Hawaiian Decorating - Make Your Home An Island Retreat

Tropical beaches, clear blue ocean, sunny sand filled beaches, palm trees, these are all things that typically come to mind when someone says Hawaiian. If you would like to create a Hawaiian style in your home, you want to think breezy and open. This would be the typical feel to a home or room in Hawaii.

To begin with, it you're painting the walls, you will want a white or other bright and open color. The earthy tones that you might find elsewhere will not be found here. For Hawaii, we want to think of openness and white walls will help create that feel. If they are painted a color at all, make sure that color is bright without reaching into the neon categories. A soft, bright yellow or green may also create the open feel you're trying to achieve. Doorways and moldings should be a rich brown such as an oak or cherry. These will contrast nicely with the painted walls while keeping the open feeling in the room.

Decorative touches should include some sort of large green plant. If you can do a palm inside this would be perfect. Another nicely large and green plant would be the elephant plant. This has large broad leaves and can grow several feet tall. This will further add to the tropical feel that you've already created through the use of paint on the walls. Other accessories may include shells that could have easily come from the beach, light, airy curtains that can sway in a breeze with an open window, and pineapple shaped glasses in the kitchen or other pineapple shaped kitchen appliances or utensils.

This style of home should be furnished with a heavy use of bamboo, wicker, and/or rattan. The use of this type of furniture will encourage the light, airy feel you're trying to achieve. This tropical atmosphere will be completed with the use of this type of furniture. The furniture can be painted white or it can be in its natural state of wood. Either way, this addition will help to complete the Hawaiian look.

Ceiling fans whose blades are shaped like palms are a nice touch when creating the Hawaiian decor. You can find them in stores like Home Depot, Lowes, or any retail hardware store that carries ceiling fans. These fans can be used indoors in a kitchen or dining room as well as outside under a canopy. This type of fan would make a great finishing touch.

The Hawaiian feel is one of relaxation and enjoyment. In order to create this feel in your home short of moving to Hawaii, use the above tips. You'll feel like you're on the beaches soaking up the sun in no time.

Article Source: ArticlesBase.com
Author: Lee Dobbins

Design A Perfect Escape With Hawaiian Bedding

There is nothing more exciting than going on an exotic vacation to Hawaii. As much as you would love to stay  forever, it is probably just not possible. However, you can bring the islands home with you through a bedroom makeover. Create the look and feel of Hawaii in your home with special accents like shells, art, and Hawaiian bedding.

You might want to limit your tropical home makeover to just your bedroom or you could extend it throughout the house. Look for special souvenirs in Hawaii that you can bring home to commemorate your trip. Then you can spread them from room to room or in one special space such as your bedroom.

When making over a bedroom, start by taking a close look at your walls. Consider adding wall paper or a new paint color. Soft ocean blues or neutral sand tones are good choices for paint. You could also use a sponge to give more texture to the walls and create movement similar to the constant ebb and flow of the ocean waves.

Make sure you choose bright tropical bedding that reminds you of Hawaii's tropical landscapes. You could use a graphic floral print or a subtle ocean life pattern. Whatever you choose, make sure that it gives you the calming effect that you experienced on your trip to the islands. You should also make sure it doesn't clash with the wall color.

Add art to your walls by hanging photographs from your trip to the islands. You could have them enlarged or printed in black and white to change the look. Hang them in groupings to create a display of art work that you created on your own. Another idea would be to hang shadow boxes full of souvenirs.

You could display postcards, dried flowers, or special shells that remind you of your trip to Hawaii. Some people collect shells as they walk by the ocean and if that is something you enjoy, display your collection is a set of glass jars or vases. You could also hang posters displaying Hawaiian landscape.

Remember to add simple touches like window treatments to bring the design together. Each special touch will make your tropical decor more welcoming and inviting. From rugs to curtains to Hawaiian bedding, each aspect of the room should remind you of an exotic vacation. As the room comes together, you will feel like you have stepped into a time machine and have the chance to visit Hawaii everyday when you come home.

Get Exotic In Your Bedroom With Hawaiian Bedding

By decorating your bedroom with Hawaiian bedding you can create a wonderful feeling of the sun, surf and sand of a luxurious Hawaiian beach. In most instances, Hawaiian bedding involves the use of colors and images that evoke thoughts of the wonders of island culture. And so, this means that you may want to incorporate items that feature swaying palm trees, exotic blossoms and ocean waves.

You can even create a scene from the typical landscape of Hawaii and then translate this scene on to your bedding items and accessories including the comforter. As a matter of fact, using such landscapes you can also create suitable accents that will heighten the overall effect. To succeed in this requires only that you allow your imagination to take flight.

Consider adding inexpensive bamboo matting on the floors and you can transform your ceiling fan by adding palm leaf paddles which will create a wonderfully perfect Hawaiian atmosphere. It is important to focus on picking the right colors. In fact, all you need to do in this regard is pick the right palette for your tastes and which is typically Hawaiian as well.

On your shelves as well as on the headboard you can make use of surfboards which will augment the effect of your Hawaiian bedding items. And instead of using tiki torches you ought to use candles that can create the effect of a Hawaiian beach at sunset. Also it helps to make use of silken palm trees that can be placed in a corner in your bedroom and a wind chime can also be used in order to create melodious sounds.

Such tips are very easy to follow and will help in creating your perfect Hawaiian bedding set. Be sure to also allow your imagination to take free flight as this will help you in picking the right items. After that, your vision for island decor all depends on your ability to make your dreams come alive.