Jakarta Teak Mosaic Tiles

Jakarta Teak Mosaic Tiles are the newest and hottest tiles going. These wall tiles are an incredibly unique and fresh approach to eco friendly products. Made from reclaimed Teak wood, low VOC resins and sustainably harvested wood backer, they are perfect for kitchen design and bathroom design. Teak tiles can be used in commercial design, as kitchen tiles or bathroom tiles. Modern, tropical, rustic and gorgeous. Go eco, go tropical, go stunning!

http://thedeckingoutlet.com/jakarta-teak-mosaic-tile

http://www.mkfurnishings.com

Dome Chair From MK Home

http://www.distinctiveliving.com/solid-wood-vs-engineered-wood-vs-laminate-the-battle-royale/

Solid Wood vs. Engineered Wood vs. Laminate: THE BATTLE ROYALE

By Melinda Kroll -

In this corner, composed of 100 percent wood, priced at $3 to $10/square foot, and adding as much as $10,000 in value to the value of your home is… hardwood. In another, consisting of fiberboard and a durable wear layer, priced at $3 to $7/square foot, but adding considerably less value to your home is… laminate. And in still another, boasting elements of pure wood coupled with almost as much stability of laminate is… engineered wood. Each has its positive and negative attributes. Before outfitting your home in one over another, it’s important to understand the differences. Only then can you make a truly informed decision regarding what material is right for you. Durability depends more on the finish one puts on the base wood than the makeup of the base itself.

Solid Wood

Solid wood floors are just that — 100 percent solid wood. Not only are they stunning and elegant but they’re also one of the best ways to increase a home’s value. In fact, a recent survey of U.S. realtors revealed that installing hardwood floors can increase your home’s value by as much as $10,000!

Wood floors are versatile — they can complement virtually any aesthetic — provide acoustic insulation, and can be refinished multiple times. They only improve with age, as solid wood acquires a desirable shine over time. Solid wood is among the longest lasting of all flooring types but normally cannot be installed directly over concrete. However, the flooring expands and contracts due to changes in humidity. The wider the wood the more expansion or contraction will occur. Although installers try to compensate for this movement by leaving an expansion gap between the floor and the wall, most experts agree that you may be better off going with engineered wood for kitchens, bathrooms or laundry rooms.

Engineered Wood

Engineered wood has a top layer of solid wood, which varies in thickness, depending upon the quality; the balance is high quality layered hardwood. They’re available either unfinished or pre-finished in a range of colors and provide the same design flexibility and style as solid wood; unfortunately, they also carry the same price tag. The better makes of engineered wood have a slice cut face and are longer, up to 7 feet in length.

Although all hardwood floors will expand and contract due to moisture, engineered wood fares much better. And while solid wood floors may expand or contract slightly with age, engineered floors won’t. All things equal, engineered flooring has a slight advantage over solid — particularly in regions where humidity changes are a constant, as they’re dimensionally stable. In addition, they may be installed above, on, or even below ground level.

However, unlike solid wood, some engineered wood floors can only be refinished once or twice. Others cannot be refinished at all. The deciding factor is the thickness of the wear layer. In addition, it’s arguable whether engineered wood will increase the value of your home as much as solid wood.

Prefinished or Custom

Once you’ve decided upon solid or engineered wood, your next dilemma is pre-finished or custom. Pre-finished wood arrives at your home ready to install. Custom wood flooring, on the other hand, is installed, sanded or scraped, and finished on site. It affords homeowners the opportunity to create something truly unique — something no other homeowner could replicate. With custom wood flooring, you can create a one-of-a-kind floor that reflects your family’s personal taste. You pay for this specialization, of course, but for truly distinguishing tastes, there’s nothing like custom wood.

Laminates

Laminates consist of a base, usually mdf or hdf fiberboard, topped with a print and then a wear layer. They’re usually cheaper, and make excellent do-it-yourself projects, as they’re easy to install. Many are installed by placing interlocking boards over a layer of foam, which prevents buckling in the floor and absorbs sound. Laminate floors are extremely durable, scratch-resistant, and long-lasting.

However, laminates cannot be refinished or recoated, add less value to your home than solid or engineered wood and, quite simply, don’t have the same “character” as wood. Thanks to a pre-printed pattern, some (or maybe all) of the boards may appear identical. But the best quality laminates can result in beautiful floors that really do have the appearance of hardwood flooring.

And the Winner Is…

On pier and beam construction: A solid wood floor.

On Slab construction: An engineered wood floor

For a quick and inexpensive option: Laminate floors

Cost aside, most experts believe that engineered hardwood is the way to go. However, both solid and laminate woods have their own positive and negative attributes. One thing’s for certain — there’s nothing quite like the look of hardwood floors to give beauty and distinction to a home.

Fun all year long. Turn your kids room, play room, office, or just about any area you can think of into your own personal blackboard. You can get Benjamin Moore’s  Studio Finishes^® Chalkboard Paint from their Online Store or at your local Benjamin Moore retailer. You apply it just like any other paint, add chalk, get an eraser and voila…a place to create artwork, leave eco-friendly messages, a reminder calendar and whatever else you wish to do with it.

SOME IDEAS FROM BENJAMIN MOORE….

Eco-Friendly Message Board  Wouldn’t it be convenient to scribble down your shopping list, phone messages, reminders, etc. right on your pantry door or fridge? Just use chalkboard paint to create a handy and reusable space for any kind of list.

Menu for the Day  In the kitchen, frame a chalkboard square on the wall with decorative molding or a colorful paint to display the day’s menu. This can be a great touch for special family meals and when entertaining guests.

Let Your Kids Draw on the Walls  Create a cool canvas for kids’ artwork by painting a chalkboard square in their bedroom or playroom wall and drawing a frame around it with a fun paint color. They’ll love to see their artwork in a frame—and be less likely to paint on the other walls!

Cool Family Planner  A home office is the ideal spot for a family planner. Coat part of a wall with chalkboard paint and create four weeks’ worth of squares in a variety of chalk colors. Use it just like a regular planner for events, reminders, school schedules, and lots more.

What’s in the Flowerpot?  If you enjoy growing herbs indoors, paint terracotta planters with chalkboard paint and label them with chalk to keep track of exactly what’s growing where—from basil to mint.

A Tabletop Canvas  Kids love to draw on “forbidden” surfaces like tabletops or closet doors. Turn these surfaces into wondrous canvases with chalkboard paint and multicolored chalk—they’ll love it, and it’s easy to clean up.

Organize Your Bins  Do you have to rummage through your storage bins every time you need to find something you put away? Problem solved: Just paint chalkboard squares on your bins and label them. It’s a great way to keep things organized.

Personalized Coasters  Personalize your coasters with chalkboard paint for just about any occasion. Use them as name cards at your dinner parties, draw storks on them for your best friend’s baby shower, or use magnetic tape to put them on your fridge as mini-blackboards.

(ARA) – When you think of the colors associated with fall, green doesn’t necessarily come to mind. Environmentally speaking, however, it should. There’s no better time than now to lessen your home’s impact on the environment and change the way you decorate and live. So, why not go green this fall? It’s not nearly as difficult to become earth-friendly as you might think.

“From products that contribute to good indoor air quality to ones that truly reflect the ‘reduce, reuse, recycle’ mantra, the number of affordable green interior decorating products has literally exploded within the past five years,” says Donna Schroeder, Dutch Boy color marketing and design manager.

These days, you can find stylish, eco-friendly design elements for every room in the house. And, contrary to popular belief, going green doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice style for sustainability. The two can coexist quite effortlessly.

You can start simple by dressing your bed in luxurious sheets, throws and comforters made from fabrics such as rich, renewable bamboo or soft, organic cotton. Cover your floors with formaldehyde-free carpets constructed of recycled fibers or select a natural material, like stone, slate or even concrete. Then, hang energy-efficient window treatments with high insulation and shading properties.

Don’t stop there. Spice up your tired sofa with a design-forward slipcover and throw pillows crafted from 100 percent recycled materials. Add bright recycled glass plates and serving pieces to your china cabinet. Buy furniture made from sustainably harvested wood or, better yet, visit local secondhand shops and repurpose. Or, look around your own home and see what you already have that can be adapted for a new use. You’d be surprised what a little creativity and some good old-fashioned elbow grease can do.

If you’re looking to add bold, fun color, paint fits perfectly into this overall green scheme. It’s an inexpensive, effective and, most importantly, environmentally-minded way to change the look and feel of an entire room. Many paint manufacturers now offer coatings that contain few, if any, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), or vapors that are released from paint as it dries.

Using paints formulated without VOCs, such as Dutch Boy’s new Refresh interior paint with exclusive odor-eliminating Arm & Hammer technology, takes your home one step closer to reducing your environmental impact while leaving your interior looking fresh, modern and filled with personality.

Many home improvement products, including Refresh, are also Indoor Air Quality certified by The GREENGUARD Environmental Institute, a nonprofit, industry-independent organization that certifies indoor products that meet satisfactory indoor air emissions standards.

Keep in mind that greening your home, inside or out, doesn’t happen in a matter of minutes or even overnight. It’s an ongoing process. The limit to how green your home can be is up to how willing you are to adjust your lifestyle. The choice is yours. “It doesn’t take any grand gestures to start going green,” Schroeder says. “Tiny changes add up to make a big overall impact on the environment.”

Courtesy of ARAcontent.com

With our economy in the dumps what we are all wanting is to remember happier times. With that what you will most likely see as a leading design trend for 2011 are throw backs. Look for newer versions of 1940′s design, Tudor to Elizabethan and some Tribal & Native American influences. Also animal and whimsical prints will be hanging around but beware of going overboard.

There will be a lot more mixing of old with new as people try to bring life back to their older. Also a lot more focus and use out of “grandma’s antique chair”, thus reminding us of the past and of happy family moments.

Watch out for colors that will aim to inspire and will be bolder and brighter while still using those subtle hues and classic neutrals.

Sincerely,

Christine Craig

Owner & Principal Designer of Designology Santa Barbara

www.DesignSB.com

COLOR TRENDS 2011 BY DUNN EDWARDS

Look for a lot of softer pastels as people seek to bring a sense of calm to their homes and offices. Bold colors such a jewel tones will still be featured but will be shown in a more subtle display than before.

FABRIC PRINTS BY GREENHOUSE DESIGNS

A bit of whimsy, traditional, modern and good old basics look well placed together if done  correctly.

RECYCLED BARN SIDING FLOORING

This weathered barn siding has been reused to become a rustic hardwood flooring. The flooring is made up primarily of white oak but with some red oak pieces mixed in and being outside and exposed to the elements has aided in creating a grayed patina look that translates beautifully into hardwood flooring. This is a perfect way to reuse something that would normally be thrown away and to bring a sense of warmth to your surroundings.

REUPHOLSTERY

Not many people have the money to spend on furnishings like they use to. Instead make something old new again. If you already have some old furniture you can reupholster you are already ahead of the game if not hit those yard sales and thrift stores for hidden gems. Jazz up an antique chair by adding a bold and fun print. A little sanding and refinishing never hurts either.

1940′s INSPIRED KITCHEN

Bringing the past into the future is not a new concept but this oldie but goody is definitely making it’s way back into our homes and hearts.

RETRO CHIC BEDROOM

A sense of calm mixed with drama creates a fun flair that does not go overboard and looks clean and fresh.

TRIBAL WHIMSY

Definitely more dramatic and it shouldn’t be used everywhere unless you love chaos. Use items seen in this room sparingly. Remember you can always add, it’s much more difficult to take away.

ENGLISH TUDOR GROTTO REPRODUCTION

Warm, elegant and comfortable. There is something so comforting about being surrounded by well tailored and aged elements. Mix dark with light and keep those family memories alive by surrounding your living room, study or game room with nostalgia games and well read books. Also don’t forget good lighting is key!

By Keith Srakocic, AP

http://content.usatoday.com/communities/greenhouse/post/2010/07/small-spaces-live-large/1

Originally posted by: Residential Architect

Home improvement activity and remodeling spending are expected to improve, showing increases on an annual basis, by the end of 2010, according to the most recent Leading Indicator of Remodeling Activity (LIRA) released by the Remodeling Futures Program of Harvard University’s Joint Center for Housing Studies (JCHS). The LIRA also projects that growth will accelerate into the double-digit range in the first quarter of 2011.

Kermit Baker, director of the Remodeling Futures Program, suggests that returning homeowner optimism and confidence in an economic recovery is driving growth in home improvement investments—and not just in necessary replacement projects and energy retrofits, but also in remodels and upgrades.

Of course, any significant spending growth hinges upon continued improvements in the U.S. economy, which will feed homeowner confidence. “Absent a reversal of recent economic progress, there should be a healthy upturn in home improvement activity by year-end and into next year,” noted Eric S. Belsky, JCHS managing director.

http://www.residentialarchitect.com/economic-conditions/double-digit-remodeling-spending-increases-projected-for-2011.aspx

Via: Coastal Living Magazine

Via: http://www.hgtv.com/

Via: http://simplifiedbee.blogspot.com/2009/06/shes-grand-ole-flag-july-4th-decor.html

Via: http://interiorconceptsbywanda.blogspot.com/2009_06_14_archive.html

Via: http://everythingleb.blogspot.com/2009/06/born-in-usa.html

Via: http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/sf/favorite-red-white-blue-posts-for-4th-of-july–120585?image_id=1550088

Happy 4th of July everyone!!!!