Paint me GreenRecently I have made a conscious choice to go green in my home remodeling. What do I mean? Well with the growth of ECO consciousness in cleaning supplies, paints, stains and other household items, as well as the energy efficient movement, I have decided to reduce the chemicals my family comes into contact with in our home.

When you think about that room or rooms you are going to repaint in your home or business, think about buying No VOC paints. You want to know what VOC stands for?

After the long dreary winter season, it's time to brighten up the indoors as well as the outdoors! Here are a few ideas to help bring the spring indoors.

Day to day life can be hectic or chaotic at times with keeping everyones schedules running on track, such as getting ready for work, getting children off to school on time, where you left your keys, etc. When you are getting ready, do you have to search for that favorite sweater or shirt? What about when you are getting ready for your grocery run, do you feel like you are uncertain what you need because your pantry is in disarray?

When thinking about how little ways to make your life run smoother, think organization. An organized home can help you with an organized life. With this said, think about the storage areas of your home and how they function for you.

Close your eyes and think about your pantry:

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.

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?

Does a room in your home lack life, energy or interest? Here are a few tips to give it some oomph without spending a dime! 

Look at your room closely, is everything in your room square? Examples; your sofa, coffee table, television & stand, bed & bedside tables. If they are, consider adding some interesting accessories that are circular in shape to create some contrast. Some ideas I could suggest are lamps, plants, vases or sculptural art to add softness into an otherwise hard lined room.