SAVE THE LITTLE ROOM

There are now so many affordable audio visual solutions available for the home, such as home cinema, audio and video multi room systems, lighting control systems and even intelligent home automation systems that allow you to control all the technology in your home from a wireless touch-screen display.

Here is a quick overview of audio visual solutions for the home:
* Home cinema installation
* Home cinema audio
* Multi room systems
* Home automation
* Intelligent house
* Lighting control systems
* Home theatre speakers
* Audio ceiling speakers
* Bathroom speakers

Multi room allows you to create a flexible and discrete system designed around your home so that different rooms can independently or simultaneously access sources such as sky television, cd players, dvd players, mp3s stored on an ipod or a computer, radio tuners and even CCTV. The beauty of this integration means that you could pause a film in one room and continue to watch it in another, you could distribute the same music to all rooms during a party, you can access the pictures from your CCTV system from any TV in the house, or you can listen to a favourite album in the kitchen whilst different music plays in the bathroom. There are so many possibilities and all this without juggling remote controls as you can control your system either via a wall mounted keypad, a handheld remote, or both.

The home cinema projector market is definitely heating up with growing interest in high definition and larger displays. These days, especially with the onset of luxury city apartment living, the big challenge for manufacturers lies in combining cinematic performance with aesthetic looks.

Where home cinema projectors are being installed in living rooms you should consider having a screen that can be hidden away in the ceiling or you could look to get a nicely designed screen that can be wall mounted. Design is rapidly becoming the most important decision factor when it comes to the screen.

With an internet connection or mobile telephone you can monitor and access your home controls when you are abroad. For example you can adjust your central heating and air conditioning from the comfort of your armchair, or set the perfect temperate before your arrival home. You will also be able to monitor your CCTV, fire and burglar alarm systems or operate lighting, blinds and curtains whilst at home or abroad. Good home automation systems will even allow you to control your plasma screens, projectors, and multi room systems and AV equipment.

When installing a home theatre system lighting is extremely important for the complete finish. Light is one of the most powerful yet often neglected elements of interior design. An average modern home has dozens of lighting sources all with their own controls.

That’s an awful lot of switches to remember to turn on and off, and an even larger combination of potential home lighting effects that can be produced even before adding in subtler effects produced by dimmer switches. A well-designed automated lighting system brings together all these sources you can operate every light in your house from one discrete keypad.

But remote lighting control is about more than just turning the lights on and off. A home lighting control system groups together sets of lights so you can change the mood of a room at the touch of a button.

Living in a smaller home, such as a condo, can be a comfortable environment for many people, especially those who have the knack for decorating to suit the space. It does not take a lot of money to create an inviting room that allows you to relax and unwind in your own private sanctuary.

No matter what size your home is, each area has its own function and can be decorated with light, airy accessories to enhance the space. You can create illusions of opulence with large pieces of art or decorative flowers (real or artificial) in stylish vases.

A classic, space-enhancing trick is to use mirrors, strategically spaced, to create the appearance of a larger room. This does not need to be floor-to-ceiling as some homes are, but adding three or four mirror strips on a wall will do wonders to brighten the room, especially if natural light can be reflected back into the area.

Color is another key to making a small condo feel bright and open. Soft-colored paint hues will allow light to reflect into the living space and create a feeling of spaciousness. Developing a monochromatic color scheme will also enhance the room by elongating the sight line, especially if a piece of furniture is the same color as the wall.

Do not clutter your walls with too many photos or paintings. Choose one piece of art or photograph that will draw the eye to a focal point in the room, without additional objects to distract from the beauty of your favorite piece.

Size does matter. People who are new to living in small spaces often make the mistake of bringing furniture from their previous family home, including the three-seater sofa and large dining room table with six chairs. Furniture manufacturers today are aware of the smaller footprint that goes with today’s condo and townhouse construction. To accommodate this modern way of living, they are producing elegant pieces to suit a number of decorating tastes.

Choose a wall away-style love seat that allows you to relax in your living room without taking up the entire floor. Slim-back chairs give guests a place to sit, without making the room appear overcrowded.

Lighting is another consideration for enhancing a smaller home. Track lighting is often installed to create focused illumination in specific areas, such as kitchen working spaces or in a living room to shine on a feature wall. For long hallways, or to create elegant look to bedrooms, install decorative wall sconces just above eye level. Recessed lighting adds elegance to any room without taking up space on walls or floors.

If you have large windows, be sure to let as much light in as possible. Keep blinds pulled back during the day, and in the evening if privacy will allow.

Understanding How Interior Design Companies Work: Lighting for Mood Part II – Fine-Tuning

Interior design companies understand the term “mood” to mean a barely-definable, abstract quality that makes us feel “in tune” with our surroundings. In London, lighting is often a critical part of an interior design company’s toolbox in creating the perfect mood. In this series which I call “Lighting for Mood,” I will draw on my experience working with some of London’s Top Interior Design Companies to describe current best practices in this exciting area of design.

Mood and atmosphere are the ’special effects’ of any lighting scheme, but the subtle levels required can only be determined at the fine-tuning stage. Once the various layers of lighting have been selected, interior design companies focus on creating a balance that can produce visual harmony. This is especially important in London, where outdoor gloom can often make indoor spaces appear flat or dull. The approach used by interior design companies is similar to that involved with layering textures and fabrics when decorating. Uplighting may need to be combined with down-lighting, or table light with spotlight, in just the right proportions. Some interior design companies will employ specialist lighting consultants to advise and guide the process.

The requirements will vary from room to room. For a living room, London interior design companies often recommend table lamps for general lighting and to ensure that guests are seen in a soft and flattering light. These can be combined with low-voltage feature lights to illuminate artwork or favourite antiques. In a kitchen, interior design companies realise that lamps are not practical for general lighting. In newer London residences, hygiene and cleanliness are key selling points, and kitchens require non-porous washable surfaces. As a result, interior design companies will generally prefer to select down-lighters, wall-washing the front of the kitchen units, or up-lighters, which provide a soft indirect light. These light sources can be combined with under-cabinet lighting for task light and – particularly popular in London today – perhaps a pin-spot over a kitchen island for added focus.

Interior design companies will often be asked to redesign bathrooms and bedrooms, since these rooms will often confer the most added value in London’s competitive property markets. Bathrooms require flexible lighting that is energizing in the morning and calming at night, with task lights for reading or around a mirror. In a bedroom, where there is less need for overall illumination, interior design companies love to make the bed itself the focus. One technique is to make the bed appear to float on a pool of light by installing rope-lights which can be subtly concealed under the bed platform.

In the next article in this series on “Understanding How Interior Design Companies Work: Lighting for Mood,” I will reveal the secrets of dimmable lighting.

The house, apartment, loft, room or cottage, whatever it may be ‘home’ to you is a reflection of your personality. It’s your sanctuary away from the maddening crowd. Making it cozy and comfortable yet pleasing to the eye and giving you the peaceful retreat you need is important. Modern interior furniture provides you with a host of ideas to choose from.

You may have just left home to live on your own; may be that you have upgraded your dwelling from your university ‘digs’; maybe you have found a place closer to work. You need to personalize your dwelling – a part of your outfit, which is very important.

Decorating your ‘home’ and planning it you’ll suddenly need storage space- ‘a place for every little thing is vital’ There’s nothing you want to lose; childhood mementos, souvenirs of school achievements, loving gifts treasured for years, things that you would love to give or show your child one day-the list is endless.

The storage unit on offer today is amazing. Hang on units, corner units with their revolving shelves, in variant colors and shapes to fit every nook and corner is there for you. They add color, presence and are of great utility value. The coffee table, the dining table, the chopping counter, the bed side table – they are a simple blend of elegance and functionality.

The contemporary decorative ideas are all about clean lines and less clutter. They are ideal for small apartments, city lofts or anyone looking for space and style. The different furniture suggestions in decorating for your kitchen, the dining room, the bedroom or the living room are works of art providing interest and visual appeal.

The lighting details add a sense of space to your living room, coziness to your bedroom, a welcome note to the kitchen and mystery to your bathroom making you relax in your bath or in the shower. Lighting up the wall first seen as you enter gives a feeling of space as much as flooding light into the four corners of your living room. Pendants and spot lights can light up the walls better adding an overall ambience. Keeping the ceilings clear without lighting, moldings or any decorative effects make them look higher. Light and brightness in the colors chosen for the room gives an added height to the ceiling increasing the sense of space.

Paints are available in many colors and textures. Water based acrylic paints offer a variety of advantages. They have no acrid smell and dry out very fast. Working with them is very easy and the colors are versatile enough to create the atmosphere you want.

An urban oasis can be created by creating a natural environment with woven screening or adding bowls and willow. Large format posters can cover whole walls with golden beaches, woodlands or digital murals. Ideas are abound. Decide on the effect you want created and modern decorative ideas offer options to suit every mood and taste.

The kitchen is eventually replaced the living room, as the heart of any home for a good reason. In addition to its primary function, which are mainly related to cooking and eating, its use has become much, much more. Today, modern kitchen is a place where families gather, entertain guests, and children do homework, along with a number of extras. This makes the kitchen renovation should achieve the most attractive and functional result for a good increase in the value of your home and your quality of life.

In New York and other large cities, hectic life soon makes people yearn for some bursts of changes, especially in their homes, which should be there, where comfort soothes stress away. As one of the most visited area, any changes made to kitchen remodeling, certainly, create impact on the family. When kitchen remodeling, there are key highlights to focus on achieving success.

Finishing seen as building blocks, as well as the visual focus in the kitchen. In your kitchen remodeling project, you can choose to reface or completely replace the kitchen cabinets. Your choice of material will not only affect the luxurious rooms will look, but the length of the working year, and. The design also must be done in such a way as to maximize storage, to avoid confusion in this area.

The stone table tops, especially granite, is currently in demand. This can come in the form of natural stone or engineered. But in any case, these options can create the most beautiful and durable options. When you think about replacing table tops, you can also shop for matching sink.

Heavy use of the kitchen floor asks the type of flooring to withstand all the scratches, spots, spills and traffic. Parameters for kitchen remodeling, from which you can choose from many with wood, ceramic tile, laminate, and vinyl, as well as a more popular choice. Recently, the green movement, which has been taken not only New York but also throughout the country, as the storm made a well-known alternatives from bamboo, linoleum, and even traffic jams.

Because of the many important goals, which serves as kitchen, lighting is a very important element in your home remodeling project, which should be used optimally. Lamps must be present in the key areas where specific tasks are performed. Your choice of lighting can lead not only effective in solving problems at hand, but the drama in the kitchen as well.

Some trends in remodeling kitchens are popular at the moment. One advantage of going with the trend is that the prices of the most expensive materials or properties will fall because of high demand and a growing number of businesses catering to them. Thus, the choice of design, you can either go for those or Timeless trend that will continue for some time. But whatever idea you have in mind, just make sure that both aesthetic appeal and functionality implemented. And always remember, skill and product selection are key to the success of your project.

I have always been attracted to stained glass lamps which are hand crafted. The most beautiful material and glass colors are frequently used. Some time when the right material, glass, and patterns are combined a lamp is created that is breathtaking.

Tiffany lighting is soft even when you use a bright bulb. The light passes through the colored glass dispersing white light into its own frequencies. Using a couple of color in the lamp can provide truly soft lighting which is accented by the lamps glass color.

All parts of tiffany lamps are made of natural material. The base and fixture are typically made of bronze, brass or iron, which give the lamp it characteristic look. The glass can have different textures, thickness, and reflectivity and is made from an iridescent glass called Favrile.

You can use tiffany lighting any where in your home. This type of lighting and fixture gives you an additional way to beautify your home. It gives any room a center piece that is well remembered by any visitor. It provides soft warm lighting and gives your rooms a distinctive look.

The key to finding the right lamp for your home is to chose one the matches your decorations. Since there are so many different lamp styles, finding and choosing a tiffany will just take you some time.

You can use pendant lighting for your hallways or bathroom. You can choose the upward or downward style. The upward style gives you softer lighting, since it directs the light up against the sidewalls and ceiling, reflecting it back down. The downward style gives you light directly from the bulb, which you many need to give better room illumination.

Table lamp can go in a room of your home and give a striking addition to your room design. First look at lamp size. Choose one that is not large but small so that the lamp light is pointing downward. Make sure that the lamp shade is also not large so that it sticks out where it can be knocked over. It is always tempting to buy a large shade lamp because the colors and patterns are always to striking.

Tiffany lighting that comes a wall scones will provide an excellent accent piece. A touchier is a straight line lamp that provides single lines to complement this type of surroundings. The kichler wall sconce can go into a hallway or bedroom. Here it is best to have an upward lamp.

You can also have a tiffany lighting coming from a chandelier. The style you chose will provide the soft lighting that give all you family a peace of mind. This lighting fixture can be place your living, family or kitchen room. When choosing a fixture for you dining room, decide if you want upward or downward light. The amount of light you get from downward light depends on the height of your fixure and the wattage of your bulb. You will need around 300 watts of light to illuminate your dinning table. Try to choose a tiffany that is 12-14 inches narrower than your dining table.

Use tiffany vanity lights for your bathrooms. This will give these rooms a beauty and uniqueness not found in your other rooms. Here in the bathroom your may not want to use high quality tiffany fixtures. There are many less expensive lamps that you can use that are styled after a stained glass appearance.

Using tiffany lighting is a type of fixture that never goes out of style. If you have purchased such a lamp that is a work art, it will be treasured by your family for a long time. The softness of light, the coolness of appearance and the variation of colors can bring peace to any one sitting next to a tiffany.

Does the thought of buying a one- or two-bedroom apartment with plain, egg shell-white walls and L-shape layout bore you to tears? Does your lifestyle include plenty of action, or at least living in the near vicinity of the action? Then a loft may be just what you are looking for.

Defined by its open concept floor plan, high ceilings and exposed pipes or beams, lofts have become a trendy option for young professionals. To add to the urban charm, most lofts have beautiful wood floors and unique lighting. Because many lofts are renovated warehouses or old commercial buildings, the walls are often exposed brick with floor to ceiling windows overlooking a busy neighborhood. Shops and coffee houses are usually nearby, as is a variety of night club options. Developers who choose to build new lofts do so in an upscale part of town, with a chic design that is perfect for the fashion-conscious owners.

Depending on the city, there can be two types of lofts: Hard Loft – conversion of existing commercial buildings that maintain much of the original design and integrity of the structure; Soft Loft – newly constructed buildings designed with original loft components in mind: open concept, high ceilings and floor-to-ceiling windows. The newly built lofts are usually smaller, with the entire project having a boutique hotel-style appearance. Either way, lofts offer a feeling of spaciousness and freedom from the constrictions of a set wall design.

The open concept floor plan of a loft allows owners to divide out the room as they want, or leave it completely open. Many lofts have a mezzanine floor overlooking the living space. This is usually where the bedroom is arranged.

Lifestyle is definitely the key to purchasing, or even renting, a loft. But there are several things to consider before making a commitment to moving in.

1. By the very nature of the (often) downtown district setting of loft apartments, urban noise will come into play. Sirens, partygoers or just normal conversations below your windows could become irritating. For people who are at all noise sensitive, the constant hum of the busy streets may be too much after a while. Or this white noise may easily become part of the backdrop associated with this living choice, and something that is tuned out in short order.

2. City lights – including neon signs and bright streetlights – could come with loft living. If you prefer to have your space feature soft muted lighting, investing in room-darkening blinds will probably do the trick.

3. Lofts in converted buildings sometimes come with stairs, not elevators, to get you and your belongings up to your home. This includes taking your pets out for their daily walks or nature calls. While this is good exercise, it may not be a convenient way of living for some.

With the great trends toward using your yard as part of your house, more and more people are discovering how to best utilise their patios, decks, and gardens as dining or living rooms. These outdoor living spaces can be usable all year long in many areas. One of the challenges to using your outdoor spaces in this manner is lighting them.

There are many elements in a well designed outdoor living space. A good arrangement of furniture, clear access to the inside of your house, noise levels from surrounding streets or properties, all of these things help determine how useable your outdoor space will be. But, even the best designed outdoor living space can be ruined if there isn’t appropriate lighting.

There are myriad types of lighting that you can use in your garden depending on the effect that you want to achieve.

You can use spotlights directed at particular areas of the garden that you want to highlight to give the area a magical feel. Hanging lanterns are a nice option to string across a space or between trees. Strings of lights can be wrapped around tree trunks to create a unique effect. Pathways can be lit with lights that you spike into the ground alongside your walkways. Even ponds can be lit with submersible lights if your fish don’t mind.

The other major choice in backyard lighting is that of energy sources. If you want your lights to come on automatically when darkness falls and you don’t want to have to pay for the electricity to run the lights, solar lighting may be just what you need. Most solar systems work well even when the days are overcast as well.

Another method for outdoor lighting is using candles or groups of candles to provide a warm flickering glow. The downside to using candles is that they need to be supervised as they can be a fire hazard, especially in the hot dry summer months. The nice thing about candles is that you can set them out single in jars or cluster them for more intense light. There are many kinds of lanterns available for myriad different looks.

If you have well-placed electrical sockets in your backyard then you may want to opt for electrical lighting. Most strings of lights require a plug in, though some types are available with battery power. There are even outdoor lamps akin to living room lamps that are designed for outdoor use.

Take a good look at the parts of your garden that you might like to highlight with your lighting and also how much lighting that you will need to best utilise your outdoor living space. If you make your lighting decisions based on your needs, then you will end up with a space that is usable instead of a dim uninviting space.

Lighting Fixtures

When you first buy a house, remodel, or redecorate your house, this will be a good time to change your lighting fixtures. When redoing a room, it may take a few fixtures to bring out the room to the way it should be. Each room has a purpose and your lighting should correspond with that purpose.

You can really bring out a room with a light fixture that is bold and striking. Ceiling fixtures come in all types of designs and can drastically change the feeling of your room. Lamps can be added to add contrast the ceiling lighting. If you do a lot of reading then you will need a high intensity reading lamp.

The best types of reading lamps are those that are full spectrum lamps. These are specialty lamps and produce white light similar to the sun. Unlike regular incandescent bulbs, they create white light by emitting light frequencies like the sun does. This type of white light is good for reading and easy on the eyes.

When looking for a ceiling lamp fixture, look for functionality. If the fixture has too many design features, it can block the light and provide very little general lighting to your room.

If you room is to have computers, then a ceiling lighting fixture with indirect lighting will be best to avoid computer monitor glare. If possible try to avoid using florescent lamps in your living area since they emit light in 60 cycles which fatigue your brain and body.

The ceiling lighting is not only for the kitchen but for the other rooms like the bedroom, stairway, hallways, and recreation room.

The type of bulb you can put into a lighting fixture is only limited to the type of bulbs that are available in the market. Each bulb has a function and a specific frequency and power output in watt. When using a halogen bulb, use a fixture that will enclose this lamp in case it explodes. Full spectrum light bulbs are also available and I favor these because they mimic natural light more than any other type of bulb.

Saving energy light bulbs are nice in concept, but don’t away put out the light intensity that you need in the room. If you have multiple fixtures and you can put these energy saving bulbs. Then again depending on the room’s purpose, this will determine the wattage of bulbs you use.

When looking at ceiling fixtures, consider the efficiency of the fixture. Some fixtures are beautiful to look at, but absorb the light that should go to the room. Make sure that the lamp is easy to clean otherwise you will be wishing you had bought another type of lamp. Also look to install a rheostat to control the light. This manual light control will give your bulb long life and you can adjust the intensity of the bulb to give more or less light.

Using these tips will help you setup your lighting fixture so that you don’t have to replace it later. Just make sure that you use the fixtures that will complement the purpose of your room.