Home Decoration Bali Style
Tips & Ideas on furnishing and decorating for turning your house into a tropical home: Bali Style!
Using the home of a renown Malaysian writer as a background, the below article is about decorating your home in Balinese style. The house-owner writes in magazines related to homes and gardens for Karangkraf Publishing House. Karangkraft owns 28 magazines in Malaysia all related to homes and gardens, such as the hugely popular monthly magazines Impiana & Laman. Having visited hundreds of homes, shops, offices, showrooms and nurseries as part of her work, she has never stopped decorating and improving her home with decorations since becoming a homeowner 8 years ago. The house is filled with items that she found interesting while visiting these different places. You will notice the house is a blend of the modern and the traditional.
Tropical Balinese Style
The central theme of the home is Balinese living concept. As soon as you enter the gate, you feel like you are in a home on a tropical island such as Bali.
She loves Bali so much so she went to Bali recently to celebrate her last birthday.
The main gate has Balinese carvings with a metal frame and it runs on an electronic auto gate system.
You will notice that the house has two entrances, a large main entrance through which a car can be driven through and a much small entrance on the side. One of the reasons for having a small side entrance, other than convenience is tradition.
Traditionally Balinese people practiced communal living. Most people relative to each other lived next to each other, so they had two gates in every house. A main entrance with access to the main road and smaller side entrances that had access to the relatives’ homes. The doors are made from solid wood. Solid wooden doors have an old world charm and feel, and for all practical purposes last longer. As soon as you enter the house your senses are soothed by a feeling of coziness. Warm lightening and wall colors such as yellow and light brown makes a home cozy. On the other hand, the green paintings and green cushion covers make you feel fresh. Even the windows and doors are made with traditional color stained glass making the indoors colorful, naturally.
Living Room Furniture
Choosing the living furniture is important because it is used very often. Look at the lush green sofa, that appears to be soft and comfortable to sit on, it actually is very comfortable. A sofa has to be soft and comfortable to sit, yet its frame has to very strong for it to last long. Ask for warranty information when you purchase a sofa set or any furniture, anywhere. The wooden sofa is made using solid teak wood. Teak furniture becomes more elegant as it ages, turning into a lighter shade and could last forever. Check the website www.sofasets.com.my for more choices of sofa sets Having a coffe table that is elegant, strong and resistant to water is also important. Hot or cold beverages get spilled one day or the other. And having a glass top on it is the easiest way to protect your coffee table. If you read a lot, have a magazine rack, by the side of your sofa to put all your magazines and news papers inside. It also makes the home less messy and more organized.
Decorating your home with small deco items that are also meaningful as well as useful
Look at the picture of their family, they look so happy!. Having the family portrait helps to keep a family strongly together and reduce tension in the family. Place or hang the family portrait where it is clearly visible so that everyone can see it.
This lady's kids are young and loves playing outdoors too much, having board games like chess keeps the kids busy inside the home and makes them creative and smarter too.
A wooden bowl can be used to store and place all your remote controllers in a single place so that you dont have to scramble around every town you need to flip a channel.
Some of the things, you must keep in mind when making or renovating a new home
Wooden banisters on the stairs are cheap to get made yet look elegant. The elderly and the young children use the banisters for support while climbing the stairs.
Wooden banisters must be smoothly sanded and finished, otherwise minute wooden chips may piece and hurt your hands while holding it.
Use a plasterboard, thermocol or wooden ceiling to keep the indoors cool and to stop the outside heat from coming indoors. This home has a beautiful bamboo wood ceiling, that they use in some kampung homes. Wooden blinds keep the rain from getting inside and allows cool air to come in. They also provide cover and privacy in patio areas where curtains are not practical to use. The wooden skirting on the walls gives them a character and removes the emptiness often associated with walls. Wooden flooring gives a home natural beauty and is relatively easy to maintain.
Furnishing your garden
A garden could become a place for you to dine and enjoy with your family and also a place for calm and relaxation where you could find inspiration.
A fish pond with a small fountain brings life to your garden and makes it cool.
You can also have a gazebo or pergola for you to sit inside and have climber and creeper plants over it. Most creepers are flowering plants.
If you plan on dining in your garden, a gazebo with a teak wood or rattan dining set would be ideal. Dining sets come in all sizes and varieties. Teak dining sets have a beautiful look and feel but require maintenance. However wicker dining sets do not require much maintenance. It can be used to dine in your garden or just to relax. Horestco has a large collection of outdoor teak as well as wicker dining sets.
If Gazebo is too old-school for your garden or outside your budget, an outdoor umbrella would be a good replacement. Investing in a good quality outdoor umbrella is always a good investment especially when it protects you against sudden drizzle which is a common feature of weather in Malaysia. Having good quality fabric in the canopy also reduces your exposure to the harmful unltravoilet rays. Closing back the umbrella canopy every time after use can be tedious but it is necessary. No matter how good an umbrella is, it is always safer to close it after use, given the strong winds that blow suddenly in Malaysia.
Use foot massage files in your garden to walk around in the garden and to relax your feet muscles at the same time.
Finally a wind chime adds music to your garden and relaxes your mind.
