It’s hard to believe that Cottage and Bungalow has been sharing tips on coastal style and beach living since January! We took a look at what our most read posts were since the inception of this blog and wanted to share our reader’s favorites. Are these your favorites too?
Choosing The Perfect Chandelier
We think a new chandelier can completely transform a dining room. Feel like your decorating is stuck in a rut? Shake things up with a stylish new fixture to bring some sparkle to your home. Here are some great tips from HGTV’s Karl Lohnes on selecting the right size and style chandelier for your dining room.
Choose the right size for your room.Lohnes uses a simple equation: Measure the width of your room. The chandelier should be two inches in diameter for every foot of width. A 12-foot wide dining room, then, would work best with a chandelier that’s 24 inches in diameter; a 10-foot wide space would call for a chandelier approximately 18 to 24 inches in diameter. Other experts offer a similar formula: Add the dimensions of the room together, and that number in inches is the width of the chandelier that best fits the room. So a 10-by-12 foot room would call for a 22-inch wide chandelier.
Consider too, the chandelier’s style in selecting the right size. For example, “if a chandelier is extremely ornate, even if it’s smaller than what you might imagine, it can work in a large room,” says Cheryl Katz, co-author of Chandeliers(Rockport, 2001), and co-owner of Boston-based design company C&J Katz Studio. The ornate features give it a different kind of weight.
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Gourd Lamps
When does a design trend become a classic? It’s hard to know. However, when it comes to gourd lamps it is safe to say that these decorators’ favorites have definitely gone from the trendy to the classic. It certainly is not hard to figure out why these lamps are so appealing. The voluptuous shape of a gourd lamp brings some soft curves to a room. Also, the ceramic lamps come in a variety of colors so they can add a punctuation of color to a room. Finally, gourd lamps work with any type of decor. The gourd lamp looks at home in a traditional interior or it can add a classic touch to a very contemporary space.Painted Floors
If you want to add instant cottage style to a room try painted floors. Painted floors are a great way to completely change the look and feel of a room. Floors painted with a light color will lighten and brighten the darkest of rooms.
Painted floors are also a practical and low cost solution for damaged wood floors. Experts recommend using an oil based porch and floor paint. As with any paint job – preparation is key. We recommend a visit to your local paint shop for the proper materials and “how to”. Painted floors are easy to clean with a quick swipe of a mop and soapy water. Although these floors wear well you do need to be comfortable with some scratches and nicks. These imperfections just add to the cottage charm.
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