Beautiful rooms begin with a beautiful foundation, and the right rug can make or break your space. With so many choices available, how can you find the perfect floor covering for your needs?

Choose the Best Look

Area rugs can have a significant impact on the overall look and feel of your room. If you see a beautiful rug during a shopping excursion, consider holding off on purchasing until you check a few important parameters.

Start by thinking about the color that will work best in the intended location for your rug. If your room includes a narrow color palette — consisting of one main color — you may want a rug that matches. Alternatively, a neutral color may work. If you want a rug with multiple colors or an interesting pattern, choose the rug first, then select complementary furnishings.

Texture also matters when it comes to choosing the perfect area rug. If you plan to mix textures among furniture, throws, pillows, and draperies, look at rugs that offer a contrasting texture. For example, a fluffy rug may pair well with a leather sofa, while seating that uses softer fabrics may look best atop a smoother floor covering.

Get the Size Right

Before buying an area rug, make sure you know the dimensions of your space. As a general rule of thumb, plan to situate your rug at least 6 inches — but preferably no more than 2 feet — from walls.

Area rugs should span your seating area, with all your furniture ideally on top of the rug. If you need to purchase a slightly smaller rug, you can compromise by ensuring that the front legs of your sofa and chairs fit on the rug.

If you plan to use a rug under your dining table, you’ll want to make sure chairs stay on the rug even when pulled away from the table.

At Audubon Parc, you can choose among a variety of floor plans to find the perfect match for your personal style. To learn more, please contact us.

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Use as a Centerpiece

One of the easiest ways to decorate with apples is to use them as-is in a centerpiece. You can place them in a large bowl or arrange them in a cylinder vase. You can use apples of different colors to compliment the colors that are found in your home. You can also place items, such as cinnamon sticks, in with the apples to create a more rustic look and make the decoration smell nice. 

Make Them Into a Candleholder

Another way to use apples is to turn them into candle holders. Use an apple corer to remove the center of the apple. Then hollow out the rest of the apple so that a tealight candle or votive candle can fit within the apple. If needed, use a knife to cut the bottom of the apple flat so the apple doesn't tip or rock. Light a candle and place it inside of the hollowed-out apple to create a beautiful, glowing apple decoration. 

Create a Dried Apple Wreath or Garland

The final way you can use apples as decorations is to create a dried apple wreath or garland. Slice apples lengthwise. Some people like to keep the core pieces with the seeds, while others discard them. Dip the thin slices into lemon juice and place them on a baking sheet. Bake them for four hours at 200 degrees Fahrenheit. Pull them from the oven and allow them to sit overnight to ensure they are dried out. From there, you can string them along a piece of fishing line or a piece of wire to create an apple wreath or garland. Add ribbon or other decorations to complete the look. 

Decorations can help to enhance the look of your space and make it feel more like home. If you are on the hunt for a new place to call home and looking for apartments in Cary, North Carolina, Audubon Parc Apartments may be perfect for you. We offer apartments with luxurious amenities nestled into a beautiful outdoor setting. Call us today to make an appointment to view our community.

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Why Pillows Age

Pillows get old for a number of reasons. Oil is absorbed from your skin as you sleep. The constant pressure from you sleeping makes them lose their “fluffiness.” Also, mites shed their skin and excrement onto the pillow, making them appear dirty. As a result, pillows get yellow, flat and generally unappealing.

How to Wash Pillows

You can successfully launder old pillows. To do this, just use about a cup of regular laundry detergent, a cup of powdered dish detergent, a cup of bleach and about half a cup of borax. Just run the washable pillow through a regular cycle inside your washing machine. Even feather pillows and synthetic pillows can be washed in this way.

Next, soak the pillows first in the washing formula mentioned above. Fill the washing machine tub with hot water. Allow pillows to soak overnight. This will kill any bacteria and any other living organisms. 

Run the machine as a regular wash cycle, without spinning the pillows beforehand. This way, the same detergent formula that you used to soak the pillows will be used to clean the pillows.

How to Dry Pillows

You can lay pillows out in the sun to dry, which will help to brighten the whites. You can also run pillows through a regular dryer cycle. Either one will get the pillows dry. To fluff sun-dried pillows, run them through a non-heat cycle in the dryer for about 20 minutes. If you like, add a few drops of essential oil to the pillow before you run the dryer cycle to add an attractive scent to your pillows.

These tips and tricks will work with most pillows in your Cary, NC apartments. The only pillows that might not work are ones that are marked as non-washable, in which case you might have to bring them to a dry cleaner. For more tips on laundry aids or to see available floor plans, please contact us today.

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Focus on the Find 

When you have a list made out before you leave, you're more likely to stay focused. (Distraction is common at a flea market where everyone's selling different items.) So if you're looking for a new chair for the corner of your living room or you want a new end table, you won't stray off toward a collection of novelty signs or CDs.

Decorators also recommend spreading out your search to as many vendors as possible. This provides you with an opportunity to mix pieces and update your own sense of style at the same time. Make sure you really love something before you buy it and that you've measured your apartment to make sure it will fit where you want it to go.

Look Past the Piece 

All of us have a tendency to see what's wrong with something rather than what's right. An old coffee table may look as though it's seen better days, but a simple stain may be all it needs to be brought back to life.

Quality furniture is meant to withstand several generations, so don't be so quick to dismiss if there are only a few scuffs and scrapes on a find that you otherwise love. The other tip is to repurpose pieces into something new. While certainly a more advanced challenge, there's no better time like the present to learn a new skill or two. 

Apartments in Cary are more fun when they have your personality stamped on every corner of the rooms. Flea market finds are not only unique, but they're also a good way to decorate on a budget. If you're looking for a new home to furnish, call Audubon Parc today to find out more about our availability. 

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