Win Dream House

Win Dream House

HGTV has come up with one of the best offers US citizens and residents can ever think of. Coming up with the best dream houses in the most exotic locations, you may just be tempted to take part in the sweepstakes. There are constant prize offers from HGTV and one can apply online which is not a difficult process. The option of applying by post is also there. In case you need any ideas about the styles of houses they are offering, you can browse the website and have a look at the photos of different houses with different floor plans.

Hgtv Dream House: Dream Home

Each floor plan is tagged as HGTV Dream home 2010 or HGTV Dream home 2009 etc. You can follow up these tags and look into the details of the floor plan and also the facilities that come along. This is a great fortune to be won if you get lucky. The dream homes are all offered with spacious rooms and enough bathrooms and bedrooms. The kitchen is all furnished and comes with the latest facilities one can expect.

Hgtv Dream House: Your Balcony

Some of the houses are offered with a nice front yard, foyer, kitchen etc. There are even houses offered with a home theatre.

paint your prayers...

This post is largely inspired by Geninne Zlatkis, one of my earliest flickr and blogging friends. She is an extremely talented lady, who illustrates, draws, sketches, paints, carves stamps, crafts, cooks, home schools and also paints on pebbles!

Yes, in her beautiful homes in Mexico (designed by her architect husband) one of the ways in which she adds cheer and beauty is by painting natural motifs on collected pebbles, an interest that I share with her:-)

I always bring back pebbles and stones from our various travels.

I was inspired to try my hand in painting those lovely pebbles. I gave it an Indian twist by painting the traditional 'Kolam' or painted prayers...

Tiny Lord Krishna's feet, for Janmashtami...

Some painted prayers give company to my succulents....

Why restrict yourself to just Kolams, let your creativity flow~ Try Alpanas, Blockprint motifs or any symbol that holds a special meaning for you:-)

Do paint your prayers and see them answered in the form of cheerful corners in your home:-)

(images by Arch)

Sitting Pretty..

Atlanta is such a hot "design" spot right now! I'm continually wowed by the design talent in this southern city. I'm a big fan of Melanie Turner's work, and this room for the Atlanta Designer Show-house is another example of Turner-Davis Design's detail design approach. This sitting room's subtle mix of soft color and modern glamour is working for me..for more on this room and the entire showhouse visit Atlanta Homes Magazine..and for more on Ms. Turner see her site here.

Reading corner

The connection between chaise-longue (day bed) and reading is rooted in our cultural consciousness. Combination between two objects to create an experience. When apart, the library "miss" the bed. In an open mode the user becomes part of the experience, and an intimate reading corner is created for him.
Inbar Paradny Kalomidi

Home design ideas

It is always interesting to see how architects manage to create a truly modern , minimalist home are still very comfortable and livable . Germann Architekten marte.marte House for one of those houses. It looks like a monolithic concrete structure , but more than that. It has an air terrace with a large glazed reveal the landscape and the landscape of mountain, the terrace facing the pond integrated...

Totally loved the Maison Martin Margiela exhibition

Yesterday, I took my mum and Mila to see the Maison Martin Margiela Exhibition at Somerset House which ends next weekend. So three generations, three different reactions....

My mum told me that she wouldn't have gone there by herself but she enjoyed it and thought it was interesting. My five years-old daughter to who I was saying that it was important that she saw other creative things than Cbeebies or Ben10 told me that 'nothing was really important' but she loved the Fashion Show invit' done on a plate and the people who were filming themselves at home wearing Margiela's clothes and I really enjoyed finding out more about this unique fashion designer, understand the inspiration behind some of his clothes and have a peek at his inspiring offices in Paris.

Maison Martin Margiela is one of the world's most influential fashion houses and is especially known for its deconstructivist approach, its fashion shows in unexpected places and its taste for recycling materials.
One of the most remarkable characteristics of Maison Martin Margiela is its consistent use of white (something I favour) in offices, shops and showrooms.
More than the clothes themselves which are not always easy to wear - I'm thinking of the fur jacket made from blonde wigs from the Spring-Summer 2009 Artisanal Collection which took 51 hours to make, I have always admired Martin Margiela's scenography in shops and his home and how he uses typography and from an interior design point of view rather than fashion, this was a very good and inspiring exhibition to see.
Sadly we could not take any pictures inside but I took as many as I could outside. I hope it will give you a feel of it but if you can, I recommend you go there next weekend as it ends next Sunday!

If you go there, you may want to get hold of a copy of the Exhibition catalogue which is full of inspiring ideas to use typo and I think I may steal a few ideas from the show to display our family pictures at home. Wishing you a good week!

On my radar..for the Fall..

For Fashion?

I love, love, love layering my outfits with blazers! I live in them most of the year. This knit blazer from Madewell would be an instant staple for me.

another staple? Sweedish Hasbeen boot

At Home.

warm neutrals, tufted velvet, leopard prints + mixing natural wood and paint!

image: Paul Costello

image: Canadian House and Home.

a mirror in the kitchen? would you do it? love the look but is it practical?


love this leather butterfly chair from Urban Outfitters

and the warm unexpected colors of these Ikat rugs! Available at ABC Carpet and Home

In the Kitchen

I tend to cook more in the Fall then summer. Onion soup is a no-fail classic! See recipe here.

Need not arrange any more

Kim Ji-hye

House Exterior

House Exterior

Home Office Design Ideas

Home Office Design Ideas

Family Room Design Photos Idea

4 Places to Find Decorating Inspiration For Your Home

4 Places to Find Decorating Inspiration For Your Home
When you decide to redecorate a room or you move into a new home that is waiting for your decorating skills, it can be a difficult decision trying to find the exact style that you want for a room. There are so many different choices. Paint or wallpaper? Carpet or hardwood floors? Dark colors or light? Those are just a few of the hundreds of options that you have when it comes to decorating your home.

The best thing that a homeowner can do is do some research. Don't just rush into the first idea that you have for a room as it may not work out or you may find something that you like a lot better. You need to really figure out what you want for the room and that means finding inspiration for decorating your home. If you aren't sure where to find your inspiration from, here are several places to look.

Decorating Books and Magazines
Take a visit to your local library and look through some decorating books and magazines. Spend some time really looking over the books, and then you can even take some of the books and magazines home to really pick out your favorites once you have narrowed it down.

These books can also help to expand your knowledge about interior decorating so that you can be more knowledgeable when it comes to actually doing the decorating. One thing to keep in mind is that some of the pictures and designs in books and magazine are not functional for some families. Use these ideas and pictures as only an inspiration for your own functional designs and styles.

Design Shows on Television
If you get cable channels such as HGTV, then you may want to start watching the channel every once in awhile to get some inspiration for your home. There are plenty of shows on TV that can at least give you some ideas that you may want to incorporate into your home. Another added bonus is most of these design shows, tell you how to do things, so you can replicate what you see quite easily.

Model Homes and Rooms
Look around your city to see if you have any home tours or model home showcases that you can take a look at. Sometimes you may get lucky and your city will have a model home showcase in which the top interior decorators get together and redecorate rooms and homes. Then the public gets to see the homes for a small fee (which is usually for charity). This is a great way to see some great work by interior decorators and not have to pay for a consultation for your own home.

Interior Decorator
If you have the money, you can always hire an interior decorating to come to your home and give you ideas for a room. This does not mean that you have to hire them to decorate the room, but most interior decorators will have consultation visits in which they will provide you ideas for your home.

Some interior decorators will do this at an hourly price and others may charge a flat fee. Always ask how they charge and what the possible amount may be before you have an interior decorator come to your home.

There are many different ways that a person can find inspiration for their interior decorating. Simply walking into a store and finding a great piece of décor can spark some inspiration. Just be sure to not rush the process.

3 Successful Home Office Decorating Schemes

3 Successful Home Office Decorating Schemes
Artists have known for centuries that color schemes taken from the Color Wheel have a dramatic effect on the final impact of their paintings. There are hot, energetic colors which leap off a canvas, and there are cool, soothing colors which recede, drawing the viewer's eye into the distance. The ways in which these colors are juxtaposed can completely change the emotions a painting evokes, and they can do the same for interior spaces.

Interior designers who specialize in home office decorating know that the color schemes they choose will have an affect on the mindset of the home office worker, so they determine in advance if a calming, or invigorating, style of home office decorating is more appropriate.

Those home workers who expect spend several hours at a stretch in the home office should do a bit of self-assessment, and determine if they would benefit more from a home office decorating scheme which helps them stay calm and focused, or a home office decorating scheme which makes them feel energetic and confident.

Calm, Cool, and Collected

The cool colors--blues, purples, and greens--will provide a low-impact home office decorating scheme which quiets the mind and allows the worker to focus on a project instead of his or her surroundings. If concentrating is one of your weak points, stay at the cool end of the color spectrum.

Spicing It Up

If, on the other hand, you feel like falling asleep as soon as you sit down and turn your computer on, you will benefit from a home office decorating [http://www.i-homeofficefurniture.com/Cheap_Home_Office_Furniture/] scheme which features warm colors. Yellows, oranges, and reds make their surroundings much more invigorating, and stimulate the brain. In office spaces, however, it's a good idea to limit the pure reds, yellows, and oranges to accents and have larger areas colored with more diluted warm shades like russet. You don't want to go overboard with your home office decorating scheme.

The Neutral Zone

If you have a very small office space, consider a neutral home office decorating scheme. Light neutral colors, when used without too many dark accents, can make a small space appear much roomier. And neutral schemes adapt beautifully to any type of furnishings. If you find them too boring for your home office decorating scheme, just enliven them with touches of your favorite warm or cool pure colors. You'll have enough color to soothe or energize you, and a home office which seems much more airy and spacious than its dimensions give it any right to be!

Very cute :-)

Whatever it takes to fly....they look adorable!

(C) Photo: jwlphotography Via Lotta Agaton via iiiinspired

V Bookcase

Tall open bookcase with unique diagonal design
Dimensions/ 32”x12”x70”
Materials/ powder coated steel frame & Corian® or bamboo shelves
Choice of colors/ frame: black, silver & shelves: white, orange, red, bamboo
Faktura

ONE WORD

CELEBRATE!

My good friend is turning 40 next week but she's celebrating in style with a big party on Saturday night! whoo hooo! Have a great weekend + Happy Birthday Ann-Marie!

I think I'm going to have to buy a few hundred balloons for my next fete!

images: walking around where the sidewalk begins, Martha Stewart - Kevin Sharkey, vanessa and valentine

Blue, white, grey...A dream holiday house

When I was in France last week, I saw this beautiful home in Marie-Claire Maison and tought you would love to see how Architect Yorgos Zaphiriou created a soothing, relaxing, simple home with hues of blues, greys and whites. I mean I don't know how the weather is where you live but here in London, it's pretty gloomy, so we have to do everything we can to keep our heads in the clouds and hang onto this holidays feel just a little bit longer, right?!
So let's have a peek and get some inspiration for the weekend...

This home which is located on the isle of Serifos, was before six small houses where miners used to live and I think it's really nice to see how Yorgos kept the original features of the house while making a few changes inside to create a welcoming open-plan home.

Inside the house, Yorgos got all the internal walls knocked down to create a 32 meter long room and created little corners and acolves within the room to break down the space. I really like how simple the kitchen is which is what cooking on holidays should be about.
All the appliances are hidden away below a concrete bench painted in grey and white and the hanging lights are made up with galvanised buckets. You probably can get some from any hardware shop or from Labour & Wait in Bricklane. Personally I think white pendant lights like the ones designed by Kathleen Hills would have looked striking in this corner.

I'm really loving the grey Low Lita seats designed by Paola Navone but as an alternative the Ball chair in white or grey would look very nice too. And look at this bedrooom....don't you love how cute the bed tables look? They are made from all wooden crates painted in blue...super sweet

What are you up to this weekend?
We'll go to Petersham Nurseries, catch up with some friends who are moving back to Turkey, do a bit of decoration in our home, take my mum to the Martin Margiela exhibition at the Somerset House and take our bikes to teach Lucas to run along with grabbing our legs

interior design photos

This is not your standard sofa set – it's interior design inspiration from Kube by Linea Italia. For living room design ideas, Kube is your all-in-one modern design essential for thousands of ideas to transform your home into your own private customized playground. Designed by Italy’s ZeroTreArchitetti, the modular design of Kube lets you put the pieces together as you please, using the individual and interchangeable seats, armrests and backs. And if you just can’t seem to make up your mind when it comes to layout, these awesome independent pieces can be reconfigured at any time, so your living room design can swing with your daily moods and changing needs. Kube is available with seven varying versions of arm rests, back-arm rests and arm-back rests.