Archive for the ‘Kitchen’ Category
Pangaea Interior Design’s — Crown Molding: Is It Right for Your Home?
Tuesday, January 17th, 2012
Looking to add character, distinction, or even value to your home? Architecturally, it can be one of the best ways to do so! Crown molding can add a timeless and sophisticated sense of presence to any room.If you need help deciding what style or size is the best for homes ranging from traditional to contemporary, I have the perfect Ideabook for you! Learn how to add Crown molding that is within your budget, plus other great design tips!
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Tags: Bathroom, Bedroom, contemporary, crown molding, Design Tips, design trends, Dining Room, Interior Design, interior design portland, Living Room, loft, modern design, traditional
Posted in Bathroom, Bedroom, Cool Ideas, Cool Stuff, Design Dollars, Design Tips, Dining Room, Interior Design, Kitchen, Live/Work Spaces, Living Room, Lofts, Wall Treatments | No Comments »
The 3 C’s of Feminine Chair Flair – Pangaea Interior Design
Tuesday, December 20th, 2011
Men and women often have a difference in taste when it comes to furniture. If you are looking to add feminine style to your room, just use my “3 Cs” — curves, color and cloth — to turn up the feminine flair. Take a look at this for chairs that are all-girl!
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Tags: Bedroom, chair, cloth, color, Colors, Design Tips, dining chair, Interior Design, Living Room, Lofts, portland interior design, Seating, upholstery
Posted in Bedroom, Colors, Cool Ideas, Cool Stuff, Design Tips, Dining Room, Furniture, Interior Design, Kitchen, Living Room, Lofts, Shopping, Uncategorized, Upholstery | No Comments »
Pangaea’s thoughts on Art: The Unexpected
Friday, November 18th, 2011
What do a pack of dogs, a swimmer and shirts with too much starch have in common? Somehow all of these became unique, artistic and decorative elements in people’s homes. Check out how the unexpected can add fun and show stopping excitement to your home décor.
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Tags: Art, artistic and decorative elements, Bathroom, Bedroom, Design Tips, design trends, Dining Room, home decor, Interior Design, Kitchen, Living Room, loft, Lofts, modern design, wall decor
Posted in Art, Bathroom, Bedroom, Colors, Cool Ideas, Cool Stuff, Design Dollars, Design Tips, Dining Room, Fireplace, Home Office, Interior Design, Kitchen, Lighting, Living Room, Lofts, Sculpture, Top Ten, Trends, Uncategorized, Wall Treatments | No Comments »
Pangaea Interior Design’s 20 Alternatives to Fine Art
Tuesday, November 15th, 2011
So you’re telling me that you can’t spend half a year’s salary on original art work for the hallway? That’s okay. There are many alternatives for great wall decor without breaking the bank. Get creative with fabrics, found objects, natural elements, texture and even fish — oh yes, I did say fish! — to add your own personality and charm and fill your home with your unique style.
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Tags: Art, Bathroom, Bedroom, color, Design Tips, design trends, Dining Room, fabrics, Fireplace, found objects, hallway, Interior Design, Kitchen, Living Room, loft, Lofts, modern design, natural elements, texture, wall decor
Posted in Achievements, Art, Bathroom, Bedroom, Cool Ideas, Cool Stuff, DIY, Design Tips, Dining Room, Fireplace, Home Office, Interior Design, Kitchen, Lofts, Mistakes: Avoiding & Fixing, Pearl District, Shopping, Space Planning, Storage Solutions, Top Ten, Uncategorized, Upholstery, Wall Treatments | No Comments »
Crocodile Rocks! Wild Texture for Every Room in Your Home
Monday, November 7th, 2011
Crocodile and Alligator texture isn’t just for your fancy shoes and purses anymore! This reptile texture has always been one to catch my eye. Get a little wild and put it on your kitchen backsplash tiles, your chair upholstery, and even … get ready for it … your bathtub!
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Tags: backsplash, Bathroom, Design Tips, design trends, dining chair, Dining Room, headboard, interior design portland, Kitchen, Living Room, modern design, ottoman, room divider, texture, tile, upholstery, wall tile, wingback chair
Posted in Bathroom, Cool Ideas, Cool Stuff, Design Tips, Dining Room, Furniture, Interior Design, Kitchen, Living Room, Seating, Trends, Uncategorized, Upholstery | No Comments »
Pangaea Interior Design’s Fall Premiere Season: Where to put your TV
Friday, November 4th, 2011
If you are a TV addict and you want to make sure you don’t miss a minute of your favorite shows, there’s always a way to sneak a TV into any room, whether you want to watch your soaps in the Kitchen or bath tub, sitcoms in the living room, or sports in your man-cave.
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Tags: bath tub, Bathroom, Bedroom, Design Tips, Dining Room, Fireplace, Flat screen, furniture arrangement, home theater, Interior Design, Kitchen, Living Room, Lofts, man cave, modern design, Space Planning, storage, tv, tv placement
Posted in Bathroom, Bedroom, Cool Ideas, Design Tips, Dining Room, Fireplace, Home Office, Interior Design, Kitchen, Live/Work Spaces, Living Room, Lofts, Mistakes: Avoiding & Fixing, Seating, Space Planning, Storage Solutions, Uncategorized | No Comments »
20 Great Transitions in Flooring
Tuesday, August 23rd, 2011
Flooring transitions can be tricky in lofts and open plan homes! Where to start and stop each kind of flooring may not have a simple solution when there aren’t clear divisions between living areas. Here are 20 photos of great ideas on ways to transition from one type of flooring to the next in bathrooms, kitchens, entryways and living rooms or great rooms.
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Tags: Bathroom, concrete, entryway, Flooring, flooring transition, floors, great room, hardwood, Kitchen, Living Room, stone tile, tile
Posted in Bathroom, Design Tips, Dining Room, Flooring, Interior Design, Kitchen, Living Room, Lofts, Uncategorized | No Comments »
Portland Interior Designer Shares 5 Things to Change to Sell Your Home
Monday, April 4th, 2011
Okay, I am not going to launch into the misery of the housing market right now. What I will say is that competition is fierce for the sales being made. If you want your house to sell, you absolutely must do all you can to prepare your home to show it at its very best.
So what changes should you make to your property before you sell?
And what should you leave alone?
1. Kitchens: This is not the time to do a major kitchen remodel. You will not get your money out of it and it’s too late for you to enjoy the new kitchen. But you can make updates that count and will really appeal to buyers. Paint older wood cabinets that are too old to appeal to buyers looking for contemporary style and too new to appeal to buyers looking for historical properties. 1980′s oak is not vintage and it’s never coming back in style! White cabinets are more popular than ever, so painting your cabinets white is almost a no-brainer. If you have brass colored cabinet hardware or the hardware is cheap looking – replace it. Satin nickel or oil rubbed bronze continue to be the most popular and your choice depends on the rest of the kitchen finishes. Only replace the counter top or sink if they are in bad condition or not a neutral color. Remove wallpaper and paint a fresh, current color on the walls.
2. Bathrooms: Again, this is not the time to do a major remodel.. But you should update outdated bathrooms as much as possible. Attractive, up to date lighting fixtures and hardware are relatively easy upgrades that make a big difference. Again — get rid of brass and replace with satin nickel or oil rubbed bronze. It can also be worth it to replace the vanity and sink with a current style if yours is outdated or is in poor condition. Replacing a builder wall-to-wall plate glass mirror with a beautifully framed mirror is another simple and affordable upgrade that appeals to current buyers. Only re-tile the tub surround if the tile is in poor shape or not neutral in color. Remove wallpaper and paint a fresh color on the walls.
3. Flooring: If your carpeting is not a neutral color or it is worn out or stained you need to replace it – period. Do not even THINK about leaving it and offering a carpet allowance. The very sight of a worn, stained, or colored carpet is a deal breaker for buyers. The only buyer interested in a home with a worn, stained or colored carpet is a professional house flipper. They will scoff at your carpet allowance and offer you a low-ball price so low it will take you a week to get your jaw back up off of your worn, stained or colored carpet.
Kitchen Flooring especially takes a beating. It is often a different flooring than the rest of the house, so replacing it can be affordable and go a long way toward making the kitchen feel new and fresh.
4. Entry: Your front door needs to look wonderful! Remove screen or storm doors from your front door. If your door is a beautiful one that is just in need of paint or stain, then freshen it up that way. But if you have a front door that doesn’t even look pretty painted, it is worth it to install a new front door. Check out this blog I wrote to see before and after photos that show just how big of an improvement a beautiful front door can make.
New Front Door & Exterior Paint Color Selection: Just Two Changes Make a Huge Difference
5. Paint: Remove wallpaper, and paint any room that has beat up looking paint or that is a color which will not have wide appeal to buyers. It does not matter how tasteful – cheerful – cute – beautiful – vintage – _________ (insert your glowing adjective here) you think your wallpaper is. Having wallpaper — ANY wallpaper — will seriously reduce the percentage of buyers that will consider buying your house.
Is the exterior paint on your house in poor shape or a dated color scheme? Tan with forest green trim? Dark brown with tan trim? White with brown trim? Or perhaps a strong color? Bright yellow? Bright blue? Then you need to paint your exterior also. Exterior paint colors can be tricky to select. A a paint color consultation will help you get it right the first time. When I give exterior paint color consultations I take into consideration any stone or brick on the house, your roof color, and the neighbors’ house colors to be sure that yours will look attractive.
For a little help on interior paint colors to select when selling your home check out this blog I wrote.
Paint Color to Sell Your House: It Isn’t White!
Tags: Bathroom, color, Design Tips, Flooring, Home Staging, home staging portland, Kitchen, Lighting, paint, portland home staging
Posted in Bathroom, Colors, DIY, Design Dollars, Design Tips, Flooring, Home Staging, Kitchen, Lighting, Mistakes: Avoiding & Fixing, Uncategorized | No Comments »
Dining Area Lighting: Dealing With a Poorly Placed Chandelier
Friday, July 9th, 2010
Chandeliers are bullies!! There — I’ve said it! When there is a chandelier in your dining area, you’re immediately stuck having to center your table under it — or ARE you? When it comes to dining room chandeliers, do you ever wonder “Why did they have to put that THERE?!!” This past month alone, I’ve had 4 clients all with the same problem. The chandelier in the dining room — or dining area in an open floor plan — is placed in a spot that forces them to put a table in an awkward spot. Here’s what we are doing in each case.
The first client has a chandelier and a large window in their kitchen dining area which don’t line up. If they center their table under the chandelier, it is noticeably out of alignment with the window, and vice versa. So, since it’s easier to move the chandelier than to move the window, we’ll have an electrician move the j-box about 10″ over to the correct position and use a large, simple ceiling medallion to cover where the old location was.
Client #2 has a large, ornate, dark bronze colored ceiling fan in her dining area. If she centers her table under it, then the table and chairs are smack in the way of a heavily used traffic flow area to the back door. The table really needs to be about 18″ further away from the door area. Since the client really needs a ceiling fan my recommendation in this case is to change to a much lower profile “ceiling hugging” version in white to match the ceiling. That will really minimize the visual of the ceiling fan, allowing it to become a non-issue in the placement of the table. The client is going more contemporary in their decor, so this kills two birds …
Client #3 had a tiny eat-in area in their kitchen with a door to the garage that opens into the kitchen. Centering the table under the chandelier meant that the door would hit the table when it opened. The client was thinking of swagging the chandelier chain, which is certainly a viable option. But that would really call attention to the ceiling and the fact that the whole business (table-chandelier) has to be off center. Since the client already had a 3-light track fixture at the other end of the kitchen, I suggested installing a matching 3-light track fixture instead of the chandelier. Now the table can be toward one side without any off-center visual issues, plus they are able to light the table and put a spotlight on wall art.
Client #4 just bought a new condo. They have an open plan kitchen/dining/living room. There is a nice large niche with a bay window that is a natural spot for the table. But of course, the chandelier has been placed too far into the room so that centering their table under it will mean that it is too close to one of the pathways into their kitchen area. The rest of the room has recessed can light fixtures, so this time we will retrofit a ceiling can light in place of the chandelier (which the client didn’t like anyway).
Is there a chandelier in your life giving you trouble? Give me a call. For all 4 of these clients, I came up with a solution that fit their particular situation on my initial consultation.
Tags: chandeliers, dining area, Dining Room, dining table, furniture placement, Lighting
Posted in DIY, Design Tips, Dining Room, Home Staging, Interior Design, Kitchen, Lighting, Mistakes: Avoiding & Fixing, Uncategorized | No Comments »
Taking My Own Advice: Interior Designer Deals With Her Outdated Kitchen
Thursday, July 1st, 2010
Do you ever find yourself giving great advice (you KNOW what someone else should do) but not taking it yourself?
I’ve given advice to countless clients to paint outdated cabinets or unattractive brick to freshen up a space. And I have done it in past homes of my own. But for over 4 years now, I’ve been living with a kitchen that is very outdated and not so very functional because I don’t have the funds right now to do the BIG KITCHEN REMODEL. I put that in all caps because it really will be an enormous task that will require taking out a wall, moving plumbing lines and lots and lots of money.
I have done a few things. The photos above show the kitchen as it was when we bought our home and then after my first mini-makeover. It had navy blue wallpaper and a refrigerator that stuck out into the kitchen.
The first thing I did was to chop off the end of my kitchen counter & cabinets so I could fit in a wider, counter depth refrigerator. I did that with a circular saw my first week here and the raw end of the cabinet has been the same ever since because I didn’t want to put in new countertops or cabinetry until I can remodel. Not a pretty sight as you can see in the picture below. But I do have a piece of the old cabinet that I can use as a door and reconstruct the end to be functional. I also took out the wallpaper and painted colors that I like. I know – they are pretty wild. I would not force these colors on a client, so don’t be frightened!
I also tore out some upper cabinets that were between the kitchen & family room. No photos of that yet. You had to stoop to look under them and they closed off the space. But there is still the raw end of the remaining cabinets showing and a couple holes in the ceiling. But the last couple years have been … well, you know how they’ve been … so I am not buying new cabinets. Not even Ikea cabinets! Not even just the uppers! And the last improvement I made was to remove the dropped ceiling fluorescent light fixture and replace it with halogen recessed spot lights. Much better! But I’ve made no further improvements for over a year and a half now.
Then a few things happened that got me thinking I should take my own advice. Last week I sent out my newsletter and wrote about 5 Quick & Affordable Pick-Me-Ups For a Tired Kitchen. And then I read a great post - Sometimes “Good Enough” Is Good Enough by Anna at Door Sixteen. An excellent post on not requiring perfection out of yourself so that you have time to enjoy life. And on top of that, my neighbor and friend is buying a home built in the 70′s – like mine – and has asked me to help her remodel her kitchen. I have kitchens on the brain right now.
So, I’m finally taking my own advice and making some relatively small and affordable improvements in my kitchen so I can enjoy it for now and stop feeling embarrassed about it.
First: I’m painting the cabinets. Trust me – the wood looks a lot better in the photos than it does in person. I’m using deep warm gray on the base cabinets (Benjamin Moore Dragon’s Breath) and white white white on the wall cabinets.
Next: I am replacing the cabinet hardware. I only needed handles for the base cabinets so this is very inexpensive. I went with Ikea handles. They are good enough for now.
Last: I will move one upper cabinet to the other side of the kitchen to replace the one with the raw end. Then I will put up open shelves to replace the cabinet I’m moving. This will give me upper cabinets on only one side of the kitchen. I think it’s going to feel more open and a bonus will be that I can unload my dishwasher quickly onto open shelves — well the dishes anyway.
That will be it for this mini-makeover. New countertops, backsplash & flooring will have to wait.
So, for now I am painting and re-drilling holes for the handles. I’ll post photos as I go along, so stay tuned.
What “good enough” improvements are you making in your own homes?
Tags: cabinet hardware, Kitchen, makeover, open shelves, painting cabinets
Posted in Colors, DIY, Design Dollars, Interior Design, Kitchen, Storage Solutions, Uncategorized | No Comments »