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DecoDreams
Your Guide to Creating Beautiful Spaces, FAST!
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September 02, 2003
Issue #010
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THE MISSION...DecoDreams is the home-decorating-made-
easy.com e-zine that delivers interior decorating tips, ideas, and solutions to enhance all rooms of your home. Staying on top of what's hot in decorating has never been so easy or fun!
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DON'T FORGET Your Friends!...If you like DecoDreams, please do a friend and me a huge favor and "pass it along"...
...or ask them to subscribe by visiting
Home Decorating Made Easy.com
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***********************ACKNOWLEDGEMENT********************
Diversity of creative ideas has always been the hallmark of home decorating. That's why I've asked designer, artist, educator and writer, Marney Makridakis, to share her own unique brand of decorating advice in our "Ask the Decorator" column. I think you'll enjoy her wit and original insights.
Submit your questions to Marney by clicking here.
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> TABLE OF CONTENTS
o Featured Article
1) Remember...It's Tools, Not Rules!
o Turning Ideas Into Action!
1) Ask the Decorator
- Marney Makridakis, The DecoDiva, Answers Your Question About Jumpstarting Your Decorating Project
o Today's Quote
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Hi,
I hope you had a wonderful Labor (Labour) Day! I certainly did, although it rained a bit here in usually sunny South Florida. But you can't let a little rain stop your fun, right? :-)
In any event, I hope you enjoy the feature article that should inspire you to decorate based on your personality and preferences rather than following someone else's rules. I hope you enjoy it.
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ FEATURED ARTICLE ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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Remember...It's Tools, Not Rules!
We've all heard the expression "less is more". Since I embrace a "tools, not rules" approach to decorating, I don't believe that "less is more" is the only way to go when decorating a room.
I do, however, believe that being selective with what you include in a room will go a long way in creating a look that is pleasing, effective, and functional.
A room is most effective when the removal of any single object in the room will make an impact that will somehow diminish the room. In the living room shown below, every object – from the furniture to the knick-knacks to the artwork – plays an important role in the room's balanced look.
You can tell that if any object were removed, something would be missing.
For example, if any of the decorative objects were removed from the console table, the area would look too sparse. After all, effective decorating depends on personal decorative objects that give personality to our homes and make them look interesting, unique, and comfortable.
But, on the other hand, you can visualize that if the console table had more objects placed on it, or if there were multiple knick-knacks on the piano, that the area could look cluttered.
Especially in today's busy world, the more we can do to eliminate a cluttered look in our homes, the more peaceful we will feel.
People often submit questions to the home-decorating- made-easy.com Web site about how they can make quick and easy changes to a room that will make a big difference, but not take a lot of time or money.
One of the best ways to change the way a room looks and feels is to engage in a process of paring down the objects in the room to make sure that each one contributes to the look you want to create.
I’m sure you can see how "downsizing" can open up opportunities for your space to feel more open, alive, and appropriate for your lifestyle. But you may be wondering where to start...
Plan an afternoon where you can focus on downsizing a particular room, and keep this article handy. What follows below is an easy-to-follow flowchart that you can use to evaluate each object in the room.
Keep in mind that every object in the room should be evaluated. This includes furniture, decorative accents and knick-knacks, light fixtures, as well as the extraneous "stuff" that seems to keep finding its way into a particular space.
- Is this item something that is used often in the
room?
If yes: go to #2
If no: go to #6
- Is it presented attractively?
If yes: go to #3
If no: go to #4
- Is its location in the room pleasing and
functional?
If yes: go to #11
If no: go to #9
- Is there something that you can do relatively
easily to improve its appearance?
If yes: go to #16
If no: go to #5
- Do you feel that removing the item will somehow
diminish the room’s functionality?
If yes: go to #15
If no: go to #17
- Does the item contribute to the overall décor and
aesthetic look of the room?
If yes: go to #7
If no: go to #8
- Do you feel certain that removing the item would
somehow diminish the room's décor?
If yes: go to #12
If no: go to #8
- Does the item have sentimental value?
If yes: go to # 9
If no: go to #17
- Is there a room that would be a better home for
this item?
If yes: go to #13
If no: go to #10
- Could you rearrange the room to find a better
spot for this item?
If yes: go to #14
If no: go to #17
- Is this room the best home for this item?
If yes: go to #12
If no: go to #13
- It looks like this object should be a "keeper",
for now. Don't hesitate to reevaluate later, though, when it might be time to make a change.
If there are items that fall very strongly into this category, make them your priority when it comes down to making final decisions.
- This item is one to hold on to, but to perhaps
use in another room. Put it aside and reevaluate when you have gone through the rest of the objects in the room. Most likely, it will become clear that the best place for this object is in another room. Luckily, you now have an easy system to help you downsize the new room, as well!
- This item seems to have a good home in this room,
but perhaps its location within the room can be changed to make the room flow more effectively or achieve a better balance. Put it aside for now.
After you have evaluated the entire room, you can look at what objects you’re left with to determine if you can rearrange to make this item work. As you rearrange, keep in mind the importance of the relationship between objects.
For example, if you move several knick-knacks to a particular bookshelf, you may find that objects originally on the shelf are no longer appropriate there, in relationship to the new objects.
Keep experimenting and be patient for the right solutions to reveal themselves. Try to see this rearranging as a fun puzzle, rather than a daunting task.
- Since this item can't be improved upon, but you
do feel that you need it in the room, the best choice is to replace it. Just make sure that the room must have this object or its equivalent in order to be effective, attractive, and functional.
You may want to look at some of the questions at the end of #17 to help make your decision. Often, our emotional attachments to objects make it difficult to objectively discern an object's use in a room.
- This item needs to be repaired, updated, or
improved in some way in order to keep it in the room. Plan to make its improvement a priority so that its presence does not become a drain on your energy.
- It may be time to remove this item from this
room, or, perhaps, from your home. If you have a sentimental attachment to the object, you may want to store it away for the time being, until you decide for sure whether you want to keep it or not.
If you have trouble letting go of objects you’ve had for a while, you might use these questions as a way to “tune in” to your feeling as you make your decisions:
"Is this who I am or who I want to be?"
"What memories are there attached to this? Do I want those memories in my life now?"
"Is there a reason to keep this?"
"What might fill the space (physical and metaphorical) that I’m opening by letting of this item?"
"What are the drains that that this item potentially has one more or my family?"
"What does this item symbolize to me?"
"What has my experience been with letting go of things in the past?"
One more note about downsizing: keep asking yourself if there is someone else who could get more pleasure, enjoyment, or use out of an object than you or your family.
You may find that passing items on to a thrift store, to charity, or even to a friend or neighbor gives you tremendous satisfaction, while opening up your home to a fresh new look and feel.
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~TURNING IDEAS INTO ACTION!~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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Ask the Decorator
DecoDiva, Marney Makridakis, Answers Your Question About Jumpstarting Your Decorating Project
QUESTION: I’m hoping you can help me. I'm getting new carpet, painting the inside of house, and getting new drapes. Which do I do first?
ANSWER: You should be sure that you’ve made your choices for all three projects before starting on any of them. Each decision will influence the other choices. Decide which one is most important to you.
A good technique is to start by deciding the paint color in each room. From there, you can figure out carpet and window treatment fabric that matches.
But this isn’t always the order in which to approach these decisions. Perhaps you have your heart set on a particular fabric pattern that you want to use for the window treatments.
In our eBook, Awaken Your Interior Designer, we call this the "Absolute YES pattern", around which you design the rest of the room. In this case, you’d start with the fabric and then select the paint and carpet colors to coordinate.
Or perhaps you’ve gotten your carpet at a great discount, and so you’re locked in to a particular color for the carpet. In this case, you’d use the carpet color to help you determine a color scheme that will make effective use of the carpet color.
The extent to which the carpet influences your color scheme depends on the carpet, itself. A neutral colored carpet will match most color schemes, so your options will remain very open.
On the other hand, a bolder color will have more of an affect on the choice of your scheme.
As far as doing the actual work in the house, you should repaint the interior first. That way, any spills from paint won’t ruin the new carpet.
After the painting is complete, then have the carpeting installed. Have the new drapes installed last, to frame the completed room.
It sounds like you have some exciting changes ahead that will no doubt cause some wonderful shifts in your life. Have fun!
----------Recommended Resource----------
Get Organized Now!
Before you begin any decorating project,
do yourself a HUGE favor and get clutter
under control. Doing this alone will make
a room appear larger, and you'll feel more
relaxed. The crown jewel is that you'll get
more time back into your day. Click here to
learn more...
http://www.homedecoratingmadeeasy.com/get_org_now.html
------Recommended Resource------
"How to Make Roman Shades"
I reviewed this ebook recently and it's
the best you'll find on how to
easily create roman shades on
your own. Step-by-step diagrams
and easy, yet detailed, instructions
will have you making beautiful roman
shades in no time at all. Even sewing
beginners will find the process easy
to follow. Just think of the money
you'll save!
http://www.homedecoratingmadeeasy.com/sew_roman_shades.html
------Recommended Resource------
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***************** TODAY'S QUOTE ***************************
"When your work speaks for itself, don't interrupt."
-Henry J. Kaiser
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Wishing you all the best,
Michael J. Holland - President
Home Decorating Made Easy
Copyright © 2003
P.S. Don't forget your fr*ee chapters of Awaken Your Interior Designer. You'll get 72 pages, filled with lots of ideas and photos to put you on the right decorating path.Click here to download your copy right away
P.P.S. If you're thinking of starting a part-time or full-time business for crafts or home decorating, be sure to download our complimentary ebook called From Passion to Cash: How to Make Money With Your Passion of Crafts and Decorating. You'll find lots
of helpful ideas to get you going in the right direction. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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