Daylight plus privacy? Top-down/bottom-up shades, from companies like Hunter Douglas and Next Day Blinds, deliver: They let you leave your room open to the sky, important in winter months, while protecting your privacy.
A little glitter never hurt! These “Fold” pillows from John Robshaw Textiles, embroidered metallic thread in Copper, Mercury or Linseed, are $125 to $175 (pillow inserts separate) from www.johnrobshaw.com. / John Robshaw Textiles photo.
Restoration Hardware’s Starlit Trees light up the holidays, but Dupont Circle designer Joseph Ireland sayst he leaves his 3-footer in place “for months.” Hard to argue! The trees are $32.99 to $249.99 at www.restorationhardware.com.
Tiling the interior surround of a window with mirror–or these mirror-finish porcelain tiles from Ann Sacks (www.annsacks.com)–allows more light to reflect into the room. Home warehouse stores sell standard glass-mirror tile, and craft stores sell packages of one-inch mirror tiles. / Ann Sacks photo.
Brighten that dark corner of the room with a long, narrow mirror, such as the Ming mirror in polished stainless steel, which can hang vertically or horizontally, $620 at area Mitchell Gold + Bob Williams stores and www.mgbwhome.com.
DRIPPY, DREARY WINTER! Time to brighten the house with ideas both practical and fanciful.
In real estate listings a favorite idea seems to be a freestanding mirror angled in the corner of a room to catch daylight and bounce it around the room. Literally upping the wattage in a room can help, and placing a mirrored trivet behind or under a burning candle magnifies the glow. Here are some ideas and products that shed light on the subject. –Nancy McKeon
The opening image shows fire-starters from Santa Maria Novella (5454 Wisconsin Avenue, Chevy Chase, Md.; 240-743-4949,www.santamarianovellausa.com), which incorporate the 400-year-old pharmacy’s famous potpourri and, placed under logs, add quick combustion; four for $55. The glittery Nest Birchwood Pine and Holiday candles will glow even more if set atop a mirror. They’re $34 each at area Neiman Marcus stores and neimanmarcus.com. / Photo by Renee Comet.
