What does your decorating style say about you?

Posted by | Posted in Home Improvement | Posted on 10-05-2013

The clothes you wear, the car you drive, the house you live in: all of these things reveal something about you. As indicators of both your taste and your personality they are not always reliable, after all we’ve all worn things that don’t suit us, but there’s no doubting that most of us pick up signals about other people from how they look and what they choose to buy. The same applies to interiors. The way we decorate our homes is a reflection of our characters, tastes and lifestyles. However, not everyone finds decorating easy, and getting the home decorating style you really like isn’t always a straightforward process. With that in mind, here are a few tips for creating home and style interior designs that reflect your personality.

decoration

Keep it personal
When it comes to choosing ornaments and pictures, it’s very important to go with something that reflects who you are. Seek out accessories that say something about your interests and tastes, rather than things which just look nice in the shop. If you are keen on travel, sports or music, there are ornaments, pictures and even colour schemes that can represent your interests. A room full of ornaments chosen because they seemed to complement one another in the display in the shop window might look impersonal and anodyne in your living room. The more varied and individual your approach to decorating, the more unique and personal your home will be.

Choose a shade that speaks about you
The house colour scheme you choose for your interiors is likely to say a lot about your personality. It is also an essential aspect in getting the atmosphere of a room right. When it comes to choosing wall paint or wallpaper, think about your character: are you an extrovert with an outgoing and bubbly nature, or are you more low-key and calm? Also, don’t forget to consider what you want the room to be used for: is it a living room for relaxing or a space for entertaining guests and having parties? As a general rule, reds, pinks and raspberry shades suggest an outgoing nature and look great in lively spaces, whereas cool blues, pale greens and creams denote a quieter nature and complement a relaxing space.

Cromwell Chesterfield Sofa Range

Be comfortable with who you are
When it comes to choosing furniture, do not go for appearance at the expense of comfort. You should always choose an item of furniture because you like it, because using it is a pleasant experience; because it makes you feel good, and not because you think it looks cool. When in doubt, go with something tried and tested rather than new and snazzy. After all, a sofa is a large purchase item, if you choose a luxury leather sofa from simply leather sofas, it is likely to be with you for a very long time, providing many years of comfort and aging gracefully along with you.

Article provided by: Leathersofa.co.uk

Defend against moisture in homes

Posted by | Posted in Accomodation, Architecture, Basement, Do It Yourself, Home Improvement, Interior Designing, Kitchen, Living Room | Posted on 19-04-2013

drawing room

A family of 4 releases on average 12 liters of water in the air. The rate of moisture is very important in a home. Too high, it can be a destructive factor for your health and your home. In addition to problems respiratory infections and degrade wall coverings, moisture encourages the growth of bacteria novices on the environment. So it is very important to perform regular checks for the prevention of prevents & its appearance.

Why it is important to check the moisture rate in your home?
A significant presence of moisture is needed in all healthy homes. An average of 30% and 40% humidity in the air is good in the interior of house, Below or above might be problematic. That is why today the standards in new homes are regulated and define those needs to ensure good air ventilation. But sometimes the mere presence of people is enough to raise the moisture content. For example, a family of 4 releases on average 12 liters of water in the air. This amount may increase depending on the activities like Households, showers, dishes, bathroom. sometimes climb rate to 80%. Good ventilation  system in the house can overcome to surplus moisture.

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4 steps to optimize ventilation for a healthy indoor.

  • Treat damp rooms by maintaining it regularly.
  • Do not block the vents of ventilation ducts.
  • Always allow 2 inch gap for air circulation.
  • Do not turn off the electrical ventilation system.

checks  for proper ventilation in the house.
Insulating your home is good for the optimum performance of heating & cooling system of the house. But a poor  insulation work might prevent air circulation in your home, which promotes rising humidity. Always choose industry experts to for home insulation. If moist air did not escape, the water collects. A glaring example: a very modern detached house offers nearly 10 hours to renew its air, then an old house or less isolated about 1 hour. - Ventilate your home every day at least 5 minutes, taking care to turn your radiator and after all activities that cause moisture load as a bath or cleaning. - Check the sealing barrier in your home. Everything that surrounds your house or come into contact with moisture should be regularly maintained. Roofs, walls, cracks, masonry joints should be checked. Frost, wind, sun or heavy rains can damage the surfaces often requested. - Check capillary rise. This phenomenon comes from up welling from the ground. They relate mainly to the ground pavement. This rise can be caused by a diversion of the water system, too steep terrain, poor water drainage …

Cool new ways to hide your TV

Posted by | Posted in Home Gadgets, Home Improvement | Posted on 12-04-2013

Call it what we may, Cathode Ray Tubes, CRT’s, The Tube or even just the good old ‘Box’ – the old large format televisions have gone the way of the dinosaurs and are a thing of the past.

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Luckily for us it wasn’t a meteor strike that killed them off, rather evolution, specifically the advent of LCD, LED and Plasma TV’s which has meant that now, almost everyone owns a flat panel TV.

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Flat TV’s have meant that we no longer need to dedicate an entire corner of a room to our AV equipment.  Many people now use straight forward wall mounts to bring the TV up off the floor, others have full arms that allow the TV to leave the wall and move to different positions.  However the new flat format, has lead to a surge in creative ways to hide your TV, and in this post, we present our top 5 cool new ways to keep your TV out of sight until you need it.

Hidden Vision’s Extended Flipout
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At Artaberry, we just love this super-smooth way of concealing your TV under a picture and then the fact that it put’s itself in exactly the right viewing position.  It looks like the guys at Hidden Vision do a few types of these, but it’s the extended one that really does it for me – put a great US TV series on and I’m not sure I’d ever get out of bed or go to sleep for that matter!

The rapid drop in cost of ownership of flat TV’s mean that we own more and more of them these days, and the more of them we own, the more chance there is that one of them is going to develop a fault and break. And why does this always happen when the TV has just come out of it’s warranty period? The best way get round this by using a third party extended warranty product – most you have to pay for each item you want covered but we’ve found a tv warranty at  warrantyshop.co.uk that covers every TV in your home, as well as loads of other audio-visual equipment and all the large appliances in your kitchen too.

Conceal it in an existing peice of furniture
Now you can go about this an awful lot of different ways – just make sure you don’t break your TV in the process!  Personally I love the thrift store approach from my fellow blogger Laine, where she’s converted a redundant $10 cabinet below.

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But you can go really high end with this and get a master craftsman to personally hand convert an old trunk – Chuck Zeller has done one pictured below – amazing but it’ll set up back some $

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Hide it in a wall!
Finally if you really don’t want to know it’s there, hide your TV in a wall!  Tom Stringer has given a wonderful example in the image below – make sure you leave plenty of space for your TV to swing aroud clear though so you don’t break it.

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Five must-have gadgets for any new home owner

Posted by | Posted in Home Gadgets, Home Improvement | Posted on 22-03-2013

Buying a new house is an exciting event, but what comes after, furnishing it, is where things get really fun. In this digital, technologically advanced age, we humans have found fun and interesting ways to make homes as comfortable and convenient as possible. Of course, there are the basics — like the washer and dryer, and a heater — but then there are the gadgets that may be deemed unnecessary: a digital measuring spoon or an ice cream lock, for example, that would still be really cool to have around the house. Here are a few gadgets that you should introduce to your household that you didn’t know you needed.

USB combo ports
It seems USB cords are being used to charge everything these days, such as phones, tablets and cameras, just to name a few. The USB charger cords for these items usually come with a detachable power plug head, which can often get lost in the recesses of one’s house. When this happens, it’s hard to charge your device without a computer — and this is where the USB combo ports come in. These ingenious little inventions look like regular power sockets, except that there is also a space to plug in your USB head, making it possible to charge your device straight from your house’s electricity source — without an attachment!

 

Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream Euphori Lock

Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream Euphori Lock
This is the perfect gadget if you live with sneaky housemates who like to pilfer your beloved frozen snack. The Euphori lock was produced by Ben & Jerry’s after a customer suggested they sell their ice cream in containers with padlocks on them. The lock itself is a two-part security ring that can be affixed to the top of a pint of Ben & Jerry’s (or a similarly-sized container) and can only be opened with the right three-digit code. This playful security device can be purchased at the Ben & Jerry’s online store, and ensures that your ice cream never gets stolen again.

Handspresso Handheld Espresso Maker

Handspresso Handheld Espresso Maker
Most mornings can’t be started without a fresh cup of Joe, but coffee machines can be big and expensive, taking up valuable space on your kitchen counter. Thankfully, the Handspresso exists, meaning that you don’t have to spend a ridiculous amount on a giant machine that is sure to clunk up your kitchen space. Nobody’s got time for that. The Handspresso’s portability means that you don’t have to confine your espresso-making to the house; you can take it out for coffee on the go, whether its on a camping trip or on the way to the office.

idKitchen Digital Measuring Spoon

idKitchen Digital Measuring Spoon
Baking is a science, and a precise measurement could mean the difference between a perfect sponge cake and a rock-hard one. Kitchen scales are all well and good, but using one to measure out something as small as a teaspoon would be a tad excessive. Still, measuring out tiny amounts of flour or sugar or baking powder is an equally important part of cooking, and the idKitchen digital measuring spoon is perfect for small but precise measurements. Never have your souffle fall down on you ever again!

UV Toothbrush sanitisers

UV Toothbrush sanitisers
It is a commonly known fact that you should change your toothbrush every three months, but did you know that the state of your bathroom is still rendering your toothbrush unusable all the same? Ways to combat this is to put your toilet seat down all the time, or keep your toothbrush as far away from the toilet as possible, or even get a small cap to enclose the head of your toothbrush in. But there is a much cooler way to protect your toothbrush from germs, and that’s the UV toothbrush sanitiser. It looks a lot like a standard toothbrush holder, except that all the toothbrushes point down, not up. Also, it provides UV rays to sanitise your toothbrushes while you’re not using them.

Whether your new home is part of one of the house and land packages NSW offered or you bought some land for sale Illawarra had available to build a house on, acquiring a new home is an excellent excuse to get some new gadgets.

Author bio: Oscar Wilson is a real estate agent by day, and a freelance writer specialising in technology by night.

Home Improvement in few minutes

Posted by | Posted in Home Improvement | Posted on 18-03-2013

If you are looking for quick home Improvement tips, Quick Quid prepared a very useful infographic that presents how to improve your home decor in less then 10 minutes in a limited budget.

Installing a library in the entrance of your home

Posted by | Posted in Home Improvement | Posted on 14-03-2013

home library 2

When you love books & your thirst for reading is inexhaustible, this does not necessarily mean the same for your storage space for books in your house.The library room can quickly find themselves overwhelmed. So in this case you are not able to expand your collection of books, But no worries, You can transform the entry of your house into a beautiful library in a limited budget. But beware, errors are to be avoided in order not to burden your entry. Here are some tips for installing the ideal library in your driveway.

What books in the lobby?
Please note that the entry act as a welcoming place of your home. This is the first piece that you can see when you get home and it is the place that sets the tone for the wholehome library atmosphere of your home. It would be a shame to store books that do not have an interest in deco. Example, you can highlight beautiful books by putting them front and not on their edge on a shelf wall. In this way, your books will act like paintings that you can change your mood. The entrance is also a common place shared by the whole family, so we must prefer books that can be viewed by adults as well as children and can also be stored in the library for whole family. Finally, be careful not to overload your library that space does not seem too confined, especially if your entry is already narrow. For this, separate the rows of books with other objects such as vases, sculptures or even lamps .

How to choose a library?
If your entry is narrow, you will determine the depth of your library based on the remaining space keeping 1 meter width passage. You can also choose to insert a library on the wall opposite the door to keep your workpiece width. If your wall is equipped with a door, try the library will measure your door frame, an original solution for new storage space. Finally, with a narrow entrance, select a library in the same color as your walls in light colors instead. If, however, your entry is wide and great, you can play on volumes with an impressive library and a different color of your walls. You can also enjoy a library with open bottom to separate your room and hide behind coats and shoes. Finally, if you have a staircase, a library below to install it fill the void.

Installing a library in entrance of your home  is not going to cost you much but if are looking for loans to finance your home library refurbishment, The loans calculator from Lloyds TSB is a good guide that you can check to find a suitable financing solution for the renovation work of your home.

Lloyds Watermark