Decorating with Little Rascals

Decorating with little rascals:

Brought to you by: Irvina-lalina & Furniture From Home

We were not impressed when we heard an interior decorators opinion on decorating a home with children. My sister and I looked at each other coyly as she explained, “You will want to go with cheap upholstery and washable drapes. Just replace it all when they get older.” Basically kids are heathens and you have to suffer the consequences. Heck no! Raised in a family of five kids my mom did more than her share of keeping things beautiful and safe. These are my favorite kid friendly decorating tips:

• Kin-spiration! Add a rocking horse or miniature rocking chair to the living room. The cute part is when it’s made of the same type of wood used in your living room. Guests will admire your hospitality to even the smallest visitors. Check e-bay for great deals.

• Bear hugs and rugs: Our mom had this amazing animal skin rug as an accent piece in our living room. It was my favorite place to nap. Intelligently it was a dark animal skin. Try using dark area rugs to camouflage any cookie crumbs that might tag along from the kitchen.

• Mommy, does this match? Some things just aren’t right together. One is swim trunks and a wool sweater. The other is a glass table and a toddler. Save yourself a trip to the ER. Try going for round wood coffee tables. If you really want glass, go for a table with an embedded glass top. Look for an assortment of beautiful coffee tables at FurnitureFromHome.com

• Book buddies: Little ones learn by example. If you have a bookshelf full of your favorites so should the kids. Combine the family library into one entire den room bookshelf. Except reserve the bottom three shelves strictly for the kids. This way the kids will feel their super smart readers just like you. It will also distract little hands from your collector’s edition of Moby Dick.

• Precious, Precious: Playful hearts were made to play. Spare the Waterford and Lladro pieces and you spare the distraught tears of folly. Move the fine collectables to the study or the master bedroom until the kids are about eleven. Display them in Beautiful bedroom sets pieces. Available online.

• Face-tastic! Your child is your most priceless commodity. So decorate immensely with their pictures. If a frame gets bumped by a flying airplane, oh well. Replace the glass. It’s inexpensive and always buys you some hostess time while visitors admire your growing family.

• Out dated and over rated: I’m talking about T.V. Now hear me out here. Kids can still be entertained without giant foam characters and sarcastic humor. Add some wooden chess boards, a backgammon board, Chinese checkers or scrabble to the family room. The kids will play with each other more and speak less sarcasm at the dinner table.

Well those are my tips for today. If you would like more furniture tips check out my blog at www.bloglines.com/blog/Irvina Happy decorating and child raising.

Fabulously Green: Eco Event Alert: West Coast Green Expo

Fabulously Green: Eco Event Alert: West Coast Green Expo

Teenage Bedroom Sets: Invest now and Save later

Teenagers: Invest now and save later

Your teenager has grown out of their affection for neon flowers and the surfer motif. Now you have to invest in yet another bedroom set. Why not spend the money and splurge for a classic bedroom set? It will surely stick around for more than 4 years. If you think . about it, it's only a couple more years until your teen moves out to college anyway. Then that room will most likely become a guest room. By then you will want the room to have a classy look anyway. Better yet, your child might be able to take it with them when they get married. My girlfriend just got married at 21. She had one of those crazy 400 person weddings. Between planning the wedding and decorating the new home she was very busy. She told me how thankful she was that she was able to take her bedroom set from her parent’s house. She already loved it and it was one more task to check off her list.

When it comes to decorating your teenager’s room the possibilities are endless.
*Girly Girls*
1.) You made me blush!
Match a dark wood bedroom set with brightly painted walls. Fuchsia or a lime green walls are a great contrast to darker woods. It will also allow your teen to have some ownership in painting the room they get to enjoy

2.) I love your accent!
Now your daughter is so confident with painting that she thinks she is the next Frida Kahlo. Test out her accent. Grab some square white pillows and small paint brushes. Using the same paint used to paint her room paint designs on the pillows. She can also personalize it with her initial or her favorite quotes. The sky is the limit for your affluent artist.

*Trippy Hippy*
1.) Go with the flow
A canopy bed for my PETA princess? Never say never! A canopy bed can change from prissy to Bob Marley in seconds. Go to a flea market and grab some affordable fabrics to drape from the banisters. Funkier would be heading to the thrift store and buying an assortment of fabrics. Sew them all together to get a pattern as original as your little bohemian.

2.) Bare beauty
Your daughter doesn't wear makeup. In fact she starts debates in the makeup aisle about animal cruelty. If you don't see your daughter using the vanity in the bedroom set you purchased then you underestimated your creativity. Take some of the extra fabric you purchased from the flea market and make it into a "dresser runner." Heck add some trippy beads to the ends while you're at it. Take some more beads and drape them across the mirror. Go down to your local natural healing store and load up on lavender, mint leaves and juniper. Spread out some cute little wooden dishes on the dresser throw in your natural fragrances and peace to the Middle East...you have an aromatherapy sanctuary ready to go.

*Chap with class*

1. Hooked on phonics and electronics:

Your son is the envy of all the neighbors. Polite, attractive, smart and he knows all of your friends by Mr. and Mrs. Bravo, you did well. He’ll be going off to college soon so you’ll need to invest in great lighting for the young steed’s room. A tall lamp near his desk is ideal. The close proximity of a desk lamp will surely weaken his sight.

2. Every boy needs his brainy rest:

When purchasing a new mattress be sure you ask your son his preference of firmness from hard to soft. It’s an expensive mistake you won’t want to make. While you’re changing things around surprise your young scholar with some Jersey-Sheets. They’re so comfy he just might catch up on some sleep!

*Rebel with out a nod*

1.) Rock Star

Good looks, personality and plenty of testosterone. There is no room on this boy’s agenda to go changing his room. Especially to something “uptight” and god forbid “classy.” The idea here is to give and take. You’ll put in a new bedroom set and throw in a set of guitar hooks that match the set. When he is finished hanging his beauties mention how the room resembles a photo shoot of Aerosmith’s house in Architectural Digest.

2.) Well endowed

What do you feed that boy? He is almost 6’3 and his dad is 5’11. When purchasing a bed for your son make sure to invest in something that will last. If he is only 14 right now he is sure to grow. Look for a queen or king bedroom set to be on the safe side.