have to be strong or bright colors. For some rooms, neutral-colored rugs do a better job of accenting the color scheme. This is especially true when the walls are already an unusual color, such as purple or green. An equally bright accent will only compete for attention rather than direct it to the walls. But with a plain white or black rug, you can frame the colors more strongly and make them more noticeable.

Solids and patterns

Patterns are also a great way to make accent rugs complement your décor. The key here is to go for contrast: if you have a plain floor or walls, use a patterned rug as your accent; if you have patterned wallpaper or floor tile, a solid-colored piece may be more appropriate. Putting two patterns side by side is a big no-no—the two will only confuse the eye and make the room look too busy.

If you’re going for a modern look, something like the

Sizing and proportion

Since they’re not meant to be the focal point, accent rugs often have to be in smaller sizes. Or if they’re regular-sized, they usually come in less prominent designs meant to work with the existing room décor. Whatever the style is, accent rugs have be proportional in size to the room. An oversized rug may overpower the rest of the elements, while a small one will hardly get noticed. The general rule is to keep at least 18 inches free on all sides of the rug so that it doesn’t work as a wall-to-wall carpet.

Bamboo rugs are great for keeping accent pieces in proportion. Since they’re lighter and easier to work with, they come in a wider range of sizes—often from as small as 2 by 2 feet to pieces large enough to cover the room. Most bamboo rugs also come with a cotton or nylon border, which provides a smoother transition and helps it blend better with the rest of the room.

Unique shapes

Rectangular rugs may be traditional, but accent rugs aren’t made to follow conventions. In fact, many accent rugs are purposely made to break this rule, offering less-common shapes such as circles, ovals, octagons, hearts and flowers. The shape itself draws attention to the space, so it’s a nice, subtle way to accent surrounding elements.

If your room has an unusual corner or alcove, try making it your focal point by placing a shaped rug against it. Sharp edges can make a room look cold and uninviting, but pieces like can soften the look and add a soft contrast to the space. Round rugs can also be used to accent furniture sets, highlight a spacious floor, or frame a sculpture or wall art.

The bathroom is one of the most essential parts of our home. This is here we spend most of our waking hours to do our personal hygiene and sanitary activities. We wake up in the morning and allow ourselves to prepare for the whole day’s activities inside the bathroom. As the sun sets, all the stress and pressures are washed away while hearing your favorite soothing music inside your bathroom. We must admit that the bathroom is where we start and end our everyday activities and will always be a part of our lives.

Because of this, it is merely important to make your very own bathroom a place of haven and relaxation. There are various ways how to create a relaxing bathroom and it only depends on the proper lighting, setting and fixtures. As we always say, color is the key to your home’s personal style. Choosing neutral colors will make your bathroom easy on the eyes and very comfortable. Earth and natural tones like brown, green, light blue will spice up your bathroom’s natural design.

Bathroom flooring is also important. You should keep it in colors that are brighter than the walls. You should also see to it that it is able to endure excessive moisture since the bathroom floor is always damp with water and moisture. Always see to it that you provide colorful, absorbent rugs to your bathroom flooring. This will not only enhance your bathroom flooring but also provide enough protection from accidental slips and bumps.

A relaxing bathroom will never be complete with bathroom accessories to assist you with your bathing and sanitation needs. Shower curtains, towel racks, soap dishes and basic bathroom accessories will contribute to your bathroom’s style and personality. Scented candles and incense could also create a very soothing and relaxing ambiance in your bathroom. Now you can enjoy an hour or two just by sitting down on your bath tub adoring the lights and comfort of your very own, relaxing bathroom.

Redecorating your own kitchen can be very expensive and daunting. There are certainly a lot of things that you need to consider first and there are also a lot of furniture items that you need to change or improve once you started decorating your kitchen interior. However, spending a lot of money on your kitchen is not anymore a practical idea. There are now ways where you can redecorate your kitchen without spending too much money.

The first thing you have to do is to start changing the colors of your kitchen. Choosing the right color scheme would make your task easier since everything would just have to follow after.

Oft for cheerful and bright colors for your kitchen. You can have beige, magnolia, cream or yellow as choices. You can have these colors on your walls and highlight these colors with some great accessories like area rugs or some great kitchen display items.