The Decorating Dilemma
Can you trust yourself to design your own decor? Should you use an interior designer? Can one really help you? Interior designers are trained professionals that can provide cost-effective methods to enhance your interior space. Designers draft floor plans, and can help you place furniture to create comfortable spatial relationships. They also can help you create colour schemes that can change the feeling of your home. New fabrics can be matched to one of your existing favourites to help spice up your space. The ability to work within a budget is an important benefit that interior designers can provide. They can help you budget a project as large as a 5,000-square-foot house, or as small as the ceramic tile for your powder room floor. [caption id="attachment_5574" align="alignright" width="105"] By Alice Wright - Spring 1998[/caption]Knowing prices will be important to you, and a designer can give you a quote for your new kitchen cabinetry or the price for recovering a couch. Many designers will forward their supplier discounts to you for furniture, fabric, lighting, cabinetry, etc. For a designer, finding the right bargain for a client is a thrill! Designers are trained to draft lighting, electrical and detailed drawings. By simply changing the type of lighting, interior space can become alive and vibrant or calming and subdued. Custom designing any type of furniture is also a specialty that many designers can provide. You can create anything from an oddly shaped coffee table to a standard-size bed frame. Wherever your creativity takes you, your designer can follow and make your thoughts become reality. A professional designer's rates can range from $25 to $200 per hour. In the Toronto area, you should probably budget in the range of $75 per hour for an interior designer's time. You may only need a couple of hours. Some also work on a flat-fee basis. How to find a designer Talk to your friends and family. Find out who they used and why. Did they find their designer easy to talk to and easy to work with? Most importantly, did their designer really listen to them and create an interior space specifically designed to satisfy their needs? Another route is to call a builder or general contractor. Many of these trades-people know interior designers well. Learning who they like and dislike can be useful and insightful. Builders and contractors that have been in business for a long time usually have worked with several designers and...
Playing With Tile
A Little bit of tile can go a long way to give various rooms in your home a special, personalized touch of innovative design It's Simple to turn the interior of your home into a celebration of colour that is rich and vibrant by using decorative floor and wall tile. Colours that you can mix and match with each other; as well as accent decorated tiles, give you unlimited creative opportunities. Are you wondering how to incorporate tile into your home? [caption id="attachment_5568" align="alignright" width="105"] By Alice Wright and Nancy Machel - Spring 1998[/caption] Kitchens Tile can be applied to floors, backsplashes and countertops. Use tile to create a renaissance, country, modern or old world effect. Jazz up your kitchen backsplash by using ready made mosaic tiles. For the ambitious "do-it-yourselfer", wrap the tiles up in newspaper and hammer them into small pieces. By choosing multiple colours and including broken dishes, tea cups and mirror glass, you can design your own personalized mosaic pattern. Bathrooms Ready for a change in your bathroom? Vanities, tub surrounds, walls and floors can all be tiled. By mixing sizes, colours and textures you can create a custom, one of-a-kind look. Tip: Don't shy away from accent tiles that may seem too expensive. You only need a few to make your space exciting and new. Fireplaces Does the existing tile or brick around your fireplace give your home a dated look? Tile of natural materials such as slate and granite can add beauty and elegance to your interior space. Or you can go bold with a colourful accent tile that includes your favourite colour. Tiles used in your home's interior can provide a space with aesthetic enrichment and embellishment. Depending on the look you are trying to achieve, tile can provide visual delight for the eye, textural interest for the hand and stimulation for the mind. Floor, wall, back-splash and countertop tiles come in a wide range of designs. Each homeowner's selection is often a reflection of the personality of those who inhabit the interior space. If you're wary, you can consult a tile specialist for further advice before starting any of these projects. ...
Playing With Paint
When you want to update the look of your home on a tight budget, paint can be your best solution. Dated or tired cupboards and vanities can be transformed easily with paint, saving the expense of replacement. Splashy colours and unique motifs can add life to a powder room and spice to a kitchen. A little elbow grease and a few coats of paint will do wonders. Melamine paint works best and provides a hard, durable finish. Preparation: Fill any cracks or holes with filler. When dry, sand all the surfaces lightly (any fine sandpaper will do) and wipe the surface to make sure it is dust-free. You are now ready to paint. Made with a built-in primer, melamine paint can be applied directly with a foam roller for a professional finish. Two to three coats are recommended, with at least 12 hours drying time between each application. [caption id="attachment_5450" align="alignright" width="132"] By Alice Wright and Nancy Machel - Fall 1997[/caption] As melamine paint requires about two weeks to completely cure, be sure to avoid nicks and scratches until it hardens completely. TIPS: Changing the hardware can also enhance the look of a room. Old spoons or forks can be used as handles and drawer pulls simply by drilling a small hole in either end of the utensils. Bend them slightly in the centre to allow hands to fit in easily and then screw them on. PAINT THE FLOOR TOO: Is your kitchen, bathroom, or laundry room covered in old vinyl or linoleum flooring? Yuk! Here is an easy, inexpensive method to brighten up the look of your room, and give it a tiled look, simply with the use of paint. First clean the floor with soap and water. Make sure to clean up all the dust and dirt so the paint will not buckle. Using a latex paint, begin by applying two coats of a light colour on the floor and letting it completely dry for two or three hours. Next, place l-inch wide masking tape do in vertical lines, then place the tape in horizontal lines on the floor, to create approximately 12-inch by 12-inch squares. The squares need not be exact. Then take a darker colour of your choice and paint over the floor tape. Leave the paint for two or three hours until it is completely dry, then lift up the tape to reveal a beautiful painted tile floor. Cover your new floor with two coats...