Every spring blooms with new trends from both the runways of the fashion world and the showrooms of top interior designers. At City Tile in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, we watch the latest magazines, industry news, blogs, and even what is happening in New York and other trend-setting parts of the world to see what is new and what will most likely be coming to us soon.
What was happening on the west and east coasts used to take two to five years to find its way to Tennessee, but with the Internet that wait time has sped up. So get ready to see how some of these trends might show up in the South. Here are three DIY projects employing the latest hot new ideas.
It Is Easy Being Green, Blue, and Blooming
When Pantone chose “Greenery” as their color of the year, at least one spread in ever magazine was suddenly devoted to the yellow-green color that is bursting with vitality. But it has not totally knocked the hot blues – indigo, teal, and navy – out of the magazines and blogs. Nor have the first flowers of spring faded. All of the colors, texture, and elements of the out-of-doors are being used more and more in homes to “bring the outside in.”
There are many ways to bring the outside into a home. You can start by replacing carpeting with hardwood, engineered wood, or wood laminate flooring. Laying a laminate floor, for the ardent do-it-yourselfer, will take a weekend.
Another way to bring the outside into a home is the use of natural fabrics, like linen, and natural colors like green, blue, and pink. All of these colors are finding their way into well-designed homes because they work so well with the many shades of gray that are covering walls. Two of the best DIYs are a quick coat of paint or a new duvet for the bed in a pristine white linen.
Having fresh cut, not artificial, flowers in every room from a backyard cutting garden is becoming more popular. Or if you don’t have a green thumb, you can make some lovely floral accent pieces with a few runs through the sewing machine, like big fluffy pillows.
Collections of things like seashells or black and white stones placed into glass jars are yet another way to add a touch of nature to a home. Groupings of pictures of birds are flowers are another option.
For those of you who want to bring new growth into your home, add lots of plants. Plants are great for keeping the air in your home fresh and healthy. If you want a unique way of adding plant-life to your home, two options are a living bath mat or a living wall.
Pollack and Basquait In Living Color
If you are not familiar with the famous splatter painter and graffiti artist of the latter half of the 20th century, you soon will be because adding bright splatter painting and/or graffiti to upmarket furnishings and fabrics is a new and growing trend.
Gray, as mentioned above, is the number one color of choice for walls, according to Houzz’s 2016 trend report. It overtook beige during that same year. Especially among Millennials. Walls and floors are very much becoming the canvas upon which home décor is being painted, and with so much neutrality, the décor is often exploding with color.
Adding splatter and/or graffiti to an old dresser or a paint tarp turned into a tablecloth or a curtain is simple and fun. Make sure to lay plastic down on the floor and cover walls before creating your masterpiece.
To paint an old dresser, make sure to sand it all down first, and then paint the whole thing with a solid color. White or black are the best choices because they really show off the bright colors of your drizzling or spray painting of graffiti.
Next, take out the drawers. It is best to just add the color to the drawers as an accent. Space them close together in the order that they will be placed in the chest. Next choose bright primary and/or secondary colors to splatter, drizzle or spray paint over the fronts of the drawers in any way you choose. Try to keep it to 2-4 colors, too many colors gets too busy. Also, don’t do too much, like too many colors, too much design can be distracting. You do want your design to be random.
Once you are done, let the drawers dry completely and then slide them back into the chest for a great accent piece. For more complete instructions, check out XXX.
Black and White All Over, Again
Black and white are still hot design colors. They can be used alone or with a pop of color.
One easy way to add a touch of the trend into your home is to create a black and white photo gallery using all black or all white picture frames. It is best to make sure that all of the photos are matted in the same way with white or off white mattes for the black frames, and white or black for the white frames.
Remember to put the heaver photo frame or larger frames at the bottom as a base and build up from there. The frames can be of different widths, sizes, and shapes to add interest.
Hope you have fun with these DIY projects as you bring some of the hottest trends into your home.
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