My Home Inspire Ideas

What mainly comes to mind when you think of granite? Kitchen countertops? Bathroom vanities? Perhaps flooring now and again in public buildings? These are popular applications of granite, and they all certainly have their place. But there are actually many other ways to incorporate granite into a home. Here are some ways you can include this lovely product of nature in your house without necessarily adding a counter or vanity top. Granite Basins and Sinks You may think stainless steel, porcelain, or glass when you think of sinks, but stone is also a popular sink material these days. If you’d like to go au natural in your bathroom, granite is a terrific stone to use. It’s elegant and durable, resistant to common stains, and doesn’t require a lot of upkeep to remain beautiful. You can find granite sinks, including pedestal style, but also basins, which add a sleek, modern edge to this timeless material. It’s a touch of luxury and refinement in any bathroom. Granite Table Tops A step away from a countertop, a granite table top makes a beautiful dining table or even desk. Just like granite countertops, you can count on the long-lasting quality of a granite table top. Granite’s stain and scratch resistance makes it a great surface for eating, and you won’t need to spend hours grooming it or worrying about it. When company comes, you have a fabulous place to gather, and when they’re gone a little soap and water cleans up perfectly. Even if you plan to use your granite table top everyday, a little mild cleaning and wiping up of spills will keep it shiny and healthy for a long time. Granite also makes for a solid desktop for an office or even just a home office. Granite Fireplace Mantles Surround your fireplace with a granite mantle to make an elegant focal point. The flecks and swirls of various colors in the stone will glimmer in the firelight, and granite is naturally heat-resistant so it’s a perfect contender for a fireplace. If you like to sit by the fire at night with your family, consider adding granite as a mantle piece for the visual benefit of everyone. Granite Medallions A granite medallion is essentially a pattern made from pieces of granite that have been laid onto one large tile. They’re safe to use inside or outside, on the floor or on the wall. You can find various designs, all of which make the perfect natural art. Because medallions are one composite piece, it’s easy to install. You might consider installing one in your entryway, master bathroom or shower floor, patio or deck floor, or pool. It can bring art and color to some otherwise artless places. Now you can see that you have many more ways to bring a little granite into your home. You no longer need to wait until a kitchen renovation to consider granite. A simple sink upgrade in your bathroom, for instance, or a new dining room table top can work just as well. Same beautiful material, different application. (more…)

It happens to all of us at one time or another, and it doesn’t matter what type of home you live in, whether renting or you are a homeowner. You take a look around your home and decide that it’s time for a ‘design facelift’. The surroundings that have provided comfort and enjoyment are now looking tired and ordinary. But, your home decor budget is slim to none, so what do you do? Don’t give up before you start. Here are five easy, simple, inexpensive to no cost home decor changes you can make right now that will give any room in your home a fresh, new and interesting look. These strategies will be applied to your living room in this article, but will work effectively in any room of your home. First, clean out the clutter. Our ’stuff’ has a way of accumulating without us realizing it, and after awhile can become more of a hindrance than anything else. Take each room in your home individually so you won’t become overwhelmed with the task. Then, remove anything that you have not used in the last three months. If it is an appliance taking up space on your kitchen counter, put it in a cabinet and out of sight. You may have set a floral arrangement or some other type of nic-nac on a table thinking you would find a permanent home for it later, and there it still sits. Move it. You may be surprised at how much brighter your rooms look when they are clutter free. The next home decorating idea in this project is to rearrange the furniture in at least one room, and preferably two or three rooms of your home. You may need to enlist some help with this step, so plan ahead and gather a few pairs of hands to accomplish the task. If your sofa has been in the same place in your living area for more than two years, it is time to make a location change! You may not have many options if your living area is small or limited in other ways. At a minimum, pull the sofa away from the wall (I know that’s where it is right now for most readers) and angle it toward the television, or whatever the focal point is in this area. You might be limited to a move as subtle as pulling one end of the sofa about a foot or so from the wall. But wait, that’s not all. Then, take the other seating in the room and angle it just a little bit, swapping locations of chairs (if you have more than one in the room). Now step back and notice that your room has taken on a different feel because the position and angles of the larger pieces have been changed. Your interior decor project is making progress!After giving your room’s largest pieces a new perspective you will now do the same for the accessories. I always advise that you physically remove them from the room or area you are working in. Bring in accessories from another room, or take the extra inventory of pictures out of the closet and try something different in this room. Go ahead and take a decorating risk!That leads right into the fourth easy and no cost home decorating idea for you. Carefully consider the existing color scheme in this room and introduce a new, never before used accent color. If you’re not sure what type of color could be added, here is one course of action. Purchase something small and returnable, such as an accent pillow, and just try it. What is the worst thing that will happen? You won’t like it and will take it back to the store. But, you might love it, and it is always so much fun when the decorating ‘aha!’ light goes on. When that happens, you will be able to add, in a small way, more of this color to the room. Remember this rule, though; more is not always better. Be thoughtful and particular about where you place this new color. If you don’t overwhelm the room with it, the result will be that breath of new life for your room. If you desire, there is one more home decor idea to introduce to the room, and that is the addition of some beautiful greenery. Placing greenery in the room can provide the finishing touches to your interior design project. Again, use a light touch with the silk plants or trees, and if possible use good to better quality merchandise. The thoughtfully placed, better quality silks will enhance the class and polish of your newly redecorated area. Now that you have successfully made these easy, simple and low or no cost home decorating changes, step back and enjoy your surroundings. Better yet, take a break, have some refreshment and enjoy the view from a new perspective! (more…)