Are your bathroom wall tiles rather dated? Does your shower cubicle lack sparkle? Grubby grout lines in your kitchen? In these credit crunchy times you can still decorate with ease when you “do it yourself”.

Plastic wall tile panels offer a quick and easy solution to your tiling problems.

You don’t have to chip off your old ceramic wall tiles or call in a professional tiler.

Plastic tile panels can quickly cover whole wall areas. They can be cut with scissors or a craft knife to go around sink fittings or sockets giving a very professional finish.

Plastic tile panels offer a hard, glazed surface with fully glazed edges providing a neat finish to walls and window sills; they can even be bent around outside corners. The high gloss finish of some tiles come in a range of colours – plain, marble, metallic and stone

effects which complement all of the current bathroom and kitchen trends. They are easy to clean – simply wipe them with a damp cloth or you can use warm water with soap / a detergent, then rinse and wipe dry. No scouring powders or any other abrasives should ever be used on plastic.

These tiles are usually made of polystyrene or vinyl plastic, sold under many brand names. Polystyrene plastic (such as Bakelite polystyrene, Catalin Luxtred, Plexon M, Styron) is not damaged by water, oil, alcohol, vinegar, or the usual household acids. Cleaning fluids, gasoline, nail polish and polish remover, and oil from lemon / orange peel will damage them. Vinyl plastic (such as Vinylite, Saran, Geon, Marvinol, Ultron, and Monsanto vinyl butryol) is tough. Ordinary household chemicals will not harm them and they resist damage from acid, alcohol, food, ink, and dirt; but be careful not to spatter them with moth preparations. Too much heat will softens most plastic so be careful in placing near a heater or oven.

Plastic wall tiles' insulating backing reduces both condensation and mould growth.

Plastic wall tiles were also used to cover over unsightly plastered or damaged walls.

The tile panels are fixed into place with adhesive and they can then be grouted with a flexible grout and sealer. The job requires no specialist equipment – just a ruler and scissors or craft knife. Are you ready to DIY?

Because the tiles are light weight and flexible they are ideal for boats and caravans where there may be some movement on the walls, and they mould over slightly uneven wall surfaces in the home too.

Small sink splash backs in cloakrooms, baby changing areas, utility rooms and en suites can all be tiled with the panels. Once on the wall they are durable and rigid just like ceramics

If you want a ceiling that lasts for a long time, you can use plastic ceiling tiles. Plastic ceiling tiles are great for added insulation. You may find that your energy consumption decreases considerably when you install them. Plastic is commonly used for insulating windows and doors. So, it can do wonders on ceilings as well.

When choosing tiles, it is important to remember that glazed ceramic wall tiles in kitchens and bathrooms can be particularly difficult to paint due to their very smooth, non-porous surface.

Considering materials, labour and finish, plastic wall tiles are are less expensive than other alternatives.

You can go to your nearest DIY shop for advice on plastic tiling. The major UK DIY stores are Focus DIY, Wickes etc. It may be cheaper to buy plastic wall tiles online.

We always want our homes to be perfect. That is understandable since our home is our abode, our personal sanctuary, the place we look forward to go to after a whole day of stressful work. This is why, one of the most important things a homeowner has to do is to decorate his or her home in such a way that it will be a nice and relaxing escape. This article reveals top 10 home decoration secrets that you surely would want to know.

1. Visualizing is the key

Do not simply make an exact replica of the living room you found on the home interior magazine. Visualize on your own how you want your home to look like, how you want home decors like your wall plaques and paintings to be hung on the wall. Visualization of each room will make it easier for you to do your planning and decoration.

2. Start with a focal point

Any veteran interior designer knows how important it is to start with a focal point in any room so that other home décor items will flow easily around it. It is always a great idea to select an item that gives a big impact like the fireplace, a piano or a sofa.

3. Colors have psychological effect

Colors are important design elements not only because it determines the ambience and feel of the room, and gives the illusion of space but also because they have psychological effects on people.

For example, blue, which is the least appetizing color is not a good shade to paint in your dining area or kitchen. Meanwhile, light and pastel colors, which can relax the mind, are a good idea for the living room. Make sure that the colors you choose complement well with each other.

4. A theme makes it easier to achieve unity and harmony

A décor theme not only makes home decoration a lot easier but is also important because it reflects the homeowner’s personal taste and style. Your theme can be classic, modern, nautical, tropical, European, Asian or whatever you can think of.

Buy furniture and home accessories that match the theme that you have chosen. For example, if the theme of your home is contemporary, modern metal wall plaques would be a great addition while if you have a coastal theme, you might as well go for nautical wall art.

5. Clutter can ruin even the nicest home decoration

Get rid of everything that you do not need or hardly ever use and neatly store them in the storage room. Even if you have the most expensive or most gorgeous home decor, all these are useless if your room is filled with clutter.

6. Lighting is just as important as furniture

Lighting is important because of two things. First, it illuminates the room and allows people to do the things they need to do. Second, it creates an ambience and feel of the room. Because of this, you need to choose the proper kind of lighting, which will make you achieve both objectives. Lamp and fluorescent are great for general and task lighting while candles and smaller lamps are ideal for accent lighting.

7. Strive to achieve a balance between form and function

Form is just as important as function and because of that, it is necessary to achieve a balance between the two when buying furniture or decorating your home. To put it simply, you must be able to decorate your home in such a way that it will be both practical and beautiful.

We all know that home decoration is not as easy as we want it to be. However, it is also true that we do not need a doctorate degree on interior decoration to get the job done right. With a dash of creativity, resourcefulness and patience, we can have a home that looks like one of those featured in interior designing magazines.