Living Space

Interior Decoration

Renovation Tips To Remember

A government census carried out a few years ago found that over half of homeowners in Australia will look to renovate their property at some stage. It can’t be disputed that renovations offer an excellent opportunity to refresh the home as well repair the old broken down and tired parts of the house. Some of the most popular areas that are usually renovated are the bathroom, kitchen and laundry room. And this is hardly a surprise as these rooms are usually the ones that see the heaviest traffic and use in the household.

While most renovations are done purely for self-use purposes, many are also carried out by homeowners with an eye on adding more value to the house when it’s time to sell the property. Nevertheless, whatever what the reasons are for renovating, there are some basic things to keep in mind before you embark on your project.

General Renovation Tips

  1. Identify what you want to do – Once you have clearly identified the area or room you want to renovate and have an idea of what you want, stick to the plan and set a budget.  Otherwise, you might find yourself being pushed to spend more money and fix more things than you originally intended.
  2. Plan for cost overruns – While sticking to a budget is highly important, the reality is that cost overruns can happen for a variety of reasons and you should prepare for it.
  3. Do your research on renovation builders – Try to speak to as many contractors as you can and be sure to use only HIA members as they adhere to a strict professional code of conduct. Also don’t hesitate to call any references that are given. You should feel totally comfortable with your choice as you will be allowing this person access into your home.
  4. Research materials and designs – It may be bewildering but you should take the time and effort to find out about the correct type of materials and design options for your renovation. This is to ensure that you know what is out there and what you will be getting. The Internet is an excellent place to start.

Window Shades Provide Privacy and Unique Look to your home

Having adequate privacy and light in your home or office is obviously important to your health both physically and emotionally. Sometimes, spending a lot of money looks like the only method to to ensure that your home is nicely lit with enough privacy. You do not have to spend a lot of money or even flick through the home improvement store to look for a stylish affordable approach to your decoration or lighting needs.

Window blind and shades are a cost effective solution to this issue. Window shades are available in various sizes, shapes, and styles, from plain white to many different colorful shapes. Roller shades are a clear-cut yet classy touch to your room. Shades are generally simple and free of maintenance. Rolled onto a tubular system, they can easily be pulled up and down by a spring packed device to allow or disallow to enter your room. Window shades are really easy to install, clean, and replace, which can also be an ornamental alternative for your home or even your office.

If you visit www.ainstallation.com , you will find that Window treatments can provide you with a touch of luxury to any room. Choosing the best window treatment at this site can also add the superiority and sensation that you are trying to find in your house, office space or even any other commercial places.

Selecting the right window treatment can also totally transform a space from drab and dull to formal or even a room from bright and sunny to shady and private. Choose only the best window treatment from ainstallation.com and you will find a huge difference in how you truly feel about your room. Window roller shades are all tastefully designed. You may choose from polyester, vinyl, or fabric, all good quality material can withstand the test of time. Roller shades will offer you the quality and durability that you want a variety of style which can flow flawlessly with your residential place or even commercial space.

Decorating Your Children’s Room With Animal Wall Decals

We sometimes keep a cute and friendly animal as our house pet, which is more like our family members. Or simply, kids also like animals, seeing that animals will always be lovely and friendly, and our children often enjoy animals around their lives. For instance, we put cute giraffe wall decal in nice design, and your children will certainly like it. And animal wall decals can be the perfect options for nursery room.
Wall decal mall offers a variety of animals’ decals to beautify your walls. From exciting to wonderful style, these wall stickers will makeover any room. The cool designs in such a collection animate a lot of their favorites into entertaining art.

They try to make something really impressive to install on your wall. Whether putting on a quote to enliven your bathroom or kitchen, a tree with animals to beautify your kids room or even a height chart to know how big your kids are becoming, their wall decals can give that extra exclusive touch.

From single color vinyl decals, they created and designed a large number of stickers for each room in your house. They also offer full color fabric stickers which are ideal for redecorating playrooms, nurseries and also children’s bedrooms with specific themes such as zoo, jungle animals, space, or woodland.

Check also their wonderful collection of elephant wall decal. This cute interior decoration can also give a wonderful look in the playroom or nursery room of your kids.

All these animal wall decals are generally simple, adorable and some are typically in cartoon styles that are exclusively designed for young children. Installing an animal wall decal in your house really can make it stunning and meaningful. Also, attract some pets to your kids’ room, and your children will certainly love such cute little friends.

8 Things to Consider When Building Energy Efficient Houses

Obviously if you already have a home, you are limited as to what you can do to conserve energy. However, building energy efficient houses is a whole different ball game! This is where you are in control. Make sure that you do your homework! I will give you 8 areas of consideration.

1. Choose Your Builder Wisely

This is first for a reason. It is the most important. When you go to the builder you should already have a good idea of things that he will do that will make your home more energy efficient. But if he is a good builder he should be telling you things that he does that you may not have even thought of. He should already know and be ready to implement everything that you have found in your research, or tell you why you should not do it.

2. Thicker Outside Walls

Most builders have gone to 6 inch outside walls for the simple reason that you can get more insulation in them.

3. Amount of Insulation

A lot of builders have gone to spraying a thin coat of foam insulation on first. It seals things. Then they put in the normal fiberglass insulation. Add these 2 together to get your total “R” value. And your builder should want to go above the normal required code. And don’t forget the ceilings. This is very important, as heat rises!

4. Orientation of the House

Sometimes you have absolutely no control over this. But if you do, face the sun. You can use the sun to heat your home. And in the summer you can close the blinds to get the sun out.

5. Heating and Cooling System

The options here are many. And they will vary according to your situation. You will really need to do a lot of research in this area. Make sure that you cover every aspect when you consider which system to go with. Most importantly the type of energy it requires. And the payback years. If a system takes 20 years before you see a savings, and you move every 7 years, it may not be a wise choice.

6. Hot Water

I love the new “tankless” hot water systems. Gas seems to be a favorite for new construction. But it depends upon your situation. For instance, if you are making your own electricity, you would want to go with electric.

7. Windows

This is one area where a lot of improvements have been made! There are many varieties at many different prices. The good thing is that there is a rating system that makes them easy to compare. Again, research and make a wise decision.

8. Lighting

If one CFL light bulb can make a difference, imagine what a whole houseful of them can do. Hopefully your builder will be using energy efficient lighting. If he does not, he is more concerned about making a profit than saving money on YOUR energy bill.

So there are 8 things to consider when building energy efficient houses. But this is not a complete list. And hopefully between you and your builder you will come up with even more!

There are many ways to save energy. Building energy efficient houses is the best start. But even after the house is complete, there are many things you can do to save energy. Not only to save money, but to save the planet and leave something for the next generation! Make sure that you do your part.

How kitchen cabinets can improve your home value

With so many home sales weakening, along with the tight regulations in the mortgage sector, most homeowners are trying so hard to sell their homes and remodel to a larger home. Due to this trend, home remodeling projects are increasing as property owners are looking for the ways to modify their existing houses more livable, while improving value of their home all at once. The most convenient way to increase value and come up with the fully feel of a new home, is to remodel your kitchen.

In a kitchen remodeling, the cabinets become the most significant cost in your kitchen renovation budget. As they are the focal point of your kitchen, most of the other decisions concerning your kitchen might be based primarily on your cabinet personal preference. Your kitchen ware, appliances, and countertop options would be determined by the layout and style of your kitchen cabinets.

You will need to correctly estimate all of the costs associated with your kitchen remodeling project. When you think that this is a renovation project that you are enjoyably handling, you may either hire a kitchen designer or visit Kitchen Showroom in Queens, NY and get the most of their design services.

You will find some aspects that might have an impact on the cost of your kitchen cabinets: features, brands, and design and wood types. Ensure that you research each of your choices. The things you may discover is that a more expensive price does not always correspond with good quality and some of the lesser-known kitchen cabinet will in fact offer a tougher construction.

Purchasing Kitchen Cabinets might be a fun filled and enjoyable time. You should make sure that you are buying the Best Kitchen Cabinets Queens from a reliable supplier. They offer reasonably-priced selections for kitchen cabinet. To take a look at the complete collection of their products, you can visit at kitchencabinetsqueensny.com