Decorating country-style isn’t as hard or costly as it seems. Just a few simple additions can completely turn your home around and make it your own country haven. Get started with these simple tips.

Bring in the wood

Wood is probably the first thing people think of when they think of country homes. Casual and inviting, wooden elements add instant warmth to your home—a sharp contrast to the cold, bare look of modern design. The best thing about it is that it goes with just about any color—just add a splash of your favorite shade and you’ve got a nice country home with a personal touch!

Can’t afford real wood? Create the same look with wood-themed wallpaper or laminate flooring and countertops. Some of them even come with wood scents to make them even more real.

Go natural

Country homes are known for their outdoorsy feel, so natural materials will fit right in. Sisal area rugs, bamboo shades, and wooden furniture are all excellent room additions. Not all natural materials are durable, so make sure to check for quality especially if you’re buying furniture. Wooden furniture has to be coated to minimize wear and resealed every year or two.

Create soft surfaces

A country home should have a casual atmosphere—you should feel like you can plop down anywhere and be comfortable. Start with natural fiber area rugs. Wood floors are prone to damage, so protect it with soft wool area rugs, or braided area rugs if you want a bit of color. If you have a large living room, choose oriental area rugs with central medallions to create an instant focal point. This looks especially dramatic in front of a fireplace.

Let in some natural light

Let in as much natural light as possible. It’s great if you have large windows—you can simply leave them open in the day and pull down the shades at night. Otherwise, maximize whatever light you have by using bright, pale-colored surfaces. Beige or yellow area rugs, pastel fabrics, and light curtains are best for small homes. You can also put up a mirror to reflect the right around the room. If properly placed, mirrors can eliminate the need for daytime lighting altogether.

Add a personal touch

Country décor is all about personalization. Consider making your own pieces from recycled materials such as fabric scraps, pieces of wood, and old bottles. They don’t have to be beautiful or well-made; they just have to be presentable and have that unique personal touch. Avoid store-bought decorations as much as possible. If you’re not into DIY décor, look for individual pieces in vintage or antique stores.

How many times do you find sticky stuff all over your taps – annoying isn’t it!

The solution - Delta’s new Pilar™ Pull-Down Kitchen Faucet with Touch2O™ Technology, which not surprisingly has won various industry awards.

To turn the water on and off all you need do is touch anywhere on the faucet. For those that need to know the tech stuff – it’s called “Proximity Sensing Technology”.

I love it and want one – no more messy stuff on my taps.

As springtime buds begin flowering in a profusion of colors, you know the promise of spring has arrived. Once in bloom, the scent of these flowers is a welcome sign that winter is truly gone and sunny days are here to enjoy.
Potted spring flowers displayed everywhere around the house will fill your home with the refreshingly beautiful sights and sounds of spring. Tulips, crocus, and hyacinth are popular varieties and are usually easily available at florists during this time of the year. You can usually even find them at your local grocery market.
Think Green

Head out to your local nursery or the nursery section of one of the big-name home improvement stores and browse their vast selection of house plants. Load your cart with your favorite varieties and take them home to inject a healthy dose of oxygen into your home.

If you are lucky enough to enjoy a good deal of sunlight in your home, you will have a much larger selection of indoor plants to choose from. Don’t let less light keep you from having houseplants however; there are several varieties of house plants that can thrive even under low light conditions.

Add Pastels

While you aren´t likely to change the entire color scheme of your living room with new paint and carpeting, you can still make a dramatic springtime statement with some more subtle decorating touches.
There are simple, unobtrusive ways to bring some of the pastels of spring into your home environment. Throw pillows are a great way to make a quick, relatively inexpensive change. Pick up several in your favorite spring colors and scatter them across the sofa. Put away the heavy wool afghan and in its place display a lighter weight, pastel colored throw. How about a display of pastel candles? Pastel candles in springtime scents are another way to bring the colors and scents of spring right into your home.
Bring in More Natural Light

Make the most of the ever-increasing sunlight and bring more of it into your home by lighting up your window treatments. If you typically use heavy drapes on your windows, consider removing them. The effect will be dramatic. Try using nets or light curtains instead of heavy and dark ones. You will see the difference immediately and not only that, you will feel all the better for it.
If you don´t want to make drastic changes in your window decor, you can still capture more rays without making a big change. Just see to it that the windows are exposed as fully as possible. For example if your windows are typically covered in blinds, consider pulling the blinds up half way or even all of the way. As the light pours in, you will feel the promise of spring.
The change from winter to spring is refreshing and spirit lifting. As the landscape changes outside of your window, making a few changes to your indoor landscape will help you delight in the season even more.

This island bamboo cutting board sits over the sink area giving you extra bench space.

The cool thing about this is the built in flexible colander that fits over the sink allowing you to rinse, drain and chop. Plus did I mention that the colander is removable thus making it easy to transport ingredients between sink and stove.

Developed by the Roca Innovation Lab and designed

by Gabriele and Oscar Buratti.

Eco-friendly bathroom fixtures are becoming more and more common. But for those with a strong design focus many are still designed solely for function and forget about form.

Thus the conception of the W+W, this sink and toilet combination comes from the Spanish brand Roca. The brief was to combine compact style with green-minded thinking.

Not only is the sink and toilet attached but they are integrated internally. So that wastewater from the sink is used to fill the toilet’s cistern. This can result in a 25 percent water saving.

Worried about germs – don’t be. A built in automatic cleaning system stops those bad odors and bacteria growing, and a specially designed tap controls the water’s flow and temperature to ensure maximum energy savings.

Spirituality seems imbued in Tibetan rugs. Considered a holy land in the Vedic and Buddhist traditions, Tibet has been the home of imaginative artwork for centuries. High in the Himalayas, the world’s tallest mountain, Tibetan rug makers have infused the area rugs they create with harmonious, yet energetic, designs that are prized by rug collectors around the globe.

Tibetan rugs are now made predominantly in Nepal, another mountain nation, since many of the best rug makers fled to the country in the 1950s because of political turmoil. Settling in the Katmandu valley, the rug makers continue to produce Tibetan rugs by hand in designs and patterns that speak of timeless spiritual traditions.

The hallmark of a handcrafted Tibetan rug is its intricate hand-knotting. A Tibetan rug is backed by hand, using canvas, cotton or wool fabric. Then the knots are pulled through the fabric and snipped, a technique that results in pile of varying height, as the artist decides.

The best Tibetan rugs are made from the finest natural silk fiber and wool. This combination produces an area rug as soft as the clouds that float above the Himalayas. Even so, the cushioning of a Tibetan rug will last for years.

Tibetan rug artisans combine original patterns with hand-knotting to create area rugs unlike any others. Considered to be a sub-family of the traditional “Oriental” rug, Tibetan rugs draw designs from a multifaceted universe. A common theme is to use representations of plants that have deep symbolic meaning in Asian spirituality, such as bamboo fronds for long life and plum blossoms for beauty.

Another technique familiar to Tibetan rugs is to mix wool and silk threads in single, special weave. The result gives the area rug a sheen, almost a magical luminescence, which reflects light in dancing waves. Imagine an area rug of such dazzle gracing a study, a meditation room or a boudoir.

Tibetan rug makers also are masters at geometric area rugs to evoke a mood, such as quiet contemplation or bold energy. These patterns are woven into the rugs in ways that create designs within designs, integrating the motif with the actual texture of the pile.

At the same time, there are varieties of Tibetan rugs that are so muted they almost seem to disappear. This kind of understatement in an area rug works well in a room with a minimalist décor, or an in a busy room that needs a focal point of simplicity.

Tibetan rugs also are known for their tactile experience. Using layers of fibers, extra weaves or stitching, Tibetan rugs can surprise with textures that reveal multiple fabric sensations - soft silk amid stiffer wool, rougher cotton against silk.

Furthermore, collectors adore Tibetan rugs. Their diversity of fabrics and designs, coupled with superb handcrafting and aesthetic appeal, make them natural investments. At the same time their beauty and versatility make them extraordinary accents as area rugs in any décor.

Whether desired by a connoisseur of Asian furnishings and art, someone who’d like their décor to foster a sense of spiritual timelessness, or a homeowner who’d like an area rug with a truly unique style, Tibetan rugs will contribute extraordinary charm and value.

A vanity barcode is a product barcode that’s been turned into a decorative design. And yet is still scans just like a regular boring barcode.

They can be used as powerful marketing tool that can transform a boring piece of packaging into a terrific brand asset.

With many shops now having ‘do it yourself’ checkout many consumers now see the barcode much more often – the ideal time for some brand recognition.

(Missbehave Magazine | Baby Girl – 2009 | Art by Nikki Farquharson)

Rugs are probably among the most versatile elements in home décor. Think about it: there’s a rug out there for modern, country, traditional, Asian, and even Victorian homes. No matter what’s in or out of the trend, you won’t run out options for area rug designs. And since they don’t need to be installed (as carpets do), you can always change them up whenever you feel like it. If you want to stay in style with your area rug, here are some ideas to help you get started.

Bold and classic

New design trends are always marked by bold choices, whether in terms of color, pattern, shape or size. Often, something that’s out of the ordinary is automatically considered modern or contemporary. But breaking the mold all the time can get old after a while. With area rugs, it’s easy to find patterns that are both bold and classic. One good example is animal print area rugs: they’re practically a fixture in contemporary décor, but they’ll still draw attention long after the trend is gone.

Bold designs such as animal prints tend to draw attention to themselves, so they can easily overpower a room. When decorating with them, you’ll want to tone down the rest of the room so there’s not too much going on. As much as possible, you should stick to solid colors and plain surfaces to make the pattern stand out. That way, the rug itself becomes the room’s focal point, setting the theme for the entire room.

Unique shapes and contours

No matter what the theme is, you can’t go wrong with an interestingly shaped area rug. If you want to make a statement, veer away from the usual straight-edged squares and rectangles, and go for shapes like oval, round, hearts, flowers and abstracts. These shapes give the room an unusual angle, making it look less flat. Put round area rugs against sharp corners or straight walls, where they offer a soft contrast that make the space look more inviting.

To emphasize the shape of the rug, try looking for one with a distinct colored edging. Most rugs are made with a protective edge in almost the same shade as the rug itself, so that it looks seamless from a distance. But when you’ve got an interesting shape, a defining border helps draw attention to it. This can work especially well in a large space, where it’s important to break up the room and define different areas.

Natural materials

Natural fibers may be considered modern these days, but they’ve actually been around as long as rugs themselves. The only difference is in quality: today’s natural rugs are made with more advanced technologies that give them added strength and better wear. They also come in more designs, some of them so finely made that they almost look synthetic. Manufacturers are also able to offer more options such as seagrass, sisal, and jute area rugs.

When choosing a natural rug, keep an eye out for treatments and chemical additives that can affect their quality. Cheaper fibers often come loaded with synthetic coatings, which not only defeat the purpose but also make them more brittle over time. If you’re allergy-prone or live with kids who are, it’s probably best to stick to tried-and-tested materials such as wool and organic cotton. These materials have self-cleaning and antibacterial properties, so they’re less likely to contain chemical additives.

Learn from the pros.

Of course, the best way to keep up with the trends is to read up on them. Area rug designs are constantly evolving, and you have to be in the know if you want to make the most of them. Read magazines on interior design, take note of seasonal changes in the stores, and check online for different design trends. You don’t have to follow all of them, but they can give you a good idea of what’s in and out in the market.

Another thing you can do is subscribe to an area rug blog. These are usually maintained by professional designers themselves, or homeowners with a passion for rug design. Either way, you get advice from well-informed sources and people who have used rugs themselves. Besides design trends, a rug blog is also a great source of buying guides, product reviews, and pricing information.

Well in this office you are always floating. Introducing the Floating Office – H2Office!

Accommodating 1 or 2 office workers the H2Office is a purpose-built floating office. Fitted out with a work space containing wood-like flooring, a large L-shaped desk and a shelving unit. There is also a sun deck for moments of contemplation and a L-shaped “break-out” carpeted area that features a pull-out bed for occasional all nighters.

Plus you can add kitchen appliances and for the eco-conscious solar panels. With pricing starting at GBP 59,950 plus VAT it might be a viable option for those pushed to find affordable office space.

But also consider the possibilities for waterfront retail - marina operators – to make use of water too shallow for most other boating purposes. And no doubt there are hundreds of ideas for ‘pop-up’ businesses.