20 Ways to Create an Impressive Office Reception Area (Infographic)

Kim Lachance Shandrow
culled from:http://www.entrepreneur.com
It may be a cliché, but it’s true: You never get a second chance to make a good first impression. The old but wise adage rings particularly cutthroat in business.
Within milliseconds of entering your office, potential clients make up their minds about you and your company. In a glance, they instantly decide how trustworthy you are, if you’re broke or in the money and, oftentimes, if you’re good enough to do business with.
Related: The 9 Things People Decide Within Seconds of Meeting You
While you can’t control what people think, you can pad the first impression deck in your favor – and not just with a bowl of M&Ms and a comfy padded couch in your reception area. There are countless ways you can convey the success and professionalism of your business right in your entryway.
From offering a welcoming smile (this should be a given) to sprucing your space up with lush (real, not fake!) plants, to lighting up your logo to offering free Wi-Fi, here are 20 ways you can make a positive, lasting first impression with your office reception, all neatly tucked into an infographic by U.K. interior design firm SEC Interiors.

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How to Make the Best of Shrinking Office Space

by Suzanne Lucas

culled from:http://www.inc.com
High rents can cause small workspaces, driving some people crazy. Here's how to fix it.
Mad Men's Don Draper has a desk, chairs, and a couch in his office. Plus, enough room to practice his golf putting skills, hold a meeting, and engage in inappropriate office behavior. If you're a bigwig at your company, you may be lucky enough to have an office with a door, but the chances of a couch and place to practice your putting is pretty slim. If you're not on the senior team? You're lucky if you have your own three-walled cubicle. And, in many places, even the CEO is sitting at a shared table.
As office space premiums increase, employees' personal space decreases, and it's not all fun and collaborative. Oh sure, the one big open space in The Office allows Jim to torment Dwight more effectively, but not everyone is so creative. Instead, we get to hear things we shouldn't.
For instance, one day, while I dwelt in cubicle land, I was on the phone with our in-house attorney, discussing the upcoming termination of an employee. After finishing the call, I turned around and discovered that said employee was standing just outside my cube, talking with someone. She gave no indication that she'd heard my conversation (whew!) but what if she had?
Fortunately, while I had been begging for private office space for a long time to no avail, this incident finally got me and my job-share partner an office. After all, if we were in charge of terminations, we should probably have some privacy. But this meant someone else got kicked to the cube, and was that person happy? Of course not.
And while my work required privacy, what if your work doesn't strictly require privacy? Is it OK in that case to not even have a cubicle, but to sit right next to your co-workers? After all, you only need enough space for your laptop. Many people don't even have office telephones any more--every call goes directly to your cell phone.
Many people feel that this close type of seating arrangement can boost creativity and collaboration, but it can also boost TMI. For instance, in The New York Times, Bryan Langlands shared his story of how his whole office found out about his coming colonoscopy due to close quarters at the office. (We'll ignore the irony of addressing your lack of privacy by explaining, in detail, why you want privacy to The New York Times.)
Some people need room to breathe and room to think. Some people just need a little space and some need a little quiet. Open office plans, tiny cubes, and no doors that shut can exacerbate the lack of privacy at work. When your company doesn't have the funds to give everyone a Don Draper-styled office, here are some things you can do to help alleviate the close quarters problem.
Have an available private space. It can be small office with a desk (and if you do use office phones, a phone that can be programmed with anyone's number). It needs to be clear that this isn't a place for someone to set up shop permanently, but only a place for people to use from time to time. Some people may need to use it to make a personal phone call while others may need it to be able to work without interruption on a particular project.
Embrace telecommuting. Telecommuting doesn't solve all privacy complications (for instance, there is no school today and my daughter is reading over my shoulder as I'm typing this, helpfully pointing out any grammatical errors), but it certainly does solve most of them. Some businesses and some employees don't work well with the telecommuting model, but a lot do. If you're not going to have privacy at the office, make sure that everyone who can has the opportunity to work from home.
Acknowledge that sometimes people need a break. If your employees have no privacy at the office, don't freak out when one of them disappears for a while. She's probably taking a walk or went out for a long lunch because that's what she needs in order to maintain her level of work. Not everyone loves constant contact with everyone.
Invest in high-quality headphones. Many people bring their own, of course, but consider it a cost of doing business if you're not springing for gobs of office space. Some great, noise-canceling headphones can help ameliorate the constant noise present in open office spaces and cubicle farms.

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6 Ways Your Office Design Is Bumming Everyone Out

By Vivian Giang

culled from:http://www.fastcompany.com

If you're making people sit in poorly lit, scrunched-together spaces with no potential for chance encounters, it's time to rearrange.
Today, the average worker is working in a space with 1960s design and thinking, says Rex Miller, coauthor of the book Change Your Space, Change Your Culture, because most organizations can’t connect the dots between office design and innovation. In fact, according to a recent Gallup poll, 70% of the workforce is disengaged and a lot of it has to do with the shrinking office space we are working in.
Companies with a highly engaged workforce understand that the office space that you work in reflects the values of the company and helps shape company culture, which in turn is the catalyst for engagement, collaboration, and innovation.
Below are a few clues that the design of your office space may be leading everyone to feel disengaged.

Stagnant Light Color Temperatures

"We believe that a space is a working organism and it has to respond to the change in the day, the change in the environment," says Stanley Felderman, who runs design studio Felderman Keatinge & Associates with his wife, Nancy Keatinge. In short, as the day changes, so should the color temperature of our lighting.
In the morning, office lighting should be cooler, or retain a more bluish tint, and as the day progresses, lighting should gradually change to a warmer, or more yellowish tint.
According to Stanley, it’s basically in our DNA that we just work better this way. "Cooler light reflects the natural daylight, but when we go home, we like our homes to be warm," he says. "We tend to want to be in a place longer when it’s a warmer [light color] temperature."

Walls Block Out Natural Light

According to Felderman and Keatinge, drywall needs to come down for lighting benefits to have even distribution. With glass walls, everyone is able to benefit from the changing light colors.
"It becomes very unproductive and disengaging when there are high panels on the work stations and they don’t have access to [the changing] light," says Keatinge. "We find that this makes a huge difference in how people interact and engage with one another."
"The idea of separation and isolation no longer work in a space, even if the nature of your work is independent," says Felderman.

Fixed Tables In Brainstorming Areas

In areas allotted for brainstorming and collaborative purposes, give people options to change their environment.
What no longer works? "The old, grand conference tables in the center of the room that can’t be busted up, can’t be rolled away or folded up or nested," says Mark Konchar, chief of enterprise development at infrastructure group Balfour Beatty and coauthor of Change Your Space, Change Your Culture. "The room has to be adaptable. The group can start with 10 or 15 people and an hour later, they want to break into two smaller groups. It just makes is easier for teams to be productive."
These areas need to be adaptable throughout the day because the work that people are doing changes every hour of the day, he says.

Desks In Between Other Desks

What’s the worst seat on an airplane? The middle one, says Konchar, so keep that in mind the next time you’re thinking about office layout. Don’t make employees feel like they’re sitting in the middle seat of an airplane, crushed between other people.
Obviously, it’s almost impossible to never place someone’s desk in between other desks due to square footage constraints, but employers can help create a sense of space by providing bumpers and objects that allow people to break up their spaces.

Spending The Most Money On Public Spaces

A lot of companies put money in the front, public spaces, either the conference rooms or meeting rooms, but want to save money in the back of their office. Felderman and Keatinge have advice for these companies: Don’t do this or you’ll mess with company culture.
"We really feel that you have to share wealth, that you have to look at this as a community of equals," says Felderman. "Different functions, yes, but all is part of a chain link, and if you break part of that link, it doesn’t work anymore."

Separating Departments

We know stairs are important because they create chance encounters, but there’s another reason why open, interconnected stairs will become more common: closing the separation between departments.
According to Miller, it’s a bad idea for departments to feel secluded from one another. They can be separated on different stories or levels, but open stairs make the floors feel more connected with the rest of the office. This only ups the chances of serendipitous interactions—and collaboration—with people in different departments.

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Quick Small Apartment Decorating Ideas to Make Your Place Feel Spacious

culled from:http://youqueen.com

by Petra


Here’s how to make your apartment feel and look bigger than you ever thought possible.

Interior Color Combinations

When choosing a color scheme, white is a no brainer. It reflects more light than any other color and there is no denial that it is a perfect solution for small spaces.
But white does not always need to be just white, it can have a touch of any other color, which makes it a good base for tone to tone schemes. A tone to tone scheme is layering the same color with a different saturation of the same color throughout the room which creates a warm and comfy atmosphere. It seems there are many different colors, but there is no real contrast so it makes it soft and welcoming. And if you like bold colors, stick to clear, bright tones and choose a monochromatic scheme.
Monochromatic schemes create a continuous flow making it difficult to perceive the dimensions, so the room looks wider and larger than it really is. If you want to open the space up, paint the furniture and the walls the same – a piece of furniture in the background in the same color becomes „invisible.“ And match the floors with the walls as much as possible to keep the flow. The orientation of your apartment should also have the word when deciding colors though, if it is north oriented you may want to warm it up a bit, and the opposite goes for south, or south west orientation.

Create a Cozy Home

Mind the furniture scale, but keep in mind that your home needs to be comfortable as well. One large corner sofa will actually make the place look more spacious and cozier than chairs and a two-seater, which will actually fill up the room with furniture. Choose a good sectional that can adjust to your floor plan. Make a compromise on other things, not your comfort.

Room Divider Ideas

Due to the shortage of space one room must serve several functions. So we have sleeping, working, watching TV, entertaining, eating areas, all happening in the same area. If these areas are to be divided you can use shelves, panel or roman blinds, wooden panels, curtains, roller blinds, etc.
Panel, roman and roller blinds are good because they can be lifted up or moved sideways when not in use, and they take up minimum space. Match your panel and roman blinds with window curtains to achieve a perfectly coordinated look. Anyway, any room divider that helps you achieve more efficient use of the space is a good one.

Be Creative and Enlarge Your Space

Use verticals. There is so much unused space on the walls, don’t waste it. Be creative in finding hidden spaces and creating smart and unexpected solutions.
The place above the doors, at the top of the cabinets, at the top of the wardrobes, at the top of the fridge, it is all unused space that can be turned into valuable storage solution.
A floor to ceiling wardrobe is such a precious piece of furniture in a small apartment. If you don’t want to use the whole wall, install the shelves high under the ceiling, which will actually add height to the space, paint them in the same color as the walls. Remember, the more stuff you move off the floor and place elsewhere the space will seem more airy and the illusion of spaciousness will be achieved.
Clear your kitchen worktop, lift and move everything from it. Use shelves, cabinets, spice racks, kitchen organizers, etc., a neat and clean kitchen looks bigger immediately. Hang a lot of hacks in the entry hall, in the bedroom and in the bathroom and place the clothes on hangers instead of leaving them lying around.

Create Visual Illusions

Reflection is the oldest and most famous trick when it comes to small apartment decorating and its effect is undeniable. Mirrors and other reflective surfaces will reflect the light around the room and the space will seem deeper and larger.
A large floor to ceiling mirror is an excellent way to create an illusion of bigger space. Having it on the door of a floor to ceiling wardrobe is a smart solver as it doubles the view of the room. And the best spot to install a mirror is opposite the window, in that position it receives natural light and reflects it back into the room.
Choose metallic wallpaper that also reflects light. Make it the focal point of the room and feature it with frames and things you want to display. Reduce other things in the room to a minimum. The focal point will naturally draw attention and focus off the other less attractive parts of the room.
If you want to make wall to wall book shelves your focal point, spice it up with wallpaper or a fabric with a bold pattern in the back of it.

And if you want to make a focal point that will really stand out, get the photo wallpaper on the wall and create an illusion of depth in space with a unique and spectacular design.

Choose Multifunctional Furniture

Furniture can be a problem in small spaces. By choosing multifunctional furniture you will solve the problem of storage, space saving and organization. You will need anything that is foldable, stackable, anything that can be moved out of the way and hidden.
A pull out storage bed is a must have, a real space saver, it is like having another wardrobe. A coffee table with storage or shelving for books and magazines, an ottoman that is a table and a storage, fold over tables, seating benches with storage inside, a sofa bed, two consoles that turn into dining table, etc. Think well before you choose which pieces of furniture will serve you best as they are irreplaceable and inevitable company in a small space.
Nothing will suffocate your place more than cluttering, there is just no place for it in your small apartment. Not only does it minimize your space, but it also minimizes your productivity; each day, minutes and hours are wasted looking for keys, a piece of paper, piece of clothing, etc. When there is a place for everything, everything is in its place.
So, de-clutter until you achieve tidiness and organization. For the best results you should purge at least once a week. The things you don’t use on a daily basis should be put out of sight and if there is anything you don’t need, don’t like, and you are not planning to use- don’t storage it. You can always donate it or give it away to someone who will find it useful. It is important to keep the space neat and clean.

Play With Light

Lighting is very important fact in decorating and it should not be underestimated. Good lighting will make the place more open, clean and welcoming. Overspread the lighting throughout the room and install the right kind of lighting for different needs. Good lighting is essential in transforming your home and creating a desired atmosphere.

Sophisticated and Transparent

Transparent pieces of furniture are an excellent idea and a smart way to make a statement in your small home. Acrylic and glass chairs, consoles, desks and tables are very sophisticated pieces which make all the difference; they bring airy and refined atmosphere.

Choose right textiles

When it comes to textiles, rugs and curtains, light and airy is what you need. A light colored rug will visually enlarge the size of your room and by grouping the furniture around it, its function will definitely be featured and the need for order and harmony in a small space will be satisfied.
Curtains should be as sheer and lightweight as possible to let the light in. Use the whole vertical and hang them from the ceiling, rather than from the top of the window, which will visually add more height.
The effect will be even better if there is discrete vertical striped pattern on the curtain. They should be the same color as the walls or just a tone lighter to keep the flow. Great curtain solutions for small apartments are also panel blinds or roman blinds.
They are flat and straight, and take up minimal space. They can be moved sideways or lifted up and they are very easy to maintain. Roman blinds with horizontal trims work really nice in minimalistic interiors. Since we have already settled the harmony and given the feeling of spaciousness to the area we can go bold with cushions and accessorize.

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How To Choose A Landscaper

culled from:pickapro.ie

• What Do They Add?
  "Talk over your plans with the landscapers. They should be asking questions like 'what are you going to do here?'. They should be adding to your ideas." Darragh Connolly
  

• Insurance
  "Insurance. Be wary if they have none or if the answer is evasive. You're liable for someone working on your premises." Sean Mulvey
  

• Portfolio
  "Ask to see their portfolio. Do they try and do something a little bit different with each garden or do they do the same thing every time? Are they creative?" Darragh Connolly
  

• Experience and Qualifications
  "Landscaper's level experience or qualifications would be one of the most important things for me. And preferrably, they should have both. The type of experience is important too - domestic landscaping issues are very different to commercial landscaping." Sean Mulvey
  

• Subcontracting
  "Will any of the work be subcontracted? If so, who's going to be supervising the landscaping job? Are the subcontractors insured too" Sean Mulvey
  

What Should Client Bring To Process

What should the client bring to the process?
"What they want from the garden and their own ideas for the garden. Also, what materials they like or better still, what materials they don't like." Darragh Connolly

"Budget. Some people are wary of revealing their budget in case they get ripped off. But, if a clients knows what they want and their budget, we can definitely come up with something in budget and they'll end up getting a lot for their money. From a design point of view, it's harder to come up with the best design when I don't know the budget." Darragh Connolly

Quotations

What exactly should the quotation include?
"A proposal or quotation from a landscaping company should list all aspects of the landscaping job and all materials. If there is a possibility of any costs changing after further investigation, that should be specified. And remember that an estimate isn't the same as a quotation." Sean Mulvey

"We provide a full breakdown of costs - feature by feature. We also include a schedule of what work will be done each day, a design sketch, a copy of our insurance certificate, national craftsman of Ireland certificate and 2 pages of references." Darragh Connolly

Payment

When is the landscaper paid?
"I ask for one third up front as a deposit and to cover the cost of materials. Another third is paid when the work reaches an agreed stage. The remainder is paid on completion." Darragh Connolly

"Never pay the full amount up front. Always hold back a percentage of the fee until the job is finished. Stick to a price and don't pay for something you didn't agree to, unless it's an unforseen cost which couldn't be predicted." Leslie Walpole

When's The Best Time?

Is there a "best" time of year to hire a landscaper in Dublin?
"Summer is the easiest time for landscapers. The weather is more reliable, the days or longer and the ground condition is better. But it's also the busiest time of year. So, if you contact a landscaper in Summer you may be waiting two months or more to start your garden. In terms of planting, winter or spring is best time of year. With proper care and water, there's no reason why we can't plant anytime of year." Sean Mulvey

"Any time of year is fine, unless ground is flooded or there's been snow. Grass is dormant during from December - January so obviously that's not a good time to reseed the lawn". Leslie Walpole

How Long Will It Take?

How long will it take to landscape a garden?
"Typically, it takes 2-3 weeks to completely landscape a small garden." Darragh Connolly

What's Popular Now

What's popular with Dublin homeowners now?
"Grasses, bamboos and pebbles have been popular for a while now. It's a very swish contemporary look and it's easy to maintain if they're well chosen. Natural stone paving is popular now too." Sean Mulvey

"Maintenance free pebble areas, sandstone patios and decking are all popular" Leslie Walpole

Landscaping Likes and Dislikes?

What are your personal landscaping likes and dislikes?
"Favourite trees are Paperbark Maple (Acer Griseum) and Laburnum (Laburnum vossii) which has good colour and shape, though note that the seeds are poisonous. Favourite shrubs are Vibernum "Davidi", lavenders, bamboos and grasses and sarcococca - it looks well, is easy to look after and is relatively inexpensive." Sean Mulvey

"Lighting - a few coloured bulbs can really lift a garden. A patio area where you can avail of the sun. Ferns and rhoddendrums. Also pebble beds with nice planting." Leslie Walpole

"Each garden is different and the garden itself nearly dictates what should be done. What I like is for something that's a little bit different - not a standard look. I like simple styles and natural materials such as timber; simple water features; for planting - maybe woodland planting with trees and ferns." Darragh Connolly

Top Landscaping Tips

What are your top landscaping tips for homeowners?

• Look At Sample Materials
  "It's a good idea to see a sample of the materials beforehand. Ask your landscaper to show you samples or go to the garden centre yourself." Leslie Walpole

• Do As Much As You Can Afford
  "A landscaping project will work out more expensive in the long run if you break it up into a number of smaller jobs." Sean Mulvey
  

• Pay For A Design
  "I think it's pays to pay for a design first. A landscaper can put a lot more effort into a paid design than into a design that's part of a tender. In the long run, this can mean that the project is better planned." Darragh Connolly
  

• Beware Of Bargains
  "It's a cliche. But if the quote seems too good to be true, it probably is. Good workmanship doesn't come cheap. You should get quotes from a number of landscaping companies." Sean Mulvey
  

• Be Open To Changes
  "Be open to changes. Changes always involve more work. So, if I suggest a change it's going to be for the better." Darragh Connolly
  

• Look For Practicality
  "It's all very well to have Diarmuid Gavin garden design ideas, but they can have hugh maintenance costs. You want a garden that will take minimum maintenance for maximum rewards." Sean Mulvey
  

• Rubbish Alert
  "If there's a lot of garden waste to remove, the landscaping company may use a truck to pick it up at the end of the day instead of putting it into a skip. Ask about this if you don't want a pile of garden waste on your road for the day". Leslie Walpole

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Garden Maintenance Tips

culled from:pickapro.ie

How To Choose A Gardener?

What questions should customers ask before hiring a gardener?
"Make sure that the person knows their plants. For example, do they know the names of the plants in your garden? Do they know when they should be cut back or pruned?"
"Do you have a good recommendation for them and can you see photos of their work. A lot comes down to trust and reliability. Often, I'm working in the garden when my customers are at work - they have to trust me to do my job."

How Often Should A Gardener Visit?

How often should a gardener visit?
"At least every one to two weeks from March to November to cut grass. And once a month during the Winter to cut grass, prune or plant bulbs. Manure should be dug into the lawn once or twice a year - in Spring or Autumn.
"Initially, if garden is overrun, it'll take about a day to bring it back. After that, I will visit about once a month for a few hours, depending on the size of garden and the customer budget. For example, some customers want lots of colour all year round. So I do a mass planting of bedding plants in Summer. Then in Autumn, I take those up and put in Winter planting and Spring bulbs.

Any Tips To Make Garden Maintenance Easier?

Any tips to make gardening maintenance easier?
"If you're cutting a small hedge, put a sheet under it. It makes it easier to collect up the debris afterwards."
"Never let it get out of hand. Alway stay on top of things."
"Hedges should be cut back in January before the birds start nesting. Otherwise, wait until May."
"I know lots of gardeners won't agree with me on this but I don't like climbing plants likes ivies and clematis. They can be hard to look after and look untidy if they're not looked after."
"Handblowers are useful for gathering fallen leaves."

Tips For Planning A Garden For Maintenance

Any tips when planning a garden to make maintenance easier in the long run?
"Don't overplant - less is better. If you put 20 plants into a small area, you'll end up with a mess in 5 years time."
"Don't act on impulse in the garden centre! A small tree might grow to over 75 feet."
"Listen to the advice you're given! I've had a few arguments where I've refused to put a particular plant in for a customer. I think they appreciate it!"

Garden Likes and Dislikes?

What are your personal garden likes and dislikes?
"There's nothing better than going into an old garden which is well designed and well planted.

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Awake To Bird Song In Your Garden

culled from:pickapro.ie

First of all Will, I want birds but I don't want a garden like a "jungle" and I don't want too much maintenance. Am I asking for too much?
All birds need is a bit of variety and somewhere they feel safe to feed and breed. There are lots of ways of enticing birds to live in your garden without turning it into one big hedge though.
For example, consider creating a mixed deciduous and evergreen shrub area to give your garden year round interest. This not only provides places for birds but gives you something to look out at all year around. Providing pockets of dense vegetation where plants create a tight canopy is a good way of making your garden work for both you and the birds.
This mixture of plants will also provide a habitat for insects - which birds love to forage around for. Including thorny plants like wild rose will also help to keep birds safe from predators like cats and magpies. However these plants will need a certain amount of training in the first few years to get them established. We call this medium maintenance!
Remember that lawns too provide plenty of worms for birds. A healthy lawn is like one big buffet for birds such as blackbirds, robins and thrushes. Where space allows, we try to include a lawn in our designs. We feel it is central to attracting a variety of birds.
What species of plants do you recommend?
Flowers, trees and shrubs fulfill a variety of needs for birds - most importantly, shelter, shade, and food. So look for plants that provide foods and plenty of cover.
If you are up for a bit of maintenance and want to attract the widest number of species then a mixture of plants and feeders is essential. Sunflowers and grasses provide a readily available snack with fleshy berries of garden cherries and coronet apple trees will bring up the fruit content. Shrubs such pyracantha (not the yellow-berried varieties), berberis, and female varieties of holly provide berries.
When it comes to trees, you have to consider the size of your garden. More often than not we see gardens that have become overgrown with trees which are too big and unsuitable for the small space. Always take advice before planting a tree. We see the result of impulse planting far too often. Random tree planting will upset the birds more when you end up cutting the tree down, leaving the birds homeless.
Some of the smaller flowering plants and painted feature walls act as colour beacons for passing birds. One of our clients told us recently that since we redesigned their garden, (making it super low maintenance - but high on striking colour), the local birdwatchers have noticed a rise in bird numbers and a few new visitors too. That is a really nice thing to hear.
Any advice for small gardens?
Birds and wildlife love climbers. Climbing plants don't need loads of ground space (even a large planter on a balcony will support a climber on a trellis) and provide a perfect habitat for animals of all sorts. If you have the space, try growing native ivy and honeysuckle along with fragrant wisteria as these are great for wildlife. Clematis, another popular climber also provides excellent shelter, but will need a good amount of space and training to let it knit together.
Climbers will take over so careful management - medium maintenance - should help to keep them in check. We always point this out to our clients as the lovely soft fluffy red jasmine you can buy in the supermarket for EUR5.99 will run riot in a very short time.
What about attracting butterflies?
These are the real sign that Summer has arrived. Buddleia is not called the butterfly bush for nothing. Its flowers are packed with nectar which the butterflies just adore. It will need a bit of maintenance and a good pruning as it can get quite wild if left unkempt. And do not be afraid to attract bees. Give them the right plants and they will be busy doing their bit for Mother Nature.
Bees love lavender, and any large open flower which is easy for them to get at - like daisy or foxglove.
We always have wildlife as a concern when designing our garden rooms. We recently planted a small grove of olive trees in Dublin City Centre. It provided a crop of really fat fleshy black olives in the first year. We thought the city birds would not know this strange new fruit - but they plucked every last one off. So, not only are the people of Dublin very cosmopolitan, the blackbirds and song thrushes are right up there with us too.

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Garden Design Ideas

culled from:pickapro.ie

As part of our garden design competition, pickapro.ie asked you to tell us what your top home and garden priorities would be for 2006. Well, the wait is over and the results are in.
A whopping 79% of you said improving the garden was their main focus, while:

• 6% wanted to extend or convert the house

• 5% were going to restyle the bathroom

• 5% redecorate the house

• And 5% had plans to restyle the kitchen

With garden improvements coming out the clear winner, pickapro.ie caught up with landscaper, Dermot Strong of Strong Garden Design to find out what his customers are focusing on going into 2007.
Dermot, what types of garden projects are popular now?
Decks and patios are still, as always, very popular. People like the idea of being able to entertain and relax outside on nice days. One trend I've definitely noticed is that a lot of homeowners are now going for a more contemporary, modern look - designs with very clean, straight lines. It's not just shrubs and flowers anymore, it's also about lighting and water and stone features using different materials such as chrome, stainless steel, copper, cedar and limestone. More people want a garden that really stands out and makes a statement.
I realize that every project and client is different, but what would you say that every garden should have done or would be most beneficial to it?
Some type of sculpture or a water and stone fixture is nice. It adds something to break up the pattern and draw the eye to it. The crucial thing is that the garden needs to reflect the personality of the owner.
Do your clients have definite ideas about what they want or do they ask you for options?
A little of both. I try to get as much information from the client as I can. I need to know not only what they like but what they dislike. It's very important for the homeowner to have an idea as to what they want to get out of the garden. I do however provide options and let them know what is available and possible.
And finally, Dermot, does the fact that it's now winter mean that landscaping projects and garden work are on hold until Springtime?
Not at all. Landscaping and garden work can be done all year round. For instance, I'm just as busy now with garden projects as I am during the summer. In fact I think winter is the perfect time to have the garden worked on because when Spring comes around your garden is completed and ready to be enjoyed.

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Great Gardens For Children and Adults

culled from:pickapro.ie

1. All Weather Surface Play Area

An all-weather play area is a real boon on wet Winter days and there's plenty of options to choose from. Mulch or chippings are an easy if dull option. A slightly brighter option is imitation grass. And increasingly popular are rubber mats which have the advantage of coming in a range of colours. These are all easy to look after. Just make sure that there is good drainage underneath.
2. Tricycle Paths

Even a small garden can rise to a fairly respectable tricycle path, provided it wends around the available space cleverly.
3. A Wendy House or Tree House

Every kid loves their own domain! These can be bought in kits and self-assembled.
4. The "Football Pitch"

Even a fairly small lawn can work. All you need is a set of goals and a hardwearing grass like Number 3 or a sports field grade.
5. Children's Garden

Older children will love growing their own simple vegetables and flowers. Younger children will be equally happy growing some plastic flowers or just taking on a little excavation project! Using raised beds can make these childrens' gardens more accessible and maybe a little less mucky.

For The Adults!

1. Garden Lighting

Lighting really warms up a garden. Add some structured plants to the garden and use lights to highlight their Winter beauty. At night time use lighting to create moods.
2. Outdoor Storage For Toys

Just because a garden works for children, doesn't mean it can't be an adult garden too. Include outdoor storage for keeping toys out of sight when you want the garden to look it's best.

And For All The Family!

1. Bird Tables

Children enjoy restocking the bird table with seeds and nuts, as well as topping up the bird bath. Plants with berries will also entice birds into your garden (just steer clear of poisonous varieties). Both adults and kids will enjoy watching the show.
2. Winter Pots

Winter pots brighten up every garden. Make or buy some Winter pots now with plants like heathers, primroses, pansies and cyclamens. They'll take you right through to late Spring. Using raised beds can make these childrens' gardens more accessible and maybe a little less mucky.
3. Embrace Colour

Don't be afraid to �colourise your garden�. For example, using vibrant colours on feature walls will really lift the mood.
4. Picnic Table and Chairs

It's hard to believe it in December, but we will be getting the occasional sunny day over the next couple of months. Wrap up, bring some warm drinks and biscuits, and have a picnic in your very own Winter garden!

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Preparing Your Garden For Winter

culled from:pickapro.ie
Store Garden Furniture
If you're ready to move indoors for good, then it's a good idea to store your garden furniture to protect it from the harsh winter weather. Give it a good clean and put it in the shed or under covers. Wooden furniture will also appreciate a coat of preservative or oil.
Clear Fallen Leaves Of The Lawn
Just start raking. It'll be easier on a dry day - the leaves will be lighter and easier to handle too. Depending on the state of your lawn, you may want to follow up with an application of lawn fertilizer.
Cover Pools and Fountains
Cover pools and fountains with a fine net to prevent leaves blowing in.
Clear Slug Sanctuaries
Remove old leaves and weeds from the herbaceous border as it's where the slugs and snails hide. Rotten leaves and weeds may also carry insects and diseases that can be harmful to your garden. If the area is small surface the bed with coarse grit. It will deter slugs and open up the surface allowing water to drain away.
Tidy The Beds
Dig up annuals (plants that are good for one year only) and throw them on the compost heap. Cut back perennials. If you're not sure how much to cut them back, check online, in a reference book or on the instructions that came with your perennials. Putting mulch over your garden is a helpful way to protect perennials and shrubs with tender roots from temperature changes. Again, ask your garden centre or landscaper for the right type. If mulching, be careful not to do it too early as some insects may still be alive and burrow inside to keep themselves warm during the winter.
If you have young trees consider wrapping them up to survive the cold and staking them down to protect them from the wind.
Finally Take Stock
Evaluate your garden. This is a good time to decide which plants will remain in your garden next year and which need to go. A practical way to determine this is to judge which plants did well and which struggled. It's also a good time to decide which new plants you want to grow for next year and when you should put them in.
It can be hard to put in the work for something you won't see for awhile, but if you put the time in now, you'll be happy you did next April. And yes, the days are getting shorter, the sky is getting darker and jackets and caps are back in fashion but look at the bright side, Winter only lasts 6 months!

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Choosing An Interior Designer

culled from:pickapro.ie

How To Choose An Interior Designer?

• Photos
  "Ask to see photos of their work - that will give you a very good indication of what kind of work they've done."

• Experience
  "Ask how long they've been established and what type of work they do. With regards to qualifications, there's no single standard design qualification in Ireland - the usual one is the Rhodec diploma in Interior Design. Some interior designers have a diploma or degree in Fine Arts."

• Listen To What They Are Asking You?
  "Listen to what they are asking you. An interior designer should be building a complete picture of your objectives."

• Fee Structure
  "Find out how they charge before you start. Interior designers can be creative, rather than financially astute. And that can be a problem for the client, if they're being charged by the hour. It's important to get a written quotation before work starts."

• Rapport
  "The designer will be working to your individual requirements and preferences. So, it's very important to have a good relationship and good communication with your interior designer."

Why Is An Interior Designer Useful?

Why is an interior designer useful?
"An interior designer will help you avoid expensive mistakes. It costs the same amount to get a room right as to get it wrong. A lot of our customers are redecorating their home because they're not happy with the first attempt. And a good interior designer should be able to work to your budget.
"Anyone who's ever done up a room will know how hard it is to actually finish the job. An interior designer has the skill and the contacts to turn around a job. So, the client has the luxury of enjoying a completed room."
Convenience. Your interior designer is also your shopper. We know what's out there and we bring it to you. So, you don't have to run all over Dublin.
"I think good value is an important aspect. An interior designer works closely with the suppliers and tradespeople in that area. So, he or she will have in-depth knowledge of what can be sourced from where and what's good value."
"An interior designer has experience with respect to the practical aspects of your furnishings. For example, if you are getting new wardrobes, we can work with the client and carpenter to bash out all the details and make it a very good overall job."
"An interior designer has skill of bringing balance to a scheme. For example, choosing furniture in a showroom that will look to scale at home can be difficult because we're relying to some extent on our perception of the size of our rooms. Getting that balance in colours and scale right can save a lot of time and money. "

How Much Will It Cost?

How much will do interior designer fees cost?
"In my case, I charge an initial small call-out fee for the first consultation. After that, there's no further consultation fees. There's a price for the supplied furnishings - it's the same as buying from a shop. The total cost is listed in the quotation."

What's The Design Process?

What's the design process with an interior designer?
"In my case, I first speak to a prospective client on the phone. This allows me to gather the relevant information so that I come to the initial consultation prepared and with suitable samples. First, I concentrate on the basics like walls, floors, sofas and curtains. I leave samples with the clients so they can live with them day and night under all lights and circumstances. We'll tweak and change the samples until the client is happy with the result." Then we work on the accessories. This allows clients to add their own personality. It's important that that room doesn't look like the interior designer's room. It should look like the client's room." Karen Tennant

What Happens After The Design Process?

What happens after the design process?
"Once the design and samples have been decided, I can suggest decorators who have worked with me over the years. Alternatively, the client can use their own decorator. I see the work through in every sense of the word from beginning to end."

What Should Client Bring To Design Process?

What should the client bring to the design process?
"Their own design preferences. One of the best ways to communicate this is to look through a few magazines and cut out photos or images which appeal to you."
"Some idea of budget. The reason I ask about budget is that I can tell them if it's realistic or not. For people who don't have even a rough figure, I suggest that I will budget for midrange materials and furnishings".
"Before meeting the interior designer, the decision makers should have a good discussion about what they each want. And if they have very contrasting views, they should talk about any compromises regarding style and function."
I need to know what they want to use the room for and what stage of life they're at now.
Is there any furniture or items that we're working around. For example, a mahogany table that's going to be kept.

What's Popular in Dublin?

What's popular in Dublin?
"The creamy-browny-blacky look is still in. It's important to put a spin on it or it might date."
"People are looking for the very clean, minimalist look too. It can be done well once the practical end is looked after. For a minimal look, you need storage."

What Are The New Trends?

What are the new trends?
"More detail - people are realising that details make a hugh difference to the character of a room. For example, a piece of quality artwork, a light fixture or even the trimmings on a curtain introduce a feeling of quality. One beautiful item in a room can really make a difference. "

Design Likes and Dislikes

Do you have any design likes or dislikes?
"I like clean, uncluttered rooms with one or two strong features. I don't like flowery and flouncy and frilly. "

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Interior Design Tips From a Pro

culled from:realsimple.com

How did you get started in this field?
Right after getting my architecture degree, I read about the designer Miles Redd in a magazine. I was so blown away by his bold aesthetic and everything he’d accomplished by the age of 35 that I wrote him a letter asking for a meeting. Two weeks later, I had my first full-time job, as his assistant. It was fate!

What’s one quick change that will improve any room?
Lower the artwork. People tend to hang it too high; it should be at eye level. And don’t worry about having something on each wall. It’s better to cluster art in one or two spots than to spread it out.

Decorating a huge room can be intimidating. How do you deal with soaring spaces?
My philosophy is to fill them with large-scale furniture and art. If you’re a less-is-more type, go for one massive piece, like an amazing painting over the sofa.

Suppose you can’t afford art that big?
Buy a blank canvas and paint it yourself. Pick the most interesting color in the room (as long as it’s not already the dominant color) and just cover the canvas in that shade, using the same paint you’d use for walls. There’s no way to mess this up, and it costs next to nothing. Google [famed abstract artist] Ellsworth Kelly for inspiration. He has pieces like this hanging in the Whitney Museum.

Any tips for jazzing up a minuscule space?
Nearly every room has a door. Work it. Paint it a glossy black: It takes only two hours and gives a room instant sass but won’t eat up any valuable real estate.

Say you can revamp only one room. How do you keep the rest of the place from looking shabby?
Fiercely edit the undone rooms. Get rid of the junk; keep only essentials. You’ll be poised to redecorate when the time comes—and until then your rooms will feel calmer. Tell visitors you’re experimenting with minimalism.

What do you always want to fix when you go into someone’s living room?
The floor plan and lighting!

Break that down for us.
A good living room needs a comfortable place to sit, a place to rest your drink, and a place to read a book. But people default to the school-dance arrangement, where everything is pushed back against the walls. So I start by moving the furniture closer together, toward the center of the room. Then I fill out the arrangement with occasional chairs and tables to create functional seating areas. It makes the space feel so much more intimate and conversational.

And for the lighting?
If we’ve learned anything from the movie Gremlins, it’s that bright light is the enemy. Install dimmers, or change your bulbs to extra-soft white 40-watt bulbs. That $30 investment makes a huge difference.

What if you have a room that just feels blah?
A common feature of boring rooms is a lack of color. Start there, and think from the ground up. Buy a patterned rug you love: here’s your palette. Go for a geometric dhurrie if you like modern, or multicolored stripes if you’re more traditional. You can pull the wall and furniture colors from the rug, then pick up its accent tones in pillows and other accessories.

Speaking of color, are there any surprising shades you’re really into right now?
I think fuchsia should be the color of the year. It’s so rich and chic, it’s like red’s hipper sister. I’d use Benjamin Moore’s Gypsy Pink on walls in a room with neutral furniture and gray trim. Or just do the ceiling (use high-gloss for that).

One piece of advice you’d shout from the rooftops?
Stop overthinking every little change and just try it! It’s easy to say, “Oh, that desk will never work next to my bed.” Move it and see how it looks. Sometimes pulling that blue armchair from the den into your green living room can work miracles.

Name an item you’d like to banish for good.
That poufy, marshmallow-shaped leather sofa from 1988. I can’t slipcover it, I can’t change it, and I can’t convince someone that it’s not really comfortable, because it is really comfortable.

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9 Interior Decorator Secrets

culled from:womansday.com

1. Designate a theme.

The best way to ensure decorative “flow” is to work within a theme, says art expert Jen Bekman, founder of 20x200.com, a website that sells artwork at affordable prices. Whether sports- or Paris-inspired, the focus (even if only loosely adhered to) immediately grounds the designer’s creative options. For a DIY decorator, this rule of thumb is especially important, as it will help focus an otherwise overwhelming task. “As you continue to shop around, you'll notice pieces within your premise everywhere, giving you a chance to compare and contrast,” says Bekman. So, not only does a theme create parameters to work within, it also helps a new decorator refine her tastes along the way. Photo: sozaijiten/Datacraft/Getty Images

2. Test your ideas.

When it comes to redecorating, designers like to test their visions first. Before hanging art, Kristan Cunningham, former host of HGTV’s Design on a Dime, builds paper templates from brown construction paper and hangs them on different parts of the wall. This way, before nailing through a coat of paint, she’ll know if she likes the placement. When upholstering a chair, Cunningham also likes to do a “mock job” by draping fabric over each cushion and fashioning it to the legs. Why is this trial period so important? By "testing" each possible design for a couple of days (not minutes!) you can gauge your full reaction to the change. Luckily, home goods stores usually comply with sample requests and returns. After all, these are big decisions! Photo: iStockphoto

3. Use what you've got.

“Before you spend money, do a little reconnaissance work around your house,” suggests Anitra Mecadon, host of DIY Network’s living room design show Mega Dens. For example, in one episode, Mecadon takes a country-style bureau and, using paint and a little elbow grease, turns it into a cool new bar. “Pay no attention to the color, scratches or dents,” she advises. “If it has great bones, then it has great potential.” Instead, focus on shape, structure and how it will fit in a room. Photo: Thinkstock

4. Choose a color scheme—not just one color.

A good color scheme has three colors, explains Mary Lawlor, color expert at Kelly-Moore Paints: the base color, which is usually neutral and sets the tone; the contrast color, which is often a dark color and creates depth within a space; and the accent color, which pulls everything together and adds punch. Lawlor suggests using a color wheel to help select your sequence. Or play on the base color with accessories, like Mecadon does: “My walls are a lush emerald green, so I usually leave out a bowl of electric-green apples.” Photo: Jupiterimages

5. Dimmers are the ultimate lighting accessory.

If you’re not using a dimmer, you’re limiting a room’s potential. Think of it this way: It’s not so much what a dimmer adds to a room as what traditional lighting—in all its neon glory—takes away. “I like to think of a dimmer switch as a mood switch. You can turn on the mood just by turning down your dimmer!” says Mecadon. Whether you choose a basic or integrated style, the toughest part is taking the time to install them, she says. The rest is easy. Photo: iStockphoto

6. Double up on decor accents.

When it comes to decorating, repetition speaks loudly, explains Mecadon. For example, one lamp works as an accent piece, but two lamps are a focal point. Curtains? An excess of fabric ramps up the feeling of luxury, so spring for two or three treatments instead of one. The same theory applies to artwork. “For one episode of Mega Dens, I spanned several of a cute little statue that caught my eye across the dining room wall shelving,” says Mecadon. “It blew my client’s mind!” Photo: Hemera Technologies/Getty Images

7. Accessorize with paint

Wallpaper and molding help break up the monotony of a one-tone wall, but so does a painted pattern, like stripes. Interior design blogger Chris Kauffman used this trick to add dimension to her dining room. When choosing colors, think shade and sheen, Lawlor explains. The more contrast, the more dramatic. For example, teaming two flat colors within the same color family will have an understated effect, while two opposing colors with varying luster—i.e., a gloss and a flat—will stand out. Photo: Robin Stubbert

8. Add luxury in unexpected places.

Especially for country or cookie-cutter decorating aesthetics, adding an unexpected plush touch can give your home an arty feel. For example, Courtney Cachet, a designer and style expert on NBC's Open House, likes to hang inexpensive, small-scale chandeliers in bathrooms. “It looks chic and the lighting is more flattering than the light from a standard-issue lighting fixture,” she says. Similarly, interior designer Ingrid Leess, whose Connecticut home was featured in Elle Decor, used a fur throw blanket to add lavishness to her otherwise traditional decor. Photo: ML Harris/Getty Images

9. Try out wall decals.

Inexpensive, available in a multitude of colors and patterns, and easy to install, wall decals work wonders to fill a hole and cheer a space. Melissa Salamoff, who owns her own design studio in Burbank, California, says she used stick-on decorations in three different ways: in place of a headboard (create your own design), to add whimsy to her daughter’s room and to inspire women at a shelter (she installed large-scale Bible passages on a front-entrance wall). “Most of them start around $20 and can go up to a bit over $100 for the full wall decals,” she says. Plus, they aren't permanent—so your wall designs can change with your decor.

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Interior design: top 20 thrifty tips for your home

culled from:telegraph.co.uk

1 Second-hand hotel chic

Consider a five-star facelift for your home with some hotel accessories. The Lanesborough, on Hyde Park Corner in London, is closing for refurbishment and auctioning all its furniture between December 9 and 13

You could pick up some great curtains, or old furniture, which you could repaint. Or try specialist outlets such as Little Auctions, which has an average of two sales a month, putting up an online catalogue the Thursday before the Saturday sale. If you are selling, note that commission rates vary according to the auction house.
2 Enjoy the financial comfort of strangers
Once your home looks like a hotel, treat it as one. Lodgers are the new house guests du jour. With the Government’s rent-a-room scheme, you can earn up to £4,250 a year tax-free for letting a furnished room (hmrc.gov.uk/individuals/tmarent-a-room-scheme.shtml). Alternatively, you could have visitors to stay courtesy of the booking website airbnb.co.uk, or even a full management service such as Onefinestay. It cleans your home, stores your personal possessions and provides guests with iPhones. Vive unique goes one step further. It provides linen and meets guests on arrival, taking anything from five per cent to 35 per cent.
Eventfulstays.com specialises in rentals for special occasions (with commission of 10 per cent to 15 per cent). Other online listings companies, such as Wimdu and Holiday lettings, enable you to advertise your property.

_{Why buy a new sofa when you could just re-cover? Genevieve Fox at Rob Gord's furniture restoration workshop in Kentish Town (HEATHCLIFF O'MALLEY)}
3 Chic…and cheap
Renovation is tiring. At the end of weeks or months spent redoing a room, the last thing you want is to trawl around for elegant, realistically priced antiques. Ikea calls like a siren by the time your builder has been paid.
Try looking instead at salvage yards. Although anything retro or industrial is often overpriced, there are bargains to be had. Salvoweb.com has a section called Recraft+ pcycled. I found a natty trestle console table there that was artfully distressed and affordable – a rare combination. In north-west London, I found Robert Gordon, who sells gorgeous old furniture from his workshop in Kentish Town.
Other useful contacts include Cox's architectural, Lassco, Andy Thornton and Beeston Reclamation
4 Hold fire online
On eBay, hold your nerve. As with any auction, you must stick to your budget and play your cards close to your chest. This is where sniping comes in. Sniping is the process of placing a last-minute bid to within five seconds of the striking of the virtual gavel. Check out third-party sniping platforms, such as Goofbid (which is free) and Auction Sniper (which charges one per cent).
5 Lease of life
If you want to get on the ladder, or find an investment, consider flats with short leases. They will be less expensive than those with a long lease or share of freehold. You may be able to extend the lease, which will increase the property’s value in the long term. Beware, though, as it can be complicated to negotiate lease extensions – make sure you have a good lawyer.
6 Action off-plan
Buying off-plan appeals to those keen to avoid the stress of renovating. Property search expert and developer Edo Mapelli Mozzi of Banda Property advises caution. “If you are buying an apartment off-plan as an investment, make sure there are not too many units in the building, to reduce competition when it comes to letting it out,” he says.
Also make sure your contract allows you to check for quality control during the build and that you have some flexibility about specifications.
7 Shock of the old
No one wants glossy, gleaming furniture. Bashed up, vintage or wrinkly is the new chic, but don’t pay over the odds for antiqued glass mirrors, French dressers or distressed Nordic wardrobes. Take a leaf out of Kirstie Allsopp’s book and learn how to strip back wood and age it yourself. It is time-consuming, but far less costly.

_{Go for quirky recycled and salvaged pieces (HEATHCLIFF O'MALLEY)}
8 Become a skip scavenger
Skip scavenging is the new metal detecting. You don’t need any gadgets, just an eagle eye, agile fingers and an empty car boot. The middle-class vandalism of the Eighties had homebuyers throwing out perfectly good kitchens because they wanted to put their own stamp on the property. Since then, canny locals have been waiting to pounce in smart streets the second the builders have downed tools for the day. Fireplaces and cornices are among the items that regularly find their way into skips. Remember to get permission from the builder or owner before you take anything.
9 Forage on Freecycle
I don’t chuck out used goods anymore. I put them on Freecycle, the global recycling network that enables you to offer unwanted goods and take them, too. You have to be super-quick, though, as quality furniture, put up by eco-souls happy to share, is snapped up within seconds of being posted. I have so far given away a dishwasher, oven, fridge-freezer and microwave. Trusting in the law of karma, I am waiting for something divine (an antique chaise longue would be nice) to come my way.
10 Help a hoarder
We all know about hugging trees. Now it is time to hug a hoarder, or at least help them out by renting out any spare storage space. Storemates.co.uk will put you in touch with clutterers needing affordable space. It’s free to list your offer of space on its website, but Storemates will charge the equivalent of the first two weeks of your listed storage price as an administration fee.
11 Buy second hand
You don’t need to break the bank even if your kitchen is looking tired. The Used Kitchen Company sells unwanted and ex-display kitchens for a fraction of the usual cost. Or you can just replace the doors if the carcasses are salvageable. Try Dream Doors for a quick way to achieve a kitchen facelift.
12 Lights, camera, action
If you have a des res, a designer pad, or a Downton Abbey-esque period home, invite the film crews around and cash in. There are several agencies looking for locations for commercials, television series, photo shoots and feature films. These can be for a day, a week or even months. Expect to earn upwards of £500 a day, with extra zeros thrown in for historic properties. Be prepared to pay a fee of 20 per cent to the booker. See Amazing Space, Beach Studios and Location Works

_{Even the family pet can earn his keep (ALAMY)}
13 Drive up your income
You have ditched the Lexus for a Zipcar. Now your driveway is sprouting weeds, rent it out instead. Online sites such as Park at my house; Park let; and Park on my drive have tools to help you calculate how much you can hope to earn. A driveway can bring in £5 a day or more if it’s near a main-line station, while a parking space in central London can earn £20 a day.
14 Grow your own cash
Rent your garden out to a green-fingered neighbour to grow their veg. Your view will improve without any outlay, either physical or financial, and you might benefit from the annual glut of courgettes and tomatoes. Or if it’s big and beautiful but the gardener’s costing a fortune, hire your lawn for parties and weddings. The website Rent my garden puts you in touch with hirers for a fee of £25.
15 Run for a re-cover
If your expensive Italian sofa needs a facelift, should you ditch it and join the masses shopping at DFS, or have it re-covered? By sourcing your own fabric, you can get the sofa reupholstered for a flat fee. If you favour trad suppliers, such as Colefax and Fowler, you should check out discounted online suppliers, such as Ultimate Fabrics.
16 Call it curtains
No house is complete without lavish curtains. They dress a room, set its tone and raise the spirits. Beware, however: bespoke curtains are expensive. Happily, there is a vibrant second-hand market. The Curtain Exchange has six branches, selling second-hand as well as made-to-measure curtains. Prices range from £100 to £1,500.
Look around for sites close to your home if you want to see fabrics in the flesh. I found a nifty website called Friday-Ad, an online classified site. Mayfair Furniture Clearance sells on a limited number of curtains, as well as furniture, from five-star hotels.
17 Small-scale spectacular
If the snazzy wallpaper you most desire is ferociously expensive, why not limit it to a feature wall? You can paint the other walls in a toning shade, whether it’s fashionable Farrow & Ball or mix-your-own at B &  Q. Just don’t try to mix your own colour at home. You will never manage the same shade twice.
18 Learn a useful skill
You don’t have to go to the gym to get a workout. Try plastering or decorating and save paying a professional, too. If you don’t know which end of a screw to hit, visit Chix and Mortar or The DIY School. They’ll teach you how to wield a drill and tile the bathroom or plaster a wall and build a stone fireplace.
19 Timeshare your pooch
You already share a holiday cottage with another family, so why not do the same with your pet? It’s a must to halve the cost of doggy day care and looking good.
Alternatively, be a fair-weather dog person and find owners who loan their mutt for walks and homestays through Borrow my doggy.
20 Make do and mend
For the determined penny pincher, there are money-saving opportunities in your home wherever you look. Change to lower-wattage light bulbs, turn off your televisions and unplug your phone chargers to save on electricity bills. Candles burn more slowly if chilled in the fridge before lighting. Reuse old cuts of carpet as door mats or insulation.

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33 Amazing Ideas That Will Make Your House Awesome

culled from:boredpanda.com

1. Aquarium Bed

Image credits: acrylicaquariums.com

2. Chandelier That Turns Your Room into a Forest

Image credits: Hilden and Diaz

3. Indoor-Outdoor Pool

Image credits: unknown

4. Swing Set Table

Image credits: psfk.com

5. Beach Sand Under Your Work Desk

Image credits: Justin Kemp

6. Spiral Staircase Slide

Image credits: unknown

7. Cat Transit System

Image credits: Because We Can

8. Glass Floor and an Open Shaft Below Your Bathroom

Image credits: Hernandez Silva Arquitectos

9. Fusion Dining And Pool Table

Buy: amazon.com

10. Hammock Bed

Image credits: Le Beanock

11. Understairs Storage

Image credits: Deriba Furniture

12. Backyard Cinema

Image credits: fancymaterial.com

13. Ping Pong Door

Image credits: Tobias Fraenzel

14. A Wall That Plays Music When It Rains

Image credits: ingeniumetars

15. See-through Bathtub

Image credits: Stern McCafferty

16. Vertical Herb Garden in Your Kitchen

Image credits: unknown

17. Bookcase Staircase

Image credits: Levitate Architects

18. Back Yard Beach-Themed Fire Pit

Image credits: unknown

19. Spiral Wine Storage

Image credits: spiralcellars.co.uk

20. Treehouse Room For Kids

Image credits: mytropolisdesign.com

21. Pirate Ship Bedroom For Yourself

22. Walk-In Pool

Image credits: houzz.com

23. Door of Swatches

Image credits: studio.arminblasbichler.com

24. Hammock Over the Stairs

Image credits: ooda.eu

25. Ice Cave In Your Room

(These icicles formed inside a building in Chicago due to bad cold storage maintenance.)

26. Skate-park Room

Image credits: Pierre Andre Senizergues

27. Fire Pit Table

Image credits: moma-design.it

28. Backyard Office

Image credits: officepod.co.uk

29. Indoor Slide

Image credits: David Hotson

30. Catwalk Around The House

Image credits: nekomemo.com

31. Table Firepit

Image credits: unknown

32. Kitchen Table Tennis

Image credits: hammacher.com

33. Balcony Pool

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