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What to Do When Your Basement Floods

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Your basement has recently flooded; what a daunting nightmare! Nothing is more disheartening than a basement flood. They can be unpredictable, detrimental, and expensive. Natural disasters can show no mercy and wreak havoc on your homes. While you go through your insurance company, it may take days before they can attend the situation. Letting that water sit is a productive environment for bacteria to grow. To prevent further damage, you need to make some proactive steps in the meantime. But what are they? Luckily, this is not our first rodeo, so we put together our top tips on what to do when your basement floods.

Document

Your initial instinct is to grab your belongings. If the flood has not got them yet, go ahead and grab them. However, you need to begin documentation for your claim. You need to recognize all areas in your home that were affected. Check the drywall and foundation, flooring, electrical, and plumbing. Take pictures, videos and write down anything you need about the damage.

Salvage

After you have finished your pictures, salvage everything you can. You may want to prioritize your electronics to prevent electrical currents. Grab everything that was not damaged and move it into a safe area of the home. If anything may be destroyed, take pictures. You need to act with haste; woods cannot sit in water for long at all. Dry your belongings when they are safely removed from the environment.

Remove

Time to get rid of all your damaged property. Carpet and fabrics can introduce homes for unwanted bacteria. Cut your carpet into small one to three-foot runners to remove. Wet carpet is extremely heavy, so you may need to make smaller runners. Next, repeat the process with your padding. If your couch or other fabric materials are soaked, remove them from your home. It can harvest microbes and put you at risk for becoming sick.

Insurance Claim

Now, you need to make your insurance claim. You will probably need your homeowners’ policy, personal identification, and proof of ownership papers. Decide what insurance policy you need. A natural disaster can be filed through the federal government or private insurance, whereas broke pipes are homeowner’s insurance claims.

Before attacking any of these procedures, ensure it is safe to maneuver through your home. Water can jeopardize structural integrity. If you have any concerns, do not attempt these tasks. For more advise, contact your insurance company today.

How to Save Money During a Kitchen Remodel

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Are you interested in remodeling your bathroom, but do not have the funds for a luxury renovation? There is no need to worry! With our eight top money-saving tips, you can remodel your bathroom on a reasonable budget. Let’s take a look!

How to Save Money During a Bathroom Remodel:

Make a Game Plan.
A massive mistake during any remodel is not going into it with a game plan. You want to assess the situation and make a plan before you start anything. By going in with a game plan, you will be aware of the costs, you will be able to set a budget for yourself, and you can leave yourself some wiggle room for any unforeseen circumstances.

Do Not Discard It All.
Bathroom essentials can add up quickly and leave homeowners with a smaller budget. Instead of repurchasing items like a brand new toilet or a glamorous mirror, try to revamp your current pieces into something new. With a toilet, you can replace the lid and seat but keep the body. With a mirror, look at the condition of your current mirror. If it is in good condition, keep the physical mirror and replace its frame. By doing these two simple fixes, you can save yourself a lot of money to splurge on other items like the floors or backsplash in the shower.

Leave The Plumbing Be. The most significant way to clear out your piggy bank is by moving around your bathroom’s plumbing. Switching your toilet to a different wall may seem like a good idea at the moment, but you will quickly realize that it is not worth the hassle, time, and funds.

Upgrade Your Vanity. A great way to save money in your bathroom is by using an antique dresser for your vanity. You can search local antique and thrift stores to find a one-of-a-kind piece that will work perfectly in your bathroom. This way, you do not have to purchase an expensive vanity, and you will be able to have a unique piece.

Incorporate Open Shelving. Believe it or not, but open shelving can actually make your room look bigger and more open. Open shelving discourages the use of bulky and overwhelming cabinets by substituting them with a clean line and welcoming storage space. Try using open-facing shelves, bookcases, and stands to create a visually appealing and accessible space.

All of The Lights. Lighting can be an effective remodeling change without breaking the bank. By incorporating more lighting, you can ultimately create a better-looking room. Lighting makes or breaks a design but luckily, adding light fixtures is not terribly expensive, and it can quickly transform your space. Just be sure that you have plenty of natural light and fixtures around the room to open it up and create a welcoming atmosphere.

Do Not Underestimate Paint. Paint can entirely change the overall feel and mood of a room. A lot of homeowners underestimate its value, but it is an inexpensive way to improve the feel of a room. Be sure to swatch your paint colors on the wall prior to application to guarantee satisfaction.

Browse Online. If you think about it, plenty of homeowners have remodeled their bathrooms. The odds are that they have extra supplies that you could use for your own remodel. Before you go to make a purchase, check online resale sites to see if anyone is selling something you need for your project.

Do you have any budget-friendly tips to share with other readers? We would love to hear your thoughts below in the comment section. Thanks for reading!

Rethink, Reimagine, and Redesign Your Space

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Part of curating a design from your space is having the creativity to think outside the box. Most rooms have a general guideline which homeowners tend to follow strictly.  For example, a neutral toned, symmetrical layout in a living room with the television above the fireplace has many strengths.  That is why it is usually the generic layout people use.  It has your strong focal point like the fireplace and television centered in the room, the neutral colors leave the room from feeling bias which increases resell value and appeases to the masses, and symmetrical layouts also give the room a strong sense of unity and balance.  However, creativity is one of the most sought-after components in design today.  If you strive to be unique, here are three ways to break that general way of thinking and putting a unique spin on your space:
Asymmetry
There are three types of symmetries used in design themes.  Each type thrives in different ways and environments, but all can be used in your home.  The most common is the symmetrical design.  This is when you can cut a room in half and have a mirror image on the other side.  This is commonly used in bedrooms and living rooms.  Radial design is when the room’s mirror-image is off of a focal point in the center of the room.  Radial design is mostly used in dining rooms with round tables or other rooms that allow for circular seating arrangements; however, not all homes incorporate this layout. You need to rethink, reimagine, and redesign.  Asymmetrical designs will enable you to be unique and express yourself.  You are not limited to buying replicated couches or duplicate end tables. Asymmetry is an excellent choice to help the room remain functional with a unique layout. Doorways and windows can hurt how you put together your room and may block traditional designs.  Using an asymmetrical plan can let you tailor your furnishings and decor to how the space feels.
Mixing Cool and Warm Tones
Color can strongly influence how a room feels.  Light colors can make a room feel bigger, whereas dark tones may make the room feel smaller and unwelcoming. Bold primary colors can have strong ways of influencing how the room feels.  Walking into an all red room can feel completely different than entering a room that is painted in all blue.  There are three types of color tones used in design: neutral, cool, and warm.  Neutral tones are always safe colors to apply to a room.  They never persuade how a room feels but are vital to breaking up the other tones.  Cool tones influence our moods in a more relaxed manner while warm tones can make an environment feel cozier.  Too often people stick to just neutral or maybe use a subtle accent of a cool tone or a warm tone; however, most designs lack balance with these tones.  Be creative and use cool tones and warm tones in your environment to add life yet keep the space grounded and homey.
Breaking the Rules
Remember, it is your house, your space, and your rules.  Breaking traditional rules adds character and personalizes your space.  Perhaps you have a monochromatic room with just shades of grey throughout it; adding a rainbow painting to the wall can make a powerful focal point while breaking your own design rules.  Maybe you have a table that seats four, and you decide to mix and match chair design.  This eclectic look can be done right if your chair choices enhance the space.  Do not feel limited to your standard, mundane styles but feel inspired to express yourself.  Maybe you have a rustic room but want to put a splash of modern.  All these design decisions are ultimately up to you.
Creative thinking is a powerful tool in interior and exterior design.  Study other designs and see what you like.  Usually, pieces that stick out to you are elements that are not seen in common designs.  Let your imagination create your space.  Do not be afraid to break the rules and incorporate what you want in your home. Thanks for reading!

Easy Tips for the Home

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Attempting to arrange your home using some of the principles of feng-shui can seem challenging and at times counter intuitive. Here are several easy tips to make the spaces in your home more balanced.

In the living room the goal is to create a comfortable, nurturing environment that promotes relaxation. This space should also be an intimate spot for family to spend time together. Place the sofa right against a wall. Place other seating elements, such as lounge chairs and love seats by windows. The paint choices should be neutral with pops of color achieved by using accents and accessories. Make sure the clutter is kept to a minimum, by housing storage that hides toys and other items, when not being used. There should be life within the room.  Keep a live plant as well as cut flower arrangements. The space should also be light and bright. Use mirrors on the wall to reflect the light and help make the area feel more open.

The kitchen is a very important room to the home. This space should promote nourishment and happiness. Keep the counter tops free of clutter. Make sure there is plenty of storage to mask kitchen equipment and other items that can clutter the space. The paint color should remain neutral, paired with warm accent colors. A warm yellow is a great accent to help promote cheer and warmth. This space should be well lit to promote energy and positivity. Use several different types of lighting to keep the space bright.

Bedrooms should be a place to rest and find peace. Keep computers and TVs out of this room. Make sure the bed is not placed across or adjacent to a door. Two night stands or bed side tables should be placed on either side of the bed to anchor it and provide balance. Do not use the space under the bed for storage. This blocks energy flow; therefore it should be free of obstruction. Paint colors need to be calming. A subtle mint green or lilac purple color is perfect for accent walls or accent colors. Paint the walls a warm color, like dark tan to create a warm and restful space.

Interior Design is All About the Details

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Interior design truly is all about the details. Find out what details to use when making improvements or when building a new home!

Doors are noticed by all. The front door should be interesting as well as the interior doors. Do not try and save money by using the least expensive doors. Look for doors that have details that will incorporate well with your home. Raised panel doors or doors with applied molding make a space feel welcoming.

Trims and moldings are an excellent finishing touch to any interior or exterior. Paint the trim or moldings a color that will contrast the wall. White always looks clean and crisp. White moldings also have a classic appeal. Dark moldings are used to make a statement. Make sure when doing this method that you are highlighting a feature where you want to focus the attention.

Select interesting lighting fixtures. People always notice if lighting is upgraded in any home. Choose lighting that is right for the space and fits in with the interior and exterior styling. It is always a benefit to add light kits to ceiling fans. A room with no overhead lighting can feel incomplete. Place wall sconces and pendant lighting in appropriate spaces. A hallway lined with attractive wall sconces is a treat. Pair can lights with chandeliers and pendant lighting. Lighting is like adding jewelry to any space.

Hardware is a finishing touch detail that should not be taken lightly. Attractive hardware makes or breaks cabinetry and doors. Make sure to select an attractive hardware that fits your style and the style of the item where it will be installed. Hardware does not have to be ornate to be attractive, it just has to be a little different than the expected.

When designing a space keep in mind the details. Do not leave this process of selections as an afterthought. Therefore plan the details during the entire selection process for your home. You will be glad you did!

Refresh Your Look for Spring

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Spring brings new life and growth and many of us get an itch to redecorate during this season. Yet sometimes our budgets aren’t ready to work with our blooming inspiration! Getting your wardrobe ready for spring and summer is easier in a sense because you can inexpensively change your look each season with a few new pieces. But in the home, all the finishes, furniture and walls are so big and expensive! You’ve probably heard it said repeatedly that the most inexpensive way to create a fresh new look is wall color. We agree, and we also have a few more ideas. Here are some ways to inexpensively refresh your look this Spring.

Bring the Spring Inside

Give some love to those houseplants by repotting them in new pots. Buy new floral arrangements for a couple different rooms. Maybe now is the time to buy that big vase you’ve been eyeing and fill it with tall branches to make a statement in that empty corner you never know what to do with.

Rearrange

Sometimes buying nothing and using what you already have can be the most fulfilling way to redecorate. Collect all your throw pillows, decorations, lamps, art, everything you can move easily, and put it all in one room. You’re essentially creating a little store of all your own things and repurposing from there. Switch area rugs, rearrange furniture. It’ll be fun and everything will feel new!

The Obvious

If you feel like shopping for new things—go for the obvious and most impactful. Throw pillows, lamps, area rugs! Then change the wall color in a couple rooms and you’ll feel a big impact with only a few changes!

Go for a New Look

This one could take some spending and planning over a longer period of time, but if you’ve been wanting to change your home décor style, what better time to start than now! Start small by searching online and in stores for one or two key pieces that reflect the new style you’re going for. Then you can use those items to fuel your inspiration as you plan for bigger changes later. For example, if you’re changing from traditional to modern, look for a bold graphic painting (or whatever reflects your modern tastes) to replace with a more traditional piece you already have. You can change a few lamps and area rugs. Maybe find a couple small pieces of furniture that will coexist with your old style until the style change is complete. Just remember to take your time and find the right pieces that will help keep the momentum of change going for you.

 

Enjoy the new season! We’d love to hear from you in the comments if you decide to make some changes this Spring!

Ways to Create a Timeless Look

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Fancy a classic interior that will look beautiful for the upcoming decades? There are ways to achieve this and preserve beauty for years into the future.

Preserve elements of an older home that can be appreciated for years to come. For example, save bronze hardware, interesting lighting and claw foot tubs. By keeping original elements, there is a feeling of preservation that resonates within an old, yet upgraded home.

Select classic looking cabinets with clean lines in style and simple hardware. This will ensure you maintain a classic look the never goes out of style. Classic styled cabinets have white or cream painted finishes or wood stained with a dark finish.

Take advantage of anything with clean lines. Use lighting with very clean lines stay away from ornate or elaborate decorative hardware. Select furniture pieces that have tapered legs and clean edges.

Select warm and light neutrals for paint colors, which will never feel too bold or overpowering. Soft cream, light grays and very light blues can also achieve this classic look. Stay away from bright or bold paint colors, which inevitably will go out of style. Also avoid wall paper, wall paper grows old at a much faster rate than a stylish paint color. Make sure to incorporate classic styled crown molding with dental moldings or tongue and dart details. Do not forget to add base board moldings as well. This will frame out the spaces and add classic details.

Understated neutral draperies are important to achieve timeless design. Stay away from highly decorative trim and use clean attractive tapes with geometric patterns that are not fighting with the pattern of the drapery itself. Use pinch pleats and other types of classic pleats as the headers for draperies.  Simple draperies with clean lines help polish off a timeless interior.

Stay away from bells and whistles. Technologies are ever-changing and become outdated very quickly. If you must use high-tech gadgets make sure they are hidden from the sight.

Tile and wood flooring are more formal and never seem to go out of style. Make sure you’re using neutral colors that will maintain a classic look.

Color Pallet: Ice Pastels – Cool Candy Pink, Lavender, Deep Blue Violet, Light Gray, Icy Iris

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Are you looking to create a room that evokes softness and femininity? Look no further than the photo below. While it’s often tempting to refer to the pages of a magazine or an online website to find an room you like and copy the design, you can often have better luck with decorating if you think outside of those sources.

Using a photo that you find beautiful is a great way to generate creative ideas for décor, even if the photo isn’t of an interior space. It requires a lot more imagination of course, but isn’t that the fun of home design? You don’t have to go it alone though. We make it easy by giving you easy reference points based on this photograph. Read on to learn how this image of winter’s wonderful pastels can be translated to a lovely space.

If you’re a newbie in the world of self-guided home design, this will make learning this inspirational technique a breeze! Just read the bullet points and extract what works best for your personal vision. Or go for it, and follow it all the way!

 

The color pallet: Cool Candy Pink, Lavender, Deep Blue Violet, Light Gray, Icy Iris

 

What makes the color scheme work?

  • All of the tones are light, cool and icy
  • It’s an analogous color scheme, which means that the pink, purple and blue are next to each other on the color wheel. This is the most harmonious color scheme on the color wheel.
  • The only neutral base is the color white, which allows the pastel tones to read crisp and clear.

What is the tone and vibe of a room with this color scheme?

 

  • Soft focus, nothing stark or garish
  • Soothing and peaceful
  • Quiet and reserved
  • Elegant and refined
  • Feminine
  •  

What rooms might be well suited to this color scheme?

  • Nursery
  • Powder room
  • Bedroom
  • Rooms with a shabby chic aesthetic

What sort of furnishings would work well?

  • Distressed wood painted white
  • Mirrored surfaces
  • Metallic surfaces
  • Floral arrangements
  • Sheer curtains
  • Fuzzy rugs
  • Cashmere throws

Essential Steps To Make The Perfect Bed

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Oh how beautiful the beds in catalogs are! You know, the catalogs they send that feature page after page of the perfect looking bed. The one that is so inviting you wish you could jump right into the pages and land on the glorious pillows and covers. But once you’re done perusing the photos, and you walk into your bedroom you think, “Well, at least the sheets are clean and the bedspread isn’t wadded up on the floor!” It’s time for a change. Take that ideal bed out of the pages of a catalog and make it your own. We’ve got the few tips you need to pull it off like a pro. Here’s how:

  1. Buy good sheets! Yes, we know, they aren’t flashy and fun like a new comforter, but you simply cannot have the perfect bed without good sheets. You likely already know about thread count, but it’s not the only important factor. Buy high quality, natural fibers. No synthetics. Find a cotton blend that is excellent quality, such as Egyptian, and combine that with a decent thread count. Your bed will feel just like a fancy hotel, and the bonus is that good cotton sheets will also wear in and get softer over time.
  2.  Own at least two sets of sheets for your bed, when you’re budget allows for it. They’re like clothes for your bed and you don’t own just one outfit right?
  3. Purchase three more layers: quilt/coverlet, bedspread/comforter, duvet. It’s so fun to do this part of the shopping!
  4. Once your sheets are on the bed, lay the quilt or coverlet on top.
  5. Then, fold the top sheet and quilt back, 1/4 at the top.
  6. Next, fold the duvet in thirds and lay it across the bottom of the bed. Pretty!
  7. Buy pillows. Don’t hold back. Buy good ones, and buy pretty ones. It’s a bedroom for goodness sake! You need: Pillows in pillow cases, euro shams, and decorator pillows. Stack from back to front – pillow case, sham, decorator. Two rows for a queen bed and three rows for a king bed.
  8. Mix up textures and patterns. Give your bed a 3-D look by using obvious texture. Such as, a faux fur pillow and a ruched bedspread. If you mix patterns, use different scales. So, for instance, mini gingham and a medium scale paisley. One is a smaller pattern than the other and this makes it look interesting!

How To Use the Elements and Principals Of Design To Decorate Like An Interior Designer, Part 9

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Part 9 Color

Color is arguably the most impactful tool you have when decorating a room. All of the elements of design we’ve discussed thus far are critical components of a room, but color offers immediacy unlike any other. The moment you enter a room color demands your attention and evokes a strong influence over mood and style. Indeed, it even influences your behavior in a room. So, what is color, actually? From a home design perspective it is a sensation produced by visible wavelengths of light. It is one, or any mixture, of the constituents into which light can be separated, as in a spectrum or rainbow. Sounds lovely, but let’s get a little more practical with it.

The easiest way to become an overnight master of color is to invest in a color wheel, and then study the rules it represents. There are endless variations but you can decide how far into color theory you wish to delve. Short on time? Learning just a few of the basic color schemes will be plenty of knowledge to get the job done! 

Complimentary – Colors opposite each other on the color wheel. For example: pink and green. Complimentary colors are typically well suited to creating bold effects or vibrant color harmonies.  

Analogous – Colors that are next to each other on the color wheel. Typically you’ll find three of them being used and they are great for creating a sense of harmony in a room. Be sure that there is enough contrast between them to ensure the effect is obvious. A good example is the use of red, orange, and yellow.

Tetrad – Four colors used in complimentary pairs. For instance red, orange, blue and green. Typically, it works well to let one of the colors dominate, and the other three to support the overall effect.

As mentioned, there are far more combinations than these three but they are a great way to start. Don’t feel like you have to use full saturation hues to accomplish the goal. The example shown above uses very bold and impactful colors. However, you can adjust the technique to include medium or pale shades as well!

Next read Part 10 – Balance

Don’t forget to go back and start by reading Part 1