23 November 2018

Christmas Window Box Inspiration-Friday’s Look of the Day

FRIDAY’S LILU LOOK OF THE DAY Christmas Window Box Inspiration This year I’m changing boxes…no more evergreen for me. I have magnolia fever! Adding something new to the mix...

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12 October 2018

Get the Happy Look! Happy Look Interior Design-LiLu’s Look of the Day

FRIDAY’S LILU LOOK OF THE DAY Friday’s LiLu Look of the Day features accessories and such to add a little happy into your space, inspired by our super happy,...

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26 September 2018

Returning to the Great Indoors for Fall

WEDNESDAY ACCORDING TO LILU https://www.liluinteriors.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/160614_005-New-const-3-1024×785.jpg As the fall air becomes chillier and the days get shorter and darker, it becomes more appealing to be inside. This causes many of...

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14 August 2018

Organizing Your Home for Back to School-According to LiLu Interiors

Organizing Your Home for Back to School It’s that time of the year! We are all in back to school mode. While the summer has it’s own rhythms, sports,...

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As I get older, I am more and more interested in wellness. Not the kind of wellness that can be found in a monthly visit to the spa but the kind of wellness that is built from the inside out. I’ve revamped many things in my life and environment to improve all aspects of my health. One of the things that have always interested me about interior design is the impact our environment has on us. There are many elements in our homes that can help or hinder our physical and mental health. I thought I would share some cornerstones of health and wellness that our homes can either impact. Great Sleep As a life-long insomniac, I’ve had a long, long journey to the point I am at today. Most nights I sleep 7 hours! For some of you that might sound minimal but for me it’s miraculous. I’ve achieved a wellness goal! Most of my adult life, I’ve slept about 4 hours a night! My environment is definitely a big part of proper sleep. I’ve eliminated any source of light from my bedroom, especially led lights. Even the smallest thing, like the light emitting from an alarm clock button or a small stream of light from the edge of a blind can disturb my sleep. Darkness supports excellent sleep. Great window treatments are a must. In addition, a comfortable mattress and bedding helps you achieve complete relaxation. A serene environment helps cue you psychologically to relax. No visual clues of work or stress should be in your bedroom. Visual order is important. Use a color palette that is soothing to you and textures that are soft and welcoming. Eat Well Eating well can be defined so many different ways and I’m no expert on what diet is the best but I can tell you what works well for me. Eating meals that we prepare ourselves, in a kitchen we love and then eating together as a family. This program has worked well on so many levels. I eat more mindfully when I know the work and care put into the food I am eating. Meals slow down when we are conversing with our loved ones. Creating a kitchen that works well and makes it easier to prepare meals together is the perfect starting point for including eating well in your wellness routine. Having a dining space that encourages conversation and lingering at the table is important too. Limit your exposure to Toxins As part of my wellness, I try to limit my exposure to toxins. From the paint on our walls to the materials in our mattresses and the cleaning products we use, our homes are filled with products that can add to our toxin load. Once we walk out our doors, we can be exposed to poor air quality and toxins in the environment. So at home, I choose carefully the finishes and furnishings that I use. A little bit of research allows me to buy products that don’t off-gas and have no VOC’s. We also are one of those shoes off homes. Many people think this is an idiosyncratic Midwestern “thing”. However, shoes off means you aren’t trailing toxins from the Target parking lot into your home where a baby might be crawling around. Manage Stress There are many ways that our home environment can help us manage our stress. An organized home reduces the daily stress of searching for things and makes daily tasks easier to perform. Having an environment at home that you find relaxing, visually pleasing and allow you to do the things you most enjoy is the perfect way to manage stress. A spot to relax, rejuvenate and fill you cup contributes to both your physical and mental health. For many of us, having a spot to exercise at home is key to stress management also. From a spot to lie out a yoga mat (which is my thing) to an entire exercise room making exercise easy to include in your daily routine is an important part of stress management. Connection to People I’m the ultimate introvert and I love my alone time but I also know that having a sense of community and connection to people is a corner stone of both physical and mental health. They’ve done studies! How can your home support this? So many ways but here are just a couple. Arrange your furniture to encourage connection! From the living room to the dining room make sure that people are forced to face each other and not a wall or a screen. Create a space you can proudly entertain in! Being able to host a friend or the book club means you are more likely to create stronger connections with others and have a community around you as you age. Connection to Nature Connection to nature is also a cornerstone of wellness. It’s been proven that views of nature help ill people recover more quickly in hospitals so of course, you should include nature views or art that shows landscapes in your home. Plants create cleaner indoor air. In addition, here in Minnesota we have less time to enjoy the outdoors but planning a spot to sit outside in a garden, yard or even on a deck can increase your connection to nature! Whatever you want to include in your wellness routine… ask yourself how can your home support your quest for wellness?

1 August 2018

Wellness at Home-According to LiLu Interiors

By Lisa Peck, ASID As I get older, I am more and more interested in wellness. Not the kind of wellness that can be found in a monthly visit...

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6 July 2018

Red, White and Blue – Friday’s LiLu Look of the Day

Red, White and Blue! Friday’s LiLu look of the day is featuring products from a few of our favorite showrooms, Tapis Decor at International Market Square, Dessin Fournier at...

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16 May 2018

Celebrating Graduates – Party at Home

ACCORDING TO LILU By Lisa Peck, ASID We are celebrating graduates! As graduation approaches many friends and family members are rushing to install new light fixtures, do quick gardening...

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9 May 2018

Top Design Tips for Super Moms-According to LiLu

By Lisa Peck, ASID Design the daily stressors out of your life Make your life easier by designing daily stressors out of it. Hire a closet consultant to design...

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18 April 2018

The Story Behind Blissful Master Bath – According to LiLu

Angi and her husband moved into their home in the North Metro with every intention of remodeling it from top to bottom. And five years ago, they did just...

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11 April 2018

Top 5 Tips to Refresh Your Home for Spring – According to LiLu

Top 5 tips to refresh your home for spring. When spring arrives everyone is ready to embrace the new season and start fresh! As the season unfolds with fresh...

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21 March 2018

Designing the Perfect Home Office for a Woman – According to LiLu

View Perfectly Suited Project Today we’re looking at designing the perfect home office for a woman. We are focusing on design for women this month! What would make a...

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12 January 2018

Designing Color of the Year into your Home

How to design the color of the year into your home is what we are discussing today on our blog. Sherwin Williams Color of the Year is Oceanside. A...

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4 October 2017

Autumn Happy Hour at Home-According to LiLu

by Lisa Peck, ASID Hosting an autumn happy hour at home is a simple way to entertain at home. As the air becomes chillier, the time for easy outdoor...

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11 August 2017

Summer Reading!

Got some extra time on your hands this summer? Need to make some time to relax? There’s nothing like taking quiet time to read outdoors in sweet summer....

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7 August 2017

Lakeside Hideaway: Peek at a Project

Picture this….. Dappled sunlight, cool shade, lake breezes, garden views, a comfy chair and a good book. Sign me up! This week on the blog, we’re talking...

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19 July 2017

Designing Staycation Experiences Into Your Daily Life

Designing staycation experiences. When returning from vacation we reflect on the wonderful experiences and relive our vacation in our minds. There are many things about vacation we would love...

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17 July 2017

A Room with a View: Corner Window Seat – Monday’s Peek at a LiLu Project

A room with a view…this corner window seat takes advantage of the lake view and creates a cozy space for one. A space to dream, a space to escape,...

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29 June 2017

Five Design Tips for the Perfect Craft Room-According to LiLu

It’s summer and we all want the kids to be outside all the time. I know I want to be outside on every nice day we have but the...

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7 June 2017

5 Must Have Summer Spaces-Design Your Home to Make the Most of Summer-According to LiLu

The LiLu team and large numbers of our clients live in northern climes. That means when summer comes around we want to make the most of it. We live...

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31 May 2017

Designer Tips for Summer Entertaining at Home-According to LiLu Interiors

By Lisa Peck, ASID Create Connections between Indoor and Outdoor Spaces Today we are talking about our designer tips for summer entertaining at home. In the summer, you can...

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