The floral trend is set to be big in 2015 and we’re already looking for innovative new ways to wholeheartedly embrace the look. The floral look has been around for a long time and is an enduring classic that lends itself well to modern and traditional interior design. There are endless ways in which to incorporate flirty, fun and fabulous floral finishes and because the look is consistently evolving and can effortlessly be reinvented with a little innovation, it can be pretty fun to play with. Here are some of the ways you can introduce your home to the flair of florals:

• Opt for floral bed linen

A neutral colour scheme emblazoned with a pop of florals on bed linen makes a powerful impact and immediately draws the eye. Too much colour elsewhere can transform this look into a chaotic clump or dampen its allure. Keep it simple and sophisticated.

• Floral Wallpaper

Floral wallpaper can be a real feature. This look is ideal in women’s bedrooms, living rooms or any room that requires a feminine touch. A floral design is best used on just one wall of the room to create a feature wall and a point of interest. In order to not go overboard, keep your furnishings and simple and neutral in colour or you may end up with clashing patterns.

• Blinds

Floral blinds are a great way to incorporate the trend in a low-key and practical way. If all your walls and furnishings are neutral, you can use colourful floral blinds to make the space more vibrant and welcoming. Available in a range of colours and patterns, some of our favourites include the 4102 Floral Red Pink Genuine VELUX Roller Skylight Blind, the Arden Bellini Roller Blind and the Laurel Walnut.

Evita Cicley Roller Blind

Laurel Walnut Roller Blind

• Keep it simple

Florals sometimes get a bad rep; they have been seen as outdated and garish but this is untrue of many modern floral designs. If you think floral is a little old fashioned, opt for all-white florals or pastel colours; they are far more subtle and simple and fit with most décor styles.

• Go Bold

A true re-invention of the flirty floral is a dynamic injection of daring colour! Go wild with red, big with blue or be generous with green. Vibrant colours are on trend for summer so you can re-decorate just in time!

You can make a stylish home without breaking the bank. Don’t believe us? Here’s how to transform your home into a trendsetting abode whilst being thrifty and not compromising on style.

Upcycle Old Pieces

To upcycle is to re-use or re-style something in an utterly innovative way – and it’s bang on trend in the interior design world. You can give your furniture a facelift by simply doing something different with it; paint tables or chairs, give items a glaze, move them around or add decoration or customisations. Get creative and use your imagination. There are more than 101 ways to upcycle and it costs next to nothing!

Learn DIY

Making a huge change whilst pinching the pennies might involve getting your thinking cap on. Nowadays many home owners are choosing to do it themselves, whether it’s making furniture, painting, fixing things around the home or laying their own tiles! You needn’t go crazy; just start with a small project that’s scope you are comfortable with. The more experience you have, the more projects you can embark on.

Opt for Blinds

Of course we’re biased, but blinds really make a world of difference to a home and they are affordable for the whole house. The benefits are multifarious; they’re easy to fit and clean, emphasise your view, come in endless styles and colours, block and play with light appropriately and can’t be torn or slashed by preying pets and children!

Flea market Chic

Instead of buying at big superstores, get yourself to the flea market. Many gorgeous pieces are donated here that are utterly unique and one of a kind. It’s a great way to avoid mass produced manufacture and instead find something that suits your style whether it be contemporary, minimalist, vintage or funky.

Buy Second Hand

When it comes to decorating and dressing a new home, a large weakness is that many of us want our things to be brand spanking new but new often comes with a hazardous price tag. Instead, be a second hand enthusiast. If any friends or family no longer want an item, ask if you can use it for your home. The item will either be for free or for a far cheaper price and the lived-in vintage look lends character.

Add Colour

Adding colour is a fast and cheap way to make a big difference. Often when our homes look dull, it’s either that they’re dirty or lacking colour. Think of your favourite colours and how they make you feel. Try to give each room a personality i.e. kitchen: creative, bathroom: laid back, bedroom: passionate, living room: joyful. Use these themes to construct an aesthetic appeal to suit your home, family and lifestyle.

Nowadays, a person’s home is not just their castle, but a source of investment. Keeping your home in tip top condition is a sure fire way to maintain and/or increase its market value. Transforming your home needn’t require internal gutting or a time consuming overhaul; instead you can quite inexpensively make a few essential changes that your home will thank you for. Here are a few tips from our interior design experts:

Clear out the garage

A garage is actually a highly coveted room for many buyers. Whether they choose to use it to store and protect the family car, as storage space or as a home gym/man cave/annex game room, the garage has a lot of potential. Most of us neglect our garages and fail to see their worth; we stuff them to the brim with useless paraphernalia and memorabilia and seldom do we spend any time there. Deciding what you want your garage to be is imperative. Then you can stash away belongings, clean it out and showcase it for the sensational space it really is.

Mahari Gabo Cordless Roller Blind

Dress your windows

Many buyers pay a lot of attention to the view a home offers. You might have impressive views or a rather uninspiring view of your neighbour’s brick wall. Whether your view is lacking or luscious, window dressings make all the difference. Selecting patterned or coloured blinds is a great way to add a point of interest and frame your view appropriately. Light and airy spaces are also desired, so it’s important to let as much light shine through your home as possible – most blinds allow the maximum amount of light through to rooms when open.

Get green fingered

A garden can be a real selling point and if you’ve let yours get a little overgrown, then you’re letting it go to waste. Spend some time cultivating a space. You might choose a communal outdoor area, BBQ section, swing bed and chairs, child friendly playground, herb garden or plenty of well maintained plants and flowers. Whatever you choose, be nice to your garden.

De-clutter

A cluttered home looks smaller, uglier and uninviting. You can’t show off a home’s potential if it’s stashed up to the rafters with boxes and belongings. Restore order to your home by getting rid of what you don’t need or want and storing appropriately that which you wish to keep.

Paint Job

A new coat of paint makes a world of difference. Many buyers are looking for unflawed walls and a fresh slick of paint looks fresh and suggests that you care for your home. A quick paint job is inexpensive, doesn’t take long and really makes a huge difference to any room.

Lifestyle Blinds is now offering a fun, funky and fabulous way for families to add flair to their windows with the incentive to personalise blinds using bold graffiti names. Bang on trend, graffiti blackout blinds offer a youthful alternative to traditional blind designs and are ideal for children’s and teenager’s bedrooms or communal play spaces; even nurseries and baby rooms are kitting themselves out utilising the creative new blind idea.

Although Lifestyle Blinds offers a plethora of designs, colours, patterns and styles, the opportunity to create a personalised bespoke option to reflect the unique personality of the owner is un-missable. As well as graffiti name blinds, customers can also opt for fruity blinds, featuring a striking crisp backdrop emblazoned with jaw dropping fruit visuals including apples and kiwi fruits – these are perfect for the kitchen. The benefits of opting for a personalised blind are numerous:

• They offer you the freedom to personalise your home

With a range of blinds on offer, we are proud of the versatility of our window dressings. Nonetheless we realise that our clients often have ideas of their own in mind and creating your own bespoke digitally printed blind is a great way to offer your home a unique touch that reflects your lifestyle, personality and family.

• You can own something one of a kind

For those who like to set trends rather than follow them, personalised blinds offer a one of a kind alternative that will set your home apart from the neighbours and make a great talking point.

• It makes a great gift

Graffiti name blinds make a great gift for kids whilst fruit blinds are ideal for the kitchen and communal areas to inspire a healthful, nutritious diet and eating habits. Personalised blinds can be utilised in endless ways to serve as a visual cue, reminder or motivator as well as a thoughtful and enduring present that also serves a practical use.

• Kids love them

Although all of our blind options are ideal for every room of the home and all members of the family, kids and teenagers have really taken to the graffiti name blind – they look great in bedrooms. As soon as children gain independence they want to decide on colours and textures in their bedroom, and a blind with their name on it is the ideal way to make them feel like they’re in control!

Please note you won’t find these personalised blinds in our online shop as they are made to order – so please get in touch for more information and to order.

2015 is a brand new year and with it comes an influx of exciting new trends to try out. That’s right – the top interior design trends for 2015 have been announced. You heard it here at Lifestyle Blinds first!

Gallant Olive Roman Blind

Colour

Colour remains a big deal in 2015. The golden oldies remain in style but clashing colours is also a big hit (so long as they clash just right!). Retro colour, bold, funky shades and organic neutrals and pastels are all very in so no matter what your choice of style, there’s an option for you. Use your imagination and think big.

Texture

Textures add character and lend warmth to a home. Unusual paint finishes, rustic woods, and a mixture of materials and smooth, flat finishes really help a home jump out at you. Texture is all about breathing life into your home, lending it edges and personality in a way that is unmistakably unique. The key is to look for an assortment of different items and staples and to mix and match them in a fitting way. Texture is not about perfection; it’s about style.

Environmental Consciousness

In our world of waste, being environmentally conscious has become a necessity and a need rather than an option. Transforming homes into eco-friendly spaces is now pretty easy to accomplish. There are many ways to do so including incorporating living walls, salvaged furniture items and upcycled/recycled items. Furniture from ethical environmental sources is also hugely popular and fortunately so; our environments have never been in greater need!

Blinds

Blinds have been pushing out conventional curtains for some time now, lending homes an utterly European chic appeal. The benefits of blinds are numerous; cost effective, low maintenance and easy to fit, blinds come in a range of styles from the classic Roman and Venetian versions to updated roller and blackout blinds. Ideal for any room of the home, the personalised touch is in so adding a bespoke look to blinds is a great way to leave your mark.

Fusion

2015 is all about mixing things up, fusing patterns, colours and styles together for an unusual and innovative marriage. This particular trend promises to be fun because there is no end to the collaborative combination of mixing and matching you can add to the pot. Whether it’s searing through the minimalism with big, bold colour or connecting the antique and pre-loved with something novel and fresh, there’s a way for one and all to embrace this trend.

What is your favourite interior design trend of 2015?

Blinds are a mainstay in the homes of many and although most of us are commonly versed with names like the Roman and Venetian blind, the actual origin of blinds is far more obscure. If you’re intrigued to know exactly where your blinds came from, read on, we’re about to take you on a little history lesson that’s more intricate than you might expect.

Asian and African Origins

For many, blinds are quintessentially European. The history of blinds however predates European use. Some of the earliest recorded findings of blinds occur in Asia and Africa, at least in their most basic form. Wandering Nomadic tribes used sheets to barricade themselves from the suns harsh rays. Ancient Egyptians were known to employ the use of window shades formulated from reeds suited to block the sun whilst maintaining efficient airflow amongst noble blooded families.

Across the pond in Asia, similar tactics were employed. Ancient Chinese civilisations used native bamboo instead of reeds to serve as functioning blinds. Persians were known to invent in the first slated variation of the blind and brought their creation to Italy, where it really took amongst local Venetians.

The Venetian Blind

Perhaps the earliest blind as we know it was the Venetian blind; the blind design which popularised by the Persians, made its way to Italy, and with a few modifications became utterly Italian. This design is thought to date back to the 1760s. The Venetian blind made its way to France via slavery. The freed slaves travelled to France bringing their blinds with them where they became known as ‘les Persienes.’ Nowadays, Paris and numerous other French towns and cities are renowned for their distinctive use of blinds.

A Global Phenomenon

From Africa, Asia, Persia and Europe, blinds became a true worldwide phenomenon. Americans took to blinds quickly and now many countries all over the world continue to use blinds in their homes.

Aztec Cassis Roman Blinds

Versatile Options

Blinds have evolved from their humble beginnings and are now available in a myriad of never ending options. Alongside the Venetian blind exists the Roman blinds, cordless roller blinds, skylight blinds, vertical blinds and wooden blinds. Blinds can even be personalised or made thermal! Ideal for any room in the home, the fundamental design of blinds has shifted to accommodate a range of uses and specifications making them a highly sought after commodity. Easy to fit, striking, cost effective and relatively low maintenance, blinds also contain a sweeping history that has seen them travel the globe.