Around the House - Projects, Tips etc.

[CharlieD]

That would depend whether you're in the northern or southern hemisphere.

Ceiling fans in general should direct air straight down during the warmer months and reverse during the winter.

Yea, I know that, I stil don't know which way they should turn

 

[Margi Cintrano]

Claire,

I would go with a stunning terracotta rustic non shine tile and for the walls, I would go with either a similar Pale Icy Mint in the same hue and tone as the cabinetry and /or I would pick a lighter icy pale tone of the terracotta in the same hue and tone of course, and use this color with ivory cream and pale mint as your scheme.

The yellow would be a 4th color --- and I am very mono chromatic and neutral when it comes to color palettes fashion wise or decorative wise ...

Kind regards,
Ciao. Margi.

 

[bakechef]

Neutral with accents works very well. Unfortunately that is not a well known or well understood concept. I've been house hunting the last several months, and one thing I know for sure: "gross" is a well understood concept, at least if numbers are any indication.

I'm amazed that so few people have understood the concept of "neutral" considering all the disgusting primary and glaring colors I've seen in homes that are purportedly up for sale. I sometimes wonder if people in foreclosure paint their homes in these clashing colors and strew their personal garbage and clutter around the homes, in the hope that they can continue living mortgage payment free for many months to come, secure in their knowledge that nobody is going to want to buy a house like that.

In one house the kid's room was so full of ... stuff ... that I couldn't even open the door enough to see the whole room. I think the walls were painted black.

We ran into the same thing house hunting! I think that with all of the design shows on TV, people get "inspired" to decorate with bold colors. When a professional designer does it, it can look great, but not everyone has the talent that they do.

When the contractors built this place, they put wallpaper directly on the drywall, so in the kitchen, I'm stuck with wallpaper, luckily the previous owner put up a very neutral, very subtle wallpaper that I can live with. They painted all of the downstairs, hallways, and stairways in a light tan, which looks very nice and makes the white trim and crown molding pop. We bought neutral furniture and brought in colors with artwork and accessories. This makes redecorating very easy and affordable.

One of the masters was done in a terrible shade of yellow, it is now the Blue room which I really love, But I like the neutrals in the common areas, gives them a lighter, more airy feeling. I don't care for white walls though, I had too many of those living in apartments, I prefer a warmer neutral.

 

[Greg Who Cooks]

I prefer the same thing, neutral walls with colors/accents provided by artwork and accessories.

 

[Margi Cintrano]

Charlie D., Buonasera,

My ceiling fan in the Loft dining room goes Clockwise ...
The store which we bought it, installed it ...

Have a nice Sunday.
Ciao, Margi.

 

[Dawgluver]

Charlie D., Buonasera,

My ceiling fan in the Loft dining room goes Clockwise ...
The store which we bought it, installed it ...

Have a nice Sunday.
Ciao, Margi.

The one in our sunroom also goes clockwise.

 

[Katie H]

I, too, prefer neutral tones. They seem much more restful and calming. Any "wow" colors in our home come in the form of accessories and/or artwork.

I was a decorator and owned my own business for many years and saw many homes decorated in a manner the owner thought was House Beautiful worthy but, in reality, was more like a disaster.

People can get carried away with bold colors and when it comes time to sell their property those vibrant colors can be a real turn-off for prospective buyers.

One of my dearest friends is a very successful realtor and she always counsels her sellers to declutter their homes and, if there are what would be considered "decorator colors" on any of the walls, she recommends spending the few dollars on paint to change them to a neutral tone.

I like vibrant colors, but tend to restrict them to my dress and prefer that my castle be a place of peace and calm.

 

[roadfix]

Yea, I know that, I stil don't know which way they should turn

Just look and see which way the fan blades are pitched. Then determine whether you want to go clock or counter clock wise...

 

[CWS4322]

That is amazingly beautiful and that closet is to die for, CWS! Now I want that closet!

PF--I waited 17 years for that closet. The closet is 11.5 ft x 8 ft. It was built in sections, much like one would build kitchen cabinets. The bottom drawers are very deep (I think 28" and 16" high) and the doors are standard 80" doors, 34" wide. The interior stuff is set back 8.5" so that I could stand on top of the drawers to reach the top cubbies. And, the clothes are color-coordinated in the cubbies--all my purple tops are together--oh, I guess that has nothing to do with the design. I'd have to open the doors to give you an idea of how I designed the inside. It holds all of my clothes, and then some. And those bottom drawers are great. But I like that things don't fall on my head and that I can reach to the very back of the uppermost cubby (the ceiling is 8 ft 3 ", and the closet utilizes all of the space. There is no dead air in this closet. I canceled the closet to the bedroom and built this along the wall. The bedroom closet then was opened up to be part of the living room. Obviously, the people who design closets don't think outside of the box. This closet is to die for. I threaten to take it with me if I sell the house.

 

[Margi Cintrano]

Katie H.,

I agree ... Neutral colors and use a color that you truly enjoy as the accent tones or for 1 wall however, cautions and make sure that you can live in that color.

I did fashion journalism way back when in San Francisco ... I had also studied some Interior Decorating as an elective as well as Fashion Design and Photography at University ... I dislike clashing tones and loudness. Brights can be an accent done intelligently without brassiness.

Kind regards. Margi

 

[CWS4322]

I, too, prefer neutral tones. They seem much more restful and calming. Any "wow" colors in our home come in the form of accessories and/or artwork.

I was a decorator and owned my own business for many years and saw many homes decorated in a manner the owner thought was House Beautiful worthy but, in reality, was more like a disaster.

People can get carried away with bold colors and when it comes time to sell their property those vibrant colors can be a real turn-off for prospective buyers.

One of my dearest friends is a very successful realtor and she always counsels her sellers to declutter their homes and, if there are what would be considered "decorator colors" on any of the walls, she recommends spending the few dollars on paint to change them to a neutral tone.

I like vibrant colors, but tend to restrict them to my dress and prefer that my castle be a place of peace and calm.

I know that if I put the house in the City on the market, because of the purple walls, I will have to repaint the entire house. Paint is cheap. I would hire s/one to do it, but in the meantime, I live with the colors I like. I live here. I too like vibrant colors, but in the house, I like pastels.

 

[Margi Cintrano]

Bake Chef,

Personally, I detest chalky white old walls, like I had seen in so many apartments here in Madrid ... When we saw the Loft, that was it ! Pale Sand dune color walls throughout ... Much softer and calming than chalky white ...

As individuals we all have a different take on colors ... I dislike grey ... I like it fashionably however, not on my walls --- very depressing, and reminds me of the Grey wet weather and Rain ... Bleak ...

This is an interesting post covering a whole new field.

Have a nice Sunday.

Margi.

 

[Margi Cintrano]

Cerise: Truly Interesting Subject For Post

Very interesting post and creative subject matter ... Thanks for posting your lovely wall hanging too ... Very elegant.

Ciao and have nice Sunday,
Margi.

 

[PrincessFiona60]

PF--I waited 17 years for that closet. The closet is 11.5 ft x 8 ft. It was built in sections, much like one would build kitchen cabinets. The bottom drawers are very deep (I think 28" and 16" high) and the doors are standard 80" doors, 34" wide. The interior stuff is set back 8.5" so that I could stand on top of the drawers to reach the top cubbies. And, the clothes are color-coordinated in the cubbies--all my purple tops are together--oh, I guess that has nothing to do with the design. I'd have to open the doors to give you an idea of how I designed the inside. It holds all of my clothes, and then some. And those bottom drawers are great. But I like that things don't fall on my head and that I can reach to the very back of the uppermost cubby (the ceiling is 8 ft 3 ", and the closet utilizes all of the space. There is no dead air in this closet. I canceled the closet to the bedroom and built this along the wall. The bedroom closet then was opened up to be part of the living room. Obviously, the people who design closets don't think outside of the box. This closet is to die for. I threaten to take it with me if I sell the house.

Well, when I ever get my own house I will take you up on the offer of the plans. And I will have one purple wall...

 

[PrincessFiona60]

I have a three foot wall the has a light switch and the landline phone jack on it. It's on the outside of the kitchen entry from the dining room. Nothing will fit there except a bookcase. I painted it and the bulkhead above the cabinets in the dining area Navy Blue. Then I found gold frames for some pictures and a mirror above the bookcase. It's the only elegant looking spot in the apartment.

The wall above the back slash and fridge I painted Cherry Red. Such small spans of space really accent and don't detract and I've been told it looks nice. Before we move from this apartment, I will have to cover them with the same dreary beige they were before I got bored with it. When you live in a place for 12 years, you have to change things up sometimes.

 

[CWS4322]

Well, when I ever get my own house I will take you up on the offer of the plans. And I will have one purple wall...

I hope you do take me up on that offer. And only one purple wall??? I absolutely love the closet. Not only because it uses all the available space, but it also meant I could eliminate having dressers in the bedroom. I also have the bedside tables built in--they are cubes mounted on the wall and the headboard of the bed is floating shelves (negative and positive). Cleaning the room is a breeze--the IRoomba fits under the bed and the bedside tables. I have space for a chair, if I want one, but I rather like the minimalist look, easy to clean and keep organized.

 

[roadfix]

Orchard Supply Hardware is going out of business, nationwide, and they're having a huge liquidation sale now. So I took advantage of their 40% off plumbing supplies during the week and purchased a bunch of copper pipes, fittings, spigots, valves, pressure regulator, and other gardening and misc items. Discount amounts vary from dept to dept.

So I decided to take care of one of the things on my 'to do' list. I replaced every component on the main water supply line coming into the house. Also added a dedicated spigot for the drip irrigation timer for a tidier setup and dressed up the area under the pipes with Mexican river rocks.

 

[Caslon]

I forgot this forum section existed.

 

[roadfix]

I 'harvested' my first batch of landscape boulders out of the ground this morning. I poured concrete mix and threw in a bunch of old concrete debris into trashbag lined "molds" I dug in the ground. I used a 90-pound bag of concrete mix plus about 25 pounds worth of concrete debris per boulder. They're solid, not hollow, so they're nice and heavy like the real thing. It took a long steel pry bar to lift each boulder out of the ground.

The pieces of stuck trash bag liners on the boulders will be torched off...
I placed a yardstick there for scale.

 

[Just Cooking]

Clever and, I'm assuming much less expensive than buying rocks that large..



Looks like a fun project..



Ross