As we meet up with our puzzled homeowner again, he is considering two paint options – the left option on the fan is actually a very dark gold. You can see the color’s origin when you look at the lighter shades and they appear almost yellow.

His second choice is among selections one, two, or three on the other visible color row. He doesn’t want to use the darker choices because they would blend in too much with the fireplace opening and the black trim on the windows.

This is a good first step, but if he heads right to the paint store and orders one of these, he is almost guaranteed to be disappointed for two reasons. Paint chips are printed and the dyes on the paper don’t match the dyes that make up the paint. This means that the color you see on a chip will not exactly match the color of the paint you buy.

The second reason comes from how the light comes into your home. Everything from the direction of your windows to the shape of a room will affect how a paint color will look on a wall, and different walls will make the color look different – sometimes darker or lighter, but sometimes even a different color. To see this, look at a corner where two walls and the ceiling meet. It’s likely that you will see three different tones, even if everything was painted the same color.

So our guy has to go to the paint store and pick up samples of the colors he’s debating about – and maybe a couple of others that are similar, along with an inexpensive foam brush for each color. Then once home, he needs to paint each wall with at least a one foot by one foot square of each color – leaving some space between the colors so they don’t reflect on each other. (If this bothers you, paint some white poster boards and tape them on the walls.)

As a final step, he needs to live with his choices for a few days, looking at them in the morning, afternoon and evening, and with natural light as well as with the home’s evening lighting. Over a short period of time, he will know which one he will be happiest living with. Paint is a very personal choice. It’s worthwhile to take the time to select what will work best for you.

Decorating really begins at the front door. Whether you have a formal entry, steps, a porch or a portico, you’ll want to create a welcoming feeling before your guests ever step through the front door.

A beautiful front door is the first step in decorating your entry.  Paint can do wonders if replacing the door is not an option.  Second to the front door is lighting.  An overhead porch light can be as stylish and charming as an indoor fixture. A single sconce or a pair of sconces flanking the door is another option. Outdoor lighting has come a long way and you can find lighting that suits any style of architecture.

Pretty flowers or a pot of branches in the winter can decorate the area around the door. A seasonal wreath is a classic choice for any time of year. Keep the look clean and simple to highlight the door. Like elsewhere in the home too much of a good thing can make the space look cluttered.

Add a door mat for wet and muddy feet. Just inside the door add another area rug or mat to protect hardwood and tile floors.  If you have a tiled or wood entry and carpet throughout the home, you’ll definitely want a door mat.

Setting the tone for your style at the front door is a great way to make your house truly feel like your home.

This cool bathroom was designed by Sarah Richardson’s show, Sarah’s House. It has a lot of wonderful and stylish design elements that all come together to make it feel polished and styled. Let’s take a look at the major elements of the bathroom.

Use of natural stone. Both the floor and counter top are white marble with gray veining. This is a classic choice of hard surface for bathrooms. Using the marble on both the floor and the counter helps unify the design in a relatively small space.

The glass shower enclosure also helps the small space feel bigger. A shower curtain would close off the space and make the shower feel smaller. The glass opens up the shower space and lets it flow with the rest of the room.

Small tiles are used in an interesting way. Creating stripes of color with small square tiles makes a bigger impact than using all one color or even having a random mosaic pattern. Horizontal stripes help to widen the feeling of the room. The tile is also a nice way to introduce color into the room.

A non-traditional bathroom mirror over the vanity is a nice way to add style to a small bathroom. The round mirror also echoes the round vessel sinks. Both circles break up all the linear shapes of the room.

Silvery sconces complement the silver frame of the mirror as well as the nickel bathroom fixtures, including the faucet and shower head.

In a small space, such as a bathroom, all design elements need to be well thought out to make the room feel bigger than its small footprint.

Like fashion, kitchen design goes through trends in color, materials and style. For years the big trend in kitchen design has been beautiful wood cabinets, granite counter tops and traditional styling.  We’ve seen white return as a popular kitchen cabinet and backsplash color. And now we are seeing black and dark grays becoming popular choices for cabinets.  These dark colors create a dramatic space that can work in most style kitchen designs, from farmhouse to contemporary, traditional to modern.

Dark colored cabinets are trending to black, a range of grays, and deep navy. Dark chocolate brown is also being seen. What kind of countertops can work in a dark, dramatic kitchen? That depends on your own style.  Some dark cabinets are being paired with dark granite and marble, soapstone and even cement counters.  Others are using lighter granite, quartz and white marble to balance the deep color.

Floors throughout the home are going darker, as seen in the ebonized wood floor trend.  Kitchens are seeing this trend as well.  Dark wood floors, slate and other dark floor materials work well with the dramatic cabinet colors. A colorful runner or rug can incorporate color into the design as well as provide a comfortable surface underfoot.

When going dark in the kitchen, lighting is even more important.  Under cabinet and task lighting will provide enough light to work and highlight the drama of the room. Metal hardware will stand out against dark cabinets like the perfect piece of jewelry against a little black dress.

When you work from home, it’s smart to set up your own location for basic office supplies. You can buy a simple two-door cabinet like this one, or add shelves and doors to a closet so that you’re able to recreate this type of storage space.

Before you set up your cabinet, choose a location with hard even flooring like the one in this photo, and then use a level and shims to make sure that the cabinet is even. This will keep the doors from falling closed or open and keep your supplies in place.

It makes sense to limit your choices so that you don’t have to use up too much space. Think of your office basics. To start, what do you need for your computer and printer? You may want to buy a case of paper because it’s less expensive than buying it by the 500-sheet ream. Ink in an ink-jet printer often runs out without warning, so it’s a good idea to have an extra set of color and black and white ink cartridges.

Make a list of supplies that you use regularly, and those that could cause trouble or inconvenience if you ran out of them unexpectedly. Add to that list those items that are less expensive if bought in bulk. Now you have a good start.

To avoid unnecessary clutter, look for a few boxes or containers to hold things such as paper clips, staples, pens and other small items. Don’t overcrowd the shelves so that you can keep track of materials easily. If you want, place a small clipboard or notepad on the inside of one door to write down a shopping list when you use up your extra supplies or start running low.

While a cabinet like this may take some time and effort to set up, your office supplies will then be permanently under control with very little additional effort on your part.

This store makes no bones about what it is about – high prices. It seems to present the “if you have to ask, you can’t afford it” attitude. This may draw some customers in, but most value-minded people would laugh and turn away.

Sometimes durable home purchases such as flooring, appliances and countertops may make you feel that there should be signs like this all over the store. But unlike clothing, these items are an investment in your home’s value, appearance, and comfort that lasts for years and never goes out of style.

Just as a silk blouse is more expensive than cotton, some materials cost more to produce and install. It’s up to you whether the look and feel of a silk blouse or a stone floor or countertop is worth the additional cost. Cotton can be beautiful in a different way, and tile or granite can make a room beautiful if stone is not in your budget.

One good way to make value decisions is to take the cost difference between two types of materials and divide the amount by the number of years you plan to live in your home. If you plan to be there for the next ten years, would you be willing to pay X additional dollars every year to have the more expensive product?

Every choice involves evaluating costs and benefits. Instead of thinking in terms of cost, look for value. Consider durability, resale value and how it will make your home look. When you balance cost against what you receive for your money, you can get past sticker shock and make the best choice for you and your home.

On our blog page here at Fulton Homes, you will see a list at the left indexing several of the most recent blogs that have been posted.  This is convenient for our customers who may have recently read a blog that they really enjoyed and wanted to read it again and find it fast!  Please check this this out and read our blogs!

What colors do you think of for summer? Blue and white? Red, white and blue? Red and tan? Green and blue?  The trends for colors of summer décor vary year to year just like other décor and fashion.   What are we seeing this year?

We’re seeing a lot of the classic color pairings for summer. Like many other areas of design and decorating, there is something for every taste available.  Mixing and matching patterns and styles to achieve your own personal style is a design trend across the board, so summer décor is no exception.

We’re seeing earth tones of greens, tans and browns mixed and matched in solids, stripes and florals.  Vintage inspired fabrics in muted colors like soft yellows, terra cotta reds and gray blues work with white or wood furniture.

Bright colors like turquoise, grass green and sunshine yellow are popular in both outdoor cushions, outdoor rugs and table tops.

Blues range from navy to pale, silvery blues, to aqua. Blue and white, in stripes, florals, trendy ikat and even polka dots, is a classic summer time color combination.  As is red and white… just like the classic red and white checkered picnic blanket or tablecloth.

Natural, neutral shades paired with white feel fresh for Summer 2011. Inspired by jute, rope and dark, woven baskets, these neutrals also make great backdrop colors for splashes of bright color.

Many of these color trends can be mixed together for look that fits your style and your décor.  Remember, summer decorating is all about easy and relaxed.

What are your plans for summer decorating?

We would love it if you would take a minute to check out our new video.  This short video shows what your ride home could look like if you live in a Fulton Homes community. See why You’re Proud to Own, We’re Proud to Build.

Falls happen. Both the young and the old are prone to them, however the elderly have a tougher time recovering. If you have an older parent or relative who lives with you or visits often, then you’ll want to take special care making sure the floors in your home are slip resistant and safe.

In our homes, the bathroom can be the most accident-prone area. This is because almost every surface in the bathroom is smooth and glossy; and once wet it becomes a dangerous place. Slipping while getting out of the bath or shower can result in a broken hip or limbs.

So how can we make the bathroom a safer place for the elderly? Small things can be done first, like making sure you don’t fill the room with floor décor like plants and magazine stands.  Place hampers and trash cans out of the way, so they do not have to be navigated around. Take out rugs that do not have rubber backing and can be slipped on.

We hope these tips help!