ABC’s of Fine Design

Some of the best things you can buy for your home are for you. They are things that are fun, make you feel good or just plain look great in your home. Buying something you like not only makes you happy when you buy it, but can make you happy later on too.

Bedroom furniture is one of these things. If you get good sleep you are happier, right? A nice comfortable bed sounds good to most people. Of course you can always make it fun depending on the type of bed you buy. Children love bunk beds, even if there is just one child, get them a bed with a desk under it, or at least some sort of play space. They can use it as a cave or a castle. My niece loves her bunk bed because she can put all of her Barbie stuff under it.

Another thing to buy to add some fun to your home is Bar Furniture, this is mostly for the adults, but children love it too. Remember they can’t get into a real bar so to them having a bar at home is really cool. Make it like an ice cream shop and they will love you even more.

The last area that is always fun to buy stuff for in the dinning area, this time of year
Dining Room Furniture is a big seller, mostly because family’s grow and with the holidays here many people don’t have enough room for there family. Buying a new table and decorations to go on it is always fun for me.

What kind of home items do you like to buy?

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Now that the turkey is gone and everyone is nice and full it’s time to start thinking of Christmas. The presents, the shopping and most of all the decorating. You need lights for outside and in. You need to figure out just how many Personalized Christmas Ornaments you will need to buy this year and you will need some nice stockings to go along with them.

There are many places to get these types of things. One of my favorites is Personalization mall.com. They are one of my favorite sites because of there selection and prices. I don’t have children yet, but once I do I plan on getting personalized Christmas stockings and ornaments for them. I had a personalized ornament when I was a child and I loved it because that is how Santa knew where to put our presents. I am one of 5 children and even though we didn’t have money for alot of presents there still was a good pile sitting there.

I also like personalized gifts because it makes the item unique. When your going for a good interior or exterior design you want the whole look to mean something and show some of yourself. One way to make that nice stylish impression is to personalize it. It makes the room feel warmer and more inviting, not only to you but to your loved ones as well.

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I love lighting. It not only helps you see but it can help you create a warm wonderful feeling or even a cold uncomfortable one. Most people want the first in there home, they want it to be warm and inviting so that people will stay there.

Lighting makes the difference. You can use candles to make a room not only look warm but feel and smell warm. With the holidays close at hand stock up on holiday scented candles and use them when your guest are over.

Another way to add light is to use a sconce or two in the dining room. There are many types of sconces, some you can use candles in, others are battery powered so you can take them down later. If you want something permanent of course they have those too and you can find them in most home improvement stores.

You can also make your own sconce by using any type of shelf or wall mounted candle holder and fiber glass or plastic cover. Get creative and wow your guest this holiday season.

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I live very close to Frankenmuth Michigan, home of Bronner’s Christmas wonderland. I love this store as it’s 364 days of Christmas, of course they do a few other holidays when they come around, but there specialty is Christmas.

They have many different kinds of Christmas decorations. I still have my personalized name ornament that we bought when I was 4. All it has on it is my first name, but I still love it. This store is the place to go for all of your Christmas decorating. They do have a website and you can go there by clicking there name. The ornament above is one that I got my grandparents last year. Since my name is Holly. I thought it was great. I also found a fortune cookie one for my little sister. She loves that stuff.

They also sell advent calenders and of course other holiday decorations. If your looking to have a green Christmas, as in energy saving they also have a great selection of LED Christmas lights. I love these as they use so little power and look amazing. For those of you who go crazy outside you may like this mailbox cover.

I really do hope you take a look at this store, it is a favorite of mine and right now the Michigan economy really stinks, so if you order from them you would not only be getting great merchandise but helping the people in this area as well.

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Do you love to shop? I do, I love to go through all of the stores in the mall and find just that on perfect item for myself or someone else. With Christmas on the way I will be spending more time there looking for Christmas gifts.

Did you know that as an interior designer you can design malls? I’m not talking about the stores in the mall, I did a post on that before. You can check that one out here. I am talking about the entire mall. You get to decide how easy it is to get around, you decide the finishes and furniture in the common areas. You get to decide the feel of the mall. Do you want it to be high end and stylish or more down to earth and cozy?

I like malls that have different store front, it makes the mall seem more personal. Every store that looks different makes the mall seem more fun. This is definitely an area of design you should think about if your into shopping. it’s great for someone who knows how a shopper is going to use the mall. Just think your work will always be admired by someone, even if it’s just a child, maybe this is why I also like holiday design

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Yes I know the Thanksgiving holiday is still a couple of weeks away, but now is the time to start thinking of things you can do to decorate your home for the holiday. I have found a few sites with some great items to help give you some inspiration for your holiday decorating.

The first one I love because it’s everything fall and thanksgiving. You don’t have to use this exact piece, but find one that you like, either online or at your local florist and use that. If you find one online visit a local florist and see if they can do it for you. If your crafty, try doing it yourself. You can go out and get real leaves or use silk leaves from your local store. Buy some fall veggies or plastic ones if you want it to last a few years and have at it, remember it’s not going to look exactly like the picture you may have, but it’s yours. The centerpiece is something everyone will notice and if you make it it’s something you can be proud of.

Place setting is another important part of thanksgiving, my family doesn’t go all out with everything, we use paper plates and don’t have place settings, but I know many people who do this and I would love to one year. You must remember with place settings, stick with one theme. For thanksgiving look at the trees and the colors that go with them, use that when deciding your colors. Some examples are, brown, maroon, orange, dark green and yellow. You can also mix them up for a more fun look. As for plates if you don’t have much money use what you have, if you have some money and like china buy some nice inexpensive fall plates.

The last thing you can do is decorate the dinning room. I personally like a small use of fall garland around specific areas, if you have a fire place use it there or on a buffet table. You can also put it over the windows. Another decorating idea you can do it to use candles in different places around the room, it makes it feel cozy and comforting.

The best bit of advice I can give you is to keep is simple, you have enough work with the meal don’t make a huge fuss over the rest of it. Enjoy this thanksgiving.

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Okay everyone it’s time for the Halloween Decorating Contest!

There are two prizes one for the best outdoor decoration and one for the best indoor decoration. Prizes are $15 pay pal for each winner. Your pictures will also be posted on this blog with a link to the website or blog of your choosing.

(prize may increase at ABC’s discretion)

Rules:

You must be in the US.

It must be a picture you took.

Only one submission per category per person. So yes you can submit to both the indoor and outdoor prize, you also have a chance to win both.

All submissions must be in by the 15th of October

Voting:

Starting on the 16th of October readers can start voting. You can vote as many times as you would like. On the 25th I will then take the top 3 in each category and keep those up then those will be voted on until the 30th. Winners will be announced on the 31st and paid no later then the 2nd of November.

Please email your submissions to contact@abcfinedesignblog.com

Include your name, paypal email address and the website you would like listed if you win. Please send the photo as an attachment.

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