APRIL 4, 2014
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C
ould
your bedroomuse a new
look? Are you bored staring at
the same lacklustre walls in
your dining room?Would you
describe the overall look of your home as
drab and outdated?
If your home needs amakeover, but
you’ve been avoiding it in fear of high
costs or major renovationwork, fret not.
Experts say you can transforma room
without emptying your wallet and
sometimes, the smallest changes make
the biggest difference.
To help you get started, we asked
interior designersMorganGranese of PDI
Design&Associates, Lola Limof Meridian
Design and Asley Liewof Beans Concept
Interior Design, to suggest small, stylish
ways to transform themain rooms in a
home and give interiors a new lease of life.
CUT AND KEEP
Small changes,
big
results
Living room
Re-upholster sofa sets
Youmay be tempted to replace that torn,
wine-stained sofa set with a newone,
but it is generallymuch cheaper to re-
upholster. The pattern you choose will
depend on the look you are going for. To
keep upwith trends, Lim suggests going
for simplicity in lines.
Tip:
Buying fabric from the
upholsterer has its advantages,
but prices tend to be fixed and more
expensive than buying it yourself.
To save on money, shop around for
your fabric in textile stores.
Attach a door to open cabinets
Whether it is your TV cabinet or open-viewbookshelf, toomany things can clutter and
look untidy. Attaching a door, especially one with a carving or design, is a simple way to
create newness and cover up any items that would look better hidden.
Tip
:
Be daring in your door selection. If your roommainly consists of wooden furniture,
adding a stained glass door to your cabinet will give it contrast.
Bedroom
Create a cushionwall panelling
Forget the wall paper, according to
Liew, the hottest trend in bedroom
décor is a feature wall (mainwall)
“with cushionwall panelling. It
transforms an ordinary looking
bedroom into something special.”
Tip:
If your bedroom is small,
create the illusion of spaciousness
by incorporating a mirror within
the cushion wall panelling.
Add smaller items in a
unified colour
Lim suggests picking onemain colour
and applying it into the smaller,
portable furnishings in the room, like
throwpillows, quilts and rugs. This
will bring the look together. “When
we want to do another makeover after
a fewyears, smaller items and loose
furnishings are easier tomanage,
change or move about,” she says.
Tip:
Bold colours such as emerald
and purple are popular this year so
incorporate these hues into your
bedroom canvas.
Dining Room
Add pendant lights
“Pendant lights are a great way to transforma dining room,”
says Lim. Like chandeliers, they are long and draw attention
to a particular space, but they are less formal andmuch
more affordable. They are also available in a variety of fun
colours and designs.
Tip:
Pendant lights are perfect for dividing space, so if
you use the same room for dining and cooking, fix a
pendant light between your kitchen and dining area.
Get a coffered or tray ceiling
Coffered and tray ceilings both add depth and character to a room.
However, coffered ceilings have a distinguished look andmay suit an
elegant dining roombetter, while tray ceilings would do the trick in casual or
contemporary dining rooms. The basic versions of these ceilings are easy on
the pocket and can be achievedwithout major constructionwork.
Tip:
The indented checkered-like appearance of the coffered ceiling is best
achieved in bigger dining rooms with square or rectangle ceilings.
Kitchen
Mirror backsplash
Amirror backsplashworks twoways;
it creates a new look and elongates a
small, cramped kitchen. “Also, in
smaller spaces like condominiums, the
kitchen is next to the living area. So,
when you sit in the living room,
looking towards the kitchen, the
mirror is at eye level and expands the
entire area,” explains Granese.
Tip:
Most mirror tiles are self
adhesive and easy to attach.
These can be fixed as a do-it-
yourself project.
Add colour and texture towalls
Walls are one of the first things you
notice in a room, but merely changing
the colour is old news. Granese
recommends adding a texture like
wood grain to one portion of the wall
and colour on the other portion.
Tip:
Use the darker hue on the
bottom and the lighter one on
top. Reason being, at eye level,
lighter shades dominate and make
the room look airy, while darker
colors at the bottom have a
grounding effect.
>Easy and affordable IDsolutions to transformthe home
Bathroom
Add black bathroom fixtures
Black fixtures are currently a big trend in bathroom
decor, so to spruce up your bathroom, change the
faucet or the shower head. If that is not an option,
just change the toilet seat cover.
Tip:
This look works best on all white bathrooms.
Add plants
Plants are an excellent way to dress up a bathroom.
The greenery offsets the clinical white common in
bathrooms, and plants also release positive ions, so
that is an added incentive! The best plants are those
that thrive on the humidity andmoisture that exists
in this room.
Tip:
If you are worried that your bathroom does
not have adequate natural light for proper
photosynthesis, attach a fluorescent light. This
will produce wavelengths of light plants need
from the sun.
Home Office/Study
Include personalised items
Adding personalised items to your home office/study is one of Granese’s favourite
suggestions. “Your home office/study does not have to be so utilitarian and desk-y. The
reasonwe domakeovers is because it makes us feel better and it reminds us of whowe
are. It doesn’t have tomatch either. Whenwe include our personal items, we feel more
comfortable in the area and it lifts our mood,” he says.
Tip:
Interesting art, such as your holiday photos or even your children’s paintings can
be framed to create a new look.
Introduce different ways of working
A home office/study can be fun and daring. Findways to connect professionalismwith
homeliness so that your roomhas an inviting and fresh look. “People are not restricted to
desktops these days, andmany use laptops and tablets. You canwork anywhere, even
lying on the floor. So, be creative,” says Granese.
Tip:
Add a day bed, lounger or beanbags to your work space. These make your
environment more comfortable and you can work better.
Suggested plants for
the bathroom
•Mother-in-law’s tongue
This plant grows well in steamy,
humid conditions. It requires low
light and helps filter out air pollutants
such as formaldehyde.
• Cast iron plants
An excellent choice for those who
do not have a lot of time for plant care.
These plants grow well in low light,
indoor conditions and don’t need
regular watering.
• Spider plant
Considered one of the most adaptable
and easiest to grow houseplants. Just
provide the spider plant with well-
drained soil, a little watering
and some indirect light.
• Bamboo plant
The bamboo plant
grows well indoors
and in the humid environ-
ment found in
bathrooms. It thrives well in
low and direct sunlight.
• Cacti
Most cactus are easy to
grow and require little
maintenance. Yet, their shape, size,
flower and areole make great
bathroom decorations.
