Use the Ceiling Line

If you don’t have any leveling tools, you could just use your eye. Once you’ve positioned the picture where you’d like it, line it up to the line where the ceiling meets the wall. To do this, squint your eyes just a bit and focus on the top edge of the frame and the ceiling line. When they’re exactly parallel, you know the picture is straight.

Use Painter’s Tape

If your picture frame has two hanging brackets on the back, use painter’s tape to hang the picture straight. To do this, lay the frame so the back is facing up. Place a strip of painter’s tape across the top so it’s just below each bracket. Use a nail to puncture the painter’s tape in the center of each bracket. This makes a template for you to mark the nail or removable Command hook placement in the wall. Now, remove the painter’s tape and apply it to the wall. Use a level to make sure the tape is straight. Now, just hammer the two nails or attach the hooks in through the holes in the tape. Remove the tape and hang your perfectly straight picture!

Use a Level App

If you’re lacking a level, you can download a level app to your cell phone. Place the picture on the wall and hold the cell phone on top with the level app working. Mark the location lightly on the wall with a pencil. Hang your picture and erase the pencil line.

Your apartment in Flagstaff will look better now that you’ve personalized it with your own pictures! To get more inspiration, why not view our available apartments now and contact us today to learn more? We look forward to speaking with you!

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Creative Ways to Lighten Your Apartment

• A good rule of thumb to remember is that lighter colors reflect light, while darker colors absorb light. A dark couch or dark-colored furniture may fit the design of your apartment perfectly but can make an entire room appear darker. If you cover a dark couch with light-colored throw pillows or something else that reflects light, it can help brighten a room. Cover the top of a black end table with a small white tablecloth, for example, to achieve this effect. 
• Lighter colors can brighten an apartment — and so can mirrors. A full-length floor mirror placed in a corner can increase the amount of light in a room without adding a single penny to your annual electric bill. Experiment placing a mirror at different angles to find the maximum "light bouncing" benefit from it. 
• Many smart home devices are geared toward controlling the lighting in an apartment. Inexpensive smart lamps paired with the correct app on your phone can be scheduled to come on at certain times of the day. A couple of lamps that automatically turn on as the sun starts to set can brighten a room, and you won't even have to think about it!

Those are just a few quick ideas to lighten your apartment as the days get shorter. Do you know someone who plans to move soon? Have them call the leasing office at 844-864-0303 for a tour of the Flagstaff apartments we have available.

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Think About Your Needs

When trying to create balance when decorating, you should first decide on your needs. Do you want a large couch? Do you want a green chair? By first deciding on your needs, that can help you add other design elements that will fall into place. If you decorate as you go with no real plan or idea in mind, that tactic may be harder than you think. Before you start decorating, try deciding on your specific needs, and everything else should fall into place.

Create a Focal Point

While balance has to do with elements working in conjunction, proper balance also has a centralized focal point that helps the work stand out. When planning your decoration, deciding on this focal point piece should be a top priority. Now you may be wondering: What should this piece be? If you’re lucky enough to have a large window with a beautiful view, then you’re already ahead of the game. A view to the outdoors works great as an attention-grabber, and it also does a wonderful job of bringing the light in. Fireplaces and French doors are other focal points that are very popular and effective.

Minor Details Make All the Difference

While being small and usually less costly, small touches make a huge impression when decorating a home or an apartment. Whether it’s silver bowls on the table or a colorful blanket over the couch, these minor details can really add balance to any space. Once the larger pieces of furniture and other elements are in place, you still may find areas that need some work. Try adding blankets, pillows, candles, bowls, or other elements that can help fill in these areas and make a lasting impression. However, you don’t want to go overboard. Be sure to add minor details, but remember not to add so much that it might feel congested.

Looking for a new apartment in Flagstaff, AZ to start your decorating journey? If so, then be sure to call Butterfield Apartment Homes today to check out our amazing floor plans!

The post How to Create Balance When Decorating Your Apartment appeared first on Butterfield Apartments Blog.

Convert a Blank Wall Into a Solution

Consider a floor-to-ceiling shelving system that serves multiple purposes. With some strategic design work, you can incorporate a desk space, a TV niche, and storage for toys, decor, or office supplies. If you're a book fan, this is a great way to display your collection. Keeping items neat and organized keeps this space from becoming a catch-all and makes it the centerpiece of your apartment.

Design a Play Area With Colorful Rugs and Cubbies

Create a bright corner for kids with an area rug in pretty pastels or bold rainbow tones. Add portable cubbies in accent colors for easy storage you can quickly stow away when company comes over. Beanbag chairs and tiny sofas give children a cozy space all their own to encourage them to keep toys and books contained.

Craft Nook Fun

Perhaps you're an artist, musician, seamstress or hold another creative talent. It's easier than you might think to create an area dedicated to your passion. It could be as simple as choosing the right accent rug to give the space a creative flair. Oval and round rugs soften the overall impact, especially if you want to blend your hobby area into a larger room. Choose a rug that fits a comfortable chair or stool and your instrument or easel, and all you need is a little inspiration to get started. For crafters, a small desk or table with storage helps keep your supplies and current projects accessible. 

With a little research and inspiration, you can maximize space in our apartments in Flagstaff. If you'd like a look at our floor plans, contact us today to see what's currently available.

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Area rugs are a great way to add distinction and variety to the decor in your Butterfield apartment in Flagstaff, AZ.  You can bring the country club style of living into your home by using area rugs to add texture, pattern and color. Additionally, when choosing area rugs for different locations in your apartment, the right rug size, shape and material are factors to consider and will depend upon the location of the rug. No matter which shape or texture of rugs you prefer, consider these five ways to decorate with rugs:

5 Ways to Decorate With Rugs

1. Define Areas: The living room seating, the dining room table and the entrance to your apartment are three areas that can be easily defined with an area rug. And for studio apartment living, area rugs are a great way to define the open space.
2. Establish Quiet: Using fabrics throughout your home is one way to absorb sounds from neighbors or outside activity. Yet, area rugs can also be used to quiet the interior decor—softening hard surfaces, blending upholstery colors, and adding subtle contrast to neutral walls. 
3. Create Variety: There is no decorating rule stating only one area rug is allowed per room. Using two rugs of the same size can create the illusion of separate spaces. When you use two different-sized area rugs, it adds a sense of diversity to the room.
4. Focal Point: Since an area rug makes an impact by creating visual diversity, they are famous for creating a focal point in the room. Use a contrasting color or an intricate pattern to subtly create a point of focus in your decor.
5. Add Harmony: The color, style and shape of an area rug can effectively blend a room's decor and create a pleasant harmony to the entire space. Muted tones, without patterns which are complementary to your home furnishings, are a great way to establish harmony.

Area rugs can be used to brighten, soften, or coordinate your home decor. If you are searching for great community living in Flagstaff apartments, contact us to discover the country club amenities at Butterfield apartment homes.

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• Use Multiple Sources:

Instead of depending on one single, powerful lighting source for one room, use multiple light sources of a lower rating so that light can be evenly distributed around your apartment. Also, you can focus the light on certain focal areas, making it even more dispersed.

• Use Mirrors:

Not all apartments are blessed with plenty of natural light. In this case, you can use a couple of mirrors to bounce light around the apartment and brighten up your space. You will need to find the appropriate spots to install the mirrors and maximize this effect.

• Arrange your Furniture Strategically:

Shadows created by furniture are amplified when there is only one light source in a room. If you are not able to add more lighting equipment, you can arrange your furniture to allow the light to spread throughout the area.

• Cover your Walls

Decorations help liven up your apartment by adding a personal touch to your space. You may choose a variety of clever and cost effective designs to make something that suits your home well.

• Use Bright Colors

Brightly colored walls, decoration and furniture can help maintain an upbeat mood around the apartment and brighten up your home in more ways than one!

Every once in a while, you can make the effort to change the décor so that you are always experimenting with the ambiance of the apartment according to your mood. 

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