Month: July 2017

So 2017 has brought us quite a few different new ideas for making our homes more beautiful.  In the homeware and fashion game, we need to look forward into the future to these 5 big trends that will be BIG in 2018!

 

1 /Tropical leaf prints are going to be big in 2018!

‘Inject a touch of the tropics to your home with leaf prints such as palm and swiss cheese plant (monstera deliciosa),’ says Twelo’s interior style advisor Suzie Enley. ‘Use modern tropical wallpaper to generate a ‘wow factor’ look or use more simplistic leaf prints to keep it more subdued and natural.’

 

 

This is another example based on the tropical leaf theme. The colours of the jungle! Can really bring a rom alive and do not have to be mega expensive. With some creativity you can put together a stunning feature room based on a tropical theme for a very reasonable amount of money!

 

2/ The vintage look.

Vintage sheik is making a strong comeback and will continue to grow in 2018. It does of course depend to some degree on the age and style of your property as to the style of home you create.  Having said that a mixture of modern and classic furniture and décor can tie a house together beautifully if done well as this guide aptly shows http://www.twelo.com/blog/traditional-furniture-mix-match-modern-ultimate-mega-guide/

 

The image below is a great example of modern and vintage combined seamlessly in a modern/period bathroom

Or this bathroom which actually looks victorian but is actually using repro vintage bathroom suite items and ‘new’ old tiles.

Lastly, this amazing 60’s style kitchen just oozes style and class!!

 

3/ Amazing fish tanks

This is one of our favourites but it does come with a disclaimer!! Tropical fish take serious effort to care for and also knowledge, so scaling down aspirations from the grandiose installations shown here may be wise so you can find your feet in the fish keeping world!

 

 

This type of installation takes planning, possible structural works (for example bricks may need to be supported with an RSJ), planning for how a tank will be cleaned and fish will be added and removed etc

Regardless of the tricky logistics it undoubtedly makes a stunning centrepiece for any design focused home.

 

4/ Techno Furniture!

 

This is undoubtedly going to become more prevalent as we move into 2018 and onwards. Technology is only going to be more involved in our daily lives and integrating it into furniture is going to become more and more commonplace. For example iphone chargers built into bedside cabinets and tables, RJ45 network sockets integrated into tables with concealed cable routings and lots more

 

 

5/ Wood effect ceramics

 

Growing in popularity all the time is wood effect ceramics. Ceramics offer a number of benefits over real wood but also come with potential drawbacks. For flooring tiles are infinitely more durable if laid correctly and are also water resistant if the correct grout is used. This combined with the amazing ceramic designs and shapes now available means you can create a stunning centrepiece for a home with almost unlimited choices available in designs!

 

 

One thing to consider with wood effect ceramics, particularly for flooring is that by nature it is a cold surface, where as wood is a warm characterful material. So for many applications underfloor heating is a must unless you want a cold feeling room! This can be using electric heat mat or the more involved piped underfloor heating. Either way, floor temperature needs to be factored in before doing a huge wood effect tiled floor!

 

Without any doubt, we are a nation of very eager DIYers. When you look at the websites such as slatergordon.co.uk you can easily realise how true it is. But with many DIY projects come #DIYDisasters that can lead to many personal injuries. So how healthy is your DIY project? Do you really know what you are putting yourself at the risk of? Let’s find out.

One problem with DIY projects is that while they usually seem like a cheaper option compared to hiring somebody for the job the truth is that most of us are not even close to being qualified for the job. We all tend to overestimate our abilities thinking that we have what it takes to repair our electric circuit or paint our walls. Of course, there are some easier and less risky projects at home and most of us would be willing to paint the walls in our home ourselves, but even this can turn to be truly risky if you don’t know what you are doing. Even simple tasks such as removing the wallpaper in your home or drilling into your walls can be life threatening if you happen to have asbestos in your home and you are unaware of it. Lead pipes are another hazard with many of them that can be found in the houses that were built before the 1970s.

While conducting even the simplest of DIY projects might seem risky, there are some steps to undertake in order to avoid the hazards related to them. Being aware of possible asbestos, lead pipes, mould, and MDF can mean the difference between health problems and a healthy life. If you are aware of something that is in your home you are a lot more likely to be able to deal with the problems before they even appear.

If you suspect that you have been affected by any of the described-above substances, seek out medical help immediately. Another step to take is to seek out legal advice if applicable. There are many situations in your life when you might not be the one to blame for all the bad things that happened to you.

From time to time I like to take a day off (whenever it is possible) and head to the nearby Bath. After taking care of the marketing needs of my small company in the form of address lookup I am really lucky to live close to such a great tourist destination. Even when I don’t feel like driving I can always take the Air Decker that stops just around the corner connecting Bristol Airport with the great city of Bath that so many people just like me choose to visit often.

If you know me you know that I have true #PostcodePride as I take a lot of pride in where I live. I might not live exactly in Bath, but the fact that I live so close and can get there so easily makes me really happy.

I am really glad that the summer is in full swing because this is what I am going to do soon: I am going to travel to Bath and buy a ticket to Roman Baths that stay open until 10pm. I absolutely love the way the baths look in the flickering flames of the torches as there is something absolutely magical about them at night. I never seem to have enough of that sort of experience and I always keep coming back for more usually with my family, but sometimes even alone. The warm waters of the Baths relax me so much that I always end up sleeping very well after a day out like this.

When I am not soaking my body in the relaxing and refreshing waters of the Roman Baths I like to wander around Alexandra Park that has some stunning views on the city. You can see from up here that the Romans built some parts of the city and you can see lots of history from up here. The Roman influences on the architecture of Bath are prevalent and there is no way to deny it.

One of the most famous residents of the city of Bath was Jane Austen. She wasn’t born there, but moved there at the age of 25. I guess when you move to such a beautiful place it is for sure going to affect your work and it did influence Austen’s writings. I have been to her museum many times, but every time I visit it again and again I find something new about her, something I had no idea about.

If you are proud about where you live, don’t hesitate to tell me about it. I know that it might be hard to beat beautiful cities such as Baths when it comes to what they have to offer, but I know that there are more places in the UK that offer a lot to visitors.