Posts Tagged ‘retreat’

How to Make a Guest Room Into a Beach Experience

October 6th, 2011

If you’re looking for a fun way to give your guest room a relaxing and welcoming look and feel, the beach might be the perfect source of decorating inspiration. Most people associate the beach with rest, relaxation, leisure and fun, all of which are good qualities to add to your guest room decor. As an added bonus, the natural colors of the beach are quite complementary and attractive, making them the perfect shades to use as part of your room decor. Here are some great tips that you can use to transform a plain guest room into a beautiful beach retreat.

The Soothing Colors of Nature

When using beach-themed decor in your guest room, you’ll want to focus first on the beautiful colors of nature. Sand, taupe, sky blue, sea foam green and white are all great colors to use. These colors will inspire your guests to think of the beach, while also providing a beautiful backdrop for the rest of the room’s decor. To get the most from these colors, try using taupe or sand as the flooring color, while using a beautiful light blue on the walls. You can then accentuate the natural look of these colors by adding splashes of white in the form of wood trim or furniture pieces. The end result will be bright, cheerful, and relaxing. If you are artistic, you might even want to try your hand at creating a beach mural on one wall. Or, use beach-themed wallpaper to add to the room’s overall look.

Add a Touch of Fun

Once you have your basic beach-themed color scheme in place, you can add a few playful touches in the form of furniture pieces and accessories. White wicker furniture or an Adirondack chair can add an outdoorsy look and feel to the room. A small potted palm tree or seashell collection can also add to the room’s overall beach theme. A beautiful framed poster, print, photograph or painting of the beach can also be hung on the wall to accentuate the look.

Completing the Look

Although you don’t want to overdo the look with too many small details, a beach-themed guest room is also a great place to display a couple of your favorite souvenirs from the seashore. For example, a framed map or sailing chart could add the perfect nautical look to the room. When decorating a guest room, it’s important to remember that your guests will need enough space to store their clothing and other personal items. You’ll want to make sure the room includes a comfortable bed, complete with sumptuous bedding. A bedside table should be included for convenience, along with a dresser and chest of drawers to provide storage. If the room is large enough, you could also create a comfortable sitting area by combining a chair or loveseat with a small coffee table or a set of end tables. Your guests will also undoubtedly appreciate a small desk if you have the space. Don’t clutter tabletops and other horizontal surfaces with too many accessories or knick-knacks, so that your guests will have enough space to comfortably store their own items.

Posted in Remodeling Tips

The Best Place For The Home Office

July 12th, 2011

Requiring all the features of an office environment while still keeping the feel of all the other rooms in the house, designing an office at home can be a very complicated task. If you have a conservatory on your house then this unusual area could be perfect for what you require for your office. By doing this you do not need to sacrifice one of the bedrooms or disrupt rooms which you have already set up.

There are many other advantages to having your office in the conservatory that we will now look at. A conservatory provides a secluded retreat where you can work in peace without the hustle and bustle of the rest of the house. Once the room is set up as an office make sure that everyone knows that it is your office and when you are working that they must not enter the room unless you allow them to.

If you are having the conservatory built for the sole purpose of being used as your own office then you may need to consider a few things. The size of the window panes and also the type of glass that is used in the construction of the window will both effect how suitable the conservatory is to be used as a home office. As most people will know, a conservatory is a largely glass extension to the property. As the conservatory is being built for your specific needs, research which glass would be best for your needs such as anti-glare and keeping the room at the right temperature to work in. Energy will be saved by ensuring that you take these correct steps at the start as it will keep the conservatory cool when it is hot outside and keep it warmer when it is cold outside. They will also help you to keep out the noise from outside and even offer extra security as the glass will be harder for an intruder to smash.

As well as ensuring the glass is correct, you will want to ensure that you have some good quality conservatory blinds installed to the roof and side. As well as blocking out distractions outside of the conservatory, a good set of blinds will also stop people seeing into the conservatory and therefore add an extra layer of security as well. The main problem with working in a conservatory is the sun shining in and glaring off your screen or into your eyes while you are trying to work. If you install blinds in the conservatory you can raise and lower them as you need to so that the sun does not shine through into your face.

You will need to think carefully about what type of conservatory furniture you would like in the office and make a list of everything that you are going to need in the room. These are the items that you would find in pretty much any office regardless of location, items such as a bookshelf and of course a desk for your computer. For the rest of the furniture, think about the conservatories secondary purpose, what is it being used for when it is not being used as an office? This will effect what else you choose to put within the conservatory.

Posted in Remodeling Tips