Timeless Trends

As the saying goes, there’s no place like home. And these days people are looking for ways to make their existing home a more enjoyable living space.

With the housing market still weak, more and more Casa Latina familias continue to embrace what they already have. The idea of refreshing nuestra casa, even in the smallest ways, can have a restorative power and transform a house to a home.

Home furnishing experts say that it’s important to recognize that it’s the littlest things that matter when you’re making enhancements to your home. Simple touches of a new sofa or end table, rug or even a decorative lamp shade will create a different look and feel to a room or space. This is a small lifestyle change, and not an unobtainable luxury.  

Here are some timeless trends that will help you visualize and explore the possibilities for updating your home.

 Calm Yourself

Living with a neutral interior palette is like being enveloped by a cloud. Get the look by blanketing rooms in the softest neutral shades: cream, mocha and, most especially (and perhaps surprisingly), gray. A dash of a neutral metallic accent, such as silver, adds a welcome sparkle. It’s like sunlight peeking through the clouds.

Distressed to Impress

Modern Country is ageless and exudes a comforting charm that takes imperfection to new heights. Natural finishes, heavily distressed surfaces, reclaimed woods, rattan, wicker and other natural textures are livable finishes for busy families. And the look fits farmhouse style or urban loft with equal ease.   

Ethnic Inspiration

Far-reaching global influences are no longer far flung. Ethnic-inspired fabrics are turning up all over in American homes. The organic patterns, vibrant color palettes and handcrafted looks create an aura of sophisticated warmth. What to look for: motifs inspired by traditional African design; susani patterns from Central Asia; ikats and batiks from Indonesia; and handblocked woodprints from India. 

Power Play

Smaller footprint, lighter weight and better performance are important purchase considerations when buying a new laptop. The same things matter when buying home office furniture. Laptops are now the most popular home computing choice among consumers bringing writing tables and petite desks to the forefront of home office design. Unlike their executive suite predecessors, these modestly scaled workstations don’t take up an entire room. Instead, they slip easily into most interiors, providing needed workspace without taking up too much space – or too much money.  

Refreshing your nest doesn’t have to be out of reach. With a few simple changes it’s possible to fall in love with your home all over again.  

There’s Still Time!

If you’re like me, you wait until the last minute to do just about everything.  Admittedly, it’s not a great way to operate but I just can’t seem to break the pattern.  That’s why I’m always drawn to easy and unique ideas I can implement on a moment’s notice.          

This is for the other procrastinators who are, at this very moment, rushing around thinking, “What can I do to make my home look a little more festive for the Noche Buena celebration?”  To get that “¡Que Lindo!” compliment try these quick, easy and inexpensive ideas from our friends at Good Housekeeping:          

Simple DIY Décor Projects

Pinecone Vase

Pinecones have natural appeal, so show them off in clear vases or decorative bowls. We added a handful of ornaments for a bit of color, and tied a sheer ribbon around the center of the container.          

Image via Good Housekeeping

Surprising Spaces

Use ribbon to tie decorations in unexpected places, such as on the backs of chairs, on doorknobs, around vases, or on candlesticks.         

Image via Good Housekeeping

Natural Light

Nestle soft-color candles in a bed of mixed nuts and tiny red ornaments set on a tray for easy ambience. 

Image via Good Housekeeping

         

 For more last minute decorating ideas, click here.

As the cool fall air sweeps summer into a distant memory, many of us will start looking for ways to bring warmth back into our homes. An easy and cost efficient way to create a comfortable and inviting fall look is by adding warm tones and swapping out light summer fabrics for heavier, softer textiles .

Our friend Laura Jo Wegman, Design Director for Coyuchi, offers five tips for giving your home a makeover for fall. 

Switch up the Sheets

Swap out cool, white sheeting with warm fall tones for a pop of color.

Throw Blankets Everywhere!

Cold evenings call for curling up under a soft, warm throw on the couch. Throw blankets are the fastest way to update you style for the season while also keeping you cozy. Bring one to bed for an extra layer of warmth!

Pops of Color

Change the look of your bed or sofa by giving it a touch of new personality. Add colorful pillows to warm up your space, or try our embroidered pillowcases for just a bit of a new look without having to change your whole bed.

Seasonal Splurge

Treat yourself to an accent piece or small decorative items, such as napkin rings or a centerpiece, that you can integrate into you fall home decor each season. 

Summer is coming to a close and Fall Fashion Week is right around the corner. For a fresh and fashionable new look, why not integrate this season’s top runway trends into your fall home décor updates?  Our friends at The Foundary offer 3 simple tips on how-to do it – affordably! 

Bright Colors

Incorporating bright accent pieces and switching out dining ware, is a space savvy, easy way to add some zest into your home

 Leather

Swapping out your seashell encrusted mirror for a leather one will open up your space and add a warm, autumn vibe.

 Animal Prints

Sexy on the runway, sexy in the home. Break out a stool like the one featured here.

As a new parent, there are a lot of things you need to consider when kid-proofing your home. Only when all corners are be padded and almost anything with a hinge is locked can you consider considering your home a child-friendly fort. Yet, as your kids thrive, your home suffers: the furniture gets stained, the floors turn into battlefields, and your home becomes one big toy box. 

This year, reclaim the space that once resembled your home. Our friends at Sure Fit Slipcovers offer overworked moms a few quick tips for taking back your home.

Mini Home Make-Over

You’ve scrubbed and scrubbed your sofa to remove the paint stains from your toddlers newest masterpiece until you were red in the face, but you still can’t justify buying a whole new couch. One of the quickest ways to make a dramatic update to your home is by revamping your furniture. Sure Fit Slipcovers and Home Solutions carry a wide variety of colors and styles that are sure to update any room for the season. Try the Holden Collection in Sage to lighten up your living room.

Carpet Clean-Up

After a full year with children, your carpets truly pay the price. After a spring full of muddy footprints, a summer full of sticky snacks, a fall full of Halloween candy stuck in your carpet, and a winter full of snowmen sized water stains, your carpets are left pleading for a good cleaning. With just one simple phone call, you can have your carpets shampooed and looking brand new before the kids are even home from school.

Lighten Up With Candles

Battery operated candles are a cost efficient, safe and simple way to rid your home of the smelly trails that are sometimes left behind. Choose rich, seasonal scents that will make your home feel warm, inviting, and relaxing. 

Designate Your Space

 The kids have a playroom, and yet they still manage to take over your living room, kitchen, hallway, bathroom, etc… It’s about time you designate a space that is your own. Whether it’s arranging a cozy reading corner, or giving your bathroom a spa-worthy makeover, it is important to have somewhere peaceful to call your own.

Small Changes Can Make a Difference

Adding a small touch such as throw pillows is an easy and cost effective way to liven up a piece of furniture even if it’s registered alot of mileage!

Casa Latina is always on the lookout for interesting new designers with unique home-related ideas and products.  So we are pleased to introduce Tania Johnson Design’s four stunning hand knotted rug designs. The earthy but contemporary patterns are inspired by intricate details of nature – among them delicate plays of light, shadows and reflection.  The designer, Tania Johnson, portrays these elements through meticulous color choices, very high knot counts, and combinations of silk and wool that create nuanced textures and sheens.  

“As an avid world traveler and photographer I have found my rug designs to serve as the perfect canvas for capturing memories from my travels.  The inspiration for the patterns often comes from the subtlest details of my own photographs – rain falling on tree branches, or a close-up of a Nepalese Buddhist shrine.  The colors and materials allow me to translate these small frozen moments into usable pieces of art,” said Johnson.  

Bringing The Outdoors In

 Each of these rugs – Reflected Trees, Textured Daisy, Branches, Drops of Light – pushes the boundaries of creative and technical possibilities.  The designs benefit from Johnson’s penchant for very low pile heights. This detail offers an added layer of luxury and a supple and sumptuous surface quality that is equally pleasing to the eye and to the touch.  

Reflected Trees

An image of trees reflected in a lake.  As the sun moves across a lake, an image fleetingly appears only to be replaced moments later by a new pattern. The use of warm colors and blending of different shades with varying percentages of wool and silk in a single knot recreates the beautiful interplay of light and movement in the original photograph.    

Reflected Trees

Textured Daisy

A daisy’s shadow falls on a stony path, creating a softly blurred flower pattern on a textured ground. Subtle shades of color are finely knotted in wool to create the blurred edges while an uneven silk grid is layered on top to add movement and sheen.   

Textured Daisy

Drops of Light

Light is captured as it falls in drops. Through the use of high knot count and tonal shades, the delicate nuances of light are recreated within the lemon colored wool ground, while the drops shine in silk.  

Drops of Light

Branches

Tree branches in the rain are viewed through a gauzy mesh. Made from pure silk, the rug gradually shifts and transforms from an intricate design to a sheen of olive green tones as one moves around it.  

Branches

About Tania Johnson Design  

Founded by Tania Johnson in 2010, Tania Johnson Design specializes in custom made, contemporary, hand knotted rugs. The collection is inspired by the natural world, the way light creates shadows and reflections, the microscopic details found in nature and the infinite textures created through layering.  Johnson creates ethereal designs and translates them into intricately woven rugs. The collectable pieces feature original, cutting-edge designs, and are hand knotted by artisans in Nepal using lustrous combinations of silk, wool and pashmina.  

The New York based, British born designer graduated from London’s Royal College of Art with a Master of Arts in woven textiles. For more than 14 years Johnson designed textiles for such top home brands as Martha Stewart, Chilewich, Vera Wang, and Calvin Klein Home.  As a designer for Calvin Klein Home, Johnson created the brands’ first rug collection in 2002.  This further developed her passion for innovative rug design.  

To view the entire Tania Johnson Design collection, please click here.

Understand The Importance Of Planning, Placement And Value Before Selecting New Furniture.

Homeowners seek interiors with fine furnishings and accessories. Whether enlisting interior designers or doing it themselves, many are turning to a popular trend of using traditional furnishings in a range of juxtaposed décors.

“With emphasis on comfort and personal style, many homes include varied elements of aesthetic form and practical function,” says Mike Howarth, president and owner of Englishman’s Fine Furnishings. Planning spaces boasting this combination has challenges but is attainable with some insider knowledge. Having designed English- and European-style reproduction furniture for many years, Howarth provides the following Q&A advice.

Q. How can rooms be decorated to maximize form and function?

A. To get started, decide how a room will be used. For example, consider if a dining room will be for formal or casual dining, or both. Determining if the room will host adults or children helps greatly with furniture selection. We recommend solid wood tables as they are resistant to permanent scratches. As dining rooms tend to be formal spaces, tables, chairs, china cabinets and sideboards can serve as a home’s finest furnishings. Yet, choosing comfortable pieces is essential.

Q. What makes a well-furnished room?

A. Begin with style and design; then follow with size and placement. Rooms should have space for traffic paths with unblocked openings. Use heavier pieces in larger rooms. It is good to scale spaces with layout plans, or even tape out the sizes of the pieces onto the floor to visualize placement. Customization is also an ongoing trend. We’ve customized furniture in most every size and style according to specific space constraints. Layout drawings based upon dimensions, like those our in-house designer Anita Vreeland creates, can help delineate well-made arrangements. 

Q. How can reproduction furniture and antiques be differentiated?

A. Only a trained eye should be able to tell the difference between reproductions and antiques. The thickness of veneers can be a sign, since antiques generally have more layers. Using the correct style of fixing blocks, drawer joints, screws or nails and hardware is critical. Most important is a finish with style-appropriate shading in the polish and patina. Many of our customers select our furniture because it is designed with realistic markings as if sourced from English country homes. A particular favorite is our Age of Oak Collection dresser and rack with a rustic oak finish to give the authentic appearance of age.

Q. Should furniture match interior colors?

A. This can be very much a personal choice, but there are a few things to consider. Warm color palettes for walls, flooring and fabrics can dictate the use of warm tones for wood finishes. Likewise, a room’s foundational cool tones are best paired with finishes in similar colors. Mahogany, walnut, cherry, oak, alder and maple wood options provide unique appearances. Our in-house design schematics for traditional interiors include mahogany and walnut finishes. Though, for transitional looks, we suggest mixing it up a bit. Blending harmonized wood types in one piece creates design interest. One example is our mid-cherry wood dining table, customizable with lighter yew wood banding. 

Q. How does furniture hold value?

A. Fine-quality pieces hold value as they age. Value is characterized by handcrafted manufacturing that entails subtle or ornate detailing and careful attention at every stage. Long-lasting value comes from furniture manufactured by skilled craftsman with experience derived from studying high-end pieces from past eras. We believe the reproductions we design today can become tomorrow’s antiques.

To learn more, visit ckick here.

Transform The Ordinary Into The Extraordinary.

Casa Latina is always on the lookout for unique and interesting home décor ideas and we’ve found one with Skattered Moments.  Skattered Moments is a new company that transforms simple photos into stylish, captivating, customized works of art.

Using patented software, they pixelate an image using a variety of shapes and then divide the image across any number of frames.  A simple 4×6 inch photo can be skattered, customized & transformed into spectacular wall art of almost any dimension for display in your home. As they say, a picture is worth a thousand words.  Take a look:

For more information please click here.