Any good sources for interior decoration and renovation? - YouLookFab Forum

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Any good sources for interior decoration and renovation?

Astrid

Veteran

I know that I said I would post my pictures, but I've been hard at work marking some of my grandma's rooms liveable again for the time I'm going to be here. First room already got some color and my bed and wardrobe is back up, the most important things I guess.

I have a small office room left, a kitchen and a hallway. I more or less want to use only what I already have (besides paint etc). And there's a super ugly bathroom, but with a great shower.

I know Apartment Therapy, but otherwise I have no idea where to look for ideas... I already gave my mum apoplexy buying brown paint mixer to paint one of the walls in a kind of very light caffe latte color. But I think it works well with the brown floor tiles! You have to work with what you've got, right?

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22 replies

Latest reply was from Astrid

Inge

(website)

Sounds like you are making excellent progress, Astrid! And indeed, it's all about working with what you've got

I also like:
- Design Sponge:
http://www.designsponge.com/

- SF Girl By Bay:
http://www.sfgirlbybay.com/

- Domino
http://domino.com/

- VT Wonen (it's in Dutch though, but perhaps the visuals can spark ideas)
https://www.vtwonen.nl/

- Making It Lovely also has DIY projects
http://makingitlovely.com/

Can't wait to see pics!-)

kkards

Veteran

Houzz....this website is a like decorating porn....and they have a section called garden web, which started about gardening, but is really discussion section about all things home and garden.

pil

Veteran

Mariakillam.com
Her primary focus is selecting colors but she has lots of decor photos as well. I also seem to remember reading a post on her blog about shopping with Angie.

cindysmith

Veteran

Pinterest has a lot of stuff too

anchie

Veteran

I second houzz. Lots of resources there.

BrieN

Veteran

+3 on Houzz. Easy

MsMary

Veteran

Yes, Houzz for sure. They have a great search feature so you can find photos of rooms that are similar to yours. Pinterest is great, too.

I also love http://www.houseofturquoise.com. Very specific look but I happen to love it!

And http://www.younghouselove.com. They have renovated a couple of houses and have some fun budget projects.

rachylou

Veteran

Pinterest!

I like the latte. Are you painting your wardrobe? Or is it in shadow. If you were feeling up to it, you could paint the wardrobe latte too. I like a smooth, unified look like that personally. But I also like the idea of upholstering walls and furniture in the same fabric, lol.

Astrid

Veteran

Thanks everyone! I'll have a look through those pages.

Rachylou, that's just the shadow. And I'm not going to paint the wardrobe, although I do plan to paint my Ikea Ivar shelves whiteish.

Today I did the hallway, just a fresh paint of white. And we bought cable ducts for the little room and installed them, there is a big cable for the oven running through it that goes into the kitchen. I can paint that one tomorrow, I thought I'd use the rest of the latte paint and do the rest in white. The kitchen is going to be tricky because it's very -ah- retro, and very green. And of course brown tiles too. Not sure how to rescue that one...

I don't really plan to buy furniture or decorations, so it's interesting to see how this will turn out!

Below are some curtains my mum found for me in the attic - I think they will work well in the room, they just need some hemming.

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BrieN

Veteran

Astrid, that fabric is really nice. It sounds to me like you are creating a unified color scheme for your space. Well done. I'd love to see a photo of the kitchen.

Astrid

Veteran

Thanks BrieN, I certainly try. Right now the kitchen is full of boxes and still not sorted at all. I can take a picture once I can manage to actually see it again...

(After the move we put a lot of my things in the little room, but in preparation for painting that one I stuffed everything into the kitchen.)

rachylou

Veteran

Since you're DIY'ing... YouTube has a lot of decorating mini shows. And full ones too, like the Great British Interior Design Challenge-or something like that.

Kitchen rug for the brown tiles?

Runcarla

Veteran

Pinterest...have fun!

Astrid

Veteran

Rachylou, that sounds great, I'll have a look. And thanks Carla!

As of today, rescuing of the green kitchen won't be necessary - my mum and dad bought a new one (and I had a little say as the current occupant). It's a bit retro too, but in a good way this time. White country cottage. I can still make suggestions about wall color, counter, backsplash and decorating. We have to prepare everything and delivery is going to be two weeks from now. I can see myself not wanting to move out again.

Janet

(website)

Veteran

The Houzz app is my go-to source right now!

KikiG

Veteran

I use Pinterest a lot, for specific things. For instance, if I wanted ideas on what to do with a kitchen with existing green counters, I'd put "Kitchen green counters" into the search feature. "Oak kitchen" or whatever. Someone has the same things they can't change that you have, and maybe their ideas will work. Green is actually pretty neutral, unless it is a really vivid kelly green, in which case it is just fun. But a green with a gray or taupe undertone can go with a lot of different things that you like. If your kitchen floor tile is busy and patterned, a rug can calm it down. You can also buy vinyl decals on Etsy to stick to existing plain ceramic tile to create the illusion that it is that trendy patterned cement tile.

I think those curtains have a charming slightly retro vibe. Very cheerful.

Astrid

Veteran

Thanks Janet - I tried it and it's definitely nice to have a look around.

Thanks Kiki! I haven't been using Pinterest much but maybe I need to give it another try. I'm glad I won't need to search for tips for a green kitchen though. We don't even have tiles in there right now, so we need to tile the wall before the new kitchen is put into the room. The floors are solid dark brown tile, like in the picture of the room I posted. My dad suggested some mosaic tile with white and earth tones in it. Kind of Mediterranean colors. That would look good with the brown floor and the new kitchen, which is off white. And I really like the curtains too! I think they're IKEA, from a few years ago.

KikiG

Veteran

Astrid, I forgot to mention this. One of Angie's fashion clients (! so that's like family, right?!) is a color expert and decorator named Maria Killam. I have been following her for years, and I'm a huge fan, and I can't think when I have ever regretted making a home decision based on her advice. In your kitchen, she would advise you to have a plain cream colored subway tile backsplash, not a pattern, because it wouldn't cycle in and out of fashion, and to bring color and style into your kitchen with accessories. Especially in a small kitchen, all it takes is a really fun and beautiful platter or tray propped up against the backsplash to make a bold statement, and if you get tired of it, you can easily change it out very inexpensively.

http://www.mariakillam.com/

KikiG

Veteran

See? this is my kitchen with the plain backsplash, with accessories that I can change if I get bored.

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rachylou

Veteran

I love the idea of a mirror over the sink!

Astrid

Veteran

Thanks Kiki! I'll have a look at her website. The new kitchen is similar to yours in style, it's nice. I really like what you've done with decorating. But there's definitely not going to be white tile - it's not really my kitchen per se because my parents are paying and it has to stay in there when I move out again, so they are going to make the decisions on everything permanent. And they've already said they want some color. But I do think it's going to look nice.

Astrid

Veteran

Just wanted to add that we've decided on the particulars for the kitchen - the countertop is going to be birch wood (much less expensive from the hardwear store), the tiles are actually going to be patterned (!) and I picked a lovely grey green for the walls. I have a feeling this is going to be awesome...
The last picture is what the kitchen looks like right now. It was a bit of work to get rid of the old one. Sadly we had to throw most things away...

I'm also still painting my shelves which is taking a while. And writing job applications...

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