Introduction to the Barry Dixon Collection (short)

A room should reflect your personality

A room should reflect your personalty.  It should look like ti has always existed.... When I am working with clients, I always want to know a bit about their hobbies, likes and dislikes....it is not because I am nosy...I just want to get a feel for the personality.

I also like this saying..that "a room should feel collected not decorated"....

Personality, traditionalism, order, regimented  
By DP Morris

Personality, Bohemian , artsy, liberal, laid back 

Personality, earthy, balance, sophisticated,  a bit romantic
DR James Rixner

Personality, artsy, romantic , chancy
photo by CI-Savio-Firmino

Personality, creative, experimental , naturist 

Painting Wooden Floors

Painted Runner

If you have been following any of my posts, you know that I am working also on my own home.  It sits on the Barngat Bay in Toms River New Jersey.  It was originally a summer home, and we are now trying to convert it to a year round home...

The floors upstairs in the loft area are sub-flooring and they are in bad shape.  So, I'm investigating the possibility of  painting them....While doing so, I found some great examples...I just have to win my husband over on the idea...  I hope they are inspirational  to you

Natural and Painted

Checker Board

Pattern

zig zag

Visit Apartment Therapy for step by step instructions or another of my favorites is Annie Sloan

Visit our website at www.harmonizehomes.com  or our sister company Shore Chicy Designs

or visit us on facebook for a daily feed of ideas and inspirations..

917-699-1262

How to Trick the Eye and Make a Small Room Seem Anything But...

Today Harmonize Homes is featuring a guest blogger  Chris Coleman , from Signature Furniture Rental  - San Diego California

How to Trick the Eye and Make a Small Room Seem Anything But

The days of selling a house full of empty rooms is gone. To create a home, not just present a house, is imperative. But what to do with those small rooms we keep tucked away, the closed-in living room or the claustrophobic kitchen? Can these rooms be salvaged into something more alluring?

One of the worst things you can do is keep the room empty. While a third bedroom in a large home might be able to be left to the buyer’s imagination (or be presented as a bonus room), any main room must be staged. There are a few relatively easy tricks and techniques to use when home staging that can help the room be perceived as larger and more spacious.

First of all, you won’t win any buyers with a layout that screams “look how much stuff can fit in this room!” Clutter and crowded spaces should be avoided at all cost. Clutter can not only make it painfully apparent just how small a room is, it can make the room feel quite claustrophobic. In fact, it’s best to have one large, prominent piece of furniture surrounded by a couple of smaller pieces rather than an army of smaller pieces, which is most people’s first instinct. 

A few easier tricks that can have an astounding effect on how we perceive the size of a room rely on the use of mirrors and windows:

• Having a wide-open window to look out of can make a room seem more airy and open.  

• Mirrors placed in easy lines of sight can effectively double the space in size.

• If possible, increase the amount of space between your furniture, especially from the wall.

While a new paint job might be more than you’re willing to take on when home staging, good lighting can have just as big an impact on a room as a new coat of color. There’s no set way your room should be lit because lighting can create any mood you desire; make sure each room is brightened according to its traditional purpose. Torchiere lighting is an excellent choice because it’s the easiest to move around and caters to the needs of each specific room.


Good luck and happy home staging! Remember, every room can sell the home with just a little creativity.


Posted By:  Harmonizing Homes

Source:       Signature Furniture Rental

Location:

Signature Furniture Rental 8525 Camino Santa Fe San Diego, CA 92121             (858) 227-4370

What comes first fashion or interiors?

I spend a lot of time, perusing both fashion and interiors...as I do love both!  As I view some of my favorite bloggers Habitually Chic, Fashion & Decor  and others its amazing the similarities in prints and colors.

Great airy open room

Shades add a bit of Glam to kitchen

Who couldn't get creative in this office

Safari print on both

A foyer that makes a statement

Simply adding a rug and pillows changed the entire look of the room  

Marc Jacobs Spring 2013

Dolce & Gabbana Spring/Summer 2013

Follow our blogs or visit our website Harmonizing Homes or follow us on facebook  or call us at 917-699-1262

Gorilla Hooks?

I am working with a new client that had purchased  the Grande Palais Mirror by Ballard Designs in November.  After reading the installation reviews she was a bit nervous about the installation.


 Now I come on the scene to help her with a redesign project....and there sits the "MIRROR"..... see it sitting behind the table. I had to call in for reinforcements... my go-to-guy! my husband!

Some of the comments in the reviews referred to using Gorilla Hooks.....So off to Lowes for the Hooks.  Not only that I never heard of them before; but neither did the two young sales folks that were helping me...We did finally find them! The hooks come in two sizes the larger can hold up to 50 pounds, which we needed as the mirror is in three sections two (2) rectangles (45 lbs. each) and one arch (35 lbs)


Installation went well and we continued using these new discoveries as we completed the installation of  her art work....they simply are pushed through the dry wall...no tools are necessary.

Visit Harmonizing Homes Website or our Facebook Page  or just give us a call at 917-699-1262 - We would love to help you " transform your home with design and style"

Storage is your friend.

Its February and according to New York Times Best Seller "one year to an organized life" .  Its time to organize your closet.  Especially if you are getting ready to put your home on the market for sale.  People are very interested in storage; so they will be looking in your closets for space allowance.

If they open up your closet and see disorganization, they are going to assume immediately that  your home has an issue with storage and that there will not be enough space for their items

This picture shows and tells and entirely different story. Space, organization, attractive, functional.   Trust me storage is your friend when you are selling your home.  My husband and I had one closet to share when we lived in Manhattan.  We purchased ELFA from the Container Store, which solve all of our storage issues.

It is important to clean out your existing closet first of unwanted and unrelated items.  Make donations to charity or to friends and family.  If you have gained weight and you are keeping those skinny clothes as an incentive - keep only one piece and get rid of all the others.     Peter Walsh has a cleaver hanger trick  after you organize your closet place the hanger in backwards as illustrated below.  Mark your calendar say for two months from the date that you hung the hangers backwards.  If after those two months the hangers are still backwards, it is pretty safe to say you will not be wearing that item..so get rid of it.  For more great tips on organizing your closet click on link for Peter Walsh

If you need help with organizing visit our website at www.harmonizehomes.com follow us on facebook or give us a call at 917-699-1262 we would love to help you.