We've been house hunting for a good part of the time we've been here in KY. Barring inspections and loan qualifying we should be able to close on a particular house by the end of April--at latest.
So now comes my dilemna: How on earth do I decorate a house of my very own?? I am an awful decorator, to say the least, but I do have time to figure out what I want. So can you direct me to some good blogs or websites that I can browse and find color schemes I like? Or can you give me names of magazines I want to check out to get some good decorating ideas? I just don't know where to begin. Better yet, does anyone want to pay for an interior designer to just do the work for me?
Thank you kindly.
It really depends on your style, budget and time. I like looking at paint ads and ideas on realsimple.com I generally like all their stuff/ideas. cookiemag.com is another place to look.
ReplyDeleteI don't think I'll ever decorate my house. I'm not good at it. Good luck! ;)
ReplyDeleteI'm no professional and my house isn't anything worth mentioning, but I have lots of time on my hands (and an afternoon-only napper now!) and I love picking colors and going furniture shopping. I would LOVE to help as much as you want. I'm so excited for you guys!
ReplyDeleteHere's my advice: Start collecting photos of homes and designs you like. You can even put notes into them about why you like a room or what you do/don't like. Gather them from the internet, magazines, catalogs, pictures of friends houses whatever. Often, you'll start to see a trend in what you are attracted too. Then you can apply this to your own home.
ReplyDeleteAnd here are some sites and quizzes you can take a look at:
Design Sponge Blog
Style Quiz
Domino Mag Gallery
Domino Mag just folded, so get any images you like off of their site before they shut it down.
I think these will be a good springboard for you. Sorry this was so long. Hope I helped some.
We like to get ideas from ApartmentTherapy.com and Domino Magazine. The website is dominomag.com. I'm not sure how much longer it is going to be around, since the last issue of the magazine just came out. Design Mom (designmom.com) also has some fun decorating idea, among other things.
ReplyDeleteCongrats on owning your own home. It is always a big step. A great person with ideas is our very own Marni. I also like to LOOK and only look at the pottery barn magazines. They have awesome ideas you can find cheaper somewhere else or even make yourself. Another good place to look is IKEA. They good things for cheap but it is still good quality. Good Luck!!
ReplyDeleteThere is a blog that I check of a mom who LOVES to decorate, find garage sale STEALS and transforms them into wonderful things for her home. Some I like, some I love, and some I don't care for. Anyway, check out her blog and scroll through some of her archives. You may just have an exciting "ah ha!" moment and be inspired...
ReplyDeletehttp://granvillehouse.blogspot.com
I think people either love it or hate it...IKEA. Go to the website and you could get inspired. It's definitely not everyone's style, but I love it and it's very affordable. We bought our first house back in September and nearly all of our furniture/decorations are from IKEA because we both agreed on the style and that's what we could afford.
ReplyDeleteI am not very good at the actual decorating since my walls have very few things hanging on them, but a smart person once told me that the best (and cheapest) way to decorate a room is with paint. If you can't decide on anything else pick your paint. oh and I recommend semi-gloss, satin gets shiny spots if you have it anywhere there is traffic (people rub the wall sometimes)
ReplyDeleteAND if at all possible... paint before you move in. we made it a party of sorts and just bought pizza for those that helped :o)
Congrats on the house. Very exciting and a great time to buy.
Wow! Fabulous ideas!
ReplyDeleteI'm definitely going to check out all of those links you gals gave me.
We do love IKEA's style (in fact, we're completely re-doing our kitchen and are going to use IKEA stuff to do so...)
Rachel--you are SO coming with me no matter what.
And Stacy, GREAT idea about the pizza party. I'll make other people do the work, and then just feed them...smart! :)
Yay, so exciting!! I also like realsimple.com and apartmenttherapy.com for some ideas. Not that you would tell from looking at my house! Im in for a trip to IKEA. Anyways, I am so happy for you. Happy hunting.
ReplyDeletehttp://littlegreennotebook.blogspot.com/
ReplyDeletethere are a lot of great sites on her sidebar, too. she is a friend of a friend & she does a great job and gives people lots of design ideas!
just tackle one room or area at a time, that's my best advice. it will slowly come together.
i'm all about SPRAY PAInT -- it can change the look of lamps, frames, chairs, tables, shelves, etc etc etc ... and it's so cheap! Look for stuff at yard sales and thrift stores :) and spend the big money on important things like couches, beds, etc. the things for decorative touches can be cheap!
I may be lurking in your comment section as we face the same dilemma. Some people are just born decorators aren't they?
ReplyDeleteI am no decorator either but occasionally I like to look at this lady's blog - joysofhome.blogspot.com. I have no clue who she is but she has ideas for fixing up old things and finds a lot of them from thrift stores. She adds little touches and makes them look really great.
ReplyDeleteAll I can say is IKEA all the way!
ReplyDeleteI came to comment and give you some of my "wisdom", but everyone else has said pretty much what there is to say about it. ;) I'm no designer either, but once you figure out what you like it makes it a lot easier to pick things including colors. Have fun! Home ownership can be tons of fun.
ReplyDeleteMy advice: take it slow!! No need to do it all at once! Just start with the things you absolutely can't live with (like when we re-painted our master bedroom which was a lovely shade of apricot when we moved in). As far as ideas, I like HG tv's website. Congrats on finding a house--you will love living in your own home. It's really fun!
ReplyDeletewe had our house built- so i had nearly 8 months to plan out decorating ideas. we have been in our little home for nearly 6 months, and i still haven't decorated much. it's just so expensive to accessorize! but i love the ideas of browsing magazines and websites. a sister in my ward whose house is beautifully (over) decorated said that for years she would save pages from magazines of ideas/colors that she liked. that's my current plan. do a little bit at a time, room by room, and maybe someday, or the next house, we will have more money to make it just how we want it. good luck and post pictures of your progress!
ReplyDeleteSO EXCITING! Congrats, and we cannot wait to see your new home! And, for what it's worth, I always thought you did a great job decorating even when you just had a student's budget to work with. I'm sure it will be great!
ReplyDeleteAnd thanks for posting this, cuz now I have some resources too! I've been here 2 years and still hardly know where to begin.
Renee McGill in our ward is an interior decorator... shoe could probably offer some good tips... places to shop, magazines, etc... she's super nice. so, where is this house that you're trying to buy??
ReplyDelete