We discussed the first two steps towards change: how to free the apartment from the influence of past owners and make right choice furniture. Now let's do a little magic with accents, decor and light.
Step three: hide the flaws.
It is clear that you cannot make a complete renovation in a rented apartment, but partial renovations are usually available. For example, re-glue the wallpaper or repaint the walls. If the owners are against it or such expenses are not part of your plans, disguise the imperfections of the walls with posters or interior stickers. You can also stick decorative mosaics or bamboo sticks on problem areas. This looks especially good on protruding corners.
Problematic furniture can be covered with a tablecloth or blanket. In order not to change the upholstery of the sofa, purchase or order sewing a removable cover. Covers of the same color and style can be applied even to furniture in good condition, so that all items fit together and are in the same key.
And textiles in general - indispensable assistant in such a situation: curtains can be used to cover up ugly window frames, and put colorful carpets on the floor. Fabric sheets are also suitable for masking open areas walls, creating the illusion of a second window on them, and to enliven boring cabinet doors. There's only one difficulty with this: be prepared for some really big washes.
Step four: distract attention.
Pillows in bright covers, rugs and others bright accents in textiles they will also attract attention, distracting, for example, from an unrepaired ceiling or an old radiator.
You can also control your gaze with the help of bright decorative items: a large colored object on the wall or interesting composition from photographs they will not only create a highlight in the interior, but will also make any minor drawback in the neighborhood insignificant.
Take a close look at the arrangement of the remaining furniture. Could this chair be placed in the middle of the room and make it an accent? Or move the cabinet to a more advantageous position, where it will cover the shabby wallpaper.
Step five: create a special atmosphere.
Now that the appearance of the apartment meets your standards of order, convenience and taste, it's time to make it feel like you're at home. Take away dear to my heart things and photographs have a place of honor in the interior, because home is where your heart is.
Please pay attention Special attention creating comfort in sleeping and relaxation areas, as well as in the kitchen if you spend a lot of time there. Soft pillows on the sofa, an ottoman under your feet and a blanket at hand and you already feel good and calm.
Houseplants and pets (if the owners don’t mind) will carry the feeling of “home” with them.
Lighting plays a very important role. Main light sources (chandelier and desk lamp- classic set) is not enough to create an atmosphere. Buy original lamps with soft diffused light or to illuminate a small area in the room: during the day they will add attractiveness to the interior with their appearance, and in the evening - with light.
In the end, go with the whole family to a home goods store and realize in the interior the style that you have long dreamed of. Now, for example, it is coming back into fashion, literally a few items can set the interior an individual mood, the creator of which you will feel like. This will bring you closer to your new home, just as creativity brings people together.
And don't worry if the feeling of kinship with the apartment doesn't come right away. This takes time. You will succeed!
Photos: styleanddecoration.com, styleathome.com, organicauthority.com
There is a bookcase, not bothering anyone, and suddenly - a rearrangement! The cabinet is moving, preparing to move to a new place, and there - priests! Some of the wallpaper has fallen off, some has torn, and over the years of standing it has also become dusty and dirty. Or another thriller plot: a switch, a short circuit - a black mark on the wall. Scary?
There are situations when troubles happen with walls. Where there is a flood and drips, where are children’s palms, there are cat’s claws, here is a hole. And it would be okay if there were wallpaper of the same color in stock, but no, you won’t find it in the store. What to do?
People with the means and opportunities solve the problem radically: strip the wall, prepare it, cover it with new wallpaper or paint it. And then you look - and there is a reason to renovate the entire room, and then the apartment. But what if there is no such opportunity yet, either because of time (after all, it’s not possible to buy a loaf of bread in a store), or because of funds?
A wall in almost any condition can be masked. To begin with, you can return the cabinet to its place and not suffer, and decorate the switch/socket along the contour. The hole is closed high up with a picture, decorated with a beautiful baguette www.bagetmaster.com.ua, a shelf, a photograph, the hole at the bottom is a sticker, a drawing. What kind of deeds do people go to just to decorate their walls, what materials do they not use. But such measures are also suitable in our case. We are not shy, we experiment, and then we simply say that this is how it was intended.
If creativity is not an issue, you can call a herd of five to ten neighbor kids, give out a flat surface, paint and not interfere. Young Picasso will paint the wall so that all that remains is to arrange everything in wooden slats, outlining homemade frame a collaborative masterpiece. True, for some it will be quite bold.
Lovers of extravagance (and at the same time, owners of fabric cuts) decorate the wall with drapery made of fabric or curtains. Or they hang fabric roller blinds. Curtains hanging to the floor look great on the windows. On the walls the visual effect is no less successful. They can be hung on baguettes or simply fixed with nails, gathered in folds or pulled over a frame. And if you take a walk, the room can even be turned into a fabulous oriental tent from the inside.
Plant lovers are not left on the sidelines either. If the wall is sufficiently illuminated, then densely growing vines are sent along it 
vines, ivy. They will cover up the flaws in the walls and draw attention to themselves.
In any case, the problem of the wall is not a problem for lovers of comfort and coziness. There will always be a way out.
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Most of us want to have an interesting and original interior. Usually, the main attention is drawn to the walls, since their area is the largest, so today the article will be about how to decorate or decorate them with your own hands. There are many ways to do this, including.
We decorate walls with wallpaper and other materials
In addition, other combinations of materials are often used, which makes it possible to expand the spheres of influence of each of them. Everything, of course, depends on imagination, and today there are plenty of materials for its implementation.
You can combine with each other, for example:
- wallpaper made from natural materials;
- vinyl wallpapers;
- moldings;
- frescoes;
- composite panels in a wide range of shades, colors and patterns.
- Wherein a necessary condition is to maintain unity of stylistic direction in order to maintain comfort and harmony in the interior of the room. As wall decoration they use it for this different kinds wallpaper with the same shade, but with different textures.
- We should not forget about one more aspect - combined wallpaper make it possible to functionally improve a room, for example, a kitchen. Work area near the stove are often made of other coatings so that they can be cleaned and washed more often, unlike other places.
- Separately, we should talk about how to decorate wallpapers of different color shades . Speech in in this case goes to the graphic “color wheel”, which has 12 primary colors that interact with each other. They are located in two adjacent sectors, they are related, and their joint use in the design of the room makes it possible to create an impression of harmony and relaxation.
Tip: if you don’t have enough energy in the room, use combinations of colors located in opposite sectors.
Decor rules
When using a combination of wallpaper in the interior, you should not forget about the rule - they must have design elements that echo each other. These can be shades of the same color or a single design style.
For example, a floral design goes well with wooden patterns, and abstraction – with any geometric shapes. When choosing a certain style interior, it is best to create a border between the wallpaper using decorative polyurethane pilasters painted in desired color or wooden planks, for example, halves of bamboo stems.
Advice: when choosing a method for decorating a room, remember that any combination of wallpaper should not stand out from the general style of the room, be a continuation of its purpose and reflect its specifics. Then the design of the room used will be harmonious and not irritate those living in the apartment or house.
Decorating wallpaper for painting
They have an interesting feature - they can be painted. In this case, you do not need to specifically time the repair to change the boring color of the wall coverings; the effect can be achieved without removing them.
However, you should start by gluing wallpaper. An interesting effect can be obtained by painting walls or canvas with reverse side when the paint begins to show through the interlining. Combined with a relief surface, this will enhance the wall decor.
At the same time, remember, if painted:
- wallpaper - the paint will be brighter and more contrasting;
- wall - the color scheme will be more restrained.
You can significantly highlight the texture of the coating by using different colors for the depressions and protruding parts.
You can do this in two ways:
- Apply paint to the surface with a slight movement of the roller so that only the protruding parts are painted. In this case, try not to get a lot of dye on it.
- First, paint the entire surface with a light shade of paint, and after drying, apply a more saturated paint to it, then wipe it with a rag or sponge. Protruding elements of the texture will be painted in light color, at the same time, the depressions are in the dark. Such a surface will look embossed and beautiful.
Decor options
You can use the most unexpected methods.
- For example, paint a wall in bright color and apply a glaze with colored or white flakes on top of it. Wait until it dries and spread them with a dry brush evenly over the surface. Pure azure applied to painted wallpaper will give the surface a shine with a pearlescent tint.
- An interesting effect can be obtained from using a patterned border that matches the shade in which you plan to paint the wallpaper. In this case, the color below and above the border may be different or the same. For example, below are yellow. And on top there is beige wallpaper, and the border itself represents a pattern of these colors.
- If you need to apply a drawing to the wall, you can use the stencil technique. When straight lines predominate, a stencil can be made on the wall using masking tape.
- The simplest and simplest option is to use two layers of paint in succession. After applying the first one with a special roller, let it dry and apply the second one. If you need to choose a complex shade, it is better to use machine tinting. By the way, this method will help if you make a mistake with the volume of material, the machine makes it possible to accurately repeat the selected color.
Repair and decor of old wallpaper
Above we considered options for by and large associated with new coatings. In this section we will talk about repairing and decorating old ones. This usually happens when it is necessary to restore the coating from abrasion, stains, children's artwork, if a cat tore it off, or simply in some places the wallpaper suddenly began to bubble and come apart.
In this case, there is no need to make major repairs; it is enough to carry out partial restoration of damaged areas.
Below are instructions on how to do this correctly:
- Prepare materials and tools - glue (wallpaper, for joints, PVA), pieces of old remaining wallpaper, scissors, dry rags, a medical plastic syringe, a soft sponge, a hair dryer and a brush.
Tip: do not use PVA glue for light-colored wallpaper, as yellow stains may appear on it.
- If they come off, bend the edges, take a dry rag and wipe their surface to remove dirt. Apply glue in an even layer on the canvas and wall, especially carefully covering the edges. Press firmly onto the base after they are saturated with glue. Smooth the surface from the center to the edge and immediately remove any excess with a sponge.
- You can seal the seams as follows - carefully unscrew the seams and remove the remaining putty from the canvas, vacuum the wall and wallpaper, and clean off the bumps. Apply glue to the joints and smooth them with a rubber roller. Take a hairdryer and heat the joints so that the glue sets faster.
Advice: it is best to repair joints special glue, which has better adhesion and fast setting time.
- If stains appear, some of them can be simply washed off, being careful. For paper wallpaper use soapy water or detergent. You can also use a clothing stain remover.
Oily, greasy spots remove with dishwashing liquid, from fountain pens and ink - with nail polish remover or alcohol. Paint over very small spots with a brush to match the canvas.
Tip: before removing stains using aggressive products, test them on a separate piece so as not to spoil the surface.
- If the cat has torn off part of the wallpaper, you can replace it with a similar piece by carefully removing the old one and gluing a new one in its place. Make sure there are no air bubbles underneath.
Some ideas
When you are tired of the old wallpaper, but it still sticks firmly to the wall and you are not planning a renovation yet, use the following ideas:
- Place a metal mirror panel on plain wallpaper facing the sun in the morning. Although its price will be rather high, you will be greeted by sunbeams in the morning.
It's unlikely to be found suburban area, completely free from any technical details, outbuildings and other objects that can spoil the impression of even the most well-groomed and elegant garden. However, if you take care of this problem in time and show a little imagination, disadvantages can easily be turned into advantages
“Dissolving” the fence
A blank, unattractive-looking fence does not at all decorate the garden. The first thing that comes to mind is to hide it behind a hedge. However decorative effect You'll have to wait at least a few years. Planting mature plants is an expensive endeavor. Another minus: green hedge It will take up quite a lot of space in the garden. Unshaped, for example, will require a free strip of land with a width of 0.7 to 3 m or more, depending on the species used. Molded ones are more compact (0.5-0.7 m), but the most economical hedges are trellis, with a flat crown (15-20 cm).
A universal camouflage material is vines, and above all, unpretentious maiden grapes. Two to three years after planting, it will begin to entwine the support, and if it does not completely hide the fence, it will at least soften the perception of monotonous surfaces. Climbers can cope with this task much faster - in just a few weeks.
By the way, it is not at all necessary to try to disguise the entire fence. Have a good one visual effect can be achieved by decorating its individual fragments. Here we will remember about climbing roses, and about clematis, and about other beautifully flowering vines, especially since they can “paint” truly fabulous pictures. To do this, you just need to properly guide the shoots along strings, nets or trellises fixed on the plane. You can “lean” against the fence alpine slide, a gazebo, a rock with a waterfall, a picturesque ruin or a mysterious grotto. In the construction of such objects, natural and fake diamond, polymer concrete and even old brick. They decorate, of course, with plants: near waterfalls - those resembling near-water ones in shape; on ruins and grottoes - with moss and ground cover. And vines and hanging vines in containers attached to the fence will help to organically include such artistic inserts into the overall decoration of the garden.
Decor of outbuildings
Outbuildings, workshop and other useful buildings, without which it is difficult to imagine country life, do not always coexist peacefully with the garden. There are only two ways to avoid conflicts between them: hide the utility area behind a green wall, using pergolas, trellises, and hedges entwined with vines, or make the utility room a full participant in the landscape performance. In the latter option, the object for decoration will be the building itself. Techniques for landscaping that are seductive in their simplicity are to let vines run along the walls or hang pots with them on them. hanging plants. There is much more hassle with trellis plantings, for example, with decorative apple or pear trees, the flat crowns of which can be spread directly over the walls.
Another object for landscaping is the roofs of buildings. On flat ones you can create a real flowering lawn, but on a sloping one you will have to limit yourself lawn grass, sedums and sedums. Aerobatics is the transformation of an outbuilding into a green hill, for which green roof technologies are partially used. Outwardly, such a structure may resemble not only a grassy hill, but also an alpine hill, and a rocky slope with a stream running down its ledges. And only from the side where the entrance is organized will the hill reveal its secret.
The antipode of geoplasticity is a building that does not hide its purpose and at the same time fits perfectly into the garden thanks to skillful makeup. A gardener's house, for example, can be decorated with a cart wheel, painted rocker arms, sickles, etc.
Masking of barrels, wells, septic tank hatches
Visible elements can add some dissonance to the garden decoration. drainage system. But this problem can also be overcome if desired. For example, by giving the drainage ditch slight bends, you can turn it into a dry stream. With the help of semi-aquatic plants, it is easy to design an open water reservoir as a decorative pond or an artificial swamp. Barrels with water for irrigation should not be surrounded by climbing plants or tied with reed mats. Otherwise, the water will not warm up in the sun. Try making it out of a nondescript container " clay pot", having painted it waterproof paints rich colors and covered with a nice oilcloth.
A drainage well can easily be turned into a decorative one if it is lined with concrete ring stone, brick or frame with logs, and mount a gate and canopy on top. Hatches that are level with the ground are masked with plants with care, since moving the cover can damage them. But if you really want to, plant a creeping shrub nearby, such as Cossack juniper, which will quickly hide the hatch under its long shoots.
The easiest way to disguise a hatch on a lawn is to stick a covering that imitates grass on the lid, and “suppress” any slight discrepancies in color with several pots of beautifully flowering annuals. In the same way, a film coated with fine gravel, pebbles or sand is used, intended for decorating the banks of reservoirs. A small garden sculpture looks great on such a spot. In order not to exercise in lifting weights, for masking the hatch flower arrangement a container on wheels is preferable, and from all the variety garden sculptures It's better to choose the lightest one. For the same reason, real boulders are not installed on the lid, but artificial ones are widely used. Hollow inside, they are quite light: fiberglass stones weigh from 1.5 kg, polymer concrete stones - from 10 kg. Boulders of any size, color, configuration can be made to order. But standard dimensions (∅ up to 1500 mm, height up to 500 mm) allow you to close even a large hatch, including one protruding above ground level, not to mention wells, pumps, filters, hose reels, etc. Don’t like stones? Take a closer look at artificial snags and stumps.
Decorating... trash
Containers for garbage and plant residues in the form of wood, metal, plastic boxes or barrels with lids are unattractive both externally and internally. Therefore, first of all, there is a desire to hide them behind bars, that is, to separate them from the garden with green screens, trellises, and pergolas. Or plant with tall shrubs and beautiful flowering herbaceous plants, leaving, naturally, a convenient approach to the container. The container itself is also decorated, for example, by spreading climbing annuals over a grid or by arranging a cascading flower garden using flower pots attached to the walls. Compost heaps or piles can be covered with straw mats and mats. But it is better to use a camouflage net that imitates grass or pine needles. This way the pile can easily be turned into a nice green mound. Fortunately, these nets are durable, do not rot, do not fade in the sun, and also do not require any maintenance.
Beautifully decorated local area country house- the pride of any owner. But not everyone can boast that they are satisfied with everything about the exterior of the site. After all, there will always be unsightly buildings and elements that would be useful to remove, hide or disguise. But turn disadvantages into advantages, transforming unattractive buildings into examples of exquisite landscape design- a task that anyone can solve. The main thing is to show imagination and apply skills to realize the idea.
By erecting a fence around the perimeter of the site, everyone tries to protect themselves from the curious glances of passers-by, and local area– from the encroachments of uninvited “guests”. But a dull solid fence with its appearance can spoil even the most cozy and picturesque garden.
You can decorate an unsightly fence by planting around the perimeter climbing plants. Lianas climbing the walls of the fence will help give the garden additional vertical volume
Using fencing to decorate, you can not only successfully decorate its walls, but also supplement your garden’s plant collection with extraordinary specimens. In addition, climbing plants will protect the building from destruction, covering it from slanting rains and reducing the heating of the walls.
Many vines are attached to walls using suction cups, firmly fixing into microcracks in the surface, thereby contributing to its destruction. To avoid this, it is enough to secure hooks on a vertical surface and stretch ropes between them, along which the plants will weave.
Beautifully flowering vines can grow in areas with slight shading, but they are most decorative only when there is plenty of sunlight.
Beautifully flowering annual and perennial vines are ideal for decorating the southern walls of fences: morning glory, campsis, wisteria
To decorate fences located in slight shade, it is better to use climbing and climbing plants that do not require light: virgin grapes, lemongrass, ivy, hops, wood pliers. You can successfully decorate a low fence using hanging potted plants: pelargonium, nasturtium, asparagus, begonia. By placing containers on the top side of the building, you can create a beautiful “living” curtain of flowing greenery.
You can turn a fence into an original art object using any available materials: pieces of stained glass film, fragments of a mirror, broken tiles.
It will look very impressive on the fence artificial window, decorated with curtains and decorated with container flowers displayed along the window sill nailed to it
An excellent addition to such a “fake” composition would be the old door leaf, performing the function of an “emergency exit”. A solid wall can act as a backdrop for placing an expressive decorative object: a wooden flower cart, a fancy garden chair, antique fishing net.
Solid wooden fence can serve as a support for numerous shelves on which it is convenient to display the same container flowers or arrange a collection of old tools that are hopelessly cluttering the barn. But a fence decorated with simple drawings and ornaments will give the site a special charm.
Painting will help transform a boring fence into a bright decoration of the site bright colors made by the hands of both adults and children
We decorate the walls of country houses
Hanging planters – perfect option decoration of unattractive walls outbuildings Location on. They are indispensable in cases where for some reason it is not possible to plant climbing plants along the foundation.
Improvised hanging mini-beds are attractive primarily due to their original compact shape, brightly colored greenery and long period of flowering of fragrant buds
Mobile hanging containers decorated with bushes of greenery and herbs, can transform unsightly walls and rickety old fences
You can disguise an unsightly building using a lattice made of slats or. The main advantage of this design is mobility. If desired, it can always be rearranged or removed, adding variety to the exterior.
Plants with thin graceful stems are best suited for decorating a trellis: clematis, climbing honeysuckle, decorative beans and sweet peas
Often buildings on inhabited areas starting from summer kitchen, barn, workshop and ending with a toilet, have architectural diversity. The easiest way to create a single ensemble, thanks to which you can successfully camouflage each of the buildings, is to design it in a common color scheme.
To create a holistic picture, it is also desirable to give all objects uniform architectural features: decorate the windows, decorate the façade, think over the carving elements, the shape and color of the roof. Improvised canopies, all kinds of pergolas and trellis walls decorated with openwork foliage also help to bring buildings into a single ensemble.
Installations made from improvised means will help “revive” the architectural composition, for example: old bicycles arranged as vertical flower beds
“Playing with” the unevenness of the terrain
The appearance of the site is often spoiled by all sorts of uneven terrain: depressions and mounds. Since leveling the surface is a very expensive and time-consuming process, decorative techniques help to visually “smooth out” unevenness.
It’s easy to “play out” a hole or depression on a site by arranging a small one.
The placement of improvised bridges and decks, based on support posts, helps to visually smooth out uneven terrain.
Even a high one, the area of which is slightly larger than the size of the depression, will help to “cover” the unevenness.
We design low-rise outbuildings
When designing utility buildings that are present on each site, one should be guided by the principle: “if a defect cannot be hidden, do not hide it.”
Even unattractive compost heaps and bins can be turned into a spectacular piece of art. To give compost heap for a more attractive look, just plant pumpkins, zucchini or cucumbers next to it. Under the large spreading leaves, an unsightly but much-needed pit for composting plant residues will be successfully hidden.
Material on creation will also be useful high beds in the African manner:
Having planted cucumbers in compost bin you can successfully accomplish two tasks at once: cover up an unattractive place in the garden and ensure yourself a rich harvest of fresh vegetables
Convert concrete wells and attractive decorative elements can be created by decorating the walls of structures. A mosaic made of colored glass and bright broken tiles, shimmering colorfully into sun rays, will create an atmosphere of celebration and beauty on the site.
The same flowers will help you decorate technical wells and fertilizer barrels. Great solution An old stepladder will serve to build a mobile flowerbed. Containers with flowers, displayed in several tiers on the steps of the stairs, will cover the object and create a picturesque cascade. In the event that it is necessary to open access to a well or hatch, the stepladder can be easily rearranged without much hassle.
Decorative curtain for old barrel Tall “green” beauties of hollyhocks, tree peonies, hibiscus, sunflowers and Jerusalem artichokes can perform with rainwater
Desktop - necessary thing Location on. In addition to its direct purpose, it serves as an open “storage room” for storing leftover building materials, cans, improvised tools, pegs...
Make your old desktop look perfect the new kind you can just paint it in a bright and colorful shade
We improve old trees and stumps
Old tree stumps, which due to the branching of deep roots, are likely to be found on any site.
“Play up” the left cuts, turning them into interesting accents of the garden, you can make garden stools or coasters out of them. street flowerpots with flowers
Old, unattractive trees that are no longer pleasing lush flowering or completely dried out, can act as a beautiful support for curly hair vegetable crops: cucumbers, decorative pumpkins, climbing beans. The following can completely cover dried tree branches: grapes,...
Hanging flower pots, which you can purchase at a gardening store or make yourself, will help add brightness and uniqueness to the tree.
To make a flowerpot in each pot, drill 3 holes at a distance of 2-3 cm from the top side, placing them around the circumference at a distance of 120 degrees from each other. We stretch 3 identical pieces of aluminum wire or thick fishing line through the holes and secure them with knots so that they hold the container. We collect the free ends of the wire together and fix it on a tree branch. We line the bottom of the containers with expanded clay. We fill the containers soil mixture, we plant flowers: nasturtium, lobelia, pelargonium.
Outbuildings, transformed with the help of imagination and skill into original art objects, will become worthy decoration plot and the pride of the owners.
