Heart of the Home
January 29, 2007
It started with my need for a new mixer. OK. Well, maybe not exactly. It probably really started when we bought our home in Connecticut two years ago. The kitchen needed a make-over. Not a complete renovation–as some do–but a make-over, to be sure. Its footprint was fine, as was its size. Windows and doors were good, too. But it was dreary. Dark, drab and dreary.
But a re-do–no matter the scope–was out of our reach at move-in, just as it is now. So I’ve tried to not think about it too much.
That’s tougher than it sounds. What with me being a "visual person"–energized by color and proportion and pattern–and kitchen tours taking up space on every New England town’s calendar within the next few weeks, it’s almost impossible to not notice renovated kitchens. Nor to salivate over their inevitable appeal.
Such was the case this past Friday when a friend and I tromped through six fabulous kitchens in an annual little ritual. Carefully calibrated to Mother’s Day–not to mention the bursting of daffodils, the budding of most trees, and the flowering of rhododendron–it coincided perfectly with spring fever.
Displaying Posters: Some Ways You Never Thought Of
January 29, 2007
How many ways can you display posters? With the easy availability of thousands of inexpensive posters online, you can turn any house or apartment into a unique art gallery!
Sure, a poster can be hung on a wall, or attached to it with tacks or tape. But often a more interesting look comes from placing a grouping of posters on the same wall. They don’t have to be in the same colors or about the same subject. Just let them reflect what you like. Then get a balance among them, by arranging them in different ways and with different amounts of spaces between them. Paying attention to the blank spaces helps get that sense of balance. Soon you will find an arrangement that makes you say, “Aha! That’s it!” Once a grouping is up on the wall, you can still change it any time you get a feeling that you want to add another poster or to rearrange the ones you have.
All apartments and houses have many places that you can display posters:
Any wall, so long as you can see it. If you can’t get far back from it, choose a poster that looks good up close.
The Mighty Dust Mite and How To Deal With It
January 28, 2007
A Closer Examination of the Dust Mite
The dust mite’s mouth parts are grouped in front of the body, resembling a head. Their body is oval and covered with fine striations. Their eight tiny legs have small sticky pads which enable them to burrow deep into carpet fibers and furniture, easily resisting the pull of even the most powerful vacuum cleaners. You definitely would not want to turn over in your bed and find yourself face to face with one of these strange looking creatures. Unfortunately, that is where their populations are often the highest. The average bed can easily have over 10,000 dust mites living in it. Dust mites do not bite, sting or transmit diseases, so they pose no harm except to people who are allergic to a protein they produce. Their numbers have increased dramatically in the past 20 to 30 years, especially during the winter months, partly due to tighter homes where ventilation is limited and temperatures tend to be warmer.
A Place For Everything And Everything In Its Place
January 28, 2007
Tax season is over…The spring holidays have passed… Hopefully by now you have sent your taxes in and recovered from your spring holiday preparation. You can RELAX! Sit back, get excited for summer.
Just don’t let things slide too much. In order for you to be able to take the break you deserve, there are a few VITAL organizing systems you need to have in place so clutter doesn’t take over.
1. Mail-establish a place for incoming mail and outgoing mail. I like to keep a picture box with my stamps, envelopes, tape, scissors, a couple of pens, and whatever else I need to send letters.
For incoming mail, you can keep a tiered tray with different categories to look at a later date-bills, medical reimbursements, to file. Frequently check the tray to see when anything is due.
Keeping your mail in one location prevents paper pileup.
2. Receipts and coupons- establish a system for receipts. You can use an expandable check file and label each section according to store, credit card, or type of purchase. Think about where you would look to find it if you needed it.
Hilton Head Island, South Carolina ? Is It A Family Or Golfers Vacation Destination?
January 28, 2007
Before finding the answer to this dilemma, let’s take an overview of Hilton Head and its surrounding area.
Conveniently located along the south Atlantic coast, Hilton Head Island combines breathtaking natural beauty, world-class golf, award-winning dining, and quality shopping on a barrier island just 12 miles long and 5 miles wide.
With over 12 miles of sandy beaches overlooking the Atlantic Ocean, water lovers will find that Hilton Head Island is a coastal paradise.
The unique blend of unspoiled natural beauty and environmentally sensitive design is complemented by world-class resorts, amenities and activities. This makes Hilton Head Island, South Carolina a vacation destination like no other. That’s why Hilton Head Island is widely considered to be one of the finest resort communities in the United States, welcoming millions of visitors from across the country and around the globe each year.
What if a family is visiting the island? What can they do to really enjoy their vacation? The variety of activities and family fun is unique, but browsing through the short list of sample activities below will give you an idea about the friendliness and family fun you can have in Hilton Head Island:
Care of Dendrobium Orchids
January 28, 2007
Dendrobiums
This month I am focusing our attention to the care of Dendrobiums. These are one of the most popular of retail orchid plants. They are a true epiphyte or air plant. There pseudopods can gather and hold water very efficiently. Generally there will be a hybrid phalaenopsis and dendrobium, commonly known as Dtps.
Potting
This needs only to be done every two to three years and it should be with a porous, free draining media. This may be a combination of wood chips, small stone and and pieces of styrofoam peanuts. This will allow the draining of water and fertilizer. Dendrobiums seem to grow best when the pot is smaller than the size of the orchid plant.
Lighting
The dendrobium orchids require about 50% sun or bright light. They will do well in an east or west window as well as a shaded south window.
They also do well under 4 - 40 watt fluorescent lights directly over the plant.
Temperature
These plants need a difference in temperature between the night and day. Preferably this difference should be about 10 - 15 degrees. The night temps they like is 60-65 with days between 80 - 90.
How House Plans Work
January 27, 2007
The Ins and Outs Of Choosing Online Custom Home Plans!
So you’ve decided to build your own home, congratulations! Now where do you go from here?
If you are a first timer, it is sometimes confusing figuring out how house plans work. House plans, sometimes referred to as home floor plans, are easily deciphered once you understand the basics. Let’s discuss some of them so you know what to look for when looking at custom home plans for your dream house.
House Plans Options
There are many options available when it comes to house plans. Home plans usually come in “sets” which can be broken down as follows:
CAD Set ? This is a complete set of house plans that is available in electronic file format. Usually this type of house plan is requested from professionals. A CAD set is useful if you are planning on making a lot of changes to the initial house plan purchased. This isn’t usually something a novice would be interested in, unless they are working very closely with a designer.
Flexible Mortgages - Offering Relief from the Fixed Mortgage
January 27, 2007
A pension mortgage may seem lucrative at the first sight. However, they seldom are, if the customers who took pension mortgage are to be believed.
Nevertheless, before delving into the ill consequences of the mortgage, let us observe why pension mortgages seem lucrative. The most eye-catching feature of pension mortgages, which lures people, is that the pension mortgage requires to be paid out of the pension amount, which one receives on retirement. This is the feature, which drives people to go for pension mortgages.
While in most of the mortgages, the customer would have to pay the full repayment amount himself; in pension mortgage, he gets assistance from the government, though not directly. To every 78p, which a person contributes to the pension fund, the government contributes 22p (This is for a basic rate taxpayer. In case of those who are high rate taxpayers, the ratio changes to 60:40. This means that for every 60p contributed by the customer, governments share is 40p). Therefore, a customer is actually paying just 78 and 60 percent respectively. Besides, the customer is also getting tax relief for paying into the pension plan.
Christian Art in Your Home
January 27, 2007
Christian art is wonderful for inspiring us. Cathedrals and churches, paintings, music, performances, and sculpture have been created for centuries. Now, in our own time, photography, mixed media, and posters are widely available too.
All these forms of Christian art have shaped our understanding of the great stories of the Bible. From the simple Christmas carols we learned as children to the transcendent glory of Handel’s Messiah, Christian music uplifts us. From the Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel to Salvador Dali’s Last Supper, Christian paintings give us something to look at and contemplate. A few minutes spent looking at a piece of art can help center us before a time of quiet prayer.
There is something for everyone, with whatever taste in art, with whatever favorite themes. You could spend a lifetime just delving into pictures of Christ himself, as a child and as an adult. Other specific themes include the garden of Eden, angels, the crucifixion, the last supper, saints, and other Christian figures.
The history of Western art is very largely the history of Christian art, so anyone who loves art can benefit from time spent with the masterpieces of Leonardo Da Vinci, Fra Angelica, and so many other great painters and sculptors.
Replacing Your Sliding Glass Door Rollers
January 27, 2007
If the sliding glass doors in your home are more than 10 years old, you might notice that they are becoming harder to slide open. This problem is even more common on aluminum frame dual pane doors. The reason is because the doors are heavier due to the dual pane glass, but many of the aluminum units did not use stainless steel rollers. So, in many cases, the rollers get rusty from moisture and they start to bind.
In order to replace the rollers, you have to remove the sliding panel from the opening. In most instances, the fixed panel must be removed in order for the sliding panel to come out. There is a simple way to determine whether or not your fixed panel has to come out as well. If the slider is on the inside track and the fixed panel is on the outside track, you have to remove both panels, because the slider will only come out from the outside. There is a lip on the bottom of the track inside your house. That lip keeps water from coming in. Unfortunately, that lip is also too high to lift the sliding panel up and over. So, you have to remove the fixed panel first, then lift and swing out the slider from outside. If you are one of the few people who have a slider on the outside track, then you can lift your slider out without removing the fixed panel.
