Spring Tune Up For Your Home

April 16, 2019 by Suzanne Lasky

Below is a guest posting to which S Interior Design added comments and photos to to augment the message (shown in red color font). We ourselves just enacted many of the 6 suggestions on our home’s back patio. It is now a cleaned up,uncluttered, cohesive design that we are proud of and enjoy spending time in with friends and family.

After a long day, there’s nothing better than coming home and relaxing. But in order to truly enjoy your home, you need to create an environment where you can feel comfortable.

Unfortunately, home decor and design aren’t always at the top of everyone’s priority list. Luckily, turning your home into your own personal oasis can be easy, and even a little fun. Keep reading for 6 ways to make your home environment a priority this month.

1. Get Rid of Items You Don’t Use

If you’re anything like most people, you’ve probably accumulated a bunch of stuff over the years that you no longer have a use for. Instead of trying to find new ways to organize these things, it’s time to consider getting rid of things you don’t need.

Discarding unnecessary things will make your home cleaner and more organized and can even free up some of your storage space. If throwing things away seems too drastic, you may want to consider donating any items you think could be useful to others.

Have a garage sale or donate your unwanted items to Goodwill or your favorite charity sponsored Thrift Store.

2. Make the Most of your Home’s Natural Light

Take down heavy weight window treatments and replace them with sheer fabrics that filter the light.

Add sky lights or Solar Tubes to your ceiling.

Looking for a way to make your home feel bright and fresh? Natural light is the answer. Making it a point to open your curtains every morning is a quick and easy way to get natural light flowing through your home. Adding mirrors to your home can also help you get more natural light. In addition to making your home brighter, exposure to natural light can also have positive benefits on your health by improving sleep and boosting mental health.

3. Fix Broken Appliances

Are there any appliances in your home that need to be repaired or replaced? Having broken appliances in your home can impact the overall functionality of your space. Investing in a good home appliance plan can help you save money while also staying on top of routine maintenance.

Sometimes it makes sense to fix what you already have. If you decide to get new appliances make sure they are energy efficient.

4. Introduce New Colors

The color scheme can really affect the overall feel of a room so it’s important to choose all of your colors wisely. While an entirely new paint job may be a little too much to undertake, you can find other ways to introduce new colors around your home. For example, try bringing in colorful accessories and bold accent pieces.

New throws or throw pillows can change the look of a room entirely. A new area rug can make a big impact too. You can even change out a few pieces of your wall art.

SHERWIN WILLIAMS 2019 PAINT COLOR TRENDS

5. Organize Clutter

There’s no doubt that having a clean home will give you peace of mind, but clutter is hard to avoid. As you go through your day to day life, it can be easy for things to pile up and get unorganized. Coming up with a way to neatly store all of your belongings can save you lots of time and energy.

You can start by organizing your current storage areas such as drawers and cabinets. Once you’ve gotten some success under your belt, you can move on to larger spaces.

6. Rearrange Furniture

Have you been feeling a little tired of your home? If so, you’re not alone. But moving isn’t always the easiest or most logical thing to do. The good news is that rearranging some furniture around your home can give your space a completely different look and feel.

Try to re-imagine some of the rooms in your home with a different setup and move things around until you get the look you want.

7. Turn Your Home into Your Happy Place

Remember to keep these tips in mind, as you move your home to the top of your priority list this month. With a little bit of time and effort, you can create a home environment that is everything you’ve ever wanted.

3 Top Interior Design Tips to Sell Your Home Faster

June 5, 2018 by Suzanne Lasky

While this is not new ‘news’ it is a concise summary of the key steps a home seller should be considering when placing their home on the market to sell. Selling and buying a home is an emotional process. Sometimes it is challenging for you the seller who has lived in a home for many years to emotionally disconnect and view the home from an objective vantage point.

I will add two more important tips; one, make sure the exterior of the house is in tip top shape and there is great curb appeal and two, here in Arizona you want to provide a wonderful back patio so people can imagine themselves living the indoor/outdoor lifestyle they desire.

Hiring a professional interior designer or staging company may be money well spent for you to get the price you desire. See the guest post below for the top tips to get your home in shape prior to being put on the sales market. [Read more…]

Too Hot For Outside Fun This Weekend? Transform Your Kitchen

June 4, 2014 by Suzanne Lasky

Below is a guest post on relatively simple, low cost things you can do to transform the look and feel of your kitchen quickly.
Here in Phoenix the temps are so high that staying in an inside air conditioned space and doing fun house and design projects over a weekend sound like a great idea. I just sourced some whimsical hardware for a client that definitely will change the feeling in her kitchen–

A Kitchen Update in a Weekend

Tired of looking at your drab kitchen but don’t have the time or money to invest in a complete makeover? Don’t fret. With a little imagination and some elbow grease you can spruce up your culinary digs in a weekend. The best thing about these projects is that you can do them one at a time and not have to deal with the mess and hassle of a complete remodel.
So what are you waiting for? Dig out your paint brush and screw driver (and maybe a hammer) and put on your weekend warrior face. Here are a few projects that won’t break the bank and will leave you beaming with a feeling of accomplishment.

Install new lighting
A new light fixture can literally brighten up your kitchen. Pick a fixture that appeals to your kitchen décor but also provides adequate light to work under. Wish you had a number of lights overhead? Choose from a variety of track lighting options that replace your old fixture yet don’t require additional wiring or holes in your ceiling. They look great and instantly update an older kitchen.

Change cabinet hardware
Sometimes it’s the small details that make all the difference. Replacing outdated cabinet hardware with a modern design won’t go unnoticed. This is one of the easiest updates you can do yourself. If you don’t want to drill new holes in your cabinets and drawers, simply take one of your current hardware pulls with you to the store and match it up against the selection there.

Paint the walls
Brighten up your kitchen with fresh coat of paint on the walls and/or ceiling. If you’re feeling bold go for a bright color. A splash of color on the walls will transform the whole feel of the room. Remember, ceilings don’t have to be white (or one of the millions of off-white). And if that’s not enough, consider painting the cabinets as well (or instead). It’s remarkable what a fresh coat of paint can accomplish and with some sandpaper and elbow grease—and paint, naturally—you can turn dreary or boring into a high-class fashion statement.

Replace the floor

Depending on how much kitchen floor space you have, this project may be a little more involved, but it can easily be worth the addition effort. The floor can often go unnoticed and many kitchen floors are notorious for being drab and outdated. Rip out the old and put down something new and fresh. Consider hardwoods, stone, and eco-friendly bamboo. If you already have a hardwood floor, then it’s even easier! Give it a nice sanding and a new finish.

Update the faucet

It may be time to replace the workhorse of your kitchen, the faucet. An updated faucet will not only be more versatile than your old one but it will make a fashion statement as well. These days the selection is simply astonishing with everything from hands-free operation to faucets designed to accommodate the largest of pots.

About the author: Jonathon Ensor stays on top of the latest home design trends as a writer for Empire Today. He loves to get unique furniture and decorations from thrift stores and garage sales.