Wow! I can’t believe how long it’s been since I added to my list called, “The 100″ – 100 items that make a house a home. Today we are adding wall art to the list.

“Art” brings depth, dimension, color, texture and interest to the walls of our house. Placing pieces on your walls will personalize your space but it will also help to visually heighten a room by drawing the eye upward.

This room photo from Ballard Designs is an excellent example of using wall art. I love how the small blue pieces stacked vertically to the left of the sofa picks up the pillow color and leads your eyes up, up, up!

The sconces that flank the mirror are perfect for adding dimension to the flat wall – lovely ledges for displaying a family heirloom, photo, plant or bit of bling. More importantly, they help elongate the mirror, which has been placed vertically on the wall. By itself, the mirror is not the correct scale to have above the sofa when placed vertically. If it was horizontal, then it would work. So, the stylists use the sconces to help give us the width needed to balance the size of the sofa.

When selecting items for your walls, you do not need to limit youself to framed pictures or photos. You are only limited by your imagination and budget!

Give Away Coming TOMORROW!

It’s been a while since I added to “The 100″ {my list of  items that can help transform a house into a home}. Drum roll please . . .

Today’s addition is the timeless, classic monogram {which includes initials and names}. They are making a big comeback – yet they have never been out of style.

While I think monograms are a special quality showcased in many southern homes, they create your own personal stamp on the place you call home regardless of location.

In this new century, personalized items go beyond the traditonal bath towel set on your wedding registry. The well-placed letter, name or monogram claims your space with style and looks great on door mats, pillow cases, entry walls, candles, china etc . . . . This little design feature takes your home from common and generic to smart and graceful.

Wonderful Graffiti is my most favorite place of all things lettered. Mary’s team provides beautifully-designed removable monograms {as well as lots of other things} for your walls. They are perfect whether you live in an apartment, dorm, rental home or a place you own lock, stock and barrel ;o)

Be careful when shopping for vinyl wall applications – not all are created equal.  A good many of the ones available in stores are very thin – the white one I bought at Kohls basically didn’t show up on the wall! Other store bought ones I have found can be shiney – I like WG’s because they have a matte finish which look like art.

A few of my favs from WG are this cubbie monogram, entry design above and this chair monogram Mary did for Country Living.

A friend of mine did a twist on the chair monogram and put the different initials  for her kids on her dining room chairs. Now each has their own special place at the table.

Your lettered home can be filled with monograms that aren’t even yours! A beautiful monogrammed mirror found at a local tag sale or antique store can look beautiful on your bureau – it’s instant history!

So add a monogram or two to your house and watch it become a home!

{top photo courtesy of Uppercase Living}
{mudroom, entry & chair photos courtesy of Wonderful Graffiti}

Sad isn’t it?  This is not a bedroom where I’d want to spend any time (or for that matter have guests spend time.)

Window treatments: their power to transform a room is amazing. I compare them to mascara – they help finish off a room like mascara finishes a woman’s eyes.  As we see in this photo above, the room feels bare because the windows (and walls, but that’s another post) appear to have been forgotten.

When we dress our rooms, windows are often forgotten, which seems to be the case in the photo above – there are privacy blinds but little else.

Of course, window treatments can also be forgotten in another way (Got 70’s style jabots framing windows in your house? I took this “before photo”[below] at a house I staged.)

On our quest to create a home that’s lovely, warm and welcoming we need to pay attention to window treatments.  

It doesn’t matter if we’re designing our home to sell or to dwell – window treatments need to be on-trend, in style and up to date.

It’s true that sometimes windows don’t need anything but the view outside. However, I find that to be the case in very few instances. When privacy is not an issue, people don’t think they need to dress the windows. What they forget to consider is the ambiance or feel of the entire room.

Window dressing is not just about privacy or blocking the sun. It’s an important element to creating the look and feel of a room. Drapes and/or blinds can add texture, color, pattern and much needed softness. In today’s McMansions, we have huge rooms with floor to ceiling windows that are stark naked. They echo with their wood floors and hardscape. Drapes can help absorb sound and prevent a room from sounding like an echo chamber.

Updating your drapes need not be about spending a lot of money. In our hunter green jabot room [right], I replaced the jabots with drapes that cost around $9.00 a panel. We also updated the rods. Total cost was about $60.00 for the two windows.

If you’re stuck for how to treat your windows, consider layering them with drapes that frame and shades that added texture and give privacy. It’s a look that goes with so many decorating styles and  an easy way to update your window treatments. This photo [left] from Smith+Noble shows the layering effect of combining the two.

On our ever-growing list of 100 items that help make a house a home are FLOWERS.  I think they are perhaps the single item that can transform a house into a home.  They’re like the hat on top of Frosty’s head!

“Don’t you think daisies are the friendliest flowers?”
~ You’ve Got Mail, Kathleen Kelly (Meg Ryan)

No matter the season, flowers make a house bloom into a home. Traditional, mid-century modern, cottage or contemporary -  you can find flowers that complement your house no matter your personal style.

I think we mostly associate flowers with special occasions but in my book, they should be a staple of your decor. I’m hooked on flowers! While fresh is best, that’s probably just not possible on a year-round basis so search for great silks. I look forward to having a cutting garden outside my kitchen so that, at least during the summer, our home can have fresh flowers.  Sigh . . . some day.

Red geraniums,  daisies, sun flowers and hydrangea are among my favorite flowers to have in my house. These blooms below were clipped from hydrangea right outside the guest room.  I placed this small vase on the nightstand next to my mother-in-laws bed when they came to visit last summer.

I hope this post helps you live a more beautiful life as my friend Melissa likes to celebrates each Friday at The Inspired Room! If you’re hooked on flowers, you may also want to surf on over to Hooked on Houses to see what Miss Julia is hooked on these days!

What blooms do you like to bring in?

To see what other items are on “The 100″ list, click here.

On my list of  “must haves” to make a house a home are BOOKS!  As a little girl I loved to read and I still do when I can find the time; however, books aren’t just for reading. Hardback books add character and interest to any decor – trendy or traditional.

Books can be used in a variety of ways and while they look good sitting on your shelves – I like to get creative. I mostly use them for lifts and levels – stacking them atop each other and then placing a picture frame or another accessories to create a grouping. For example – need a taller lamp for your nightstand? Use a few books to give it a boost!

If you have a contemporary sense of style, use book color to create a sleek style – all black covers, for example. I’ve even seen people make their own book jackets from craft paper to unify books with different colored covers.

Books aren’t only for libraries, offices or dens. I love to use them in just about every room in the house. Just match the book subject to room. Instead of hiding your cookbooks inside your kitchen cabinet – pull several out to use them as accessories. Open the pages to a colorful dish and place in a beautiful stand – voila, instant decor. Change the page with the season or occasion (in the winter, display a hearty stew. Celebrating a birthday? Turn the page to a fabulous cake!)

And, of course the men in our lives know that books go great in their “library” – the bathroom!

Chunky black candlesticks are “must haves” to make a house a home.  Regardless of your personal style, these accessories are a classic, timeless addition to any room in any season.  One of my designer tricks is to always use black in a room. Even if I’m doing an all white design, I’ll have black somewhere in the room to “anchor” it – to visually ground the space. These candlesticks are a terrific way to accomplish this.

Whether they have a polish and shine like these above from Frontgate (BTW, these are ON SALE for just $19.00 for the pair – regularly $69.00!) or are wooden like this pair below, chunky pillar candle sticks  are a MUST on the 100 top accessories to help transform a house into a home.

Chunky black candlesticks are at the top of my list because they’re just so darn versatile!  Of course, you can put pillar candles on them but get creative. In the fall I typically place medium-sized pumpkins atop my candlesticks. During the Christmas season, secure super large bulbs to them using museum putty.  And candles are not just for dining room tables anymore! These look fabulous in book cases, on fireplace mantels, side tables, kitchens, bathrooms, etc.  I like to buy one slightly shorter and one a bit taller which gives you immediate “movement” and dynamic in your design.

Placing your two candlesticks next to each other and then nestling in one other item with them helps to create a wonderful little “vignette” or grouping that helps draw the eye to an area.  Try placing a photo of you and your man with these or a simple vase of flowers!

What’s on YOUR list of must haves for making a house into a home? I want to know.