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How to Create a Warm, Inviting Home

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Home may be where the heart is, but is your home a place those outside your family love to be? This is a question many forget to ask themselves regularly. Maybe you enjoy how your home is set up but is your current setup something that makes people want to stick around? Are your guests comfortable when they walk through the door? Are things organized? Do they have a place for their shoes and coats? Are there things to look at and keep them entertained during their visit? Today we are going to help you think of some of the things that are easy to drop the ball on when you see the same area day after day and are immune to your way of doing things.

Start Outside and Work Your Way in

08 Front Yard Garden

If you’ve ever heard the term ‘curb appeal’ and know a little about it, then you probably understand just how important it is to make your home look nice not only on the inside but on the outside as well. Even if you aren’t selling your home, this is something you should keep in mind. What people see first when they walk up to your house matters. Do you want them to notice the fact that your yard hasn’t been mowed in months or do you want them to get lost in your beautiful marble entryway? Would you prefer them to notice the paint chipping on the side of your house or the beautifully painted mailbox you worked so hard to decorate?

Even if we don’t mean to, as humans, it’s only natural to make assumptions and expect that what we see on the outside is going to be similar to what we see on the outside. Wouldn’t you be shocked to see a run-down looking home and yard with torn apart cars that have been used for scrap metal outside, only to find a fascinating home that is organized to perfection on the inside, with expensive pieces of unique art all over the walls and a spiral staircase drawing you towards the upper level? You see, setting the tone from the get-go really makes a difference.

Keeping Things ‘Old School’

By ‘old school’, we do not in any way, shape or form, mean ‘outdated’. Sometimes, it’s nice to get in touch with our roots and add something fresh and new that isn’t as commonly found in others’ homes. Many people these days are so focused on technology and having the ‘best of the best’ that they forget the ‘best’ isn’t necessarily what’s popular now. Fewer people have bookshelves nowadays, for example. If you love reading or know of people who do, this may be a great addition to your home; adding sophistication to your style.

Offering Comfort for You and Your Guests

Staying comfortable is important and as we touched on a bit above, it is an important part of setting up your home. Lighting is one of those things many people simply forget about; this and the color you choose for each space truly do set the tone. Colors that help to relax and calm include: green, blue and purple. This doesn’t necessarily mean you have to paint your entire wall one of these colors but finding ways to add accents of any of them here and there is always nice.

Another very important aspect of comfort is entertainment. Not many of us like to sit around without anything to do. Make sure you have things for your guests to take part in when they are staying over. A few ideas to get you started would be a gaming system in your spare bedroom, or board games that the whole family can enjoy.

Everything Should Have a Place to Call ‘Home’

The Rorschach Light

Clutter can be overwhelming for guests. It gives the eyes too many things to want to focus on. To create an inviting atmosphere, it’s important that you limit how much you display. This doesn’t necessarily mean you have to put everything away but choose wisely and don’t be afraid to alternate your favorite pieces from time to time. These ‘pieces’ can be simple objects such as lamps, flowers, family photos or awards. They don’t necessarily have to be paintings or anything fancy.

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Deborah Walker is a home improvement expert and has done interior designing for a lot of homes. She says that Marble Tiling & Flooring gives your house a very classy and elegant look.

Garden Shrubs: Uses and Maintenance

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So, you don’t have a fence. It’s alright because you can just grow a shrub that you can form into some sort of boundary marker. This is one of the most common uses of shrubs; and many times, homeowners just let their plants grow without thinking about how to properly maintain them. Shrubs definitely have so much more to offer, aside from being great as hedges. These come in all shapes, colors and sizes, and with proper maintenance, you won’t only have a beautiful natural barrier, but you’ll also have healthy plants that are a joy to see.

Uses of Shrubs

1. Forms a Boundary and Offers Protection

As mentioned earlier, most people plant shrubs in order to define their property line. There are all sorts of shrubs that can be used here, such as the King’s Mantle (Thumbergia erecta), which has vivid green and lush foliage and intense purple flowers. Many kinds of viburnums (Newport and Allegheny), evergreens (holly, spruce, pine), and other low-growing perennials can be used as shrubs. For those who want to amp up the security of their perimeters, they can also use thorny shrubs to help discourage prowlers. Examples are rose, barberry and quince.

2. Provides Privacy and Acts As Shield from the Elements

If you have a shrub that you have formed into a tall hedge, it will provide you some privacy. Naturally, you wouldn’t want your nosy next door neighbor to know what you’re doing in the yard or inside your house. (Remember Samantha’s snooping neighbor on Bewitched? How annoying, right?) So, even though you might like to share a few things with your friends and neighbors, you wouldn’t want to share every little detail of your life. Having a hedge will give you a bit of privacy. Plus, the shrub will also help in protecting you or your home from the brunt of the sun and wind.

3. Gives You Pleasure

Of course, if you’re growing healthy flowering plants or lush, vibrant shrubs, you’ll surely enjoy staying outdoors and just enjoying the visual pleasure of having beautiful flora all around you. Gorgeous ornamental plants provide dramatic foliage which are also a joy to care for or prune. Flowering shrubs can also be trained to grow on your trellis, which will really add beauty to your home.

Maintenance: About Pruning Shrubs

It is a must to keep your garden or landscape well-maintained. If you allow your plants to grow without proper care, these will soon form dense vegetation where thieves or prowlers can easily hide. So, here are a few tips to keep in mind.

Home security experts suggest that you grow your hedges to just below 5 feet. More than that and you endanger yourself and your family by having areas where burglars can easily hide. Shorter hedges will delineate your property line while also helping to deter people from peeking into windows on the first floor.

Plants are also best pruned during specific times. This will depend on the type of shrubbery that you have. So, ask an experienced gardener about when is the best time to prune your shrubs to reduce damage to the vegetation. Don’t feel too bad about pruning because this actually encourages plants to develop flowers or fruits when done correctly.

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Claire Davidson is a freelance writer who also happens to love plants of all kinds. She writes about flowers, orchids, grasses, as well as landscaping in Idaho Falls and other gardening or planting-related issues.

Ways to Perk Up a Stretch of an Ordinary Asphalt Driveway

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An asphalt driveway provides a hardy surface where you can roll down your vehicle with great ease. It also makes for a great path to traverse on the way to your home’s front door. Unfortunately, with daily exposure to wear and tear, it can eventually turn into the least glamorous part of your property’s ground.


But, with a few key changes coupled with a little elbow greasing on your part, it’s possible to revive its appearance without spending a fortune. So if you’re ready, here are some suggestions to bring the life back to your boring asphalt driveway.

Fix and clean it up

A cluttered asphalt driveway is an eyesore that can create a dismal first impression to your guests. So to make sure that you don’t send the wrong message, start fixing and cleaning your driveway. Remove grime, stains, dirt and mold that have settled on its surface and sides by giving it a good scrub and wash. Also remove vegetation that may have grown on cracks or gaps. Once you have cleaned the mess, fill in potholes and cracks and don’t forget to reseal your driveway. These simple weekend tasks will definitely freshen up the appearance of your piece of road.

Doll up its edges

An asphalt driveway always look ragged around the edges. So for an inexpensive quick fix that will give your personal stretch of road a major facelift, add a neat row of concrete pavers, bricks or Belgian block stones to each of its side. These things will definitely combat the cookie-cutter look of your asphalt driveway by giving it a good frame and at the same time will provide you with a clear visual aid while you back out or pull in.

Border it with lights

Make your driveway safer to drive through even after the sun goes down by installing low-voltage lighting along its borders. This addition will make a pretty landscaping effect and will also improve visibility, thereby reducing the possibility of your guests accidentally driving onto your lawn.

Add a touch of life

Improve the look of your driveway the natural way by planting greens and blooms to the sides. Carefully placed plantings will provide interest to the space and will also increase the privacy of your home. This technique is ideal to use if you have a long driveway that lacks design features. Just make sure that you don’t plant too close to utility lines to avoid problems later on.

Integrate an apron

Another great way to transform your dark patch of tarmac is to tear up a section of it a few inches above the curb and fill it with concrete cobbles or decorative bricks. This simple addition is easy to tackle, but it can do a whole lot in adding an old world charm and texture to an otherwise boring asphalt driveway.

This piece of home improvement advice was written by one of the regular contributors of Ace Driveways, a company that specializes in block paving, wall and patio construction and turfing. They are also known as one of the best companies to provide great solutions for driveways Scotland folks can rely on.

Clever Ways to Use Pressed-Tin Panels to Jazz Up the Look of Your Home

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There’s an old adage that goes “what goes around, comes around” and this rings true in the case of pressed-tin panels. Introduced in the late 1800s, these metal sheets were widely used in both residential and commercial buildings as a practical solution to cover up damaged ceilings. The fact that they are fire-resistant was an added bonus. It didn’t take long when homeowners realized that pressed-tin panels also make for great ceiling décor since they look like ornate plasterwork without the pricey tag attached to them.

Although their use somewhat declined in the subsequent years after their introduction in the market, pressed-tin panels are making a comeback. According to experts, part of the reason why they are popular again is the increased interest in home restoration. Many homeowners find that these panels are perfect elements to bring the life back to traditional home designs and they also fit in well with some contemporary decorating schemes.

More than just as decorative elements overhead, pressed-tin panels can also be used in a variety ways to add interest to homes. And if you’re looking at redecorating your place and you’d like to incorporate such elements to your decor, here are some suggestions how you can creatively use them to give your nest a bold new look.

Feature wall

Pressed-tin panels may seem like a cold choice for a wall surface, but with their ornamental design they are actually an excellent choice to create a focal wall. Once applied, they lend a truly distinctive feel to the space. And with the numerous finish options and the fact that you can paint them, they provide you a lot of room for customization. One caution, though: when using pressed-tin panels as a wall covering, especially if you intend to use them on all four walls, make sure that you incorporate a lot of fabrics into the room. The fabrics will help absorb the reverberating sound that these metal sheets bounce off to the space.

Backsplash

Pressed-tin panels are also great alternatives for conventional backsplash materials like tiles and stones. In fact, a lot of manufacturers today create pressed-tin panels that are especially designed for backsplash use. They made them resistant against spills, stains, rust and mold and mildew growth. Some manufacturers also copy dozens of antique designs and patterns and apply it on their products to befit a range of interior design. So whether you have a cottage-style or contemporary kitchen, you’ll surely find pressed-tin panels that you can use as a backsplash that won’t detract from the look of your space.

Headboard

Tired of the same old look of your bed? Spruce it up a bit by making a headboard out of pressed-tin panels. All you need is to assemble a basic headboard frame and add the pressed sheets onto it. The raised patterns of the panels will definitely give your bed a fresh face. If desired, you can paint the surface with a semigloss enamel paint so that your new headboard won’t reflect light.

Framed artwork

If you’re not ready to commit using pressed-tin panels on a large scale, you can just use them as accessories such as framed artwork. Simply cut the panels so that they fit in frames. Then paint each piece with your desired colors. Once dry, place them in the frames and group them together on a bare wall.

This home improvement advice was penned by one of the regular contributors of McIntyre Masonry, a family-run business in central Scotland that provides a wide range of stonework solutions. All their services are carried out by professional Stonemasons, thereby ensuring premier quality craftsmanship.

Ways to Decorate Your Staircase for Christmas

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Your staircase can easily be the centerpiece of your holiday décor. After all, few things are more traditional than the well-decorated holiday staircase. If you’re a bit lost when it comes to the right ideas, though, these tips can help.

Start with Evergreen Swag

The traditional holiday staircase starts with a beautiful evergreen garland, and in some cases, it stops right there. Whether you go with a fresh garland or you choose one that will look great year after year, this is the most basic way to make your staircase look simply amazing. Most garlands are sold in 9 foot lengths, and those that come with lights have end-to-end lights that will allow you to connect one strand to another. If you need something longer, you’ll want to move ahead with garlands that fall into the commercial category.

Add the Unexpected

While pine cones on the bannisters are fairly traditional, there are many other things you could do to spice up those garlands. Poinsettias, in red or white, make a beautiful touch. Just put the stems in some water to make them last through the season. Ribbon is also a fairly traditional accent. Just make sure it complements the other items you add into the garland. You can either work it in throughout the garland or simply make it into beautiful bows to hang at the top, middle, and bottom. Citrus is becoming more and more popular. Go with orange, pineapple, or another color that works well with your home’s current décor. Christmas ornaments you love are a great touch, too. Glittery snowflakes look pretty, as does white branches tied in. Throw in a pair of antique ice skates around the bottom bannister for a gorgeous, classic touch to the stairs. Stockings, whether they’re your primary stockings or not, are another great choice to lead people up your stairs. Just make certain the colors work with your garland. One final option you may want to think about is adding wreaths to your stairway. You can go with a traditional green, but thanks to the background color in the garland, you may want to go with something bolder like red.

Other Options

Not sure you like the idea of starting with evergreen garland? There are several other great options, too. A bay leaf garland also makes a wonderful touch, and it makes your home smell wonderful as well. Pine garlands will give your staircase a primitive touch. Ribbons or beaded garlands are an additional good touch you may want to consider. Another great choice is to attach greenery bunches to the posts of railing. You could use birch branches as the backbone, then tie in other branches with a bit of greenery or berries. Tied together with some bright ribbon, you have a package that will look enjoyable throughout the season.

Don’t Forget the Stairs

Whether you go with garland or not, don’t forget that you can decorate the actual stairs as well. Place small, beautifully wrapped gifts on the stairs, or potted plants. You could even add a bucket of ornamental greens.

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Pinkchic18 is a writer who loves to focus on events and holidays. She regularly contributes to the Holiday Gifts & Baskets Blog, where you can find fun holiday gift baskets for all ages.

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