The Finishing Touch

Garage Sale Pros

Still hunting for the finishing touches for your Danish modern living room? Perhaps your kitchen is missing an elusive accessory that just can't be snapped up at Pottery Barn. This Labor day weekend, take an opportunity to walk off the bar-b-que by browsing garage sales, thrifting and combing your local antique stores for decorative objects and furniture begging for a make-over.

While many Americans enjoy garage sales as a traditional summer past time, for some entrepreneurs like husband and wife interior design team Linda Wary and John Meyers garage sales are an opportunity to reinterpret and refurbish someone elses’ castoffs yielding a big payoff.

Here are their top tips for translating flea market finds into extra cash or major statement pieces:

Go to all the sales advertised and get there early. They get crowded quickly.

Follow streets on telephone poles to unadvertised sales.  You'll score the best deals with less competition.

Try to bargain, and always know your spending limits.

Know the boundaries of your restoration abilities and your patience. You can clean and refinish, sand and repaint. But a piece of furniture that smells will always smell.

Use your imagination and update furniture with modern hardware (I love the girly choices from Anthropologie).  Or add new upholstery.  Find a fabulous lamp base, update it with a new shade. If you see a slab off wood or a spare part available inexpensively, how can you use it?  Maybe as a top of a side table.

Inspired?  Find a local garage sale now. Or Click here to see some of Linda and John's latest finds featured in The New York Times.

 

Extend Your Primp Zone

Bathrooms are one of the most trafficked areas of the home.  But most are painfully small.  Can't afford a full out remodel?  Extend the functionality of your bath by transforming a corner of the bedroom into an organized dressing area that suits your style.

An extra-long drawer fitted with felt trays means baubles can be whisked inside this modern vanity, leaving the top refreshingly uncluttered. Available for $179 at Ikea. 

This mirrored vanity telegraphs 1950s Parisian style. Painting stripes on the walls is a chic alternative to wallpaper. Mix your vanity with thrift finds and no one will guess you found it at JC Penny's for $300.

He may not be a metrosexual, but he sure is a bathroom hog.  End the bathroom squeeze by creating an ample dressing area for him in the bedroom.  Ikea's low storage unit combines drawers for clothes,a laundry hamper and a whimsical clothes tree to keep his suit unrumpled all for under $200. Add a valet to keep loose change, watch, cologne and cuff links contained.

Window Treatments for Small Spaces

Are you short on space, but not on style?  As cozy as small spaces can be, they can present some special design difficulties.  Never fear, here are the window treatment solutions for every nook and cranny.

Where you can't take curtains all the way to the floor—because of radiators or furniture—a custom drapery treatment that
just brushes the surface below can still feel lush.  Choose an outside mount to add height and drama to the windows.

A relaxed roman shade with a sweet pattern adds softness to a nook where there's no room for a curtain.Thomas Kinkade offers a beautiful selection of Roman Shades in florals, stripes, plaids and whimsical prints.

For more of Domino Magazine's wow window treatment suggestions read here.

Q & A: What are the Best Blinds for a Sunny Room?

Q: I have a very sunny room and want my room to be very dark.  What should I use to cover my windows?

Adam, Houston, Texas
A: Adam, if you want it VERY dark, choose something that blocks the most light, like a Blinds.com room darkening honeycomb shade. Or try a woven wood or roman shade with a blackout liner, very chic. Redecorating on a budget? A stylish outside mount roller shade will completely cover your window. Plus, it costs less!  So just in case adding a custom poker table to the "man cave" is in your decorating future, there should be plenty of cash leftover.

Debt Free Decorating

Spending money on design services is not a top priority for most people in a tough economy. But many people are choosing to stay in there homes longer and so redecorating is becoming a less expensive option than splurging on a new home.  Trying to make your house look new on a budget? Before you even start the decorating process, check out interior decorator Sandy Dixon’s Top Do’s and Don’t of Budget Redecorating featured this summer in The Denver Post:

Avoiding Common Redecorating Mistakes

Don’t go shopping first. Shop in your own home. Discover the treasures you have in your garage, storage units or cabinets. Repurpose them with a new coat of paint or updated hardware.

Don’t push all of your furniture up against one wall. Make sure to distribute heavy furniture around the room evenly creating a more balanced look and comfortable flow of movement.  Don't place a dark wood armoire next to a 12 foot couch, and a marble fireplace.

Don’t limit yourself to rearranging furniture within a room. Break up furniture sets or swap furniture from one room to another.

Do declutter. If your room is stuffed, a thorough organization and cleaning is the first step before purchasing new furniture or accessories. Remove the things you don’t use, don’t need or don’t like.

Do purchase wall art that is appropriately scaled for your walls. If you have a huge blank wall, invest in some oversized vintage posters from Retro Gallery or make your own art.

Editor’s Tip: A few yards of vintage fabric and some simple frames from the craft store translate into a whole roomful of eye-catching art.

DIY: Towel Ladder

When you take your DIY cues from Martha Stewart, even your towel rack can add style to the bathroom.  Keep the bathroom tidy by hanging towels from the rungs of a progressive or apple picking ladder propped against a wall.  It's the perfect accessory for a casual, beach home.  Or use your towel ladder on the porch to discourage kids from tracking sand into the house.  Attach rubber tips made for chair legs chairs to the ladders' feet to prevent slipping.  For extra security attach the top of the ladder to hooks and eyes.  Read here to discover more of Martha's DIY fixes.

Peeping Tom Victims Told: Fix Your BLINDS

Though it might seem convenient to leave your windows uncovered, "naked windows" can offer more than just a good view.  This summer, young women in a Seattle neighborhood accused her salacious neighbor of doing more than bird watching with his binoculars.  However, local police refused to cite the man and recommended that the young woman solve the problem by fixing her blinds, The Seattle Times reported.

Just say No to Naked windows!

So you never thought of your window as being naked, just because other people have blinds or drapes. Besides they give you a great view and fit your clean modern aesthetic. But have a little sympathy! How would you feel if you were left to ward off harsh sun, pelting rain or chilling cold in your birthday suit?

   

   Not convinced? Window coverings aren’t just stylish, they are functional. They add value to your home and can even make your home more safe. They also protect your furniture and increase your privacy. Keep reading for the top reasons to cover your windows:

     Window treatments can add safety by preventing potential thieves from identifying your home as a target. Install window treatments and prevent theft as burglars will be unable to determine if you are home, or worse yet, if your children are home alone. No one should be allowed to see into your home at night, or when you are not there during the day.

* Window treatments also add value and curb appeal to your home. Trying to sell your home? Ask your realtor, window treatments are an essential part of a properly staged home.  A small investment in window treatments will help you sell higher and faster.

    * Window treatments like Blinds.com solar shades can dramatically cut energy costs and protect your flooring, furnishing and skin from harmful UV rays.

    * You never even invited the new neighbors over to dinner! Why should they get a prime view of your bedroom? Proper window treatments provide appropriate privacy.  Cellular shades with a top down bottom up feature allow you total control over your degree of privacy.  Leave them fully closed, partially closed or completely open.

Best Bathroom Accessories Under $100

1)   Use your summer vacation to browse for unique home accents. Months later your finds will transport you to Rocky Mountain highs or memories of the Nantucket shore.  If you are staying close to home, here are our editor's top five  recommendations for bathroom accessories under $100:

With your formal style, you add a personal touch to every element of your house, so why stop in the bath? Your polished look demands gracious touches like fresh flowers, plush towels in your signature color and monogrammed soaps. On sale at PotteryBarn.com, 6 for 29.99 with a single letter or three letter monogram.

 

Want to redecorate, but afraid your landlord object to a major DIY project? Get the graphic impact of damask wallpaper in seconds without the fuss and fumes of wallpaper glue! India Rose’s 100% cotton poplin shower curtain is machine washable and reinvigorates your entire bathroom. Available at indiarose.com for $97.

Missoni’s “Izzy” Towel will keep your urban sophisticate swathed in luxury after those chilly runs in Central Park. $20-$55 at thisisautom.com

 

 

Even the most casual living spaces demand organization. Make back-ups of commonly used items like soaps, brushes, and sponges decorative decorations by storing them in hand-painted clear glass containers.  Clear up your precious cabinet space for items that can't be exposed to heat or light like perfume, medicine, and cosmetics. On sale at PotteryBarn.com from $27.99-$59.99.

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Featured in May’s issue of Metropolitan Home,this mirrored vanity set has enough sparkle to glam up the boudoir of any modern day bombshell. Available for $49.95 at ZGallerie.com

Need More Privacy in the Bath Choose Top-Down Bottom-Up

Love letting the sunshine in? But sick of mooning the neighbors! For most, privacy is the number one concern when choosing window treatments for their bathrooms.

The top-down bottom-up feature is a modern choice that allows you to a varying degree of privacy and light on your cellular shades, woven or roman shades. If you are applying make-up in your robe while getting ready for work, these blind with this feature allow you to let in a large degree of light, while protecting your privacy.

Taking a bath? Of course you can close the blinds completely.  Or if you like, you can still maintain some view by opening them a little at the top.

For total privacy, your top down bottom up shades can be closed completely. They are the perfect choice for creating zen-like relaxation and serenity.