We can have a beautiful and sensational piece of art, but if it is not displayed properly it will not be appreciated accordingly.

An art collection can express your personality and give your home a sense of drama and excitement. Here are my five simple and easy rules to follow when hanging your artwork or treasured family photos.

1. Choose a wall that is the focal point of the room to ensure the art takes centre stage. If possible add feature lighting to really showcase it.

2. Artworks needs to be hung at eye level to demand attention. A general rule of thumb is to have the artwork’s centre at approximately 1.5 to 1.6m from the floor.

3. Consider the size of your artwork and select a wall that is in scale to its proportions. Never put small pictures on large walls. I do love it when an oversized picture dominates a wall to create drama. If your artwork is smaller consider displaying groups of your favourite pieces that will draw your attention upon entering the room.

4. If you are positioning your art near or above furniture consider its size and scale as this will interact with the art. If you place your canvas above a sofa or buffet for example, it can’t extend over the length of these pieces to work visually.

5. Try grouping family photos in either random patterns or symmetrical to make an artistic design statement. For an eclectic look use a collection of antiqued and embossed frames to create a more relaxed feel. Alternatively, you can use the same frame for a modern and contemporary feel. For guaranteed success lay your pattern on the floor before you begin.

By Karen Creith

BDN Kitchens & Joinery in Parkes started as a family owned business eight years ago with the aim to make the kitchen of your dreams become a reality.  The staff not only has over 40 years of experience in cabinet making, but they strive to produce the highest quality work and making the kitchen building process easy and simple.

They design kitchens with up to date 3D kitchen designing software and take the client through the whole process from designing  to picking colours for the whole kitchen. There are two colour consultants in store as well. With a CNC machine they can cut out kitchens fast but with the highest precision cutting.

In decorating I follow the same approach as I do dressing myself. A common mistake is the need to add extra bits or pieces before walking out the door. I think Coco Chanel said: “Take one piece of jewellery off before you walk out the door rather than putting one more piece on.”

In design this is a common phenomenon when I visit people’s homes. The initial consultation is always about streamlining the home. It is essential to do this before we can add the right extra pieces to the mix. These are my favourite ways to practise the “less is more” principle:
• Remember the more surface areas you can see clear from clutter, the larger and more impressive your home will appear.
• Less objects equals less housework. A home free from clutter always appears neat and makes dusting and cleaning a breeze.
• One large, even oversized statement piece looks more amazing than a collection of smaller objects.
• Group uneven numbers of different objects together to create a vignette rather than lining your possessions up in soldier formation.
• Remove the plethora of photo frames and treasured family snaps from surfaces around your home and create photo galleries in key focal locations.
• Do an evaluation of the objects you really love and want to display rather than trying to keep everyone happy.
• China display cabinets are a main focus in my plans for decluttering a client’s home. You might just uncover an amazing treasure.
• Remember each room or space should only need one or two key focal points. A great artwork, a rug and some cushions with one statement pot or sculptural element will give you the WOW factor.
• Let your home speak for itself if it is crafted from beautiful materials. Highlight features with natural or artificial lighting.

Once you start showcasing your possessions in this new way you will be so impressed with the results it will totally amaze you.

By Karen Creith

All too much in life we seem to be waiting for something to happen before we can really enjoy our life. We constantly wait to lose that last three kilos or to fit in that special dress. We need to start living in the moment and enjoy what we have now.

Life is here to enjoy it now. If we can start celebrating what we have each and every day we can live our best lives right now. There will always be projects to make our homes better, but let’s start to turn our houses into homes that we can’t wait to return to every day.

It’s easy if you follow these simple ideas:
• Take pride and care in your home and your possessions. Surround yourself with items that you really love and that
will look fantastic.
• Adopt a clutter-free approach to living your life by removing excess items and junk.
• Give your home the WOW factor by adding statement pieces in different rooms.
• Give yourself permission to stay home and relax every now and then. Just enjoy the simple pleasures in life and allow yourself quiet time in your favourite chair to read or just to sit and reflect for a while.
• Start pursuing activities that you love to do in your home and make time for these pursuits. If you love entertaining go for it, and create a space that allows you to enjoy spoiling your family and friends.
• Stop procrastinating and start doing! If you are not sure of how to bring your decorating dreams to life, get help!

My home is really important to my happiness, and by this I mean that regardless of its size or style, I have a home that I love to come home to. It’s my sanctuary from the outside world. When you create this inner feeling of peace and belonging in your home, your life and what you can achieve in the outside world grows exponentially…

By Karen Creith

We accumulate possessions and items over time regardless of their level of importance or actual significance. This innate desire to keep these possessions causes clutter. If we get rid of possessions and objects we can make our homes instantly bigger. So what is clutter?
There are two main types:
1. Day to day clutter is items that we may use regularly but don’t necessarily have a place, so they tend to lay around on surfaces creating a mess.
2. Long-term clutter include items like outgrown or unworn clothing, obsolete papers, broken or old toys and disliked, but well-meaning gifts that take up valuable storage space like filling up a garage leaving no space for the family car.
If you accept that you have too many objects, follow these guidelines to live clutterfree:
• Don’t be overwhelmed by the clutter. Take a big breath, relax and deal with it room by room.
• Focus on one key area until that is done. The end result will trigger the feel good endorphins to keep you going.
• Be strong and divide your clutter into three groups:
a) Items to be thrown out. If you haven’t used it recently chances are you won’t need it in the future either, so it needs to go.
b) Items that can be given to charity or hold a garage sale to make some money out of your unwanted possessions.
c) Items to be returned into a freshly cleaned and organised area.
• Do you have enough shelving or space to keep your possessions neat and tidy? If not, you might need to buy extra shelving to make sure all your hard work is not for nothing.
• Give yourself adequate time to make sure you can finish them over a day or a weekend.

Once you get started you will be so proud of your achievements and how you can live within your new clutter-free home that all the effort that you have put in will be worth it.

By Karen Creith