Posted on: December 24, 2007
Keep The Sun In Your Sunroom
The sun may go down earlier in the winter, but that’s no reason to abandon your sunroom. As the thermometer drops, make this one of the coziest spots in the home with a few easy – and fiery – ideas
By Michelle Taute
CTW Features
Don't let snow stop you from enjoying your sunroom. Winter it up with colors, fabrics and texture, and enjoy! Image courtesy Four Seasons Sunrooms
Warm to the Touch
Start your cold-weather makeover by thinking about tactile fabrics. “Anything with texture adds warmth,” says Audrey Long of Audrey Long Interior Design, New Hope, Penn. So replace those cotton throw pillows with velvet or wool versions, and if you’re crafty, knit some pillow covers by hand. Even a soft cashmere or chenille throw draped over the couch can make the space seem more inviting.
Good Reflections
Everyone craves more light in the winter, so it pays to make the most of what you have. Leslie Harris, from Leslie Harris Interior Design in Los Angeles, suggests adding vases, candleholders or other accessories made from mercury glass. Its reflective, mirror-like surface will make the room feel more light-filled. Want an even cozier feel? Add lit candles to the mix or invest in a new table lamp.
Red-Hot Color
Making some changes to your color scheme – even in small ways – can help your sunroom seem warmer. Long recommends reds, oranges and yellows to heat things up. And as Linda Merrill, with Chameleon Interiors, Duxbury, Mass., points out, red actually stimulates people by raising their blood pressure. “If your blood pressure is higher, you’ll feel warmer,” she says. Another hot tip: Replace cool colors with warmer ones. You might swap out pale yellow pillows, for instance, with warm, gold versions.
Curtain Call
Window treatments can literally keep your sunroom warmer during the winter, but you may not want those same drapes blocking the sunlight come spring. So how can you have the best of both worlds? “Use tension rods to add drapes,” says Merrill. “You’re not screwing anything into the walls or woodwork.”