Garden and Home

With the rising concerns with "going green" and "eco friendly", there are quite a few household cleaning supply companies coming out with natural or green cleaners for the consumer. Whether you are an environmentalist, eco conscious person or household simply concerned with chemicals used around your family or pets, this article might be of interest.

So I was doing some research on tiling for my kitchen remodel last night and I came across a topic of interest.It seems that Home Depot has a new product that seems to make tiling for the DIY home improvement customer, a lot easier.

Spring is here and everyone is ready to get started on planting outside. Don't just limit your planting to gardens and flowerbeds, think outside the box...literally. Get creative with this DIY tiled window box to add punch to your exterior home decor.

Materials:

• wooden window box
• notched trowel
• tile adhesive
• grout
• tiles
• sponge

You want to measure your wooden window box ahead of time to know how many tiles you will need. This is a relatively inexpensive project based on the types of tiles you want to buy. Most your local tile centers or home improvement stores sell tiles individually 2"x2" or you can get mosaic tile 12"x12" sheets.

When I think of bedrooms, I think of a room that evokes rest, looks and feels cozy and is welcoming. A place where sweet dreams can be had. Here are a few tips and ideas to think about when decorating/redecorating your dream space.

When thinking about colors, you want to choose one(s) that create that relaxing feeling.

• Shades of greens are associated with comfort, quiet or relaxation.
• Reds, pinks or peachy hues are associated with warmth or romance.
• Blues and purples are associated with calming or soothing.

Creating an atmosphere of relaxation includes all the senses. You want what you see, touch, smell and even hear to be considered.

If you are like me, you decorate on a budget. Sometimes buying framed custom art is not in your budget. There are inexpensive alternatives to buying art to decorate your home and you don't even have to be an artist. Hopefully one or more of these ideas will fit your situation.

We recently moved into a new home and hanging curtains in every room has been on the long list of things we are working on. When thinking about window treatments, think of it as an extension of your rooms decor, not just a covering for your windows.

Starting with blinds, they can be an inexpensive way to create privacy in your windows yet can be kind of bland or boring. Below are some ideas of how to add oomph to those blinds.

Window blinds generally can be purchased pretty cheaply in standard shades of white to offwhite. You can purchase custom blinds in other colors or styles (metal or wood) at a higher price, as well.

Ever had a bare corner of a room that you had no idea what to do with? Maybe you have a stack of electronics for your home entertainment needs that don't fit in a cabinet, or maybe even an ugly wall unit heater or AC unit, or maybe you just don't have any furniture that you can think of placing in that empty space. Here is an easy to do project that takes little time and little money.

Easy DIY Decorative Screen

Materials needed:

Do you have dated lamps? Are you tired of the look? I know I like to change up the look in my household probably way too often, but with a few quick changes, it doesn't take much time or money to change out the look of your accessories.

Here are some easy to do ideas to give a new face to your old lamps.

Lamp Base:

Ever wondered about different paint types and which is best suited for each room? There is a big variety of paint types available in stores now days, with little information on what works best and where. I hope this list helps you in your painting adventures.

Flat latex - This is a water-based paint, easy to work with and low odor. It will dry with a dull matte finish. Walls and ceilings are good areas to use this paint, but will show scuffs and marks a little easier than some paints. A gallon can will cover approximately 650 sq. ft.

Recently we purchased a new home, well new to us. We had gone around removing old wallpaper left by the previous home owners and painting in our own color styles. In the kitchen once we painted, we thought about what we could accessorize with to inspire hunger in those who entered, which led us to food art.

Food art? Well think about when you walk into a restaurant and look at photos in a menu, or those large as life photos of food ingredients used in preparing those delicious sub sandwiches you get. Don't the images you see carry some weight on what you order or add to your hunger level?