Avoiding Unpleasant Home Improvement Surprises

Deciding on starting home improvement projects can easily develop into gigantic headaches for the unprepared homeowner. That is why you need to do a lot of talking with your family about setting expectations and to your contractors and suppliers about getting their expert advice in helping you improve the look and function of your home.

Good preparation is vital to a smooth and successful home improvement project. In this case, you need to get a good idea of the details that you want to improve in your home.

You should have a step-by-step plan that clearly lays out parts of your home that need improvement in order to complete your project.

Write your plan down. Review every note that you made while preparing it. This initial documentation can help you describe your home improvement project to contractors and it will make the work easier for both of you.

Easy Tips For A Successful Paint Job At Home

Want to have a paint job done but you do not know where to start? Read this quick post for easy tips on how you can do it soon.

Decide who will do the paint job.

Want to do it on your own or have a professional work on it? Whatever the decision may be, you have to weigh in the advantages and disadvantages of choosing one over the other. Either way, you will be spending your hard earned money on this so better choose who will do the paint job first.

Agree on the look that you want to achieve.

Talk about the purpose of having a paint job done in the room or all over the house. What do you expect after the paint job? These are just some of the quick questions that you want to answer before letting the paint job bagin.

Fixing other related issues.

Be ready to do some other related fixes before and or while the painting job is in progress. If you have cracks or holes in your wall, you should fix those with dry wall putty right away. If your wall has really large cracks, you can get a screen like material at your local hardware store that will allow the putty to fill in the gap.

Changing Linens – Getting A Fresh Look In Your Kitchen

Want a more affordable way to improve the overall look of your kitchen? Why not change the linens first?

You can revamp the look of your kitchen by doing this small tip. You can start by taking pictures of your old kitchen. You need to document this on photo so you will have a closer look on the kinds and types of linens that you want to buy for your kitchen.

You can start with new curtains, tablecloths and tea towels. You can let the family decide on a new and different theme that can really make your kitchen look brand new. You can choose a theme you love or be bold enough and try a really different one to make it more pleasing to the eyes.

For example, if you have young children you can use a playful theme if you want to make this appear more inviting for them. You can also try a sophisticated or country theme if your family members are older and want a more relaxed look in the kitchen.

Looking For A Kitchen Makeover?

Years ago, your kitchen is as lovely as what you see on the magazines, it is the best place to hang out if your family wants great food. Now, it seems to be one of the most lonely place around the house as it desperately needs a new look?

Want to have a kitchen makeover soon? Here are some factors you should consider.

Budget

Do you have the budget for the needed construction and repair? How about buying parts, accessories and other kitchen supplies? You need to have more than enough savings to serve as a budget for this as this is the most consideration to think about when planning for a kitchen makeover.

Time

If you have the budget, you also have to look for the right time to do it. You need to plot a schedule and a timetable to cover the first up to the last task needed to complete the makeover for your kitchen.

Manpower

Who will be your contractor? Who will be in charge of doing everyday work? You need to also look for a reliable contractor to help you revamp your kitchen. It takes a lot of time calling, selecting and talking to prospects before you can make your pick. Be ready to do this as well if you want to get the best deal for your kitchen makeover.

How To Organize Important Receipts

Piling receipts scattered all over the house and you find it hard to retreive the receipt you need. Can you relate to this scenario?

If yes, then please continue reading this as I share with you some easy ways to organize important receipts.

1. Use an envelope system to file your receipts. You can purchase the extended, plastic envelope from bookstores and other office supplies shops. What I do is to purchase three of this and designate one for bank receipts (deposit and withdrawal receipts, mortgage payment slips, change account information forms), another for receipts related to utilities (water, electricity, association dues) and the other one for household purchases (groceries, gadgets and other related stuff). This keeps me organized all these important receipts in a jiffy.

2. Utilize these cute little storage boxes and place these receipts inside to be sorted later. Easiest, fastest, but of course do this if you really have little time to organize receipts.

3. Get a ziplock bag especially if you want to keep a couple of this on your bag. This will keep the receipts clean even if placed beside your dear cosmetics, hand sanitizer among other bag essentials.

Cleaning The House On Weekends

Every homeowner knows that house cleaning chores take a lot of time and effort, especially if they are going to do it themselves.

And that is what I am experiencing lately. Because I refuse to hire a househelp, I have to literally extend my arms and legs just to keep my house neat and clean. I use a combination of natural and commercial cleaning aids, of course. Here are some of them:

Lemon – cleans a lot in the kitchen (microwave, stove top, chopping boards, sinks)

White Vinegar – has 101 uses for every homemaker. I use this one for a lot of cleaning around the house as well.

Bleach – helps clean some hard to reach areas, perfect for cleaning the bathroom as well.

Liquid Detergent – for laundry and other washing and cleaning tasks around the house. I use a different cleaner for washing the dishes.

What about you? What are your trusted cleaning aids? Do you also clean your house on weekends or have another schedule for this task?

There’s nothing like home…

Nothing beats having your own home sweet home. And it doesn’t matter if it’s a mansion or a small apartment, what is important is you have your own space you call your very own.

I’ve started this blog to share with you everything I find interesting and which I think would be a great help in making our homes the greatest places on Earth.

Just wait for my next posts! 🙂