Easy Custom Furniture & Decor – Top Interior Design Trend

Accessible Custom Furniture and Décor Is the Next Big Interior Design Trend

But how does it work for you? Gone are the days when you literally had to build your own furniture in order to get something you truly wanted.

But gone too, are the days when you had to send out your whole living room set to have it recovered. Now you have accessible custom upholstery online and at your digital fingertips from a store like Ballard – even if you want to use fabric from another store.

What is Custom and What is COM Upholstery?

• Custom upholstered furniture: You order the furniture piece in one of the fabrics offered by the manufacturer.
• COM upholstered furniture: (Customers Own Material) You send in your own fabric and the manufacturer uses it when making your particular piece.
• For true customizing, check the product’s potential for use of multi-fabrics and nail heads too!

Whether you know exactly what you want or just want some guidance with a new design choice, it’s easy to get inspired. You can be creative with custom finishes in Italian hand-crafted furniture, or in your own home office design, or the perfect monogrammed accents for your home.

When you’re even a tiny bit particular, customizing your interior furnishings is absolutely the right way to go!

How to Get Perfect Comfy Chairs – You Choose the Softest Fabric!

With so many styles to choose from, picking the right chair for your home can be overwhelming. From relaxed to formal, leather or upholstered, upright to laid back, you want to make sure you’re investing in just the right piece while maintaining style and comfort.

When choosing a chair for your room, there are many factors to consider, but in the end it all comes down to function. How are you going to be using it? Whether it’s used for lounging, reading, or as extra seating, the way you interact with your chair every day will determine the type of chair you need.

Always make sure your chair will fit its new space. If choosing a recliner, is there enough room for it to fully extend? If you have an open floor plan or the chair is going somewhere you’ll be overlooking it, choose one with a lower back to make the space feel more open. A low-back sofa or chair is also great for placing in front of a window.

Depth is going to determine whether you’re more upright for reading or leaned way back for TV watching. For a formal room, you’ll want something more upright. For lounging and watching TV, go for a chair that’s more relaxed. If you’re looking for a chair to float in a room, choose one with a rounded back.

The final feature of your chair that you should consider is the type of fabric or leather. We love performance fabric because it will withstand all of your messes and cleans easily. Linen has a very casual vibe, but it can snag and stretch out. Leather is great because it’s durable, wipeable, and looks better with age. You can also send in your own fabric for any of our custom upholstery. Be sure to check our guidelines to be sure you’re sending the right amount of upholstery fabric your project will need.

Create Kid Friendly Sofas for Real Kids or 4-legged Ones

For us, function trumps everything – what if you could have your furry friend, kids, and a great looking sofa? That means reimagined spaces where nothing is off-limits, not even lighter colored pieces! Thanks to our assortment of performance fabrics, that white sofa becomes a reality.

When it comes to shedding, microfiber, performance fabrics, and leather are the best fabrics to counter the endless fur battles. Consider choosing a sofa in a similar color as your pet mask hair, so lighter colored fabrics for your white Maltese, and darker shades for your black Labrador.

In addition to upholstery, another thing to consider when buying a sofa when you have pets is what shape makes the most sense. If you want to discourage a dog or cat who loves to sit (and squish) the back cushions of your sofa, consider a tight back sofa. You won’t need to constantly be fluffing and arranging cushions and pillows!

Washing cushion covers makes accidents from pets and kids easy, and if you know you’ll want to throw cushion covers in the wash, consider a three cushion sofa instead of a bench seat. It’s far easier to remove and wash a smaller cushion cover than one that’s super long!

Especially don’t rule out leather when you have children or pets. While the look and feel of leather is luxe, it’s actually super family-friendly. Leather is incredibly durable and holds up quite well to pets. It’s easy to wipe down and hair doesn’t stick to leather like some other fabrics, so your style can remain elevated while still being comfortably lived-in.

Lastly, don’t be afraid to pair leather chairs and ottomans with sofas covered in performance fabrics.  The varying textures and fabrics play well with each other and make for a perfectly sophisticated room.

Customize Your Décor with Wallpaper

One of the easiest ways to wake up your space is by wrapping your walls with wallpaper. We love how wallpaper can completely transform a room, especially a smaller space like laundry room or bathroom. If you’re worried about the application of wallpaper, modern, removable wallpaper is easy to apply, smooth/effortless to remove, and absolutely stylish. Not only does it brighten a room with personality and color, it transforms it into a focal point.

Make Lamp & Shade Combinations that Say “You”

Picking the perfect shade for your table or floor lamp is all about scale, style, and supporting your lamp base. So it has to fit the place and occasion, complement without overwhelming, and draw just enough attention to be noticed. While it may be intimidating, learning how to measure a lamp for a shade will guarantee the perfect outcome.

The first thing you do when you’re trying to choose the right lamp shade is to look at your lamp. What’s the general shape?

• If your base is round, then a round shade usually works best.
• A square or angular silhouette tends to look better with a square shade.

Of course, there are always exceptions to any decorating rule – candlestick lamps, with their combination of curves and angles, can handle just about any shape. And, if your lamp is square and your table is round, a round shade can complement both.

So now that you know your lamp base shape, it’s time to grab a tape measure. Here are our guidelines for how to measure a lamp for a shade:

• Your shade should be about two-thirds the height of your lamp base (give or take an inch).
• Proportion is the key – too tall and the effect will be top heavy, but too short and your lamp will look out of balance.
• Just like a slip, you never want your harp to show. So if your lamp sits on a mantel or close to eye level, this is especially important.

To choose the right lamp shade width, measure your lamp base and multiply by two. For a round base, measure straight across; measure diagonally for a square base. The widest part of your shade should be at least a half-inch wider than the widest part of your base on each side. And when you’re considering width, don’t forget location. So if your lamp is going next to a bed or in a busy hallway, pick a narrower shade to avoid flying elbows.

When it comes to choosing the right lamp shade material, it all depends on what you want your lamp to do. Translucent shades of sheer fabric, paper or alternative materials are great for reading and adding ambient light to your room. But opaque shades of silk, thick parchment or laminated card will direct light in defined, up-and-down beams, perfect for highlighting objects and setting a mood.

Now we’re talking fashion. Smooth shades say cool, refined and contemporary. But pleats are cozier, more traditional and tend to pair well with antiques. And custom details like embroidery, decoupage and paint can transform your lampshade from accessory into a show-stopping focal point. Add your own personal style with lighting accessories like finials, cord covers, crystals and more.

Enjoy Light & Livable Custom Furniture & Décor

This Fall we will be debuting our new Light and Livable Collection. Stay tuned as we introduce light and airy accent pieces, natural wood finishes, artisanal bedding, and so much more.

Make it Really Belong – Monogram it!

Adding a monogram can instantly make any item feel more personal. We love monogramming because it adds a charming touch any piece. You can find initials embroidered, printed or etched on just about anything, from linens to totes to wallpaper.

The option to add your own logo—which is, essentially, what a monogram is—is widely available (and inexpensive, too) for a variety of items. So the next time you’re buying something special for yourself or for someone else, put a monogram on it.