
The term “throw pillows” fails to justify the power these fluffy accessories really have. Adding one or two interesting pillows can instantly cozy up a room and complete the look without spending thousands of dollars on furniture. If you don’t have the funds to invest in a few good pillows, hidden beneath our splurge-worthy options are a few DIY hacks as well.
1. Won’t Stop ($20): Have a case of the Mondays? You’ll need this pillow for your daily source of style inspiration.
2. Marimekko Kuukuna ($49): This pillow is suitable for any dapper man’s man cave. Lots of emphasis on the dapper part of that man.
3. Alabat ($200): Made by hand in the Philippines, this little puff gives an added pop of color to any muted space. This pillow comes free of buyers remorse, which, at that price, is a good thing.
4. African Spot Pillow ($86): We’re loving this versatility. A black and white print like this can dress up or dress down any colored sofa.
5. Work It Honey ($28): Our top pick of the roundup by far! Both sassy and chic, this pillow is very fun and sweet.
6. British Bouquet ($65): Interior Designer, Caitlin Wilson knows the way to a girl’s heart. This cushion is the perfect balance of both style and glamour.
7. Kyoto ($64): This pillow will brighten up a room of any shade. The bold pattern and color combination sits pretty, anywhere.
8. Isn’t She Lovely ($40): Stevie Wonder in your house! This cushion says it all. Both lovely and shabby-chic, any romantic room would benefit from its presence.
9. Char-Bea By Ashley G ($49): If you’re fond of Mid-Century, this color block pillow is most likely one of your favorites. Pair it with your Danish chair, mix up a Manhattan, and you’re ready to watch an episode of Mad Men.
10. Metallic Faux Knit Print ($20): Silver’s time to shine has past. Gold has made quite the comeback, and this metallic accent is no exception. Pair it with anything and everything black and white.
11. Kilim ($17): So many colors! So many patterns! The colorful Kilim can be found on Ebay all day, everyday.
12. Golden Arrow ($70): This pillow is a winter-white favorite, suitable for snow and sunshine-centric seasons.
13. Sequin Heart ($10): Spotted: A great housewarming or hostess gift. So hard not to love!
14. Orange Crush ($43): Take orange to a whole new level of awesome.
15. Tulipa Candy Pink ($197): This beauty is a serious statement pillow, suitable for either contemporary or traditional settings.
16. Road Bargello ($175): Jonathan Adler defines modern chic. And here he is, doing it in pillow form.
17. Triangle Stamp: Rather get down with some DIY? The project calls for only five ingredients, and voilà! You’ve got yourself a nice little throw pillow. (via Hello Lidy)
18. Rock the Block: Ready to craft your own color block? This step-by-step uses a simple-sew technique. No fancy machinery required! (via Better Homes and Gardens)
19. Geometric Pattern: We’re huge fans of geometric pillows, and we promise this DIY project will give you every bit of pillow satisfaction without the price tag. (via Drifter and the Gypsy)
20. Stencil Arrow: This pillow stole our heart. Grab a soft-coral paint and a stencil, and you can whip it up in no time. (via Making Home Base)
21. Waffle Pillow: Cozy galore! If you have an old waffle or cable-knit throw, you’re already halfway there. (via Boat People Boutique)
22. Sunprint Art: This sunprint selection is the crème de la crème. In fact, it kind of, sort of reminds us of our watercolor-inspired DIY. Got a little time on your hands? Then you’ve got yourself a beautiful, handmade accent pillow. (via Design Love Fest)
23. Leather-Dipped Pillows: And finally, one of our most recent DIY projects. We recreated a chic $180 pillow for under $20. #DIYwin (via Brit + Co.)
What pillow are you in the throes of passion over? Let us know in the comments below!
Welcome to Selfmade Finance School, our new money series with Block Advisors to help small business owners with their tax, bookkeeping, and payroll needs year-round. This week, we explore the tax implications of bringing family members into your business.
The question for today is this: Does hiring your family members make sense for your business? Let me be clear. This is not a piece about whether hiring your family members makes sense for your relationships with those family members. As someone who is part of a family business, I could fill up a lot more than 600 words on my opinions about that. For today's purposes, we focus on whether it makes sense from an overall "good business and tax implication" perspective. As it turns out, there is a decent amount of tax nuance when it comes to employing your family. Let's break it down based on relationship to the employee:
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Spouses Who Are In Business Together
Personally, if I had to be in business with my husband, it would not go well. However, many couples build viable, strong businesses together and I say, good for them! Depending on how you have your business entity structured, it will make a big difference on the tax treatment of you and your spouse working as partners. Because a business jointly owned and operated by a married couple is generally treated as a partnership for Federal tax purposes, the spouses must comply with filing and record keeping requirements imposed on partnerships and their partners. The election to file two Schedule C (Form 1040) forms, (one for each spouse) permits certain married co-owners to avoid filing partnership returns, provided that each spouse separately reports a share of all the businesses' items of income, gain, loss, deduction, and credit. Under the election, both spouses will be subject to self-employment tax and on net earnings from self-employment and receive credit for Social Security earnings.
One Spouse Employs Another
If you have a dynamic where your spouse is an employee of your business, then your spouse's wages are subject to income tax withholding, Social Security and Medicare taxes. If you are self-employed (not a corporation or a partnership), your spouse's pay does not have to be included in your federal unemployment tax account (FUTA) contributions and payments. However, if your business is a corporation or a partnership you must include that spouse's pay in your unemployment tax contribution calculation.
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You Employ Your Child
First, let's be clear. I work in my family business, but I am an adult, so I am treated just like a normal employee. However, if you, for example, run a family restaurant and want to hire your children under 18 to work for you, there are some tax benefits. But first, you should check with your state for rules on how many hours minors can work (in non-agricultural jobs) and reference the Fair Labor Standards Act for information on limitations on the kinds of work children can perform.
"This is an often overlooked or under-utilized strategy. Paying your children for true services they provide in your business can be a powerful tax-saving tool," says Cathi Reed, Block Advisors Regional Director. "If you are a sole-proprietorship or single member LLC, and the child is less than 18 years of age, the business is not required to withhold FICA or payroll taxes. The child can use his or her standard deduction against income you pay."
You Hire Your Parent
Oh dear. If you are brave enough to do this, know that you will need to pay Social Security and Medicare taxes on your parent's wages and make the appropriate withholdings, but you don't have to pay unemployment taxes. Now all you have to do is convince your parent that you are the boss. Have fun with that!
Is Hiring Family Members Worth It For The Tax Benefits?
"There are some positive tax advantages to hiring family members. It's important to treat a family member like any other employee. Hiring your children can result in substantial savings for businesses. Make sure your child has real, age-appropriate work to do and a reasonable pay rate, comparable to other employees. Consult with a Block Advisors small business certified tax pro to ensure that you are complying with all requirements," advises Reed. "Block Advisors, a team within H&R Block, is dedicated to meeting the tax, bookkeeping and payroll needs of small business owners year-round. To start working with the tax experts at Block Advisors, visit blockadvisors.com."
In my opinion, you should not hire a family member solely because of the tax benefits. You should always hire based on whether that person is right for the job and keep in mind how this hire could materially impact your relationship with that person and others in your family. Finally, as I mentioned, make sure you have a tax professional on your team when making these determinations. As you can see, things can get a little tricky!
*All details were sourced from IRS.gov and blockadvisors.com
The opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and may not necessarily reflect those held by Kestra Investment Services, LLC or Kestra Advisory Services, LLC. This is for general information only and is not intended to provide specific investment advice or recommendations for any individual. It is suggested that you consult your financial professional, attorney, or tax advisor with regards to your individual situation. Comments concerning the past performance are not intended to be forward looking and should not be viewed as an indication of future results. Securities offered through Kestra Investment Services, LLC (Kestra IS), member FINRA/SIPC. Investment advisory services offered through Kestra Advisory Services, LLC (Kestra AS), an affiliate of Kestra IS. O'Keeffe Financial Partners and any other entity listed herein is not affiliated with Kestra IS or Kestra AS Investor Disclosures: https://bit.ly/KF-Disclosures