Country House Design: January 2009

Thursday, January 29, 2009

Architects Have Great Tools!

Architects have many great tools that they can work with. And under skilled hands they can be a great benefit to their clients. One such tool is a software program called Google Sketchup. Sketchup is a 3d modeling program that is surprisingly easy to use. The images you see below are of a house designed by Larson Brenner Architects in Stillwater, Minnesota. The images represent a series of color studies that were performed with Sketchup. The basic design had already been completed and we were now at the stage of finalizing materials and colors for the roofing, walls, windows. The top image is pretty much where we ended up and the images below represent the various intermittent studies.

Pretty cool huh? It is a great way to visualize your end product. For more sketchup examples you can see the plans at

Simply Elegant Home Designs

Wednesday, January 28, 2009

Architects are Sexy!

I ran across this totally factual article the other day. Could not resist posting the link.

Architects are sexy!

Queen Elizabeth Woven Cotton Bedspread for Your Interior Design

This Queen Elizabeth Woven Cotton Bedspread is incredibly luxurious bedding for your home's interior design, yet completely easy care. Wonderfully thick, and deeply textured with a center medallion and knotted fringed trim for a classic finish. Available Colors: (01) Beige (shown), (00) White, (72) Silver Green, (60) Sky Blue, (52) Lilac, (77) Woodland Green, (65) Colonial Blueor (47) Brick 100% cotton Machine wash and dry Imported. You can get it easily in this shop.

You can get easy the Queen Elizabeth Woven Cotton Bedspread in this shop, not only that special edition of interior design, in this shop, you can find about 94,788 matches of many bedding, waw...and its really easy, because you can shop online from your home directly.

When you shopping the bedding for your home interior design in this shop, you'll find great deals on all the products they're famous for and thousands of items available for in-store pickup. It's easy to shop at this shop.

With shopping the the bedding for your home interior design which online in this shop that offers lots of benefits that you won't find shopping in a store or by mail. The Internet is always open — seven days a week, 24 hours a day — and bargains can be numerous online. With a click of a mouse, you can buy anything to satisfy your hobby and your needs.You can buy anything to make your home more beautiful and luxurious, Its all available here, and it's really easy and fast. Wont waste your time.

In this shop you can buy not only bedding for your home interior design, because shop.com offer products like clothing too ( women's, men's, boy's, girl's, and accessories ), shoes, electronic, home, beauty, and many more products, you will enjoy your time for shopping in shop.com. Trust me, its really satisfying.
And, in this chance, I will share about the precious information from shop.com,...Guess, whats that?! Yess, there is a big sale, especially in Home Interior Products...WOW

Queen Elizabeth Woven Cotton Bedspread for Your Interior Design

LE CASE PREFABBRICATE IN LEGNO SONO CASE ECOLOGICHE?

LA SCELTA DI REALIZZARE UNA CASA IN LEGNO SOLITAMENTE SOPRAGGIUNGE DOPO UN LUNGO PERCORSO FATTO DI PASSIONE, INCERTEZZE, RICERCA DI INFORMAZIONI, CONFRONTI. SPESSO ALLA BASE C’E’ SEMPRE LA CONDIVISIONE DI UN’ETICA DEL VIVERE, PRIMA ANCORA CHE DEL COSTRUIRE.

Nel nostro paese le case di legno restano un prodotto di nicchia, guardato con malcelata diffidenza dai più, al contrario di quanto accade in molti paesi europei in cui si sono affermate da tempo sul mercato dell’edilizia come soluzione collaudata e diffusa, con numeri di produzione e montaggio a due cifre. Un settore maturo che può contare su di una corretta informazione e differenziazione di proposte, conosciute ed apprezzate per qualità e varietà.
In Italia alcune ditte cominciano ad affermare una buona immagine, detenendo non a caso una corposa fetta del mercato delle case in legno. Uno scenario in rapida trasformazione che potrebbe ben presto mutare di fronte ad una nuova sensibilità collettiva nei confronti del tema dell’abitare.

Da qualsiasi punto di vista la si guardi, la questione ambientale resta prioritaria nell’approccio alle case prefabbricate come alternativa al laterocemento. Che si persegua l’obiettivo del risparmio energetico o il sogno di un’abitazione sostenibile, le case in legno rispondono sempre alla necessità di ridurre le emissioni di inquinanti in atmosfera, attraverso la realizzazione in un ciclo produttivo a basso impatto ecologico e l’utilizzo di materiali rinnovabili, limitando al minimo i consumi di energia per il riscaldamento invernale ed il raffrescamento estivo.
Come giudicare dunque l’utilizzo di materiali non propriamente sostenibili come l’isolamento esterno a cappotto, realizzato spesso in polistirene? Bisogna distinguere tra un approccio radicale alla bioedilizia, che escluda ogni materiale derivato dalla sintesi petrolchimica per principio, da una posizione più ragionevole, che valuti il corretto impiego di alcune componenti della costruzione le cui caratteristiche fanno ritenere preferibile la loro scelta rispetto all’utilizzo di materiali più naturali, ma meno affidabili dal punto di vista meccanico o prestazionale.
Una casa realizzata completamente in edilizia, ma poco isolata, richiederà una grande energia per il riscaldamento e il condizionamento, inficiando la propria ragion d’essere bruciando fonti non rinnovabili con emissione nell’ambiente di grandi quantità di gas serra,
Nel caso specifico delle case in legno il cappotto esterno è la pelle dell’edificio e rappresenta l’elemento di protezione della struttura interna in legno, divenendo un elemento fondamentale per assicurare la durata nel tempo dell’edificio. Spesso il cliente resta perplesso e preferisce pagare un sostanzioso sovrapprezzo per acquistare una parete pienamente bioedile e traspirante, con l’impiego di fibre naturali. Si tratta di un aspetto da valutare a fondo e non sempre è giustificabile pagare di più per eliminare ogni traccia di prodotto di sintesi. Oltretutto la produzione del polistirene espanso, soprattutto se contenente riciclati e privo di alogenati, andrebbe rivalutata, soprattutto nell’ottica di prestazioni termiche maggiormente performanti rispetto ad altri materiali basati sull’impiego di fibre naturali.
E’ vero che produzione di questo materiale isolante a base di polistirolo è relativamente inquinante rispetto a quella dei materiali isolanti ecologici. Va pero anche evidenziato che il bilancio energetico di un isolamento termico realizzato con polistirolo espanso risulta positivo già a distanza di 7-20 mesi, dato che dopo questo periodo si risparmia energia. Va inoltre sottolineato che il polistirene espanso viene riciclato in forma pura, circostanza perlomeno rara nell'edilizia. Dopo il montaggio il materiale non comporta alcun rischio per la salute umana, è difficilmente infiammabile, resistente e duraturo.
In ogni caso, un approccio corretto alle case di legno dovrebbe far preferire soluzioni compiutamente biologiche in senso ampio (ciclo di produzione, consumo energetico, assenza di emissioni nocive, benessere microclimatico, sostenibilità ambientale).

Tuesday, January 27, 2009

tips : Decorate on a Budget

The previous post on this blog talked about decorating on a budget by recovering furniture, replacing lampshades, and repainting.

Make sure you are taking advantage of used furniture stores, thrift stores, dollar stores, and used shopping websites such as craigslist and ebay. These are places where you can find wonderful deals on home decorating items, new furniture or accent items. You might have a hard time finding something very specific, but if you look through these places with an open mind you can usually find some killer deals that you can make work with your décor in a great creative way.

If you are planning a large redesign that you think will cost quite a bit and be something you will have to really plan for, make sure you make a budget for the project. List everything you will need to consider, and take time to consider how much you can spend in each category. This way you can rest assured that you will not end up in debt over your redesign.

Unfinished wooden products are usually much cheaper than the finished versions.

Buying unfinished furniture is actually pretty great, because you get to choose any color of the rainbow to paint the furniture instead of being limited to what the normal colors generally are. It is more work of course, but in the end you’re getting a customized product for less money.

Check back soon for the next blog post about decorating on a budget.

This blog is brought to you by dialysis jobs.

Shopping Decorative Accents for Your Home's Interior Design

In this time, I will introduce you the Wall Pops for your Home Interior Design. Its really easy, new way to wake up your walls! These colorful, peel-and-stick graphic elements are totally repositionable and removable, and won't leave sticky residue on the wall. Choose from a 5-pack of circles, a 5-pack of squares or a wall border to mix or match. Pssst, you can get it easily in shop.com.

About Wall Pops, you can easily cut them to the desired size and shape with scissors to fit the space or express your creativity. Its really perfect idea to make your interior design more modern and up to date!

Vinyl on paper with adhesive backing.
Available color/pattern: (35) Totally Orange, (52) Purple Perk, (73) Stylin' Green,
(69) Rainy Day Navy, (42) Bubble Gum Pink, (04) Lots of Dots Pink, (06) Lots of Dots Blue,
(05) Ribbon Candy Purple, (03) Go Retro Pink or (13) Go Retro Orange
Wipe-clean
USA

You can get easy the Wall Pops in this shop, not only that special edition of interior design, in shop.com, you can find about 272,490 matches of many decorative accents, waw...and its really easy, because you can shop online from your home directly.

When you shopping the decorative accents for your home interior design in shop.com, you'll find great deals on all the products they're famous for and thousands of items available for in-store pickup. It's easy to shop at shop.com.

With shopping the the decorative accents for your home interior design which online in this shop that offers lots of benefits that you won't find shopping in a store or by mail. The Internet is always open — seven days a week, 24 hours a day — and bargains can be numerous online. With a click of a mouse, you can buy anything to satisfy your hobby and your needs.You can buy anything to make your home more beautiful and luxurious, Its all available here, and it's really easy and fast. Wont waste your time.

In this shop you can buy not only Wall Pops for your home interior design, because shop.com offer products like clothing too ( women's, men's, boy's, girl's, and accessories ), shoes, electronic, home, beauty, and many more products, you will enjoy your time for shopping in shop.com. Trust me, its really satisfying.
And, in this chance, I will share about the precious information from shop.com,...Guess, whats that?! Yess, there is a big sale, especially in Home Interior Products...WOW

Shopping Decorative Accents for Your Home's Interior Design

Vinyl on paper with adhesive backing.
Available color/pattern: (35) Totally Orange, (52) Purple Perk, (73) Stylin' Green,
(69) Rainy Day Navy, (42) Bubble Gum Pink, (04) Lots of Dots Pink, (06) Lots of Dots Blue,
(05) Ribbon Candy Purple, (03) Go Retro Pink or (13) Go Retro Orange
Wipe-clean
USA

Shopping Decorative Accents for Your Home's Interior Design

Vinyl on paper with adhesive backing.
Available color/pattern: (35) Totally Orange, (52) Purple Perk, (73) Stylin' Green,
(69) Rainy Day Navy, (42) Bubble Gum Pink, (04) Lots of Dots Pink, (06) Lots of Dots Blue,
(05) Ribbon Candy Purple, (03) Go Retro Pink or (13) Go Retro Orange
Wipe-clean
USA

Top 10 Green Things to Do! When building your new home.

In my real job (non-blogging) I am finding that more and more people are interested in building a more environmentally responsible and healthy home. Leaving political discussions and arguments about “climate change” behind (I don’t like being preached to and I don’t like preaching), I believe there are many common sense reasons to build a “Green” home. Here are two pretty good ones:

Save you money $$$ in the long run
Reduce your stress level – improve your quality of life

If you want to build a Green Home there is an abundant amount of information available to you. But start investigating Green and you begin to realize there can be a daunting number of decisions to make – and they all impact your construction budget in some way. Building Green can start to look incredibly complicated and expensive - and neither of these notions is inherently “Green”. Well it does not have to work that way.

So what I want to do, starting with this posting is to help you simplify things. I am starting out with a top 10 list of green things to do. This will give us some focus for more detailed discussions to follow. Those discussions will provide more detail on my top 10 list. So here goes.

Top 10 Green Things to do! – When building your new home.

Hire an Architect or a very competent designer that understands “Green” (and is not a jerk) – They will be able to assist you with all the following items and help you in sorting out priorities.
Hire a Builder who is committed to your Green house (and isn’t a jerk). In the end you will be much more successful if your entire team is on the same page.
Build close to your work and / or close to community services. A short commute means less stress, less gas money and more time for your fam. That’s good isn’t it?
Build a “just the right size” house – The classic “Goldilocks”. Size and surface area significantly impact heating, cooling and maintenance costs – not to mention construction cost. So don’t build too big. But don’t build it too small either or it might not be functional and that’s not green.
Build a home with quality. Remember the 3 little pigs? A quality home lasts longer, costs less to maintain and definitely holds up better when the big bad wolf is blowing. Ok, that’s enough of the kid stories.
Build a thermally efficient home. Warm is good. Believe me, I am writing this on a 20 degree below zero day in Minnesota. I have relatives in Phoenix that say Cool is good! Thermally efficient also means less money from your pocket to the local Utility.
Use an energy efficient Heating, Ventilation and Cooling (HVAC) system. You don’t have to spend many dollars here to reap some good $$$ savings.
Develop a landscape plan that reduces erosion and water use. Who wants to spend the entire weekend mowing and watering? I’d rather be playing Guitar Hero, or Twittering or something.
Consider your homes building product and material choices.If it smells bad don’t use it. You are going to be married to that floor for a long time.
Install energy efficient appliances and electrical (lighting) systems. Once again small investment for good gains.

So that’s my Top 10 Green Things to Do list. You may notice that I don’t specifically mention solar panels, photo-voltaics or geo-thermal systems. Well those items might be a great addition to an overall sustainable building plan, but the initial costs are high and the payback is longer. I’ll discuss more in future postings.

By the way, if you want to buy a “green” house plan that you can build. You might start at Simply Elegant Home Designs. All of the plans in their portfolio have been designed keeping many of the green principals listed above in mind.

Friday, January 23, 2009

LE CASE PREFABBRICATE IN LEGNO SONO CASE PASSIVE?

QUANDO SI PARLA DI COSTRUZIONI AD ALTO RENDIMENTO ENERGETICO CI SI RIFERISCE AGLI STANDARD DI CERTIFICAZIONE IN VIGORE IN ITALIA E NEGLI ALTRI PAESI EUROPEI.

Le case prefabbricate sono abitazioni ad alto isolamento che raggiungono prestazioni termiche impensabili per le costruzioni tradizionali in laterocemento, pur adottando spessori di parete esterna contenuti, difficilmente superiori ai 30 cm. Una costruzione in legno raggiunge solitamente le classi di certificazioni più alte senza adottare particolari accorgimenti progettuali od impiantistici.
E’ comunque possibile potenziare ulteriormente il rendimento energetico con una progettazione oculata ed orientata a massimizzare i guadagni solari (vetrate a sud) e a minimizzare le dispersioni (pianta compatta, eliminazione dei ponti termici, poche finestre a nord).
Il concetto di casa passiva è riferito ad edifici che producono più energia di quanta consumino.
Solitamente per raggiungere queste prestazioni è necessario spingere all’estremo quelle soluzioni tecnico-progettuali che consentono di alzare l’efficienza energetica. Una di queste soluzioni è l’utilizzo di una “serra solare” in grado di immagazzinare calore e di restituirlo ai locali interni, da aprire ovviamente durante l’estate (stagione in cui svolge una funzione schermante dai raggi solari).
L’utilizzo del legno al posto dei materiali da costruzione tradizionale consente di facilitare il compito del progettista che intende raggiungere l’obiettivo del “consumo zero”.
Affermare che le case di legno siano passive non è tuttavia corretto. Si tratta di una tecnica costruttiva mirata all’isolamento termico che, nella maggior parte dei casi, permetterà la realizzazione di case prefabbricate a basso consumo. Errori di progettazione dal punto di vista dell’efficienza dell’involucro edilizio porteranno un inevitabile aumento delle dispersioni, mentre un progetto indirizzato a valorizzare le soluzioni più efficaci dal punto di vista energetico avvicinerà di molto una normale abitazione per famiglie ad una “macchina” solare, soprattutto se affiancata da una scelta impiantistica intelligente e coerente con le scelte architettoniche. L’installazione di un impianto di ventilazione meccanica controllata a recupero del calore permette ad esempio di attuare il ricambio d’aria completo dell’edificio in poco tempo e di innalzare la classe energetica del fabbricato.
Ha dunque senso progettare abitazioni passive per l’utilizzo di tutti i giorni? Si tratta di un settore senz’altro affascinante ed in notevole espansione; tuttavia questo genere di soluzioni ha un costo non sempre rapportato ad un reale beneficio economico. Si tratta di un’opzione comprensibile per grandi abitazioni molto caratterizzate architettonicamente, spesso come scelta entusiastica di clienti particolarmente “benestanti”...
Una casa prefabbricata in legno ben concepita può raggiungere livelli di isolamento termici inferiori del 90% rispetto a quelle della media del patrimonio immobiliare esistente, senza sovrapprezzi.
Il consumo di queste abitazioni può ragionevolmente essere ritenuto trascurabile. Tuttavia per azzerare la necessità di energia i costi salgono in maniera esponenziale e mai proporzionale al vantaggio conseguibile.
Il consiglio resta pertanto il solito, ovvero ricercare il miglior rapporto prezzo/prestazioni facendosi guidare in questa scelta da chi (tecnico o ditta) vi darà le garanzia di accompagnarvi per mano in questo meraviglioso viaggio nella vostra costruzione di una casa prefabbricata in legno.

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

PROGETTARE LE CASE DI LEGNO PREFABBRICATE

IL PROGETTO DELLE CASE IN LEGNO TIPO “FERTIGHAUS”, TIPICAMENTE UNA VILLETTA UNI O BIFAMILIARE, RICHIEDE QUALCHE ATTENZIONE IN PIU’, MA NON DEVE SPAVENTARE IL TECNICO, CHE DOVRA’ RICORDARE DI DOVER REALIZZARE UNA NORMALISSIMA CASA DI ABITAZIONE.

Il cliente o la famiglia tipo si avvicinano alle case prefabbricate attratti dall’aspetto ecologico e dal risparmio energetico. Tuttavia non si deve dimenticare che si tratta in fondo di un semplice alloggio destinato ad un nucleo familiare e l’edificio andrà collocato in un preciso ambito urbano.
Non si tratta di una macchina per risparmiare energia o di uno chalet montano, ma di una casa da vivere, la cui funzionalità non andrà per nessun motivo sacrificata sull’altare delle varie soluzioni più o meno passive da adottare.
Tuttavia non si deve commettere l’errore di sottovalutare le potenzialità che la tecnologia delle case prefabbricate offre, svilendo con un progetto poco accorto l’opportunità di realizzare una casa naturale altamente isolata.
Il punto di incontro tra efficienza termica e praticità quotidiana è solo in apparenza banalmente raggiungibile. Un corretto approccio al progetto di una casa prefabbricate parte dalla scelta di una pianta semplice e compatta, prosegue con una disposizione degli ambienti secondo l’orientamento dell’edificio, tiene conto degli apporti solari e delle schermature, imponendo l’eliminazione dei ponti termici e degli elementi disperdenti dall’edificio. Mantenendo intatti, funzionalità ed equilibrio degli spazi, proporzione ed forma dell’edificio, cura dei dettagli e scelta delle finiture.
Una casa in legno che solo in apparenza dovrà essere pensata come un’abitazione tradizionale, senza forzare le scelte, mimetizzando tecniche innovative dietro una forma rassicurante e prestando la massima attenzione a quei particolari progettuali che potranno considerevolmente incrementare il livello di isolamento complessivo dell’edificio.
Vi è un aspetto da tenere in grande considerazione. Il cliente spesso risulta un interlocutore preparato che conosce il settore delle case in legno prefabbricate ed ha le idee molto chiare rispetto alle caratteristiche che dovrà avere la propria abitazione. Un tecnico sensibile ha in questo caso l’opportunità di faticare poco, in quanto il dialogo con il proprio committente risulterà senz’altro semplificato dal buon livello di conoscenza di quest’ultimo rispetto alle soluzioni da adottare per realizzare l’abitazione.
Forzare verso scelte distanti da quelle tipiche delle case prefabbricate efficienti risulta senz’altro poco lungimirante e, in definitiva, insoddisfacente sia per il committente che per lo stesso tecnico. Resta la constatazione che le case in legno non riscuotono sinora il meritato consenso proprio presso i progettisti, a causa di una politica di promozione da parte delle stesse aziende di case prefabbricate, poco incentivante verso i tecnici, sia dal punto di vista divulgativo che dal punto di vista dell’interesse economico (concetto che dispiace ammettere, ma in questo senso le costruzioni tradizionali hanno argomenti assai più attraenti per noi architetti, … per chi vuole intendere).
Per concludere, se escludiamo la scelta di case prefabbricate in legno a catalogo, consigliabile in moltissimi casi spassionatamente, il progetto personalizzato resta una buona scelta se verrà prodotto con corretti criteri di ecologia e efficienza energetica, pur ribadendo che non ha molto senso puntare a soluzioni di tipo radicalmente passivo come intercapedini o serre solari che, a fronte di un considerevole guadagno energetico, vincolano l’aspetto e la vivibilità quotidiana di chi andrà a risiedere nell’edificio, abbassandone la funzionalità e rendendo difficoltoso l’inserimento dell’edificio nel contesto urbanistico territoriale.

RECAMARA PARA HOMBRE DE FLAVIO DOMINGUEZ CASA FOA

Un dormitorio varonil y elegante fue presentado por el arquitecto Flavio Dominguez en Casa Foa 2008. La alcoba muestra un extraordinario diseño de walking closet, tambien en colores oscuros como el resto de la habitación. El librero separa la mesa de la cama de una manera muy decorativa... en fin..las imágenes de este cuarto para varón, hablan por si solas.Encontré en internet que a este

DORMITORIOS PARA MUJERES Dormitorio para mujer de Juan Alvarez Morales Cynthia De Winne y Andres Levy

Uno de los mas lindos DORMITORIOS PARA MUJERES que he visto. Esta linda recámara para mujer, ya sea niña, adolescente, jovencita, etc. posee una decoración que le va a servir para todas las etapas de su vida. Obra de los Alvarez Morales, De Winne y Levy, este dormitorio femenino, fue ambientado más para una adolescente de 12 años dinámica y moderna. Los colores elegidos fueron el naranaja, el

tips : Decorate on a Budget – Repaint, Replace

The previous post on this blog talked about decorating on a budget by painting floors, hiding clutter, wallpapering, and using greenery inside.

Reupholstering furniture is a wonderful and extremely effective way to save money while refreshing your design look and furniture. Reupholstered furniture can last nearly as long as brand new furniture would have and all you have to invest is the money for new fabric and your time. The great thing about reupholstering is that once you get past the initial learning curve you can reupholster your next piece of furniture must more easily.

Dining room chairs are one of the easiest projects you can start with. If the wooden part of the chairs looks dinged up too consider sanding and restaining the wood before you start reupholstering. You could make slipcovers for your couches and easy chairs. If you are ambitious, consider making a few slipcovers for each furniture item, then you can switch them around seasonally or when you just need a change and wash them inbetween using them.

Replacing dingy light shades can make a big difference in the way a room looks. Buy a funky bright light shade for a different look without a big investment.

Repainting should almost be its own blog series, because it can have such a huge impact on how a home looks. Repainting is not overly expensive and it can really change your design.

Check back soon for the next blog post about decorating on a budget.

This blog is brought to you by physical therapy jobs.

Monday, January 19, 2009

COMO DECORAR EL DORMITORIO PARA ADOLESCENTES - RECAMARAS SEGUN LA PERSONALIDAD

Preciosa y colorida alcoba para las chicas adolescentes. Una idea muy juvenil de como decorar una habitación para las jovencitas de la casa. Las paredes han sido pintadas de verde lima, y la decoración, como la alfombra, el cubrecamas y almohadones han sido predominantemente fucsias. Las niñas y adolescentes más jóvenes adoran los colores vibrantes. A la cama, que se adapta como sillón, se le ha

Sunday, January 18, 2009

ILUMINACION DE DORMITORIOS - BEDROOM LIGHTING TIPS

ILUMINACION DE DORMITORIOSEl dormitorio como ya saben, es el lugar en el que básicamente descansamos, pero también realizamos otras actividades. Por ello, deben ubicarse varios tipos de lámparas en este ambiente. Están las luces de cama, que sirven tanto para la lectura nocturna como para iluminar tu camino, es por ello que debes asegurarte de instalar el interruptor de apagado y encendido al

Saturday, January 17, 2009

VIDEO DE DORMITORIOS JUVENILES

Aqui varias fotos de recámaras juveniles con gran cantidad de ideas para decorar la habitación de adolescentes y para mandar a hacer muebles juveniles que ahorren espacio.

RECAMARA SEXY PARA ADULTOS Y SECRETOS PARA HACER QUE LA DECORACION DEL DORMITORIO NOS INVITE AL ROMANCE

Un dosel incluye no sólo la cama, sino toda la habitación, en un dormitorio diseñado por Benjamín Noriega-Ortiz. "Mediante el uso de tejido para suavizar la habitación y crear este espacio, se te olvida que estás en una pequeña habitación y te hace sentir como si usted está en una enorme cama", dice Noriega-Ortiz. El uso de azul detrás de la de color blanco hace sentir suave y acogedor.Secretos

Friday, January 16, 2009

RECAMARA DECORADA CON PELUCHES

Un snoopy grandote! Cortinas, peluches y mas peluches...Que les parece esta decoración de recamara infantil con cortinas y peluches? Veamos más ...Aqui los accesorios para decorar cuartos infantiles son muñecos de peluche, son el centro de atención, tan grandes que no pasan desapercibidos:

RECAMARA PARA NIÑA EN VERDE Y AMARILLO PASTEL

La habitación para la engreída de la casa como le gusta a las niñas, llenas de cojines y flores en tonos verde, amarillo y colores pastel. Se ve muy bien a pesar que nada esta derecho en este cuarto, por ejemplo la cama no tiene la cabera pegada a la pared como suelen poner, tampoco el escritorio. Se ve un dormitorio muy fresco y divertido.

RECAMARA INFANTIL ESTILO MARINERO

Recámara infantil con motivos marinos y una interesante decoración del techo, para que tu hijito se sienta todo un marinero.La luz indirecta que sale de las paredes y de las letras del techo, dan a este dormitorio un toque de calidez para un niño.

Thursday, January 15, 2009

DORMITORIO NEGRO MARRON Y VERDE MANZANA

Me encanta como este dormitorio de ArtDisennia aprovecha el espacio al máximo, haciendo una mesita de noche de la misma tarima de la cama, que a su vez tiene unos preciosos cajones verdes debajo de ella. Y al costado, el escritorio.

RECAMARA JUVENIL EN AMARILLO Y MADERA CLARA

Fresco y juvenil dormitorio de ArtDisennia, en tonos amarillo y madera de color claro. El closet en esquina aprovecha muy bien el espacio:

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Bayport Bungalow Animation

Another new animation has been added to the Simply Elegant Home Designs website and to You Tube. You can get more information on the "Bayport Bungalow" as seen below by following the link.

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

tips : Decorate on a Budget – Wallpaper, Paint Floors

The previous post on this blog covered decorating on a budget using wallpaper, mirrors, or by covering up imperfections strategically.

Wallpaper a wall to jazz it up, or frame pieces of cool wallpaper to hang on the wall. Framing series of the same or similar pieces of wallpaper can look really cool too.

Painting your floors is a cheap way to improve they way they look for a lot cheaper than it would be to replace the flooring. Painting flooring will probably not last as long as replacing the flooring would, but it is a trick you can use to improve the look of your floors inexpensively.

Organizing rooms really well can go a long way towards making the rooms look better. Decorating and organizing can be done at the same time with stylish wicker baskets that pull out of colorful shelves.

There are even modern looking shelves with different sized cubbies where pull out fabric or wicker baskets could be stored and where some vases and other decorative art pieces could be displayed.

Make sure you bring some of your garden plants inside when winter hits. This way you can reuse the plants as interior design elements without having to spend any extra money. Plants really brighten up a home. Fake flowers and plants look nice too, if you don’t have a green thumb but you still like the idea of having greenery displayed.

Check back soon for the next blog post which will be about decorating on a budget by recovering furniture, replacing lampshades, and repainting.

This blog is brought to you by physician staffing.

Dormitorio juvenil color mandarina negro y fucsia

Preciosa recámara para jovencita de ArtMobel, práctica y funcional. Para los que les encanta los tonos naranja mandarina, como a mí.Dormitorio juvenil de 406 ancho x 175 largo. Compuesto por: Cama nido con cama inferior aptas para colchón de 90 x 190 cms. Contenedor lateral de 25 cms. Sobre mesa estudio de 175 x 175 x 75 cms. Bajo con lateral CPU con estante lateral. Contenedor bajo de 2 puertas

New Animation Added

Simply Elegant Home Designs has added another Animation to their website. The animation is of the "Bayport Bungalow" in their design collection. The company plans on providing animations of their entire house plan design collection.

Monday, January 12, 2009

tips : Decorate on a Budget – Use Mirrors

The previous post on this blog covered how to decorate on a budget using curtains, removing curtains, or by repainting cabinet doors.

Use mirrors to make a room seem brighter and larger.

If you had plenty of money, perhaps you would want to actually open up the room or put a window in, but mirrors can help if you can’t afford an expensive remodeling project. Framed mirrors can even look like windows. Place artistic items in front of mirrors to show them off. Mirrors can also be hung in patterns on the wall. If you love the idea of mirrors, you could even buy all sorts and sizes of mirrors at a used store or off of craigslist or ebay and then display them all on one wall pieced together about an inch apart mosaic style.

Cover up imperfections that you would otherwise have to pay to fix. This probably isn’t something you want to do permanently, but if you are struggling financially it is a way you could keep your home looking nice temporarily. If your floor has a stain you can put a rug over it or even rearrange your furniture to get by until you can afford to replace the flooring. If your wall has a dent or hole cover that spot with a tapestry or picture until you can fix the wall properly.

Check back soon for the next blog post which will be about decorating on a budget by painting floors, hiding clutter, wallpapering, and using greenery inside.

This blog is brought to you by occupational therapy jobs.

Sunday, January 11, 2009

Exterior Animations of New House Plans

Simply Elegant Home Designs is now providing a new and better way to visualize new house plan designs. They are creating 3d animations of their designs. The animations will be posted on the Simply Elegant Home Designs website and on You Tube. The first animation to be published is this Modern Farmhouse plan design.

Simply Elegant Home Designs will eventually be able to provide animations of their entire house plan inventory.

Friday, January 9, 2009

tips : Decorate on a Budget – Refinish Cabinets

Decorating is always more of a challenge if you are on a budget. On a budget you won’t have as many choices as when you have money to spend. However, if you are willing to be a little flexible in what you are looking for you can usually decorate for quite a lot cheaper. Here are some tips on how to decorate on a budget.

Instead of replacing cabinets reuse what you can out of the cabinets you have. If the doors are in decent shape but the paint is peeling or you are sick of the color, think about sanding them down and staining or painting them. If the doors are shot but the cabinet frames are good reuse just the frames and only buy new cabinet doors. The new doors most likely will not match the frames and boxes, but you can paint the frames and boxes either the same color, or a contrasting or complementary color to make sure they look exactly the same or different on purpose in a good way.

Remove curtains from windows that have nice views. Windows without curtains will have a cleaner more elegant look to them. Although, curtains can add more personality to a home and they can also help to add a seasonal feel. Gauzy curtains feel summery, while heavy curtains give a room a more cozy winter feel.

Check back soon for the next blog post which will be about decorating on a budget using wallpaper, mirrors, or by covering up imperfections strategically.

This blog is brought to you by dialysis jobs.

Thursday, January 8, 2009

tips : Decorating with Birthday Cake

If you or your child is having a birthday party a nice cake can really help add to the party theme. Many people buy grocery store cakes for birthday parties, but if you make your own cake and decorate it according to the party theme, people will take notice and appreciate it. It can be fun to make a unique cake for your child's birthday or even for your own birthday. As an added bonus the cake will make your home smell nice. Make sure you get a container for the cake that will look pretty and show off the cake. You can get really creative with a cake, because even if you don't have the right pan size for your vision you can always cut the cake after it cools and place it next to other cut pieces for a very different design. When you are done shaping the cake you'll be covering it with icing or fondant, which broadens the possibilities even more.

The most important thing is that you select a theme. Once you choose your theme get creative about how you will incorporate the cake into the theme. For example, if the theme is My Little Ponies, you could decorate a flat cake with ponies, or you could get creative and make the cake in the shape of a pony.

It is easy to do this as long as you have visual aids, so hop on the internet so you can find a drawing to work from. Another option is to find a pan in the right shape. You can even find kits to make cakes for kid’s parties.

This blog is brought to you by dialysis nursing.

Wednesday, January 7, 2009

Dormitorio de gemelos de Jennifer Lopez y Marc Anthony: Max y Emme

Aqui las fotos que PeopleMagazine publicó de la habitación de Max y Emme, los gemelos de JenniferLopez y Marc Anthony:

Adapting architectural house plans to your needs

Hiring an Architect to design a one of a kind home for you can be a time consuming and expensive endeavor. The design process will take at least several months - maybe up to a year. And the fee can run from 8% to 12% of the construction cost or even higher. That being said I believe it is well worth it - but not everyone has that luxury of time and money. So what I want to do here is present you with an alternative approach that can work for many people.

The basic concept is to purchase a set of plans "off the shelf" directly from an Architect, and then work with them to customize that plan to your specific needs and tastes. The two images below depict a house designed by Larson Brenner Architects in Stillwater, Minnesota.

It is a beautiful Cape Cod design.

The client loved the design inside and out. But the plan would not fit on their own lot configuration, the room arrangement did not satisfy 100% of their needs and their aesthetic tastes tended more towards the contemporary. So Larson Brenner Architects sold the plan to them for a flat fee, and then worked on an hourly rate basis to modify the plan to reflect their needs. The images below reflect the modified design.

The client loves the new design and they were able to reduce the design schedule and design costs significantly. The house is now under construction - I'll update this post with photos of the project when available.

Tuesday, January 6, 2009

La habitación del bebe de Christina Aguilera

Continuando con los dormitorios de celebridades o hijos de famosos, la revista People publicó la habitación de Max, el bebé de Cristina Aguilera y como pueden ver tiene una decoración de estilo mediterráneo, cuna redonda y una inmensa luna verde en fondo azul y celeste. “At home in Aguilera and husband Jordan Bratman’s Mediterranean-style Los Angeles mansion, Max is a ’sweet, mellow baby’, and

Dormitorio de Nicole Kidman & Keith Urban

Según la revista, esas fotos fueron tomadas antes de que la pareja Nicole Kidman & Keith Urban’s se mude a la nueva mansión, es decir esa no es la decoración actual.

Gwyneth Paltrow Bedroom

Esta vez vamos a inagurar la sección de las recámaras de las celebridades con Gwyneth Paltrow. Estas fotos fueron publicadas en la revista House & Garden. Esta casa tiene el sello decorativo de su dueña desde el principio. La compró cuando estaba en construcción y estuvo a tiempo para ponerla totalmente a su gusto. Con un estilo minimalista “femme”, simple y elegante.Cama de Apple, hija de la

DORMITORIOS EN FORJA CABECERAS DE HIERRO CAMAS DE METAL

La forja es el arte y el lugar de trabajo del forjador o herrero, cuyo trabajo consiste en dar forma al metal por medio del fuego y del martillo. Hierro o metal fundido hecho arte para el dormitorio, es lo que verán en el siguiente video de preciosos dormitorios en forja:Realmente unas camas preciosas que hacen al dormitorio mas sencillo, una habitación de lujo.

Top 10 house plan websites

There are probably a million house plan companies selling zillions of plans through the internet. Most are terrible. In my business I create one of a kind custom homes. I can't tell you how many clients of mine have come to me after being frustrated looking through one plan book (or plan website) after another. After exhaustive searching they will eventually break down and hire a competent house designer or an Architect.

I definitely believe that if your needs are truly unique then you should hire a residential architect. But if your needs and tastes are less specific you might be able to save yourself some time and money by going the pre-designed plan route. So I decided to publish a list of the top 10 house plan websites that I have run across. Here goes.

8. Southern Living House plans - Large collection of traditionally styled house plans. All shapes, sizes and configurations.

7. John Tee Architect - Architect designed homes in predominantly southern american styles. Plans in this fairly extensive collection are well executed.

6. Rick Thompson Architect - Collection of traditionally styled house plans. Most of the collection is under 2000 square feet.

5. Coastal Living House Plans - A large collection of plans, many of which designed with a lake or coastal property in mind. The architectural styles again are mostly traditional. There are a good number of more "quirky" plans however, which makes for more interesting surfing.

4. LaMiDesign Modern House Plans - If you are looking for a truly modern home online, your choices are limited. LaMiDesign is the best that I have run across.

3. Good Fit plans by Ross Chapin Architects - Modest collection of very well designed smaller homes. Modernized cottage aesthetic. Simple, clean and well done.

2. Architectural House Plans - This site specializes in unique Architect designed homes. They started out being very selective and only published great plans. The quality seems to be starting to go downhill a bit as the collection increases - but it is still a great source for architect designed house plans.

1. Simply Elegant Home Designs - Ok, I know this is shameless. It's my own site after all. This site does not yet have very many plans - but we are definitely going for quality. We are going for a more edgy and more modern look.

I'll bet you are wondering where number 9 and 10 are. Well it really is just that hard to find quality plans online. After you spend a few hours browsing you realize that almost all the plans start looking alike. In fact quite literally many of the plans are identical. So I decided to spare the list down to 8.

Final note. If you run across any other great house plan web sites please let me know. I'll update my top 10 list.