The kitchen is the heart of the home, your entire family will generally gather there at some point in the day, if not several times a day. From getting ready for school and preparing lunches to gathering at the end of the day to make dinner and discuss the day. Because so much time is spent in the room, it’s important that it gives off the correct vibe through the colors of the room. Here are a few things you can keep in mind as you choose the BEST color for your Lake of the Ozarks kitchen.

Green

This can be a great shade to use in your kitchen, especially because there are so many shades to choose from! Some of the popular shades are mint and apple green. These two shades also pair beautifully with white and wood trim - so you won’t have to repaint your accents. Greenery is the color of the year from Pantone, so if you are bold and want to choose something bright and exciting, you could try that! This color should be a jolt of energy, and even if just used as an accent wall, for your cabinets, the island or even your floor.

Blue

Clean, romantic, country kitchens are picking up in popularity, and a light shade of blue can really add to that style. Blue is such an invigorating shade, and it works best when you use it in accents instead of an entire room because it can quickly overpower a space. To help balance this color out, you can use a lot of neutral accents like white and gray. This will keep your kitchen from feeling too intense or dark.

Yellow

Imagine how cheery a yellow kitchen would feel every time you walk into it. It can instantly brighten a space making it feel both warm and inviting. Some also believe that yellow can make you feel hungry, so that should be perfect for your kitchen! White and gray accents are perfect pairings with yellow, as well as some wood accents also. This color can make a room feel bigger and brighter, so if you have a small kitchen, yellow may be the perfect color.

Gray

Gray has taken an extremely popular role in home design lately thanks to some modern television shows and the quaint country feel that many are trying to achieve. While it often gets categorized as being a cold shade, the right color can do wonders in your kitchen. The best part is that it can pair with such a wide variety of colors and is an ideal base to build on, but also allows you to change your mind periodically when you want to change out the accent color.

Updating Your Kitchen

At John Elliott Interiors, we are most known for our living room and bedroom decor. From furniture to accents, we have everything you need to create a beautiful interior design at the Lake of the Ozarks. What you may not have realized though, is that John Elliott Interiors will design new or renovate existing spaces, from top to bottom in your home. With over fifteen key partners John Elliott Interiors can do the ‘whole shebang’. From granite custom cabinets, audio visual, high-end appliances, flooring, window treatments, painting, and faux painting - we’ve got you covered. Whatever your interior needs, we can handle it quick, easy and right for you. Visit our website to learn more about our home interior store at the Lake of the Ozarks, and how we can help you create your perfect space.








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If you're like many, you're probably biting at the bit to get your fall decor out and put your summer stuff away! Of course, it won't be long and you'll be putting the fall away and dragging out Christmas. It's an endless cycle that happens every year, and with a little planning and organization you can streamline the process and make it easier on yourself while still keeping your home appropriately and seasonally decorated! Here at John Elliott Interiors, we know that your number one goal is to make your home beautiful, so here are a few tips to achieve that.

Find Ways to Easily Trade Out Items

Depending on the decor around your home, you can make it easier to easily add seasonally appropriate accents. Do you have a wreath on your front door? Find something that easily matches your style and then add seasonal accents to make it match all season long. You can add orange and red leaves for fall, snow men and pine boughs for winter, pastel flowers for spring, and bright flowers and butterflies for summer. You can take this same concept through your home when you add seasonal accents to the pieces you already own.

Remember to Include Seasonal Scents

Keep Them Organized Seasonally

Just as you keep your Christmas decor organized together, you'll want to keep the rest of your seasonal decor together. Don't mix fall and spring, otherwise, you'll be digging for ages trying to remember which box you put your pumpkins in. Better yet, organize everything in clear plastic totes so that you can quickly see which season you've got in which box. Do you want to be really organized? Stack them in order of the next season coming, that way the one you need is always on top!

Update Your Pantry

Okay ... so this may not actually pertain to your home, but the best way to make your home feel like a new season is when it smells like a new season. Stock up your pantry with plenty of baked goods that scream of pumpkin, apple, cinnamon, and other luxurious spices that invigorate your senses. If you have to attend any events where bringing food is required, you'll be glad you have those items on hand. Not to mention, when the cool weather hits, the desire to bake something amazing might hit as well *wink*. Make your home feel like home through the foods that welcome your guests into it.

Your Interior Design Connection

At John Elliott Interiors, we want to help you not just create an attractive home, but a home. This is achieved not only through the style and color scheme that you choose, but it's also through the atmosphere you create. Don't know where to start? Come visit our home interior store at the Lake of the Ozarks and we'll show you! We have a team of interior designers at the Lake of the Ozarks who would love to point you in the right direction and show you some incredible designs. Fall is almost here ya'll, and we're SO ready!









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It's amazing to think that the summer has already begun to come to a close, and that it's time to welcome fall and the back to school season. Getting back to school can have quite the effect on your home as routines change and your family dynamic adjusts to the change of season and schedule. It's time to take a few minutes to think about the next few months and make sure that your home is operating within your lifestyle to create a more peaceful and welcoming environment, and at John Elliott Interiors, we have a few ideas for you.

Create Designated Study Spaces

With a new school season comes new homework, and most likely MORE homework than there was last year. Help get your kids in gear, and also show them that you are interested and invested in their life by creating designated study spaces around your home. If they'll be working on homework while you fix dinner, you can set up a desk with all of their study supplies nearby so when they have questions you're there to answer. If they need peace and quiet while they study, you can set up their space in a quieter part of the home to ensure they can give it their best. Try to keep the space clear of distractions like technology, and filled with items that inspire creativity.

Organize Closets

A new school season generally means a new wardrobe as well. Not only will you need to weed through their clothes to find the pieces that got worn through over the summer, but you maybe even have to take out the items they outgrew. Once the unnessecary items have been removed, it's time to replace them with new pieces. Have you ever thought of a wardrobe capsule for your kids? It's a great way to give them plenty of creative options, while limiting their pieces to a smaller number - meaning less mess and chaos in the closet.

Prepare a Lunch Packing Station

Lunches will now be a daily task, so make it easier on yourself by setting everything up in one spot. Keep the storage containers, lunch boxes, utensils, and to-go cups at the ready in a cabinet along with snacks, lunch foods, and more. Make packing healthy lunches easy by keeping everything in easy to reach places in your kitchen.

Get Out the Door Easier

Does this scene sound familiar? You were supposed to be in the car and pulling out of the driveway five minutes ago, but one kid can't find his shoes, the other can't find her homework, and you can't find your keys! Don't let morning chaos take control of your day - set up a system to help. Get an organizing bench for your entryway for garage hallway, hooks on the wall for keys, and baskets for shoes. Think through your morning routine, and do whatever you need to to help streamline your habits.

Prepare for School Paperwork

School season will bring a whole new meaning to hectic, and while you're busy with school schedules, sports activities, and managing your own schedule, it can be incredible the amount of paperwork that can accumulate around your home. You know the spot we're talking about, it's the spot in your home where papers magically accumulate - ALL of them. School work, report cards, bills and mail. Everything. Find a way to make a system that can catch all of this paperwork and organize it before it has the chance to over run your home.

Interior Designing at the Lake of the Ozarks

Now that the kids are back to school, it's time to take control of your home (after a whole summer of the kids living in it full time) and make it the beautiful space it was before. Need new accessories for your home design at the Lake of the Ozarks? What about modern furniture to update your space and give it a fresh look for the fall and winter season? We have everything you need and look forward to helping you create a cozy home for your family. We hope you have a great kick-off to the school season and that this fall is teh best school year yet.

There are many reasons that you may want to upgrade your home and make the design and function easily accessible for someone who is disabled. From having an elderly parent come to live with you, a child get hurt and have sudden disabilities that you weren't expecting, or even just working handicap friendly options into your home as you build for when you need to sell it someday. It can seem hard to make your home comfortable for your loved ones, while also still stylish and beautiful for you. Here are a few things you can keep in mind as you renovate, reorganize, or prepare to make your home more handicap accessible.

Think About Your Layout

In many cases, your living areas and bedrooms may just need a simple change in furniture arrangement. A typical wheelchair is 24"-27" wide, so you'll want to keep that in mind as you layout your rooms and arrange your larger pieces of furniture. If you have bedrooms with many large pieces of furniture, you can rearrange them in a way that still allows for wheelchairs and walkers to get through the space, but that doesn't mean you have to sacrifice style.

Don't forget that your plants and other decor will need to stay out of the wheelchair path as well. That doesn't mean you have to undecorate your home, but you will need to possibly move a few things to make the pathway clearer for them. 

Do You Need to Make Some Adjustments?

If your home is not handicap friendly, you may need to make some adjustments that you weren't anticipating. One of the most common issues will be found in your door ways. Many standard doorways are too small for a wheelchair to manuver through, especially if you have tight hallways and turns to navigate. There is a chance that you door may still work if you change the position of the hinges and the way the door opens, but there is always a possibility that you will need to widen your doors.

Other areas of your home to consider are adding ramps outside of your home if you have stairs, and finding ways for your loved ones to maneuver through your home with ease. Sometimes you won't know what that will look like until they've been there for a while, but you'll begin to find what works for them, while still maintaining your home's style.

Addressing the Bathroom

The bathroom can be one of the largest concerns for someone with a handicap, and one of the fastest upgrades is the bath or shower. Even if you're remodeling or building your home, you may want to consider adding certain aspects that will be friendly for handicap homes. The biggest concern, even if you don't want to use certain bathtubs or toilets, is making sure that there is plenty of space  for a wheel chair or walker to navigate through a bathroom on the main level.

Keeping Up the Kitchen

The kitchen is the heart of your home, and if you want to be able to spend time with ALL of your loved ones, you may have to be willing to make some adjustments. You might have to move your dining room table to make room for a wheelchair to join you, perhaps you may even have to upgrade the table entirely to make it more easily accessible. Another option is to change out some of your cabinets to make the height a little lower and easier to reach when someone is in a wheelchair. There are plenty of options that you can add to your home to make it easier to navigate.

Creating a Home For Everyone

Adding certain aspects to your home that are handicap friendly may not even just be for your family. If you are renovating your home, keep in mind that the Lake area is famous for people who are retiring, and the individuals that may buy your home or condo in the future could have needs of their own, or be bringing family with handicap needs - which could give your real estate a better advantage.

No matter what your needs are, when renovating your home, or creating a new interior design at the Lake of the Ozarks - John Elliott Interiors is here to assist you with ALL of your design and quality furniture at the Lake of the Ozarks! We have many partners around the Lake who can help us accomplish YOUR goals to create the perfect home for you and yoru family. Visit our website to learn more, or come in and see us!

Wall art can be one of the most intimidating aspects when designing your space. It's not, however, nearly as intimidating as the empty wall ... so you just keep looking, keep researching, and keep trying different pieces in different places to find something you like. At John Elliott Interiors, we know how important it is to find the RIGHT piece of artwork and wall art for your home, and because of that, we want to provide you with 4 tips to get you started on your hunt.

Hanging Height

When hanging your artwork or wall art pieces, it's incredibly important to hang them at the appropriate height. Do you want to know the easiest way to hang them perfectly? Hang them at eye level. If you'll be walking through the room, you want to match your eye level while standing. If you will be sitting in the space - hang it at your sitting height. It's that simple. Afraid it's too high? Nudge it down a few, and you'll probably be much happier with the height.

Scale Reigns Supreme

The fastest way to make an entire space feel awkward is to hang a piece that is way too small in a room that is way too large - or vice-versa. If you have a piece that is too small, you can occasionally remedy it by adding a mat around the art, and a large frame. If you really, truly must alter the appropriate scale with a piece that is too large or too small - make it purposeful and intentional by making it *way* too big or too small.  Then it won't look like you did it on accident.

Indulge in Variety

Not having enough variety is called the "art gallery effect," and it's when you hang the exact same type of art on every wall in your home. Mix and match the canvases and framed art around your home to keep the interest alive. You can also hang up tapestries, quilts, or even hang objects like farm tools to create variety.

Connect Art to the Rest of the Decor

You can layer pieces that go together to create the perfect look. It's completely okay to place a floor lamp right in front of hanging art. You could even allow a few leaves of a plant to hang in front of a framed photo. You can create sophistication by layering your decor.

Interior Design at the Lake of the Ozarks

Whether you are finishing up the design in your home or starting completely from fresh, John Elliott Interiors is here for you.  We have over 400 pieces of original artwork at the Lake of the Ozarks from artists both local and worldwide, 15' tall silk trees to unique accessories and lamps of every style. The furnishings and design store shows off our passion for furniture and design. As you enter the building we know you will be very pleasantly surprised with the style, beauty, and elegance we have put together for you. Come see us, and learn about which art you can incorporate into your home!

From sectionals to love seats, there are many different styles of seating for your living room. When you're ready to upgrade to a new couch, you'll want to know exactly what you're looking for so you can explain it to the best furniture shop at the Lake of the Ozarks. Here are a few of the most popular styles, and a few obscure ones to get you started on your search.

Sectional Sofa

The sectional sofa is a popular and multi-functioning piece. It generally comes in three to five pieces and can be arranged in a number of configurations. Because it's picked up in popularity, you can find sectionals in many styles and designs with many materials to choose from. While some can be huge, others are small so that you can find the perfect size for your space. L-shape and U-shape are the most common ways to arrange them.

Chesterfield

A Chesterfield sofa is most commonly known for its quilted or tufted style. While many only have the tufts on the back and arms, some also have them on the seating cushions as well. It can still be a popular style, especially among millennials who are trying to achieve a vintage look. When it's covered with leather, it looks like the type of sofa you would find in a lawyers office.

Lawson-Style Sofa

Are you looking for a comfortable couch? The Lawson-style sofa is ideal. It has a signature design element, and the back is made with large pillows that are still separate from the frame. This style of sofa still remains incredibly popular, and you can find it in many sizes, colors, and materials.

Camel Back

The camel back sofa is most known for its main design element - a higher back in the center that descends in a flowing line into the arms of the sofa. They have exposed wood legs, as well as exposed wood on top of the back and arms (though, not always). This is a classic design with a contemporary feel and even antique in style.

Chaise Lounge

You will often find a chaise lounge in many luxury homes today. They are still quite popular, especially in massive master bedrooms. Some chaise lounges have an arm on one side, while others have no arms. The chaise lounge is also popular among patio furniture styles, especially placed next to a pool.

Loveseat Sofas

This is a generic term for a sofa that is made for two people. They are often a part of a living room set with a regular sized sofa along with it. Loveseats come in many styles and materials, just like your average sofa.

Divan

This is not your grandma's couch ... it's actually a very distinctive style of sofa! A diva is a sofa without a back, which means that it must be placed up against a wall with pillows arranged on the back for comfort. They aren't always practical because you are required to place them against a wall, but they do offer some variety when you arrange the pillows. Did anyone else's grandma refer to her sofa as a divan, even if it wasn't?

Interior Design at the Lake of the Ozarks

Are you looking for the perfect sofa style for your living room? Stop by John Elliott Interiors and talk with any of our interior designers at the Lake of the Ozarks. We would love to show you some of the styles that we have in our furniture showroom at the Lake of the Ozarks, as well as discuss the best materials that would work for your lifestyle. Want to redo your entire home? We can help with that, too! Come see us sometime!






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As an interior design store at the Lake of the Ozarks, we have many clients come in with all different types and styles of homes. We help all of our clients create a space that they love, from large luxury homes to cute and quaint vacation condos - and each type has their challenges. In a vacation town, though, we have many clients who want to update the style of their vacation condo, while still making it a functional and usable space when they come for a visit. Here are a few tips to make the most of a small space - whether it's a vacation condo or your tiny home!

Think Up - Not Out

When you have a smaller space, it's important to keep everything moving in an upward direction. It can be even easier if you have nice vaulted ceilings which can be popular among lake homes. Opt for tall bookcases that keep your collection moving towards the ceiling, and if you have decorative shelves or groupings of artwork - keep them moving vertically instead of horizontally.

Find Smart Furniture

There are many pieces of furniture that can create a beautiful style while still improving the usability of your space. Whether you look for bed frames with storage drawers and shelves in it or a hallway cabinet that can store your linens or organize your paperwork. It's important to make sure that your furniture is working with you when creating a beautiful style.

Grow Your Space With Mirrors

Just like magicians use mirrors to create an illusion - create your own illusion with the use of mirrors. Hanging mirrors in small spaces, like a half bathroom, or a small hallway will help make the space feel larger while also making the light even brighter.

Hang Them High

See a common theme here? Keep everything moving upwards! A little trick to make your ceilings look high (even if they aren't) is to hang your curtains as close to the ceiling as you can. The extra height will create a taller illusion and make the ceilings look tall.

Swap Out for a Settee

In small spaces, you can make large pieces of furniture work - but that doesn't always mean it's the best use of your space. If you have a small living area, try swapping your large couch or sectional for a smaller settee to increase the floor space while still providing a space to relax and entertain.

Decorating. Organizing. Living.

At John Elliott Interiors, we want to make your space a place that you can come home to - and feel like you're home! From adding accents to finish the design, adding new furniture, or a complete overhaul of your home and starting fresh, we can help! Let our interior design store at the Lake of the Ozarks be your one stop connection for beauty and style.