rustic Archives - Page 43 of 45

Ways to boost your self-confidence with a mirror

Yoko Ono said “smile in the mirror. Do that every morning and you’ll start to see a big difference in your life”.

A mirror has so much more potential than a decor piece hung above reclaimed wood furniture for getting ready and doing the final check of your appearance before you rush out the front door. Use your mirror to your benefit to build self-confidence, become more positive and take full advantage of everything life throws at you.

So, what is the ‘mirror technique’?

It is all about starting to believe in yourself, and your potential. Stand in front the biggest mirror in your house and let the weight of your body be evenly divided. A free standing mirror is a great idea if you have the room for it, as they are often full length, which allows you to see all of yourself, and get the most out of the exercise.

Straighten your back, take a deep breath with your chest and put a light smile on your face. Then, talk to your reflection with positive affirmations like “I can” or “I believe in myself”, or add what you love about yourself and achievements so far, and continue to do so for 5 to 10 minutes. Think about the things you want to achieve and focus on only generating positive statements and thoughts. Try to do this everyday, in the morning if you can, so you start your day with confidence and energy.

Other ways to use your mirror to your advantage.

Write a mirror message on your mirror; use lipstick or a post-it note to write an inspirational quote that you will see when you look in the mirror. When you are getting dressed, or doing your hair, repeat the encouraging words to yourself. Change the mirror message everyday few days, or even every week for some new inspiration.

Improve your body language. When we are not confident, our body language shows it. However, to change that, sometimes it is as easy as looking in the mirror. Sit or stand in front of the mirror and look at how you naturally stand – are you standing up straight? Do you cross your arms? Where are your hands? Examine your body language and see if there is any small changes you can make to come across in a more positive light.

Look in the mirror with a friend or as a couple and hear what they have to say. Often, we would probably be surprised, and it may challenge you to think differently, and more positively, about ourselves. Share what you both see when you look in the mirror and then tell each other what you see in each other.

And finally, what about the best placement of your mirror?

If you have a full-length mirror, the most sensible spot is probably in your bedroom. But if you have the space, they can also look stunning in your living room or hallway.

The one thing to bear in mind is to try and find a quiet spot in your home where you won’t be disturbed. A reclaimed wood mirror over a rustic console table in your hallway may look beautiful, but if you have other family members going to work, or kids running out the door to school, having it here may not be particularly practical.

For more inspiration browse our mirrors collection or if you have any questions get in touch with one of our team members.

3 of the best reclaimed wood tables and how to style them

Barclay Reclaimed Wood Dining Table with dining chairs

A reclaimed wood dining table is perfect for any home for its high-quality wood which will bring you years of enjoyment, and the beautiful character of wood in its natural form. A reclaimed wood table will bring a beautiful look in your home, whether it is paired with other reclaimed furniture to create a glamorous countryside appearance, or with modern design elements like steel and glass to add some personality.

Eat in style with the gorgeous Chelwood Large Reclaimed Wood Dining Table. The wood dining table is a fantastic choice to add some colour into a kitchen or dining room to bring it to life and is perfect for family life. A perfect addition to both city homes and as a stylish farmhouse table.

To create the dining room of dreams, pair the dining table with other dining room furniture like one of our reclaimed wooden sideboards. The matching Chelwood Nordic Sideboard would look great for a coordinated look, and the addition of colour running through the wood means you can keep the rest of your room light on decoration for an uncluttered, contemporary space you’ll love entertaining in.

Finish the look with one or two simple accessories like a potted plant on your sideboard, and for dining table chairs, go for metal cafe chairs or modern leather chairs, a style which has been hugely popular in home decor the last couple of years.

If you are looking for a stylish and sophisticated style, look no further than the Derby Reclaimed Wood Extendable Dining Table. The table features a beautiful natural texture and is finished with sleek wooden black painted legs for a contemporary look. This truly stunning wooden dining table will grace any dining room.

To finish the room, add the matching Derby Reclaimed Wood Console Table for the perfect combination of elegant and rustic style and choose a couple of statement accessories, like a large wall clock and an elegant candle holder.

From one of our extremely popular collections, the Standford Large Reclaimed Wood Extending Dining Table will add glamorous style and practicality to any room. It is the perfect blend of classic styling with contemporary elements with the reclaimed table and bold black legs. As for seating, the Standford Industrial Reclaimed Wood Bench or the Standford Reclaimed Wood Cushioned Chair is perfect with this style of table.

To get the look, pair the table with the matching Standford Large Reclaimed Wood Industrial Sideboard for plenty of extra storage which blends practicality with beauty, and for dining room accessories, hang a statement wall clock above and choose some beautiful flowers to add some colour when you are entertaining.

To find the perfect dining room furniture for your home, please take a look at the Modish Living website or get in touch with one of our team members.

5 ways hallway storage furniture can keep your home clean

Luxe Kensington Reclaimed Wood Console Table

The hallway is an important space in any home and that’s why good hallway storage furniture is a must. It is a space through which you pass several times a day, the immediate space you – and your guests – walk into as they enter your home, and the last space they see as they leave.

A clean and clutter-free hallway is all about practicality, as much as it is about creating the right impression. Here are five tips to make it the space that you want it to be…

1. Hallway storage furniture that fits…

… your hallway and your needs.

All too often, storage solutions are about making do but a storage bench or box such as the Beam Slim Reclaimed Wood Blanket Box is ideal for tidying away bags and shoes. It also provides a handy bench for seating when putting on and taking off shoes, as well as a convenient spot for a handbag or two.

It is also stylish and works well with all kinds of interior design styles from rustic to farmhouse.

2. Drawer space

Car keys, house keys and other small items all need a home. Although you can invest in a pretty bowl or a rack of hooks, the best place to hide away these small things that can become clutter is in a drawer.

The hallway is also traditionally the place where the telephone point is, and this means in the modern home not so much a telephone, but a broadband router, which is not always the most stylish things to look at.

There are variations of a hallway table from a glass console table to a modern console table with drawers, which are ideal for making the hallway not only stylish, but clutter-free. For small hallways, consider a narrow console table such as the Raffles Reclaimed Wood Industrial Console Table that offers the right amount of storage without swamping the space.

3. Make use of under the stairs

Again, this is traditionally used to house things that are not meant to be seen – from the mop and bucket to the vacuum. But find somewhere else to keep these, as the under-the-stairs space offers valuable storage in any home.

There are many ways to make this a usable space with accessible hallway storage furniture. The simplest solution is an array of wooden shelving. Similarly, bookcases and shelves are ideal. Don’t forget, if you don’t have the height, some bookcases will work just great laid horizontally too.

4. Shoe storage

One of the biggest issues in the hallway is keeping shoes together so that they can be found quickly. In winter, you need a shoe rack more than ever, and one that can be wiped clean.

There are various solutions but we like mixing style and function which is why a reclaimed wood bench or a dining bench works great in the hallway. Pop a few baskets underneath to hide away the shoes and make use of the bench to put them on and take a moment when you walk in the door.

5. Don’t forget stylish accessories

And finally, the hallway should not be devoid of stylish additions. We love adding mirrors to hallways – the more ornate, the better we think – and a stylish, practical rug to protect the floor and stop detritus and grime travelling through the rest of the house is also a great way of adding colour and pattern to an otherwise ‘bland’ space.

With only a few changes and additions, your hallway can be clean and appealing, as well as clutter-free and stylish.

Whatever size your hallway, you can’t go wrong with the right hallway storage furniture to keep it neat, tidy and stylish.

How to prepare your home for a worry free holiday

The anticipation of your summer holiday is a fantastic feeling. The moment you leave work knowing you are waving goodbye to your desk for a week or two is often one of elation – no matter how much you may enjoy your job.

You have a great few weeks but your return from holiday is a return to reality. In most cases, it comes with an all mighty crash with 101 things to get done between the time you arrive back home and the time you need to be back at your desk.

Knowing you are returning to hard work can cause a dark cloud to hover over the holiday. But we have the solutions to not only a worry-free holiday but to you gliding back into your routine so that the relaxing effect of your holiday lasts for weeks to come yet.

Keys to a Worry Free Holiday

1) Preparation

Preparing your home for an extended vacation, or any holiday can feel like a military-styled operation to get everything ready. But we tend to make this all about clothes shopping and bag-packing.

Although they are obviously essential holiday-planning activities, there are other preparation activities that will serve you well when preparing your home for holidays;

Top tip – if nothing else, empty ALL the bin in your home so that unpleasant smells are eliminated.

In the bedroom – if you get a chance, changing your bed so that you clean sheets await your return is the ideal first night home from your holiday. The smell of clean bed linen also helps to keep the modern bedroom smelling pleasant.
In the dining room – this is the room where items for holiday tend to gather in the weeks and days leading up to a vacation – especially on dining room table sets. Once you have everything packed, make sure the dining room is clean and clear, so that the first meal at home is an effortless affair. Wipe down dining rooms sets and wipe over dining room furniture such as dining room display cabinets to create a pleasant space for your return.
In the kitchen – the kitchen will harbour all kinds of nasty smells if food is left out, uncovered etc. Donate perishable food to food banks or ask your neighbours if they can make use of it. Wipe around the fridge and don’t leave any food out. Even fruit in a bowl on the countertop or other kitchen furniture, such as your chic white display cabinet, will soon attract fruit flies, even with doors and windows shut.
In the lounge – the space where everyone relaxes, you want this to be a haven on your return. Plump the cushions, wipe down the leather sofa with wipes and make sure that all your carpeting, hard floor, wool rugs etc, are well vacuumed before you leave.

Top tip – let a trusted neighbour know you are away and ask them to keep an eye on your property. Make sure they have emergency numbers to contact you if necessary.

On your return

The whole point of any holiday, from a fortnight in the sun to a weekend away is to break the monotony of routine and refresh mind, body and soul. Plunging straight back into routine means you quickly lose the sense of well-being.

Make it last longer by planning your first few days home. You may need to ‘catch up on the washing’ but how about a quick trip to your favourite supermarket or local grocer for local produce, ideal for a lazy, late brunch?

How to choose the perfect wooden dining table

Your dining table and chairs are substantial pieces of furniture. You should choose your wooden dining table with care, thinking about how it will need to adapt in the future, but you’ll also know only too well what you like the look of – so it’s essential to strike a balance between great design and versatile functionality. Here we bring you some tips on what to consider when purchasing your dining table.

The Shape of your wooden dining table

A round dining table or a rectangular table are the two most favored options, but which will work best for you? A small round dining table works well when space is limited as with a little squeezing, you can seat a fair few diners around your table without encroaching on too much space. This rectangular oak wooden dining table and chairs is also ideal for when you want a streamlined, minimal look but without compromising on quality.

Which comes first, the table or the chairs?

Some people prefer to purchase wooden dining room table sets, whereby the table and chairs match perfectly. But, if you want to make a statement, choosing chairs and a dining table separately could be the answer.

Making the wooden dining table the centrepiece of your dining room

There is nothing quite as attractive as a grandiose dining table. No matter what your style, a fantastic dining table really packs a punch. This exquisite example of a reclaimed wood dining table is the perfect example. The distressed look of the wood, full of history and character, works well with the modern gloss of the metal frame. Even the sumptuous upholstered dining chairs cannot detract from its beauty.

Making the chairs the stars of the show

Dining chairs can really add va-va-voom to a dining room. There are almost unlimited options when it comes to upholstered dining chairs, with all shades of colours, as well as a choice between fabric and leather.

Of course, fabric dining chairs don’t work for everybody. A great option are wooden dining chairs. Equally as elegant, wooden chairs are easy to keep clean and suit a range of styles, from farmhouse to rustic

Most of our dining chairs are customisable too, so you can create something truly unique for your home that diners will admire.

Choose your style

Of course, a large factor in your choice of wooden dining table and chairs is your style.

This oak farmhouse table works well in a dining room or kitchen space where you want the pleasing feel of the farmhouse style.

Likewise, opting for the rustic dining table or the industrial dining table style is ideal in a busy home where you don’t want to compromise practicality and function for style.

Adding details

The ‘how and why’ of your wooden dining table are also important considerations.

For example, if you regularly host family dinners and extensive gatherings, an extending dining table with chairs make perfect sense.

But we think that dining furniture is a great way of adding detail without overpowering the space. The legs of the dining table are often forgotten in terms of design which is why we have added details to ours…This reclaimed wood round dining table with the circular, art deco-esque leg adds a wow factor to any dining space. If you want detail but without too much fuss, this rectangular dining table with robust legs is one choice. The circular elements add the right level of detail. And there is something pleasingly ‘chunky’ and firm about the end-of-table column legs on this farmhouse table.

Many pieces in our dining furniture ranges can be customised to suit, giving you even more scope on creating a wooden dining table and chairs that you will love for a long, long time to come.

How to make your home smell fresh

There is something about a good smelling home; whether it be the smell of your family’s favourite food cooking, a wonderful new candle or just the smell of home. Here are a few of our favourite ideas to create an uplifting and homely smell throughout your home and incorporate some cool dining accessories.

Candles are always an easy option for making your home smell amazing and they give you the freedom to change the scent of a room depending on your mood or the time of the year.

When it comes to scents, you may wish to tailor the candle to the room. For example, floral smells like eucalyptus and jasmine or foody scents like basil, lemon or rhubarb would be fantastically in your kitchen whereas a warmer or a subtle, coastal scent would be perfect for your living room, dining room or bedroom. Candles are also great left un-lit in places like linen cupboards so you get a lovely smell when you open the door or get out new bedding.

If you prefer to use tea lights so you can switch up the smell of your room more often, the Bella Ball Tea Light Holders are great. The clear curved glass holders with curved stainless steel framing offer simple, contemporary style which would look great in any room or on a rustic coffee table. Place three together on a solid oak sideboard or above your fireplace or spread around your room.

Alternatively, the Contemporary Anthracite Lanterns make a fantastic statement decor piece in your living room, crafted out of aluminium. Place a tall pillar candle in the centre, or on an oak display unit to create a warming glow and a wonderful smell.

Also in your kitchen, make the most of fruits. Keep fresh fruits like oranges, limes and lemons in fruit bowls which are not enclosed. Not only will they smell lovely and fresh, but they also look great and add a bit of colour!

The unique design of the Encore Stainless Steel Basket Bowl is perfect for any kitchen. With its elegant curve and contemporary caged style, the colour of fresh fruits will pop right through and look great in the centre of your kitchen sideboard, table or on a worktop.

For a slightly different alternative to fruit, you could always add oranges and cinnamon to a bowl of water which will create a lovely warming smell. Or you could add a couple of drops of your favourite essential oil, like mint, lavender or vanilla and put these in a bowl.

The Pearl Wrap Bowls are a statement in themselves but are perfect for placing your pinecones. With their beautiful curved design and inside coated with pearl coloured enamel, their Scandinavian inspired design will work beautifully in any room for a touch of glamour.

Use the largest in the set of three in your living room, or in an open plan house, somewhere where it will reach the largest amount of space. You could place one of the smaller ones in your hallway, on a small console table, so you get a lovely smell when you walk through the door.

The Four Corner Bowls are another great option. The tops of the bowls are elegantly curved and have a dark interior for a little drama.

There are also plenty of other ways to keep your house smelling amazingly fresh day-to-day.

When it comes to cleaning, citrus-scented products are great for creating an uplifting smell. Products for cleaning your worktop or your floors will leave a lovely smell once you’ve finished cleaning. You can also clean your bins with citrus to keep it smelling fresh and hide any food smells you don’t want to hang around!

In your kitchen, growing herbs is a great option. Herbs like basil and mint have a wonderful scent, and you can use them in your cooking too! Alternatively, fresh flowers always add a welcoming feel, look beautiful and can smell amazing. A bunch of flowers in the hallway on a reclaimed wood console table; or bedroom, on a bedroom chest of drawers, is always a lovely touch.

For more inspiration, have a look at the full collection of home decor at Modish Living, get in touch with one of our team members for any enquiries.

How wood shelving can help your children keep their room clean

Children’s Day is on June 1st this year, and with the occasion fast approaching it may be useful to consider ways to keep playrooms and bedrooms as tidy as possible when playtime comes to an end. The majority of parents will always expect some degree of upheaval, of course, but it’s good to know that a certain level of order can be restored when the toys and games are put away.

The key for many homes is to make the most of the space that’s available. Plenty of storage options need to be incorporated into such rooms, and the excellent Chedworth Wooden Shoe Storage Unit is a prime example of what you can achieve. Everything from bricks and balls to books and bears can hide away at night in the sumptuous Fenshaw Mango Wood Storage Bench, a perfect furniture asset.

Of course, high quality storage means more than finding space for toys. A wooden blanket box offers a chance to store all those necessities without having to search high and low for them at a later date.

Make it fun for the kids to tidy up

Another great space-saver would be a tall chest of drawers, and to make it fun for the little ones you could encourage them to use each drawer for a different day of the week. Making tidying up more enjoyable is a must if the children are to be encouraged to get involved. Bringing in a few ‘rules’, such as rewarding good behaviour is always a good idea. If the child doesn’t get involved, it might be useful to put some items away and not allow them out again until after a small act of kindness has occurred.

The eye-catching Onslow Reclaimed Wooden Blanket Box is a welcome sight in any child’s bedroom, because it combines practicality with some much-needed attractiveness, and of course it can double up as a wooden toy box. Rustic furniture always adds a touch of elegance to any environment, even one that’s often festooned with toys and games!

Another superb option which offers more than just a piece of furniture is the Standford Industrial Wooden Coffee Table, an eye-catching item which can store toys on the bottom shelf and act as a play table on top. It’s a solid and dependable table which will offer robustness in even the most boisterous room. Sometimes a coffee table with shelf is more than just a coffee table with shelf.

The sophisticated Elton Oak Coffee Table is another option which features wooden shelving underneath for storage. In keeping with the need for saving space, the beautiful Winchester Rustic Wooden Tall Chest Of Drawers may just be perfect for your needs.

Get the most out of a small bedroom for kids

English Beam Reclaimed Wood Bed in Bedroom with sheepskin rug

Not every bedroom in every home is gifted with acres of space and that means planning the space available carefully. By doing so, you ensure that all space is used efficiently, making the perfect bedroom and play space for your children.

But what are the secrets to getting the most from a small bedroom?

Step 1 – Measure it and Draw it

To optimise the space available, you need an accurate floor plan. And that means measuring the space, creating an accurate plan that has the positions of the windows and any other features accurately marked on the plan. You also need to note the position of the door and the direction in which it opens. That way, before you purchase your rustic bedroom furniture or gorgeous rugs, you’ll know they’ll fit just fine.

STEP 2 – The Bed

Clearly, in a bedroom, the most important piece of furniture is the bed and a reclaimed wood bed can look super stylish, even in a child’s room. As well as deciding on the best location for it, you also need to ensure it ‘fits’ the space though.

Single beds come in pre-determined sizes which is great, except when it leaves either a small gap at the foot of the bed that gathers dust or, worse still, does not fit neatly into a cove etc.

The solution lay in a bespoke furniture, such as a made-to-measure bed.

Step 3 – Position Other Furniture Items

There are other items that are essential in a bedroom. The amount of space dictates how many of these pieces you can fit in. The key is not to be over ambitious as too much furniture means a cluttered space.

Another secret is not to create a ‘box within a box’. This means avoiding positioning furniture around the edges of the room assuming this gives ample play space on the floor.

Consider reclaimed furniture that can be moved too, possibly used in other areas of the home. This means choosing stylish pieces, such as a reclaimed wood bedside table that could be used elsewhere in the home at some point.

Step 4 – Storage

Storage is critical in a small room and that means two choices:

The wardrobe – choose a stylish reclaimed wood wardrobe for an appealing chunkiness and sturdiness that offer flexible solutions for storing clothes.
The toy box – consider a bespoke blanket box as a toy box using wood that matches the frame of the customised bed. This brings cohesion to the room without being too matchy-matchy. Size is essential too – don’t allow toy box dimensions to dwarf the bed.

Step 5 – The Floor

Pull it all together with a rug.

But choose the correct size rug for the space. Even in a small space, a rug can look super-small and too big a rug will simply swamp it. You want a rug that adds both colour and texture to a space but also provides the lynchpin to pull the whole small bedroom design together.

Our top tip for a small bedroom space is…

Lighting

Table lamps and other accessories clutter the space but a state-of-the-art hanging pendant light makes a statement without ‘getting in the way’. It serves a practical purpose too, provides ample light without being stark and overly clinical.

Working down the list above will allow you to properly plan for the space you have, and avoid leaving things looking cramped.

Easily organise an affordable at home outdoor wedding

Wedding celebrations seem to be getting ever more elaborate these days, but anyone can create a joyous yet affordable ceremony and reception without paying a small fortune in the process. If you, or a generous parent, or an even more generous friend, have a large enough home and garden, you can personalise the event and save venue money as well.

Creating the ultimate home wedding without breaking the bank

The key to successful home-based weddings is the personal touch. You’re celebrating the day in a totally unique way, so why not put your own stamp on the whole event? The more you add your own style, the more memorable it will be for every guest, so feel free to get creative right from the start. Using contemporary garden furniture, for example, will add elegance and style, and party games can help to start the fun off.

Preparing for the big day takes time and hard work, of course, so you will need to be organised. It will help if you have friends and relatives who can assist with jobs such as cleaning the house and garden in advance and decorating rattan garden chairs and every rustic dining table so they look utterly perfect. Incorporating stylish candles, personalised party favours and a wide range of fresh flowers is a must.

If there is someone who can take care of the food on the big day so much the better, but if not it’s a good idea to brainstorm options with a select group of individuals. You may wish to give the whole wedding an overall theme, and the food can reflect this. If you have an expansive reclaimed wood dining table, you can adorn it with a tempting selection of finger foods based on your personal concept. Popular food choices include hog roasts and huge pans of curry, all washed down with beer straight from the barrel and a wide selection of wines.

Make sure everyone’s dancing the night away

Great music can enhance any occasion, and at a wedding the choice is crucial. You’ll want the guests to relax while eating, but of course, you’ll want them dancing when party time comes around. Whether you hire a local band of professional musicians or you choose a playlist from a streaming platform, you need to be specific about which songs work and which ones don’t. When you clear the rattan furniture to make room for a dance-floor, make sure it gets filled.

If the garden usually consists of little more than a garden table and chairs, you’ll need to find additional seating to make the occasion comfortable for everyone. An outdoor sofa or two is an excellent idea, and a dining table and bench laden with goodies will prove immensely popular. If you are able to provide a selection of Scandinavian chairs and reclaimed wood chairs then so much the better. Mixing styles is not a problem with a home-based wedding, because it just adds to the personalised feel.

The garden itself can become something of a focal point for the whole occasion. As the evening starts to draw in, the sense of festivity can be enhanced with row after row of twinkling outdoor lights in trees and bushes and draped along fences. Candles in jars and strategically placed tea-lights will also add to the atmosphere. A rattan sofa provides a convenient area for relaxation, and if you have a wood dining table inside the home, don’t be afraid to bring it outside. Finally, you’ll be able to continue the festivities later than usual because you don’t have to empty a hired hall by a set time. Always let the neighbours know in advance, of course, but remember the best advice is to invite them along anyway!