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Do you love Christmas lights and wish you could light up your apartment like some of the houses you see on TV? Your balcony gives you a great canvas to put on a display. Here are a few of the most common ideas.
Icicle Lights
Icicle lights are the simplest way to light up your balcony. Just get a string that matches the length of your balcony railing and run it along the top. Most people prefer white icicle lights since you're trying to make it look like hanging ice, but you can also choose from festive colors if that's your preference
Wrap the Railings
Instead of hanging lights from the top of your balcony railing, you may wish to make your railings themselves the focal point. Instead of fading into darkness at night, they become the display.
Simply wrap string lights around your railings. You can either just do the main beams or every single beam depending on how many lights you want. Remember that since you'll be wrapping the lights rather than running them straight, you'll probably need two to three times the length of lights that you would to go straight across the length of your balcony.
Net Lights
Net lights are mostly to cover bushes, but you can still put them to work on your balcony. Match them to the size of your railing, and use them like a screen. This gives you a simple way to cover your entire railing without having to arrange multiple strings of lights.
Use Pathway Lights
Stores almost always sell candy canes, small Christmas trees, and other festive decorations that stake into the ground next to a sidewalk. You can tie these to your balcony railing to create a more festive look beyond just simple string lights.
Don't Forget a Timer
With short winter days, you may be coming home after dark, and your neighbors might appreciate if you don't leave your lights on till 4 a.m. Get a solar sensor or clock-based timer to automatically adjust your lights.
To learn more about how our residents get ready for the holidays, stop by our Dallas, TX, apartments today. We'll be happy to give you a tour.
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Adding vintage decor is an easy, and inexpensive, to add a bit of personality to apartments in Dallas. But, finding the best pieces at the best prices takes a bit of hunting. Since you can’t simply pop down to the nearest home décor store, you’ll need to know where to look for authentic vintage items.
Ask family members
Before you start shopping, put out the word to family members that you are interested in decorating with vintage décor. You might be surprised at the treasures that aunts, uncles, and grandparents are willing to share to make your space feel like home.
Yard sales
Garage or yard sales can be excellent sources of vintage décor if you are willing to put in a little work. For the best chances of finding vintage items, hit up sales in the suburbs. Read listings carefully to get an idea of what items are available and put together a route that allows you to make several stops in one day.
Thrift shops
Charity shops, like Goodwill or Salvation Army, can be gold mines of vintage and retro décor, especially furniture pieces. Often, thrift shop items are in less-than-perfect condition, so it helps to go in with a creative eye. If you are willing to clean, paint or repair a diamond in the rough, you could end up with a one-of-a-kind vintage item that perfectly suits your style.
Antique Shops
Though they are probably priced higher, antique shops will have a more extensive selection of vintage items than thrift shops or yard sales. Better yet, antique stores are staffed by professionals who can answer questions and help you find specific items.
Online
Finding vintage décor doesn’t always mean crawling through grandma’s attic or spending your Saturday hopping between thrift shops and yard sales. On the right sites, you can score plenty of vintage finds from the comfort of your couch. Etsy and eBay are excellent for finding good pieces at great prices. For a curated selection of high-quality items, with matching price tags, check out One Kings Lane or Jason Home.
Finding vintage items and decorating Dallas, TX apartments is a fun, creative adventure. To find a floor plan in an architecturally significant, modern home in the artsy, culturally diverse, historic Cedars neighborhood to house your collection of treasures, call South Side Flats today to schedule a showing.
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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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Color is a powerful force. How you respond to different colors is subjective, based in part on your own experiences and culture. Still, surrounding yourself with the shades that bring out the best in you (and your mood) is one of the most effective ways to create a home of your own.
Colors should be deliberate and carefully chosen to make you feel your best when relaxing at home. Those white or ivory walls that drive some people crazy when they search for Dallas apartments? They’re the perfect backdrop for the colors you bring in. In fact, both white and ivory are considered "calming" shades.
Psychology of Color Through the Ages
Ancient Egyptian and Chinese cultures (among others) thought that color could be used to heal people. The practice was called chromotherapy. Chromotherapy practitioners believed that exposing a sick person to particular colors could help heal what ailed them. For example:
- Blue was used to soothe patients and alleviate pain.
- Orange was used to heal the lungs and increase energy.
- Yellow was used to purify the body and help stimulate the nerves.
- Indigo was believed to heal skin issues.
- Red was used to increase circulation while stimulating the mind and body.
If you’ve ever noticed how frequently hospitals and other health care facilities are covered in light shades of green and blue, you will see that color is still believed to play a role in healing — or at very least, in staying calm.
The idea is to choose a color or two that address how you want your apartment to “feel” and work around those hues. If you’re looking for calming shades that will help melt the stress away, look no further than blue, violet, indigo, pink, green, gray, tan or white.
Want more stimulating colors that will work perfectly in a study, dining area or workout space? Try shades of red, orange or yellow — all three are suspected of getting the juices flowing mentally and physically.
Adding the colors of your choice to your apartment is easy. Simply chose a palette and introduce it through artwork, furniture, pillows, area rugs, lampshades and other household furnishings.
The classic design of South Side Flats apartments makes them the perfect setting for any atmosphere you're hoping to create. Contact us if you would like more information.
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The right rugs will not only warm up your apartment but also improve its decor. Here are some tips to be aware of when shopping for rugs either online or at a local store.
Go Neutral
Colors such as light gray, beige and ivory tend to match well with existing furnishings and decorations. Furthermore, they give a room a spacious feel. As an added benefit, the colors mentioned above will also help brighten up a room that may only get a limited amount of natural lighting.
Enlarge Rooms With Stripes
Rugs with either vertical or horizontal stripes can make a room appear larger and more spacious than it actually is. Striped rugs are available in various sizes and styles, making it easy to find one that suits your tastes and budget.
Use Bold Rugs in Key Places
Using bold colors in the right places will give your apartment a friendly, vibrant feel. Apartment hallways and bathrooms are great places for colors such as red, orange or green. Alternatively, use rugs with a rich pattern in these areas to create a classy ambiance.
Pick a Pile With Care
Low-pile rugs tend to be affordable and easy to clean. They are the ideal option for those who suffer from allergies as they don't accumulate dust and debris. High-pile rugs, on the other hand, are perfect for anyone who wants to give an apartment a warm, cozy feel. They also help to insulate an apartment, keeping energy bills down in the winter and reducing noise in the living space.
If you are new to Dallas or are simply looking for a new place in the city to call home, consider checking out South Side Flats' Dallas, TX apartments and all that they have to offer. Pets are welcome, and the apartments are conveniently located close the local Farmer's Market, various main roads and a number of dining and entertainment venues. What's more, South Side Flats offers on-site maintenance, a resident clubroom, a convenient business center and other amenities to make your life easier, simpler and more relaxing than ever before. Get in touch at your convenience to learn more about our floor plans or tour the apartment complex at your convenience.
Architecturally significant, modern home in the artsy, culturally diverse, historic Cedars neighborhood.
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When you move into an apartment, there’s a tendency to want to nest and make it your own. But how can you really let your personality show without losing your security deposit in the process? Here’s a quick look at some brilliant hacks to help you make your space unique.
Add Removable Tile
There are a few different types of removable tile now available on the market that can help to quickly dress up your backsplash with no permanent marks.
Go With Contact Paper
Whether it’s a wood finish on the cabinets, a chalkboard wall, marble-finish countertops or even faux stainless steel for your appliances, contact paper covers it all and is still removable at the end.
Put Up Some Curtains
Sure, it’s tempting to just live with the blinds that are already there, but curtains allow you to quickly add a lot of personality to a room. Bonus: Try magnetic rods if you have steel-framed windows.
Lean It
Whether it’s a beautiful painting or a large mirror, leaning it against the wall, whether from the floor or on a tabletop, allows you to show off your style without any nail holes in the wall.
Accent It With Removable Wallpaper
Though it’s a little much to spend to take care of the entire apartment, you can use removable wallpaper to quickly and easily create an accent wall in your new home.
Cover It Up
If your new home’s flooring is blah, consider adding a vinyl flooring mat, area rug or similar solution to cover it up and allow your unique sense of style to show through.
Add Some Greenery
A few plants, even if they’re of the faux variety, allow you to quickly create an oasis. Bonus: Green spaces help you relax more easily during your downtime.
Moving into an apartment doesn’t mean you need to lose your home’s personality, and with these genius hacks, you’ll be able to quickly turn your apartment into a comfortable home that reflects the inner you. Looking for Dallas apartments and need a great community to hang out in? South Side Flats has your next home ready. Please feel free to contact us today to get started.
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