Chic Loft Living – How to Highlight Your High Ceiling Space

The free spirited personality of the modern-day loft juxtaposed with antiques and bare brick; highlighted with massive windows and towering ceilings, has made this one of the most popular lifestyle trends in the twenty something group across America.

Once chosen by artists and other imaginative people, loft living has taken on a life of its own, and is considered to be a pretty prestigious way to live. Various lofts are located within a renewed warehouse or old restored factory. However, in some cities, new condo or apartment blocks are being built that are dedicated to loft spaces or which have the penthouse floor units as desirable lofts. New condo buyers and renters alike covet each of these.

What a beginning loft resident doesn’t grasp are the many challenges that come with beautifying and furnishing a extensive, open loft home. It can be quite a test to make areas without crowding or boxing in the natural flow of space. You want all spots to be visible to the high ceilings and gigantic windows to get a lot out of the natural light.

Some guidelines for accentuating your high ceiling space…

1.    Use big, jumbo ceiling fans made from rich woods and lustrous metals, to lead the eye up and circulate the air. At once it is functional and inspiring.

2.    Leave all the substantial custom wood beams, acanthus leaf corbels, cherry newel posts and pipes exposed. If you are going to plaster over the most outstanding features of your loft space, you might as well move into a condo.

3.    Think ENORMOUS when you are picking lighting for your ceiling in the main living space. You want the lighting to be functional and exciting. Large drum shades and giant chandeliers can be terrific choices.

Many lofts have a wood and iron staircase that rises to the master bedroom area that is not a bedroom – but simply an fashionable sleeping space that has wide open views to the living space below. This design scheme can also present challenges but proposes the ideal opportunity to play off the high ceilings. For your iron railings, choose either natural solid wood that is stained to accentuate the inviting exposed brick, or use custom cast iron which is in keeping with the roots of the building. For the balusters, definitely consider custom-built wrought iron that come in straight or curved, intricate or simple, over sized or neat balustrades.

If you are fortunate enough to own a loft, you already see that you have somewhere very special to live. Now be courageous in your decor choices and make it the most inspiring space it can be. You singled out an unconventional home style – why settle for common in interior design?

Inexpensive Ways to Decorate a Loft Apartment : Tips for Dividing a Loft Living Room

Popular Interior Design Secrets for 2009

Each year, just like cars and clothing, home decor trends come and go. One year, modern and funky is all the rage, and the next year it is creamy, chippy and cottage chic. This year is no different and here are our favorites for hot interior design treatments for 2009.

1) Wrought Iron is Making a Strong Comeback – most homeowners are choosing metal, and specifically cast iron in their family houses. This can be home decorating accents done in cast iron such as a baker’s rack in the kitchen, towel racks in the bath and powder room. It can also be more extensive with the use of wrought iron on cabinet and door hinges and knobs; outside house elements in metal instead of the expected stained wood and creating a fireplace mantel shelf or staircase railing out of wrought iron for a strong yet graceful decorator touch.

2) The Gorgeous Marriage of Wood and Metal – In 2009, many families, house building and home remodeling companies are mixing the richness of solid wood with the modern elegance of metal. This treatment is popular on stairwells, terraces, fireplace surrounds and even the front porch. Not only is this treatment visually stunning to look at, but the hard wearing aspect means it is a wise investment that will last for decades.

3) The Exterior Revival of Corbels – Coming back in 2009 is the use of hand carved corbels and wooden corbels on the exterior facade of a family home. So many DIY home owners are restoring old houses in trendy and historic cities, and the use of antique corbels and over-sized, large corbel embellishments is a must to bring back the real splendor of an old home.

4) The Feature Staircase – In the 80s and early 90s, staircases in home interior design were an afterthought and something meant to fade into the background. In 2009 and beyond, the stairs as a focal point of the home is experiencing a big comeback. This trend includes the daring use of wrought iron and quality wood balusters and railings, as well as creative takes on paint finishes for stairway parts.

Including any of these touches to your personal space will be a good investment. Furthermore, these are not fleeting trends that will be here today and gone tomorrow. Instead, these would be considered interior design treatments that will serve you well for years and years.

The Makeup of a Stairway: See How to Buy Wood Staircase Parts like a Expert

Whether you have a new home and you want to put in a raised deck in the backyard or you have a Century home and aim to touch up the main staircase, it is vital to recognize the different pieces of a staircase. As they say, knowledge is power and if you are familiar with your staircase parts, then you are aware of what to shop for, and it is a great deal easier to locate the materials you want at the price you want to shell out for it.
Stair Parts
Staircase Tread – the horizontal stair part that you step onto.
Riser – the back vertical section or “kicker” linking each step.
Stairway Tread Nosing – an edge part of the stairway tread that protrudes on top of the stair riser beneath. If it is present, this indicates that horizontally, the total “run” distance of the stairs is not just the sum of the stairway tread lengths, the treads actually overlap each other slightly
Bullnose – the first step is labeled the starting step or bullnose. The first step in a large hallway, for example, would be wider than the others and presents an attachment area for the banister and staircase newel post.
Winders – smaller steps, occasionally angular that are used to vary path such as in a circular or spiral staircase.
Stringer, Stringer board or sometimes just String – a structural stairway parts that props up the staircase risers and treads
Trim – painted wood baseboard, quarter round or crown floor trip that completes the stairway, and is commonly done in a way that harmonizes the stairways with the rest of the house.
Balustrade Parts
The balustrade is the entire structure of stair railings that includes balusters and railing.
Railing – Also called the banister or handrail. It is the top piece of the system that is designed for hand holding and safety. There are different types of fittings for the hand railings including easings, goosenecks, turnouts and volutes.
Baluster – the straight up posts that buttress the railing. In America, these are also called spindles. This is commonly the most flamboyant part of any staircase where the balusters are hand carved, wrought iron, stained wood, ornately turned, or sporting a unique paint finish.
Newel – Frequently referred to as a stair newel, these are the biggest columns that hold up the handrail.
The two different versions of railing systems are over-the-post (also known as continuous) rails and post-to-post (also called newel-to-newel) rails. Continuous hand rails run “continuosly” over the newels.  The handrail in a post-to-post configuation, on the other hand, terminates at each newel.
Other terms that could be helpful while you are fleshing out your grand staircase project:
•    Flight – an continual grouping or series of stairway steps
•    Staircase – the stair system as a whole including the railing or banister, balusters, steps and newel posts.
•    Stairway – the entire staircase and stairwell in total. This expression is frequently interchanged with stairs and staircase.
•    Runner – the floor covering that is installed on top of the step and risers of the staircase.