Surviving a Kitchen Renovation

Are you renovating your kitchen? Before you can pick up bar stools for your San Diego space, you’ll have to endure a few months (or maybe more!) of having your kitchen ripped apart. Read our tips for staying sane while your kitchen is being renovated. Bonus: you won’t have to resort to microwave meals or dining out during the whole renovation process!

• Think creatively when using the space you do have. If you can, transform your dining room or another space into a kitchen. Keep dry goods in a plastic storage bin, perishables in a mini fridge and use your contemporary dining room buffet as your countertop.

• Do you have a slow cooker? Use it! Slow cookers are so helpful for making one-pot meals. A microwave, electric skillet and toaster oven are also good to have for easy meal-making.

• Adjust your grocery store list. Spaghetti might seem like an easy meal, but boiling water without a stove is hard! Buy items like rotisserie chicken, microwaveable rice and steam-in-the-bag veggies instead.

• If you love entertaining, don’t stop just because your kitchen is being renovated! Invite friends over and have a picnic.

Are Your Book Cases A Clutter?

Whether you are a bona fide book worm or book shelves came with your Manhattan apartment, you’ll want to make the most out of your book cases. Read our tips for keeping them organized and looking their best:

• If the book cases in your San Diego home only feature a few scattered books, place picture frames, bud vases and other items on the shelves to add dimension and fill up the space.

• Select one color—if you aren’t afraid of color choose red or yellow—to tie everything together. If you have a red end table in the room, for example, tie in the color via a red picture frame and red vase.

• Paint the insides of your book shelves to add contrast and highlight the objects within.

• Even if you don’t have tons of books, place a cluster of books on each shelf.

• If you do have lots of books, arrange most of them vertically (to save space), but set up a few horizontal stacks to switch things up.

• Even though real estate might be at a premium, make sure to incorporate decorative items nonetheless. That goes with free space, too. Leave at least ¼ of each shelf free.

• If your book shelves house books and other forms of media, try not to display anything not worthy of display.

• Even if your book case is devoted to DVDs and other forms of modern media, add a few vintage touches for character.

Outdoor Dining Made Easy

The first day of summer is June 21, but that doesn’t mean you have to wait until then to start eating al fresco! Bring a tray of food and drinks out and sit on the chaise lounges in your San Diego backyard, or bring your dining room furniture from your Manhattan apartment onto the roof of your building for dinner under the stars!

Here are some more tips for making the most of your al fresco dining experience:

• Don’t stop at furniture. Bring pillows outdoors too, to make the space as comfortable as possible.

• Just because you’re outside doesn’t mean you can’t get fancy if you want to. Add an elegant touch with a crisp white tablecloth.

• Instead of cut flowers, pick up potted herbs (bonus: you can use them in your meals) or tough annuals (like impatiens or white geraniums). They will last all summer long.

• Save pretty wine or sparkling water bottles. Remove the labels (soak them in hater water for a half hour or so), fill with water and place on the table as an alternative to a pitcher.

• Be eco-friendly and use pretty dish towels in lieu of paper napkins. Bonus: if you’re eating messy summer staples like ribs, watermelon or corn on the cob you won’t have to sacrifice your nice cloth napkins.

More Than a Mirror

Mirrors are one of the most underrated decorating pieces. Sure, you use them every day, but did you know that a well-placed mirror can show off your style, make a room seem bigger or even give a room a drastically different perspective? Read our tips for making the most out of your mirrors.

• Tight on space? Prop a large mirror—at least ¾ the height of the wall—to fake extra square footage.

• Create instant artwork by grouping mirrors of varying size and shape and frame type on a wall for a spin on the current trendy picture wall.

• Have a room with only one window? Strategically hang a mirror so that it reflects the window and gives the illusion that there are two. Bonus: During the day this will bring more light in.

• Don’t have a table runner? Place a full-length mirror (the inexpensive kind you would attach to the back of a bedroom or closet door) on top of your dining room table. This unexpected table topper looks chic with flowers and candles on top or even on its own.

• During the warmer months when your fireplace is on hiatus, place a mirror inside and set pillar candles in front.

Whether you have a leaf mirror lying around or plan on picking up some mirrors for an easy decorating fix, we hope these tips help!

Making the Most of Your Small Space

Just because your home or apartment is small doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice on style! You can make even the smallest space appear roomier with a few simple strategies.

In your kitchen, make sure you can move around among the stove, sink and refrigerator without running into anything. It will save your sanity when cooking and also make the space appear larger. If your kitchen area is especially tight, consider replacing a traditional table and chairs with a bar table and bar stools for a contemporary look that is also space-friendly.

When dealing with limited square footage, try to find items that can do double duty by performing multiple functions. Coffee tables can serve as extra seating in a pinch, for example, and can also store books or other items. Although pushing furniture to the sides of the room might seem like it will make your living room seem larger, it actually does the opposite by making the space look like a waiting room! Use a rug in a neutral color to unify the room and give it a focal point.

Lighting also plays a major role in decorating a small space. The darker the room is, the smaller it will feel. So make sure to let in as much light as possible and add mirrors to the walls to open things up even further. Strategic painting can also help. By painting the walls a brighter color than an adjacent hallway or room, the space will feel less cramped.

Give Your Home a Beach Resort Makeover

Too pinched financially to take a vacation this summer? Have a staycation instead! Just be sure to summerize your space so it will feel like you’re at the beach all season long. Use the following easy tips to make your home feel like a beach resort:

• Scatter shells and other beachy items around the house to remind you of the beach. Who says a glass bowl filled with sea shells isn’t art?

• Wood hutches in neutral colors and white end tables lighten up your space, adding to the vacation-house feel you’re looking for.

• Drape a blanket over a chaise lounge to create a comfortable spot to read. It will be just like the beach—minus the sand!

• Get fresh flowers. Because they are an indulgence, it will add to the vacation vibe you are going for. Just try not to smile every time you pass by a vase full of fresh flowers. We dare you.

• Give your bedroom furniture a mini makeover. For the summer months, transition to unfussy bedding in relaxing shades of white and blue. Bonus points for splurging on a high thread count.

• Frame those pictures from your last beach vacation that have been sitting on your digital camera. They will summarize your home and get you thinking about your next beach getaway.

What I Love About Decorating

I don't know what it is exactly about the coming summer and the change of the seasons but it makes me so excited to change up the look of my apartment. Maybe it's because in the winter we are naturally inclined to darker, warmer colors and then by the time the sun comes out, we just want to lighten everything up. But no matter the reason, I love to redecorate!

Decorating is so fun for me. I think it's because it gives you the ability to add your own personal flair to your living space. I think it's so true that your living space can affect your mood. If my apartment is cluttered even in the least, I can't feel relaxed. Even if it's something small, like how my bookshelf material doesn't match my bamboo coffee table. Having matching furniture sets is probably the first place I start when it comes to redecorating, because I like things the base of my decor to match and then I add variety from there. But anyways, now I'm rambling. Back to the point....

The whole thing decorating is that it gives you complete control to create an environment all for yourself. You go to work everyday and can't control every situation there. You go out in public and you definitely can't control that. But home, home is your place. It is all yours and you can make it look and feel exactly how you want it to. You can choose the colors, the patterns, the furniture. You can keep it clean, or let it get cluttered. It is completely up to you.

So, how will your home look? For design advice, reach out to us anytime at Zaraliving.com!