Country style of décor has wooden dovetailed boxes, cotton fabrics, antique cotton quilts, stoneware bowls, woolen fabrics, hoosier cupboards and enamelware etc. the pieces of home décor are quite old but classic in nature. If you have seen rich brocades and velvets in walls, window dressings and future then it must be Victorian style of home décor. Victorian furnishing is complimented by mauves, burgundies, and shades of rich blues. Contemporary style is all about bold and bright patterns. It has mainly light-colored background. Accessories should have bright splashes of color. To compliment the contemporary décor, one can add abstracts and vinyl.

One of the popular and classy home decorative styles is French Country. Some of the highlights of this style are tiles on wall and floor, blues, rooster collections and an eclectic mix of elegance and rustic flavor. Art deco refers to the styles of 20’s, 30’s and 40’s. Vibrant colors, metal furnishings, elegant lines and inlayed furniture etc were the hallmarks of this style. If you are fond of pastel colors, go for Cottage Country. Cottage type flowers, lightly covered windows and painted wicker etc are prime characteristics of this style. Some of the other home decorative styles are Eclectic, Traditional, Rustic, Mediterranean, Spanish, Oriental, Modern, classical and Whimsical.

The concept of interior decoration has reached to new heights. Every other day, we come across some new ideas and decorative tricks. Now, you can never say that you couldn’t find what you were looking for in home décor. You name it and you will have your favorite decorations and designs. Wall panels have got huge popularity in recent times. More and more urban households are looking for decorative wall panels which are available in a variety of finishes, textures and wood grains. If you are looking for decorative finishes and textures along with distinctive groove patterns, you will get plenty of them. That’s not all. Decorative wall panels are also available in wide-variety of species, hues and widths. You can install them in basements as well as below the grounds.

Sounds tempting, doesn’t it? Consumers are literally spoilt for choices when it comes to decorative wall panels. If you are looking for most favored varieties then have your pick from wainscot, beadboard panels, plank panels, decorative finish panels, project boards, woodgrain finish panels and lionite tileboard. Wainscot panels are available in different variety of woodgrains and styles. They can be perfect selection to add beauty and style to your décor. They also have distinctive double groove pattern.

If you are looking to add visual interest to your home then look no further than beadboard panels. Available in a variety of patterns in real and simulated wood, beadboard panels can also be used as accent walls. Plank panels are perhaps the easiest to install. They are considered ideal for installation on ceilings, accent walls, walls and wainscot. For texture and richness, decorative finish panels would be the perfect choice. Talking about project panels, they are also decorative wall panels. Most suitable for basement, garage and home office, project panels include chalk board. The toughest of all decorative wall panels is lionite tileboard which can prove to be a perfect choice for high moisture living areas.

The first thing that you need to do is to prepare your room before the painting begins. It is often an ignored part that can lead of wastage of resources. You would not like to clean up the mess afterwards. Move all your furniture to other room and arrange plastic drop cloth or canvas drop cloth to put over the floor. Place it properly covering the entire floor or base boards. Also remove all the ceiling fixtures and mirrors or wall arts etc to save them from any painting spillover.

Take a hard look at the surface and get rid of any cobwebs or surface dirt. Surface must be wiped a soft cloth. The ceiling can have water stains or rough patches etc. use right patching compounds before painting and allow them to dry. Use texture to give desired effect to the ceiling. In case of stains, use brush or stain blocker first. Primer will come handy in making the paint roll in a smooth manner. Always use good quality paint. Using these tips will make your painting job easier and comfortable.

Well, here are we to provide you with some help: Get some inspiration: Buy Interior decoration magazines, surf the net, save some designs, visit exhibitions. Basically, expose yourself to as much as you can. The next step is to identify one theme and delete the unwanted information. Now comes the master plan which quintessentially includes:

• Repainting the room
• Shifting and shuffling
• Giving life to some bare walls
• Without much investment, giving space and character to your room
• Some of the tips that can help you are:
• Dismantle the old bookcase from the wall and put it on the floor. It can create a pleasant corner next to the bed
• Invest in an antique piece of mirror and place it close to a window so that the light will reflect and will illuminate the room
• Make that dull dressing table interesting by placing patchwork designs on it
• Change those dull curtains
• Add colourful rugs

Some more tips:

• Take one thing at a time or things can get damn confusing
• May seem silly but put everything on paper
• In case you are working, make sure you have some house help to supervise the repairs if any
• Accept that you can’t control everything. Unpleasant surprises may arise.
• Finally, your involvement will reflect the makeover of your room.
• Remember, you room too says a story about you.

Some people are concious about the space allocation and utilization in their homes keeping in mind that they will need to be cleaned and maintained regularly. Such is the planning that goes into designing a good home.

Furniture which is usually made of wood and consists of the bed, drawers, side tables, chests, mirror frames needs proper care. Mirror pieces need dry cleaning. Metal pieces should be cleaned twice once with a damp cloth and then with a dry one. Wooden and metal beds both can be cleaned regularly with a damp cotton cloth to wipe off the dust settled on them. Wooden beds may need a polish after some years to make the wood shine.

One should have indoor fountains pieces in one’s home as they act as natural air purifiers. As water circulates through the fountain, the dust and pollutants in the air are pulled out. The soothing sound of flowing water makes the environment calm and peaceful.

Side table and chests should be cleaned and wiped with a dry or a moist cotton cloth daily. This ensures that the tables do not remain dusty. In case of wooden side tables, one may need to get them polished after some time so that the shine and the glow of the wood are maintained. Special cleaning is required for bedroom for kids, as this is one room that may get dirty the most. Make sure that the furniture you select is easy to clean and does not have sharp edges.

There are do-it-yourself ideas for cushions, wall hangings and simple artifacts that are not expensive. Prior to Diwali all the shops hold discounts and complimentary buys. This is a great help to enjoy the shopping and using a lot of elements that add life to the dull corners or windows. Use the Chinese lantern in bright hues which has utility as a décor in the living room after Diwali too.

Paint the mud lamps with acrylic colors and do some stick ons on the same. Silks and old scarves in synthetic can be used as covers for the old cushions. Do a bit of fabric paint on the old bed sheet and also use a lot of hangings on the curtain rails. Renovating the kitchen is a huge job and yet there are easy refacing in cabinets and trays. Tiles this season are of the Spanish variety and many designs are stocked for kid’s bathroom too.

Candles can be handmade, aromatic or simple white ones twined with the satin ribbon. Go for handy trays and decorations for thali that is kept close to windows. Get a painted chart board that can add interest to the entrance like a rangoli. Use wooden sticks, color them with gold or silver dustings and tie some cloth around the same to be stuck on the plain walls.                                                        

Buying new pieces of furniture require a good deal of planning. Though colour and size are important they are not the only factors that should affect your purchase decision. Read on to find out what exactly should go into buying a good set of sofa set that will last you years.

One of the most important factors is to decide the price and try to get the best deal possible in that range. While you are searching a good set of sofa you will come across innumerable ads that will sell sofa sets at very low prices. However, you may not get good quality furniture and these inexpensive sofas can just break, the springs can pop up and these sofas can look out of shape within a year of constant use. Hence it is always advisable to invest in a good quality range of sofa set even if it is a little expensive, they will always last long.

After you have decided the look of your sofa set, you need to decide the look of the cushions that you are going to use with it. Keep in mind that in case you choose loose cushions then they will give you the option of turning the pillows as needed, but in case you choose the one with attached backs they won’t need fluffing or even rearranging. Also select the number of cushions needed on your sofa set. One cushion offers a modern look while two or three make for a more traditional look You also need to choose an arm style for your new sofa. There are many styles available such as the traditional rolled arm or curved English arm, or any other style.

Also you need to keep in mind that you shouldn’t get attracted to the sheer look of the sofa. Enquire about the construction of a sofa. Good quality sofas are made from kiln-dried hardwoods such as oak, maple, poplar, etc. while inexpensive furniture is made from softer pine lumber. Also find out how the seat support system is made. Check if the furniture store has a piece of the interior of upholstered pieces. Check if it has a quality tied springs or cheaper wire coils.

Choose a fabric for your sofa according to the colour of the wall and the theme that you have chosen for that particular room. You can choose from chenille, velvets etc. Finally do dress up a sofa with nice coloured pillows.

Try using a lot of yellow and oranges during monsoons. These colours can enhance a dull gloomy you on a rainy day. At the same time it is also important to avoid very light colours like white and beige as it becomes very difficult to maintain the house with these light colours. Also with the onset of monsoons reduce the amount of greenery inside the house and keep your plants out in the rain. Plastic plants which are yellow in colour like yellow sunflowers can be kept in the house. Keep the carpet away for the monsoons and wrap the carpet in a plastic so that it doesn’t catch moisture.

It is advisable that one should invest in a coir mat which is easy to clean during the monsoons. Also, before the monsoons, keep all your books and important documents away safely. I would recommend keeping these documents in water proof zip lock case. It is also recommended to ensure that your house can withstand the onslaught of the rain. So see to it that you fill up any minute cracks with plaster of Paris or white cement until more professional restoration work can be undertaken. In case of any metal surfaces in your house that can get rusty, treat them with a waterproof spray.

Also, keep a space at the entrance of the house to keep the wet umbrellas and raincoats for drying. It is also advisable to keep a good waterproof doormat in front of your house.

Other popular natural carpet is silk. One of the most expensive fibers, silk comes from cocoons of silk worms. China is known for producing best silk carpets. Its beauty lies in light stuff and smoothness of the fiber. Rich look is another advantage of silk carpets. Mostly used in light traffic areas because of its sophistication, silk carpets can enhance the beauty of interiors to a great extent. Silk carpets are definitely very special. Popular silk carpet designs include swastika, yin and yang motif, clouds, lotus flowers and animals etc.