secure — Home and Garden Diva

5 Tips For Wrapping Fragile Gifts

You’re not required to provide a gift when attending an event. But if you want to make a celebrant feel extra special, then offering a present is one way to express your appreciation or affection. Gift-giving is truly a wonderful tradition that people do in order to commemorate special occasions or milestones, and nothing could be worse than getting a lovely yet broken gift because it was not wrapped properly. So, whether you are giving a gift for a special someone out of the blue or if you need to bring a present for a person who is celebrating a special event, you might find these wrapping tips useful.

1. Use a gift box. When you have gifts wrapped by professionals, you’ll notice that they often use sturdy boxes. Others, however, forgo the box because they think that it’s an added cost. But remember that it’s better to pay more for gift wrapping supplies. If you skimp on it and if you don’t obtain a secure container for a breakable gift item, like a vase, glasses or dishes, you’ll only be wasting more money if your delicate piece breaks because of improper packaging. In addition, a gift box makes it easier for you to wrap an item, especially one with an irregular shape.

When choosing a box, make sure to measure the thing that you want to wrap first because you need to allot about 1 to 2 inches of space on all sides. The space is for packing materials and it will also help in cushioning the fragile item.

2. Layer protective material. It is particularly important for you to use packing materials to protect easily broken gift items. You can use Styrofoam peanuts, bubble wrap, or soft tissue or paper. Begin by putting one layer of cushion at the bottom of the gift box. Gently lay the fragile gift on the soft material. Then, put more packing material on and around the item. Make sure that it is snug in the box and not moving around.

If you’re packing dishes or bowls, put a soft cloth or tissue in between each dish. A few coffee filters will also help in protecting bowls from chips or breakage. When packing tall items, such as vases or glasses, wrap each one in bubble wrap and fill the hollow center with packing peanuts or pellets.

3. Give extra care to particularly delicate items. Certain pieces are made up of smaller and more fragile parts. In order to protect these things from cracking or breaking, wrap these in individual boxes before putting them in the bigger gift box. Use packing materials when needed.

4. Properly secure the lid of the box. You can tape the top before covering the entire box with charming wrapping paper. Another way is to secure the lid using a strong ribbon. The latter is advisable if you are already using a very strong and beautifully colored or printed box.

5. Don’t forget the gift tag. Write a short greeting to the person to whom the gift is intended for before securing that tag on the gift. You can tape this on. Or you can cut a small hole on the tag, thread a nice ribbon or decorative thread through it, and then attach the tag on the gift.

Citations:

michael_swan. “Gift Couple”. July 19, 2009. Online image. Flickr. July 29, 2013.

Featured images:

License: Creative Commons image source

The blog is by Claire Kurt, a freelancer who often tackles issues about home and parenting. With the help of respected businesses, like US Storage Centers, she wants to provide more helpful info about storage, how to get rid of mess, and other concerns that people often encounter.

Keeping Your Pool Area Safe, Comfortable And Fun For All The Family!

by Trish

There’s no denying just how inviting a nice, clear swimming pool can be, especially for children, which is why it is absolutely vital to make sure the area around your pool is safe and the rules around who can use it and when are strictly imposed. Domestic pools are a worryingly high cause of death by home accidents especially in the under fives, and an unsecured pool can also lead to issues with pets and adult guests. Here are some tips for keeping your pool area safe without compromising on fun!

Don’t Even Consider a Pool Without a Fence

Even if you are a single adult or adult couple who feel relatively confident that you can avoid falling into your own pool and drowning, don’t consider having a pool without a high, secure fence. This is because other people, including neighboring children, can wander into a pool area where they don’t have permission to be and get into trouble, and if somebody is harmed on your premises you may be legally liable even if they are technically trespassing. It isn’t just people, either – dogs and other pets can come to harm if they can get to your pool, and again, you may be held to blame.

Have a Lockable, Self Latching Gate

As well as a good, strong fence that people aren’t going to be able to climb, make sure the gate to your pool area is very secure and latches shut behind people. This is especially important if you have kids or other family members and friends who are likely to be coming and going all day in summer – it can be easy for a child who is trusted to use the pool to forget to close the gate.

Keep the Area Tidy and Free of Trip Hazards

Put away all pool toys and other potential hazards every day after using the pool. A pool surrounded by fun looking noodles and inflatables is far more appealing to a young trespasser than a neat, tidy area with no toys, and you’ll also be removing anything people could potentially trip over (as well as keeping pool toys clean). Repair any damaged paving or decking around the pool, as well as pruning any plants or trees that can also present hazards.

Have Clear Rules Everyone Who Uses the Pool is Aware Of

Make a sensible list of rules, similar to the ones municipal pools use and make sure everyone knows what they are before using the pool. What you allow may vary depending on the swimming ability and ages of your guests, but you must always make sure people don’t run, don’t dive in shallow areas, and babies and toddlers are always supervised and wearing life vests. You may also consider having policies for older pool users around banning alcoholic drinks by the pool and making sure cell phones and other electrical devices are kept away from the edge.

Make Sure You Cover Your Pool Securely When Not In Use

Whenever your pool isn’t in daily use, make sure it is well covered with secure fasteners holding the pool cover in place. This will stop people and animals being able to fall in and can also keep your pool free of dangerous contaminants and normal debris.

Attached Images:

License: Creative Commons image source
License: Creative Commons image source
License: Creative Commons image source
License: Creative Commons image source
License: Creative Commons image source

Marshall Stinson, the author of this post, is a blogger who likes to blog about home improvement tips and techniques. He works at a shop that plumbing and pool supplies shop. He likes sports and outdoor activities such as swimming.

How To Dog-Proof Your Apartment

by Trish

Are you starting to get puppy fever? If so, you’re not alone. Spring time is one of the most popular times of the year to adopt a pet! While it’s a very exciting time in a person’s life when you can finally take the step to caring for a dog, you have to make sure that you’re 100% prepared for this type of responsibility. After you’ve made the decision, here are 5 steps to follow in order to prepare your apartment for your new furry friend.

Get secure lids for trash cans

One of the biggest mistakes dog owners make after getting their first dog is not ensuring that they have quality garbage cans with secure lids. Dogs love to get into the trash, and if you have a swing garbage can or one without a lid at all, you’re pretty much setting yourself up for disaster. Look for the garbage cans with pop up lids or if your new dog is known for being mischievous, consider buying a lid that you can lock when you’re not home. This way you never have to worry whether or not your dog is going to dig through the garbage!

Buy gates

Gates and crates are essential when you adopt your first pet, but you don’t necessarily need to invest in both. When you first bring your new puppy home, it’s important to consider how often you’re going to be around and whether the environment is more apt for a crate or gates. If you have a full time job and you’re not home most of the day, a crate is probably your best bet. On the other hand, if you have the time to stay home with your dog and train them consistently, then you could probably just handle training with gates.

Tape down cords

One of the most notorious traits of puppies is chewing. Whether it’s on a baseboard, on your favorite pair of shoes or your electrical chords, they will find them on the ground and they will try to chew them. The good news is, you can easily prevent this by taping down chords throughout your house to ensure a puppy can’t get to them.

Move plants

Be aware that while plants help bring life to your living space, they aren’t necessarily good to have around puppies. Not only could the plants be dangerous for your pet to eat, but they could be easily knocked over and can create a mess that you will have to clean up later on. To play it safe, just move plants to higher areas that your pet would not be able to access!

Invest in towels – lots of them

When you think you have enough towels, buy more. If you’re not already aware of this, dogs tend to get pretty dirty, whether it’s from playing outside in the rain, jumping into ponds, or simply just walking through mud. Having ample towels around to clean off your dogs paws will definitely come in handy. Also a good thing to remember is that during potty training, you’re going to be cleaning up a lot of messes. Rather than spending all that extra money on paper towels, re-use towels and wash them between each accident. You won’t only be saving money but you’ll be saving the planet, too!

Attached Images:

License: Creative Commons image source

Felicia Walkins is a freelance writer and dog lover. After moving into her first apartment with her pet, she has been dedicated to finding dog-friendly communities for others to live in. She looks forward to the Jackson Twenty One community and hopes her and her pup can live there in happiness!

Proper Light Placement To Better Illumine The Exterior Of Your Home

by Trish

While lighting the exterior of your house is not difficult at all, it is also easy to make mistakes when it comes to where the lighting fixtures should be affixed. Try strolling around your house after dark and you will notice that there are some areas that are cloaked in the shadows, paths that are hard to thread on in the darkness, or seating areas that are rendered useless at night. You may also find spots that are too bright that guests and passers-by have to cover their eyes from the glare of your lighting fixtures.

Fortunately, it is easy to correct these problems. With a little know-how on proper placement and what type of lights to use for certain spots, you can make the exterior of your home safer and more usable after the sun goes down and at the same time lend drama to the space. Below are some tips on how you should incorporate lights into your home’s exterior, where they should be placed, and what types of fixtures you should use.

Front door

Lighting is particularly important on the access and egress point of your house for good reasons. It shows people where to enter and where the doorbell and keyhole are positioned; prevents tripping on the steps; and allows the people inside to know who is at the front door.

The most ideal light fixtures to use on the front door are lanterns with two low-voltage compact fluorescent bulbs placed on both sides of the door (preferably mounted along the front door’s upper third portion). These fixtures provide the right amount of light without glare and at the same time enhance the appeal of the front door.

When picking wall or post lanterns, go for pieces with frosted or colored lenses instead of those with clear glass as they are easier on the eyes.

Garage and Driveway

Just like how you would light up your front door, you should also provide proper illumination on your garage and driveway entrance so that guests and vehicles will be able to find your home at night. For the driveway, it is not necessary to light up the entire strip. A few low-voltage spreadlights staggered along the edge of the pavement will suffice. Your garage, on the other hand, will benefit from the addition of some wall-mounted compact fluorescent floodlights near the door and on the sides. Also, do not forget to illuminate your house number. Guests arriving at night as well as emergency responders will definitely appreciate such addition since they will be able to know which house is yours.

Steps and walkways

To lead guests to the front door and guard them against slipping, layered lights coming from low-voltage fixtures are the most suitable choices for illuminating steps and walkways. Popular fixture selections for these locations include bollard lights, mushroom lights and path shaded tier lights. All these fixtures cast light downward so they are easy on the eyes. They also come in a wide variety of styles and different price points, allowing you to pick pieces that complement the look of your home and your budget.

For the most pleasing effect when positioning the lights and prevent the runway look, do not place all the lights on a straight line. Instead, stagger them on both sides of the steps and walkways.

Seating areas (patios, decks, porch)

To ensure you will be able to entertain guests even after dark, do not forget to light up your outdoor living areas. There is no hard or fast rules when it comes to lighting up outdoor living spaces, allowing you to take free helm on your light choices. However, do not forget to install task lighting in or near areas where they are needed and where safety might be a concern, such as benches, stair risers, deck railing and the wall near the grilling or dining area.

To avoid attracting pests to your patio, deck or porch, it will be preferable to go for compact fluorescent bulbs that are specially designed to ward off pests. You may also control the amount of light in the area if you use dimmers that will let you adjust light levels.

Landscape features

Add a touch of drama to your home’s exterior by highlighting the beautiful features in your landscape with a combination of low-voltage lighting and accent lighting. To do this, pick a focal point that you wish to emphasize, such as a specimen tree or a structure, along with secondary areas. To illuminate your primary focal point, use flood lights affixed to in-ground poles or spotlights attached on a nearby wall, fence or other elevated structure. For secondary areas like flower beds, ground covers and statuary, emphasize them with low-voltage fixtures that are recessed into the ground. Or, go for a backlit effect or hidden glow by pinning the light sources between the objects you want to highlight and the wall of your house.

Just a word of caution: be mindful where you direct the beams of your lights. At the most, they should not be pointed toward your neighbors windows.

The guest post above, which was written for www.steelbuildingsuk.co.uk, was contributed by Ericka. Ericka is a home improvement and gardening enthusiast. Her passion for these subjects inspires her to write useful posts about house repairing, decorating, cleaning and organizing.

6 Great Deterrents That Will Make Would-Be Thieves Turn Around And Walk Away

by Trish

You must have worked really hard to save up for your home and it will probably be filled with nice things. The last thing you need is someone coming along and thinking they can waltz right in and steal from you. One of the easiest ways to stop this from happening is to deter the would-be thieves in the first place. We’re going to take a look at some ways you can accomplish that.

Don’t show off

Even if you’re not struggling for money you must see how hard it can be for some people to have a comfortable life. That doesn’t make stealing right and thieves’ nice people, but it helps to understand when trying to deter someone from breaking into your home. If they walk past and see expensive things lying around it might start putting ideas in their head. Sometimes it’s as simple as not showboating because the majority of people won’t think your home is worth breaking into.

Tricking people

How many people do you know that would attempt to break into a home when there were people sitting inside watching TV? It might occur a tiny percentage of the time, but this is usually because they think everyone is out and they get the shock of their life when they discover it’s not the case. These are usually the times when someone can get hurt, so by closing your blinds and leaving your lights on you will leave no doubt in a thief’s mind that someone is home.

Do you have sliding doors?

It’s pointless having a sturdy door with a huge steel deadbolt if someone can simply walk up to your home and lift your sliding door off the rails. This is usually only a problem for older ones, but you are best making sure because it’s better being safe than sorry. If you’re not in any position by buy a new door you might need to take a two-by-four and slide it into the grove at the back because it will stop someone from sliding it back.

Forget the spare key

Do you know anyone who keeps their spare key somewhere in the garden? If you do this yourself you are really playing with fire because thieves are not stupid and if they want to break into an empty home they will know to look around for a key. You might as well leave the front door lying wide open for them with a big sign pointing inside. If you must leave one lying around you should ask a neighbor if they can keep it for you. Try to choose an older neighbor that doesn’t go out much.

Lock everything

Nearly half of break-ins happen without any force being used which means a huge amount of thieves are just walking up to someone’s home and walking inside. This is a crazy way to lose all your possessions and the only way to stop it from happening is by making sure you leave everything locked whenever you are out or in bed. If this is something you think might easily slip your mind then write it down to remind yourself until it becomes a habit.

Go with technology

If you don’t already have an alarm system you might want to think about getting one installed. The ones you find nowadays are really sophisticated and work much better than a dog ever could. Unless you have some specially trained professional thieves wanting to break into your home there is no way an alarm won’t alert you to a robbery. It’s usually enough to scare away some drug addict looking to steal a TV to pay for his next fix.

Attached Images:

License: Creative Commons image source
License: Creative Commons image source
License: Creative Commons image source
License: Creative Commons image source
License: Creative Commons image source
License: Creative Commons image source
License: Creative Commons image source

Ian Wilson is a home security expert with many years of experience in the industry. He works with Crown Integrated Systems, a company providing solutions for both commercial and residential clients.