Arrange-A-Room

Do you want to arrange a room in your home or office? Better Homes and Gardens has added a free widget on their site to have a little fun adding furniture, windows, walls and more. You can also change the colors of your walls. Go to the link below. If you want to design your new home you may want to also check http://chiefarchitect.com http://freebies.about.com/od/freeservices/p/aar.htm

Nature in Black and White

I love working with black and white art or photography, it allows you to decorate your walls with subtle messages from the art then splash your rooms with any color of your choice. I found another very talented photographer at http://www.digitalfrenzy.net/. The photos posted on his site are beautiful using nature for simplicity yet his photographs show splashes of color depending on the scene, he is a very talented young man.

Photo-Collage

A collage using any form of art always creates an interesting focal point in any room. Pick a theme for the collage, i.e. if you enjoy photography and love to take nature photos or city landscapes, enlarge your pictures and frame them or put them on canvas. Collages are great in high ceiling areas particularly, using different sizes will also create interest. If you take photos of your travels and display your photographs it will also create an interesting conversational piece to tell the stories of your travels.

This could be a fun project for your child, using his or her art project mixing their own personal photos into the collage, they will have fun sharing it with their friends. Visit this link to discover how to make a little extra spending money with your photographs http://www.expressdigital.com/products/prstorefronts.shtm
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Designer Showcase

I was lead designer in this showcase of homes project. My project was the master suite, consisting of the sitting room, bedroom and master bath. Proceeds went to support the local symphony.

This was quite a large bedroom, I selected this floral print which showcased 26 colors in the pattern. I then used red, green, yellow and purple as my accent colors. A small room could not handle this large pattern, this allowed the room to have a warmer feeling. First I choose a pale yellow and faux painted the walls which were originally white. I added the light fixture, replaced the carpet from a dark brown to an off white bringing out the background of the fabric. The table skirts and drapes are lined in a pale yellow and green stripe creating a garden escape feeling. There was a surrounding patio which displayed a flower garden making this room feel an extension of the garden.

The sitting room sofa was upholstered in the same yellow and green stripe and the floral pattern lined with the same stripe was then carried through on the half draperies which were displayed on a swing rod giving the room a three dimensional look allowing more view to the garden.

When working with a large room, as you can see, color and a lot of it works!!! The room has a clean fresh yet romantic feel with a softness to reflect a mellow yet fun mood.

Elegant Exposure

Appreciating Nude Art
The subject of nude art has long been in most societies. Nude art is still, however, considered as taboo or a controversial topic despite its artistic value. Though most cultures are generally becoming adaptable and appreciative of this particular form of art, one can say that the holistic acceptance of nude art in most societies has yet to be established. The key to this acceptance is by making people understand what nude art really is all about.

Nude Arts History

Nude art has been around for so long a time, as long as the early civilizations of Greek and Egypt. Nude art back then was established as a form of appreciation of the human body. Although the same definition can be said nowadays with regard to nude art, the art has been so well extended that it not only includes the study of the human body in general but also its specific body parts. The study of nude art was all the more furthered, thanks to the Renaissance and Baroque periods both periods in time that dealt with the discovery of human nature. With this discovery came about the high importance accorded to nude art. Until now, nude art is widely practiced, especially in generally liberal countries such as American and European nations. In some countries, nude art is not as accepted but is on its way to being popularly established.

Real Nude Art

However, nude art has been debated upon by many people because of its controversial nature. After all, nudity is commonly associated with pornography. Real nude art, however, is anything but pornography. In fact, most nude art scholars and critics generally define nude art as a piece of art that provokes emotional sensuality not erotic sensuality. Furthermore, nude art refers to the study of the human body and its specific parts not of the nude person portrayed in the art. The nude person is merely a representation on behalf of humanity in general.

Also, real nude art prefers human in its most raw form. As much as possible, a nude artist would do away with embellishments which are deemed as mere accessories to the beauty of the human body. These accessories do not really beautify the human body in the process of depicting art. Rather, it sullies the beauty of the human nature. For some nude artists, however, this is perfectly acceptable. Tattoos are also accepted in special cases, depending on the nude artists vision of nude art.

In this canvas, which is my favorite, there is a mystery of realizing what it actually is at first. As you focus on the lace, only then does it seem to become apparent that this is a partial nude with grace and beauty.

Shaun Parker is an avid art fan. He has an extensive collection of photos on canvas and he shares his extensive knowledge on the topic to help people find the right artwork for their homes. You can view ideas for putting photos on canvas at http://www.mangoart.co.uk/

Create and Update

This was a comfortable room before, however, it lacked POP. The palette was good but plain. The colors I had to work with, were moss green, beige and purple. First I added purple fringe to a few of the sofa pillows, then selected a moss green, beige and purple stripe fabric which I covered a traditional chair with, creating a focal point along with half draperies on a swing rod for even more dramatics. A painting of moss greens and purple completed the balance.The frame was chrome which brought out other accents in the room.

I then carried the color scheme into the dinette area, introducing a new color and small floral print on the chair cushions. This was a white background with small flowers of purple and of course the green leaves. Fresh flowers were placed in a white vase completing the fresh feel and completing the redesign. Simple changes, yet cost effective.

What's Your Style

What Is Your Home Decorating Style?


Do your friends and family say your home looks nice because you are an excellent home decorator, or are they just being polite? Take the home decorating style quiz to find out if your home decorating style is as inspirational as people say. Whether you are a decorating diva or your home decorating style is akin to a bowl of oatmeal, this quiz can show you if you are inspirational, average, or utterly boring. Which home decorating style are you?

Take a fun home decorating quiz at lifescript.com. Once you have taken the test, it will assist you in making themes for your redesign projects and or relate your likes and dislike to your designer.