DECORATING WITH WINDOW TREATMENTS – BEAUTY MEETS FUNCTION

We all want to make our homes beautiful, but let’s face it, functionality is important too. When it comes to your windows, you can definitely have both. There are many things to consider when you are choosing the right window treatments for your room. Answer these questions and let this photo gallery inspire you as you look for the perfectly beautiful (and functional) window treatments. 

WHAT TYPE OF ACTIVITIES TAKE PLACE IN YOUR ROOM?

Throw away the misconception that window treatments should match throughout the home. Different rooms serve different purposes, which means they each require different dressings.  Do you have an entertainment center in this room? If so, you’ll want to make your window treatments block out light and glare. I like to use heavy draperies in media rooms and/or basements because the sound-deadening quality makes a huge difference when watching the latest flick on your sofa. Are there furnishings that you want to be sure to protect? You’ll want to find window treatments that protect from UV rays while allowing natural light in the room.

IS YOUR VIEW IMPORTANT?                                                                                                                                                                     

Does your home have a beautiful view? If so, you’ll want to opt for a window treatment that allows you to enjoy it. If the view isn't so great, however, you may want the option to cover up for some privacy. Investing in window treatments that allow you the option of whether to see outside may be the best option for you and your home.

DO YOU NEED SOME PRIVACY?

Some areas of your home require more privacy than others. Also consider if you have neighbors nearby that can easily see in your windows. Save yourself (and your neighbors) by making sure that you have window treatments that provide you with the privacy you need.  In any bedroom and/or bathroom, I always splurge on a privacy lining. If you’re a light sleeper, you may want to also invest in blackout/privacy lining. Whatever you decide, be sure the window treatments you pick keep your home private, comfortable and at ease from the outside world.

THINK DÉCOR

Think of your window treatments as the cherry on top of your well-designed ice cream sundae. Try

patterned panels to take an already-lovely room to the next level, or go glam with metallic textures. Because I like to switch my decor each season, I like to use a light, airy pattern in the summer and heavy tweed in the winter. Find what works best for you, and go for it!

If you’re in the market for new window coverings come in to the Cinderella showroom at 6 Rossi Circle and save $100 on any window covering purchase of $750 or more.  Or, if you just need some tips on choosing the right window treatments come in and we can help you make some decisions. 

What about you?  Any tips for choosing window treatments?  We’d love to hear your thoughts below.

Cinderella Carpet One Recommends 7 Smart Home Investments

Are you planning to do some home upgrades this summer?  By investing your hard earned dollars into home improvements – whether it’s new lighting, new hardware, new flooring or new landscaping – the extra income can provide a little excitement, while also increasing a home’s value for resale.

Cinderella Carpet One in Salinas, CA encourages customers to invest in creating a beautiful home. They also stress the importance of making smart decisions when you’re working on any home project. 

We know the importance of being proud of your home. A home should reflect your personality and lifestyle but you also want to ensure that your investment will offer you a high return on the value of your home.  Cinderella’s suggestions for the best ways to invest in your home are:

Find the right light. Give a room a bright, fresh new look with updated lighting fixtures.  In the bathroom, choose a light that fits both sides of the mirror evenly for a balanced spread of light, rather than a fixture that lights vanity mirrors from above and creates unflattering shadows. Different levels of light can be created by choosing from ceiling lights, lamps and task lighting. 

Choose quality flooring for a solid foundation.  Installing new flooring can give a dramatic change to a room.  It’s also a great investment in your home.  With new products like luxury vinyl tile, engineered stone, and super-soft carpet, there are many options that provide quality, performance and style. Checking the warranty available for a floor provides a good idea of the durability of a product. Cinderella provides an easy to understand warranty system to help customers make smart decisions.

 Plant an investment and watch it grow. Landscaping isn't just about good looks—it can increase a home’s value, make it sell more quickly, and even reduce energy bills.  Invest in flowering trees and perennials that will give you the gift of color year after year. Fountains, yard art, or attractive benches are also great new additions for outdoor spaces.

Build in organization. Maximize both the horizontal and vertical space in a room by adding a built-in shelving unit.  Consider a built-in bookshelf on either side of a doorway or along a blank wall to create a wrap-around cozy reading nook. 

Focus on the Outdoors.  A beautiful deck can be a natural extension of interior flooring and extend the living space of your home.  The design possibilities are endless when it comes to creating this functional yet visually appealing space.  Deck designs can range from a simple horizontal surface bordered by railings, to a more detailed design with built-in planters, barbecue station, trellises and even a recessed spa. 

Give your stairs a step up. Constant foot traffic on stairs can wreck havoc on carpets, leaving them dull and dingy.  For entrance stairways that see a constant flow of feet, a new carpet runner can do wonders for the overall look and make for a more inviting welcome area.  When choosing a new carpet runner for stairs, darker colors as well as patterns will help mask dust and dirt.  Generally, shorter pile carpets show less wear and tear over time.  Look for carpets with superior warranties, like Relax, it’s…Lees carpets.  Consider adding stair rods on the landings of each step, which add a classic accent while keeping the runner secure.  

Cook up a new look.  Update your kitchen with a new look.  Kitchen trends are looking a little softer in 2014. Warmer metals like brass and copper are being used in the place of stainless steel. And with that, warmer, natural flooring is the perfect compliment. A beautiful hardwood floor can make your kitchen feel cozier. For a natural stone look there is a new product available called engineered stone. Vero Stone, available at Cinderella, provides unbelievably realistic stone looks while providing added durability and a softer, warmer feel underfoot.

For more ideas on creating a beautiful home, download our free digital home décor magazine or visit our showroom at 6 Rossi Circle in Salinas.

VINYL FLOORING CAN BE BEAUTIFUL AND PRACTICAL

When you think of vinyl flooring do you immediately think of images of off-white, dingy, pealing floors? Many people do, but vinyl has made significant strides over the years. Advancements in technology make it possible to create looks and textures that mimic some of the most popular flooring options at more affordable prices. Since vinyl can replicate hardwood, you can use it in high-moisture spaces like bathrooms to get the hardwood look you crave. You can also get tile looks that aren't as cold as real stone.

Vinyl floors also offer the benefit of easy installation, simple cleaning and maintenance, and they also provide a cushioned comfort underfoot. These versatile floors can be used in virtually any space in the home.  These beautiful images below all feature vinyl floors.

You’ll definitely need to see it to believe it.  So hurry in to Cinderella Carpet One at 6 Rossi Circle in Salinas and ask to see our inventory of vinyl flooring.

Cinderella Carpet One Floor & Home Helps Homeowners Create Beautiful Homes with Online Video

Cinderella Carpet One in Salinas helps customers find beautiful floors for their home every day, but through an online effort, they aim to help them create beautiful homes as well. Their Beautiful Design Made Simple podcast series available through Carpet One Floor & Home’s YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/carpetonefh provides customers tips and design advice. The most recent episode introduces Tracy Bross, Principal Stylist for Tracy Bross Decorating and Styling.

Bross has partnered with Carpet One Floor & Home to produce a series of Beautiful Design Made Simple episodes that help homeowners make design decisions without hiring a decorator or interior designer.  Bross comments, "I have worked with clients on the east coast, west coast and everywhere in between, and now I am excited to bring that knowledge to a much larger audience."  The partnership with Bross is part of a long-standing program from Carpet One Floor & Home designed to help customers simplify the process of redecorating their homes.

Cinderella is excited to be able to provide a resource to our customers that give them credible design advice from a veteran of the style industry.  With Tracy's knowledge of style and our expertise in flooring, we feel like we have all the bases covered for our customers

In her premiere Beautiful Design Made Simple episode, Bross shares her secret for creating a room that her clients will love – finding the perfect inspiration.  The episode includes tips on finding that perfect inspiration for a room and examples of how to turn inspiration into a beautiful design.

Not everyone can afford to have a decorator or designer to make his or her home beautiful, but that doesn’t mean you can’t have a home that you love that speaks to your personality. If you need help inspiring and informing the ever evolving design of your home please contact us at Cinderella Carpet One at 6 Rossi Circle in Salinas.

Bross’ inspiration video can be viewed in the Beautiful Design Made Simple playlist on Carpet One Floor & Home’s YouTube Channel. 

Cinderella Carpet One Announces 2014 Home Décor Trends for Flooring

Cinderella Carpet One in Salinas has released their 2014 Flooring Trends based on data compiled from sales trends as well as expert insights from industry partners. Although flooring trends tend to be more subtle than the trends for more replaceable home décor items such as paint and furnishings; this year’s flooring trends offer new ideas while remaining versatile for future home décor trends.

At Cinderella Carpet One we take pride in helping our customers stay on trend and create beautiful rooms in their homes.  We want to ensure that the flooring we install for our customers fits their personality and style.

Carpet

In 2014, the color gray is the trending options for a neutral carpet.  Beige is still one of the top choices, but shades of gray - from light gray to steel gray and everything in between – are becoming increasingly popular.

For colored flooring, vivacious colors from recent years will be getting softer for 2014.  Less saturated hues will result in a look that is more livable and has longevity. Look for Coral, Poppy and Sienna to pair beautifully with Aqua, Teal and Turquoise. Warm neutrals make for an earthy palette. Shades of Spice and Orange give new life to the Red, Brown, Gold palettes. Grey has become warmer and more neutral therefore pairing beautifully with Buttery Gold, Coral, Indigo and Aqua. Non-acidic greens such as Jade and Mint are very important as are berry-inspired Reds & Purples.

Patterned carpets will become increasingly popular. These patterned floors are not printed, multi-colored patterns, but rather patterns created through the manufacturing process and the way the carpet is tufted.  Vine patterns and squares are two of the more popular patterns.

Hardwood & Laminate

Look for deep, dark stains, blacks and even grays in 2014 hardwood looks.   Wood with more character and texturing - not just hand-scraping, but also wire brush detail – will offer more unique flooring options.  Broader variations in graining and color will also be big in 2014. The color difference within flooring will be enormous – a deep coffee color with a blond variation in the same species of wood creates a unique look.

Vinyl

Vinyl tile is becoming very popular and will continue to grow in 2014. Vinyl tile has many benefits. It is less costly to install than stone and tile and, it is softer and warmer underfoot. Technology has helped improve the realism of the product and 2014’s are surprisingly good substitutes for the real thing.  

Area Rugs

Similar trends and colors can be found in area rugs as well — bold colors, graphic patterns, and gray neutrals. For those hesitant about incorporating a new trend in flooring, an area rug is a more cost effective and less permanent option.

For more information on flooring trends as well as 2014 home décor trends in lighting, window treatments, color and more, download the free winter issue of Carpet One Floor & Home’s Beautiful Design Made Simple digital magazine.  Or, call or come into our showroom at 6 Rossi Circle in Salinas and we can help you choose just the right floorcovering for your home. 

PROUD TO BE A PART OF BUILDING FOR AMERICA’S BRAVEST PROGRAM

Cinderella Carpet One in Salinas is proud to be a part of a new partnership with the Building for America's Bravest program. Building for America’s Bravest is a program of The Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers Foundation, in proud partnership with the Gary Sinise Foundation, which was developed to build smart homes for catastrophically injured service members.

  

As the program’s official flooring provider, Carpet One Floor & Home will be supplying flooring and installation for the construction of these smart home. There are currently 55 service members on the list to receive smart homes – 6 smart homes have already been built; there are 49 homes scheduled to be built over the next 3 years.

We are excited to get started with this new Carpet One Cares initiative. And we’re honored to have our manufacturer partner Mohawk working side-by-side with us. They generously agreed to supply the product for these projects. 

The first home Carpet One Floor & Home will be working on is in Tampa, FL. Sgt. Michael Nicholson is the brave individual receiving this new home. 

On July 6, 2011, Sgt. Nicholson was on combat foot patrol when he was injured by an IED in Afghanistan, causing him to lose both legs and his left arm and suffer a brain injury.

Eight months after arriving at the National Naval Medical Center, Sgt. Michael Nicholson came home to Tampa, Florida greeted by thousands of supporters. At his church, he spoke to the crowd, “I just want to ask for one more thing; please pray for the guys still in Afghanistan right now and for the soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines recovering in Bethesda, San Antonio and Balboa. Pray for the ones who didn’t make it back.”

After riding in the motorcade from Tampa Airport to his church, which included over 100 Patriot Guard Riders, he said, “That still blows my mind. I never expected all those people to show up. I am still awestruck about all of this. They have done so much for me, I wish I could do something for them.”

At a time when he was struggling with his own life-altering injuries, Michael was not asking anything for himself, only thinking of his fellow military who are still in need of prayers and support, and for all those who never returned... only wondering what he could do for others.

Learn more about Sgt. Michael Nicholson and the other brave individuals that the Building for America’s Bravest program is helping at ourbravest.org.