Home & Garden Blog » Furniture

Table Cloths: The Perfect Cover-Up

brock — Wed, 14 Sep 2011 17:21:02 +0000

When it comes to dining room furniture, the main dining table is always going to be the show piece. It doesn’t matter if it is a 200-year-old Amish built masterpiece or a $10 garage sale find.

I have always felt there is nothing more beautiful than the shine of a dining room table. The wood’s grain and the lacquer create a unique vision. When people walk into your dining room, their eyes will focus on the massive wooden edifice that hosts every single one of your meals.

Unfortunately, that sheen and beauty won’t last forever. Dining room tables are long-term investments. People don’t go out and buy a new one every year. I know people have had the same table for decades. Dining room tables get hit by everything from dropped pots and pans to the dings and cuts from a child’s art project.

It takes a lot of abuse, and through the years gets the occasional ding and scorch mark. This can leave it unattractive and an eyesore. The problem is that functionally, it is perfectly fine. It’s not going to collapse in the middle of meatloaf Wednesday, but when the mother-in-law comes over it provides a little bit more critical cannon fodder.

The easiest way to take care of the situation is with a table cloth. A nice cotton table cloth that matches the coloring and sentiment of the room can cover up the eyesore. But there are a couple of care issues that I should share with you.

It’s fine to have a table cloth on the table when not in use, but once the food is ready, it should be folded and placed to the side. No matter how careful you are, food is going to spill and nothing looks worse than a stained table cloth. Grease leaves stains no matter how many times you wash, so don’t take a chance.

You should keep a few extra table clothes as well. It should be washed every week or two, so having extras to put on while the other is washing just makes things easier. If the tablecloth does get stained, then just throw it out, or recycle the fabric by cutting it up into small pieces and using them as cleaning rags.

Matching Furniture Sets: A Personal Decision

brock — Wed, 18 May 2011 17:37:07 +0000

When I was growing up, my parents didn’t have any kind of matching furniture. I would go over to my friends’ homes and they would have matching sofas, loveseats, end tables, lamps that created a picture-perfect room.

I was envious of these people who didn’t have a hodgepodge of furniture and dreamed that when I became an adult that I would own my own matching furniture set. Fast forward 20 years and my house is filled with pieces of furniture that I picked up here and there. A old rocker that’s seen better days and a section of a sectional sofa. Don’t ask.

It was finally time to get that new furniture. I went to the furniture store and got myself a brand spanking new set. It had everything I wanted: the coffee table, sofa, love seat, lamps and it all matched. I was practically beaming. After a few months I realized a disturbing fact; I liked my old setup better.

My room had become something out of an IKEA catalog. It was perfectly arranged and looked great, but had nothing of me in it. It was all about the uniformity and not about the expression. I started to feel like the room was antiseptic. Slowly, as furniture wore out, I replaced with furniture that I truly enjoyed. It was eclectic, but at least it was me.

Should you buy matching furniture sets? It depends on the type of person you are. If you want something immaculate and don’t care if it reflects your own person style, then go ahead. If decorating is a passion and every room needs to scream “you,” then stay away.

In the end, I fell in love with the eclectic and weird style I grew up with. I may buy matching furniture in the future, but I will never buy a complete living or bedroom set again. If I wanted my room to be something out of an IKEA catalog, then I would plaster the pictures all over the wall. Instead, I want my individuality expressed in every aspect of my home from the carpet to the drapes.

Pottery Barn Promotions: 15% Off Select Furniture

ernani — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 20:32:11 +0000

If you’re looking for new home furnishing and furniture, then consider shopping at Potterybarn.com. They have many different promotions that can help you save big on a number of items.

For those looking to upgrade their furniture, you can choose from a variety of living room, dining room, home office, and bedroom furniture. There is also a special promotion of 15 % off select furniture collections. This offer expires on April 6, 2011.

Another great promotion includes free shipping on select items, such as the Easter collection, outdoor pillows, bath products, gifts, home accessories and more. There is no expiration date on this offer.

You can also find other great promotions on bar tools, glassware essentials, rugs and much more. Find these promotions here at our Pottery Barn coupons page.

We will continue to have new promotions and coupons, so make sure to keep checking our page weekly.

Target Coupons: $5 Off $50, Free Shipping on Select Furniture

ernani — Fri, 11 Mar 2011 22:31:56 +0000

Furniture shopping can be a pain. Not only can your furniture be expensive, but the transportation from the store to your home is also a headache that can cost you even more money. If you’re fortunate, then some furniture stores offer free shipping, but you can never really be certain, so you should always consider the added costs to your purchase.

Not too long ago, I went through this experience. I was planning on buying a new bed, since my old one was getting worn down and kept giving me back problems. I didn’t think I would have such a difficult time, but it was definitely a struggle to find the right bed for the right price. I went from store to store comparing and making sure I was getting a quality bed for the price I wanted. After finally choosing the bed I wanted, I knew it wouldn’t fit into my two-door car. I was charged a little extra for shipping. Overall, I spent more than I had planned, and the experience of furniture shopping left a bad taste in my mouth. Fortunately, for many of you, Target has a great offer that can save you from what I went through.

Shop at Target.com and you can take an extra $5 off orders of $50 or more on select furniture. Choose from a variety of living room, bedroom, kitchen and office furniture. The best part is that Target will also include free shipping! Just make sure you use coupon code CM5OFF50FUR when checking out. This offer is valid up to Aug. 1, 2011.

With Target, furniture shopping cannot get any easier or any more convenient. No need to drive from store to store and stress about shipping costs!

Be sure to keep checking our Target coupons page to find the latest deals and discounts!

Target Coupon: $5 Off and Free Shipping!

ernani — Tue, 22 Feb 2011 18:47:09 +0000

If you are thinking of buying furniture anytime soon, then take a look at Target.com before looking anywhere else. Target has a large variety of quality furniture for affordable prices. To make things even better, there is a sale going on right now where you get get deals on select living room and dining room furniture. Here’s the best part. Use this Target coupon and Target will take $5 off your $50 purchase and give you free shipping. Save yourself some time and money. Shop online for chairs and coffee tables for your living room, dining tables for your kitchen or nightstands and closets for your bedroom. Just make sure to use coupon code CM5OFF50HOME before you check out. This offer will be around for a while, but it won’t last forever. Expiration date is Aug. 8, 2011. Related posts:

Home Trends: The Disappearing Dining Room

brock — Thu, 10 Feb 2011 17:37:36 +0000

In my first several apartments, I never had a formal dining room. Instead, I had a kitchen/eating area and that was fine, when it was just my wife and me. The home we live in now does have a formal dining room, and with three kids, it definitely came in handy.

For many families, the dining room is a disappearing concept, often replaced with more usable space. People are having fewer major family get-togethers and are instead focusing on camming via the Internet and e-mail. We live in a global marketplace, and people are no longer staying near the places where they grew up.

The idea of the family dinner is also becoming an outdated concept as we fall into the hustle and bustle of the modern world. Parents are working later, and children are involved with school activities that keep them out until all hours of the night. Many people find it easier to just grab a bite on the way out or to take the food to the living room, where they can catch the latest episode of “House” before picking up their daughter or son from practice.

The dining room isn’t a traditional usable space like a kitchen. It’s simply an area to eat your meals, and other than that, it’s not used unless you need to do some kind of project for your child’s school. A dining room table always comes in handy for that. Many home designers are foregoing the dining room for a more utilitarian space.

What was once the dining room is now a reading room where the family can gather for game night and other functions. It’s a place where mom and her friend can visit while the kids play X-box in the living room. The tight economy has people wanting to get the most out of every penny and every inch of space, and that means saying goodbye to the large dining room table.

It’s a trend that I’ve seen evolving for several years, and it will probably continue until the economy recovers and people feel good about excess again. As for me, I plan on keeping my dining room for a while. My kids are still young enough that they don’t have a million things to go to, and we try to have all meals at the dinner table. It doesn’t always work that way, but we try.

FYI: It Never Looks as Good as It Does in the Magazines

brock — Tue, 25 Jan 2011 17:00:12 +0000

How many times have you opened up a magazine like Better Homes and Gardens or a catalog like Crate and Barrel and seen an immaculate room, where everything fits and you say, “I need that.” It may not be the whole room. It could be a piece of furniture or a wall sconce, but the simple fact is that you needed it because it would look awesome in your home.

You wait your week or two for it to come in the mail, and you heart explodes with excitement when it arrives in the mail or they drop it off from the store. You have had the plan on exactly where it was going to go for days, so you open it up, unwrap the plastic and put it in the perfect spot.

You stand back and stare at the beautiful mosaic of interior design you have created and… you hate it. The new pieces just messes with the color scheme or the lighting makes it look drab. It doesn’t fit with the other décor or it just looked plain awful. Don’t be ashamed; you didn’t know. The truth is the reality of a magazine photo shoot is nothing like your home for many reasons.

I have witnessed professional photo shoots and am amazed at how photographers can take something so bland and make it look vibrant with a little lighting and some camera tricks. Here are a few things the magazine has that you don’t.

1. Time: Editors can spend weeks or even months planning out the furniture and decorations for a photo shoot. They have access to warehouse after warehouse of furniture and accessories to make that room look absolutely perfect. Every piece is new or almost new, and they don’t have the wear and tear that your other furniture does.

2. Photographers: I once witnessed a photographer spend nearly a full day setting up lighting for an interview that lasted 15 minutes. They brought in different kinds of lights, shades and reflectors, and pretty soon, this drab office area looked like a Hollywood movie premiere. They do the same thing with furniture. They spend hours lighting up a room so that it looks perfect. Your home doesn’t have that lighting scheme and it won’t look the same.

3. Infinite space: The room you want to place the furniture or accessory in has finite space. There is not much you can do with the walls. They are there to stay. The room in the magazine is a set. The four walls are movable; the entire front is open. If they need a little more room so it doesn’t look cramped, they just add a floor or wall extension.

4. Budget: Everything in that room in the magazine is owned by the company, and when that shoot is done, it goes right back to the warehouse where it will sit until it’s needed again. The furniture in your home isn’t going anywhere. Most people can’t buy entire room sets complete with accessories and a sunny day like in the magazines. That 20-year-old love seat that looks ugly, but is the most comfortable thing in the world is going to stay where it’s at until you can afford more furniture.

The fact is that nothing in a magazine is as good as it seems. It’s all tricks of lighting and painstaking detail. You could spend $10,000 and buy everything in the picture, only to find that it looks nothing like the picture in your home. So don’t let the pictures in magazines be your guide. Instead, follow your own decorative heart.

Trash or Recycle: What to Do With Ugly Furniture?

brock — Wed, 06 Oct 2010 20:36:26 +0000

When I was in college, my apartment and dorm rooms were furnished with whatever sofa, loveseat, rocking chair and random item that I thought was cool at the time. Often, they were “finds” at local thrift stores, yard sales and even the occasional dumpster dive.

When I graduated and had a little money in pocket, I was ready to purchase real furniture, but I had all of this junk in my apartment that I had accumulated over the years. There was a giant octopus-like lamp from the 70’s, a table straight out of Miami Vice and several chairs that had seen better days.

The question became “What do I do with all this stuff?” Most of it was going to go to the corner for the garbage man, but there were several items of sentimental value that I didn’t want to just to toss out on the curb.

Here are some tips on what you can do with ugly furniture.

Reupholster it: Believe it or not, most pieces of ugly furniture are in great shape, but the fabric gets faded, torn, stained, etc. While it may be a project, you can always try to reupholster the item and give it a new lease on life. If you are purchasing new furniture, then contact the company and see if they sell the fabric. You can get a whole new chair or sofa that will match all the new furniture. The other alternative is to just make it out of any fabric you want and keep it as your special chair that will be sure to start conversations.

Pass it on: The next generation of college students and bachelors will be in need of cheap furniture and would be very appreciative of your hand-me-downs. If you are a recent grad, ask some of your younger friends or see even take out an ad in the school newspaper. “Free to Good Home: Old, Ugly Furniture.” I guarantee you will get plenty of responses. You can even visit from time to time just to check in and see how your old furniture is doing.

Hide it: There was one old rocking chair that I had bought from a thrift store that was the most comfortable chair in the world. It had already been broken in and it contoured to my shape. I slept more in it than I did my bed sometimes. When it came time to get rid of it, I just couldn’t do it. It was too perfect. My wife on the other hand only saw a big ugly chair that I wanted in the living room. So we reached a compromise. A section of the basement became my man cave and the chair was hidden where only me and my friends would ever see.

Cover it: This is basically reupholstery for lazy people ( i.e. me). If a piece of furniture is just too ugly to be a fixture in your living room, cover it with a furniture cover. These are fitted covers made to go over sofas, love seats, etc. and cover up those stains and ugly fabric. You can also purchase large blankets or pieces of fabric and drape it over tables and even chairs to keep your ugly furniture on the down low.

They may be ugly, but that doesn’t mean they don’t hold a special place in your heart. When the time comes to replace the old with the new, keep these tips and tricks in mind.

Image Source: flickr.com/photos/peem/113887119/

A Fear the Has Followed Me All My Life: The Evil Doily

brock — Wed, 29 Sep 2010 17:44:31 +0000

Growing up, my mom had a doily seemingly under everything. Every lamp and decoration on a table had these little white nightmares draped underneath them.

The name doily came from the 17th century English designer that made them. I know. You thought they were French didn’t you? Nope, chalk that up with other French misconceptions like French fries and dressing come from France as well. They’re white cloth, usually cotton or linen, and have ornate patterns and many holes allowing people to see the table underneath. Their purpose was to be decorative, but also prevent scratching of the wood surface by whatever item was on top.

I am sure 300 years ago, before the creation of superior surface technology and cleaning products, the doily was a needed aspect for interior design and maintenance, but today they make my skin crawl and every time I see one I hit the ground in the fetal position. That really annoys my wife.

When I was a kid, the doily was sacred in my house and they couldn’t be touched or moved. Plus, my mom starched the things to the point there were more like cotton Frisbees than any kind of implement of design.
If you are contemplating a doily disaster, then please heed my words. There are so many other options. You can easily purchase cloth and cut them to fit directly under the lamp or other decoration to prevent scratching. A little glue goes a long way and you don’t have to worry about starching.

Here’s an idea, don’t bother. Unless you have an antique table, odds are the surface is scratch resistant. While a doily is designed to allow you to see the wood beneath, why not just look at the wood beneath. Sure, I might have an irrational and slightly…neurotic…fear of the doily, but they really are out to get me.

Today, doilies are made out of paper and used as decorations under plates and for some reason I am OK with that. Maybe I need therapy for my doily issues.

Use common sense on the use of doilys. I believe there is no room for a doily in the modern concepts of interior design, but if you want that rustic look then I guess I can let you slide this one time.

Image Source: flickr.com/photos/bcmom/366607800/

How to Pick a Hammock

brendan — Mon, 26 Apr 2010 17:02:07 +0000

A wise man once noted that there is no more comfortable place to be in the summer than in a hammock. (Yes, that was me.) In all seriousness, hammocks are great . You can pick up almost any breeze that is blowing, and if you choose the right hammock, they are really comfortable – you can be in the shade (often) and you’re still outside. There is literally no downside. Here’s a brief overview of all the hammock options out there.

Hammock Guide

Rope Hammock: This is the classic type of hammock. You have a web of ropes that you lay on. They are durable and relatively inexpensive. They also catch breezes really well, as the air can circulate through the openings in the ropes. Hot days will feel cooler in one.

Quilted Hammock: This type of hammock is notable for its lack of gaps–it is basically a thick sheet. This has plusses and minuses. While this type of hammock is very comfortable and you won’t get a strange imprint on bare skin that you might get from a rope hammock, it will also be less cool in the heat. The air will not flow through the bottom of the hammock as it would in a rope hammock, and so you will be warmer and the hammock might get sweaty. (Ewww.) This option is probably best for people who have rather cool summers, or for people who want to use their hammock in the fall and early spring, when it is cooler.

Mayan Hammock: This hammock is built out of a fine mesh of string, allegedly used by Mayans for centuries. They tend to be more comfortable than rope hammocks, and less likely to leave a web patter on bare skin. They are also less durable – you are lying on string, so the hammock is more likely to get shredded. This is my favorite type of hammock, in case you were wondering.

Stands vs. No Stands: Not too much to say about this topic–if you plan to spread your hammock out between some trees, then you don’t need one (though you may want one–I’ll get to that in a sec). If you don’t have trees, you’ll have to get a stand, which can add from $75 to several hundred–depending on what you’re looking for–to your final cost. While trees are certainly classic, having a hammock stand will give your yard a more polished look–the hammock will be spread out evenly. As important, if you want a hammock in the sun, or if you want your hammock to be level from the other trees, you may want to get one.

Let me know how your hammock turns out! Post any and all tips. Happy shopping!

Image Source: flickr.com/photos/emzee/139794246