How To Use Pinterest & Instagram To Decorate Your Apartment

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Love Instagram and Pinterest? Why not do more than use these sites to share and post pictures? You can incorporate your love for these great sites into your apartment decor!


Whether you want to use pictures that you really love or use the ones that you've taken and touched up yourself, Instagram and Pinterest are great resources to use when you begin decorating an apartment. Instagram in particular is a great way to use your own self-taken pictures in your apartment, since your photos are saved automatically into your phone's camera roll.


So, how can you get started as you set out to decorate or redecorate using these two websites? Keep reading to see apartmentguide.com's tips on the matter!

Set up your own photo shoot
When you set up your own special photo shoot, you can digitally capture the apartment decor you desire. Pick an afternoon to roam around your favorite local spots and let your city inspire your decorating project. Plan a photo session to capture subjects that fit into a personal theme of your choice. Find your favorite things, such as dogs, flowers, bicycles, historical sites, coffee, craft beer or whatever you fancy. If you don’t capture it all the first time around, book some more time. The more images you have to choose from, the better your decorating project.

Find and filter
Heavy-duty Instagrammers may already have an arsenal of awesome photos on their roll. Now your challenge is to categorize images that suit your personal decorating style. Pull together groups of snaps from a specific occasion or trip. Create broad categories like “best friends,” funny family photos or cool close-ups.

Once you’ve made your selections, it’s time to get crazy with Instagram’s awesome filters. These will make your photo display look like it was shot by a pro. There are a lot of filters to choose from, and new ones are being added every day. Play around and see which filter styles you like most. 1970s Polaroid? Solar flare? Sunset lighting? And you don’t have to pick just one: your art projects can each sport a different style.

You can also look for inspiration from other Instagram artists on lifestyle sharing sites like Pinterest.

Go wall out
So far, go good. You’ve got your most gorgeous images arranged into artful themes. Now, how do you print them? You can go DIY and pick up some fancy paper from the office supply store and print at home or get them professionally printed by uploading your images to an online printing company.

Persnickety Prints does a great job with small prints that are perfect for framing or hanging with clothespins from a line. Printstagram gives you even more options like organizing a whole raft of images to create a poster. CanvasPop is another neat print vendor that will print your images on an actual canvas. It’s like having a personal art gallery in your own home.

When you go this route, why not host an art opening to show off your decorating project to your pals?

Coaster-to-coaster decorating
Once you are out of wall space, spread your Instragram art around on other surfaces via these nifty coasters. Coastermatic prints your photos on round stone coasters, while Coastergram whips up a square version with cork backing. Heck, you don’t have to limit your personalized decor to your own apartment; you can give these as gifts and share your Instagram images with your friends face-to-face.

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Apartment Tip: Freshen Up With Houseplants

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Sometimes our apartment begins to feel stuffier than usual. It can't be helped, especially during the summer, when temperatures fluctuate and we can't always comfortably open all of our windows for some fresh air. So what's an apartment dweller looking to add a little freshness to their home to do?

Simple: get a couple houseplants! Houseplants, both in homes and in apartments, are a great way to freshen and purify your air while also sprucing up the look of your living area. It's a win-win, especially during the summer, when the extra hours of daylight help plants flourish.

Already we can hear you wondering and asking questions like, what kind of plant should you get? How much care will a plant need? Where will be the best place to put one? Well, it's time to start answering those questions! Check out this article from apartmentguide.com to learn more about the good a houseplant could do in your apartment and get some tips on selecting the plant you get:

What’s in the air?
Many people develop mysterious illnesses and allergies from the place they least expect: Their homes! That’s because we can be surrounded by toxins such as xylene,a pollutant found in paints and glues; benzene, found in paints, glues, detergents, furniture wax, and tobacco smoke; formaldehyde, contained in processed wood products, foam insulation, some synthetic fabrics, cosmetics and shampoos; and perchloroethylene, or PERC, used by the majority of dry cleaners. These toxins usually enter our systems when we breathe them in as products off-gassing — what happens when material “breathes out” a level of pollution.

How do potted plants improve air quality?
NASA studies have shown that plants have the ability to balance indoor humidity, absorb excess carbon dioxide and pollutants through the tiny openings in their leaves, and release oxygen. They’re like living, breathing air purifiers, and they can be had for little money. What’s more, how many air purifiers can you think of that actually improve the look of any space they’re in?

6 houseplants that clean air

Now that you know how good plants can be for you and the air in your apartment, you’re probably eager to get started. Here are just a few of many plants that are known to improve the healthful atmosphere in your home:

Peace lily: The peace lily is a heavy-hitter on all lists of healthful houseplants and is known to reduce benzene and formaldehyde. Easy to care for, the peace lily is an all-around powerful air-purifier and pollution-buster and looks pretty, too.

Marginata: This plant’s lovely red-edged leaves add color to your apartment while removing benzene and formaldehyde from the air, as well as filtering out other toxins. It’s also easy to care for.

Orchids: Considered a high-maintenance plant by the uninitiated, orchids are really quite hardy. They are effective at removing xylene from the air and releasing oxygen at night, making them a good bedroom plant. Orchids perform heavy-duty air cleaning while making your apartment look good.

Gerber daisies:These bright and cheerful flowers aresuper effective at removing trichloroethylene, another dry cleaning solution, and benzene from the air. Just give these plants lots of light and consider growing them in a laundry room or your bedroom, where they can do some of their best work.

Spider plant: This long-time favorite houseplant grows fast, with long, grassy leaves. It’s very effective at removing gases and toxins like xylene and formaldehyde from the air. Consider keeping it near the fireplace or in the kitchen to deal with carbon monoxide that can collect in these areas.

Ferns: Once standard-issue in ’70s restaurants, ferns are actually complex plants that have been around since prehistoric times. Their large feathery leaves are what work so well to clean the air of pollutants like toulene and xylene, which both are found in many paints, nail polishes and glues.

In the pursuit of healthier indoor air quality for your apartment, house plants should be your first line of defense. Bring some home today to beautify and detoxify your home.

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What Will Apartment Life Look Like In The Future?

 

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Do you ever wonder how the apartment world may or may not change as we move into the future? This topic is definitely on the brains of many developers and leaders. Earlier this year at the No Place Like Home Conference in Anaheim, Calif., more than 230 leaders in urban development discussed what the future might hold for apartments and multi-unit housing.

An excerpt from an apartmentguide.com article reaveals insight into what at least one expert predicts the future may hold for apartments:

Joel Kotkin, author of The Next Hundred Million: America in 2050, believes that “the suburb of the future may well resemble more of a self-sufficient village than a prototypical suburb of the 1950s.”

So what would a self-sufficient apartment village look like?

Are suburbs the cities of the future?

A suburb will “increasingly not be limited to being a ‘bedroom’ community, since many will work at home or commute to employment in another suburb,” Kotkin added. “Its population will be far more diverse, by age and ethnicity, than its historic predecessor.”

In a keynote address during the PCBC homebuilding trade show, urbanist Richard Florida said “we have to get over this nonsensical verbiage of cities or suburbs; it’s cities and suburbs.” He also reminded his audience that “what people prefer is all the same: a safe, secure, crime-free environment; lots of economic opportunity; openness to all people; and quality of place.”

This all seems to boil down to the premise that future housing options will be more inclusive, all-encompassing, compact and efficient. The new apartment village will be more self-sufficient and able to fit the needs of many types of apartment dwellers.

Click here to read more of the article and learn about what the future might hold for apartment parking options, green living and more.

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Vinyl’s Back! Here’s How To Play It In Your Apartment

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Vinyl’s back, baby! For some, iPod’s have taken a backseat as in favor of “retro” analog sound. The New York Time’s reports that vinyl is defnitely making a comeback after thirty or so years of neglect. Some artists are even releasing their new music on records in addition to selling MP3 files on iTunes - how cool is that?

This means that you’ll never no longer be laughed at or given weird looks if you play vinyl records in your apartment. Of course, there’s a few things you’ll have to do to get those records playing, as well as a few quick things to do out of courtesy to your neighbors. If you’re looking into bringing some vinyl into your apartment, then here’s what you need to do, according to apartmentguide.com:

1. Get a turntable.

Like most electronics, you can find both high-tech and low-tech versions of turntables. Companies like Rega and Pro-Ject make top-notch analog turntables to suit the analog sound aficionado. If you just want to spin some records on a budget, you might try an old-school Crosley portable record player.

2. Hook up an amp and speakers.

Once you’re ready to spin your turntable, you’ll need an amplifier and a couple of speakers so you can hear those sweet sounds in stereo. Magnepan is known for its upscale, flat speakers, but feel free to try any speaker with your new turntable. Companies like Polk and Bose offer solid speaker set-ups. Your local electronics store or music shop is also a great place to look for appropriate amplifiers to power the sound and really turn up the volume.

3. Find your favorite vinyl albums.

Now for the really fun part: shopping for vinyl!

In many cities, you can find cool record stores that stock albums old and new, like these specialty shops in Atlanta, Georgia. Vinyl fans love to socialize, so record swap meets and listening clubs are great resources for locating the albums you love. You can also find loads of vinyl online from sites like MusicStack,SoundStageDirect and of course, eBay. If you’ve loved a certain CD for years, why not try out the analog sound experience of the same on vinyl? (And don’t forget to raid the vinyl collections your parents put together. You’ll find cool stuff in there!)

4. Add accessories.

Headphones are a must when you listen to vinyl in an apartment and don’t want to disturb neighbors or roommates. Koss headphones are a classic choice; many experts believe Sennheiser makes the best headphones in the world. You might also pick up some extra needles for your turntable and 45 rpm spindle adapters to play classic singles.

5. Invite your friends over.

What’s the last thing you need to do to rock out to retro analog in your apartment? Invite some friends over! Host a “turntable warming” party and ask everyone to bring a vinyl album to play or contribute to your collection. Then show them how cool it is to spin some tunes, oh, like they did back in the day.

Do you have a record collection? Let us know in the comments!

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How To Beat The Heat: An Infographic

Sometimes, staying cool on a hot day is the only thing standing between you a nice, relaxing day in your apartment. On the worst of days, heat levels could even rise dangerously high and potentially cause heat-related illnesses ranging from heat cramps to heat exhaustion and heat stroke.

Fortunately, we’ve developed lots of ways to keep cool, from turning on the AC to avoiding wearing certain fabrics and colors in our clothes. The next time it gets a little too warm for your liking, use one of the 15 tips on this great infographic to beat the heat!

Click the image to view a larger version.

 Image courtesy of pocketchange.become.com

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