MyFurnitureOK.com

Open shelving, gleaming granite counter tops and glass doors on refrigerators are the rage in kitchen design today. But these looks don’t fool many who have interacted with them. Homebuyers in 2006 look for practical design options to make their time in the kitchen more leisure and lower day-to-day maintenance.

Mark Nash author of 1001 Tips for Buying and Selling a Home (2005) shares tips for efficient kitchen design that for home chefs. Homebuyers have told Nash what works and what doesn’t in the lives of todays fast-paced, time-starved home gourmets, holiday bakers and occasional cooks. Those looking to build, update or remodel a kitchen could save time and money based on feedback from field-tested homebuyers.

-Fingers and pets easily soil and scratch stainless steel finishes. For an alternative use matching cabinet panels on appliances for a custom look or black appliances with black colored counter tops. Research traditional upright refrigerator options such as built-in separate refrigerated and freezer drawers.

-Trendy custom colors and ceramic tiles look great today but will look dated sooner than you think.

-Organized your dishes and glassware if you select open shelves. Consider cabinets with frosted glass doors for a similar look with less work.

-Polished granite counter tops show smudges, watermarks and wiping streaks. Research alternatives like matte finishes. Stone and concrete are hard surfaces and record every noise by glasses, dishes and pots placed on them.

-Include double-ovens to speed baking, two dishwashers for heavy entertaining and second sinks for multiple cooks.

-Don’t overlook basic functional design elements for distances between workstations, appliances and sinks.

-Allocate space for people to congregate or sit when your kitchen is the focal point for entertaining in your home.

-Kitchens adjacent to great rooms with hardwood floors might require hardwood floors, but remember to have extra coats of wood sealers applied as spills and water don’t mix with wood.

-Look for quality cabinets that offer features such as slide-out shelves, dovetailed drawers and solid construction.

-Specify cabinets to ceiling for extra storage. Use 32-inch tall cabinets with 10-inch glass door cabinets above to lighten look and provide dust-free display of serving pieces.

-Plan for places to store cookbooks and favorite wines within easy reach with shelves and racks built into the ends of islands.

-Pantries, under cabinet task lighting and cook top ventilation fans vented to the outside offer high returns on functionality.

-Factor in resale perceptions and values of high-end European cabinets, fixtures and appeal of commercial stoves.

Mark Nash’s fourth real estate book, “1001 Tips for Buying and Selling a Home” (2005), and working as a real estate broker in Chicago are the foundation for his consumer-centric real estate perspective which has been featured on ABC-TV, CBS The Early Show, Bloomberg TV, CNN-TV, Chicago Sun Times & Tribune, Fidelity Investor’s Weekly, Dow Jones Market Watch, MSNBC.com, The New York Times, Realty Times, Universal Press Syndicate and USA Today.

[tags]real estate,trends,kitchen,design,1001,tips,buying,selling,home,advice,author,mark nash,realty,house[/tags]

One may not think of this topic much because it may seem trivial on the surface, but the mattress industry is highly dynamic, with changes happening all the time as well as new innovations coming onto the scene.

Case in point, in recent years a type of material has become very fashionable in terms of it’s function- latex mattresses. It seems like if you were to interview the leaders of the mattress industry, they would tend to nod their heads and agree that this is where the future is headed.

With latex material mattresses, there aren’t any movable parts and therefore it wont’ break as easily. Latex mattresses also tend to last as far as it’s contours and shape is concerned relative to other types of mattresses.

Usually latex mattresses have warranties that cover it from breaking down in any significant way. For example if latex mattress goes down by about an three quarters of an inch, many stores will actually replace your latex mattress. For other mattresses such as coil based ones, the warranty will cover mattresses that go down by an inch to an inch and a half in some cases.

That is a basic introduction to latex based mattresses, feel free to discover the difference for yourselves.

Discount foam mattress pads related products and value-added services are available at our website.

http://www.mattressbliss.com

[tags]mattress cleaner,adjustable air mattresses,best latex mattress,discount foam mattress pads[/tags]

Dear friends, we as humans are a composite of mind, body and
spirit. All these three in proper coordination, create the
world around us. The things, which we want in life, are first
created in our mind, then our mind sends signals to our brain
and the brain sends signals to various parts of our body to
take action and thus “reality” gets created.

This means that whatever we imagine in our minds gets converted
in reality. The program of our mind decides what we imagine.
I mean if I want to decorate my bedroom, everything from the
type of furniture I choose to the budget decision will depend
upon my “broader attitude” towards life.

If I am a “budget conscious” person, then this will affect right
from the initial stages of the design. I will look at the design
from a conservative point of view. Thus everything, which gets
created in reality will have an influence of my personality.

Here I am not trying to say that only high budget designs are
good. I have seen works of many interior designers, who have
spent their entire lives on studying low cost design projects
and also have won awards for their magnificent work.

That’s why any interior design project can not be fulfilled without
active participation of the client or the user. Creativity
doesn’t have any boundaries of budget. Any piece of art which
fulfils the functional need and also the aesthetical need can
be easily accepted as an architectural element. Budget is
not a constraint at all. On the other hand the budget constraint
sometimes is useful to generate some good ideas for a particular
problem.

An interior designer is not an artist, because an artist basically
performs his acts to satisfy his own desire. This could be
any performing art or other forms of arts. His piece of work
may not have any functional use from user’s point of view.

An interior designer is not even a technician or engineer.
Because when an engineer builds a design he need not worry of
making it “beautiful”. His primary aim is to make it functional.
He puts his entire energy in making the design functional.

That’s why an interior designer is one who satisfies both the
functional as well as aesthetical part of the design. Sometimes
it is easy to accomplish the functional part of an interior design,
but since the definition of beauty is different for everyone,
it is extremely difficult to satisfy each and every user’s
aesthetic hunger.

This is particularly true about interiors in public spaces.
For example a bank building has a definite use and function for
all the users. We can safely create a list of functions a person
would perform when he visits a bank. But this does not
mean the bank reflects his personality, like the first paragraph
of this article mentions.

That’s why interiors in public spaces always are designed by taking
into consideration something called as “mass personality”.
This is a general attitude of the kind of mindset everyone would have
or is likely to have when he/she visits that space. If you
visit large corporate software office premise, you will see this picture.

Office interiors always have a certain kind of order in them.
The use of colors, design styles have a kind of commitment in
them, which is expected from you when you work there.

On the other hand a bar or a restaurant has some sort of mood
generating atmosphere, which sets you loose. Because this is
what is expected in a public space like a restaurant.

Thus any interior space is always associated with people. A space
which serves its functions best and makes the users comfortable is
bound to succeed as a favorite place.

I hope this article was informative to everyone.

Copyright Shrinivas Vaidya

Shrinivas Vaidya is the webmaster of Bedroom-Design-And-Decorating-Ideas.com Here you will find some great concept level design tips for master bedrooms, teen bedrooms and guest bedrooms.

[tags]interior design, bedroom design, home improvement[/tags]

It’s finally time to tackle that big home improvement project you’ve always wanted to do. Or, you may have waited so long, now you NEED to do the project. Which leads to your first question - “Where do I start?”

Well, the truth is some jobs are simply too big, too complicated, or require too much time to handle on your own. Whether it’s remodeling a kitchen, installing gutters, or electrical rewiring for your business - you’ll likely need an expert.

A contractor, or subcontractor, can be your ‘knight in shining armor’ when it comes to completing your project. But, wait you’ve heard so many horror stories connected with “shady contractors” that you’re starting to re-think this re-model. But statistics show that the huge majority of contractors out there are honest and hard-working professionals. Most people are happy with any improvement project they undertake.

“Fine,” you say. “How can I protect myself and make sure I find a great contractor?” I’m glad you asked. Here are some standard tips you can follow to make sure your repair, remodel, or installation goes well:

o Got License? Most states require that a contractor have a license to operate in that state. Once you find a contractor (referrals from friends, the Yellow Pages, or you can click here at http://www.constructiondeal.com to find an expert), you should check to see if he or she has a local contracting license to do the job.

o Check References - get at least three references from satisfied clients. And if you want to get really fanatical, go to the contractor’s current job site. See if the site is messy. Are the workers taking care of the property?

o Get Bids - if you have the luxury, get multiple bids from several contractors. Don’t always assume that the lowest bid is the best, because that contractor may be desperate for work or might cut corners on the job. But if you get contractor’s from several sources, you could get a really great deal.

o Get it in Writing - the days of the “handshake deal” are far behind us. Get a detailed contract together and throw everything in (even if the project doesn’t involve the kitchen sink!) The more you clarify, the fewer headaches you’ll have if things go wrong.

o Do You Take a Check? Don’t ever pay in cash. Can you say, “Proof of payment”? I thought you could Keep logs of all payments (for example - 10% down, 20% by one date, another 20% by another date, final payment when work is complete, etc.) and pay with a check or credit card only.

“Wait a minute!” you protest, “That sounds like a lot of work!”

Sure it does. Because it is a lot of work. If you think a renovation or remodeling job is expensive, imagine having to pay for it twice! Do your homework and you’ll avoid being one of the horror stories.

“Are there any warning signs of a bad contractor?” you ask. Boy, you sure do ask a lot of questions. And that’s good. Always ask a lot of questions. The more you know, the better prepared you’ll be to handle the unexpected.

Okay, these are signs a contractor might be one step away from going to jail:

o If required by the state, your contractor doesn’t want to show you his or her license. Or won’t give you references. Or you two don’t get along. Keep in mind: this person may be in your home, working side-by-side with you, for several months - you’d better get along!

o Your contractor wants you to pay for the entire project up front. Run for the hills.

o Your contractor has a “friend” in the financing business that can get you a “good deal” on a loan for your project. What will really happen is that you’ll end up with a huge “2nd mortgage” at a ridiculously “high rate” and your “contractor” just got a juicy “commission” on the deal.

o Your contractor doesn’t have a business address, a business card, and it looks like the contractor sleeps in his or her pickup truck. Run really fast for those hills…

Okay. Now that you know about the warning signs, you need to take a look at some signs you may have found a really good contractor:

o The contractor has at least 4 to 5 years experience. It shows they can manage their business and complete their projects.

o The contractor has insurance. Liability and worker’s compensation are the most important types of coverage to make sure everyone is covered.

o The contractor has more than references - he or she may even carry a book of photos showing past work projects that have been completed.

o The contractor provides cost breakdowns for the job. These breakdowns show specific details of what the project will cost to complete.

o The contractor is flexible. Communicate all your requirements and specifications for the project. Whether you two decide that you want to supervise the work or you want to let the contractor make all the decisions, your contractor will be flexible enough to work with you.

“Okay, am I ready?” Yes, now you’re ready to hire a professional to help get your home or business improvement project off the ground. One of the best ways to protect yourself is the act of due diligence. Webster’s defines due diligence as: “The care that a prudent person might be expected to exercise in the examination and evaluation of risks affecting a business transaction.” In simplified terms - Do your homework. And you’ll do just fine.

Have fun and make the most out of your experience.

Timothy K. Clark is the Director of Marketing for ConstructionDeal.com, a valuable website that matches Contractors with Property Owners for residential and commercial improvement, remodeling and repair projects. For more information, visit http://www.constructiondeal.com or call 866-663-47111

[tags]home remodeling,home builders,contractors,home improvement,construction,remodeling,house builder[/tags]

The kitchen, with all its appliances, gadgets and heat, is a
real hotspot for potential energy saving. As the oven uses
the most energy and creates a vast amount of heat while
cooking foods, it is a good place to start.

For instance, when baking cookies use two trays. While
one is in the oven baking, the other one is prepped with raw
cookies - ready to replace the tray in the oven with no
wasted heat and some time saved. When we bake bread
we also fill the oven with foil wrapped potatoes. The
potatoes can be stored in the fridge without the foil and
used throughout the week in a myriad of recipes, or as a
side dish. This method can be applied to a menu plan in
that if you are baking one dish, try to include a side dish that
is baked as well.

By turning off the oven a minute or two before the dish is
done, the residual heat will finish the cooking. When done
with the oven, open the door to allow any leftover heat to
warm the home.

Pasta cooking water can be left out until it has completely
cooled - so that the heat and moisture are released back
into the air. Before pulling the plug, consider leaving hot
dishwater (and bath water) until it cools. Why pay to heat up
your sewer pipes? When cooking vegetables, consider
steaming instead of boiling. When steamed, more nutrients
are retained in the food, and because it requires less water
to heat - there is less energy used.

In summer, consider cooking on the barbecue to help keep
the house cool. Most barbecues now include side burners
that make outdoor cooking all that much easier.

All these methods are relatively easy to adopt and when
added up, the savings in energy and time really do make a
difference.

– Written by Dave and Lillian Brummet based on the
concept of their new book Trash Talk. The book offers useful
solutions for the individual to reduce waste and better
manage resources. A guide for anyone concerned about his
or her impact on the environment.
(http://www.sunshinecable.com/~drumit)

[tags]Reduce Waste, Save Energy, Save Money[/tags]

Divide and transplant perennials

Fall is the ideal time to divide and transplant those overgrown perennials. The plants will benefit from cooler autumn temperatures and will establish themselves for fresh, vigorous spring growth.

Plant spring flowering bulbs

Tulips, crocus, daffodils, hyacinths are all planted during the autumn months from late August through January, if the ground is soft enough to get them in. Most of the bulbs need a minimum of about sixty days of cooling in the soil to guarantee spring flowering.

Cut back and clean up perennial beds

The perennial bed by fall is usually looking kind of untidy and needs to be cleaned up. Cut back the foliage to about an inch above the ground line. Compost the foliage, or shred it. Use the shredded foliage to mulch areas of the garden. Pull any weeds you can find. You may also sprinkle a bit of slow release fertilizer around the plants and use a garden scratcher to work into the soil.

Mulch perennial beds

Most perennials will benefit with a light mulching of shredded tree leaves, usually in good supply this time of year. Don’t mulch too heavily, but an inch or so of finely shredded leaves will help keep down weeds the following spring, help conserve water, and enrich the soil as they break down. The mulch will also encourage earthworms, which also fertilize the earth with their castings as the eat the decaying mulch.

Plant pansies

South of USDA Zone 5, pansies make an excellent fall flower to plant. They endure cold winter temperatures. Pansies have bloomed during mild spells on Christmas Day, New Years Day and one year on February 29th. By late March the pansy will begin blooming in earnest and continue until July heat exhausts them. My Indiana garden once had a stretch of sixteen consecutive months with something blooming, mostly because mild spells during the winter allowed the pansy enough time to bloom.

Leaf cleanup

Raking leaves is an annual chore, and many people just throw the leaves away. But the leaves, after running; them through a shredder, make an excellent mulch for the perennial garden. The leaves can be vacuumed up with a lawn blower/vacuum and added to the beds. These machines usually produce an extra fine mulch which is ideal for garden beds.

Plant perennials and shrubs

Fall is the best time to plant most perennials and shrubs, especially potted or balled and burlaped stock. The plants have time to establish themselves before the rigors of winter and will continue putting out fresh root growth during mild spells. By spring they are raring to go.

Take advantage of the beautiful autumn days to spruce up the perennial garden. Working outside in the garden is great exercise for both body and soul with the added benefit that the perennial garden will be ready to produce excellent blooms next season.

Paul Wonning is the owner of Gardens and Nature.com a web site about gardening, hiking and other nature related topics.

http://www.gardensandnature.com

[tags]fall garden, chores, perennial garden[/tags]

Your kitchen should reflect your lifestyle. Many families gather in the kitchen and it is truly the focal point of the home. Other people only use the kitchen for cooking and want to focus improvements on function and efficiency. The first step to improving your kitchen is to determine which type of person you are and plan accordingly.

The latest energy saving appliances are a great way to remodel and update the kitchen. Not only can energy use be significantly lowered than with new appliances, but the look of stainless steel and black finishes can also be very fashionable and bring a kitchen into the twenty-first century. Only a few years ago, these finishes were the most expensive commercial appliances but are common and more affordable in today’s economy. Consider simple remodeling by replacing old, inefficient appliances. This may be the best single step to improving the look of your kitchen!

Painting the walls, back splash and cabinets can update a kitchen quite inexpensively as well. If you have a small kitchen, paint all the surfaces in one lighter color to open the room and make it appear more spacious. If you have a roomy kitchen, you can be as creative with the use of color as you wish. Keep in mind that before you go out and by kitchen paint, it is best to bring home samples and test them against the color of cabinets in your kitchen. It will save you the frustration of realizing the colors don’t go together after you start painting.

Many times older homes have wallpaper in the kitchen area, making the kitchen seem outdated. Many people don’t want to bother with remodeling the kitchen colors because they assume it will be costly or time consuming. Removing wallpaper can be as simple as getting a bucket of hot water and a cloth to remove it from the walls and spending time to make sure there is no wallpaper adhesive left by wiping it down with a wet sponge.

If your counter tops are scarred and dated, another way to update the kitchen is to install new counters. Smooth surfaces without any seams are best for kitchen counter tops because no food particles can gather in the seams, posing a serious health issue.

Flooring for the kitchen can be changed in your remodeling project as well, although this can be one of the most expensive portions of a remodeling project. While vinyl or laminate flooring used to be the typical floor choice for the kitchen, many homeowners are switching to tile or even pergo flooring for easier clean-up and durability. You should choose a flooring type that will provide easy cleaning and won’t scar if kitchen utensils or pots and pans happen to be dropped. Remember to bring home samples and compare them to your kitchen appliances and cabinets before getting started.

Visit Dot Com Women ‘Home & Lifestyle’ channel at http://www.dotcomwomen.com/home for more articles and tips on Home Improvement, Decorating Styles, Holiday and Seasonal Decorating and Creative Homemaking Ideas.

[tags]kitchen, remodelling, updating, home, home improvement, home decorating, kitchen decorating[/tags]

As the big day approaches, a little advance planning can save us from headaches and stress. Use these three simple steps to organize and prepare for your upcoming celebration.

Get ready Set out all your recipes, on the counter, in plastic sleeves, so you can refer to them as you cook. I keep a Holiday 3 Ring Binder just for this purpose. All my recipes are organized and catalogued for my Holiday Cooking, so that every year I have my recipes “at the ready” when it comes time to “gear up” My Holiday Kitchen.

Get set Before starting a recipe, set out all the utensils and ingredients you will need.Read through the recipe to refresh your memory.

Go but cook what you know. Stick with recipes you’ve made before and are comfortable with. Now is not the time to experiment with that Beef Wellington or Baked Alaska
you’ve always wanted to try. You will only frustrate yourself if it doesn’t turn out the way you had hoped.

Visit www.rushhourcook.com/holiday.htm for a full holiday meal plan with shopping list and www.changeyourlifechallenge.com for a free weekly newsletter with sanity-saving solutions.

The Change Your Life Challenge
http://www.changeyourlifechallenge.com
Take control of your home, finances, relationships, clutter, time-managmenet and more with this 70 Day Program. Sign up for the free Challenge Weekly Newsletter and the motivational daily Good Morning.

[tags]recipes, holiday planning, holiday cooking, cooking, Christmasn, holiday men, Thanksgiving[/tags]

Surface preparation is vital, and can make or break a paint job. Ensure you fill any holes and take off any old flaky paint, and then sand back to form a smooth finish. The “she’ll be right, the paint will fill in the holes” theory is totally incorrect! Always check the surface before starting to paint with a light to see if there are any blemishes.

Make sure the surface you are going to paint is clean!! This is essential, especially in kitchen areas where the walls can have oily residue from cooking. Use sugar soap for cleaning.

Get rid of any problems before you paint, mould - use household bleach diluted 1:5 with water to remove the visible mould and find out why it is happening, and fix it. Stains from nicotine - these are nasty as they bleed through the paint. Seal the area with a proprietary stain block, or use a couple of coats of solvent based paint.

Select good quality paint products, if you are unsure of what you are buying, make sure you ask and get the experts to specify the correct preparation required, product, and sequence of application.

Always use quality branded equipment (brushes & rollers etc), as they usually have a guarantee or come back if they brake or don’t perform as expected.
Always look after your quality equipment so you can use it again. For cleaning acrylic paint from brushes use water to remove most of the paint residue, and then use a brush cleaning product and rinse again, then use dish washing liquid and a final rinse in water. For Enamel, use mineral turpentine to initially clean the brush, and then the brush cleaner, then the turpentine again. Use a bucket for these processes, you use less product and can use the side to press the brushes against to remove any paint residue.

Remove all fittings that you can, ie door handles, light fixtures, and use painter’s masking tape around any that cannot be removed ie door hinges, light switches, glass in windows. A sloppy paint job is obvious when you see paint all over the light switch!

Lee Brown is an experienced professional designer and co founder of interiordezine.com, a website dedicated to providing free interior design and decorating information. Go and look at interiordezine.com to see if you can answer some of your home decorating questions now! You can also get a free decorating ebook at free ebook
Try this site on color

[tags]paint, DIY, painting, painting preparation, painting materials, home revovation, home improvement,[/tags]

You’ve just moved into a beautiful apartment but the white walls are going to drive you over the edge. Not to worry! A few accessories, some window treatments, and an etched mirror and suddenly your room will come to life.

When you rent sometimes there are restrictions about what you can or cannot do. Some landlords won’t let you get the paint brush out and add some color so you have to use other creative means. Here are some ideas to bring a little life to your room.

1. Etched Mirror

You might be wondering what a mirror can do for your white wall d