Archive for May, 2011

Unique Decor: Kuba Cloth Wall Hangings

Sunday, May 22nd, 2011

It’s easy to find wrought iron wall art or grapes wall hangings from any local or online store, But when you are looking for something unique to create a focal point in your family room, consider creating a wall hanging from a section of kuba cloth. An intricate African textile, the kuba cloth is rich in tradition and offers bold graphic artwork that would be the perfect centerpiece of a focal wall in your space.

Just finding its way to the U.S, kuba cloth is made from the leaf of a rafia tree, and for this reason it is also known as rafia cloth. Rafia cloth was created by the Kuba tribe of the Congo. They were the first to cut and weave strips of the rafia leaf to make fabric. The Kuba people consist of several different subgroups, and each group makes the fabric a little differently. The shape of the cloth and symbols used on it may change depending on which Kuba group created the cloth, but the way that the cloth is made is the same among all of the groups.

Kuba cloth is thick and brittle, and it is ornamented with symbolic patches. It is thought that these patches were probably used to repair damage to the fabric that most certainly was a common occurrence because of the inflexibility of the fabric. As time went on, the symbols took on meaning, and now the symbols are frequently arranged in the kuba cloth to actually tell a story.

Kuba cloth is hand crafted from beginning to end, and creating it is a very labor-intensive process. Simply fashioning a piece of cloth the size of a place mat can take up to a few days. The process begins with the men gathering the rafia leaves and dying them in the mud, camwood tree secretions or indigo. After the leaves are dyed, they rub the fibers in their hands to soften them and get them ready for weaving. The men weave the base cloth, and then they hand it off to the women to embroider it.

The embroidery process is hugely time consuming. The women take a few rafia fibers and thread them through a needle and run it into the front of the cloth, through the back of the cloth and back out the front again. Then they cut the fibers with a knife and continue to do this for literally hundreds of times on each cloth. It is a little like hooking a rug, but on a much finer scale. After the fibers are in place, the woman rubs over the fibers with the edge of a knife, fluffing and splitting the ends so that the pile completely hides the ground cloth. This is the embroidery process that creates the symbols and designs.  Most of the embroidery is done from memory to create the beautifully intricate designs found on a piece of kuba cloth.

The designs that find their way into the kuba cloth patterns are too numerous to mention. A couple of hundred have been cataloged, and they also appear with regularity through the Kuba culture. Because of the method that the Kuba women use to create the embroidered design by simply interlacing a few strands of rafia with the warp and weft of the background cloth, you would expect the designs to very symmetrical.  However, the women seem to prefer a more fluid interpretation of their art form, and they incorporate deliberate variations in the pattern specifically to break its symmetry.

These beautiful cloths are meticulously crafted and they make a stunning statement as a wall hanging in any style room from contemporary to traditional.

Photo credit to munyui.

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Decorating with Dishware in the Dining Room

Saturday, May 21st, 2011

From tree wall hangings to modern metal wall clocks, accessories really add personality to a room’s design, and in the dining room, part of the accessory pool is dishware. Whether it is fine china or every day dishware, oftentimes dishes can play a major part in defining how a dining room looks. Displaying dishware as part of the dining room’s design is a lovely way to add style and color to a dining room while making use of favorite dishes. Typically a homeowner loves their dishes, and using them to decorate the dining room is a perfect way to use it in between meals.

Dish Display

Of course dishes can be neatly stacked and stored in a cabinet or hutch, but since dishware is typically colorful and attractive, it makes the perfect accessory for the dining room. As a matter of fact many styles of dishware can actually double as artwork, because their designs are so detailed and intricate. Even if displaying all of the pieces of dishware would overpower the room, it might be a good idea to select a few of the specialty pieces to showcase in the dining room. For example, make a display of teacups and saucers, or arrange a grouping of platters. Even a simple display with just a sugar and creamer can add a little interest to a sideboard display. Frequently the colors and shapes found in the dishware pieces are the perfect complement for the dining room’s overall design.

Finding Patterns that Mix and Match

Another option is to collect interesting pieces of dishware and display them as a grouping. For example, collecting teacups and saucers in all different patterns is a great way to add a colorful and interesting display to a dining room. The collection is appears unified even though the patterns are all different, because it is only teacups. Another way to collect and display interesting pieces of china is to feature them in the dining room in unexpected ways. For example, select a colorful cream pitcher to use as a vase and fill it with flowers. Use small bowls or plates as bases for a group of pillar candles. Collect dinner plates and hang them on the wall in a grouping. Or set the table with a couple of place settings to help make the dining table the focal point of the room.

Inspiring Dishware Design

Dishware is also a great place to look for inspiration when decorating a dining room. By coordinating colors and shapes with dishware, the room will immediately take on a cohesive look. Matching wall or trim color to a hue found in the dish pattern instantly ties these two design elements together. Another option may be to repeat part of the dishware pattern on the wall by hanging wallpaper that echoes some of the patterns found in the dishware. Rather than hang wallpaper or wallpaper border, echoing the pattern in stencils is also an excellent way to bring the dishware pattern onto the wall. When stenciling the wall, the stencil can be a border around the entire room, or it may cluster around a doorway or piece of furniture. Using fabric paint, the dishware design can also be added to placemats and tablecloths truly customize dining room decor.

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Pegboard: The Versatile, Affordable Organizational Tool

Friday, May 20th, 2011

Browse through the storage solution center of any home improvement or hardware store and you’ll find lots of products to help you get organized. Some are more useful than others and some can carry a pretty hefty price tag. However, pegboard is one organization tool that works across the board, while being affordable and easy to adapt to any storage need. Think pegboard and you probably think immediately of the garage or work shop, but there are lots of other applications for pegboard throughout the home.

Let’s Start with the Obvious – Garage and Workshop

Pegboard is perfect for holding hand tools safely and efficiently. You can find holders and hooks designed for pegboard that make it easy to keep your favorite hammer or screwdriver right within easy reach. Once you find an arrangement for your tools that works well for you, draw an outline around each one so you can keep them easily organized and in their correct locations. Try pegboard shelves and bins to keep jars of screws, nails and fasteners organized. Pegboard is very handy above your work bench and it also works well on an adjacent wall to keep supplies and tools conveniently at hand.

In the garage, pegboard and pegboard accessories can be used to organize garden tools, from hand pruners to rakes. Sporting equipment, spray bottles, twine and other supplies and necessities can also be easily organized and kept off the floor with pegboard.

Hobby and Craft Rooms

If you have a favorite hobby or craft, you know that keeping track of related supplies can be a nightmare. Pegboard offers a great storage solutions for organizing tools, bottles of paint, glue and glitter, balls of string, rubber bands, paper supplies, paint brushes and whatever your hobby or craft requires. One of the greatest advantages of pegboard is that it can be cut to any size and mounted on any wall, so whether you need storage over your work table or on the other side of the room, pegboard can meet your needs.

A Chic and Stylish Kitchen

A kitchen is another place in the home where you have lots of tools that you need to access quickly and efficiently. From pots and pans to whisks, spatulas and your favorite Sunday morning omelet pan, it seems like any kitchen could always use a little more storage. Pegboard can be used above the range or wherever needed in the kitchen and it frees up cabinet space for other items. Since it can be painted, it can look a chic as the rest of the kitchen and it imparts the sense that a serious cook lives here; after all, Julia Child used pegboard in her kitchen to store her massive collection of sauté pans. Use waterproof paint that will stand up to the humidity of the kitchen and the need to be wiped down often. Pegboard in the kitchen can be just as chic as an expensive wine wall hanging or abstract wall clock.

Office and Closet Organization

In the home office as elsewhere, pegboard can keep supplies at hand, but it’s also useful for hanging calendars, schedules and timelines, photos, postcards, samples, swatches and artwork. In a closet, use pegboard to organize accessories like belts, jewelry and scarves.

Photo credit to booleansplit.

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Seasonal Decor from Mother Nature

Thursday, May 19th, 2011

If you just take a look around your own yard or garden you can find all kinds of decorative accents from Mother Nature that are free for the taking. Not only is this an inexpensive way to decorate, but items from nature give your home a personal look that reflects the seasons and the indigenous nature of your particular geographic area. Here are some tips for decorating with Mother Nature season by season.

The Floral Beauty of Spring and Summer

Spring and summer are prime time when it comes to decorating with flowers. From the earliest crocus and tulips to the peonies, delphiniums and roses of high summer, your own garden can be the source of ever-changing displays of fresh flowers. Don’t feel intimidated by thinking that you have to create big formal arrangements. Inexpensive vessels like pitchers, small vases, glass jars and teacups can be used for easy, casual arrangements that can grace the kitchen table, window sills, or a bathroom vanity. A single rosebud in a bud vase is a romantic touch to a bedside table. In addition to flowers, you can decorate with other summertime treasures, like seashells and beach glass, can be glued onto plain frames or lampshades, displayed on shelves or shadow boxes, or gathered bowls or jars.

The Bounty of Autumn

As summer winds down in August and September, gather up bunches of zinnias, sunflowers, black-eyed Susans and grasses for bountiful displays. Think ahead and dry some flowers and herbs for winter displays. Lavender, statice, straw flowers and seed heads can be tied together with twine and hung upside down in a cool dark place to dry. Display them on top of hutches, in vases, or tucked on a shelf. Pressed dry flowers and petals can be framed and used as wall art.

Potted mums and pansies are inexpensive and plentiful at farmers markets and even your local supermarket, or cut mums from your own yard and display them in a vase. Other fall favorites like Indian corn, pumpkins and squash make easy displays on shelves and mantles or stack miniature pumpkins on a cake stand for a charming fall centerpiece. Gather up acorns to display in glass hurricanes along with a pillar candle. Wipe them off and spray them with a clear sealant and let dry before using them. You can also spray them with metallic paint for a festive look as Thanksgiving approaches. Autumn leaves can also be used on table displays or pressed under glass and hung as wall decor.

Serene Winter Decor

While you may think of winter as gray and bleak, there is much still offered by Mother Nature, even in northern climates. Of course, for the holiday season, swags, roping and wreaths made from evergreen boughs and sprigs of holly add rich scent and beauty to doors, mantles, banisters and around window frames. Beyond the holiday season, however, all is not barren. Twigs and branches make starkly architectural displays in tall vases or can be bound together and used as tree wall sculptures. Pussy willow branches add soft touchable texture or use the deep red branches from a red twig dogwood to add cheerful touch; weave dried grapevine through a wrought iron wall art to add dimension. Simple touches like a basket full of pinecones and cinnamon sticks tied with ribbon or a tiered platter stacked with clove-studded oranges add fragrance, color and detail.

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