How To: De-Clutter Your Log Home | Interior Design for Log Homes

De-cluttering your log home need not be a challenge—or a budget buster. Mix your own sense of style with these professional design tips for a house you can affectionately call "home."

Re-Design, Reuse, Rearrange

One of the easiest and no-cost ways to freshen your home is to utilize what you have and re-design the space. Rearrange your furniture to take advantage of sunny rooms and shorter days. If you are in your home more often in the evenings, consider a cozier grouping by the fireplace or create a mini seating area closer to the warm smells of the kitchen. Exchange artwork from one room to another, along with some lamps and maybe some accent pillows and voilà! A new space is born.

Change Your Design (and Color Scheme!) with the Seasons

Rustic homes typically are full of the color "brown". There are lots of wood, often leather pieces and other neutral tones in the brown family found in walls, floors and natural stone products. These hues may not be the most eye-catching, but the natural tones serve as a serene backdrop for rotating seasonal interior design. Imagine your home as rotating stage for your decor that evolves over three seasons—winter, spring/summer and holiday.

Take note of seasonal changes, and alter your interior designing plan accordingly. The relaxing hues Mother Nature flashes are the colors you should aim to reflect in your home's interior. What are some practical applications for this in your home? Well, start in the great room.

For Great Rooms

If you have a hard surface floor, warm it up with an area rug in a deep hue. Try layering a new one over the old one. Accent your upholstered pieces with some soft, warm, textured pillows and throws. Create an inviting tablescape on your coffee table with a few feel-good books, some hefty jar candles that you actually use and a bowl filled with seasonal goodies like pinecones, twigs and dried berries. Or move the coffee table into another room and swap it with an oversized ottoman topped with a fun serving tray. Aren't you feeling more relaxed already?

For Bathrooms

Don't forget about your master and half-baths as well when designing your home in the first quarter of the year. Candles or automatic air fresheners mask stale winter air. Add a splash of color with some new towels. Reds, greens and chocolate browns are good choices to experiment with. Not looking for the typical pine cone themed bathroom? Glam it up tastefully with some silver or pewter wall sconces and a towel rack with an electric towel warmer. Mercury glass is hot this year- so if you are lucky enough to own a vintage piece- now's the time to use it.

You can find many other simple mercury glass vases in your local home décor store or online. Create a simple and unexpected arrangement with some twigs and other seasonal dried or synthetic materials. Keep in mind your geographic location and time of year. A magnolia in winter in Montana will look out of place and unnatural.

For Bedrooms

Enliven a bedroom by either changing or adding simple long solid-colored drapery panels that puddle on the floor. This works best if your everyday bedding is neutral or has a pattern. Take the deepest color in the pattern for your drapery color.

Add a few coordinating toss pillows on the bed, but not too many. Any more than three to five and they may end up on the floor every night. Infuse a little extra evening drama with a small lamp on your dresser or accent table. Hang an oversized mirror across from a natural light source to reflect more daylight into the room. Lay down a textured rug on the floor like a flokati. These long-fibered rugs can be natural or synthetic and have a deep warm pile you could almost lose your slippers in!

Final Thought

Re-designing your space for the changing seasons is simple once you break the overall task down into small, easily-managed projects. Call on a trusted interior designer, or ask a friend for a referral if you need an extra hand or desire a new perspective on your home. Often working with a designer can actually save you money and time by helping you sort through the myriad of choices available today. Your home can always be a space that's warm, inviting and a wonderful and relaxing respite - no matter what the changing seasons bring.