Luxury Housing Trends & Home Improvement Ideas

If you want some texture or a stone look on your interior walls, you have to paint and do a faux finish, right? Well, there are alternatives…

This “Spray Stone” is a limestone plaster that you can spray onto your walls to give them the look of stone, which can remind you of… “The glistening white villages in the hills of Greece. The subtle pastels of the French towns. The luminescent villas of Tuscany.”

The eco-friendly spray plaster “captures all the beauty and texture of plasters used by European craftsmen for centuries.”

At the very least, it’s an interesting alternative to faux painting finishes, which often aren’t all that convincing anyway. So if you’re looking to add character to your plain old walls, you might want to check the Spray Stone company out. The product can be used indoors or outdoors.

I remember having a bread maker a few years ago that could barely produce a one-pound loaf (which was a pain since all the bread mixes you could buy seemed to be for 1.25 or 1.50 pound loafs), so seeing one that makes a two pound loaf makes me smile. That ought to be able to handle any mix and then some. (I was never ambitious enough to bake bread from scratch, but I sure loved the smell of fresh baked bread in the house.)

The Breadman TR875 Breadmaker is a good looking machine for making bread too. You probably won’t mind having this stainless steel unit sitting out on your counter, especially if you’ve already got stainless steel appliances (hey, we’ve got to have everything matching in the kitchen, right?).

Pick up some bread machine mixes or bread machine recipes to go with the Breadman, and you’ll be all set for the smell of fresh baked bread permeating your home.

Breadman TR875 2-Pound Breadmaker

Whether you’re planning a luxury bathroom remodeling job or just looking to spend a bit to upgrade, the shower will probably be one of the spots you focus on. Showers are about function–hey, we’ve got to be clean–but they are a place we relax too. That’s why luxury is really becoming popular in showers, and we’re seeing everything from multiple shower heads to steam showers to exotic materials on the floors and walls.

Here’s an example of a shower stall wall material you don’t see every day: standing pebble tiles.

These handmade tiles from the Natural Stone Outlet are made from exotic Indonesian pebbles that are carefully cut in half and set standing so they create vertical tiles. This allows them to be installed from floor to ceiling if you wish, and the standing position creates a wonderful three dimensional effect.

So if you’re looking for something exotic for your shower stall, something like this just might make the impression you’re looking for.

Natural Stone Outlet

Whether you’re choosing the floors for your bathroom remodeling project or looking for a handsome bottom to the pool you’re building, tile is a popular choice that allows you to show off your style and design preferences. With unlimited colors and widely varying sizes and even shapes, there’s almost nothing you can’t do. To enhance a floor or deck design, you can add medallions, such as the one shown here.

We’ve mentioned wood floor medallions and marble medallions before, but there’s also no limit to what you can do with tile. Choose something stately or something whimsical, depending on your tastes.

This dolphin mosaic from Manet Tiles would be perfect in a pool area or perhaps a bathroom. The company can do all sorts of medallions with different colored natural stone tiles, and you can browse their site for ideas.

Manet Tiles

You want to encourage your children to read, but you’re tired of picking up books left all over the floor in various rooms of the house. Well, it might be time to preach the merits of organization. Fortunately, there are some storage and organization options out there that are a little more fun for kids than boring old adult furnishings.

The Zid Zid Book Ends from Spunky Sprout are shaped into elephants, always a popular animal with the little ones. They can help keep books on book shelves or turn the wall side of a table or desk into a book storage area.

Get two of these elephant book ends (together they can restrain 50 books) and maybe you’ll find fewer tomes scattered around the house.

$68 a piece at Spunky Sprout.

If you do any work from home, it’s important to have a dedicated office space. Whether it’s a part of the kitchen or an entire room, you’ll want to outfit your office to suit your personality and work style. This may mean getting some new furniture.

If you enjoy a contemporary style and buying green (eco-friendly) is important to you, you may enjoy the stuff Knú puts out. They have a modest selection of office furniture that is made using Forest Stewardship Council–certified wood. This stylish desk is available in several veneers, all covered with a tough environmentally friendly catalyzed varnish.

This desk runs $1849.

http://www.getknu.com

What’s the gift that keeps on giving going to be this Christmas? How about a cordless rechargeable massage seat? A gift that turns any chair into a massage chair.

This can be a nice alternative to a full-fledged massage chair or recliner, pieces of furniture that–while comfortable–don’t always blend in nicely with your decor.

The “Only Cordless Rechargeable Massage Seat” from Hammacher Schlemmer transforms “any chair into a gentle vibrating massage platform for your back and hamstrings.”

Sure you can use it around the home, but since the device is battery-powered and doesn’t need to be plugged in, you can also take it on the road. Give yourself a little massage while sitting in gridlock traffic during your morning commute, or take it on the airplane with you (although, if people see you enjoying yourself a little too much and decide to mock you… well, that’s a risk you’ll have to take). The massaging seat only weighs 3 pounds, it folds in half, and it has an integrated shoulder strap to make transport easy.

The price for a portable massage? Just under $250:

Cordless Rechargeable Massage Seat

Looking for a way to heat up your home this winter that’s a little more stylish than a room full of heat vents? Perhaps a gas fireplace is in your future.

This “Fire Ribbon” see-through gas fireplace from Spark Fires can light up not just one room but two. The company offers vent-free models so you don’t necessarily need a chimney in between two rooms to install one of these see-through fireplaces either. That lets you get creative.

For example, how about installing a fireplace between the master bedroom and the master bathroom? Enjoy the flames from bed or while soaking in the tub. Now that sounds like luxury to me.

http://www.sparkfires.com/

With Thanksgiving past and Christmas on the way, you may not be thinking about furnishing your outdoor living areas (unless you are lucky enough to live in southern California, Florida, or some place where outdoor living is something for all seasons), but it’s actually a great time to shop for outdoor furniture and accessories.

As with so many things in the shopping world, you can get some of the best deals in the off-season. And with the internet, you aren’t limited to shopping for items during times of the year when local department stores have them in stock. If outdoor furniture is something you will need next summer anyway, you can start browsing right now.

Some folks opt for plastic furniture when they’re decking out an outdoor living area, but, if you can afford it, wood is much better looking. It’s also durable and–with a quality finish–it can last a long time, even in rainy climates.

Teak has long been a popular choice for outdoor use, since this hardwood is durable, stable, and can withstand any weather (unique oils and rubbers within the wood itself add to its ability to resist warping or rot from water). Teak Tables and Chairs are perfect for decks or pool side lounge areas.

You can find lots of companies that sell outdoor furnishings online. Be Furnished specializes in teak and sells furniture that is kiln-dried for 12 days, which makes the pieces “dry to the core” with a moisture content of 12-15% (this means the pieces won’t shrink, slip, or move). They have a wide variety of patio, deck, and pool furniture, so stop by if you’re looking for some outdoor living furniture that will look a lot better than the cheapy plastic stuff and should last for years to come.

If you’ve got a computer, then you’ve got cables. If you’ve got a computer plus any other sort of electronics or peripherals, you’ve probably got a huge messy tangle of cables. You’re not alone. At least that’s what the proliferation of cable organizers coming out suggests.

Here’s a new one:

Woofy.

This dog-shaped cable container is “an excellent companion who organizes all of those pesky wires and cables around your desk and entertainment areas.” At 3.5 pounds, Woofy won’t be easily knocked off a desk either. If you’re a dog lover, this may be the idea way to keep your home office organized (or at least the cable portion of it).

$200 from UnicaHome