Luxury Housing Trends & Home Improvement Ideas

Want to try and go a couple steps further to green your garden? Try these tips too.

• Start a compost bin so that you can use the refuse as fertilizer. Homemade fertilizer is nutrient rich, and you are fully aware of what is in your fertilizer.
• Use gardening tools that are made from recycled metals and plastic.

Gardening is a process, and you have to learn how to be patient and how to accept failure. With unpredictable weather conditions, you can never be certain about early frosts, sunshine or heat waves. The smallest change in weather can have a serious impact on your garden, but when you put in the effort to grow and protect your crops, you can be pleasantly surprised.

It’s also beneficial to include your children in the gardening process too. You can teach them at an early age how to grown their own food and what it means to live off of the land. Plus, your entire family will benefit from eating organic crops, and they will be more aware of what all goes into growing food. When you have toiled everyday to feed, water and protect the garden, you are less likely to waste the food you worked so hard to grow.

What can you do with your old computer when it doesn’t work anymore? While you can keep it somewhere in your home to collect dust, you can give it a new life by recycling it. Many companies actually specialize in recycling technology, so it’s not that difficult to find somewhere to take your broken down computer or other electronic gadgets.

Computers are categorized as e-waste, and when you recycle them it’s called e-cycling. According to the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), the average American household owns 24 electronic products. Times that by the approximate number of families in the U.S. and you have a significant amount of items that will eventually become e-waste. This type of waste is only increasing exponentially, because our society improves and creates new technology every day.

When you buy electronics or a new computer, find out if the manufacturer offers recycling. For example, Dell, Hewlett-Packard and Apple accept old computers. If you enjoy electronics and are always buying newer models, donate your old, working computers to a school or organization that is in need of these types of supplies. You might even have a friend or family member who can benefit from using an older computer you have just lying around. Even if you go through cell phones, you can donate these to organizations that help families stay in contact with their loved ones who are over seas in the military.

Yes, there is a proper way to clean out your refrigerator. Although you probably know how to wipe down the glass shelves, did you know that the condenser coils need vacuumed twice a year? Below are step by step instructions on how to clean your refrigerator.

• Empty the refrigerator and wipe the interior with a mixture of water and baking soda. Take out the glass shelves and plastic drawers and wash them in the sink. It’s best to let the glass shelves come back to room temperature before putting them back into the refrigerator so they don’t crack.
• Discard of expired foods so you have space for fresh ones.
• Place an open box of baking soda in the refrigerator.
• Wipe the outside of the refrigerator, especially the handle.
• Clean the condenser coils, which are at the back or front bottom of your refrigerator. Before you vacuum the coils, make sure you turn off the refrigerator. If you have pets, the coils should be vacuumed more than twice a year.

Cleaning your kitchen is a big job, but if you have the tools and products, you can ensure that your kitchen is clean from top to bottom. Below are the fundamentals to having a sparkling kitchen.

• Use gentle cleansers instead of those strong chemical ones. Lemon and distilled white vinegar act as deodorizers and baking soda can be used to scrub sinks and surfaces.
• Designate certain sponges for different tasks. You can buy colored sponges to make it easier. Also, don’t forget to sterilize the sponges when you’re done by putting them in the dishwasher or the microwave for a minute (the sponge must be damp).
• Refer to the manuals that came with your appliances, because these will tell you how to clean them properly.
• Weed out expired items from your pantry and refrigerator so you have some sense of freshness and order.
• Clean up spills immediately, because you don’t want the liquid to stain.

Now that it’s the new year you have a chance to start fresh, but you can’t start fresh unless you get those stale items completed off of your to-do list. Here are some gentle reminders to keep you on track.

• Catch up on your correspondence (write holiday thank-you notes) and get all of this mail sent out by the end of January.
• Clean your wood floors, because this should be done once a year. Vacuum the floors first and then clean with a damp mop if you have polyurethane floors. If the wood is waxed, you need to strip off the old wax and reseal them before buffing.
• Update your personal and business calendars and schedule any house repairs.
• Test the batteries in your smoke and carbon monoxide detectors.
• Clean out your closets and donate items to the needy.
• Review your household paperwork. Did you buy a new house in 2009 or make any eco-friendly installations…this things can save you money when you file your taxes.

A chalkboard isn’t just for school kids. Although chalkboard paint is often used in children’s rooms so they can draw and doodle on the walls, adults can benefit from this paint too.

Wouldn’t it be cool to have a chalkboard wall calendar in your home office? You can create a checkerboard pattern with six weeks worth of squares in a variety of shades. You can even go one step further and coat the entire wall in chalkboard paint so you have room for memos, to do lists and other notes. So how can you create this convenient wall calendar?

First, you need a base coat of black chalkboard paint. Then you can mix in different amounts of white chalkboard paint to get various shades for the squares. You will also need painter’s tape to mark off the squares, and it’s best to paint the squares that will be all the same color and let them dry and then go to the next color.

Are you tired of hearing your rocking chair squeak every time you sit down and lean back? A squeaky chair can become an annoyance, but what can you do about it?

Over time the natural aging process occurs and wood furniture becomes less sturdy. The swelling and contracting that happens in the wood cause the joints to loosen and this is where the squeaking sound comes from. However, there is a quick fix that can ease your ears.

Purchase a wood-swelling solvent at your local hardware store and apply it to the chair’s joints. The solvent will make the joints expand and become secure again. You’re basically bonding the joints back together.

While you’re at it, it’s also a good idea to wax your wood furniture on an annual basis to prevent the wood from drying out.

Transitioning from Christmas to New Year’s Day doesn’t have to be a complicated task. All you have to do is switch out some of your accessories.

Updating your welcome wreath can be as easy as removing the red or green bow and adding a silver or gold one. You can go a step further by adding a glittery sign that says, “Welcome to the New Year” or “Happy New Year.”

For your tree, remove the star or angel from the top as well as any ornaments that are not silver, gold or blue. Then put down a white, gold or silver fabric for the skirt of the tree.

After these two tasks are complete, look around your house and remove any red and green ribbons, garland, etc. You can setup silver or gold candles, ribbons, centerpieces, etc. Basically, you just have to worry about changing out the small details for ones that are more appropriate for the New Year’s Eve and Day.

Having a big bash to ring in 2010? Below are some decorating ideas so your party is a big hit:

• Fortune Balloons – Write up a bunch of fortunes for your guests and stuff them into balloons. Before the stroke of midnight, have each guest choose a balloon so that they can pop it when it’s officially the new year.
• Candles – Setting a romantic ambiance is essential if all of your guests have a date they’re going to be smooching.
• Ribbons, Stars & Confetti – You can enhance your entryways, tables and counters with different metallic arrangements.
• Themed Centerpiece – If you want to feel like you’re in Times Square, get the Night in Time Square Kit to make your home feel like the Big Apple.
• Resolution Scrapbook – Find out what all of your guests’ resolutions are by having them write them down in your guest book.

Setting up a fabulous party isn’t hard as long as you have your friends and family there with you.

Technically Christmas decorations can be up for as long as you want them. Sometimes it’s tradition for families to leave the decorations up until the end of January. While others prefer to take them down after the new year or right before. When is the best time to take down the Christmas decor?

If you don’t any set traditions, you can start one this year. Decorations for the new year often have metallic colors such as gold and silver, so if your tree has these characteristics, why not leave it up, especially if you’re having a 2010 party? You can even plan ahead and decorate your home so it looks appropriate for both Christmas and the new year.

When it comes to outdoor decorations, it might be a good idea to take them down as soon as possible. Depending on where you live, the weather might not be very cooperative after January. Plus, you don’t want to have your outdoor Santa or penguins still outside when it’s March.