Master Zen
Designing your home based on Zen principles can give you a more relaxed and peaceful state of mind. Though you may not be familiar with the terms and quotes Zen masters recite, you can still give your home a slice of nirvana. Here are some tips you can follow in order to have that mystic eastern feel in your home.
What is Zen?
Zen can be very hard to understand for those who have just encountered it because they will usually encounter paradoxical questions such as "what is the sound of one hand clapping?" and phrases such as "To become the Buddha, you must kill the Buddha" which can easily confuse you. So what exactly is Zen then? Unfortunately, the ambiguity of Zen does not allow it to be pinpointed with a specific definition.
First of all, Zen is not a religion. This is because they do not have priests, scriptures, and dogmas that guide or determine what a Zen monk should do. Second, it is not a philosophy. Zen does not have any systematic form of presenting their ideas unlike your typical western philosophies. The best way to describe what Zen is that it is a state of mind that heightens our awareness to the here and now without relying fully on our opinions and ideas.
Zen interior decorating uses the harmonious interaction of space and form within your home or apartment. This gives you a more soothing and relaxed feel, giving you the great amount of rest which you deserve.
The Zen approach to interior decorating promotes minimalism. Zen uses the bare essentials within a dwelling and each item in the house has a specific use. The best colors to use to have that Zen touch in your home are earth tones such as brown. Lighting is also important for a Zen home, and this is achieved by letting more sunlight through large windows.
By letting the principles of Zen on light, space and function interact harmoniously within your home, you could have a happy home that is in-sync with nature and the world around you.Article Source: Max Bellamy
Eco Zen
When you consider hiring an interior designer to re-do your living space, you can easily make your home more eco-friendly without having to compromise your lifestyle preferences and furniture quality. Planning to include a green or environmental footprint in your home is possible without spending exorbitant amounts of money for a full renovation.
Choosing fabrics for your rooms
The fabrics you choose for your rooms play a major environmental part in keeping with your modern interior design ideas since natural elements such as wool, cotton, and silk are the more likely choices. In years past, when designers weren't as concerned with saving the environment, many homeowners would choose synthetic fabrics such as polyester or nylon which added to our global waste predicament and did a lot of harm to the environment.
Choosing flooring materials for your home
When you enter a room, one of the first things you'll notice are the floors, especially if they're hardwoods or covered with rugs or wall-to-wall carpeting. Although homeowners have a wide variety of flooring to choose from, the floors that are the most eco-friendly are cork, natural stone and materials. When you talk with your interior designer, he can also suggest other environmentally-safe materials or options to suit the size and location of your rooms.
Selecting new furniture
Although you might assume that wood furniture is environmentally desirable, you would do well to know that not every type of wood is suited for a "green" home (eco-friendly). For example, certain types of rare hardwoods, although natural looking, could take ten years of more to grow before they are cut from the land. Thus, if you want to keep the furniture in your home aligned with the new trend toward environmentally-friendly, you might wish to choose leather, bamboo, or rattan.
Determine which accessories will add character to your rooms
Interior designers have always said that accessories make the room, and give it the character that reflects your tastes, lifestyle and decorating preferences. To accessorize your rooms, look for items that were made from recycled materials, such as seashells, broken glass, scraps of fabrics, leftover wood or bark from trees, or lamps that are made of various objects that carry out the theme of your room. Accessories are one area where you can use your creativity to accentuate those things you truly like.
By choosing from this list of eco-friendly items to decorate your home, you will utilize modern interior design ideas that not only look good, but are safe for the environment.Article Source: Michael Mariott
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