DIY & Decor

Today is Halloween. Have you read our previous article about decorating for Halloween? Hopefully you and your kids are having fun today at a party!

However, there is problem - namely that, until Christmas, there isn’t much to cheer us up. The days are getting shorter, greyer and colder. Lots of people become tired, irritable or sad - some of us would prefer just to hibernate until Spring! So if you feel the winter blues coming on, why don’t you do a bit of DIY decor to perk up your mood?

Think about comforting foods, smells, textures and colours - things that make you feel better, happier and more relaxed..

This is a preview, read Winter Decor in full.

Halloween is upon us. It’s a good excuse to decorate our homes and have a bit of fun with our kids, or to organise a Halloween-themed party. This can be really quick and easy - with a little imagination you can create a memorable festivity.  So here are a few suggestions to brighten up our environments:

You can customise a basic Christmas wreath - one that is made of twigs, berries and cones - and add some dried fallen leaves, candies or a witch. Put this on your door or above the mantelpiece. You can make smaller ones which you can put around candle holders, bowls or vases.

This is a preview, read Decorating for Halloween in full.

As I wrote in the previous article, gloss and lacquered finishes are yet again fashionable. However, you don’t need to replace all your furniture, with a bit of imagination you can update your home to shine!

If you’re happy with the wall colors, just add a shimmery or pearly  layer of varnish or glaze over the existing paint. If you want to change the color scheme, choose  seductive yet subdued colors, such as chocolate, coffee-latte, caramel, ivory, sage, pink, mauve, taupe - either in a gloss finish, or add a top layer of transparent shiny glaze. Wallpapers are also back - big time. But don’t cover all walls, just a feature wall in a textured, glamorous and shiny or metallic finish. Look out for bronze and gold - these two metallic finishes are taking over from silver & chrome.

This is a preview, read Glossy interiors in full.

After a period of matt finishes being the trend, gloss is back and it’s everywhere - on walls, walls, furniture and ornaments.  This new trend was started by the nostalgic inspiration of Art deco and Hollywood Glamour of the twenties and thirties, but now every modern chic interior has to shimmer by glossy surfaces.

Applying a high-gloss finish to surfaces started in the kitchen. Over the last year or so we have seen a shift from using dark wood veneer to lacquered glossy surfaces.  Kitchen doors have become shiny - black, red & white - and these are combined with mirrored, metallic or coloured glass tiles and splash-backs.  Even Ikea has brought out their Abstract range in these high-gloss finishes, which are hugely successful worldwide..

This is a preview, read High Gloss finishes in full.