A Few of My Favorite Things

I hang my “Christmas swags”. It seems I can never get interior décor out of my mind. Even my Christmas decoration names sound like window treatment styles! All they are is just 3 strands of Christmas décor beads that I drape softly over the top of my windows-right on top of the draperies and then loop the ends over the rods. The color and the glimmer of the beads is beautiful. The beaded garland is available where Christmas decorations are sold. Strands of evergreen garland or ornaments strung on ribbons also make great swags. Try your hand at making your own Christmas window treatments.
You will just love this beautiful and unusual decoration from “across the pond” in Europe for your table. Get a group of 6-7 Christmas balls and remove the top loop part. Put a small artificial single flower down in the balls with a sticky dot on the bottom of the ball. It becomes a round vase for the flower. On a sturdy plate, spread out some stone or glass chips to cover. Use sticky dots on the bottom of the glass balls to anchor them on the plate amid the stones. A few tips on creating this look- choose a color theme for the balls, flowers and stones, usually one floral spray will suffice for the arrangement and use your imagination to come up with different materials or garland that you can nestle the balls into. A picture is worth a thousand words, so here is a completed one for you to use as a guide.
I love decorating- whether I am designing for a client’s home or creating a beautiful mantel for the holiday season. That’s me! I’m cooking up more design goodies for you. See you in the next issue. Always remember to decorate with joy and happiness.

Make a unique wreath this year!

I am a wreath lover! I use varieties of them year round. So naturally when I saw this DIY wreath in my CB2 catalog, I was hooked! The possibilities are endless.Instructions can be found at http://blog.cb2.com/?s=DIY+wreath. The size you want your wreath to be determines the number of ornaments you need. Other supplies are a coat hanger and ribbon.

As you read about this wreath, consider also that you can use other types of ornaments or decorations and achieve the same result. You could use sleigh bells, angel ornaments, Santas etc.

New Idea for Christmas

This time of year I am poring over the holiday catalogs and Christmas idea magazines that come my way. This peaked my interest and I had to pass it along to you!

I have found a hardwood stocking holder at Improvements. It is very nice looking and will not mar your beautiful mantel or get in the way of your garland. No nails needed either! It is the best of both worlds. It can be found at http://www.improvementscatalog.com/.

Holiday Design 2009

It is just around the corner and I want to make all of you the stress-free host or hostess. These are things I do in my home this time of year and I know they work very well.
Lets start with the table. You will probably need extra chairs. Use what you have around the house and tie them together with decoration. Festive ribbons and fabrics can be tied to the back of the chairs. Small grapevine wreaths also work well. Just like that you will have a coordinated table look.
Keep the table clears for your guests and their plates by using a sideboard or countertop to set your dishes and platters on. Let them serve themselves buffet style.
More holiday tidbits to follow later!
Linda

Learn Color for Your Interiors

I have just finished teaching classes on the keys to decorating with color. It is such an important concept and everyone got something out of the class. The class format is available as an e-book on my website titled 'The Keys to Decorating with Color". At $4.99 it is cheaper than class tuition and it packed with information. Give it a try. I want everyone to be armed with color help to make their interiors the best they can be!

Window Treatments Designed to Save Energy

Dare I say it? We are marching forward into Winter 2009 and the icy temperatures
that come along with the season. Uggh!! Along with that, energy costs have continued to be one of the heavyweights of every household budget living through the current economy! It is time to start looking closer at how the proper type of window treatments can help reduce your utility expenses. This is a key point and I am going to shout it from the rooftops. Window treatments can have both beauty and brains (so to speak). Energy efficiency at your windows is a step in the “green” direction also.
Engineers speak in terms of R-value in reference to the energy efficiency of any given product. It also applies to window treatments. R-value is defined as a product’s resistance to transferring heat between two environments of different temperatures. Higher R-value numbers are better at keeping out cold.
While energy efficient windows that do not allow any air leaks are better than older windows, there is still too much energy being transferred between the outdoors and your rooms.
Here is what you need to remember to help beef up your window treatment energy efficiency-layers. The more layers you have at the window, the better. Each layer adds its own R-value to the overall total, as do the air pockets created between them. That is a huge boost! For example, wood blinds could be the first layer, draperies the second and a valance the fourth. The wood of the blinds is a natural insulator and your first line of defense. There are good air pockets between the blinds and draperies that also help cut down on energy transfer. There are thermal drapery linings fabricated with the latest technology. Your valance should have a dust cap cover on it to prevent air leakage above the window and to help keep dust off your draperies and blinds. Hey, there is another plus, keeping your draperies cleaner longer! Each layer that you have added to your windows, helps slow down the transfer of energy.
Now, for all of you who just love the view out of your window and do not like to have it obstructed at all by window treatments, you can get in on this too. I always recommend cellular honeycomb shades for my clients who like open, airy looks at their windows. In the raised position, they are so compact you can barely see them. In the lowered position, their cells are more like “layers” or air pockets on the window with a significantly higher R-value compared to other treatments. This is a great solution for all those “open window view” aficionados among us. What’s not to like? There are a variety of colors and textures to suit every décor.
Armed with all this information, you can go out and get energy efficient, beautiful window treatments and keep your budget happy with the savings that are sure to follow!

Space Saving with Style

You know me, always looking for the unique and one of a kind for my great clients. I have discovered some interesting small space storage ideas from a company called Topdeq.

The Stretto (with the red coat) is a slim coatrack that you can use in any combination of the coatrack pieces or the mirror pieces. Use 1,2,or more to get what works best for your entry. I love the look!

The cube boxes come in different finishes and can be stacked up to 4 high,staggered as in the picture or used in any combination. More and more possibilities!

Linda

Window Cord Safety Month

I am jumping ahead a little bit with my last post on window cord safety but the topic is so important that I needed to get the word out.
Graber, a major window blind manufacturer is also offering a $25.00 rebate for every blind you purchase with the safety upgrades. That is a good deal for you and a great safety bonus for your loved ones. Let me know if I can help you.

Children and Window Cord Safety

Parents and parents-to-be have a million things on their minds when it comes to raising their children. But every parent needs to be aware of child safety, and this begins in the home.
Children’s rooms are the best place to start. According to child-safety experts, the typical focal points for decorating a child’s room – windows, cribs and bedding – also hold the greatest potential danger to a child’s safety.
To make sure your child’s room is a safe one, consider the following:
Window Areas: Never place a crib, playpen, bed or any type of low-standing furniture near a window. In exploring their surroundings, young children can accidentally fall through an open window or window screen, or become tragically entangled in a nearby window cord. Whenever possible, place cribs and furniture on a non-windowed wall.
The Window Covering Safety Council recommends you make the right choice and only use cordless window products in young children’s bedrooms and play areas. Owners and renters should replace all window coverings in the home made before 2001 with today’s safer products.
However, if you wish to keep your older window coverings (i.e., purchased before 2001), visit our ‘How To Retrofit’ at www.windowcoverings.org/safety_design_tips.html section for instructions on how to retrofit these products'

Product Innovations:
When it comes to choosing window treatments most consumers consider color, style, and even privacy. If young children are around the home, then cord control should be another important factor in selecting your window treatments.
Although today’s window fashions come with built-in cord-safety features, the Window Covering Safety Council believes cordless window coverings are the best choice for use in children’s bedrooms and any area of the home where children spend time playing.
In fact, cordless designs are rapidly gaining favor with consumers and decorators because of their “clean” look and streamlined design. Most traditionally corded window fashions are available in “cordless” styles through the use of spring-loaded mechanisms, battery- or motor-operated lift controls, or simple wand pulls. When combined with the scores of new fashion looks in today’s window coverings, consumers can pick from a wide choice of high-style cordless designs.

Always a special on at Wall Words

Every week there are Wall Word favorites on sale. Right now we have:
HP141 - Come...Gather...Give Thanks.
The font is 3” Redonda, the color is Matte Dark Brown, the approximate length is 43” and the price is only $25!!
We had such a big response to one of our Bonus Weekly Specials last month that we decided to repeat it! The Bonus Weekly Special is:

The Family Special, which features the family name in 3” size font and the year established in 2” size font.
The color is Matte Black ONLY and you choose the font style! The price is ONLY $20! The Family Special makes a great gift for newlyweds, anniversaries, new babies, etc., too. The Family Special looks really neat in Etched Glass vinyl installed on a mirror, too. Who is ready for Halloween? Wall Words can help you! Since Halloween in on a Saturday this year, you know there will be lots of opportunities to decorate. Wall Words has a great selection of Halloween items in our Halloween category, so we are putting all items in that category on sale for 15% off!! You can choose from our 7 Scary Words, witches, ghosts, all sorts of fun items! You can install your Halloween Wall Words on your windows

Look at what you can do with Wall Words!

I am thrilled to show you 2 of my latest Wall Word designs. You can do whatever you would like or whatever you want your walls to say.

The church chose a Bible quote and I was able to have it custom made for them.

The Christmas tree on the wall is going to an area nursing/assisted living facility as it is attached flat to the wall and is no tripping hazard. It is great for small living areas that do not have a lot of space for holiday decorating.

I am on Twitter now!

Follow me on Twitter for fresh and current updates about the decorating and design world.
Check it out at www.twitter.com/LindaMHunt

Outdoor Rooms and Loved Ones

Have you been trying to get the family together? I have attended family and high school reunions this year and just love keeping up with family and friends!
Setting up exterior kitchens and cozy outside seating groupings almost demand gathering and entertaining. Today’s outdoor furnishings and fabrics are sturdier and more beautiful than ever. Play around with sophisticated sinks and outside kitchen grills, lovely accessories including framed art and mirrors, elaborate planters, sconces, and even outdoor lighting fixtures, to make being outside more special than ever.
Go Neutral on seating pieces and tables (tan, ecru, gray, and deep green for example), and leave room for lots of color in your gardens, on your outdoor soft fashions, and in your yard art and accessories, letting them take center stage.

$8.00 Per Hour Interior Decorating Consultations

I have poured my decorating heart and soul into my e-books. They contain the same design principles that I would give to my clients in a consult. Those run $70.00 per hour. But the e-books will give it all to you for $7.99 each. This is a great value and brings interior decorating to everyone. Check them out at my bookstore on www.richmonddecorator.com. The topics are relevant and cover design issues commonly faced. I wanted to make the information very timely and helpful for everyone. Try it!

Vacation

I just came from a relaxing and refreshing 8 day vacation at the beaches of South Carolina. This is my chance to read and take in the sun and surf. I just finished reading The First Family by David Balducci. It was wonderfully absorbing and a great mental escape.
Great and unusual plants and vegitation there. The palm trees actually had fruit on them. I did a small watercolor painting of that. Very interesting!

Interior Decorating for Everyone in America

You know the saying " a pot in every home..." ? Well my saying is "interior decorating for every home and window in America"! We all go to the store and get curtains, bedding, knick knacks etc. to adorn our abodes in our favorite styles and colors. The intention is very good-BUT- many times the final result is almost there but not quite! The window treatments could have been hung differently for a great look, the artwork is great but too small for the wall etc- you get the idea.
It is my goal to help every American residence achieve beautiful home decor be it custom or ready made. It can be done and the results are great.
That was the purpose of my e-book "Window Treatments-Ready Made -How to measure, fit and buy them" and is available from my website www.richmonddecorator.com for $7.99.

Virtual Decorating

Want to see how your design plans will look in your room before committing to it? I love this! I can take a photo of your room as it currently is and put the total redesign on top of it so you can see it. Paint, window treatments, carpets and furniture can all be done virtually.
So many of my clients cannot visualize and this is the perfect solution.
And, furniture placement and floor plans can be done also.
You can do one room at a time or the whole house and implement the plan as you are able.
Call me if you want to give this a try.

Ready for my class

In the fall I will be teaching an adult ed class on color and decorating. I have gotten all my materials and feel very ready. Quite a bit of the material come out of my book "Color Made Easy" and its' free bonus books . Good information for just $7.99 and a lot cheaper than hiring a decorator by the hour for the same info.
Go to www.richmonddecorator.com and click on the bookstore to find out about all my books and how to order them. You will be very happy you did.

Color is So Important in Your Interior Decorating!

I am taking refresher classes on color in interior design. It can really make or break a room's design. I want to pass along to you some of the "must have" info before you make all your decorating decisions!
The 60/30/10 formula is still the gold standard. Basically, it means use your main color 60%, your secondary color 30% and a dash of accent color in 10% of the room. It always works! See how your rooms stack up against this proportional formula.
There are lots of great color schemes out there. What are some of your favorites? How do they make you feel?

My brochure cover

When I needed to come up with a cover for my brochure, I chose a picture of one of my treatments that is beautiful and unique. It is a window style that many of my clients struggle with to decorate. Hope it gives you an idea for your own high style windows!

Small Space Decorating

I have just finished reading the newest issue of House Beautiful Magazine with its feature on small space decorating ideas and suggestions. Those who know me know I live in my own small space and have written an e-book on this topic I have lived with for years. If you get a chance to get a copy and read this feature, I know you will enjoy it. We all have a small space somewhere that needs help.

Thrifty Decorating Tips

The economy may be stale but you interior decorating can stay fresh! Read on for some great no-cost suggestions.

1.Move your furniture to different rooms in your home for a new look. Do the same with your accessories.
2.Get out one of your pretty dishes and put it in your powder room to hold fancy soaps and tissues.
3.Wrap and knot a fancy scarf around a throw pillow for a decorative look.
4.Use a fancy sheet in place of the spread for a fresh look on the bed.
5.Stack a few large hardcover books under your table lamps to change the light and brightness in your rooms. Be sure they are wide enough books and keep it to about 2 books for safety.

Interior Decorating Seminar

Next Tuesday, the 16th is the first in a series of interior design seminars. This is the free one over the phone. Click here to register; http://richmonddecorator.com/teleseminar.
Great fun and lots of interior decorating info.
See you then.

Environmentally Conscious Fabrics

I now carry a collection of drapery/upholstery fabrics that are made of organic cotton and blends. This material was fabricated with minimal effect on the environment. The group is called "Footprints" and the assortment is beautiful. Using these fabrics for your custom window treatments helps all of us and Mother Earth.

Interior Design Seminar for Everybody

This seminar will be given over the phone-you all can join in where ever you are!

You have to register to get the phone number and the password to use to join in on the call. It is a proven formula of the steps to take for your decorating and redecorating projects. Here is the link:http://richmonddecorator.com/teleseminar

Green Is "In"

Here at Creatively Yours Custom, we firmly believe in green decorating to help our planet and environment. It is not about a green color choice rather it has to do with using eco-friendly products in design. To introduce this practice let’s start with a few simple choices we all can make.
♣Purchase organic cotton bath towels available at most major stores. Cotton is a renewable source and when grown organically, uses no chemicals. You help preserve the soil and get a really soft towel. Cottonis also biodegradable.
♣Bamboo makes a wonderful wood floor. It is a renewable resource and does not use formaldehyde or give off toxic odors in your home. You’ll all breathe better!
♣We all have old draperies, bedspreads, etc. sitting around the house waiting to go to the landfill. You could donate them to shelters, Humane Societies, veterinary clinics to name a few. Think reusable not disposable.

No Cost Tele-Seminar on Interior Design for Everyone

On Tuesday June 16th at 7:15 p.m. EST, Creatively Yours Custom will present the debut of its Tele-Seminar Series titled "Interior Decorating Blueprint" I will discuss a formula I have used successfully to apply to decorating and redecorating projects. It will work for everyone's home.
There is no charge for this session! All you need to join in is your telephone. The call will last approximately 40 minutes and there will be a question and answer session at the end.


To register for the call, click here: http://richmonddecorator.com/teleseminar

Give "Green" A Chance

There are a lot of budget friendly and earth friendly things you can do in your everyday life. Here are a few thoughts to get you started:
♥Use low – VOC paints. They give off considerably less fumes and are less toxic to the environment.Think of it as making a better choice and not sacrificing a thing!
♥Whenever possible, opt for quality furniture. It will last longer and not make its way to the landfill. Plus it can gain new life through refinishing.
♥Be a creative recycler. Rescue beautiful pieces from your attic or a thrift store. Give them a
makeover and a place of honor in your home.
♥Long before air conditioning, we all knew that tall ceilings, porches, and trees helped keep us cool in the summer. If you are building or remodeling consider these alternatives to cut down on air conditioning costs.
♥Green living is about making smart, healthy, long term decisions. Purchase only natural materials, choose energy-efficient options when buying everything from appliances to lightbulbs.
♥Resist the urge to bring home cheap disposable stuff. Remember that everything that you throw away will last a lifetime in the landfill.

No-Cost Decorating Teleseminar

I am so excited that my new teleseminar series is going to launch on June 16th with a very informative session on "Blueprint for Successfully Decorating Every Room in Your Home". All you need is a telephone to call in and paper and pen to take notes. I will be posting times and call-in info in the near future. See you then!
I have so much design info to impart to all of you and am so ready to start.
Linda

Decorative Rods Take Center Stage

There has been an explosion of design, materials, finishes and finials in decorative rods available for your window treatments. They can coordinate or contrast the woods and metals in your rooms. Expect to see metals in colors and the addition of glass on the finials. I was taught in my early design days that you needed to have a top treatment to finish a window design. Now with these beautiful rods, they complete the look for you with their strong design finish.

I am including the picture of the Hyde Collection of rods for you. Please note that they are on a special rare sale through June 10th.

Suggest Interior Design Seminar Topics for Me!

I will be starting to do decorating and design teleseminars for all of you. Your input is needed on issues and topics you would like to see covered. I want these seminars to cover topics relevant to all of you.
So, What is on your mind?

Earth Friendly "Green Decorating"

As the events of Earth Day are winding down, I thought it would be a good time to reflect on ways our interior design can become a part of the solution to this issue. Here are some ideas you may have already heard and hopefully some new ones.
When you purchase new draperies, spreads-anything with fabric- consider that the old fabrics can have a second life. They can be donated to a shelter for use by the needy. They can be given to school and theater art groups for use in scenes or costumes. They can be cut up and used as cleaning rags rather than paper towels and save some trees.
Bamboo floors are a beautiful alternative to wood floors and help save trees. The bamboo tree replenishes itself quickly and is a renewable source for use in our homes.
Look for low VOC paints that give off less gasses into the environment we breathe and live in.

Balance and Beauty

A BEAUTIFULLY BALANCED COLOR SCHEME


I have discussed balanced color schemes before in this newsletter. To refresh our memories, balance is achieved by using about 70% of your main color, 20% of a secondary color and 10% of an accent color. In this photo of my client’s living room, you can see the emphasis on the blue in the windows, the rug, the chairs and the blue and white lamps. The red bookcases are a perfect example of the use of an accent color. This is one of my favorite color schemes! Blue and white porcelain with red accents is a fresh and timeless color scheme. Picture a red tulip in a blue and white vase or throw pillows in blues and reds on a white sofa. Give these colors a try- you will love them!

My Featured Design

I would like to share my first featured room design on the internationally acclaimed website Ava Living. Here designers and clients come together to seek and display their talents for potential clients around the world to see. I have more designs in the works for future photos and features. This is a great honor for me!

Unique Wall Art

I Ihave been doing research for my client's master bedroom and bathroom in the Japanese minimalist style. I came across is very cool wall mural. It does not even look like a wall mural! See how it can be laid out differently on the wall. I love it.

I can think of many different places in the interior it can go.

It is from Wall Decor Shops.

Hope you like it! Call me with any questions.

Less is More

I know you have all heard that saying before. The work I did this past weekend really reinforced the truth of it to me.
I was doing some weekend cleaning and decluttering in my home. It was really nice to see the impact that paring down had on my interior design. My wonderful kitchen shelf that displayed my blue and white porcelain collection became more of a beautiful focal point when I limited the amount of the pieces I had on display. Removing half of my pieces allowed the beauty of the remaining pieces to really look great. "Lesser" quantity on the shelf became "more" of a design impact.
Pick an area of your home and try it out. You will see less is more.

Studying a New Interior Design Style

One of my clients that I have had a long relationship with has contacted me again to help with the interior decorating of her master bedroom. The style is an interesting one- Japanese minimalist. I have a general idea in my head of what my client would like and I am jumping off from there. I will be posting pics/styles/images of the work I do as this project goes along. This will be thinking outside of the box and hopefully some of the ideas I use will be of interest to you and your living space.

cool design idea for master bathroom

I had to stay up till 1 a.m. last night to find out how they worked veined mirror panels into a bathroom redesign. What they did was to replace the inset panels of the bathroom vanity cabinet doors with mirror panels and they did the same to the inset panels of the bathroom door. It was a nice bit of sparkle and class added to the bathroom. I used toothpicks to prop the eyelids open so I could hang in there to the end of the show and see the result. It was worth it!

Really cool new wallpapers

I love to discover the new and unique in interior decorating to bring to my clients. I want them to have what you do not see in everyone else's home. Today's unique for you is in the category of wallpaper. You would not believe how much things have changed!

This is not your grandmother's striped floral wallpaper that you remember as a kid. Ralph Lauren's"Yacare Crocodile" in red creates beautiful textured walls for that special room in your home. I have seen it used in powder rooms and dens. Another good idea is on the backwall of bookcases.

Next blog will have another unique wallpaper I found for you. This is the best part of interior decorating, to work with the latest designs.

Linda

Creatively Yours Custom: Wall Word Designs

Creatively Yours Custom: Wall Word Designs

my continuing education

I am always taking the classes offered in interior design and business that are offered to me. There is always something to learn in each session. I have just finished 2 days worth of design and decorating seminars. One of the topics was on giving free teleseminars on design. I will soon be giving you information on how to get in on a free call on interior decorating. Pajamas and jeans are the dress code for this great idea from the comfort of your home. Stay tuned for more!
Linda

Wall Word Designs

I have added Wall Words to my design business. It is cool graphics, quotes and designs fpr your walls, mirrors etc. I just finished my first home party order. I cannot wait to see the finished result from this one client of mine who ordered wall design to do one whole wall in her kitchen. The room is yellow and the wall will feature blue and white china, artwork with hydrangeas and Wall Words graphics in the blue of the china and with some vines, leaves and flowers of the blue and white dish design. Wow.

The photo shows my Wall Words display that is my spring board for possible designs for my clients. Everyone has family photos so I created one side with a photo display and wall graphics. The other side is to show some of the graphic art that is possible.

Let Me Teach You About Interior Design for Your Home

If I have learned anthing in my 24+ years of interior decorating, it is that everyone is thirsting for knowledge on this topic. It was my mission to create a series of e-books on different aspects of interior decorating that are pertinent to a vast number of homeowners.Well,the mission is complete and available to all of you. The first is a free booklet about how to get started decorating for new homeowners with a special bonus report on questions you must ask before hiring an interior decorator.

Find out the best place to start. It is simpler than you think.
Advice on starting that all-important personal style folder and what it can do for you.
See how priority worksheets will give you a plan and help you get what you truly want in decorating your home. A FREE template is provided to get you started.
Budget savvy advice on do-it-yourself decorating vs. hiring an interior decorator.
FREE download here!
SPECIAL BONUS FREE REPORT - 10 QUESTIONS AND CRITERIA TO CONSIDER BEFORE HIRING AN INTERIOR DECORATORGet all this as my gift to you! ( $10.00 Value) FREE download here!

There are many more topics to be covered. My next blog will talk about color and interior decorating. It is so important that I compiled it into an e-book.
Stay tuned
Linda

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