I think there is a common misconception that if you have dogs, you can’t have nice stuff. While there are probably some nice items you might not want to leave out for Fido to get a hold of, I want to talk about maintaining style in your décor with pets.
I will admit that most of my interior decorating was done by my design inclined mother. She just has the eye if you know what I mean. I dream up these ideas in my head but she takes them and makes them real, and even better than the pictures in my head. I bought the condo from a guy who was hardly around and never decorated the place at all. It was basically a blank slate. So we went room by room deciding wall colors, patterns and color schemes. I also have on my side that my parents run a paint and decorating store. So not only could I make up any paint color I wanted, I could get as much of it as I needed at a, cough, cough, discounted price, and had the guy to do the job. That allowed me to save more money for furniture to fill my new living space.
I actually found all my big purchases at Value City Furniture. I found my couch and loveseat online and ordered them both after I went to the store and did a “sit test” to make sure they weren’t uncomfortable. Now, why would I get cream colored couches? Well, at the time, I just had a white cat. So for starters, I had in mind that it would hide a lot of her shed fur, unlike the mocha colored couch in my apartment that showed EVERY hair. The color isn't stark white so dirt is less noticeable and the texture is really great because its durable and things wipe off it pretty easily. The fact that we wipe the dogs’ paws after coming in from outside cuts down on dirt and there’s always a blanket around to lay under them so they don’t slobber or get fur on the furniture.
Wooden furniture can be a pain if you have dark wood and a light colored shedder. But at least it’s easy to wipe off fur or anything else that those furbabies might come up with. I’ve talked with people about dogs teething on the furniture, like table legs or chair rungs. One of my wooden chairs was injured due to a certain little tuxedo wearing snorter taking the liberty to gnaw on it with his puppy teeth. But there are plenty of ways to avoid this happening or prevent it from happening again. The first would be to make sure puppy has enough to interest him so he doesn’t seek other options. But another would be to buy bitter apple spray like I mentioned here and spray it on anything you think might be tempting for a puppy mouth. I sprayed it on that chair rung after his first little chew fest and he never tried it again.
Shelves are a great way to display things while keeping them out of reach of nosy furballs. Our entertainment center has shelves on either side so I’ve filled it with pictures and knickknacks that the dogs can’t get to. Of course the cats sometimes walk across the lower shelves but what I keep there would be difficult for them to knock off.
I never even knew this but you can actually buy dog beds on home décor websites. I had originally thought to just get some big floor pillows for the dogs to lay on instead of expensive dog beds that stick out like a sore thumb. Of course mom to the rescue again. She found these beds you’ve already seen a lot of on Joss & Main’s website and had them shipped to me. The pattern and colors go perfectly with the design scheme and the dogs love them. The best part is that the fabric is thick and durable and has a sealant so liquid won’t soak into the stuffing inside. The covers are also removable so they can be washed.
If you’re like me, you really enjoy a home that smells good. I love all different kinds of scents and like to change them in my home along with the seasons. I used to burn candles all the time in decorative holders or just buy ones in jars or colors that matched my décor. But an open flame can be dangerous when you have animals running around. I still burn candles but I make sure to keep them high up. However, the awesome alternative I just discovered last year is the wax warmer. If you’ve never seen one, the warmer is a decorative piece that plugs into an outlet and has a groove in the top to place scented wax cubes. There is a light bulb inside so when it’s plugged in, the heat melts the wax on top and fills the room with the scent. I’ve tried all different kinds but I love the Scentsy brand. They have a variety of decorative warmers and so many scents to choose from. My favorite for winter was Peppermint Dreams. It’s easy to leave them plugged in and just flip the on/off switch. This way I don’t have to worry about anybody’s nose getting burnt or tail catching fire.
I mentioned that we tore up the carpet last year and put in wood flooring. It’s not actual hardwood flooring but vinyl click flooring. It’s durable so that dogs’ nails won’t scratch it up and it’s so easy to keep clean. The dogs love to lay on it in the summer to keep their tummies cool.
You've probably seen the curtains hanging over the back door in some of the pictures. These are pretty new and yet again, mom found them for me on West Elm's website on sale. I love that they add another geometric pattern to the room and that also helps hide the fur that tends to stick to the curtains. Fabric is key in a fur-filled home so the barstools are also covered in a fabric that hair easily wipes off of.
The newest item hasn’t arrived yet but I’m excited about it. I’ve been looking for a toy box for the dogs to keep in the living room but wanted something that would still look nice and not scream SLOBERRY TOYS ARE IN HERE. Mom, again, found a really cool wooden trunk on sale. The wood will be durable so even if the boys try to help themselves to their toys, it shouldn’t do any damage. I will have to follow up and let you know how we like it when it arrives.
Even so, the floor, the couches and dog beds have been peed on. The chair rung has been chewed and the wax warmers have been bumped and wax splashed out on the floor. The point is that you can still have nice things in a house with animals. You just have to think ahead and keep your animals in mind when choosing your decor.
What do you do to keep your style but make it pet friendly?
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