Displaying Personal Photos: Cozy and Homey? Or Awkward?

Do you decorate your home with your guests in mind? Or with your own taste and comforts?

My older sister got married this summer, and due to a credit with her photographer, I was told that I could choose one or two of the wedding photos as a print for myself. On hearing this, the question that came to mind (besides which of the 691 gorgeous images to go for) was: Is it okay to put these things up in my home?!

The last time Apartment Therapy spoke about displaying personal photos, be it wedding or otherwise, there were a lot of opinions raised. I know many people who believe that personal photos have no place in the public areas of a home, and should be relegated to bedrooms and upstairs hallways only. I've got to admit, I've always been somewhat flummoxed by this view. After all, just how "public" are our homes really, and shouldn't we be decorating them for ourselves, not for the preferences of people who occasionally drop by?

However, when I look around my home, it seems that I've internalized this common view without even realizing it. In this digital age, I have Facebook albums and iPhoto events a-plenty, and occasionally even manage to have a photobook printed up. But these are items which I have to make an effort to peruse, not ones displayed, with pride, where I'll see them every day. Instead, my walls are adorned with prints, paintings and vintage paraphernalia, with not a single human representation among them.

And here's the thing — I love looking at other people's photos. Whether it's wedding portraits, photos from a recent holiday or old snaps from childhood, there's something about glimpsing the special moments, grand and mundane, of people's lives. They're conversation fodder, and in my opinion, help make a house feel loved and lived in. So, why wouldn't I share similar pics in my own home?

On reflection, I think I would. In fact, have made it a goal of mine to get some of my favourite images off my laptop and into some picture frames before the year is out. So now, the only question I'm concerned with is which of my sister's wedding pictures to choose (the one of her and me laughing our heads off in our parents' backyard is the current frontrunner).

But what do you think? Do personal photos have a place in the home? Do you draw the line at wedding pictures or ones of children, or is it the more, the merrier?

Read more here.

Tips To Help You Enjoy the Transition to Autumn

Are you ready for autumn? Here are a few ways to make the transition from summer a little easier!

A new season is approaching and along with that inevitably comes change: a change in light, a change in weather, a change in lifestyle. Depending on where you live it can either be drastic or just a little blip; either way there are things you can do to make the transition easier. Follow me after the jump to find out how...

Bring the Outdoors In: One of the things we tend to love about summer is all of the outdoor nature time. Well, just because you are gonna be staying in more doesn't mean you have to shut the outdoors out. Start bringing in bright, cheery flower bouquets and new hearty plants. Look for indoor plants that work double duty, like English Ivy, they are not only beautiful and can make you happy but clean the air as well.

Purify the Air: Since we just mentioned cleaning the air with house plants let's take it a step farther. With windows shutting out the cold air, less circulation, and furniture off-gassing you're gonna want to keep the air clean with a Hepa Air Purifier.

Fall Cleaning: Spring shouldn't be the only season where your home gets a fresh new face. Before you go into cuddle up on the couch nesting mode, clean up all the nooks and crannies so you can hunker down in a squeaky clean space.

Get Cooking: Stews, soups, and pies are the smell of fall. If you love to cook this is surely something to look forward to. Stock up your pantry with new, fresh ingredients so you are ready on a whim to whip up your favorite fall recipes.

Brighten Up: Since you will be spending more time indoors this would be a good opportunity to add in some new bright and lively colors to your place. Get some new throw pillows, blankets, or accessories that will keep your home happy and energizing. If you are really daring, try painting an accent wall for the new season.

Bring Out The Faves: What are your favorite things about fall? Is it a great sweater, the best boots, a warm down comforter, a magnificent tea? Well, start to place them in your line of sight so you can get excited about their appearance back in your life in the not too distant future.

Get Moving: Don't let the natural slow down slow you down. Make sure you still move your body. If you will need to move your routine inside, you should start preparing for that now. Not only will it keep you in shape, but it will help your brain stay happy and positive through the coming months.

Be Social: It's easy to just get lost in your own world once it gets chilly and holiday seasons begin but don't let it. Make dates now for gatherings, dinner parties and holiday cheer so you are all scheduled and ready to go. Read more here. 

Want more ideas to make autumn awesome? Check out our blog entry "Easy Ways to Decorate for Autumn" and get inspired!

Easy Ways to Decorate for Autumn

Ahh, fall. It's the season of crisp mornings, hot apple cider, snuggling into oversize sweaters...and luxurious, warm reds, oranges, and browns. We love fall!

Here are some easy ways to decorate for the season without completely redoing your whole house:

Rugs

A new rug can tie your room together in a whole new way! Doesn't the Piazza Linen remind you of the forest floor covered with freshly fallen leaves?

Throw blankets

Nothing says autumn like curling up on the couch with a big mug of hot cocoa and a warm, fuzzy blanket. The Contempo Berber throw blanket captures the season's colors perfectly.

Accessories

Let your creativity go wild with the Jemma 5 piece accessory set. Frame a picture of your favorite fall day. Arrange acorns and pine cones in the charger bowl. Fill the vases with freshly collected branches still bearing the vibrantly colored leaves of the season!

Lamps

Cast a warm glow over your room with a seasonal table lamp. The leaf motif on the Eloise table lamp fits in perfectly with autumn-themed decor.

Bedding

After a long day of hiking through the forest, hay rides, and bobbing for apples, snuggle under the covers of the Diamonte 9-piece queen comforter set.

How do you like to decorate for autumn?

5 Completely Free Ways to Make Your House a Home

Do you know how to make your house feel like a home? Decor helps, but there are other things you can do as well...

We've talked time and time again about all the little things you can do to make a house feel like a home. You can have warm enveloping lighting, plants for fresh air and fun additions of color, collections and artwork, but that's not what this post is about. This post is about how to make your home feel like a refuge; it doesn't have a single thing to do with your decor or the design of your space and nothing costs a dime - it's all totally, 100% free...

1. Spend Time In It: It's almost a badge of honor these days to rattle off your itinerary for the day which leaves little or no time spent at home other than the 6 hours of sleep you try to weasel in. You can't have the feelings of a safe harbor within your walls if you're never there. If it's merely a place to lay your head and hang your coat then it will never mean anything more to you than a coat rack does. Saying no to things in the outside world can be hard, but sometimes it's worth it for your home, peace and comfort in the long run.

2. Use Your Space: So you're at home. That's what we just told you to do right? Chillin' watching television, staring out the window. What more do you want? Well, lots actually! Use your table, sprawl out on the floor, cook, bake, clean, paint a picture... do something that forces you to interact with the things in your home. So often we're on auto pilot that forcing yourself to break the home-dinner-tv-bed routine can awaken your senses to how you'd like your space to function or embrace your hobbies and habits.

3. Speak Kindly: Homes are places where love and memories are made. Do your best to make them kind, wonderful thoughts. We're not going to tell you the words you should or shouldn't be saying, but tone, attitude, and spirit go a long way to making your environment one that is comforting and a refuge away from everything else.

4. Music Matters: It's easy to think about music while we're doing certain things. It's a no-brainer to listen to music at the gym or during a morning commute. But kick out the jams at home, too! Some of the strongest memories you can make often involve music. Open the windows, add a breeze and choose your tunes to match or make your day.

5. Entertain Without Worry: Quite often when we have friends and family over to our homes, it's easy to spend our time apologizing or talking about the things that aren't quite right that we still plan to fix. Spend time with others in your home, just enjoying your home as it is right now. Don't worry about the dust they might see or the things that didn't get done. One of the hardest things we can learn is to let go and enjoy being us, wherever we are, without worry or concern.

Read more at Apartment Therapy.

How to display your photos...creatively!

We live in the Pinterest age. We all have thousands of images and pictures that we absolutely love and would like to display somehow in our homes. But there’s only so much wall space, so we’ll have to pick only a few to hang up...right?

Wrong! Take a look at some of the neat display ideas below and let your creativity take the wheel: 

Wall-mounted shelves can make all the difference. Just make sure to have some consistency, like matching frames or matting, so that the overall look isn’t too cluttered.   

Mix and match approach: Use wall-mounted shelves AND traditional nail-in-wall picture hanging!

Do you have a fireplace mantel? Use it!

Why waste all that space under your stairs? Hang some pictures! Just make sure those pictures are well-secured to the wall so they stay put even as people walk (or run) up and down the stairs.

Maybe you don’t have a ton of pictures you love, but you do have a thing for pretty picture frames...display them anyway! 

Need even more ideas? This graphic should help (click it to see it even larger):

How do you like to display your pictures? Tell us in the comments!

Multiple Uses for the Matrix Gold Server

We love the gold matrix line! For the kitchen, we carry a dinette set with matching server and extra chairs if you need them. For the living room, we carry a 3-piece coffee and end table set with optional matching console table and wall mounted mirror.

The matrix server is one of our most consistently popular pieces.

However, just because the server is designed to go with the kitchen set doesn't mean you can’t use it elsewhere! Many folks will buy the server because they love it, even if they don't have room for it in their current kitchen/dining room. But there are plenty of other ways to make the server a part of your home. Here are a few of our favorites:

In your entryway

Many folks just purchase the console table for these situations. We love the console table, with its clean lines and "no fuss" appearance. But it doesn't have storage, which in small spaces is a must. Fortunately you can also use the server in an entryway with dazzling results!

You can store boots and shoes on the bottom shelf; the grate design allows dirt and snow to fall through (make sure to put a mat underneath to catch all the debris). We've heard of folks storing umbrellas, flip flips and more in the wine rack spaces. On many server models, you can also just simply unscrew the whole wine rack component and keep it for another use.

Want to make it look more like a foyer piece? Just buy the mirror separately and hang it above the server for an added convenience for your guests!

In your hallway

Don't have much room in your bathroom for storage? Put the matrix server along one wall in the hallway just outside the bathroom. The wine rack part would be perfect for storing rolled up towels, and a few cloth-lined baskets on the bottom shelf could hold toiletries, small items, rolls of toilet paper, etc.

In your bedroom

You can use a combination of the ideas above to find a home for the server in your bedroom. Again, we love those handy cloth-lined baskets - they just make everything look so tidy!

You can also stash rolled up t-shirts in the wine rack, a skinny laundry basket on the bottom shelf, and even slide low-heeled shoes - like flip flips - under the bottom shelf.

Remember: If you purchased the 3-year accident protection plan, don't remove parts or alter the server in any way as this may void your warranty.

What creative uses have you come up with for your furniture? Let us know in the comments!

Why We Love Soft Headboards

Our Leather Look queen bed has always been a popular choice.

There are a variety of reasons that it's so popular, but one in particular is that has a soft headboard and foot board.

Soft headboards and foot boards have many benefits. Here are some of the ones our customers most often tell us:

• You can sit up in bed without pillows. Of course, a pillow never hurts, but you can also just lean directly on the headboard itself to chat on the phone, work on your computer, or read a book. Talk about convenience!
• You don't have to worry about whacking your head, elbow, or knee on a hard surface. We've heard that this bed is especially popular for folks who err on the clumsy side. Stumbling around in the dark trying to find your bed? It's much nicer to bang your shin into this foot board than it is to run into an all-wood foot board. Ouch. 
• It's small child friendly. Ever have your kids bound into your room at the crack of dawn and throw themselves down on your bed, often with you still in it? This bed is forgiving to any little arms, legs, or heads that happen to smack into it. 

There are other reasons this bed is popular too, not least of which is that you can choose between several different matching bedroom suites to go with it. Do you prefer blacker furniture? Go with the B208 Ashley suite. Lean towards brown more? We've seen people mix and match with pieces from the Emperor set, the 6300 group set, and others. The sky's the limit! Just pick what you like. 

Oh, and did we mention that this bed is on sale this month? Only $199 for the headboard, foot board and rails through the end of August! Stop by your local Home Decor to lock in your sale price on layaway!