Do you own so many shoes that storing them can feel like it is a monumental undertaking? Storing shoes and sneakers, so that you can easily find the pair you want when you need them, should not be an engineering project in its own right.Instead, take some inspiration from shoe storage systems that work and replicate the most suitable one for your home. This will depend on the layout of your home and the sort of household members you have. For many with young children, a rear lobby area is the perfect place to install a shoe and boot repository.

For others, a porch or an under stairs closet is best. If you have a walk in dressing room, the best place to store your shoes will be nearby so you can coordinate your footwear with your other clothing. If you are squeezed for available space and stuff your shoes into boxes, you will rarely wear them. Instead make use of space saving techniques and use parts of the home you may not have considered before.

(more…)

Two of our favorite family members in our homes are our pets and children, yet both of them tend to leave a path of destruction behind, especially when it comes to our beloved furniture. For many homeowners the process of choosing the right type of pet and kid-friendly furniture can be a challenge. Depending on your family lifestyle, how much traffic your pets and kids produce, as well as your design preference can be factors to help you decide. Before you think you can’t have any nice looking furniture due to your destructive kids and pets, look at these tips to help you decide.

What is the best furniture for your home with kids and pets?

Choosing the right material:  

Many furniture materials help resist stains and fur a lot better than others. For easy cleanup, leather is often a good choice because food stains and fur can slide right off. If you are a cat owner or if have animals with claws however, leather can be ruined by scratches and could be a disadvantage for many pet owners. If your children like to use ballpoint pens or markers, leather can be hard remove certain types of ink. Cloth materials such as micro-fiber for its tight weave characteristics, as well as tweed are excellent for repelling stains and are easy to clean if they do need it.

(more…)

We’ve all heard ceilings referred to as being the “fifth wall.” This is often referenced when talking about paint colors and how having a plain white ceiling isn’t always the best option for the overall space. While this may be true, there are many other things that can be done to a ceiling that make it more than a fifth wall – these ceiling transformation examples can turn the ceiling into an absolutely integral part of a space’s inherent design. And best of all? They’re DIY.

Wood Planked Ceiling.

Although it may seem like a daunting task (and, frankly, probably isn’t a job for the very beginning DIYer), installing a wood plank ceiling is a fairly straightforward process. And the complete and utter transformation in style and aesthetic is undeniable. It creates an instant country cottage or farmhouse-y feel while simultaneously expanding the space. This works especially well when paired with pendant lighting, to break up the expanse of running planks.

(more…)

Living rooms and dining rooms look great if you choose the similar fundamental elements of their décor in the same style. Whether this is your choice of color palette for the walls or flooring system, you can make your reception rooms feel like more connected zones, even if they are not open plan to one another. If you include other reception rooms in the mix, like an entrance hallway, then the effect can be to make the whole home seem a bit larger.

This is particularly so in smaller homes and apartments. When you are choosing a new way to decorate your living room’s floor, it can be well worth considering a material that will also work in your other reception rooms, to get the coordinated look. Smart flooring systems should define the base tone for the room, be hard wearing, practical and easy to maintain. Especially in smaller residences, try to do away with busy patterns that catch the eye.

(more…)