Breathe life into your romance by spreading LOVE throughout your home… Thursday, Feb 12 2009

  

  

It’s almost Valentine’s Day?  It’s almost Valentines Day!  Same sentence, but one is a question and the other a statement.  In either form, they can be found distressing for those of us who just finished packing up all our delicate Holiday decorations.  It’s hard to believe that it is indeed time for another Holiday to celebrate and of course, decorate for.  So back to our initial question and statement… if you’ve felt overwhelmed and found yourself muttering that same sentiment recently, then take ‘heart’ (I couldn’t resist) because we’ve got the perfect decorating cheat sheet to treat your home and all who dwell within to Cupid’s romance.

 

Valentine’s Day is the only Holiday totally dedicated to grand gestures of romance.  But what do we really know of this day besides an abundance of hearts, candy and flowers?  I found myself questioning the significance behind this holiday and the results of my research were quite enlightening to say the least.  In addition to that, my new understanding of the significance of Valentine’s Day aided my quest in finding new ways with which to incorporate romance into home décor.

 

Today’s Valentine’s celebrations evolved from a Roman pagan festival; which was Christianized in the mid 200’s(AD) by Pope Gelasius.  This ‘newly reformed’ festival was championed by a priest living near Rome, by the name of Valentine.  St. Valentine became well known by aiding young couples in love and marrying them in secret, in defiance of a royal marriage ban.  Roman Emperor Claudius II brought about this ban in hopes of strengthening his armies because he felt married soldiers loyalties were often divided.  In his mind a married soldier’s heart pines for loved ones left behind, thus leaving only their brawn for war.  St. Valentine was ultimately arrested for these secret acts of love, imprisoned and put to death.  However, while he was incarcerated, he fell madly in love with the jailers’ blind daughter.  During his incarceration, his jailer requested that he heal his daughter’s sight and by his faith, St. Valentine miraculously restored the sight of his beloved.  Valentine was given a chance to save his life by the emperor if he renounced his faith, which he did not.  Before his execution, some of the couples he had married brought him letters of love and gratitude along with flowers while he was jailed.  As he prepared for his fate, he penned his own love and farewell note to the jailer’s daughter entitled…‘From Your Valentine’.   And so we’ve come full circle learning this holiday’s true significance regarding love notes to our Valentine.  St. Valentine…the friend to lovers and a man who believed Love was worth dying for and dying for love is the ultimate sacrifice, is it not?   So let this new appreciation for a holiday created from L O V E inspire new ways to honor your loved ones throughout your home this Valentine’s! 

 

Once you’re in the right frame of mind, it is quite easy to allow the hallmarks of romance to enhance your décor.   Last year we discussed some unique ways to convey the feelings of love into your home interior and we’d like to expound upon that theme by offering ways to honor LOVE by spreading romance around your home.  It can be as simplistic or romantically gaudy as you delight.  Just remember to find the things that really speak to your own romance and then have fun expounding upon them. 

 

More and more persons are having fun experimenting with decorating their homes for Valentine’s.  You’ll be delighted to know that a few of cupid’s special romantic touches interspersed throughout your home can go a long way towards breaking up the monotony of winter and your love life.  Spur your romantic decorating creativity with… memories!    Do you and your Valentine have a favorite song you love to dance to?  Then why not pull a few chosen lines from your favorite song to decorate with this Valentine’s?  Write them on a mirror with an erasable marker and build on that theme throughout your home.  Search your memories for that particular movie or special event where you fell in love.  Did you save those ticket stubs, program, napkin, etc.?  If so, frame them and display it prominently on a table and add other memory trinkets to show your Valentine how much that event means to your romance.  For instance, you fell in love on trip to Paris, then by all means bring out a few pictures of that trip:  a plane ticket, a saved dinner menu, etc and display them in specialty frames or sitting on tabletop pedestals.  Maybe accent a few with a delicate ribbon.  Add in a few candy hearts or chocolates in a dish and finish the table with fresh rose petals around your tablescape to complete your very own, Romance Memory Tablescape.  

 

Valentine’s is not just for couples; your children and pets in your home also like to be appreciated and remembered on Cupid’s Special Day, too!  So if your family number has been blessed, why not expound upon this Romance Memory Tablescape to include your entire family?  Decorating with words is an interior designer’s pot of gold these days, so incorporate your favorite words or saying into your romantic memory tablescape.  A perfect phrase to get your romantic creativity going would be…. ‘All Because Two People Fell in Love’.   What could be more appropriate than to print this saying onto delicate vellum paper and have it framed prominently or write it with erasable ink onto a glass surface or mirror as a backdrop?  If you’ve got a large enough tablescape you can even write it with rose petals for the ultimate romantic flair.  Enjoy incorporating the many milestones of your love & family into a tablescape in honor of Valentine’s.  Start off with different layers of memories to display:  a picture of you and your spouse on your first date, your wedding portrait displayed in a romantic picture frame, etc.  Add in other pictures of family milestones:  your child’s (or children’s) birth, anniversaries, birthdays or that special day you brought home a new pet into your family.  Each picture will evoke the memories of love and when it is all complete; what a fitting tribute to love it will be, because your pictures will delightfully trace the blessings that resulted from two persons falling in love.  I can see the romantic wheels turning in your minds eye right now, but just remember as with any of these memory tablescapes to incorporate as many different colors and textures that you find to be romantic.  Always group your décor items in odd numbers and display them at varying height levels for that ultimate designer touch!  Once you’ve got the pictorial basis for your tablescape, let your creativity run wild adding romantic layers of flowers or ribbons, etc. for that perfect finishing touch. 

 

We’ve got a few fantastic topiaries and centerpieces with which you could purchase to help build your Romance Memory Table.  Our floral topiary selections with fruit or mossor various Southern-Charmz centerpieces like our gracious hydrangea and berry centerpieceor reflective green sheet moss designer mirrors are a great palette to define a design area.  Our mirrors are also great additions for reflecting ambient romance lighting or decorative canvas for writing your favorite Love Passage.  Once you’ve got your table set and there’s room, why not take rose petals and spell out the word, L O V E on the tabletop to weave in and around your specialty pictures or décor items?  Or, you could arrange a few delicate rose petals into the shape of a heart? (See Picture 1) We’ve got a nice picture below for reference of this idea.  Not only will this addition add another dimension of color and texture to your tablescape, it will also add a delicate floral fragrance of romance to your home, too.  Our romantic pictorial centerpiece below (See picture 2) showcases one more way to create a unique decorative centerpiece with rose petals.  Take a collection of winter pinecones and punctuate them with a few birch branches into a simplistic ceramic urn for a stunning winter display and add a spice of romance with a circlet of delicate rose petals around the base of the urn for a special romantic charm. 

 

In conclusion, you want your holiday decorating this Valentine’s to honor your love or loved ones by appearing polished, but not be so stiff that it lacks the ability to convey the vibrancy of your love.  Your attention to detail will remind your Valentine of the depths of your love, resulting in a whispered, ‘I LOVE YOU’ throughout your home.  As you get in the mood to celebrate the most romantic month of the year, you’ll amaze yourself with how easy it is to create these Romantic Memory tablescapes, which you may find the need to incorporate into your décor year-round.  Let’s face it, who couldn’t delight in a visual reminder of the fruits of love displayed year round?   Plus, all you future brides-to-be out there take special notice to these decorating ideas, too!  What better way to showcase your love at a wedding reception or bridal shower than have a memory tablescape display of your romance for all your guests to enjoy.   Mom’s-to-be, these are also great decorating ideas for baby showers, too!  What an easy and inexpensive way to decorate your special event that is so personalized, that it is sure to be a highlight of your wedding/shower event and a new ‘treasured memory’ in the minds of all who get to enjoy your romantic display.  As always, thank you for reading and making Southern-Charmz Interiorsonline home décor store and our companion Buzz on Interiors your one-stop shop for all the latest southern décor designs to purchase and go-to reference in all the latest design trends. Happy Valentine’s!

 

 

 Picture 1:

     

   A rose petal heart design idea for your Valentine’s Table Decor.

 

 Picture 2:

  

 

    Southern-Charmz Interiors 

         Valentine’s Romance Centerpiece:    

Classic ceramic urn filled with winterized pinecones

decoratively punctuated with birch branches and

circlet of multi-hued, fresh rose petals around the

      urn base for that special romantic flair!

 

 

 

 

 

          

           

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Hang onto summertime a little longer, by reliving your favorite beach vacation . . . . at Home! Saturday, Aug 9 2008

 

Well, we’re over halfway through the lazy days of summer and if you are anything like me, you’re starting to worry about the dwindling days of summer that are remaining.  Adding to my ‘summer calendar anxiety’ is the fact that we’ve already taken our prerequisite family beach vacation and there isn’t another summer holiday to look forward to; Memorial Day is past, July 4th was patriotically celebrated and our summer beach vacation was thoroughly enjoyed so here we are, back home watching the remaining days of summer tick off.  So for all you like-minded summer enthusiasts who find yourselves gazing longingly at summer vacation pictures on your desk; let’s all take advantage of the remaining opportunity to enjoy a little more summer-lovin’ and beach-side décor . . . while we still can!   Southern-Charmz Interiors has a few sure-fire ways to help you glean the most out of the remaining days of summer with great decorative ideas.  These ideas are great ‘therapeutic anecdotes’ for everyone suffering from ‘SCA’ aka ‘Summer Calendar Anxiety’.  So if you have the propensity to get overly depressed about the dwindling days of summer remaining; you’ll be amazed how quickly these decorating ideas will stimulate the senses and bring ‘the-heart-of-summer’ back into your psyche!!!  Be prepared to relive your favorite beach vacations with our inventive interior shoreline decorating ideas.  Our tips will help guide you on how to create and display unique beach décor vignettes throughout your home so that the cumulative interior décor effect offers just-the-right prescription for all ‘SCA’ sufferers.  ‘Course, ya’ll know I am writing all this very tongue-in-cheek, however do not discount for one minute the joy that beach décor can bring to any interior!!!  Every glance around your home interior will rekindle the sights, sounds and touch of all that you love about your summer beach vacations. 

Many of us love beachcombing and seashells play a paramount part in everyone’s beach vacation, so what better way to relive summer beach memories than by decorating with seashells?  The natural design mosaic created by seashell décor is hard to improve upon.  Seashells come arrayed in just about every size, texture and resplendent color and create a tone of simple elegance when displayed organically.  We Southerners are so blessed to be SURROUNDED with gorgeous outdoor foliage, no matter the season, and Southern-Charmz Interiorsloves to play upon these year-round inspirations with each original design and our beach décor is no different.  We love, LOVE to exploit nature’s gifts throughout each season by adding seasonal organic touches throughout our home.  Whatever your eye gravitates toward outside, see if you can find ways to incorporate accents of it, inside.  Why should summertime decorating be relegated to decorating with the usual summer florals or groupings of sunflowers in a vase??  Don’t get me wrong, I love fresh floral accents but why not consider trying something a little different this season?  Why not relive your favorite summer beach memories by decorating with natural seashore touches throughout your home?  Beach décor touches are light, airy and relaxing, because the memories they rekindle give you a mini-holiday with every glance!  So run out to the garage and rescue those saved collections of seashells from the last five years, because we’re gonna put them to good use AND give you a mini-vacation to boost.

Natural beach decorations left in their unrefined state impart the greatest artistic influence upon a design focal point.  It is almost impossible to focus upon shoreline effects without feeling the lure of the sea… with its’ hypnotic crashing waves and salty, seashore air.  All of these seashore attributes and the physical senses that they evoke, are exactly what you want your coastal chic décor to impart.  Seashell decorations rarely require additional design enhancements like ribbons, flowers and other accoutrements, because how can one perfect something that has already been perfected by nature?  So be sure to keep an authenticity to your seaside décor and let it remain your constant guide in coastal chic decorating.  Display your seashell collections wherever your heart takes you, just keep it simple so that it feels ‘realistic’.  Real sand and colored sands are also great décor staples so for idea starters:  take clear candle globes and fill them halfway with decorative sands and insert your favorite scented candles in the middle for a simple, elegant tablescape dressing.  Or go one step further and take the same clear globe filled with sand and insert a smaller, taller, colored glass cylinder (See pictures 1-3, below) for another great coastal chic décor alternative.  Or, why not grab a large decorative vase and fill it halfway with sand and then take dried sea oats and sink them decoratively in the sand as if they were growing naturally; then take an assortment of seashells and drop them haphazardly inside the vase to lie on top the sand in between the sea oat plumes for that finishing touch.  Voila, instant beach memories accomplished and you’ve created something natural and organic to live in your home just as it does in nature. (See Pictures 4-6, below) 

You can decorate pretty much any room with a beachside décor touch, so why not grab a large clam or scallop shell and invert it so that it will become a ‘natural’ soap holder in your guest bath?  Or why not use those same shells as natural ‘scoops’ in your home?  Everyone’s laundry rooms these days are becoming more integral design spaces in the modern home, so why not keep powdered laundry detergent displayed in a decorative container and use a clam or scallop shell to add your detergent into your washer?  This shell scoop and container laundry-detergent idea is just another simple coastal chic touch to delight the senses and more importantly, distract the mind from doing laundry!  See, the possibilities are endless, especially when it involves something that already inspires you – something you love to see and enjoy, each and every summer.  It’s really up to you how long you wish to display your seaside décor whether seasonally or if you leave it up year-round.  So take on the calendar if you dare, no matter the season.  I have one guest bath that’s always on a permanent ‘island vacation’!   I grew up near the beach and still put seashell decorations on our family Christmas trees, even though we lived in a land-locked city for years now.  The compliments still come to this day from guests about our hand-made seashell ornaments, so much so, that you can look forward to them as new Southern-Charmz Interiors products to purchase this coming Holiday season. 

We hope this entry has helped all our fellow ‘SCA’ sufferers and if you are still looking for a few more ideas of coastal décor inspiration, please be sure to shop our summer beach décor pieces at Southern-Charmz Interiors.  Our beach house décor ranges from stunning sea shell wreaths to delightful sea shell collector topiaries and delicate sea shell home accents.  If a handful of sea shells can captivate the senses, just think how our natural seashell wreaths will enchant your front door visitors?  We created our Crown of Neptune Seashell Wreath to appear as though King Neptune’s very own dazzling crown of seashells washed ashore to the fortune of a beachcomber who then took it home to display for all to see.  Our Sunny Dayz Seashell Wreath offers a delightful combination of delicate dried florals and natural seashells and is a charming addition to any home.  Either one of our seashell wreaths are striking creations to be displayed inside and out or even laid flat: to be used as a table centerpiece with gorgeous plants or candles placed inside to create just that perfect beachside tablescape for your next dinner party.  Of course, our Hatteras Seashell Topiary is the ultimate seashell show-stopper!  Displayed in pairs or a grouping, this gorgeous seashell topiary captivates the senses and delights all who gaze at their spectacular assemblage of seashore jewels.  Lastly, our Hatteras Seashell Picture Frame offers just the right home for your latest and greatest summer beach vacation photos!  As you can see, Southern-Charmz Interiors has an ever growing beach house décor accent piece collection, which captivates the senses and helps rekindle the sights, sounds and touch of summer!  As always, thank you for making Southern-Charmz Interiors and Buzz on Interiors your ultimate, one-stop shopping experience for the latest interior décor designs and the latest in southern-design trends!

Recreating Summertime Decorating Ideas – Picture 1:

Gorgeous Tiered Glass Globes with Summer Beach Vacation Flair!

Enjoy spreading summer around your home by decorating with a large glass globe filled a fourth of the way with decorative sands.  Then insert another smaller colored glass globe cylinder into the sand to rest in the center of the larger globe.  For a finishing touch, decoratively position seashells in the open space in between the smaller and larger globes to rest on top of the sand.  Once complete, place a slender votive candle inside the inner globe, light and watch the candlelight dance all around the seashells inside the outer globe.

  
Top View Glass Globe Summertime Decorating Ideas – Picture 2: 

Gorgeous Top View of Tiered Glass Globes with Summer Beach Vacation Flair!

Alternate picture view, this shows our Summer Beach Vacation Tiered Glass Globe Decoration to display the concentric, tiered effect of the globes, as well as, the decorative space in between the glass globes where you artfully place your seashells.

Recreating Summertime Decorating Idea Tablescape Result – Picture 3:  

Summer Beach Decoration Tablescape Result!

With a glance, you’ve created a beautiful tablescape that will rekindle the sights, sounds and touch of all that you love about your summer beach vacations. This picture showcases the design effect of how to integrate delicate beach decor accents into your existing home interior decor.

Recreating Summertime Decorating Ideas – Picture 4:

Dried Florals - Sea Oats

Recreating Summertime Beach Decorating Ideas – Picture 5:

This picture was taken to showcase a close-up impression of the bottom portion of this gorgeous Summer Beach Chic floral display idea consisting of:  decorative sands, seashells and preserved sea oats. 

 

Close-Up Picture of a Stunning Hand-Blown Glass Vase with a Beach Decor Combination of Sand, Seashells and Preserved Sea Oats.

Recreating Summertime Decorating Ideas – Picture 6:

Full View - Gorgeous Tabletop Beach Decor Centerpiece

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Enchant Your Home with Hallmarks of Spring . . . Saturday, Mar 8 2008

 

You can feel it, can’t you? . . . . . . The days are getting longer, the air is slightly warmer and the first glimpses of spring are starting to emerge!  Spring, with all its’ renewing treasures, is finally upon us.  Touches of green are burgeoning everywhere and with them, so do my spirits!  There’s just something about spring that makes me giddy and that’s probably a good thing; particularly since all our favorite spring holidays come roaring together this year in the month of March.  No waiting until April for Easter; the calendar fairies seemed to know our weariness over a long, colorless winter and have thus rewarded us with an accelerated spring holiday schedule.  So come quickly cele-brated holidays of spring, because we’ve got a lock on all things ‘Southern’ & ‘Charmed’  all just in time to transfix your interiors into blissful decorating reflections of S – P – R – I – N – G !    

Spring brings a renewing abundance of colors, textures and scents to enjoy.  Each vibrant color is a lush showcase of nature’s rebirth from a monochromatic winter landscape.  A captivating kaleidoscope to the senses ranging from lucky clusters of verdant clover to multi-colored Easter eggs hidden under the leaves of fragrant daffodils or scattered across green lawns.  Let’s explore the hallmarks of spring and enchant our homes to reflect its’ splendor! 

Nothing adds the welcoming touch of spring to interiors like decorative grasses or mosses.  They easily enhance any décor whether live, artificial or preserved (plants).  No matter the season, dried green mosses and artificial grasses are constant design staples in Southern Décor.  So with the renewing spirits of spring, why not improve upon this faithful design staple and decorate your home with the real thing??  Ornament a fitting homage to St. Patrick’s Day, Eastertide and Spring’s beautiful arrival by creating unique, decorative displays of living grasses, mosses and clover throughout your home.  Southerner’s are blessed with temperate climates that allow us to grow our own decorative grasses nearly year-round.   If you live outside our warmer climates where you cannot grow your own wheat-grass or mosses easily; then find yourself a good quality local florist where you can purchase them.  Live foliages of wheat-grasses, moss and clover are perfect hallmarks of any spring holiday because they imbibe color, texture and that ubiquitous wish-you-could-bottle-it-forever scent.  Cut-to-size carpets of foliage set a vivid scene that inspires drama and lushness on tablescapes and in centerpieces.   Create yourself a simplistic centerpiece of live foliage displayed in a decorative urn or dish or group smaller ceramic holders with live greens and display them as delicate spring vignettes on side-tables and other places of interest.  We showcase this decorative idea in a dried moss variety  on our Southern-Charmz website.  You can fashion live greens into dramatic, cut-to-size, natural table runners displayed across a table center for a lush, green statement to spring.  Another design alternative would be to create a slimmer table runner, down a table center, as delicate decorative balance to accompany cut-to-size placemats on which to showcase your best spring dish sets.  Just remember to place a protective coating under your live greens whenever decorating on porous furniture surfaces; especially since you will want to spritz your new designs to maintain freshness and color!  Once you’ve had your fun with your verdant ‘environmentally friendly’ table runners and placemats, then take it one step further as Easter approaches.  Enhance your wheatgrass/moss table runner’s with luminous glass votives or intersperse your freshly grown centerpiece with delightful Easter egg candles, painted ceramic eggs, silk florals, mini-topiaries and other classic Easter/spring staples.  You can create classic, subtle designs as you place your Easter decorations onto your live centerpiece-runner in an organized pattern or enjoy placing your Easter decor additions, asymmetrically, in conjunction with nature.  

Once you’ve transfixed your home interior for spring, don’t forget the finishing touch to any Southern home.  The first impression of your home is always your front door and Southerners enjoy a proud heritage of inviting verandas and distinguished doors.  An outdoor wreath design captivates the eyes, draws one’s attention up the walk and charmingly invites your guests inside.  The allure of a floral wreath design establishes your decorative style and underscores your seasonal design aspirations.  Never underestimate the power of an effectively arranged outdoor wreath.  Southern-Charmz Interiors has a wonderful outdoor wreath design collection, which we’ve made sure to include a few beguiling designs  that captivate  the essence of S-P-R-I-N-G!!!  As always, thank you for making Southern-Charmz Interiors  and Buzz on Interiors, your ultimate, one-stop shopping experience for the latest interior décor designs and the latest in southern-design trends!  

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Whisper Romance Throughout Your Home . . . Wednesday, Feb 13 2008

We’ve made it through the first month of 2008 and have successfully stream-lined our interior décor by living ONLY with what we love, right?  SO, with the coming of February, what better timing than to find ourselves in the most romantic month of the year?  Treat yourself and your home with a few special touches of love this February.  Let the romance of Valentine’s take hold of your décor.   Sound good, sure, but how does one actually translate the feeling of love into a home interior?  It is easy, just think of different hallmarks of romance that you prefer and then expound upon them throughout your home.   The finished effect will act kind of like a delicately whispered ‘I LOVE YOU’ throughout your home, that lets all those closest to you know how very special they really are.  A hallmark of romance is ambient lighting, so introduce special touches all around the house through accent lighting to set a romantic mood.  Add various-sized candles at different accent levels to create candlelight reflections dancing around various rooms in your home.  One can NEVER have too many candles, however just remember to never leave them unattended when lit.  If you have a fireplace, take extra steps to always have supplies ready to stoke up a warm, crackling-fire and ease into that cozy, winter-getaway, romantic feeling if the occasion strikes.  Another powerful romance hallmark is fragrance.  Captivate the sense of smell by positioning enticing aromas throughout the house with displays of fresh flowers, scented candles and sweets.  The romance hallmark of touch is another valuable way to encourage cupid to strike.  Treat your furniture in various rooms with added layers of sumptuousness.  Color and fabrics help create luxurious tactile touches by adding layers of lush fabrics, soft pillows and silky throws.   I don’t know a single person who can resist a multitude of soft throws and pillows.   Consider each of these components of romance and combine them throughout your home and treat your significant other & family to the romance of February.   

The colors of romance are traditionally red, pink or white and they are all nice, however if there are other colors that you and your special someone find attractive – then treat your home to the romance of Valentines in an expanded palette of love.  Any color is romantic if you love it.  Spread whispered touches of love throughout your home by tying a delicate silk bow around a special vase or tabletop artwork.  Line up a trio of our decadent rose and fruit topiaries  and tuck green reindeer sheet moss or a few yards of tulle around the bases for added sumptuousness on a dining room or kitchen table or sideboard and consider adding a few votive candles to the arrangement.  Display various sizes of pillar candles in your favorite romantic color and place them on our of our reflective green sheet moss designer mirrors.   Cut out a heart or two from a favorite swatch of fabric and tape it to your computer monitor as a daily romantic reminder of the season.  Since flowers are a must, look at our floral topiary selections with fruit or moss or various Southern-Charmz centerpiece options like our gracious hydrangea and berry centerpiece.  If you desire the fragrance of fresh floral arrangements, consider buying a bunch of fresh florals from the market that is in a loose arrangement.  Once you get them home, divide the flowers into different containers and cluster the various vases of flowers in the center of a table or place each bloom into its’ own small container to decorate with.  Your imagination with this is limitless.  I like to look for different uses of everyday life items.  Like taking desert glasses or martini/wine glasses and turning them into decorative vases.  Fill them halfway with water and float a delicate flower in each and then decorate your whole house with these multiples of home-made centerpieces!  Consider a cluster of them on a table or create a singular line of them across a fireplace mantle or disperse them up a hidden stairway on every other step by alternating them with votive candles.  Or just spread LOVE in every sense of the word by putting a miniature floral centerpiece in every room as a delightful homage to cupid.  See how easy it can be to have romance whispered throughout your home?  Wow, with so many wonderful romantic ideas here –we may just have to contemplate designing some baby nursery decorative centerpieces to Southern-Charmz Interiors if cupid aims his arrow too effectively on our Buzz on Interiors readers!  As you get in the mood to celebrate the most romantic month of the year, you’ll amaze yourself with how easy it is to spread a little love!  Thank you for making Southern-Charmz Interiors / Buzz on Interiors your one-stop shop for all the latest interior décor designs to purchase and the latest in design trends.  

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Our New Year’s Streamline Décor Resolution – Live ONLY with what you Love. . . . Saturday, Jan 5 2008

Can you believe it is already 2-0-0-8!  Yes, it is a brand New Year and with it comes welcomed optimism and opportunities.  We’ve just enjoyed the Holidays, a time of enchantment, and so we decorated our homes to reflect the radiance of the Holiday season.  With the ringing in of a New Year also comes the daunting task of taking down all those special trimmings.  It is always a little sad to see the magic of Christmas go, but what better way to beat the ‘Post-Holiday Blues’ than to give yourself one more gift:  the gift of simplified home décor.  While taking down those decorations, go one step further and streamline your home décor too.   Clutter-free interiors may just be the perfect New Year’s resolution for a successful 2008!  One of the best ways to start fresh for the New Year is by cleansing our homes of unnecessary clutter, which in return provides invigoration in all aspects of our lives.  And while you are at it, give your office a once over too, because a bright and airy work environment coupled with your newly streamlined home décor will keep one mentally charged throughout the New Year!   

As you pack up your decorations, take store of your surroundings and envision your rooms differently before everything gets put ‘back’ in prior order.   If you are like me, many items get displaced to make room for holiday decorative displays.  Take advantage of this opportunity to treat your rooms like blank slates.  Take mental inventory of those ‘empty’ décor spaces and really see that area from a different perspective.  What do you like about it and or what would you change about it?  Does the openness make you feel energized?  Does your house or office just feel cleaner?  Does the removal of certain items actually make other existing décor focal points more interesting?  If you answered yes to any of these questions – then our New Year’s Streamline Décor Resolution is for YOU!   Always remember to live with what you love, instead of settling for living with what you have because you own it and it has to go somewhere.  A clutter-free space is usually better than a wall filled with impulsively arranged design elements.  Donate anything you do not use regularly and store items you are reluctant to part with.  If you find yourself returning to your ‘storage items’ to call things out of semi-decorating retirement; then find new, inventive ways to display them in your interior.  Another streamline décor suggestion would be to store certain décor items to showcase them later on a rotational basis.  A terrific idea we will have to delve into further in the coming months!   You will achieve two design feats in doing this: you will be maintaining a cleaner, less cluttered interior and also enjoy the luxury of hanging onto certain items in storage to bring new life to your rooms with each season change.  So if you love certain seasonal design items but don’t feel you have the interior capacity to give them their proper spatial properties in order to maintain a streamlined interior, then store them and rotate your design favorites throughout the year.   

Now let’s have fun with our newly streamlined homes and add a little flair along the way.  Southern-Charmz Interiors offers terrific seasonal design varieties, as well as, designs that are perfect for accenting a newly streamlined interior.  The clean lines of our formal layered leaf topiary and simplistic moss covered topiaries are as beautiful as they are uncluttered.  The austere lines of our contemporary grapevine topiary that is punctuated with a few silk florals, is another great streamlined item that promotes a cleaner, less fussy approach to interior decorating.  The minimalist approach to decorating is also a great way to showcase various décor items in multiples thus creating a simplistic design statement.  Consider purchasing a collection of our sheet moss designer mirrors and group one of each size on a wall or leaned on a mantle top.  Simplify a decorative shelf or tabletop with the placement of our decorative balls or moss covered cones grouped together or strategically spaced in a pattern to modernize a tablescape or wall.   Lastly, create minimalist table centerpieces by showcasing multiples of our potted topiary balls down the center of a table.  These are just a few ideas to make your newly streamlined, clutter-free interior décor fresh and updated.  Thank you for making Southern-Charmz Interiors/Buzz on Interiors your one-stop shop for all the latest interior décor designs to purchase and the latest in design trends.  

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Thanksgiving shouldn’t be a speed-bump on the super highway to Christmas! Saturday, Nov 17 2007

Well friends the Holiday’s are almost upon us and before we get caught up in the hustle and bustle of Christmas, let us not forget the blessings of harvest time and rich traditions of Thanksgiving.  You know, November used to be such a wonderful month rife with opportunities to learn about pilgrims who bravely ventured to a new world and enjoyed prosperity by brokering peace with the Native American Indians.  November basically was a time spent celebrating our wonderful American heritage and a time of thanksgiving for our blessings.  Nowadays, the month of November along with our Thanksgiving traditions have compressed themselves into speed-bumps on the super highway to Christmas!  Advertisers and stores have all seemingly forgotten that there’s an actual American Holiday on the calendar between Halloween and Christmas!  Let us not follow suit and skip over one of the most rewarding American traditions of the year, so won’t you join us during this month to reflect upon your blessings and reap the spiritual harvest of Thanksgiving.                                                               

We receive such fantastic questions each and every month from our Buzz on Interiors readers / Southern-Charmz clientele that there would not be a more perfect opportunity at this time of Thanksgiving, for us to thank you for your shopping loyalty and patronage.  Let’s explore a few of our latest design ideas that combine autumn’s glory with various Southern-Charmz designs to enhance and restore your Thanksgiving celebration to its’ rightful place of American Holiday distinction!  Each year, fall offers us a veritable ‘cheat-sheet’ of colors and ideas with which to pattern unique autumnal holiday designs.  One of the easiest places to look for inspiration is outdoors.  Embrace the seasons by bringing the outdoor sights and smells, indoors.  It is deliciously easy to accomplish fabulous fall decorating by just showcasing your preference of autumn foliage.  Mother nature has provided endless decorating options, so search them out and enjoy decorating with just about anything you see.  Leaves, acorns, pinecones, pumpkins, gourds – they all create fantastic fall displays.  Some of the most simplistic designs can impart the strongest impressions.  Take just one type of fall offering or stay with one shade of fall color and duplicate it for a repetitive decorating display throughout your home. Another option for understated harvest elegance would be to incorporate all the cornerstones of fall foliage together, different textures and colors, to create the ultimate wow factor for you and your guests.    

One of the first places your family and friends see will be your front or back doors to your home.  Make sure they are always dressed accordingly, because they provide the first impression of your design tastes and hospitality. Southern-Charmz Interiors offers two gorgeous autumnal wreaths that will delight all who visit.  We also offer a wonderful bountiful fall harvest outdoor spray, fashioned to Colonial American customs, for those who like a more traditional harvest theme.  Once you’ve found your perfect door dressing, attach pulled grapevine around your doorway for additional front porch drama.  Tie on preserved fall leaves with natural twine or raffia to the grapevine to complete the look.  Once your front door is complete, take the outdoors inside and create niches of design interest with fresh fall foliage throughout your home.  Consider accenting your fall displays with glass votives and tea lights to set your harvest colors ablaze.  Use acorns to anchor candles in clear hurricanes or set beautiful preserved leaves on the bottom of a see-through decorative bowl before adding a smaller bowl on top to hold water and floating candles. 

Southern-Charmz Interiors also offers fabulous tabletop and large floor fruit and ivy topiaries that showcase harvests’ abundance.  Either size create a stunning stand alone fall focal point or lovely statements when displayed as a pair or grouped together at different heights on our moss covered designer mirrors.   The mirror and moss add another layer of design interest to your fall decorating.   Pull out one for two of the colors you like best in the topiaries and play up those colors with fresh fall produce or leaves in the same hue, scattered around.   For your sturdiest of fall leaves, how about writing Thanksgiving sentiments on a few of them with metallic gel pens for a great finishing touch.  You could carry that theme and use leaves with written names as place markers for seating arrangements.  Consider where your eyes alight with the most interest and carry your fall décor upward by hanging a few leaves from varying lengths of transparent thread on a chandelier or under window valences.  We also have a wonderful arched fruit floral spray that boasts the same bountiful harvest theme and would be lovely displayed over a door, mirror or fireplace.  Your imagination is pretty much the only limit to your decorating finesse.  There’s no need to jump straight from Halloween to Christmas, allow time for remembering our blessings and heritage for at least one day!  Just stay tuned, we’ll get you great decorating ideas for the Christmas Holidays with plenty of time to spare.  Have fun and let us give Thanksgiving back its’ rightful place among American Holiday traditions!  Happy Thanksgiving Buzz on Interiors readers! 

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Fall is here and so are our new decorating ideas . . . Friday, Oct 5 2007

It’s that time of year again, we’ve made it through the dog days of summer and finally…it’s Fall.  The sights and smells of autumn are everywhere and with it brings that wonderful harvest feeling; so embrace the season and let the Holiday decorating begin.  At Southern-Charmz Interiors, we’re constantly asked about the latest design trends and exciting seasonal decorating ideas.  Where do we get our design inspirations?  How can one best incorporate the season into a particular area at work or home?  What suggestions do we have for interesting tablescapes and/or decorating particular places of interest in a home?  Well friends, the easiest place to gather ideas is all around you.  Take a second and just look around, mother-nature has provided a beautiful ‘cheat-sheet’ of ideas and colors with which to build on.  There’s just no lack of fall decorating to be had with such an abundance of gorgeous autumn colors.  Embrace the colors of the season by bringing the outdoors inside with fresh displays of autumn leaves, twigs, pumpkins and gourds and all the other cornerstones of fall.   Use a repetitive display of just one type of fall offering for an understated harvest design or incorporate all the items on a fall tablescape for the ultimate wow factor.   Understated harvest designs and tablescapes are pre-requisites of fall decor; however the month of October brings creative decorating abandon.   A season of Jack-O-Lanterns, spooky delights and homage’s to all things that go bump in the night; October is a magical month that culminates with whimsical forays into time-honored American family traditions.  Neighborhoods practically come alive with the energetic chatter of happy children living out their ghoulish costume fantasies and catching glimpses of parents re-living theirs.  The basis for a lot of magical Halloween memories is the Holiday decorations.  I am sure you can remember to this day that special neighborhood home that was a perennial must-visit on the Trick-R-Treat List.  Can you picture it?  The one with every window lit with freshly carved pumpkin faces dancing to the candlelight as if done in precision accompaniment to accent the most terrifyingly-fun decorations throughout the yard and front walk?   Try to keep those memories fresh and then let your own imagination run wild when decorating your home this Halloween.  Have fun tapping into those childhood memories of ghosts, goblins and all things creepy.   Our spooky Sleepy Hollow wreath is a perfect Halloween decorating idea starter for your home, Halloween party or costumed Halloween ball.  Quickly becoming a best-selling Holiday design, this eerie-looking Halloween decoration looks as if it’s very own wreath making branches were cultivated from the worst wraithlike Halloween tree.  Its’ warped black branches are forged into a spooky semblance of a Halloween door wreath, like a twisted homage of haunted hospitality.  Showcase the Sleepy Hollow wreath on your door and windows.  Play off its’ austere lines to add more devilish layers of creepiness to your Halloween yard decor.  One way would be to purchase multiple wreaths and place them on top of two urns or cauldrons outside your door or flanking the front stoop area.  These urns will stand like prickly sentries and offer a dual-design function to accent whatever you put in the urn.  Break off knarled tree branches and have them coming out the top of the urn or consider placing a white pumpkins on top for a very austere color combination or traditional, orange, jack-O-lanterns on top of the wreaths for another stylish Halloween confection.   As for inside, our spooky Halloween wreath creates great centerpieces for terrifying tablescape drama.  Intersperse our Sleepy Hollow wreath with strips of orange and red tissue paper and situate it under a Halloween party punchbowl or spooky Halloween pot to mimic a blazing witches’ cauldron.  Another terrifying tablescape Halloween decorating idea would incorporate our Sleepy Hollow wreaths and use them as creepy charger-plate substitutes under dinner plates, platters of Halloween candy or bowls of Halloween treats.  As you can see, our newest Sleepy Hollow wreath is just the perfect, fore-boding accent and new essential in Halloween decorating.  These are just a few ideas to get you started on your quest to top your Halloween decoration memories of years gone by.  Happy Harvest Decorating to all our Buzz on Interior readers and/or Southern-Charmz customers!

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Home Interior Décor Thursday, Aug 23 2007

Accent pieces help define your design style and are paramount in creating unique home décor. Home accent pieces are chosen to compliment a room and/or express the theme of your interior design. Furniture sets the mood in any home, but decorative accent pieces underscore that mood. Decorative accent pieces can be chosen for capricious or symbolic reasons. The first principle of unique home décor and home décor shopping is to go with what you like; buy home accent pieces that make you feel comfortable.  A beautifully decorated home full of custom lamp shades, designer balls, accent pieces or a designer mirror or decorative accent piece is useless if you feel like a stranger in your own home. Additionally, small living room accent pieces or any accent piece can change the look of a room without a lot of fuss. The home décor accent can effectively disguise a room’s flaws; for example, a small room can seem larger with a well-placed accent mirror. Also remember: simplicity in accent pieces has its own enchantment and decorative accent pieces should be able to be appreciated intimately or from a distance. From size, shape, color and texture…the home décor accessory is the pre-eminent ingredient to a unique home décor. Unique Home Décor and home décor shopping starts with a mood you want to express in your interior. Do you like formal or informal home interior décor or is French country home décor or eclectic home décor and shabby chic more to your liking? These initial home décor inclinations lay the groundwork when purchasing any home décor accessory or decorative accent pieces. Formal home interior décor commands structured home accent pieces; as opposed to a casual home that necessitates relaxed home décor and shabby chic accent pieces. The fluidity of any design caprice for your home interior décor depends on how home accent pieces are arranged in appearance. The focal points for the home accent piece in home and garden décor in any room are widely accepted as tables, walls and doors. Once your tables have been ‘dressed’ with decorative accent pieces, then move on to your wall home décor with wall decorations accent pieces and then top off your doors with a preferred home décor product and so on. When walking through any home interior décor, you embark on a series of visual adventures and unique home décor and home accent pieces should always feature some piece of yourself. Having a unique home décor on your walls, to your table scapes and doors is almost like a theater production of quality home décor. Showcasing a designer mirror or custom lamp shades and other decorative accent pieces can do a lot to make a room personalized and inviting; so create your quality home décor with our unique home accent pieces and be sure to also shop our quality topiary and center piece pages for additional ideas to complete the perfect interior.

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Interesting question Tuesday, Feb 20 2007

Recently I received a very interesting question that I wanted to share with everyone:

This person is getting married later this year and will be wearing a 60 year old dress that has been handed down from generation to generation.

Her question was in reference to special ordering a wheat crown and what advice I could offer (is it practical, can it be made, will it look nice or silly)

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Congratulations on your upcoming wedding and thank you for emailing Southern-Charmz with your questions.  I’m a big proponent of making ones wedding unique and as true a reflection as possible upon the two individuals being married.  Regarding your question about trying to coordinate a headpiece with an antique dress, I am happy to offer some helpful points for you to consider:  

• Always try to maintain an overall design theme for your wedding day and keep it consistent with whatever time of year your big day will take place.  That theme should be reflected in the design decor at the wedding ceremony, wedding reception, wedding party attire, invitations and of course, all the wedding floral accents.   The more consistent you can be in tying in your preferred theme and colors, the more elegant and memorable the day will become.  Every bride is looking to make an statement of elegance and a cohesive design theme is the easiest way to accomplish that desire.     
• Your idea of incorporating dried wheat florals possibly into a crown is quite daring and original.  I am not sure of the seasonality of your wedding date, however I can see wheat floral elements being used quite elegantly in a fall wedding.  In my experience working with dried wheat florals, one thing you may need to consider is the fragility when using any dried florals of any kind.  I’ve never seen a bridal crown fashioned from dried wheat and done properly it may be stunning; however it may also be quite difficult to work with.  Dried wheat is not very flexible and can be extremely brittle.  It also may be a little itchy or scratchy on the hairline and no one wants overriding memories from their wedding about to be centered upon a negative – just positive happy memories!      
• If you could possibly find a silk floral version of dried wheat and incorporate it into your design theme, it may prove to be a more feasible product option when constructing a more durable/comfortable bridal headpiece.  Silk flowers are much more durable and flexible and can be more readily molded around a headband or ribbon headpiece than the real, dried version of a flower.   I am not familiar with a silk version of preserved wheat, however that does not mean it may not be out there on the market and/or possibly found a an internet floral wholesalers. 
• Another option would be to go a more traditional route and purchase a commercially made headpiece that you matches your heirloom gown and then find other unique ways to incorporate your wheat motif theme.  A wheat design motif can be embroidered into your bridal train or possibly the edging of your bridal veil.  You may even serendipitously find a fabric with a delicate and attractive wheat motif that the bridesmaids can have their dresses or stylish accompanying shoulder wrap designed from the material.   
• The last suggestion would be the easiest:  you could incorporate dried wheat into your floral theme and incorporate it as an overall floral design accent.  You can insert the individual wheat sheaths into your wedding flower displays, your bridal bouquet, attendant bouquets and it would also be quite a lovely as a unique accent incorporated into the groomsmen’s boutonnières.  Dried wheat would also make stunning floral centerpieces at the reception on the tables and even using just one individual wheat sheath, shortened and wrapped with a delicate ribbon would be a stunning theme accent to each table place setting sitting on each plate or name card.   

Your options are endless and I am confident you’ll be successful in bringing to life your ’design vision’ on your wedding day.  Thanks again for your email questions.  We hope our design suggestions prove to be helpful and Southern-Charmz wishes you continued success in the planning and celebration of your special day!     

With Warm Regards, 

Rhonda Magee CEO Southern-Charmz Interiors

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If you have any ideas or comments please post them here on our blog.  We appreciate any and all feedback on “THE BUZZ ON INTERIORS”

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Tabletop Topiary Designs Thursday, Jan 4 2007

Tabletop Topiary Designs

If petite table top topiaries are the darlings of interior home decorating, then table top topiaries are the paragon of designerinteriors!  The art of topiary from the ancient Greeks still lingers and flourishes in present day interior design.  The Latin term, topiarius, means the enjoyment of ornamental gardening; so surrounding your home in designer topiaries can in a way bring historical relevance into your home.  Artful topiaries were the epitome of iconic grace in ancient Greece and the art of topiary has sustained itself through past civilizations and its’ eternal grace carries modern-day design appeal in the table top topiary.  Our table top topiaries or the topiary centerpiece easily becomes a beautiful floral jewel in any interior setting.  The portability of the table top topiary adds to its charm just like our petite table top topiaries, because either size of our designer topiaries can easily migrate from room to room and adapt and impart charm in any surrounding.  Our artificial topiaries have the proficiency to express whatever design impression you desire and the charm of a topiary centerpiece is only enhanced by the combination and variations of floral choices.  Our decadent rose and fruit topiary conveys absolute sumptuousness, because of the deep hue of the topiary with silk roses juxtaposed with the simplistic purity and freshness of the red apples.  The conical shape of our seashell topiary employs the popular 15th century France cone topiary shape and is naturalized with moss and assorted ocean seashells. The influence and graciousness of 16th and 17th century England is unmistakable in our topiary ball preserved topiaries.  Our artificial topiary with dried nigella orientalis festooned over a topiary ball and accented with spanish moss in a weathered tin base could easily sit in any crisp English cottage.  In addition, our voluptuous ivy topiary with miniature beaded fruit topiary accents and copper ribbon entwined in the silk topiary spherical shape also shows the proper charm of old world England.  Our contemporary dried, natural wheat topiary centerpiece with raffia and miniature silk topiary leaf accents captivates the beau ideal of the 21st century home.  To transform any room make sure to purchase any of our floral topiaries, seashell topiary, wheat topiary or fruit topiary.  Our captivating table top topiary is the singular decorative element that can impart exemplar old-world charm into your home!

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