Happy 8th Anniversary Homedit!
We’re celebrating a special 8th anniversary at Homedit – your comprehensive resource for home design and architecture. We’re really excited about this milestone because it’s our bronze anniversary. Bronze is an alloy – a mixture of copper and tin, one more expensive and the other less so. We think that describes us perfectly: A fusion of design and architecture that includes inspiration and information from across the spectrum of décor styles. From DIY to high-end design, we work hard bringing it all to our millions of readers to help you discover, create and learn. These are the three maxims that guide everything we do, and this year, we’ve really done a lot!
DISCOVER
The top design shows around the globe offer an endless supply of inspiration and Homedit staff travel the world to bring you the latest in design trends, style innovations and and decorating ideas. Whether you’re working with a big home renovation budget or trying to make your home stylish and comfortable on a shoestring, we want to bring you the latest to inspire you and unlock your creativity.
Starting off the year in Toronto at IDS in January, we saw all kinds of new products from 3-D faucets to “floating” kitchen islands. We discovered the hottest home decor trends for 2016 and artsy new lighting fixtures and learned about making the most of a renovation budget.
March brought Homedit to the Architectural Digest Design Show 2016 in New York City. This amazing show, put on by the venerable architectural publication, was packed full of innovations, including new kitchen technology and lots of small makers with big ideas. We also loved the dining table inspiration we got from the DIFFA Dining by Design competition.
April in Paris means Maison and Objet, of course! There’s so much for your home to see at this show! One of our favorite categories is lighting and we found lots of ideas there to brighten up your bedroom.
From Maison and Objet, we hopped over to Milan for Salone Del Mobile 2016, which focused on kitchens. Eurocucina presented an overwhelming range of ideas for design, furnishings, and every appliance imaginable. From invisible cooktops to spectacular kitchen designs, we had a hard time fitting everything in for you!
May in New York City has become all about design with the institution of NYCxDESIGN, the official citywide celebration of design. The multi-week event is anchored by a number of fairs, including Brooklyn Design and ICFF 2016. Homedit hit both fairs this year to see what the small makers were presenting, as well as what was new from an international perspective.
Between shows over the summer, we visited some artisans and also spent a leisurely day in the Hudson Valley of New York State, checking out all the design shops that Hudson has to offer.
We started August in Las Vegas at the summer edition of the Las Vegas Furniture Market, where we saw all the new styles that many mass market retailers will be bringing to you. From there, we stopped by NY Now in New York City to get a look at all the hand-crafted pieces that vendors large and small have to offer and came away full of ideas and inspiration for decor and furnishings.
CREATE
Armed with ideas, you can unleash your creativity and make all sorts of projects for your home with Homedit’s tutorials and guides. This year, we launched Homedit Videos, our latest resource to provide inspiration and instruction for all your home projects. From DIY crafts, home maintenance, kitchen tricks and life hacks, to the latest innovations in home design – they’re all in one place.
Homedit has the step-by step instructions you need to create all sorts of home decor items for inside and out. Spruce up your patio or porch with a modern and durable concrete planter box.
Homedit also includes projects that are perfect for our readers who like to do a little basic woodworking in order to save money and create a special custom item. With a few tools, won and our tutorial, you can class up your bathroom by adding a DIY Side Vanity Storage Unit unit that can hide unsightly toilet items. Or, build a very stylish and trendy rolling cart for your kitchen that will rival any wooden cart that you can buy.
There are also plenty of easy woodworking projects that even a novice can handle, such as these versatile DIY floating shelves. With just a few tools and some paint, we show you how to transform some wood into useful shelving that’s perfect for any room of the house.
We have also gathered lots of ideas for easy upgrades to some of the basic home items you buy at the store. Inexpensive items from hardware stores and home stores like IKEA can take on a special look with just a few tweaks. Adding copper accents to standard galvanized planters is a good example.
Our DIY projects allow you make items that are special and stylish as well as functional, and not the same old thing that everyone else has. Homedit’s countertop leather sling wine rack is one of those custom items that has more style than the basic rack you can buy.
Woodworking not your thing? We work hard to include projects and tutorials of all kinds, like this Summer Pink Flamingo Painted Doormat that requires no hardware or woodworking skills. Our example has flamingos, but as always, there’s room for you creativity to come up with other designs using the same techniques.
Not all of our projects are purely decorative — many are also great organizational tools that can help keep things tidy. This cute DIY sunglasses holder is one of those projects. It helps you keep track of an easily lost item in a safe and attractive way.
Learn
Education is important and Homedit brings readers tutorials and instructions to present new techniques and skills. We want to help people master the skills to successfully complete DIY projects so we present visual as well as written information to help. Combining new skills and some imagination can lead to all kinds of new projects.But it’s not all DIY. We present lots of information about home maintenance, design concepts and home organization, just to name a few things.
Vintage photos have a special appeal, so we showed Homedit readers how to give any photo that old-fashioned feel. With just a few simple times you can transfer any photo to wood, which immediately gives it a vintage look. Using this technique you can transfer photos to anything made of wood, so let you imagination go!
Adding plants to your home decor is a great way to inject a natural element, so we showed readers how to make a fast and easy macrame plant hanger. This technique was big in the 1970’s and is now trending again. Macrame skills can also be useful for lots of other household projects such as wall hangings and bottle holders.
Home maintenance might not seem as fun as a craft project, but doing your own upkeep and repair can save a lot of money. This year, we showed Homedit readers how to strip and stain a deck. It’s a straightforward project that freshens up hour house whether you’re planning tor sell or just want to enjoy your own deck.
Building something is great but you also have to finish the piece properly to make it last. Similar to staining the deck is staining wood furniture, which has a few extra steps. And, we also showed you the entire process of how to refinish a set of wooden dining chairs, step by step.
The bathroom is a spot that often needs some kind of plumbing repair or refreshing, so we also showed readers how to remove and install a new bathroom faucet. It’s not as hard as you might think and can be a big savings for your budget. Not all the instruction Homedit provides is for beginners. Projects such as installing subway tile are a bit more of an undertaking, meant for those with intermediate DIY skills. But either way, Homedit gives you all the information, step by step.
Homedit also give readers ideas for outdoors as well as in. Many of our readers like to garden for beauty, fore relaxation, and for savings on fresh vegetables. This year we also showed how you can grow your own crop of gorgeous tomatoes from seed.
Each year, Homedit works to bring you new, innovative projects and ideas. We’re growing and expanding the range of information that we produce and it has been an exciting and inspiring 8th year for Homedit. We do it all for you and are looking forward to to many more years of helping you discover, create and learn.