Be Our Guest!

With the cooling weather and holidays approaching, your college student will be paying a visit, as well as your in-laws. But where will they sleep? The couch may be fit for someone who's lived in a dorm for five months, but not for the folks who need a comfortable mattress to sleep on. This is where a guest room comes in handy. Below are tips to welcome your guest into your home without having to rearrange your whole household:

1. Theme- Every good guest room needs a theme. This is where you get to be creative and have the room you've always wanted but wasn't brave enough to do. Maybe you'd like an Asian oasis, or a Parisian escape. With the right furniture and accents, you can create any environment you want to welcome your guests. The following ways will help you create your perfect theme.
2. Paint- If your walls are still the same bare white when you moved in, it's time to add color and give them a spruce. Color can do wonders to a room. Cool tones (such as blue, purple, and green) create a more calming atmosphere, while warm tones (red, orange, and yellow) invite more energy. Paint is the most inexpensive way to transform a room, so if you do nothing else, atleast give those walls some color.
3. Bedding- Don't let your guests freeze to death when they visit you. It's always good to provide clean sheets, a nice comforter, and a duvet (in the colder months). They can always take the blankets off if it's too much, but they will feel more cozy if they have something nice to cuddle under. Also provide comfortable pillows, and decorative pillows are a great way to accent your room.
4. Window Treatment- Keep the bright sunshine out of your guest's face in the morning with the right curtains. If your window is only covered with blinds, drapery can be a great way to accent your walls with sophistication.
5. Lighting- Get rid of that old lamp you've been storing around and freshen up your room with up-to-date lighting. There's plenty of new lighting solutions out there if you shop around. Make sure that the room can be bright enough at night and in the morning, so your guest doesn't end up with mismatched socks. It's also nice to provide a booklight for bedtime reading and candles for atmosphere.
6. Accents- The best way to complete your design is in the little things. Artwork is the best way to spice up your space and add color, and who wants to look at an empty wall anyway? As stated before, decorative pillows on the bed are a great way to cozy up your room. Other items you can add are plants, framed photos, clocks, statues, and other accessories that play up your theme. For instance, seashells are great for a beach-themed room.
7. Other things to remember- Provide a basket full of necessities, such as an extra toothbrush, toothpaste, deodorant, shampoo and conditioner. It's also nice to provide a tissue box, room spray, and fresh towels. Lastly, don't let your guest bedroom be the storage place for all your junk. If there's nowhere else to store it, atleast place it in a fashionable trunk at the foot of the bed, or find an ottoman that acts as a container for extra blankets and such. If you have extra clothes in the closet, keep them in a zippered bag, and keep empty hangers for your guests to hang their own clothes.

With these tips in mind, your guests are sure to feel welcome and comfortable in your home. If you need help arranging your ideas, a designer is only a phone call away!

Skeletons in Your Hall Closet?

With winter approaching, it's time to pull your coats out of the bags and keep them accessible in the hall closet. If your yearlong collection of junk is tumbling on top of you when you open the door, it's high time to revamp your storage space.

Before you even think about organizing your closet, you need to purge through that heap of mess you've been hording. How many mismatched gloves do you need, and do you really think that old dress is going to come back in style? Toss it, honey, because it's only taking up precious space. And if you can't find an umbrella on a rainy day, it's probably because it's hidden under the crap you threw in when the in-laws came over.

Now that you've emptied out half your closet, let's talk about what goes back in. If you're like some people, your hall closet has become a storage system for a myriad of items, even your cleaning supplies. Brooms and vacuums should be kept in the utility area, so your closet can be dedicated to seasonal items, unless you want to make it a utility closet (read further).

The best way to keep things from getting disorganized in your tiny space is to find the right storage units. Plastic containers not only protect your items from a flood, but they keep them contained

in their own space. Labeling the outside of the containers also helps when you're trying to find your winter boots from last year. And also, keep like items together: shoes with shoes, blankets with blankets, and all clothing items hanging neatly on the rod, all facing the same direction.

Some other ideas for hall closets are creating a hobby center. If you're a tennis player or discus thrower, you might want to create racks and hanging rods for your toys. Or add more shelves and create a utility closet for your cleaning supplies.

Maybe your tiny little hall closet doesn't do justice for you. If you're thinking about expanding your space, contact your local interior designer and see if you can knock down some walls and change the space. Another thing to think about is lighting. If you're having a hard time seeing everything in that dark space, maybe it's time to get some extra lights installed, or attach tough light to the door frame. There's no reason to have to get a flashlight every time you need something from your closet.