When You Gotta Scarf It!

When the scarf trend hit town, it was like a strong tidal wave that threatened to take us all back at sea with it. One would have thought there was a scarf store in town that was dishing out all these beautiful patterned pieces of cloth for every one to wear.


I sat back and looked on as the trend moved from the young, to middle aged, to the old! What was obvious though is that many wore it the famous Desert Arab way in the checkered form over anything regardless of colour and weather especially in this dusty city.


Well lets say that was working , for a while anyway until people got bored and ditched it for the next trend.

When it came to every Tom,Dick and Harry wearing the same pattern with no way to differentiate the brand and cost, I saw the checkered trend die out slowly and now it's lets safely say only held up by SA's Luclay in the Big Brother House.


But we scarf lovers don't want to give up that easily bearing in mind how much of a wardrobe saver they are. They are one of the must have items in any one's closet because they effortlessly turn plain to stylish. Like they say, it gets better as it gets older; and nothing gets older than this trend.
There are quite a number of interesting and still trendy ways to work that scarf for all occasions and styles. The scarf doesn't have to be black checkered to work, enough with that already!

Wear the scarf in as many ways and colours as you can for instance to shield yourself from the biting cold, as a belt, as a necklace , head wrap, head gear and well, a scarf!


Scarves can be worn with casual, business or night/evening attires and trust me they will always add style to even the most boring of outfits.


So don't be discouraged by the fading trend, stock as many different scarves and see your outfit take on a new twist!  P*mela*

Decorating A Studio Apartment

Taking a one room studio and converting it into a multi-use living space may seem challenging, but it is possible as long as you use a few simple tricks.

For those who prefer simplicity on a small budget, opting for a studio apartment may be the answer to your questions. And for those who don’t know what a studio apartment is, it’s a bedroom combined with a living room and kitchen. In a few cases, it may not have a separate kitchen area. Sometimes the kitchen is tucked in the corner of the room and has a small fridge area, a cooker/stove and microwave.
A studio apartment usually comes with a whole lot of questions about how to decorate and transform it into proper living quarters where you will still be able to entertain guests whilst maintaining your privacy. Achieving this is no mean feat but it can be done. Here’s how.


Multi-purpose

Make sure every item in your apartment has more than one purpose seeing as space is needs to be economised. There are many multipurpose home items out there if you know what you are looking for.

Choose a couch that converts into a bed or have your bed built into a closet and only remove it at bed time. These are space and money savers but more important you get two for the price of one. Other items are desks that can be transformed into a dining table or a kitchen counter that can double as a bar for that time when you throw a house party.

For studio apartments, less is more and it’s better to choose streamlined furniture which has simplicity. This simplicity is portrayed through the use of crisp, symmetrical geometric forms. Streamlining enables diverse furnishings to coexist seamlessly with in one space.
More so, go for a drop-leaf table or one that pushes against the wall instead of a round one that will occupy more floor space. You can also oprt for folding chairs and tuck them away when not in use to save space.
Use the space near the window to make a window seat to cut on the amount of furniture needed and provide space for a lounging area where you can lie down with a book, watch TV or even take a nap. For extra storage space, choose coffee sets, beds and dining tables with storage for books, magazines and racks. You can also position the shelves in such a way that they act a partition between the bed and sitting area.

Partitioning




Add partitions to seperate rooms

This is the only way you will have that much-desired privacy. Use simple partitioning that can be bought in furniture shops or order one of your choice from a workshop. Try and add style to your partition’s design rather than have it plain.



You can use beading, a folding screen, curtaining, or bookcases, but keep it simple and artistic for a good finish. Use movable folding partitioning to create a wall for the bedroom and dressing area and to separate the bedroom from the bathroom and living room.
Movable partitioning will also allow for easy change of your interior when bored with one old look.





Colour to define space
  

Use colour to help define space. Colour is well known for making small rooms appear bigger and big ones smaller. Manipulate this and bring whatever perspective you want to your apartment. So, for your small studio apartment, use lighter colour in corners that you want to appear bigger.
Colours like white, soft cream and beige will add size to a room and should be used more. Use a dark colour on the wall that holds the TV as this will make it appear endless, thus creating an illusion of an open space.
Keep the dark colours to a minimum. If you are using a bookcase to partition the living room and bedroom, paint it the same colour to create the feel of a big room. Stick to a particular colour scheme such that everything is in harmony.
You can also use the light trick to create an illusion of different rooms: dim the lights in some areas like the bedroom and brighten those in the living room or kitchen.P*mela*





A space saving closet bed




A futon bed-sofa by day, bed by night!







Multipurpose Sofa bed



How To Tastefully Decorate A Large Living Room

If your large living room looks stark, empty and plain, there are many ways you can bring it down to size and transform it to a room that is comfortable, cosy and inviting.

Most people would kill for a large and spacious living room especially after seeing a well decorated one. However when it comes to decorating one, you may find your self at your wits end with so much space, so much or little to fill it and so few ideas on how to get it done. Don’t despair because a large living room can easily, effortlessly and tastefully be decorated just like any other sized room. You however have to keep some aspects in mind. So, try out the tips below and you will find it not so complicated a task to accomplish after all.

Go large
  

When setting out to decorate a large space, keep thinking large.Pick out large and wide wall hangings, large photo frames, large plants and pots, large lampshades, lamp holders. It's important to remember that for a big room,large accents pull the look together; say a large wall hanging or painting that covers three qautres of the wall or goes all the way to the bottom. If you can’t afford a large painting or hanging,then try using several pieces of smaller artwork to make a pattern or collage for the wall. Be sure to space the artwork out so that it covers a majority of the wall. This will take away the confusion and clutter that comes with trying to fill up a wall with smaller spaced out hangings and decortaions.

Colour

When used skillfully in a room, colour can do anything that you want it to; from making a room appear smaller, bigger,warm, cool, wider, narrow, low or high. So when choosing colours for your large living room, you will want to keep in mind the above aspects. Generally for large rooms, keep away from bright colours and stick to deep warm tones that will make the room more centred and down to size. Move a way from traditional wall colours like cream, white, off white and add a dash of colour to warm up and give character to the room. Go for colours like burnt orange,deep red, blue, pale green, coffee brown, maroon or gold and many more colours that are well suited for a large room and will make it cozy and welcoming.

Lighting
Lighting plays an important role when it comes to décor and has to be well planned for and used. For a large room, you will want to dim the lights a little bit if not completely in some corners so as to take away from and give attention to some areas. Fluorescent light is a definite no-no for large rooms as it will only help in making the room appear bigger, stark and uninviting. Lamp shades and corner lamp stands when used and placed strategically will go along way in creating a comfy and welcoming living room. The shadows cast by dim light here and there give character to the room and draw attention away from it's size.


Choice and Position of Furniture

When choosing furniture for a large living room, keep it on the large and sturdy end; one big long L-shaped sofa will look better in the room as opposed to three or four smaller sleek streamlined ones. The same goes for T.V stands, lampshades, side tables and coffee tables. The sleek and slender look is better suited for small rooms where you want to have a more aired out and spacious look.
More so, how you place your furniture in a large living room will very much affect the whole look. Avoid placing furniture against the wall as is commonly done. Placing furniture against the wall robs the room of that intimate feeling and character. Instead, go for a different look and pull sofas, chairs and tables away from the walls to create intimate spaces that will break up the room and make it easier for conversation and interaction.
Area rugs are another great way of not only creating intimate, cosy spaces but also breaking up floor space.
When put into play, these tips will make it easier for you to tastefully decorate your large space into a cosy, comfortable and inviting living room, happy decorating! P*mela*

Creative Storage For Small Bedrooms

Many times, bedrooms leave us starved for storage and small bedrooms are a particular challenge. But with a few simple ideas, you can live large in a small bedroom.

Having a small bedroom usually comes with clutter and disorganisation. It can be frustrating when adding such things as storage units, furniture, electronics cramp the place leaving you no room to move around freely. However, there are a number of ways to creatively store your possessions without cramping up your bedroom. Here's how.

Be Creative

Instead of having a dressing table take up precious space in the room, opt for a wall mirror. Choose one with attractive floral patterns and it will act as decoration too. For your cosmetics and any other toiletries, you can have a shelf attached to the wall, either below the mirror or on either side. You can have one made in stained or coloured glass, wood or chrome metal.

Shoe storage can be a task in small bedrooms. You don’t have to trip on your shoes, there are a number of shoe racks that attach to doors and you will be spoilt for choice at most stores. These shoe racks come in different sizes, shapes and material, so choose one that is strong and will not wear and tear easily. Some can hold as many as 20 pairs of shoes.

The closet area usually takes up most of the space in a room and for small bedrooms, this is a disaster as you may be left with so little space. However, you can opt for sliding doors or comletely do away with them and go for opt an open closet. Add some shelves and use boxes and baskets for added storage. Install a second closet rod either above or below the original one. Use this either for clothes that you don’t wear often or for low hanging clothes like trousers.

“Alternatively, you can attach mirrors on closet doors, which if strategically positioned will make the room appear bigger because of the mirror image effect.

Improvise for storage

Almost anything in the room can be used for extra storage.Your for instance; instead of having a plain headboard, go for one with shelves. The headboard can be designed to have two or more shelves where you can display your favourite photos, keep your books, jewellery, cosmetics, lampshade and anything else of your choice. You can still create storage room atop your bed if you prefer a plain headboard. Attach wall shelves above the head of the bed. Paint the inside of the shelves in bright colours of your choice to match your decor.

For the ladies whose jewellery tends to get tangled up and strewn all over the place, you are at risk of often misplacing your favourite pieces in a small bedroom. There are simple ways to store your jewellery for instance using partitioned boxes placed in your bedside drawers. These boxes can be found in most stores in town, so choose one that suits you and go on to lay out your jewellery neatly. You can also use hook and place them to the inner walls of your closet to hang your bangles and necklaces. This will make for a colourful yet organised space saving display.

“Wall storage is one big way to save on space. There are a number of things that can be attached to the wall as opposed to placing them on the floor or surfaces. Take for instance toilet bags; instead of using two or three toilet bags in your closet or on a nightstand, hook one to the wall. You can attach this on a hook inside the closet, on the closet door, or anywhere on the wall. Screw hooks into the wall for additional space to hang clothes. More so, book shelves, display racks and any other storage can be attached to the wall and space saved on the floor and in the room as a whole!

Don’t let a small bedroom cramp your style, you can use any or all of the above storage tricks and save space to keep your room neat and organised.P*mela*

Wall storage saves space