Lighten Up Your Home

With Daylight Savings Time comes the resolve to make everything in our lives brighter. It's time to come out of hibernation and add more light into your living space. Here are a few our our sure-fire tips for brightening things up:

1. Nothing beats natural light. Retire heavy wintery window treatments and temporarily replace them with lighter shears and windowshades that allow more light to come into your rooms.
2. Time to think about those skylight additions. Some skylight systems are clever and easy to install, and can let natural light into hard to lighten spaces like walk-in closets, hallways, and bathrooms. Click on this link to read more.
3. Add some of our lighting favorites to your home decor. Add lights for reading, lights to brighten up dark corners, and task lights to provide better illumination for homework, computer time, tax preparation (ugh - it's coming up way too quickly!), food prep, and so on.

Check out one of our new favorite lighting sources - in Portugal, of all places - that specializes in new takes on mid-century modern designs, Delightfull Lighting:

And consider some of these other Design2Share lighting favorites:

Corner Lamp from Design House Stockholm - the angled shade and base help it fit snugly into dark corners!

Joy Electric Candle Lights - delightful design twist on traditional candles, these stunning accent lights will add light and sculptural interest to any tabletop, hallway, dresser, or bathroom.

XXX Reclaimed Hemlock Console, a custom crafted piece from Groundwork Group, Philadelphia

Jay Johnson -- Why settle for machine-processed, boring furniture when you can have handcrafted pieces! I was very impressed with the handmade furniture options at the recent New York International Gift Fair in NYC.

My preference in home interior design is to always err on the handmade. I'd just as soon see an entire room filled with folk art pieces than see all furnishings come from the same catalog or outlet store. Nothing is more outdated in decorating than having a room full of furniture and accessories that have been mass produced and widely available. Follow the tenants of eclectic decorating and fill your living space with decor that is exemplifies personality, creativity, fine craftsmanship, good quality materials, fine design, and great utility.

I found a host of vendors at this year's Gift Fair that exemplified the latest trends in custom furnishings and fine-quality handmade decor.

Highboy with ball-and-claw legs from Design Workshop Incorporated

Roost gives mirrors and consoles a rustic treatment

Reclaimed oak table with "X" base from Groundwork Group

Paul Loebach nesting tables/step stools from Areaware

Bar Stool with adjustable base and backrest from Peddler's Home Design

Visit these vendor sites for more information:

• Groundwork Group (see their lovely console table in the top photo)
• Mu Design & Living (an example of their Solid Sculpture collection is in the photo above)
• Peddler's Home Design
• Roost
• Design Workshop Incorporated
• Areaware
  

You'll find this video on making handmade chairs in Latin America very inspiring. Go to GreenWood, a Maine-based nonprofit organization, for more information.