2009 Frugal Decorating Trends

We have been downsizing our furniture and accessories since we had our daughter. We needed a child friendly environment, and I needed to reduce my cleaning time by having less surface areas to dust. The formal gave way to minimalist casual.

Some of the new furniture we purchased was rattan with ethnic prints from World Market. The comfort factor coupled with the durability and low price sold me. Coincidentally, this year's home design trends are ethnic inspired with natural materials and finishes. Furniture is also smaller in scale and colors are the softest neutral tone with gray(the new neutral) - my favorite! Not only is the decorating trend going toward the more affordable, it's leaning toward the simple and practical. Soft neutrals and grays are timeless, don't need to be updated, and are easy to accessorize with the trendy.

Color predictions for 2010: "Shoppers don’t want to risk spending money on a trendy color.  Colors in this palette include Taupe Gray, Silver Gray, Charcoal Gray, Tea and Champagne Beige and Angora.  The Color Association predicts gray will be THE color of the season.  To keep rooms from being too cold, think natural influences like Zinc, Stone, Mica, Silt and bring those textures and warmer tones of gray into your rooms."  A gray green is a very soothing naturalistic color. We've got our master bathroom done in this color.

These new ethereal window treatments(made in India) for our den were exactly as they were described - privacy, but diffused light. I'd like to get some more. They were incredibly easy to hang - just tie them on a rod. At under $14.00 per pair, these are a bargain! They are relatively wide. A pair of these sheers covers my patio doors.