Tag Archives: house

Major Mistakes Everyone Makes With The Exterior Of Their Home

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Major Mistakes Everyone Makes With The Exterior Of Their Home

There are so many articles on the internet about interior design. Tips on things like what colors to use, what fabrics are on trend, and the type of furniture to pick. It’s no wonder that sometimes we forget all about the outside of our homes.

It is easy to think that the architect and builders had responsibility for that part and now that we live there, we just don’t have to worry about it. Of course, this is completely untrue! We need to think about the exterior just as much as the interior. Read on to make sure that you don’t make the common mistakes that most people do when looking after the outside of their homes.

What Counts as Outside? Okay, this seems like a silly question, but some people just think of the outside of the home as the exterior walls. But that isn’t the case. The exterior is everything that you own that is on the outside, so walls, gardens, drives, and roofs are all included in this category.

Don’t Forget to Paint the Outer Walls: Having said that, let’s look at the walls first. If they are in poor state, it is going to make your home seem run down. That is why it’s important to regularly check the aesthetic appearance and condition of all of the outer walls. If they are structurally sound but looking a bit grim, then you can give them a fresh coat of paint. Refreshing the paint is a fabulous way of looking after the exterior of your home. Not only does it look nice but it also protects the walls from weather damage, too.

If painting isn’t an option and you want to retain the natural stone or bricks of your home, then you can have the walls cleaned. This is usually done with high-pressure steam jets and can be expensive. But it does have the marvelous result of making your old home seem brand new, without losing any of it’s character.

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 Pixabay Image

Don’t Ignore Regular Roof Maintenance: It’s also vital that you keep on top of any roofing services that needs to be done. Loose slates and tiles can be dangerous for your family and visitors. A shabby roof can make the whole property look a mess, not to mention they can let in water and cause dampness in the interior of the house. Speak to your local roofing services specialist to see if your roof needs some urgent TLC. A search for “Roofing contractor in Clinton Twp, MI” or your local area will help you find a professional to come and take a look.

Make the Windows Sparkle: One thing that few people love to do is clean the windows, especially when they have to do this outside as well as this inside. But think about it. The outsides windows are what come into contact with the must debris, dust, and rain so they are much more likely to be dirty. If you simply can’t bring yourself to do both sets, inquire about a local window cleaner with a reasonable rate. Then they can help you keep the outside of your home as attractive as possible.

Featured Image By: Pixabay

Amazing DIY Tips Every Homeowner Needs To Know

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Amazing DIY Tips Every Homeowner Needs To Know

Here’s a fun little post for all of my DIY-ers, Pinterest royalty, and crafting gods! As for me? I’ll stick to my handyman! 😉

Amazing DIY Tips Every Homeowner Needs To Know:

As a homeowner, you may have considered doing the odd couple of DIY projects. Even if you aren’t a very crafty person, you may have been swayed to dabble with some DIY just because it can be a major money saver! The world is your oyster in the world of DIY. You could simply fix some old furniture that needs repairing. Or you might have bought some shelves that need putting up. Once you get super confident in your DIY skills, you may even start to make your own furniture! However you want to use DIY in your home, here are some tips that can help you do a great job every time!

Invest In Top Quality Equipment: If you want to do a really good job in all of your DIY projects and tasks, you will need excellent equipment. This means that you might have to pay a bit more to get the best tools out there in the shops. It may be slightly expensive, but it will certainly be worth it! The better quality tools and equipment will also last for a lot longer compared to cheaper ones. Not sure which tools are the best to buy? See here for great benchtop bandsaw reviews. You’ll find plenty more reviews for other tools online.

Keep Your Old CDs: You may just stream your music online these days but that isn’t an excuse to throw out all of your old CDs. In fact, you should keep them and use them in your home decorating. You can break up the CDs themselves and create cool murals with them. These funky murals can be used throughout your home but will look especially good in a room that gets a lot of attention as a great conversation starter. Got a whole load of old CDs? Repurpose them as some dumbbells to use in your workouts! 😉

Sketch Out Plans: No matter what your latest DIY project may be, you should always sketch out a brief plan. This can help you envisage the finished result or product. The sketch doesn’t have to be too detailed or artistic. Just as long as it gives you a clear idea of how you plan on using all the materials. If you are simply redecorating a room, sketching can come in handy, too. This will give you a chance to carefully consider the use of space and lighting so neither affects your design too much.

Hang At The Right Height: Do you have some photographs or paintings that you want to hang on your walls? Then you need to make sure that these are hung at the right height. Otherwise, they might look odd compared to the rest of your decor. Ideally, the center of each piece needs to be at eye level. This is usually around sixty inches above the ground. If the ceilings in a room are particularly high, you can afford to hang your artworks slightly higher.

DIY should never be too tasking. And all of these tips should make it even easier! You may never have to hire a handyman to do your household jobs again!

Where are all of my DIY fans at? What was the latest thing that you have crafted? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Featured Image Photo Provided By: Pexels

Give Your Home a Bit of Retail Therapy

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Give Your Home a Bit of Retail Therapy

My family has been trying to remodel room by room for the past couple of years. We have been in my home for over twelve years (I think!) and it is always fun to change and rearrange as time goes by. These tips might prove helpful for you if you are in a home renovation process similar to mine!

Give Your Home a Bit of Retail Therapy:

A bit of retail therapy is always great so now it is time to treat your home. There is plenty that needs to be sorted out when it comes to buying for your home. Think about the areas that matter the most or that really need to be improved on. Making a list of what projects you want to prioritize is an excellent first step in the remodeling process.

We’ve Got You Covered: You should think about what you’re going to use to cover the home. The exterior of the property is really important and is going to be exposed to the elements constantly. You need to choose the right material to cover your home with and be aware of all of the different options that are offered. That’s why it’s important to look at alternatives to wood or brick. Vinyl exteriors are really great because it’s cost-effective and low-maintenance. And it leaves your property looking picture perfect as well. It’s also one of the more eco-friendly modern alternatives for the home these days.

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 Vinyl Covering Renovation

Kitchen Makeover: The kitchen, they say, is the heart of the home. And that’s why it’s important to try to make your kitchen as awesome as possible. Sometimes this might involve going for a kitchen makeover. But, other times this might involve actually buying a brand new kitchen. So, you need to make sure you assess how you can improve it, and then set about making those alterations. You’ll probably find that by choosing an open plan kitchen design you maximize space and you improve the general aesthetic. If you’re looking to sell your home at some point, you’re going to need a revamp of the kitchen

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The tiles in this pic are almost identical to the ones in my kitchen!

Double Glazing: If you don’t already have double glazing at home, this is something that you might want to focus on. It’s very difficult to imagine a home these days without double glazing. Although, if you live in a listed property, you won’t be able to do this. Double glazing presents many advantages to your home. The two main ones being added security and better energy efficiency. You will save money in the long run by going with double glazing. It is one of the best investments a homeowner can make. And you need to think about what sort of double glazing you want to go with. First decide where you’ll use it – you probably want to go for all the windows in the home, and maybe the back door as well. You should also make a decision between wood effect, and uPVC for your double glazing.

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 Pic From: Flickr.com

Outdoor Additions: In your garden, you may decide that you want to create a garden path. In order to do this, you’re going to have to make sure that you choose the right materials for it. You don’t just want a dirt path going up to the house because this may be messy and won’t look as nice. A lot of people like to use gravel and stones, which is fine. But, wood chips would be even better. There are many advantages of using wood chips in the garden. For one thing, they are light and inexpensive alternatives to gravel. But, as a bonus, they are organic and benefit your soil immensely. You can enjoy bio-dynamic gardening by making full use of wood chips in your garden and pathways.

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Outdoor Additions

Looking after your home is really important and a big part of this is treating it to some retail therapy. Therefore, it is crucial to make purchases that will help to improve the home and that are sensible, attractive, and long lasting.

Where are all of my home renovators at? How about my HGTV obsessed readers? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

How To Create A Chic And Sleek Home Office

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How To Create A Chic And Sleek Home Office

How To Create A Chic And Sleek Home Office:

If you have an extra room in the house that is used just for junk, clear that clutter now and make way for a chic and sleek home office instead. Whether you work from home or not, an office is a great place to hide away when you have extra weekend work or when you want a quiet spot to go through the bills. But there’s no point in just jamming in a desk and chair and calling it an office. If you’re going to do it, you might as well do it with some panache! Here are some ideas to get you started. For more interior design tips follow this click!

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Link to photo

Style: First of all, consider the style of the office you want. Do you want a more masculine, industrial feel? Or perhaps a monochrome palette? Maybe you want a girlie office of pinks and whites or possibly a more vintage/crafting kind of space. It’s important to know what you want before you start laying the floor, painting walls, and buying storage. Use Pinterest to find lots of ideas and don’t be afraid to shop around on multiple different websites or stores if you are looking for an eclectic aesthetic. If you would prefer a more uniform look, it might be a good idea to stick with an option like Vincent and Barn to find everything you need in one place.

Flooring: Once you’ve cleared the room of clutter, you’ll have a clean slate to work with. The first thing to do is invest in new flooring. Carpet just doesn’t feel right for an office. The floor should lend itself to the sound of your snappy heels crossing the boards in a way that screams authority and control! Laminate floors that look and feel like wood are a great and affordable choice for your home office. Light grey authentic oak laminate looks particularly plush when creating a working environment. You’ll find plenty of options to match your style and budget when you shop laminate flooring for designs that suit your space. Plus, if you want to add some warmth or texture you can also invest in a patterned rug to soften the look.

Walls: If you’re going for an industrial look, you’ll want a darker palette of stylish deep grays or navy for the walls. A monochrome palette will look fresh with black and white striped wallpaper. And for a feminine office why not paint the walls white and use a floral motif wallpaper on a feature wall? Designers Guild offers some great choices of wallpaper in all sorts of styles.

Desk Space: Again, what desk you choose will depend on your style. But no matter what your theme, Ikea does some great tables that work with nearly every style. The Ikea Glasholm/Finvard tempered glass table with wooden legs and extra storage is a pretty good bet for most office spaces. It looks light and airy, and the two bottom leg shelves can be used to store a printer or boxes of documents. Choose a chair that you feel most comfortable working from. Make sure the height is correct and that there is enough room to move around. And don’t forget to choose a desk lamp that gives you enough light for when you are working late. Personalize your space with pretty colored folders or utilitarian style products, if minimalism is more your thing. But add a dash of bright color somewhere along the lines to keep you feeling motivated and energized!

For my home decor fans, keep it posted on lifewithlilred for the latest renovations to Chez Red! Who has done some remodeling of their home as of late? What is your home decor style? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Featured Image Provided By: Unsplash

Stay Warm This Winter With These Toasty Decor Tips

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Stay Warm This Winter With These Toasty Decor Tips

I am one of those people who are always always cold. So if you are anything like me, then I am sure that you will find this post useful to help keep you nice and warm this winter:

The cold weather will soon be upon us! How are you planning on staying warm at home this winter? Of course, you will always have your heating system available to heat your rooms. But did you know that there are also some other useful decor ideas that can help you stay toasty through the winter. And, no, I’m not just going to tell you to put on an extra jumper and woolly hat! Here are some of the best tips that you should take advantage of to make sure you don’t feel the chill this winter:

Thermal Drapes: Did you know that thermal drapes are a thing? They are a lot thicker and heavier than regular ones. But that doesn’t mean they have to be gray and unattractive. Quite the contrary! You will find that you can find them in a variety of colors and patterns. If you hang them on all of your windows, you will prevent any drafts from cooling down your home. They also help to insulate your rooms and prevent hot air from escaping through the windows. And that will save you a lot on energy bills!

Gas Fireplaces: There are some appliances that you can add to your home to help support the central heating system. For example, gas fireplaces. If you ever feel too cold, even with your heating on, just turn on the fireplace. And if it is ever a bit chilly, but not cold enough to turn on your entire home’s central heating, use the fireplace. What’s more, you can now get a double sided fireplace that can heat two rooms at once.

Get Some Throws: Throws are a great addition to any family living room. They are inexpensive and will add gorgeous bursts of color to your sofas and armchairs. Plus you don’t have to take them away once spring is here and the weather starts to warm up. Simply leave them on the backs of your chairs and sofa. But they are especially great in the winter. Once you start to feel a little chilly, grab a throw and snuggle up into it! It’ll be a great way to get cozy during a movie night!

Scented Candles: Now that autumn is here, the nights will start to get longer and darker. It can be very depressing when you come home to a dark house after a busy day in the office! Thankfully, there is an easy way to brighten things up. Just add some candles to your living room! This is a quick and cheap way to create an atmospheric room. For an extra cozy touch, use scented candles and fill your rooms with autumnal aromas.

Use Festive Decorations Wisely: There are a number of Christmas decorations that can help you seal up gaps and prevent drafts. Buy a Christmas doorjamb that can compliment all of your other decorations. Not only will your door be draft-free, but your home will look exceptionally Christmassy!

Winter is coming! But you don’t have to suffer; especially now you have these toasty decor tips.

Featured Image From: www.pexels.com

I hope everyone is having a fabulous start to their weekend! How do you keep nice and toasty during the cool weather? What is your favorite fall or winter candle scent? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

It’s A Boy!

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It’s A Boy!

Hi everyone and happy Hump Day! I hope the week is going fabulously so far for all of you. On Valentine’s Day my family said “yes” to opening our home to a sweet baby boy. His name is…Well, he doesn’t have a name yet but he’s the cutest little stinker on the planet. He has four legs, soft fur, a tail, and ears that stand up like a bunny. He’s not a cat, he’s not a tiger, nor an armadillo. Baby No Name is a dog! Take a look at the newest edition to the Mushenheim family:

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^^^ It’s A Boy…Dog!! ❤

My family works closely with the amazing rescue group, Canine Lifeline, so of course we adopted baby bear through them! Our Golden Retriever and peanut’s big sister, Gem, was also adopted through CLL two years ago. Both pups came from a rural shelter in Kentucky and ended up being taken in by CLL a few states away in Ohio. My family has been thinking of adopting a new dog for quite some time and this feeling was intensified when my sister moved to her own apartment, taking her rescue pup, Winston, with her.

After looking through the dogs available for adoption on CLL’s website daily, we finally came across our peanut. On February thirteenth, we took him home for the day and over night to see how he would interact with Gem. We bathed him, cuddled him, and played our time away and by Valentine’s Day, we were smitten. Not only did we adore him but Gem got along with him just fine and is very excited about her new little brother!

Peanut is the most precious little pup and he’s definitely a change of pace from all of the other sweet dogs that we’ve had throughout the ages. We’ve never had a dog as small as him before so it’s been fun being able to pick him up and hold him like the baby he is! The only problem we’ve had thus far is that we can’t come up with a name for the life of us!

From the moment my mom and I picked peanut up on the thirteenth, we’ve been spit balling names like nobody’s business. We are both dead set on his name being “Oliver” but calling him “Ollie” for short. Unfortunately, my dad isn’t quite sold on that idea yet. So now, I need everyone’s help! Asides from doing me a solid and visiting CLL’s website and giving their Facebook page a like, I want your suggestions on what to name peanut! In case you forgot what he looks like, here’s another darling pic of our baby:

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^^^ I LOVE THIS DOG!!!!

My family is so proud to have our household be little peanut’s “forever home” and we can’t wait to begin making memories with him! What do you think we should name our baby boy? Do you have a pet adoption story to share? I wanna hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah