Guest Post - How To Cosy Up Your Home Office For Comfort And Productivity

office

A home office is both a place where people create, get inspired, and turn that inspiration into a productive day at the office. Just like you’d decorated every inch of your apartment to reflect your personality, provide comfort, and boost your mood, the same should be applied to your home office decor. A touch of cozy mixed with not-so-dull office essentials will set you up on a path to a productive day ahead.

Combine cozy with functional

The fact that you get to work from the comfort of your own home means that you get to choose the essential elements of an office - the chair and the desk. At commercial offices we don’t get to choose anything, we’re just given our assigned space, a previously used chair, and a desk. Working from home is a unique opportunity for you to pick ergonomic furniture that supports you while you work. But, don’t sacrifice comfort over a beautiful design because it will cost you a lot in the long run. Pick a comfortable chair that supports your back and provides comfort. When it comes to choosing the right desk, go for the one that is of suitable height and that has built-in storage. 

Use color as a powerful statement

Tweak the space just right by adding a new coat of paint. Even if you’re setting up your home office in one corner of another room, you can use color to beautify your work-zone at set it apart from the rest of the room. Just go for lighter hues as lighter colors are better at reflecting light. In case you feel that darker colors are a better productivity booster, go for those shades that boost the right mindset. You can also color coordinate details like a mouse pad, pen holder, coffee mug, and paper folders to further use color as a powerful statement.

Avoid visual clutter

They say that visual clutter is the enemy of productivity and a major distraction. Avoid unnecessary visual clutter by adding the right storage space into your work zone. If your desk comes with built-in drawers, use them to file away your stuff. Floating shelves can be used to store items and also decorate the room. Clutter can stress you out even more than the amount of work you have to complete by the end of your work hours. Rely on drawers, shelves, storage boxes, and keep everything neat and tidy during and after work.

Decorate with objects that speak to you

Just like you get the chance to pick the chair and desk that fit your style, taste, and provide both comfort and support while you work, you also get to choose your own details. Your work-zone or entirely separate home-office from the rest of your home should be decorated with objects that reveal your personality and put a smile on your face. Things you like to look at like a figure of Captain America, good vibe objects like a picture of you and your dog goofing around or a family portrait deserve their place on your desk or on a shelf. You can also use other decorative elements like art, small sculptures, area rugs, accent or standing lamps to personalize office space, increase the level of comfort and give it a unique vibe.

Find the right spot

The right office setup creates the right ambiance for work while the right spot further boats levels of productivity, efficiency, and commitment. The best spot to work from is near the source of natural light and fresh air. You’ve probably guessed it by know - you shout position your desk in front of a window or near one. Take advantage of the natural source of light as it will boost your energy during the day and also influence the quality of sleep later on. Since you don’t want to block natural light from lighting up your work area, switch from heavy window treatments to soft looking roman blinds. Natural light will liven up your mood when you feel like you need a boost and warm up the entire layout. 

Cut the stress by adding the green vibes

You should exploit the positive effects of greenery in every corner of your home. Especially when you decorate your home office, you should include potted plants into your decorating plans. Not only do these improve the air quality, but bet plants also take the stress out of deadlines and hard projects. Just by taking a minute or two to look at the greenery, you reduce the eyestrain and feel a bit better about your work and your day. A palm tree can brighten the entire office, ZZ plant will improve the vibe of your desk while a peace Lilly will beautify the space with its white flowers. 

Once you set everything up and like the vibe of your home office, include productivity-boosting scents. Indulge your sense of smell by placing a peppermint-scented candle on your desk to improve your focus and boost your mood during the day.

Author Bio: Mianna Korben is an interior design writer.

Guest Post - 10 Ways to Make Your Home Look Elegant with Simple Interior Design

Well, who doesn’t enjoy the thrill of living in an elegantly designed space? My guess, no one! If you are interested in making your home look more elegant, then you are in the right place. Let's start with the basics; what is home interior design? It is the act of enhancing the interior look and feel of a structure to gain a more satisfactory feeling. Interior décor has become a significant part of home improvement methods today. Today, home interior design ideas do not only involve making the living room look spectacular, elegant kitchen appliances, bedroom furniture, and designs, as well as ceilings and lighting of all places, are significant parts of interior décor. 

Although there are several approaches to interior design or design in general, the minimalist approach seems to work for many. A simple, less complicated approach to your home design will prove to very beneficial in improving the quality of your living space.

In this article, we will show ten unique and simple ways to improve the overall look and feel of your home following home interior and décor trends.

1. Use Large Scale Art

Any time you think of beauty, art is almost certainly involved. Having a large piece of art in your living space increases the quality and elegance of the room. Although they are an expensive luxury, you can get decent pieces of art at reasonable prices to improve the aesthetics of your home. You may find some guidance from home interior and design experts.  

2. The Rule of Three

The rule of three is an exciting design concept that encourages home interior décor professionals to maintain some level of consistency. Keeping your interior décor repetitive in threes instead of any other random number is a proven concept that improves home interior styles. So when you are thinking of getting an item for your living room, consider getting three of the same piece whenever possible and realistic.

3. Chandeliers

Have you ever walked into one of those fancy restaurants? One outstanding feature about them is the chandeliers. Chandeliers are a beauty that works for almost any interior set up. A small yet classy chandelier might be one of the best home interior ideas for you. The choice of your chandelier matters as well, for a modern and expensive look, consider intricate or black chandeliers.

4. Use Custom Cabinets

Cabinets are ordinary in all kitchens today; however, custom cabinets do a little more than the regular cabinets aesthetically. In the modern kitchen and home interior styles, custom cabinetry is used to give an elegant and expensive feel. Since custom cabinets fit perfectly and are custom made for your needs, they offer more than just desirable looks but also efficiency and convenience in the kitchen area.

5. Bold Curtains

Curtains are primarily used to regulate light entry into the room, while also offering privacy whenever it is required. However, in our case, we are going to use curtains as a tool for home interior and design. Choose curtains that blend well with the wall and window painting to avoid unnecessary color clashing. However, note that sometimes a bold color that stands out could do the trick. 

6. Repaint your walls

Almost all forms of renovations involve some sort of repainting. Proper painting increases the overall elegance of a room. To achieve the best home interior and décor, you should carefully pick the color you want on your walls and how well it will blend with your furniture and other items. If you don’t have enough knowledge of colors and color theory –you may benefit from contacting an expert in home interior styles.

7. Reconsider materials

Well, since we are going for elegance, mediocrity is a no go zone! Home interior and design does involve not only beautiful colors and shapes but also the quality of the materials used. Be it on the floor, walls, curtains, cabinets; it is essential to consider the quality and value of your materials carefully. High-end materials will offer you a more expensive look that will, in turn, increase overall elegance. 

8. Artistic Ceilings

A good ceiling automatically increases the value of the room. Artistically designed ceilings offer that expensive and elegant look that makes a bold statement. Although changing your home’s ceiling may not be the cheapest home interior ideas, it provides significant aesthetic value to your home interior and design. 

9. Expensive looking furniture

There are numerous sofa designs today that are appropriate for different living room styles and styles. Depending on your home interior styles, getting a statement sofa will go a long way in revamping the elegance of your living space. Remember, you can achieve elegance with large couches as well as sofas with a minimalist design.

10. Rugs

Rugs may not be expensive, but they do look expensive. When mats are used as part of home interior décor, they provide an elegant look by maintaining a simple yet trendy appearance. Fluffy rugs, for instance, can project an expensive and classy look when used appropriately.

The above ten ways will hopefully help you get to come up with creative ways to improve the elegance of your home. Of course, there are other ways to achieve elegance in your home, different from the ones discussed above. This article intends to provide you with home interior inspiration that will help you come up with other useful ways to achieve elegance. What are some home interior décor hacks that you loved? 

Author’s Bio:

Archie was a builder for more than 40 years. Mainly after his retirement the enthusiastic electrical works in garden and writes about best kitchen appliances at mykitchenadvisor.com to keep himself occupied. His many years of experience can get you the right tool reviews whether it is a drill, welding machine or so. An impressive fact to note about him is that almost everything in his house is a representation of his skills made by his hands. 

Warm Weather: DIY Patio Project Ideas

With the weather turning beautiful and hot all around the country, there are a lot of reasons to want to spend some extra time outdoors. While some states are slowing reopening, others are stuck inside for the nicest weather in months. Taking advantage of any outdoor space available is key to keeping the summer enjoyable. Check out these fun warm-weather DIY patio project ideas to try this summer.

Create a stylish patio planter

One thing you can make yourself with just a few materials is a stylish outdoor patio planter. It can be difficult—and expensive—to find cute planters that fit your space and decor style. For this project, all you need is basic plastic planters in your desired shape and size, a few two-by-fours, and some paint or stain. Build the wooden casing around the plastic planters. While plastic planters are low-cost and functional, they aren’t too stylish. Adding the wood around the planter makes it look a bit more regal. Then you can either paint or stain the wood pieces to ensure the patio planters match your decor and desired style. It’s a quick and easy project that can take you one or two days, depending on how many coats of paint or stain you need to apply.

Make your own outdoor couch

You can make your own outdoor couch—which is great news because store-bought patio furniture sets can run you upwards of $1,000 on a good day. For this project, all you need is some old pallets (four per couch), some paint, and a couple of cushions. Simply stack the pallets two high next to each other and attach them with nails. Then you can simply paint the wood to cover any worn or old patches the pallets may show. If you’re a new DIYer, check out some tips for painting wood furniture to learn more about the dos and don’ts of the process. Once the paint is dry, simply place the cushions on the pallets, push the new couch up against a wall or fence, and lay the two top pillows against the wall for a cushy back. It’ll add a cozy and stylish charm to your yard.

DIY outdoor pet house

If you have a little dog or cat that loves to play out in the yard but sometimes also needs some shade from the sun or rain, make them a DIY outdoor pet house. Pre-made or custom-made dog and cat houses are expensive and often the wrong size for your fuzzy friend. Instead, get a bucket that is the right size for your pet, turn it upside down, cut an entryway hole into it, and attach wood to the outside of it the same way you would with the previously mentioned patio planter. This way, you have a stylish and modern pet house that takes advantage of the waterproofness of the plastic container. For an extra layer of luxury, add a pet bed for maximum comfort.

Guest Post - 2020 Trends To Try In Your Home

We are at the beginning of a new decade and, though it may have got off to an unexpected and stressful start with Covid-19, it is a great time to take stock of our homes and the spaces within them. New beginnings mean clearing out the old and unused and freshening up the worn and dated. Take a look at some of 2020’s hottest trends for inspiration for how you will put your new-decade-stamp on your home.

Adaptable Spaces

With more of us working from home now it is no surprise that adaptable and multifunctioning spaces are trending. No one should be content with setting up shop at the kitchen table, you deserve your own space to work, workout, homeschool and relax. 

Without the option of building on an entire extension for your office or a garden in which to invest a stylish office pod, options for repurposing your existing space could include an office nook in that dead space beneath the stairs, a multifunctioning screen-shelf unit to separate off part of an open plan living space and switching up the guest bedroom into a gym come den for work and fitness. 

“Adaptable and compact furniture is on the up,  convertible coffee tables that become dining tables, foldable treadmills, and pullout beds have all seen an increase in sales and are more stylish than ever before.” Says, Tracy Williams lifestyle blogger at 1Day2write and Writemyx.

Earthy Palettes & Statement Blues

The neutral pallets and stark whites of previous years are very much over and being rapidly replaced by distinctly different color collections. 

On one hand, Pantone’s 2020 color of the year is the striking Classic Blue. A deep, refreshing blue that is reminiscent of big water and clear skies. Expect to see statement walls of clean Classic Blue in halls, dining areas, and bedrooms. This color lends itself to so many styles from retro-chic with contrasting gilded accessories, to more modern clean open spaces filled with light and glass-finished features.

On the other hand, and nearly the opposite side of the scale from the color of the year, more earthy tones are emerging at the forefront of color choices of the year. Neutral mauves and greys are being replaced with warmer palettes inspired by nature. Light rusty oranges are popping up in soft furnishings, faded olive-esque greens are selling out at paint counters and more tan browns and subtle reds are creeping in everywhere. Home spaces this year are clearly inspired by the outdoors and an appreciation of nature.

Contrasting Contrasts

There are actually two contrast trends emerging from 2020. The slightly more popular of the two is layers. Taking one color from the on-trend earthy palette and using it throughout a room in different shades. Depending on which color you choose this can either look subtle or bold. 

“To color layer a room, start with a mood board or it could go terribly wrong,” says Colin Davies a designer at Brit student and Next coursework. “Choose your base color that will probably be on all walls then look at the rug, window, and furnishing options that could work with it.” Planning before painting is always a good idea, especially with a style like layering which could easily become over the top.

The other contrast trend is quite the opposite, using colors that would not usually be seen together. Going bold with every color rather than having one key color to draw it all together. It is a brave style that actually lends itself well to Classic Blue, perfect for a statement room or hallway. Not great for an office or relaxing room.

More Nature 

We are human and that generally means we have a default love affair with nature. Nowhere is this more obvious than in the year’s trend of big floral statement walls and biophilic design. We want to feel at one with nature even when we’re at home. More apartments are installing living walls, house plants are big-leaved and bossy and it is becoming more common to see water features (big and small) inside the home. This biophilic design is still emerging so it is hard to know if it will stick, but for now, it’s popularity is growing - pun intended.

Author Bio: Michael Dehoyos is a contributor for Dissertation writing service and Coursework writing services. He assists companies in their research projects and is a lover of interior design. Micheal also writes at Origin Writings.