Traditionally placed into our homes for functional reasons, storage is constantly breaking away from its mould as it is becoming more of a statement within our houses, whilst helping to store the objects that we collect over the years.

From small trinkets, fashionable baskets and multi-purposes benches there is a huge variety of quirky solutions currently on the market. Encase your possessions in a striking conversation piece to make that bold however practical statement.

When shopping think of sculptural shapes, graphic lines and unusual structures to enhance your rooms features and really make an impact.

You may choose shutters or shades for you bedroom, however good quality curtains and drapes are more effective for keeping the warm in and the cold out, as well as blocking out noise and light from outside at night time.

You may choose to match the bed fabric with the curtains as this will create a neat and stylish effect. When co-ordinating, you may choose bed spreads that complement the colours and patterns of the curtains.

Buy curtains that fit with your personal taste and style and remember to buy curtains that will complement your bedroom window. You can read the earlier Home Interiors 4U blog for window curtain ideas.

If the design of the room is to emphasis a sense of calmness, the colour blue generally is associated with this quality ranging from powder blue through to dark blue. Muted hues of green, blue and brown help to create the feeling of bringing the outide indoors. These colours work well in a kitchen or study. Vibrant colours, such as, purple or pinks create the feeling of energy and excitement and warm colours include yellows, creams and neutral shades.

Once you have chosen the colour, the type of paint you chose is important to create the right effect. When painting woodwork a gloss paint is usually used but on walls emulsion paint is recommended. Chose from Vinyl silk, satin or matt and where ever possible chose an environmentally friendly paint with almost no paint smell. These paints usually dry mch quicker than regular paint there by speeding up the whole process and reducing smells.

You need to be aware of the space you are working with as that will inform the style of your living room and your choice of furniture. A small room should not contain too much or bulky furniture as the room will appear cramped and cluttered.

Style considerations to take into account are material, colour, size and theme. If you want to create a modern environment, choose modern furniture, that is not traditional and create a colour scheme that reflects your personality. A feature wall is considered very modern, which you could decorate with wallpaper or feature wallpaper. Buy furniture that will complement your feature wall in order to make a statement.

When arranging the furniture in your room it is a good idea to draw a floor plan to help you visualise the room and ensure everything fits. If you want to create a sociable space, make the focal point the centre of the room with chairs grouped together to allow guests to talk to each other. A more formal environment should feature symmetry. For example, you could place two armchairs side by side or paintings next to each other in a row. The floor plan will help you to arrange your furniture in a way that creates the right space for you.

Remember, furniture can be the focal point in any living room, provided it chosen carefully. Buy furniture that will fit harmoniously into your living space. Above all, home interiors advise you buy furniture to complement your home.

Giving guidance for the right curtains for your windows.

Windows come in all shapes and sizes; you can make your room appear wider or make your room appear taller with curtains. Made to measure curtains especially have the abilty for you to change the whole appearance of your room.

Celebrate Your Arched Windows

Arched windows are elegant and full of character, so you want to buy curtains that celebrate their natural presence.

By placing the pole well above the window and drawing the curtains fully back against the wall, you can create a feature of your arched windows; let your windows do the talking. Any house with feature windows, whether arched, stained glass or sash windows, can have subtle curtains that make more of the window. Buy curtains with a subtle colour or pattern to allow your windows to make the statement.

Buy Curtains for Bay Windows

There are a number of design and fitting problems associated with bay windows, which you may have found out already. A pole can be fitted across the window for curtains, but that will reduce the space in the room. Instead, use flexible tracks.

You also need to decide how many curtains you would like in your windows. One advantage of multiple curtains (one curtain per window) is that you will have more privacy. Also the curtains could fit inside the bay which leaves the flat wall free. Finally, multiple curtains fitted well above the window will accentuate the height of the room.

Alternatively, a pair of curtains will need to draw back against the flat wall. One advantage of this is it creates a sense of width, which can be beneficial in narrower rooms.

Summer 2011 is proving to be one for mixing bright bold colours and creating eye catching statements. On the high street many retailers are offering colour clash fashion solutions with palettes combining rich blues and greens placed alongside pretty pinks and refreshing yellows.

Following these trends, SS11 is also seeing bright colours enter our home interiors. Bright, bold curtains are the perfect way to help bring that zest for life and fun summer feeling into your home. Instantly transforming your room into a modern, stylish space whilst creating a similar statement to what we are seeing in trends elsewhere.

To further create that perfect summer feeling why not consider using these bright colours in patterned curtains. Flavourful floral finishes are transforming rooms into chic areas of living whilst classic ‘deck chair’ fabrics using bright statement stripes are infusing the seaside summer vibe inside.

Browse the shops now for summer curtains and inspiration!

Here are a few tips to help you along the way:

• Look at the largest and most dominant piece of furniture in your room and choose your colour to co-ordinate with or match this.  In doing this your room will look planned and have a consistent theme.

 

• If you decide on a plain rather than patterned fabric, consider adding interest with tie backs or trim.

 

• Think carefully about the practical function of your curtains.  For example, generally speaking a heavy lined curtain will cost far more than a voile.  But if you need to block out light or keep in warmth you’ll need to go for a more substantial fabric.  However, if you simply want to dress a window and make a feature of it, you may not need to buy curtains with weight.

 

• Consider what other fabrics you have in your room.  Are there already lots of patterns or is it relatively plain.  The other soft furnishings in your room will dictate to some extent what direction you go in with the pattern of the curtains you choose.  Our fabric samples could help you match or contrast patterns and fabrics.

 

Armed with these tips – take a look around and enjoy the experience of choosing to buy curtains for your home.

Work from home

Last night, in an interview with the BBC’s Newsnight programme, the International Monetary Fund (IMF)’s Mr Lipsky said: “the (Uk’s) unemployment rate remains unacceptably high but it seems to have stabilised”.

The IMF’s analysis is unlikely to end calls for alternative economic plans and as Labour unveils plans for a city bonus tax to aid youth unemployment?, an altogether more entrepreneurial activity seems to be changing things from the grass roots.

An increasing number of companies are catering for a thirst for home garden office and garden studio’s as more and more people are starting their own businesses from home because they have lost their jobs or fear that unemployment might be on the cards and would rather take their destiny into their own hands.

This year’s organisers of the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) Chelsea Flower Show, have identified “the garden office” as a major trend. These peaceful work spaces often combine a range of environmental features including solar panels.

According to the Office of National Statistics, 1 in 12 of the British population now work from home on a self-employed basis – the equivalent of over 2 million people.

However it is the internet that has really allowed these garden offices to really make a difference to both the environment and our economic prospects. With broadband communications bringing teleconferencing and data sharing in the cloud, individuals and networks of disparate colleagues can, for the first time, work with clients and suppliers all over the world, free from the gas guzzling commuter trips to centralised offices.

The flexibility of home working is often seen as providing a more balanced work/life relationship allowing a more integrated family life and has been proven to provide more productive output. It is the profits from this increased productivity from millions of entrepreneurs working from home and in their garden offices across the UK that could be the salvation to our national debt and the light at the end of our credit crisis tunnel.