Do you want to add organizational space to your home, but you’re not sure how? Maybe you already have plenty of bookshelves and storage bins, but you’re running out of floor and surface space to put them on. Where should you go from here?

Here are 10 helpful tips for adding more organizational space to your home, no matter its size. Think of how you apply these tips to organize your home this weekend.

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Before you place or even buy a security safe, you need to keep some practical considerations in mind. Whatever you choose to put in your safe, these items will be there for the explicit reason of maintaining their security. Beyond this, however, different locations offer different pros and cons. Here are three locations in your home to place a security safe depending on the size, contents, and weight.

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Handling Home Office Decor

Whether you’re an aspiring architect just out of college or an experienced professional, the home office is one of the most important parts of the home. Work seems less stressful if it’s being completed in a comfortable environment. Balancing style, cost, space management, and comfort can be difficult, but putting in some effort to visualize your ideal workspace can make a big difference in how much you’ll enjoy the end result.

Space is a Factor

If you don’t already know the exact dimensions of the room that is to become your home office, you should first take the time and note the measurements. Nothing is worse than buying a lot of office furniture, only to get home and realize that not all of it will fit. Know what you have to work with, then list the items you want to buy in a list in order of importance. Having both of these things in mind will help you make the right decisions when you begin purchasing.

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The modern or contemporary style of home design and interior decoration has become an increasingly popular topic in recent years. Some, however, might not know exactly what it means to have a “modern” style. Simply put, the aspects typically associated with the style accentuate simplicity, usefulness, and minimalism, all while giving the onlooker a sense that all of the separate parts come together, breathing refinement and genius.

Colors

While the “modern” style has been around for decades, there have been some slight changes in the evolution of color usage. Contemporary modern interior design focuses on stark contrasts of darks and lights, with highlights of loud color. Much like the concept of yin and yang, the contrasts add to each other to create balance.

Neutral colors can also be useful in floors, carpets and wall paints, but they shouldn’t be used for things like large sofas, which function more as “main attractions.”

Read our article on Basic Color Coordination here!

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Feng shui is an ancient Chinese system of arranging one’s dwelling to promote the flow of life energy (chi). The feng shui philosophy supposes that inhabitants derive much of their personal chi from their surroundings. If the energy flow within the environment is enhanced, it will create positive energy within the inhabitants. Home and office transformations based on feng shui principles are said to make occupants more productive, creative, happy, and healthy.

The ancient Chinese recognized five main types of chi energy, each of which served to inspire a different response in occupants of a space. These various types of chi forces are named: tree, fire, earth, metal, and water. Much of these life forces enter a room from the external world, depending on the position of the sun and a building’s windows and doors.  Chi can also be introduced into a room in the form of objects and colors. Occupants can, thus, manipulate a space to inspire a certain frame of mind they hope to achieve.

Below is a chart that shows the five chi energies, how they can be brought into an office space, and the corresponding states of mind they may induce in occupants. It also displays which energy each chi supports or bolsters. Altering an office area in accordance with some of these feng shui principles may enhance a worker’s sense of contentedness and creativity, and, thus, render him or her more productive.

Chi Addition Chart

	Exterior Source	Interior Color	Interior Object	Supports
Tree	Rising Sun - Enters through east	green, teal	wood, wicker, paper, bamboo	Fire
Fire	High Sun - Enters through south	red, orange, purple	fireplaces, candles	Soil
Earth/Soil	Sundown - Enters through southwest	brown, yellow	plaster, china, clay, bricks, ceramics, natural fibers	Metal
Metal	Sunset - Enters through west	white, metallic	metal, iron, silver, stainless steel	Water
Water	Night - Enters through north	blue, black	sinks, glass, aquariums, fountains	Tree

View an image version of this table to download or embed here.

Just as a person can choose to add different types of chi energy to a space, he or she can also cancel out or diminish various chi energies. When one starts to factor in diminishment, feng shui principals can get kind of complicated. For instance, bringing in too much water chi is going to destroy the effects of fire chi, and it’s going to calm the effects of a metal chi. The chart below illustrates which chi forces cancel out or diminish other chi forces.
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Spanish-style decorating is characterized by open-airy room layouts, rustic furnishings, rich fabrics, iron-work fixtures, colorful tiling with intricate designs, and inviting outdoor areas. During the early 20^th century, Spanish Colonial and Mission architecture experienced a revival, especially in Florida and California, as well as in other parts of the Southwest.

Architects renowned for these styles include Addison Cairns Mizner (high-end residences and resorts in South Florida) and Lillian Jeannette Rice (developed Rancho Santa Fe, California.) While not everyone can dwell in a true Spanish-inspired structure, they can have an interior that achieves the look and feel of a lovely hacienda.
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A well-placed area rug can be a piece of art in a living space. It can set a mood that is tranquil or vibrant. It can convey a sense of coziness or spaciousness. Functionally, it provides of bit of warmth for a home space. Here is a list of several ways an area rug can enhance a home.

Vibrant Pop of Color or Design

A multi-colored or geometric-designed area rug instantly becomes the focal point of a room when it is juxtaposed with solid-colored furniture.

Tone Down a Room

An area rug can have the opposite effect, serving to tone down a busy room. If a room has furniture with wild fabrics or highly ornate wallpaper, try toning it down a bit with an earth-colored area rug.

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