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The lighting inside your South Side Flats apartment has a big impact on how satisfied you are with your space. Light affects mood, energy level, and comfort, and using the wrong type of lighting or using lighting that's too harsh or too dim can make you dread coming home. Get the right light for the job by following a few simple rules:
Multiple, Smaller Light Sources Trump a Single, Bright Overhead
To make a space feel warm and cozy, position several lamps around the room to liven up dark corners and highlight key areas. This eliminates the need for a harsh overhead light with a high-wattage bulb. A desk lamp to provide task lighting, paired with a floor lamp in the corner and ambient lighting from a window make for a well-lit and inviting room.
Adjustable Lighting Is Best for Dallas Apartments
Dimmer switches and three-way bulbs are simple ways to customize the mood of a room. Take your space from brightly lit and energetic to dark and romantic in seconds, just by pressing a button or tugging on a chain. From lights that dim, to moveable lamp heads that are easily repositioned, investing in customizable light fixtures just makes life at home that much cozier.
Bulbs Matter
All bulbs are not created equal. In fact, the type of bulb you're using in your apartment has a huge impact on light quality in the room. You're probably most familiar with CFL, or compact fluorescent bulbs. These are the spiral-shaped bulbs that are touted for their high energy efficiency and long life. They cast a warm color-corrected light, but are more difficult to dispose of once they burn out.
Incandescent bulbs are inexpensive to buy but don't last as long as CFLs. They too cast a warm light when used in a lamp or overhead fixture. They can also be used on a dimmer.
If you're searching for the perfect apartments in Dallas, come see us at South Side Flats today. Our apartments feature light and airy floor plans that are easy to illuminate and that you're going to love. We invite you to swing by and discover an architecturally significant, modern home in the artsy, culturally diverse, historic Cedars neighborhood today!
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Are you looking for ways to add some life to your apartment home? Do so with a few indoor greenery-plants! Consider using the following houseplants in your space.
HOUSEPLANTS FOR YOUR APARTMENT
There are many varieties of plants that are well-suited for apartment life. For example, succulents and cacti are like little mini sculptures that make an attractive assemblage. You can easily mix the different, round, shiny succulents and cacti in neutral pots and add a backdrop to highlight the matte and purple leaves of these plants. It’s easy to stage a still life with these plants. Just line them up on any table or floating shelf.
Create a towering mobile tree in your apartment. For example, you can pot a tall fiddle-fig tree and set it on a bluestone and wheeled caddy from a landscaping center. This way, you can easily move it out of the way when it’s time to vacuum. And if you like blooms, considering putting a few orchid plants in your apartment. Just be sure to keep the pot on gravel in a glass cylinder to keep in moisture.
TOPIARIES AND FERNS
And don’t forget about those grand lollipop topiaries. They add a classical and conservatory charm to any apartment. Set them up in a row on a console or narrow table. These informal plants don’t even need direct sunlight.
Instead of a bedside lamp, trade it in with a rich, leafy fern. These plants look regal and turn the bedroom into an enchanted forest. You can even hang them from the ceiling of the bedroom with removable hooks. Let your imagination go wild. For instant lushness, stuff multiple plants into one container and place it in a corner. Not only do plants spruce up any apartment, they add more oxygen to the air so you’ll be breathing healthier.
Our apartments in Dallas are the ideal habitats to add plants because of the great weather. Plants fit well in our apartments and fit well with the vibe of South Side Flats, located in downtown Dallas. Our architecturally significant, modern homes are in the artsy, culturally diverse, historic Cedars neighborhood. Give us a call today to learn more about South Side Flats.
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One of the easiest ways to make your Dallas, Texas, apartment look warm and inviting, as well as adding a personal touch, is to decorate with books. Books are not only affordable, but add color, are very portable and help showcase your individuality. Books are not just suitable for shelves and bookcases. There is a myriad of other ways to decorate with books.
WAYS TO USE BOOKS TO DECORATE YOUR APARTMENT
Stack them for a unique end table. Larger books, such as art books and coffee table books, can be stacked at right angles to form a side table. You can add a piece of glass or plexiglass on top of the stack to help protect the top book.
Hang open books on the wall as book art. Another interesting way to use books is to hang open books on your wall using removable hooks. This is an especially attractive idea if you have books with illustrations in them.
Go monochromatic. Make your books on the shelves eye-catching by grouping books with similarly colored dust jackets together. You can do an entire shelf in a single tone or use a complementary or contrasting color on alternate shelves.
Build a holiday tree. For the holiday season, consider building a tree out of books. To get started, make a circle by angling books so that the spines are facing outward. Then, add the second, the third, and subsequent rows by edging in just a few inches until you are just able to place a single book on top. You can make the tree even more festive by adding lights.
Frame some of your book dust jackets. If you are lucky enough to have a few first editions, you might want to protect the dust jackets while adding interest to your walls by framing the dust jackets and hanging them. If you don’t have any vintage first editions, don’t worry. Any colorful dust jacket with eye-catching graphics will work.
Our architecturally significant, modern homes are located in the artsy, culturally diverse, historic Cedars neighborhood. To learn more about our Dallas apartments, contact us today!
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‘Tis the season for summer decorating in your Dallas apartment. With the new season comes a wide array of new summer colors and color trends to keep your apartment looking fashionable for the entire season. Whether you are just updating your current look or starting with a whole new decorating scheme, consider these four summer color trends when decorating.
ICE CREAM COLORS
The summer season is all about staying cool, and one of the new color trends this year is choosing some cool ice cream colors that remind you of warm, carefree days hanging out at the local ice-cream shop. Colors like Retro Peach, Coral Wisp, and Ladylike evoke these nostalgic colors and are perfect for a full-room color or used as an accent piece.
OMBRÉ PATTERNS
While the ombré look has become an increasingly popular trend in hair color, it is now a popular choice in home decor. An ombré effect used on throw pillows and bedding is a great way to add a unique look and incorporate multiple shades of your favorite color. One of the most popular colors used with ombré patterns for the summer seasons are shades of gray.
BOLD PRIMARY COLORS
Bold and bright colors are more standard trends during the summer months, but this season the focus on the type of colors is a more primary color palette. Some of the most popular colors of the season are Nail Polish Red, Cobalt Blue, Exotic Orange, and Sunshine Yellow. These colors are best incorporated as accents with neutral colors or with statement pieces such as furniture or artwork.
GLITTERING GOLD
While the trend in metallics made its comeback last year, this year it is all about the glittering gold. The color is not only popular with accent metal pieces but also as a color itself. Many designers are incorporating gold in everything like throw rugs to bring a bold metallic feel to any design.
Try these summer trends when decorating your apartment for the season. If you are looking for an architecturally significant, modern apartment home in the artsy, culturally diverse, historic Cedars neighborhood to decorate for the coming summer months, contact South Side Flats to check out our available floor plans.
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Travel is great for getting to explore new places and discover new experiences. But traveling, the part of actually getting from point A to the new place you plan to explore, is not so great. And easily the worst part is lugging around heavy bags, as well as the fees airlines are charging for you to spend the entire flight hoping they won’t lose your suitcase. And who hasn’t had the unpleasant experience of deciding to forgo checked bags, only to end up trying to cram an overstuffed carry-on into the overhead bin, while a line of impatient people stand behind you waiting to get to their seat? Well, it doesn’t have to be this way. By following a few guidelines, you too can breeze through your travels with just a small, light bag. And the best part? You don’t have to compromise on style when you give up the excess baggage.
TIPS FOR STAYING STYLISH WHILE TRAVELING LIGHT
- Wear workout clothes on the plane: Athletic wear has become more stylish as of late. Why not show off some new fitness gear while en route, and stay super comfortable while in transit? That’s one less outfit you’ll have to worry about packing.
- Choose colors strategically: Stick to three colors that complement each other so that you can mix and match items easily to create several outfits and looks from only a few pieces. When choosing your colors, think of where you’re going. For major cities like New York, Chicago, Paris and Tokyo, charcoal, black and navy are great choices. For tropical locales, white and a couple of bright options like orange or red can be real winners.
- Dress up flexibly: If your trip calls for a special occasion outfit, don’t get bogged down in lugging all the accouterments of your regular formal wear. Choose something simple and lightweight, that can be paired with other items for less dressy outings on the same trip. A slip dress, bold earrings and heeled sandals can work perfectly for women, while men can often skip the full suit, instead choosing a blazer, white shirt and slacks that can pull double (or triple) duty during the trip.
It’s great to travel light, but it’s also pretty nice to have your full wardrobe at your fingertips. What’s even better is when you have the right closet so everything has its own place and is well organized. Fortunately, our Dallas apartments offers the perfect solutions for staying chic, from a shoe lover’s closet to a master bathroom with double sinks. To learn more about our many amenities and our architecturally significant, modern homes in the artsy, culturally diverse, historic Cedars neighborhood, give our office a call.
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After a long stressful day, all you probably want to do is head home, sit on the couch, and relax. Unfortunately, for many residents of our apartments in Dallas, the stress and worries of the day tend to follow them home, consume their thoughts and make it nearly impossible to relax. That is why meditation, when done properly, can prove helpful as it can help you let go of negative or stressful thoughts.
Interested in learning how to properly meditate? The following three tips will help you learn all you need to get started meditating.
GET AS COMFORTABLE AS POSSIBLE
Getting comfortable before you start meditating allows you to fully focus on your breathing and thoughts. How you get comfortable for meditation is up to you as everyone’s definition of comfortable is different.
Some suggestions on how to get comfortable for meditation include:
Create a comfortable space on a couch or chair
Lie down on the floor in a comfortable position
Get into a pair of your favorite pajamas
Wear yoga clothes or a favorite t-shirt
Wear a cooling eye mask or restorative eye pillow
Use aromatherapy candles or essential oils to create a relaxing and calming environment
DON’T FORCE YOUR BREATH
Meditation is all about learning how to connect with your breathing. Don’t try to force your breath to conform to a certain rhythm or pace. Instead, just breathe as naturally as possible and go with the flow.
DON’T EXPECT TO MEDITATE FOR HOURS ON END AS A BEGINNER
It is unrealistic to expect to be able to meditate for hours on end as a beginner. Beginners should start by meditating for two to four minutes. Once you feel comfortable meditating for four minutes, you can add additional time.
Choose to make South Side Flats your new home and you will have the perfect place to practice meditation. With the right decorative decor and furniture, the spacious living room or bedrooms in our luxury Dallas apartments can be transformed into a relaxing and calming space that is perfect for meditation. Schedule a private tour and come see our architecturally significant, modern apartment homes in the artsy, culturally diverse, historic Cedars neighborhood for yourself. Call our office today to schedule an appointment for a tour.
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When people think of spring cleaning, they often think of refreshing all of the bed linens, cleaning rugs and giving the kitchen a good clean out. What tends to get neglected is cleaning the desk. But as we’re likely to spend a good deal of time sitting at our desks, it’s one of the most important spots to make sure is clean and organized so we can most enjoy getting our work done.
HOW TO SPRING CLEAN YOUR DESK
1. Clear off the clutter: First thing is first, and that’s clearing your desk of all of that stuff. Don’t get bogged down in organizing it yet. That’s probably what has kept you from cleaning out your desk sooner, the thought of organizing all those piles. For right now, just make a tidy pile and then move on to the next step.
2. Clean off the surfaces: A dusty workspace does not encourage you to spend time there. So get out the rags or paper towels and clean all of the surfaces. Don’t forget about your electronics. A microfiber cloth is great for cleaning off screens, and compressed air is great for keyboards. And go deep. Get the drawers neat. If there’s a bunch of stuff in there, take it out, and put it in the pile of disorganized stuff. If you’re already happily organized with your drawers, then remove the things, clean it, and replace them as they were.
3. Make the space you want: Before you start organizing, consider your space and how you’ve been using it. Often, things just kind of fall into a pattern, and it’s often not the pattern that you want or that’s most beneficial to getting work done. Think about what projects you most want to get done, and how your workspace can contribute to you being more effective. Some tips on how to organize your workspace:
Good lighting: Make sure that you have adequate lighting that is comfortable for your eyes.
Labeling: Any folders, boxes and drawers should have labels to keep you well organized.
Shelving: Often times vertical space is underutilized. Think of installing shelves above your desk to keep papers or resources that you use regularly, keeping them in sight and easy to grab.
Plants: You want to keep knickknacks to a minimum but a plant can literally breathe new life into your workspace, filling the air with oxygen. If there’s a quote or image that you find inspiring, clip it, frame it and put it on or above your desk.
4. Get organized: Now that you’ve set up your workspace exactly as you’d like it, it’s time to organize all that stuff. In choosing how you’d like your space to be, it will be much easier to decide where things go, and also what you really need. Now is the time to get rid of whatever you don’t need. Be brutal. Do you really need paper copies of everything or can you digitize some of your records?
You know what they say about all work and no play. Our Dallas apartments are the best place to get the job done and enjoy the good life. Our architecturally significant, modern homes are in the artsy, culturally diverse, historic Cedars neighborhood. When you need a change of scenery for doing work, take advantage of our Apple powered business center. And after work’s done, relax on the sun deck by the swimming pool, enjoy our many events for residents or sit by the fireplace in our Skyline Lounge and catch up on your favorite TV shows. To learn more about our many amenities, schedule a tour.
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One of the biggest reasons for the feeling of being overworked is a lack of efficiency. This causes it to require more effort and time to accomplish things that could be done with much less friction. Here are some tools to help you improve your workflow so that you can spend more time enjoying your life.
EMAIL CONTROL
With more and more sites urging people to sign up for emails, it’s easy to end up with an overwhelming number of subscriptions. Unsubscribing from all of them can be tedious if you have to fish through all of your mail to find them. Use the site Unroll.me to have all of your subscriptions put into a neatly-ordered list, which you can then scroll through to easily find the ones you want to unsubscribe from.
LEARN THINGS QUICKLY
Blinkist, an app, is the modern “CliffsNotes” of nonfiction books. Even better, it’s an audio-book version. It will read summaries of the key points of over 2,000 books to you. The books are condensed into 15-minute capsules to make it easy for you to learn their actual lessons during short breaks in your day.
DISTRACTION CONTROL
The biggest time-wasters of the day aren’t tasks, but distractions from them. Whether you get sucked into social media, games or YouTube videos, the end result is the same: The whole day can go by without getting anything productive accomplished. Control these distractions with RescueTime, an app that monitors your device usage, gives you a report, and can temporarily block particularly distracting sites so that you can get back to more important things.
ORGANIZE YOUR THOUGHTS, LISTS, AND MORE
Sometimes, the best solution isn’t the latest invention. Instead, it’s something that is very much time-tested. Post-It notes are more versatile than any one app because they’ll hold any information that you can fit on them. Use them to jot down spontaneous ideas, shopping lists, reminder notes, and more. Their ability to be posted anywhere ensures that your notes will always be right where you need them.
When you use these and other tools to increase your efficiency, you’ll find that you have more time for yourself. Check out our apartments in Dallas for a great place to spend those extra hours. Our architecturally significant, modern apartment homes are located in the artsy, culturally diverse, historic Cedars neighborhood. Call us to learn more!
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