Create “Vacation Spots” at Home this Summer to Beat the High Cost of Gas

Decorating diva Diana Hudson Kresnye suggests creating vacation spots at home this summer to beat the high price of gas. “With some creativity and just a bit of cash, it’s amazing how you can transform your home into a great place to vacation."

Mentor, Ohio (PRWEB) June 27, 2006 -- Decorating diva Diana Hudson Kresnye suggests creating “vacation spots” at home this summer to beat the high price of gas. “With some creativity and just a bit of cash, it’s amazing how you can transform your home into a great place to vacation,” Hudson Kresnye says.

“Most of us have unclaimed spaces inside and outside our house that we can cleverly transform into vacation spots,” she says. Hudson Kresnye, owner of Devine Designs in Mentor, Ohio suggests “summer-izing” your house by first packing away the velvet pillows, heavy draperies, wool blankets, and dark area rugs. “We need to shed all the trappings of winter. The goal is to visually lighten up the space.”

Next, she says to turn your eye toward your “large investment pieces” like couches, love seats, chairs. “Many people have what I call hand me ups, hand me downs, and hand me overs,” she says. “An easy way to unify our misfit collection of furniture is with ready-made slipcovers. Stores like Target and JC Penneys offer good selections at affordable prices. The key is to go neutral and stay with solid colors. To create the feeling of a vacation retreat, I suggest cool colors like whites and pastels.”

Hudson Kresnye offers other tips for creating a vacation feeling within your home. “Replace heavy wool area rugs with floral print rugs for a cottage look. Or, if you’re going for a tropical feel, bamboo rugs add wonderful texture to a room. They are very affordable and make for easy clean up because you can just wipe away spills,” she says.

Art is another opportunity for a quick summer time change. “Replace your art for an instant change in latitude. Bed, Bath and Beyond, Marshalls, and TJ Maxx carry inexpensive framed art that can transport you from Cleveland to the Caribbean as quick as you can hang it.” Hudson Kresnye also says to replace the variegated ficus tree you picked up at your local craft store. “The trend in home décor is beautiful silk palms. Add one to a corner of the room to give depth and dimension. Put an inexpensive canned light behind it to brighten up the dark corner,” she suggests. Lastly add a few throw pillows, some new accessories, light and breezy ready-made cotton curtains, a lamp or two, and some fresh blooms from outside to complete the feel of a vacation retreat in your own home.

Hudson Kresnye doesn’t limit the “summer-izing” of your home to just the inside. She suggests reclaiming a corner of your yard, the deck, patio, or porch to complete the transformation of your home into a vacation spot. “There are so many fun things at the stores for summer. It’s amazing how a couple of brightly colored pillows, a summery blanket, a few potted plants, and some wicker furniture can transform these forgotten areas outside our home,” she says.

“Transforming your home into a vacation retreat this summer is a great way to turn the challenge of high gas prices to our favor,” Hudson Kresnye says. “Invest your summer vacation savings on a few cosmetic changes to the house. Once the transformation is complete, enjoy your new vacation retreat. When the kids are at camp, whether for just a day or a week, use one of your vacation days from work. Play some vacation music and revel in the retreat you’ve created,” she says.

“ You can be a thousand miles away in an instant and without the hassles of packing, traffic jams, crowded airports, flight delays, lost baggage, getting lost in unfamiliar cities, and the challenge of traveling with kids. Invite friends and family to ‘vacation’ with you all summer long for barbeques, luaus, play dates, and movie nights.” Hudson Kresnye says that with a little creativity, this can be your best summer vacation ever.

Diana Hudson Kresnye of Devine Designs is Lake County Ohio's first and only professionally trained and certified One Day Stager and Redesigner. Devine Designs specializes in redesign and real estate staging and also provides traditional interior decorating and design services. Devine Designs is based in Mentor.

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