September 19th, 2009 | 
Author: Sheila Baskerville is a CPA and mother of 3 children. For more information on natural, organic baby products and eco-friendly parenting tips, visit Natural-Organic-Baby.com. Get helpful tips delivered straight to you. To sign up for your free monthly newsletter, visit The Go Natural & Organic Baby! E-zine.
Posts Tagged ‘Decorating’
Decorating The Baby Nursery? Use Low Voc Paint!
As a result of the “green living” movement, Low or Zero VOC paints are becoming more mainstream. If you’re gearing up to paint your baby’s nursery, here’s what you should know about these new paint alternatives.
Traditional Paints
If you’ve ever painted a room in the past with traditional paint, you probably had to open the windows because of the strong odor. Traditional paints contain volatile organic compounds also known as VOCs. VOCs are comprised of a variety of chemicals that can adversely affect your health. In fact, according to The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), VOCs can trigger eye, nose and throat irritations, headaches, nausea, and a loss of coordination. Significant exposure may even lead to problems with the kidney, liver and central nervous system.
Many people mistakenly believe that once their paint is dry and the smell is gone, the chemicals are too. However VOCs tend to concentrate indoors and may persist in the air long after painting is finished. To decrease this risk, consider choosing a non toxic paint for the nursery and other rooms in your home as well. There are many benefits to using non toxic paints including:
- Easier clean-up with soap and water
- Easier disposal options
- Less odor during application and usually no odor once the paint is dry
- A shorter waiting period to safely occupy the room
- Significant reduction in toxins released into the air
Non toxic or Natural Paints
These paints are produced by a variety of manufacturers and come in several options. Many of the paints are now available at mainstream home improvement stores as well as at local specialty paint stores. As with many eco-friendly products, there are no official federal guidelines regarding labeling, so VOC standards may vary by manufacturer. Consult the paint labels or ask your in-store paint specialist for clarification if you have questions. You can also look for paints that have Green Seal certifications.
Types of Non toxic Paints
Low VOC: These paints use water instead of petroleum to carry the paint. To be considered Low VOC, a paint may only contain 250 grams of VOC per liter. Likewise, varnishes are limited to 380 grams of VOC per liter. However, many reputable paint companies offer paints with even lower VOC levels. Look for Green Seal Certifications.
Zero VOC: These paints still contain VOCs but are limited to less than 5 grams of VOC per liter.
Natural Paints: These safe paints are made solely from natural ingredients, including substances like water, clay, chalk, plant dyes, natural latex and even milk and beeswax. You can search for natural paints online.
Decorating a baby nursery can be a loving way to prepare for your newborn’s arrival. If your plans involve painting the walls, choosing non toxic or natural paints is great way to reduce potential household toxins and give your precious baby the gift of healthy indoor air.
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Decorating With Bamboo Room Dividers
Bamboo Room Dividers can add elegance and a touch of the exotic to any decorating theme. You can use them in most any room of your home to add a decorative touch to corners as well as divide a large room into 2 cozy spaces.
If you have one large room that serves double duty as a living room and dining room you can use a room divider to section each space off from the other thus creating 2 intimate spaces. And the best part is that if you get tired of the look you can always just fold up the room divider and store it away or use it in another room
There are several ways to us a room divider to decorate your room. Aside from using it in the middle of a large room as mentioned above, you can also use it just flat against the wall to add a bit of drama. If you want to soften up the corners in a room put a folding screen kitty corner to round it out. Don’t be afraid to put a decorative plant or some a piece of furniture in front of the divider. If you have other themed accent pieces, try draping them over the divider.
There are many different styles of bamboo room dividers and one to suit every type of décor. You may think that all bamboo dividers look like pieces of hollow bamboo but this is not so!
Some feature thin strips of bamboo with an open work design at the top and have a light tropical look. These look good in a tropical type décor or in a sun room or any type of room that has an exotic feel. Because these types of folding screens do not have a heavy look, they can go well with island style bamboo furniture.
Other bamboo room dividers have a woven look much like those bamboo shades that are made from tiny sticks of bamboo. These actually can work with many different decors. Anything from a room decorated with a country feel to a modern type room will look great with these screens.
Bamboo room dividers can even go with a traditional décor. Some dividers are made from crushed bamboo and have 3 solid panels. These can be quite plain or have fancy designs and arched tops. These panels are a bit heavy in looks but go perfect with heavy mahogany furniture in a traditional, antique or plantation style décor.
How to Prepare Your Walls For Wall Graphics
First of all, just to set the record straight, wall graphics are also referenced by different names such as wall stickers, wall tattoos, wall art, and vinyl wall decals. No matter what you call these amazing wall applications, what you have here is a way to change the overall dynamics of a room in a matter of minutes, not hours.
Another advantage of these decorative wall decals is you can change the persona of a room in a matter of seconds. Just by rearranging the wall stickers you already have on the walls or replacing them with an entirely different wall graphics theme. The same room will project a new and wondrous atmosphere.
These wall tattoos will stick to the surface of the wall and remain in place until you wish to remove them. At the time you wish to remove these decals, you may remove them without any noticeable marks on your walls.
The variety of wall graphics is so diverse that there are applications for every room in your home, including your living room, dining room, family room, den, recreation room, library, kitchen, bathroom and bedroom. In fact, I have seen decorative wall decals on the interior walls of the garage. Of course, the garage decals had some sort of car theme which added a sporty atmosphere to the home of your parked car.
You should start out by selecting exactly what wall decals you wish to apply to your walls. All you have to do is go online and pick out a theme or fancy lettering or both for your decorative wall stickers. Then do a search for what is available. After you have made your choice and received your vinyl wall decals you can go on to the next step.
No matter what room you apply these artful stickers, in order to apply them correctly, you must prepare your walls so that your stickers remain in place. There is a certain technique to preparing the surface of your walls to assure that your wall graphics stay in place. This simple wall preparation can be accomplished in a matter of minutes.
By now you should have decided where you want to place your wall graphics on the walls of a particular room. A good way to test your positioning of the decals is to take masking tape and tape these stickers on the walls until you have decided what pattern makes you feel satisfied.
Now remove one wall decal at a time and with a dry cloth wipe off the surface of the wall where the graphic will be placed. After you have wiped the surface of the wall, slowly peel back the paper backing from the decal, starting from one corner until all of the paper backing has been removed.
Now apply the sticker to the wall. When you are satisfied that you have the decal in the correct position, with a dry soft cloth press the graphic against the wall starting from the center and sliding the cloth out to the edges. To remove any bubbles that may remain under the decal, take the edge of a credit card and gently brush the bubbles to the edges of the sticker.
Repeat the cleaning and application process for your remaining decals. After the first two graphics are finished and hanging on the wall, this procedure becomes easier and faster to do. You will find yourself finishing this form of wall decorating quickly and with little effort.
There are so many creative arrangements you can put together with these decorative wall pieces. With a little imagination and creativity you will put together you own wall masterpiece. Applying these the correct way the first time will result in never having to go back and re-applying until you wish to remove them.
5 Unique Craft Ideas For College Dorm Room Decorating
Decorating a college dorm room should be a fun and exciting time. It is a great opportunity to unleash your creativity and express your own individual style. While there are many different college dorm accessories you can purchase to decorate the room, making your own will give it much more personality.
Here are 5 Unique Craft Ideas to Decorate Your Room:
1. Make A Unique Comforter: Making a unique comforter or bed cover with iron on transfers is a fun way to add style to your room. You can find iron on transfer paper at just about any retailer that sells craft products, or you can purchase them online. They are very easy to use, as all you need to do is print out your favorite photos or images from your computer and then iron them onto fabric. This is a great way to make your comforter truly unique with your favorite patterns, designs, or photos. You will want to make sure the fabric you choose is compatible with the transfer paper and to also make sure you follow the manufacturer’s directions for properly caring and washing the blanket once you are done.
2. Make A Collage: Your dorm walls will likely be plain and quite unattractive, especially if you’re in a room that is constructed out of cinder blocks. Making a floor to ceiling collage can be an excellent way to cover up those plain and boring walls, as well as express your individual style. You can choose a certain theme or color, or go with something that has your favorite photos or phrases. All you will need is a lot of magazines, some paper, scissors, and a lot of glue to get started. Be sure when hanging your collage you follow the university’s rules to make sure you don’t put holes in the wall!
3. Make Your Own Rug: There are many different ways you can make your own rug. You can braid one out of scrap fabrics, or even take small carpet sample pieces and tape them together on the bottom to form a unique design. Other ideas include using place mats or other heavy duty fabrics.
4. Make Your Own Curtains: Curtains are a must for most rooms to make sure you have enough privacy and to keep unwanted sunlight out if you are trying to sleep in late. You can make your own quite easily by simply sewing or fastening loops at the top of any fabric material and then attaching to a curtain rod. Don’t forget to add lace, trim, ribbons, or other decorative elements if you so desire.
5. Make a Hanging Mobile: A Hanging mobile is a fun way to add depth to your room as well as give your ceiling a little attention. You can do something as simple as hang postcards from the ceiling or make one out of different small items you have collected. Making a mobile is very easy to do, and will give your room something unique that likely most others don’t have.
There are many creative things you can do to decorate your college dorm room. With a little imagination, the possibilities are endless on the different crafts you can make to express your individual personality and style.
