Fresh Ideas For Your Home - Design With Earth Tones

Earth tones add a natural and harmonious touch to any living space.

Today’s earthy colors are nothing like your mother’s or grandmother’s color palette. They are a thoroughly up-to-date decorating palette.Forget the avocado green shag carpet and harvest gold kitchen appliances you remember from your mother’s or grandmother’s house.Soft and warm, earth tone interior design elements and window coverings from Hunter Douglas take the chill out of a cool autumn evening. These gentle colors make rooms feel cozy and relaxing, never harsh and cold. And since the hues mimic the colors of nature, the blending between indoors and outdoors is seamless, especially if you have large windows.

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Earth tone interior design elements and hues blend well together, so they’re not as tricky to combine as other color palettes. In fact, decorating with earth tones makes it easy to coordinate your whole house, without colors clashing between rooms, even if the exact hues in each room are not identical.

For earth tone interior design,
think beige and brow, tan and taupe,
even sage greens, soft rust tones and muted golds – 
the colors of wheat, straw, sand, rocks, trees and soil.

An earth tone palette can be smooth and sophisticated, rough and rustic, or dainty and feminine – it all depends on the tones your select and the style of your furnishings.

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You can add white to brighten an earth tone palette, or introduce black to add drama. Then incorporate patterns and textures for added nuance and beauty. Obvious earth tone choices are in upholstered furniture, drapery fabrics, paint and accessories, but you can also use earth tone hues in flooring – wood, stone and carpeting – and in mantles and counter tops.

Come down to earth with your decor this fall. Add earth tones for a natural and balanced look.

Providing Interior Design ideas to all of these areas: Dallas, North Dallas, Plano, Carrollton, Farmers Branch, Addison, Coppell, Southlake, Denton, Keller, Roanoke, Benbrook,  Westlake, Fort Worth, Lewisville, Grapevine, Trophy Club, The Colony, Frisco, Prosper, Celina, Savannah, Aubrey, McKinney, Allen, St. Paul, Wylie, Sachse, Rockwall, Rowlett, Lucas, Parker, Melissa, Anna, Fairview, Heath, Garland, Richardson, Irving, Las Colinas, University Park, Highland Park, Kessler Park, Euless, North Richland Hills, Colleyville, Flower Mound, Corinth, Arlington, Little Elm, Hurst, Saginaw, Haltom City, Bedford, Watauga, Haslet and many more!

Call 817.416.7164 for Read Design Southlake

Call 972.608.4999 for Read Design Plano

Celebrate Fall By Updating Your Home Decor!

'Tis the season to come indoors and redecorate! Start planning now for fall entertaining and the winter holidays. Call on us to help!

Think Marble for a Marvelous Addition to Your Home

Marble adds a classic and elegant touch.

Marble is a natural material, created when sedimentary rock has been subjected to great heat and pressure from the earth over many years, resulting in a durable and beautiful stone. And marble has been used as a decorative and durable material almost since the beginning of civilization.

So many beautiful looks in marble are available - from the simplest, pure white to wildly colored patterns of blue, gold, green and more. Some choices even have a sparkle. Carrara marble from Italy is the most popular today, with its white background and greyish veins.

Marble is most often used in kitchens and baths, for flooring, countertops, showers and sometimes even walls. But there's so much more you can use marble for. Think hearths and fireplace surrounds, table tops, small pieces of furniture and even small decorative pieces like cutting boards, Kleenex boxes, lamps and coasters.

Add a touch of refinement and sophistication to your home this fall with marvelous marble!

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Abstract Art - It's an engaging element that starts a conversation

According to the famous Tate Gallery in London, abstract art is art that does not attempt to represent an accurate depiction of a visual reality, but instead uses shapes, colors, forms and gestural marks to achieve its effect.

Much of the artwork that's being created today is abstract art, so it's an easy element to add to your home. It can be fashioned from most any medium, from water color to oil paint, sculpture to collage, and more. It comes in almost any size and shape. Abstract art can be serene or edgy, colorful or monochromatic.

What's fun about abstract art is that you can make up your own mind about what it shows. Even though the art doesn't explicitly portray reality, often the brushstrokes or composition show movement, energy and emotion. Abstract art creates a feeling.

Add a piece of abstract art this fall. It will pull a room together beautifully and start a conversation.

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• Add autumn accents and Halloween decorations to your home, with pumpkins, gourds, fall leaves, earth-toned wreaths and more.
• Display chrysanthemums and autumn-hued orchids to bring fall alive in your rooms.
• As the weather cools, treat your family to fall comfort foods like savory soups and stews, apple pie and hot chocolate.
• Start planning for holiday guests by adding a coat of paint in guest bedrooms and baths.
• Order translucent window coverings that let in more precious light as the days grow shorter. Silhouette® Window Shadings or Luminette® Privacy Sheers may be the perfect choice.
• Get ready for cooler, fall evenings with warm cashmere or wool throws set out on your couches.
• Have your fireplaces cleaned and inspected for winter enjoyment.

Plantation Shutters - Still A Favorite In The Dallas - Fort Worth Area

Custom Plantation Shutters are classic and continue to be a favorite solution when covering windows here in the Dallas - Fort Worth area. They provide that final touch of elegance with style and grace - all while blocking out those harsh UV sun rays and providing energy efficiency. Shutters have a timeless beauty and work wonders in any style of home with many frame options from simple and contemporary and detailed and traditional.

Hunter Douglas has 3 innovative styles of shutters and each come in 3 louver sizes; 2.5", 3.5" and 4.5".

Our Heritance Shutters are for those who desire the timeless beauty of real wood along with meticulous craftsmanship. These shutters are built with our exclusive dovetail joinery for maximum strength and durability. They also offer the most wonderful color selections including paints and stains.

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The Palm Beach Shutters are faux and guaranteed not to warp, chip, crack or peel. These shutters are unaffected by temperature and humidity extremes.

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The NewStyle Shutters blend the look of real wood with the stability and straightness of advanced modern-day materials. They create design in perfect harmony. Each of our shutters offer more than 250 configuration options to meet all your design needs. Best of all, our custom shutters have a Hunter Douglas warranty you can really count on. 

Stop by our showroom to see and feel the different types of shutters!

Providing shutters to all of these areas: Dallas, North Dallas, Plano, Carrollton, Farmers Branch, Addison, Coppell, Southlake, Denton, Keller, Roanoke, Benbrook,  Westlake, Fort Worth, Lewisville, Grapevine, Trophy Club, The Colony, Frisco, Prosper, Celina, Savannah, Aubrey, McKinney, Allen, St. Paul, Wylie, Sachse, Rockwall, Rowlett, Lucas, Parker, Melissa, Anna, Fairview, Heath, Garland, Richardson, Irving, Las Colinas, University Park, Highland Park, Kessler Park, Euless, North Richland Hills, Colleyville, Flower Mound, Corinth, Arlington, Little Elm, Hurst, Saginaw, Haltom City, Bedford, Watauga, Haslet and many more!

Call 817.416.7164 for Read Design Southlake

Call 972.608.4999 for Read Design Plano

Custom Drapery

Designing draperies or any window treatment starts with a plan. A designer will ask you a series of questions:

1. What is the character of the room - traditional, contemporary or transitional?
2. What colors are you interest in using?
3. What directions do the windows face?

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For this living room in a North Dallas home we started pulling fabrics together with a color scheme of navy and cream and threw in a bright orange accent color. We combined traditional and contemporary fabrics for a popular transitional design. We abolutely love texture, so we added a "faux" vinyl which we plan on using on an upholstered cocktail table.

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We used a Silhouette Shade from Hunter Douglas in the Neuveau Candied Coconut fabric on the windows that are on the front of the home. For the drapery panels, we used a navy and cream geometric linen fabric and used a chrome drapery rod with an acrylic finial. The panels framed and softened the window and added a punch of color.

Stop by our shop in Plano to see how our draperies are made, the linings we use and samples of our rods and finials. We will show you why we use the lining we do and educate you on the look of a quality product.

Remember we serve all of the following cities: Plano, Frisco, Allen, McKinney, Parker, Prosper, Celina, Gunter, Sachse, Wylie, St. Paul, Little Elm, The Colony, Lewisville, Aubrey, Melissa, Van Alstyne, Anna, Lucas, Fairview, Rockwall, Rowlett, Garland, Richardson, Heath, Carrollton, University Park, Highland Park, Dallas, North Dallas, Farmers Branch, Coppell, Irving, Grand Prairie, Arlington, Euless, Grapevine, Southlake, Westlake, Trophy Club, Flower Mound, Keller, Roanoke, Argyle, Highland Village, Corinth, Denton, Fort Worth, Kennedale, Benbrook, Cedar Hill, Duncanville, Desoto, Lancaster, Red Oak, Balch Springs, Mesquite, Forney, Crandall, Kaufman, Mabank, Gun Barrel City, Kemp, Seven Points, Cedar Creek Lake, Enchanted Oaks, Payne Springs and many more! We have even traveled as far north as Oklahoma and as far South as Waco!

Fresh Ideas For Your Home - Clocks

Adding a clock to your decor is a functional and aesthetic choice.

The time is ripe for this unique and appealing design element.

Clocks are more than just for telling time. After all, to find out what time it is, we can use a wrist watch or our smart phone. Clocks are also about enhancing interior design and adding interest to a room. A clock can become a piece of art on your wall, in place of a painting or print.

Clocks come in many different shapes, sizes and materials. You can purchase a traditional style clock that’s an antique or a reproduction – maybe a grandfather clock or a cuckoo clock. There are lots of bold new designs to consider too, many which are one-of-a-kind pieces. People are also salvaging old school clocks and railroad clocks for a vintage look.

Clocks work well as design pieces in almost any room, adding elegance, sophistication, rustic beauty or whimsy, depending on the style you select. They’re very useful when displayed in your kitchen, home office or great room, where you might actually need to know the time as you’re planning your day. Clocks are also beautiful and appealing in a bedroom, living room, dining room and home office.

Choose a clock with chimes and you’ll not only get a visual design but an auditory addition to your home. And a pendulum on a clock can add motion to your decor. Some people are even adding duarable outdoor wall clocks to their patios and other outdoor living spaces.

Every minute counts. Add a clock to your decor before more time slips away.

Remember we serve all of the following cities: Plano, Frisco, Allen, McKinney, Parker, Prosper, Celina, Gunter, Sachse, Wylie, St. Paul, Little Elm, The Colony, Lewisville, Aubrey, Melissa, Van Alstyne, Anna, Lucas, Fairview, Rockwall, Rowlett, Garland, Richardson, Heath, Carrollton, University Park, Highland Park, Dallas, North Dallas, Farmers Branch, Coppell, Irving, Grand Prairie, Arlington, Euless, Grapevine, Southlake, Westlake, Trophy Club, Flower Mound, Keller, Roanoke, Argyle, Highland Village, Corinth, Denton, Fort Worth, Kennedale, Benbrook, Cedar Hill, Duncanville, Desoto, Lancaster, Red Oak, Balch Springs, Mesquite, Forney, Crandall, Kaufman, Mabank, Gun Barrel City, Kemp, Seven Points, Cedar Creek Lake, Enchanted Oaks, Payne Springs and many more! We have even traveled as far north as Oklahoma and as far South as Waco!

Best Of Houzz 2015

Read Design of Plano Receives Best Of Houzz 2015 Award

Over 25 Million Monthly Unique Users Rated Top-Rated Home Building, Remodeling and Design Professionals in the United States and Around the World

Plano, Texas, January 22, 2015 – Read Design of Plano has been awarded “Best Of Houzz” for Customer Satisfaction by Houzz, the leading platform for home remodeling and design. The interior design and window covering specialist was chosen by the more than 25 million monthly unique users that comprise the Houzz community from among more than 500,000 active home building, remodeling and design industry professionals.

The Best Of Houzz award is given in two categories: Design and Customer Satisfaction. Design award winners’ work was the most popular among the more than 25 million monthly users on Houzz, known as “Houzzers.” Customer Satisfaction honors are determined by a variety of factors, including the number and quality of client reviews a professional received in 2014. Winners will receive a “Best Of Houzz 2015” badge on their profiles, helping Houzz users around the world who discover and love a professional’s work to learn even more about that business’ popularity and satisfaction rating among their peers in the Houzz community.

We turn your house into a home.

“Houzz provides homeowners with a 360 degree view of home building, remodeling and design industry professionals, empowering them to engage the right people and products for their project,” said Liza Hausman, vice president of industry marketing for Houzz. “We’re delighted to recognize Read Design among our “Best Of” professionals as judged by our community of homeowners and design enthusiasts who are actively remodeling and decorating their homes.”

Follow Read Design on Houzz

About Read Design

We are your one-stop source for all your interior design and home décor needs, including custom window coverings, window treatments, curtains and drapes, as well as custom bedding, furniture, pillows, table runners, and florals. We offer a wide variety of Hunter Douglas window fashions to meet all your needs, including favorites like Duette® Honeycomb Shades, Silhouette® Window Shadings, Luminette® Privacy Sheers, Wood Blinds, Shutters and more. Our services include design consultations and professional window coverings measuring and installation. We have most products on display in our showroom so you can get a better idea of how they will work in your home.

About Houzz

Houzz is the leading platform for home remodeling and design, providing people with everything they need to improve their homes from start to finish – online or from a mobile device. From decorating a room to building a custom home, Houzz connects millions of homeowners, home design enthusiasts and home improvement professionals across the country and around the world. With the largest residential design database in the world and a vibrant community powered by social tools, Houzz is the easiest way for people to find inspiration, get advice, buy products and hire the professionals they need to help turn their ideas into reality. Headquartered in Palo Alto, CA, Houzz also has international offices in London, Berlin and Sydney. For more information, visit www.houzz.com

Remember we serve all of the following cities! Plano, Frisco, Allen, McKinney, Parker, Prosper, Celina, Gunter, Sachse, Wylie, St. Paul, Little Elm, The Colony, Lewisville, Aubrey, Melissa, Van Alstyne, Anna, Lucas, Fairview, Rockwall, Rowlett, Garland, Richardson, Heath, Carrollton, University Park, Highland Park, Dallas, Farmers Brand, Coppell, Irving, Grand Prairie, Arlington, Euless, Grapevine, Southlake, Westlake, Trophy Club, Flower Mound, Keller, Roanoke, Argyle, Highland Village, Argyle, Corinth, Denton, Fort Worth, Kennedale, Benbrook, Cedar Hill, Duncanville, Desoto, Lancaster, Red Oak, Balch Springs, Mesquite, Forney, Crandall, Kaufman, Mabank, Gun Barrel City, Kemp, Seven Points, Cedar Creek Lake, Enchanted Oaks, Payne Springs and many more!! We have even traveled as far north as Oklahoma and as far south as Waco!

October Is Child Safety Month

Child Safety At The Window

In our lives today, nothing is more important than our children. Our top priority is keeping them safe - along with our beloved pets. Remember that child safety is an important part of choosing window treatments and child proofing your home. Let's face it… they get into EVERYTHING!! Children are innately curious about the world around them. So, even basic household items like window treatments can turn into potential hazards for them. Making our window fashions safer for homes with infants, young children and pets is a top priority at Hunter Douglas. That’s why we developed a wide range of products to help reduce the risk of accidents. From cordless alternatives to motorized operation systems, we offer many innovative lifting systems designed with safety, convenience and beauty in mind. Choose from an abundant array of colors and materials that complements your nursery today and your teen’s room tomorrow. At Read Design Southlake and Read Design Plano, we emphasize product knowledge because we want to help you make the best decisions for your home.

Consideration of cords is important.

Over the last decade, the window covering industry has made great strides in child safe qualities for you and your family. These innovative designs feature cordless lift systems and automation as the ultimate in safety, along with advancements for times when cords must be used because of window style, location and preference. Being aware of operating systems will ensure you choose the safest products for your home.

• LITERISE -The best option for your children's room, out LiteRise lift system is completely safe for your children. With our LiteRise cordless operating system you simply use your fingers to raise or lower the products and they stay where they are placed. LiteRise will eliminate the need to have an operating cord, while also offering a more streamlined appearance.
• SIMPLELIFT - A value- priced alternative to LiteRise, SimpleLift enhances both beauty and safety. Just raise and lower with the contoured bottom rail – no handle or cords required with this cordless system.
• MOTORIZATION - Hunter Douglas offers a wide variety of window fashions with motorized options that eliminate lift cords and provide the ultimate convenience. Better yet, your home’s safety is enhanced without the presence of dangling cords. It’s easy to control your motorized window fashions by remote, wireless wall switch or even with a tap on your Apple mobile device thanks to our Platinum App.
• VERTIGLIDE - The Hunter Douglas Vertiglide operating system is the ideal choice for side to side openings, sliding glass doors or as a room divider. No lift cords, chains or wands make the Vertiglide system a natural choice for enhanced safety.
• WAND CONTROL - On certain vertically oriented window fashions, a single, sleek wand controls all functions and replaces potentially hazardous operating cords.
• CLUTCH LIFTING SYSTEM - For Enhanced safety, our spring-like clutch lifting system features a decorative pull in place of a traditional operating cord to raise and lower the shade.
• CUSTOM SHUTTER COLLECTION - All Hunter Douglas shutters are cordless by design, eliminating potential safety hazards posed by operating cords. They add extraordinary beauty to any room and are especially well suited to homes with young children.

• ULTRAGLIDE - We know that sometimes cords are necessary, but they don't have to be dangerous. With the UltraGlide lift system only from Hunter Douglas, a retractable cord offers an easy operation option for windows that may have furniture blocking or for windows that are out of reach. This cord does not hang loosely to the floor and into little hands, it retracts to the perfect child safe window covering length.
• CORD TENSIONER - Our cord tensioner is designed with spring tension and bracket. When properly installed, it holds looped cords taut to reduce the risk of an inquisitive child becoming entangled.
• CORD CLEAT - Designed for standard cordlock products, our cord cleat allows excess cord to be tightly wrapped around it for both enhanced safety and a neater appearance at the window.

We know how important it is for your family to be safe in their own home. This starts with choosing the operating features that make child safety a priority. We believe that you need a product that stands the test of time for durability and cleanliness. Our team at Read Design will provide you with information on a range of products that will offer you the quality you need to help make your home beautiful while allowing the amazing benefits of these window treatments put your mind at ease for years to come. Give us a call at 972.608.4999 for Plano and 817.416.7164 for Southlake.

WARNING NOTIFICATIONS

The window coverings industry uses warning tags, warning labels and other methods to communicate the potential hazards of corded window coverings. The warnings shown here, for example, communicate the important message about cords being a potential strangulation hazard, and suggest choosing cordless alternatives or products with inaccessible cords. Together with the Window Covering Safety Council, Hunter Douglas encourages you to install only cordless window coverings in rooms where young children play and sleep.

COMBINE FORM, FUNCTION AND SAFETY
At Hunter Douglas, we strive to design products that not only beautify windows and home decor, but also incorporate features with child safety in mind. We encourageyou to visit hunterdouglas.com to learn more about the largest, most diverse collection of window fashions on the market today.
To order a free retrofit kit for older window treatments or simply replace them with a cordless window treatment, contact the WCSC directly;
Phone: 1-800-506-4636
Email: info@windowcoverings.org
Website: www.windowcoverings.org

PREVENTION BEGINS WITH AWARENESS

• Position cribs, beds, playpens and other furniture on walls without windows and window cords.
• Check your current window treatments for exposed or dangling cords.
• Keep cords out of reach of children
• Eliminate any dangling cords with cordless window treatments.
• Permanently anchor continuous cord loop window covering cords to the floor or wall.

Client Work: Hunter Douglas Vignette Roman Shade in White Linen - Dallas, TX

Our customer in Dallas, Texas wanted help with her study.  She had shutters on the front French Doors that needed to stay but everything else could go.  We put in an oriental rug that had browns, blues, and off whites in the design. We repositioned the desk to face the entry and opened up the view to the side yard using Hunter Douglas Tiered Vignette Roman Shades in White linen.  

We used the LiteRise or no-cord lifting system to keep the look neat.  She has a beautiful landscape out these windows and she says she loves the light that filters in!