AfrikBoutik Blog

Simple and Elegant Decor: A Few Principles

Home beautification is often thought of as an expensive and bank-breaking process. Yet there are many options for you to give your home a simple but elegant touch: from simply moving your furniture around to highlighting your living room with affordable candle centerpieces, you can make your home beautiful without having to max out your credit line.

Plants A few potted plants placed strategically around a room will prove not only a beautiful and affordable means of decorating your home, but a source of vibrant and refreshing life as well.

It is this growing source of life that makes plants simple and elegant additions to a home’s decor. Just make sure not to put too much life in a room: a few potted plants will enhance a room’s beauty, but having too many around will prove to have a stuffy and crowded effect.

Furniture Your pre-existing furniture can also serve to add elegance to your home. You just need to shift them around for maximum effect.

If you are familiar with Chinese Feng-shui, then you should know the basic concept of ‘harmonizing’ a room’s decor. While steering clear from the mysticism of Feng-shui, the arrangement of furniture can help make or break a room’s beauty. If you notice a dresser or a cabinet distracting the view and blocking the way, you may want to consider moving it to someplace that can use its bulk to take up the space.

Wall Decor While Rembrandt paintings and wall-mounted sculptures are legitimate wall decor that can help fill up space and add beauty to your home, these options are often expensive; costing up to a few hundred or thousand dollars apiece.

However, there are less expensive options for you to spruce up your bare walls. A clock, diplomas, certificates and even shelves holding up a few knick-knacks are great ways to fill up space, while the curtains you choose for your home will add to the final effect. Just do not forget to choose wall decor that will complement with each other: a few African tribal masks would be a little out of place in a room that has a distinctly Oriental feel to it.

Centerpieces Prominent centerpieces are what will capture the attention of anyone visiting your home, as the surrounding furniture and themes will highlight these centerpieces. Most centerpieces are classy and expensive items; often with six-digit price tags.

However, an effective centerpiece does not need to be a Victorian work of art or some ancient Greek sculpture. Even simple candles and bonsai trees can do the job just fine. Just remember to select a centerpiece that can harmonize with the surrounding plants, furniture and wall decor, and you will have your guests wowing at the simple effectiveness that a bunch of candles has on your room.

The road to beautifying your home need be a costly one. Simple elegance can be found in the most humble of things: from candle centerpieces to a few potted plants in your home. All you need to do is just open your eyes to the possibilities.

Decorating a Bachelor pad

Most home design publications are directed at women, but there are many men who want to decorate their homes too. These men are not looking for pastel walls or shelves full of miniatures.

They want to avoid floral color schemes but they want something interesting and exciting to add character to their homes. Decorating a masculine bachelor pad can actually be a lot of fun when you get creative.

If you want the perfect makeover for your masculine room, begin with searching online and even in magazines for ideas you want to try. Don’t choose a home design magazine which wouldn’t be anything you’d choose, but search through magazines you already subscribe to.

It doesn’t need to be a story in the magazine, look in the background of ads. You never really look closely to those pictures but there are many great room designs behind them. Make sure to mark down designs that you like and others that you dislike to make your options easier to choose when decorating elements come into play.

Take a close look at the current room you are looking to re-design. Check to see if you have features in the room that you can play up with the new design or any architectural elements which make the room unique.

Also are your floors covered with carpet or are they natural wood or stone? Pick one area in the room which will be the focal point and you can accent it well.

Men work different in designing a room; they will start at the bottom and work to the top. Start with an area rug that has something that shows your personality.

Pick something that is comfortable and soft to walk on. Choose a color that you like. It should be solid colors that will make the room feel more masculine. Make sure if you have a pet you buy a rug that won’t show dirt as well.

Now chose a color for the room. What paint you get will a room from girly to a more masculine look quickly. Pick a darker color that is more masculine, no pinks needless to say. Try green or a darker blue or a nice bold red will add some passion to a room too. Don’t use a whole bunch of color schemes in your decorating, and try and stay away from wallpaper too.

If you add some lighter shaded curtains they will help to make the bold colors a bit softer. A nice masculine color or something that has stripes is a good choice. Make sure that the curtains go with your flooring or rug if you’ve added it to the room.

Now that you’ve accomplished an over all look, add some things to the wall. You can make the room even more masculine with some great decor. Add framed prints that add to a sophisticated look to your decor.

If you must put up a poster, frame it before you put it up. When picking the photos out you should get something that you are interested in, this way your personality will be shown through your decorating.

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The African Decor Influence: How African Decor Inspires Other Style Trends

African decor continues to fuel patterns, styles and designs of interior fashion throughout the world. Year after year the continent of African continues as one of the world’s largest resources of new home decor ideas.

The exotic design motifs has the benefit of complimenting almost any room atmosphere or environment. Multitudes of designers use it to create rooms of spice, excitement and pizzazz to a relaxing room filled with tranquility, peace and calm. The only limit to your mood? Your imagination.

You can confidently use it as the dominant theme for a room ,or as a bold accent piece to add excitement to a dull space. African home decor celebrates its appeal by adapting to large mansion-like rooms to a cramped single apartment. Whatever your bank account, there’s a unique accent piece just right for you.

For instance, In days gone by African art sat idly in stuffy museums throughout the world. Now more people find they can give a cultural lift to their home, office, or apartment – without adding a sense or feel of stuffiness.

The visual impact of Africa themed decor continues slowly impacting more home interiors each day. As a result, African home accessories continue growing toward more mainstream home designers and interior decorators. Many use the colors, textures, patterns and designs to create their own styles and moods.

You’ll often find the African inspired styles reflected in more contemporary design choices. More elements continue to expand and cross into other interior styles, cultures, and themes as a result. Whether it’s the fabrics, the materials, or the hand-made craftsmanship, African interior design tastefully mixes creativity with centuries of culture and history.

The quiet spiritual connection to the continent remains a popular theme of people who favor African decor more and more. “The style quietly grows on you “, said one converted shopper and collector. That’s the feeling of a growing number of people across the globe.

Most of the craftsmen and women who fashion African decor view their skills and talents one-way. They see it not just as a commercial endeavor or idle hobby of leisure, but as a spiritual endeavor and life’s mission or purpose. Because of this commitment they patiently work to fashion the wooden sculpture, the figurine, weave the colorful basket or any other piece to reflect their pride and mastery to the world.

The rich culture of Africa home accents comes from proud generations of people. These working people take the spirit of nature contained in the wood, clay, stone, metal and other natural materials. Next they give back by chiseling, crafting , and polishing beauty from the piece of wood, clay, stone, metal or other natural material they’ve taken.

It’s predicted more will grow to appreciate and use the exotic interior themes and elements to enhance a space or room in their home. More interior designers will continue to receive inspiration and adapt many of the patterns, designs and textures to the growing consumer demand of African decor.

Moroccan decorating ideas

When decorating your home Moroccan style, make sure to use bright natural colors. The colors like green and blue, found in the sea of the area, and the ones like gold and yellow, found in the surrounding desert, should be used as much as possible. You can combine other colors like vibrant red, orange or purple with blue or gold to create an effervescent ambience. Feel free to use of vibrant colors such as pink fuchsia, lavender, and orange while keeping the aesthetics in mind.

Bring Nature Home

For creating the tropical atmosphere seen in Morocco, you can make extensive use of plants. The more exotic the plants, the better look they will bring to your house like you were on holiday in Morocco. At the same time, they will also provide you with some greenery in the concrete-jungle world of today. If it is feasible, you can also get textured walls.

Moroccan Lighting

Lighting plays a very important role in adding that perfect Moroccan flavor look to your home decor. Moroccan light fixtures are totally different from those used in the other parts of the world. Moroccan light fixtures include Moroccan sconces, Moroccan chandeliers, Moroccan lanterns, Moroccan hanging pendants, and Moroccan lamps.

Extensive Use of Textures

Moroccans love extensive use of textures in their home. So, if you want to have a Moroccan style look, rule out too much use of smooth and sleek materials. In fact, the fusion of multiple textures and shapes will be best. You can have darkened wood plank floors, which can be covered with natural fiber rugs of sand-ish color. This will not only add texture to the room, but also provide you with some comfort under the feet. You can also try draping fabric from the ceiling.

Some Other Tips

Colorful mosaic tables not only give a Moroccan feel to your place, but also help to brighten up a dull room.
Use of handmade Moroccan tiles will go a long way in creating a Moroccan decor.

Use of Moroccan tent as a Moroccan lounge getaway in your own backyard.

Use of Moroccan wood lattice screens also known as Jali Screens in your windows doors, kitchen and bath cabinet doors, or even as a room divider wall

Last but not the least, you can buy silk bed covers or cushion covers, in jewel tones, to create that perfect Moroccan style look.

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Painting Tile Floors – Cheap Interior Decorating

Paint for home decorating is not just limited to the walls. You can do so with your tile floors. This is a cheap alternative for replacing the tiles. Paint can make your floor look new and not much effort comes with this easy to do task.

If you have dark, dingy tiles, painting them is the inexpensive solution that will allow you to give your entire room a new look. After you have painted the tile floors, you can throw down an area rug or area rugs to even give it more color and pizzazz.

You should make sure that you either use an enamel paint to paint the tile floors or use a gloss overcoat to enable you to keep the floors clean and the paint on the tile.

There are basically two types of paint that you can use when you are painting tile floors. These are latex or enamel paints. Latex paints are less harmful when it comes to fumes and are water soluble.

Enamel paints contain more toxic fumes and need to be cleaned up with paint thinner or alcohol. Enamel paints will not be as quick to come up off of the floor as will latex paints and have a tendency to wear better.

Latex paints will come up with wear and need a gloss overcoat. If you use a gloss enamel paint, you can get the entire project done quicker.

Another method of painting is by using a spray paint. It is quick, effective and cheap. Just make certain that the room is not enclosed when spray painting. Have proper ventilation and let the floor dry before placing area rugs.

If your tile floor is in the kitchen or bathroom, you will want to be sure to choose area rugs that are heavy enough not to slip, but can easily be thrown in the washing machine. You can find some heavy rag rugs that fall into this category. You want to be sure that the rugs will not slip out from under you when you are walking on them.

Rug guards are sold so that they can secure the rug to the tile or floor underneath and are an excellent option when it comes to using area rugs in the home and preventing accidents.

Rugs for the bathroom should be easy to wash. Rubber supported rugs are ideal to resist slips from the wet floor. Many accidents occur in the bathroom because of slippery floor during or after showers. Don’t underestimate a simple fall. It can be very dangerous. You want to make sure your bathroom rugs are proper enough to avoid such mishaps.

Author: Jonas Marks

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Decorating for Pets: Adapt your Interior to Accommodate Pets

Pets are important parts of our lives, no matter what type of pet you own. Home owners and decorators alike are taking this into consideration and building and decorating homes around pets. With the following pet decorating tips you can make your home friendlier for your pets while keeping your style integrity and comfort in mind.

Choose the Right Fabrics

One of the most important decisions you can make when you have pets in the house is what type of fabrics you’ll be bringing into your home. Velvet works as a hair magnet and should be avoided at all costs, so should expensive materials like silk or chintz that are delicate and difficult to wash. You want something that is both stain resistant and doesn’t attract fur. Some pet friendly fabrics include crypton, leather and ultra suede. You should also keep your pet’s fur color in mind when selecting fabric colors. A solid white couch in a home with three black puppies is a bad idea.

Use Washable Bedding

You’re not the only one that thinks your bed is a cozy place for a nap, pets often head to the bedroom for a mid day snooze so you’ll either want to train your pets not to sleep on the bed or get washable bedding to eliminate fur build up and clean up accidents. You will also want to put a mattress pad down between your mattress and sheets in case there is an accident of sorts, you want to keep your mattress free of stains and odors.

Consider the Flooring

Shag carpeting with pets is a bad idea. In fact, if you can avoid carpeting altogether you’ll do a better job of keeping the floors clean and hair free. But if you do want to the comfort of carpeting, consider only using a low pile carpet with a single woven loop. This will protect it from nail snags and make it easier to clean.
Create a Pet-Friendly Entrance

If your pet goes outside then its ideal if you can have an entrance and exit for your pet that is designed to deal with the muddy paws and other dirt they bring in after exploring outside. Select flooring that is easy to wipe clean and have storage in the area where you can keep leashes, toys, and cleaning products for quick and easy access.

Look for Attractive Pet Accessories

It’s a multimillion dollar business that has been ignored in the past but savvy designers are finally getting in on the scene and creating pet accessories that are both fun for pets and attractive in your home. They may cost a bit more but combining functionality and appearance is worth it.

Keep it Clean

Keep your interiors looking their best by keeping them as clean as possible with frequent vacuuming, wiping down surfaces and furniture, and sweeping. Even the best decorated home looks a bit shabby when it’s covered in fur and smells of pets.

Author: Kristin Abraham

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Cheap Decorations: Decorating Ideas for those low on Cash

Do it yourself decorations are perfect for this time of economic down trend. However, your home’s aesthetic appeal should not be neglected just because of the credit crunch. Do it your self and find cheap or even free materials. DIY is especially a great idea to try out during the Christmas or the fall winter season. Before you cancel your decorating plans, read these cool and easy tips to complete the beauty and sanctity of your lovely home.

If you think you aren’t good at doing it yourself (DIY), then consider this the best time for you to learn and master these skills to use for the rest of your years. Think of all the money you’ll save and all of the cool stuff or essentials you’ll finally be able to buy for yourself. Woodworks, sewing, painting, and cutting are quite easy to learn. All you need to do is want to learn. Anyone, and I mean anyone, can do these things. If you don’t have anyone to teach you and you do not want to spend some money on a book, then look no further because all the easy instructions you need are right here on the internet. Aside from the obvious benefit of saving money, you will also find that DIY decorating or creation of decorations is a very therapeutic project. Loosing yourself in the pursuit of your knowledge of perfection will be very fun.

* Paint your wall.

Look at your house and see which base wall you would like to paint. Painting a single wall is very easy to do, however the effect it has on the entire room would be quite big. For one thing, the shade and the tint in the room are permanently altered by the colored wall. It will reflect its color into the entire room.

* Keep an eye out for bargains.

This might be a little harder to master. You need a well-educated taste in furniture before being a master at buying the best decorations. Decorating your house with other people’s stuff might be an idea that takes some getting used to for some individuals. Also, you need to know which items would blend in harmoniously with everything that already exists in your house.

* Rearrange your furniture

You have probably thought of doing this thing for years. It is never too late to start now. Take out a useless ottoman, push everything to the right, change one long seat for another, and remove unnecessary stuff. You will be surprised at how new your house would feel like once you simply move a few things. The effect of this would be to freshen up the place once instead of buying new decorations or decorating by using home based materials.

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Bed Decorating Ideas That Will Spice up the Bedroom

Having the right bed decorating ideas can instantly spice up your bedroom. It sound basic, but before I start dishing out some great bed decorating ideas, I want you make sure that you know the basics. The bedroom is one of the most private rooms in your home, so don’t be afraid to have a little fun and let your imagination run.

When you first enter a bedroom, what is the first thing you notice? In most cases, it would be the bed. Typically, the bed has a huge influence on the presentation the bedroom. So if a bed is boring, uneventful and stale, then it would be safe to assume that the room is the same. If a bed is fun, exciting and a pleasure to be in, then most likely the bed the biggest reason why.

There are so many bed decorating ideas available to you the list is endless. Take for example a comforter set. The comforter is the iron horse of bed design and function. Not only can you get a comforter that is comfy and warm you can change up the design and color by merely switching duvet covers.

With just one item you can change the whole feel of an entire bedroom. You can go from modern luxury to rustic simplicity all with the change of a cover. And, in this case you sacrifice nothing because you get comfort and design all in one.

Once you have had your fun with your comforter covers
, the another bed decorating idea would be doing something creative with your pillows. Pillows come in various shapes and sizes, so you have tons of choices to choose from. Picking pillows for your bed can be fun and it can really get the creative juices flowing.

There are pillows and throw sets that go together wonderfully and are often thematic in nature. The possibilities are truly endless with throws and pillows. The only trouble here is making up such an ornate bed in the morning! But, it is worth it when you think about the beauty of a well decorated bed. Your guests will certainly appreciate it.

Possibly the most special part of using bed decorating ideas to spice up a bedroom is the price. Bed decoration is relatively inexpensive compared to, lets say, a total makeover for your bedroom. You can change up your bedroom many times a year or even every week if you want to at very little cost. If you want to change the look of a comforter, just purchase a duvet. If you think you pillows need a little help, get a pillow case. It is very simple and very cheap.

Let your imagination run rampant and start thinking up bed Decorating ideas for your bed. There is no end to the possibilities. If you need additional help, ask your friends and family for suggestions and use combinations of your ideas and others to create something truly unique. Decorating your bed is cheap and can be lots of fun, so get to it and see what you can come up with.

Author: Zachry Nest

Rejuvenate a Living Room for Less: Inexpensive Living Room …

Living rooms tend to be a very popular space in the home and a place where the family congregates and relaxes. Because the room is so well, lived in, the furniture takes a serious beating and the decorative elements get stale fairly quickly. Use the following tips to give your living room a fresh new look for not a lot of money.

Shop your Home

Scour your own home, from storage areas to other rooms to see if there are any pieces that can be swapped out for something in your living room. You can even take old furniture and find a slipcover or have it reupholstered to give it new life.

Focus on One Piece

Turn one decorative piece or large piece of furniture into the focal point and decorate around it. One high quality piece will carry the room in most cases and allow you to decorate lightly around it.

Go Eclectic

Rather than buying all expensive pieces that always match, look for eclectic pieces from all over with a unifying theme, color, style or just pieces that particularly appeal to you.

Change the Cushions

A popular trend is cushions that don’t precisely match the rest of the couch. Keep your basic couch, but have some slipcovers custom made for the cushions and replace them. You can always go back to your original covers in the future. Look for something vibrant and exciting and use a different type of fabric.

Go Monochromatic

Rather than using contrasting colors for pillows, throw rugs, curtains and other accessories, go for a monochromatic look to keep everything unified. Use shades of the same color for variation and visual interest.

Go Bold and Colorful

If you’ve already got a pretty monochromatic color scheme, go the other way. Add a few unexpected splashes of color. Step away from the standard accessories for color and add a chair or area rug that is full of color and brings a new sense of energy to the room.

Rearrange the Furniture

Just a simple change of your furniture arrangement can really give the room a new look. If you’re able to change the traffic flow of the room you’ll give it an even different feel. If you have more than one focal point in the room, switch the focus from your old focal point to another.

Change the Focal Point

Your living room should be arranged around a focal point, so by changing the way your main feature appears you’ll create a big difference in the room. Purchase a new entertainment center for your television. Retile a fireplace or replace the mantle. If a window is your focal point, change the window treatment.

To give your living room a new look and a different feel, try to step out of the room and see it in a different way, push furniture to the sides of the room if it will help you picture it in a different way. Living room redecorating projects don’t need to be expensive and they don’t even require replacing all of your existing pieces. The above living room decorating tricks are a great way to create a fresh, new environment for your family to gather together in and relax.

Author: Kristin Abraham

Top Spring Decorating: Getting Rid of the Winter Blahs

The days are beginning to feel warmer, and the landscape with its many shades of green is awakening. One only needs to listen to the birds in the early morning to know that spring will be here before long. This is a wonderful time of the year to include a touch of the outdoors in your home interior decorating ideas.

Let’s start with bird-themed home decorating ideas which can be used in every room. A pretty birdcage makes a whimsical three-dimensional framework for a spring display. Inside of the birdcage place a craft-store twig nest with faux eggs or a petite flower arrangement.

Ceramic egg cups can be used for decorated Easter eggs, jelly beans or pastel candies.

To bring the bird-themed decor into the powder room, use iron-on transfers to print or color-copy a picture of a bird onto a linen guest towel.

Look for egg-shaped soaps at specialty shops to use in your guest bathrooms.

Bird-inspired iron-on transfers can also be used on table linens. Inexpensive paper coasters featuring pictures of birds add a further touch to the springtime table.

Another natural look to add to your spring decorating ideas is the color, green. Whether you use leafy lettuce green or a serene shade of mint, you will find that a wide range of green represents what you already find in nature.

Green is synonymous with life and renewal and is plentiful in our natural world. It is a peaceful color with calming effects. Use a variety of shades of green for a fresh, springtime feel.

Because of the endless selection you will have no difficulty finding a suitable shade of green paint color. However, if you don’t want to make a long-term commitment, adding home accessories in the desired shade of green is an easy and effortless way to add nature’s color.

Home accessories in shades of green include glassware, vases, pillows, afghans/throws, artwork and fabrics.

Something as simple as putting garden magazines and flower books on the coffee table will help to bring nature inside and add color to your room.

Simplify your interior decorating by displaying only the things you love. Clutter is distracting and adds stress to your life because of constant upkeep.

Spring is the time for renewal, beautiful flowers, green grass and the songs of birds. Enjoy each and every day!

Every spring is the only spring, a perpetual astonishment!

Author: Lynn Cressy