Decorating Princess

Clive Pearse from Designed to Sell is pretty easy to like. It’s a case of everything sounds good with an English accent. He could’ve said the most horrible thing on Design Star & people would’ve given him a hug for it.

He has such an amazing voice that he even does all the voice overs for the different versions of the show. However, his voice sounds almost too perfect. For some reason I always imagine that he’s just spent years & years with a voice coach like Eliza Dolittle & that his natural voice is a thick New York accent. I’m sure it isn’t true, but it makes me giggle whenever I watch Design Star. What do you think Clive is really like? Has anyone actually met him?

Technorati : designed+to+sell, hgtv

I remember the first time I heard the term “french country”. I thought “Umm, I don’t know what that means”. It seems like a lot of TV designers don’t really understand it either. Whenever a new design style comes out I find it very helpful to browse through furniture stores online.

Just today I was looking through a site called American Country. They have everything from log furniture to bistro sets. They have over 4,000 square feet of furnishing. Whether you’re looking for something timeless or contemporary they will have it. What’s really unique about this store is that they arrange their furniture in gorgeous settings so you can get an idea of the overall feeling & theme that this furniture can create.

Their bistro furniture has even been featured on Extreme Makeover Home Edition. They have a nice selection of wicker furniture & Cottage Furniture. I’ve been looking for an area rug for months & I could never find an affordable one. They have a huge selection of southwestern rugs. I had no idea that anything like this existed but I love them. They also have accessories on this site as well as lamps so that you can get the complete look. You won’t have to wonder what “french country” means because you’ll be able to see it.

Technorati : cottage furniture, extreme makeover home edition, furniture, wicker furniture

I’m watching a Six Feet Under marathon & I came in on the middle of the series. I have no idea what is going on or who the people are, but I love the way they decorate. Granted, you probably don’t want your house to feel like a mortuary but there are still a few home improvement tips to be learned from the Six Feet Under sets.

If you have to use “cheap” tile stay away from white. One of the kitchens is decorated with bold red & black tiles. You just notice the unique colors instead of the fact that the tile is plain.

The outside of the house has very dark trim. I can’t tell if it’s dark green or black but it lends an air of elegance & sophistication affordably.

So often we go for neutral sofas. This is smart because our furniture will be around for years. However, you can still have a slight pattern in a neutral color to bring more texture to the room.

If you have wooden stairs, put a runner on them for a warmer feel.

Technorati : decorating, home+improvement, six+feet+under

When we built our house, it was very difficult to decide on house plans. We knew that we wanted a house with a certain number of bedrooms & that it should be pretty, but that was all we were sure of. We really should’ve spent some time on the internet at the House Plan Shop. They have everything from log home plans, beach house plans, & even European house plans. Plus, they only carry the very best. Their plans come from the top selling architects & designers. I really like that you can shop by category or even garage style & they have such a varied selection.

It’s very easy to find the features you are looking for & this is a lot easier to use than flipping through all of the magazines that we used. We were working off of grainy black & white photos & we weren’t exactly sure what our house would turn out like. Thehouseplanshop.com has gorgeous artistic renderings so you get exactly what you want in your dream house.

Technorati : home plans, house plans