Monthly Archives: July 2014

Lasting Summer Trends to Carry Over into Fall

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In Arizona, summer bleeds into September and October as the rest of the country experiences cooler temperatures, we are still lounging by the pool on the weekends. If you miss the change of seasons and want to curate fabulous fall décor we have great ideas to get you started!

Indoor-outdoor spaces call for lavish décor and beautiful bright fabrics for the summer. Bright blues, greens and floral prints are very popular. Tribal prints in muted colors like nectarine, sage and shades of brown offer earthy tones for a neutral color scheme. Switch into fall mode with fabrics that exude a warm, cozy and comfortable look and feel. Change out throw pillows with summer fabrics for soft, touchable, plush fabrics with a hint of shine for a glamorous yet elegant aesthetic. Adding softer throw pillows with softer fabrics add warmth to a space. Pair your existing furniture with rich warm tones like burnt orange, golden-yellow and deep crimson red for true fall fashion.

pillow2Floral prints made a big splash this summer as we’ve seen contemporary updates of a once stigmatized print. Even though floral can appear too feminine or outdated, if used properly you can achieve a modern luxurious look and feel. Keep your floral prints from the summer and pick out any warm accent colors from those prints. Fall colors are rich warm shades that offer a cozy and comfortable feeling. Incorporate candles to add a sense of intimacy and light, as the days grow shorter. Summer was all about crisp, clean and fresh color palettes, and as we slowly move towards fall you will want to curate a cozy and inviting space for your family and guests during the holidays.

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Radiant Orchid is the Pantone Color of the Year and wow did we all dive into a purple frenzy! We’ve seen all shades of purple in different ways, as interior designers incorporate this color wherever possible. Purple is a combination of blue and red giving homeowners both an advantage and disadvantage when designing with such a bold color. Go too light and purple soon feels too childish, but go too dark and it’s too overpowering.

Finding the perfect shade of purple for your home is the trick! If you have already had success with purple then you are in luck because incorporating fall colors is easier than you think. Deep reds compliment purple and also echo the warmth you will want to achieve when curating fall décor. Even going opposite of purple on the color wheel can be fun; by adding a hint of orange with white you will find this makes for a contemporary yet warm color scheme that’s perfect for Fall.

purple barrelBold prints and patterns are still in season and we don’t see them going anywhere anytime soon! Pair a solid color in a warm tone to achieve a fall look in your family room by pairing a red throw pillow against a neutral print. This will add depth to the space and visual interest. Don’t hesitate to go bold and bright with fall colors! All it takes is a little trial and error to get the right hue down. Working with summer trends in the fall is fun and easy as long as you balance your existing décor with additional elements. Visit La Maison Interiors in Scottsdale for more ideas on luxury furniture and interior design ideas to create a beautiful look and feel for the fall.

Will Luxury Smart Home Technology Change The Way We Live?

The luxury home market is on the upswing, as more people are embracing technology in a big way. Younger generations are masters of smart phone technology, but might not get to enjoy the brand new home technology multiple management companies have to offer. Price tags easily run over a million dollars in some of the most desirable cities in the United States.

All your favorite elements of a smart phone are carried over to a luxury smart home. Think about how important your smart phone is to you; now transfer all the convenience and beautiful design to your very own home. This is every homeowner’s dream to literally lift a finger and turn on the heat, lower the shades, check if you closed the garage door or if you need milk while you’re at the supermarket. Homes with high tech ability are becoming the new standard since homeowners are willing to spend a pretty penny for the ultimate convenience. 

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Now for the fun part! All the features you might imagine a smart home to have, it will. The newest apartment complex in Sunny Isles, Florida has an automated parking system that takes the hassle out of finding a parking space after work, and fingerprint technology for ultimate high security. What separates the high tech from high high-tech goes beyond apps that control your garage door or automatically open your bedroom shades at 9am. Developers are inventing household appliances that will change your daily routine without having to press a button or speak to a voice recognition system.

Smart-light-switch-from-WeMoWhat are some of these products? The Smart Toilet manages lighting for middle of the night trips, and automatically lifts and closes the lid—say goodbye to arguments about the toilet seat with your man! Climate control from your smartphone, intelligent mirrors that take photographs, and flash pictures of you in the morning for a 360-degree view of your outfit are changing daily routines for the better. Your security system will inform you of any important changes or when you forgot to arm the house all with the push of a button or a fingerprint scan. Privacy and security are two of the most important factors among homeowners, and technology allows us to control everything in our homes.

The key to making a smart home efficient for homeowners is maintaining a balance. If technology is at the forefront of our living environment, we must keep pick and choose which systems to automate. Homeowners vary in their preference of automated technology. While some prefer to be “off the grid” others are spending a pretty penny for very high tech systems. The question becomes how to make life more enjoyable with technology instead of focusing on overloading a home with too much technology for a profit. As developers continue to innovate, homes will become smarter than we ever imagined.

Why The Perfect Pillows Make For A Comfortable Home

Reinvent any space in your home with throw pillows! There are numerous prints, patterns, fabrics and colors to choose from, which makes choosing the right pillow a fun lighthearted experience. You’ll have ample choices at La Maison Interiors in Scottsdale as we have all the latest fabrics, prints and patterns to accompany your luxury furniture. How do you choose the right pillows for your home? Where is the best place to put decorative pillows? Who will be using them, and how often do you want to clean them? It’s best to have a plan in place with so many options out there!

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Pillows are aesthetically pleasing, and accentuate the existing elements of your home, while pillows also create a comfortable and inviting atmosphere. If you plan on using your throw pillows rather than as a decorative addition you will want easy fabric to clean rather than silk or chenille. Accent neutral tones with bright colors and bold patterns or prints. Monochromatic combinations produce a more masculine and modern aesthetic, while neutral toned pillows are perfect for transitional spaces. Infuse your personal style into this purchase, as you have a lot of freedom when choosing pillows for your home. 

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Buying a set of pillows that incorporate the existing elements of your home, while infusing new elements will update the look and feel immediately. Pillows meant for show often have intricate patterns, embellishments such as beading or studs, or a pattern that is simply too pretty to rest your elbow on.

Size and purpose should be a priority! Who will use them the most? Where do you plan on placing them—the family room or a more formal sitting room? If you’re looking for comfortable pillows make sure the fabric is soft but machine wash ready. Chenille, satin, silk and velvet appear luxurious and often reflect when sunlight shines on the fabric. There are numerous shapes and sizes as well! Throw pillows come in a variety of shapes, but the most common being 16 to 18 inches square. Add visual interest with rectangular, circular or cylinder pillows, known as bolsters for extra pizzazz.

pillows redThink about scale! Bigger sofas call for larger pillows, while small daintier sofas with a more delicate construction call for tinier pillows. Bolster pillows are a perfect addition for leather sofas or those without upholstered arms. If the sofa has harsh edges opt for circular pillows to soften its appearance. It works the same for slouchy larger sofas—opt for square or rectangular pillows too add structure to the sofa. Be daring! Do not be afraid to experiment with your pillow purchases! This is one area of interior design that allows for complete individuality! Inject your personal taste in this purchase and you will be much happier with your choices.

pillow3Fabric is so important and the most fun to shop for! There are numerous choices, but the most common and easiest to maintain are cotton, linen and polyester while satin, silk and velvet are more luxurious. All of which offer a different aesthetic to a space. Cotton is the easiest to clean, but it wrinkles and shrinks if dried in high heat. Linen is more expensive but appears fresh and crisp for a modern yet elegant look. Polyester is more durable, but often appears artificial, but this will be your cheapest most commonly found fabric option. Satin and silk are luxurious and offer a metallic sheen when light reflects off it—totally in this season! Velvet and chenille is all the rage right now as Old Hollywood Regency design is making a comeback.

Take a look at your home and decide if you want to update the existing elements or reinvent your home’s décor. Thankfully, pillows are lightweight and easily interchangeable, which makes your shopping trip one to look forward to! Switch out patterns and prints as the seasons change, and completely update the look and feel of any space in your home. Visit our showroom in Scottsdale and take a look at numerous fabrics, prints and patterns that are sure to change any room in your home from drab to fabulous! Have fun with it!

Why a Dreamy Bedroom Promotes Better Sleep

Your bedroom should be a place to relax and unwind. Soft and comfortable fabrics, light neutral tones, plush furniture and luxurious bedding are just a few of the necessary components needed to create an inviting and serene bedroom. Choose your overall design concept to decide on all the details, but don’t forget the luxury furniture. A bedroom should reflect the homeowner’s style; romantic getaway for two, clean and modern to match the style of the home or rugged and moody for a masculine aesthetic. Whatever the design aesthetic may be the furnishings, fabric and color scheme will answer to your chosen theme.

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The most important choice you will make when designing a dreamy bedroom is where the focal point will reside. Most homeowners choose the headboard as the main focus of the room as every other element works with the headboard. There are many different types of headboards to choose from, but to achieve a luxurious and dreamy bedroom look upholstered headboards soften the space immediately. In comparison to a wooden or iron headboard, tufted fabric headboards immediately create a sense of luxury. Headboards also add height to the space reinforcing a lavish look and feel.photo 2 (2)

Fabric choice is important when choosing the right headboard. Begin with your choice of color. Light neutral tones promote relaxation while keeping with a modern design aesthetic. A darker colored headboard will immediately draw your eyes towards it, while lighter colors blend with the rest of the room. The fabric you choose is often the most fun yet most difficult part of choosing the right headboard for your space.

Stay within your chosen aesthetic and run with it. Soft, romantic, feminine colors call for simple timeless fabrics. Classic fabric often works best in a bedroom geared towards a clean and modern design while luxurious fabrics such as velvet or suede lend towards a more ornate and over the top look and feel. A bedroom with a leather headboard is perfect for a man’s bedroom that wants to keep a classic look with a touch of elegance.

Outfitting the area around the headboard is just as important as the headboard itself. Decide what type of activities you will be doing in your bedroom. If you are the type of person who likes to work or read in bed lighting is important. Choose the right lighting for your purposes. A reading lamp that attaches to your headboard, or built in recessed lighting above the headboard will do wonders for you at night. Pendant lighting offers a clean and modern aesthetic where as table lamps come in all shapes, colors and sizes giving you ample options to choose from. La Maison Interiors has ample options to outfit your dreamy bedroom design! From classic tufted headboards to opulent canopy four post frames for a traditional look and feel you will find what you’re looking for at La Maison Interiors in Scottsdale.

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