Spring Decorating Tips

(Hanging Terrariums from CB2 and Sprout)Spring is in the air and naturally, thoughts turn to spring cleaning, plants and flowers, and warmer weather! To bring a fresh breeze of spring into your home, we recommend the following decorating tips and accessories.

The easiest way to bring the outdoors inside is to create a terrarium. These small landscapes under glass are a great way to exercise your green thumb without great expense or time. You can use a fish bowl or you can use these hanging vessels, from CB2 and Sprout. Sprout also offers classes on terrarium building.

Another easy step for spring decorating is to swipe out your winter linens with some bold and bright spring colors. The striking duvet pattern in turquoise, tangerine, and lime is called Frankie and is available from Serena and Lily. Frankie will banish out the winter blahs and invigorate your bedroom décor.

Complementing the spring colors of Frankie, we have these pillows, Batik and Sanibel, from Crate & Barrel. Both have the citrus and turquoise colors that reflect the trendy spring colors of 2012. 

(Frankie duvet from Serena & Lily, pillows from Crate & Barrel)To add a touch of whimsy and lightheartedness in your décor, there is the elephant pouf from Serena and Lily.  A pink elephant is poised against a background of warm tangerine – the color of the year. 

(Elephant Pouf from Serena and Lily)

(Green Birch Sapling Chairs from the Foundary)For your patio or sunroom, these green birch sapling chairs from the Foundary provide a great place to sit back and enjoy your burgeoning garden.  Made of thermoplastic and steel, these birch chairs are light and portable. 

While relaxing in your sunroom, your iced tea or lemonade can be served on these laminated plywood trays designed by Marimekko. The Kaiku - meaning “echo” in Finnish - tray is designed with birch trees amidst a spring scene. Can’t you just hear the whisper of the leaves echoing in the wind?

(Kaiku tray by Marimekko from Crate and Barrel)

Tips for Chic Transformations: Office Storage

I look at how people organize their homes and sometimes I just give a deep sigh of boredom.  Aren’t you tired of the gray steel file cabinets, the black or white plastic trays, the humdrum brown storage boxes?  I know you may not have a choice in an office workspace but to submit to the corporate drabs, but that doesn’t mean your home office storage should be the same. It's time for a transformation!

I picked out the typical storage choices one sees all over the place and found some fabulous replacements. Let me know if you agree too! As seen above, instead of the usual leather and wood desk accessories, I found this bold red and blue geometric design in acrylic with an exotic Indian motif from Horchow.  Every office needs a file cabinet, but do they have to be plain Jane?! Here's a champagne diamond-patterned file cabinet also from Horchow.

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