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Ritual: The Spring Switch

Apr 01, 2010

This is one of the warmest Michigan Marches in my memory. Today it was in the 70s and we brought the comfy vintage porch chairs up from the basement. Yesss. It always feels so much better than putting them away! So, The Spring Switch sort of sneaked up on me this year. I don't think I've ever done it this early! The Spring Switch is a collection of lightening/brightening/mood-lifting changes in my decor. Here's a list of what I like to do, though I don't always do it all. Pick and choose a few things to make your home feel a little more like spring. Have any ideas or rituals of your own as the bulbs pop up? Leave them in the comments! —Diane

So maybe you don't have a room like this with full-height windows and garden views, but there's a lot you can learn from this photo to make your own space a little more springy. Ideas worth stealing: light wood furniture and accessories, botanical patterns, super-simple flower arrangements, nature-inspired accessories, a wide-open feel with no drapes. The rug? Meh. I'd prefer to see a sisal or hemp woven rug in this room. Or even a hand-painted floorcloth. PHOTO: livingetc.com

The Dwelement Spring Switch

1. Put away all traces of winter gear: coats, boots, scarves, skis, heavy blankets. And those orange sticks that mark the driveway when it's under 3 feet of snow. Especially those!
2. Clean. Including windows, and put up the screens while you're at it.
3. Roll up some of the rugs. Bare floors are faster to sweep and they make the room feel lighter.
4. Switch some drapes. I like white canvas panels in the spring and summer.
5. Ready the outdoor spaces! I'm blessed with two porches, and they become our living space in the summer. I like to make them as comfy as possible within practical limits.
6. Change accessories. This doesn't mean you have to go out and buy new stuff. I have a utility shelf in the basement where I keep accessories I'm not currently using. Every few months I'll go down there and "shop." You really feel like it's new stuff after not seeing it for a while! Put away anything woodsy/woolly/wintry and bring out things that are light/bright/fresh.
7. Paint a room or just a wall. Pick a color you wouldn't normally choose and see what it does to your style.
8. Cover the furniture in cotton. If you have canvas slipcovers, they can really change the feel of a room and make it more casual and light.
9. Fill a beach/picnic bag and keep it at the ready.
10. Cook something fresh and serve it outdoors. Here's a simple pasta recipe I recently made. It's coming out again, this time for dinner on the porch.

Pasta with Asparagus, Pancetta, and Pine Nuts

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Craving: Eva Zeisel's New Prints for Room & Board

Mar 31, 2010

I hope I never lose my desire to create. And how's this for an inspiring example of life-long creativity: Eva Zeisel, 103-year-old ceramist and renowned designer of home accessories, has just released a set of beautiful prints for Room & Board. The prints reduce her aesthetic to its essence: simple, curvilinear forms and flat, beautiful color. Lovers' Suite prints, produced in collaboration with Klein Reid, are $299 each at Room & Board, hand-signed and numbered, framed in white aluminum.

Eva Zeisel has been a favorite of collectors for decades, inspiring a devoted fan club that maintains a website all about her and where to buy her prized goods, both vintage and new. There I learned that she has designed a few rugs for The Rug Company. You can find the full range of her current work in all its curvy goodness at Eva Zeisel Originals. I knew I loved her work, but it wasn't until I got lost on the site that I realized some of it is accessible to the collector on a realistic budget. I want the re-issued salt & pepper shakers (pictured left), $40.

In an interview by The Rug Company, Eva states: "Quality means having a purpose forever." I guess that applies to well designed home goods as much as it applies to people themselves. Congratulations on fulfilling your purpose for 103 years, Eva. —Diane

TAGS: eva zeisel designs lovers suite room & board prints the rug company

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The benefits of e-decorating

Mar 31, 2010

People wanting to redecorate a room have traditionally had two options: make all the decisions and do all the work themselves, or hire a professional interior decorator to make all the decisions and hire out all of the work. Both options can be scary, for varied reasons! Dwelement offers an in-between alternative. If you're willing to do a little bit of legwork, eDecorating offers the homeowner on a budget several clear benefits:

• It’s much less expensive. There are no product markups. Beyond the flat design fee, all your dollars go into furnishing and renovating your room with products that fit your budget range.
• You stay in control. Use the eDecor Plan as a strict shopping list or as a rough guide as you shop at your own favorite stores or revamp items you already own. All the recommended pieces come from stores online or in your own hometown. You don't need designer access to buy anything.
• You can still DIY. It’s great for people who love hands-on work but need a little help with a vision.
• You decide what to buy, when. There is no rush to finish your room. Spread the work and the expense over several months or even years. It’s up to you.
• The plan is printable and portable. Save the PDF to your laptop or print it and use it as a guide while shopping. Email it to a contractor for a quote, share it with a friend.
• You won’t be pressured to buy anything. My only interest is creating a room you'll love, and you pay only for my design expertise. I have no interest in selling you products you might not need. In fact, I can suggest significant improvements using only what you currently own. (Did I mention I love bargains?)
• It’s all about you. My aim is to create a room that fits your needs and expresses your style, not mine.

What's required of you? You'll need to measure your room and make a rough sketch of the floorplan, take pictures of the room, and fill out a personal questionnaire online. It's easy, and once you order a plan you'll receive simple instructions for how to do everything. Your reward is a professional design that reflects your taste without the high cost of a conventional decorator.

Think about how much time you'll spend worrying about colors, patterns, furniture, measurements… and how much money you might waste by making the wrong decisions. A professional eye can solve so many problems that you can't even see in your own space. Compare my plans to those of my competitors. I think you'll find it pretty clear that I deliver more for the money. Email me about your space. There's never any obligation to use my services, but I can suggest ways that an eDecor Plan could help you make smarter decisions and purchases. —Diane

TAGS: e-decorating edecorating edecor edecorating.com e-decor online decorator design plans virtual room design benefits how does e-decorating work best edecorator edecorate e-decorate e-decorator affordable interior designer

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New: Announcing Dwelement's Shop for Inspiration!

Mar 30, 2010

I'm back! I've sure had a lot going on the last couple of weeks. It's all converging on me now, in one gigantic to-do list. One of the reasons I've been blog-deficient in the past week is that I've been cooking up a sweet new addition to dwelement.com: a store! Yep, a real live online shopping experience with items I've carefully chosen to make your homes more beautiful and functional.

Announcing the new Dwelement online store:

Shop for Inspiration

Browse and buy with confidence. This store is powered by Amazon, and should you choose to purchase an item, your order will be processed, shipped, and serviced by Amazon.com. So why shop here? Because I've done all the hard work for you, that's why! I've combed through the sea of stuff to pick out pieces that are good values, and good performers based on my own experience in many cases. I've mixed and matched varied pieces to create four "looks" with more to come! So you don't have to worry about looking too matchy-matchy or choosing things that don't go together.

There's a selection of good books, most of which I own and love. And if I don't own them, they're on my wish list. They cover home design, architecture, decorating, DIY projects, natural landscaping, and color theory. I've also put together a bevy of organizational tools that are actually worth using (since so much of that stuff just becomes clutter in itself). And lastly, choose from several cleaning products that have less impact on the environment. Note that many of these are sold by the case, so don't freak out at the prices!

Well, enjoy! Poke around and let me know what you think. Is there a Look you'd like me to add? I'll be working on that now and then, so speak up in the comments below and I'll make a collection to suit your taste. Questions? Just email me. —Diane

UPDATE: I'm now aware of a glitch with items from Amazon's external stores… some of these items come up as unavailable. Working on a fix!

TAGS: amazon astore associates dwelement shop for inspiration online shopping hand-picked designer home design furniture accessories green cleaning products complete looks organization items home design architecture diy books

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Inspired Solution: How to Buy a Rug Online (and know it's the right color!)

Mar 24, 2010

I'm finally finished rug-shopping! The rug in my living room has always been too small for the space, and it was time to get it right. However, as usual, I was looking for a major bargain. That means I didn't have the luxury of designer showrooms with hundreds of samples at the ready. I'd been shopping locally for the right rug for a year or so without any luck, so I started combing through online liquidation sites in the hopes of finding just what I wanted for a fraction of the usual price: 100% wool, around 8-by-10 feet, plush and comfy, and a very specific color scheme of taupe/ivory/brown/gold/aqua. A little plum would have been okay. But it had to be under $400. Crazy, right?

I stumbled upon this steeply discounted option at Overstock.com. It fit all my criteria… apparently. I say "apparently" because the big variable with online shopping is color. Photography discrepancies and monitor variations meant that if I ordered the rug I was taking a big risk. If I had to return the hulking thing, the shipping charges would really eat into my budget. Most liquidation sites don't offer samples. They won't tell you manufacturer names so you can research or get samples elsewhere, and their idea of a color description in this case was "gold, beige, and blue." Even though Overstock only charge $2.95 to ship anything, I'd have to pay the going rate to return it if I didn't like the colors.

Sorry, no "installed" photos because I'm currently housebreaking a puppy. It'll have to wait!

How to order a sample when they don't offer samples

I thought of a solution. I searched the name of the rug and saw that it was offered in many sizes. The smallest was 2-by-3 feet. I ordered it. It arrived 3 days later, and I instantly saw that the colors were right, and looked much more appealing than in the photo online (see dramatic difference above). It turned out to be a Safavieh rug, much to my pleasant surprise. At this size, Safavieh rugs retail for $1,400-5,000 (!). I quickly ordered the big rug, knowing how fast things sell out on Overstock. Today the UPS man trudged up my walk, threw down the big bargain, and walked off with my tiny return package for $7.90. Small price to pay for color insurance! —Diane

Need some color insurance in your own home? I do color consultations both in-home and online, so it doesn't matter where you live, I can help! $75 first room, $30 per subsequent room in the same house. You could spend that much on a couple more gallons of paint after you mess up the first time… Check out my services here. Or just email me.

TAGS: rug shopping ordering samples online bargain tips tricks safavieh rodeo drive collection wool discount

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