All Home Accessory

Black is coming out of the shadows and into the design spotlight. The darkest of hues - once more Gothic chic than tre`s chic - is extremely versatile. "It is every style - classic, traditional, modern - a little bit of everything," says Rosie Amodio, editor of In Style Home. Amodio shares the basics of decorating in black.

When it comes to black furniture, "it's no longer just about black lacquer," Amodio says. "We are seeing a greater variety of exotic woods that have a natural feel to them." Approach the major pieces - sofas, armoires, beds - "as you would a little black dress," and reveal your personality and design style through decorative accents. But Amodio cautions: "Large pieces in a dark color can overwhelm the room, so be careful that you have the right dimensions for the right space."

Dip your toe into the sea of black by experimenting with prints. "Black is a great entryway to try out the pattern, and every color matches well with a black print." Wallpaper with a black print can make a big impact, but for the timid, find something easier to replace. A bed set "is a great way to test a palette as dramatic as black."

adidas 2008 | Mens Necklaces | Soccer | Optic directory Don't pack up the black decor after Halloween. "The black table top is huge right now," Amodio says. For the biggest effect, "bring in texture through the layered look." Start with black linens, then add tableware and decorative pieces or patterns such as damask or scroll. For a more subtle look, try mixing various shades of dark grays and raised prints onlinens.

"Black makes quite an impact" on ambience. Take the traditional chandelier, which is "much more dramatic, even modern, when done in black," Amodio says. Lighting fixtures, from sconces to floor lamps, also are going dark.

In addition to the tablescape, darken your decor for the upcoming holidays. The popularity of the black Christmas tree continues to grow, "but if that is a little too much, go for black in ornaments or a tree skirt."

Crystal chandeliers are usually large and ornately-designed lighting fixtures, and these are most often the centerpiece of a large room.

Since these fixtures can be very expensive, no matter what their styles, it's important to choose one that properly accents your home. Crystal Chandeliers make for an elegant and appealing lighting piece at home. These chandeliers truly light up a dining or living room with their glow.

As in the past, crystal chandeliers were exclusively used for the decoration of the very wealthy; however today, it has become more common for crystal chandeliers to be seen and utilized in the decoration of ordinary homes, as well as in upscale hotels and restaurants.

Crystal chandeliers are valued for the warm light they give off and the sparkle they add to every room. Crystal chandeliers today come in varied sizes and styles, and regardless of the kind of space you are looking to light up, you are sure to find a crystal chandelier that suits your needs.

A Chandelier Is More Than Just A Lighting Fixture. It's worthwhile to note that a chandelier is more of a room decor than a functional lighting fixture. An ordinary lighting fixture doesn't need a thousand light bulbs just because the room is wide or very cavernous; let other lighting in the room complement or add to a more restrained chandelier.

Carefully Choose One That Complements Your Living Or Dining Room. In getting the appropriate chandelier for your home, choose a fixture that can hang at the correct height when a table will be centered beneath it. Remember to consider both the chandelier and the room you're lighting.

If the crystal lighting fixture has bare bulbs, it will probably need to be hung high enough to avoid glare. If ever you have an 8-foot ceiling, you would want to avoid hanging a chandelier too high, or else it will look sawed off and stunted. Choose a chandelier that blends well or complements with the mood and style of the other furnishings in the room.

Take note of the type of wall sconces, furniture, wallpaper, window treatments and other accessories in the room. If an elaborate, large chandelier would stick out in the room, consider something more muted so that the chandelier can be seen for its beauty rather than its girth.

A Chandelier Is A Proven Dust Magnet. Chandelier owners should take note that these types of lighting fixtures are potential dust magnets, and would sometimes need to be carefully cleaned. Verify potential purchases for ease of cleaning and always bear in mind that simpler designs are generally easier to clean.

Tips To Avoid Glare. Avoid dealing with glare issues by buying a chandelier that is outfitted with tiny shades, or mini-shades, or try adding tiny shades to bare candle-type lighting.

Always try, whenever applicable, to stick with the classic looks. Take note that a colored chandelier will become dated in another 5-10 years. Match the chandelier to the room and the mood you want rather than with the times. In addition, check on whether a potential purchase uses specialty bulbs or standard bulbs. Specialty bulbs may be a bit hard to find and could be quite expensive.

Every winter I place rolled up old woven rag rugs along the bottom of our doors to the outside. My intent is to keep the cold air from coming in causing the furnace to run more than necessary. Here in our log barn home, these rugs look of the place and they seem to do the job quite well.

I'm sure the original weaver of these rugs never could have imagined the uses people of later years would find for them. As they sat and ripped the strips to be used in the weaving, I think they probably reminisced about the events and people that most recently had used the garments or home furnishing they now dismantled. It is a nostalgic experience to recall how someone looked in a dress that is now outgrown or out of style. Rip go the fingers on the edge of the cloth. Perhaps they were curtains that hung in the living room of a long abandoned house or a tablecloth used for special occasions by the family until the stains it bore could no longer be removed. Rip through the cuts made a bit over an inch wide. Bearers of memories, these old items sewed together with thread and made from mere fabric.

It is sad to think that something of meaning can serve no more. The weavers knew they could prolong the life of such items by weaving them into new uses. How satisfying to watch the days of one's life as evidenced by clothing and fabric of the home find new value. How wonderful to look closely at the new creation and to see souvenirs of parties, long summer days and meaningful moments. Ah, I can hear the weaver say, "Here is that beautiful purple flowered dress I wore on my first date. It looks so nice next to the yellow of my mother's apron as I put it through the loom."

And where were these rugs to be used? On the floor to cushion the feet and warm them on a cold morning or to wipe muddy feet before they tracked it into the kitchen. Serviceable and beautiful were these rugs.

I think there are many things in life that are like these old rugs. Items that no longer serve are reconfigured and used in new ways. Ideas that are rendered obsolete by modem research and technology. Buildings that find themselves standing in places that are inappropriate for old uses. People that function differently than they used to and are displaced by young, capable human beings. Refugees from workplaces that have been outsourced to countries with cheaper labor forces.

Pink is not my favorite color. Perhaps it comes of being a redhead-while other little girls had pink frilly dresses, mine were always yellow. I do like many things that are pink: peppermint ice cream, cotton candy, flowers, and cat noses. But I do not care for pink tile. Unfortunately, pink tile, and sometimes pink fixtures, is found in many old houses, especially those built or remodeled between about 1925 and 1960. Pink is especially common in bathrooms, and that's what I want to address here.

In the late teens and early 1920s, color began to creep into previously all white, sanitary bathrooms. Initially it was only as a decorative border in the tile, and all else remained white. But the introduction of colored fixtures in 1926 (one of the colors was, of course, pink) ushered in an era of wildly colored tile and fixtures in bathrooms that lasted well into the 1950s. Some of these bathrooms were fabulous, with tile in colors like jadite green, lavender, peach, yellow, or black. Often featuring art tiles previously found only on fireplaces, or elaborate borders and combinations of three or four tile colors, some of which one would think could not possibly go together, make these some of the most fabulous bathrooms you'll ever see.

Some of them, however, were pink. Pink is actually okay with me, provided it is combined with another color, like green, or black. Even combined with blue it's sort of okay. But in the 1940s and 1950s it was often combined with burgundy-doesn't work for me. And by itself, yuck. The problem is, old tile was set on a mortar bed, and demolishing it is difficult, and not ecologically sound. (Archeologists don't call ceramics pot shards for no reason-pottery really is forever.) And often the tile is actually in really good condition, and I hate to destroy stuff that's in good condition, even if I don't like it. So if you're stuck with a pink bathroom, here are a few suggestions for dealing with it that don't involve ripping the entire thing out.

1. Go with it. Realize that pink does wonders for your skin tone. Get pink lightbulbs, pink soap, pink towels, pink bath rugs, pink accessories. Paint the walls a light tint of the tile color. Accessorize with pink flamingoes, pink elephants, pink poodles, or whatever else you can find.

2. Hire a decorative artist to paint a very elaborate mural on the walls above the tiles- it should contain some pink to tie in, but it should be so elaborate that no one will even notice the tile.

3. Add black. Some black towels, black bath rugs, a black border on the curtains, and some other black accessories, maybe the addition of an Art Deco style black porcelain sconce, and your bathroom has gone from merely pink to Art Deco fabulous. (I actually used this trick on a lemon yellow 1950s bathroom-it works.)

4. If you can't add black, try adding green. A pale green tint is the complementary color for pink, which is a tint of red (complementary colors are opposite each other on the color wheel). The green should help to tone down the pinkness a bit.