Looking to Make Your Home Better This Year? Try These Ideas!

Everyone has certain areas of their home that isn’t really working for them or they wish were different. In order to help you jumpstart the project we found this article with eight different ideas on how to change your home for the better this year. We hope it helps!

———————
If you need Baton Rouge dryer vent cleaning services, then Dryer Vents Plus is your #1 choice! Call Jeremy Leake today at 225-612-7752 to schedule your 100% Free, No Obligation Quote!
———————

From the article:

With a fresh calendar on the wall and all of its empty boxes yet to be filled with to-dos, the start of a new year is naturally an optimistic time. If you???re in the mood for making a few resolutions, why not consider what you can do at home to help enhance your life? Here are eight ideas for home resolutions to help increase gratitude, tap into your personal style and make your house a home this year ??? along with concrete steps you can take to get started right away.

Remove or change things you do not like. Removing the negative is just as important (or even more important than) adding the positive. Have you been living with a wall color, chair or box of mementos that is weighing you down? Make 2015 the year to say goodbye to all of the things in your home that are not serving you.

Take action: Walk through your home with a notepad and start a list of the things you would get rid of right now if you didn???t have to worry about what to do with them. Once you???re finished, sit down with a cup of tea and look over your list as objectively as you can ??? what on the list could you get rid of today? What???s holding you back from letting go of the other items? Get rid of at least one thing on your list today and make a plan to let go of the others.

Don???t let renting stop you from making your home a place where you love to be. Just like buying clothes for the size you are now, it???s important to make the most of your current living situation. There are tons of things that can personalize a rental: removable wallpaper, stick-on picture hooks, area rugs, houseplants and curtains. Decide to stop waiting for a home you own to make the place you are living in now awesome.

Take action: What have you been holding yourself back from doing because you rent? Choose one thing (hanging pictures, buying a new rug) and do it this weekend.

Refuse to buy anything unless you have a specific need or place for it. All of the decluttering in the world can???t make up for simply bringing less stuff into your house. Choose to start a new habit this year of spending more mindfully. Depending on your current shopping habits, this can be challenging to get used to, but it is worth the effort. Each time you find yourself considering a purchase, ask yourself whether you really need the item. If it???s a decor item and not purely functional, bring it home only if you love it and know exactly where you will put it.

Take action: Grab a sticky note and write on it ???Do you need it? Do you know where you???ll put it???? and stick it to the inside of your wallet, where you will see it when you are getting ready to make a purchase. If you tend to shop online, put a sticky note on the computer, too!

—————–
Looking to decorate on a budget? Checkout this article about decorating ideas on a budget that could be of interest to you.
—————–

Read the entire article here: http://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/34504227/list/8-life-enhancing-home-resolutions-for-the-new-year

Looking for Storage Ideas in Your Laundry Room? Check These Ideas Out!

>Storage is something there never seems to be enough of, especially in the laundry room. It is one of the most important rooms in the house that is often overlooked.

For storage ideas checkout this article we found that we help will bring order to your laundry room!

======================
If you need a South Louisiana dryer vent cleaning services, then Dryer Vents Plus is your #1 choice! Call Jeremy Leake today at 225-612-7752 to schedule your 100% Free, No Obligation Quote!
======================

From the article:

======================
Interested in more tips to increase the value of your home? Checkout this article for homeowners with more weekend home improvement projects that could be of interest to you.
======================

To view the entire article click here: http://www.houzz.com/storage-ideas-for-laundry-room

Looking to Install Moulding on Arched Windows? Find Out How Here!

Installing moulding in the best of situation can be hard, let alone on a curved surface like along arched windows. In order to help you figure out how to do this we found this article that we hope will help you encase your beautiful arched windows!

—————–
If you need Hammond dryer vent cleaning services, then Dryer Vents Plus is your #1 choice! Call Jeremy Leake today at 225-612-7752 to schedule your 100% Free, No Obligation Quote!
—————–

From the article:

Hi everyone! It???s Jill from the Rozy Home! I, too, am a remodelaholic. For the last three years I have been working non-stop on my home. Last year I spent a large amount of time, effort and, yes, money, on my foyer. After all, the foyer is the first thing you see when you enter a home. After adding board and batten (and then converting it to picture frame moulding) I decided that I needed to do something about my poor, naked windows.

For the arches, I had to nail the trim on. The angles/bending made it impossible to glue on. After a day of letting the glue dry completely, I began working on the corner of the arches. For this, I grabbed some old moulding I had in the garage and created a cornice-type piece.

Although I loved the look, the exterior side felt a little unbalanced. My solution? Head back to Lowe???s where I purchased more EverTrue, but this time I bought lattice. I glued it on the exterior edge of the trim and that did it. The trim was balanced!

DSC_3630

As far as the cost??? The EverTrue trim was around $2.50 per 10 foot piece and I used about 30 pieces (for doors at window). The lattice was $5.00 per 10 foot piece and I used 10 ??? 15. If memory serves, the total cost was a little over $100. Not bad for trimming out 5 windows and two doors in a room with 15 foot ceilings!

—————–
Looking to increase the value of your home? Then checkout this article with ideas on increasing value of home that could be of interest to you.
—————–

Read the entire article here: http://www.remodelaholic.com/2014/02/how-to-trim-arched-windows/

Have a Problem Keeping Counters Clutter Free? Try These Ideas!

Counters and other surfaces are just hard to keep clean. You walk in the door and everything you were carrying just gets put down. It’s a daily struggle. In order to help you out we found this article with ten different strategies to keep you surfaces clutter free. We hope they help!

———————
If you need Apartment complex dryer vent cleaning services, then Dryer Vents Plus is your #1 choice! Call Jeremy Leake today at 225-612-7752 to schedule your 100% Free, No Obligation Quote!
———————

From the article:

The dining table, kitchen counters, coffee table, nightstands ??? flat surfaces certainly have a way of attracting clutter. But the piled-high stuff makes it a hassle to use those surfaces ??? to prepare a meal, eat a meal or kick up your feet for movie night. It also makes it harder to find things and just plain looks awful. Still, we keep on piling because it seems easier than putting things where they???re actually meant to go. To have long-term success in keeping the flat surfaces in your home clutter-free, you need to find places for your things that are just as easy and obvious to use as a table. If you???re tired of clearing off the surfaces in your house again and again, only to have them redisappear under piles of who knows what, these 10 strategies should help.

Have a not-flat place for each thing you come home with. When you walk in the door, the natural impulse is to drop everything you???re carrying on the nearest available flat surface. The next time you arrive home, pause and pay attention to what you???re holding: shopping bags, a coat, a bundle of mail, perhaps keys and a phone? Decide where you will put each of these items from now on. Hooks are faster to use than hangers, so if you tend to dump your coat on a chair, choose a hook.

Paper items can be a real problem, so be sure to have a recycling bin near the front door, as well as some sort of quick sorting system for handling important documents. (But keep the categories very broad, or you won???t be as likely to use the system.) If smaller, random items are a problem, consider hanging tote bags on hooks. They???re easy to dump things into and very flexible ??? you can change their contents as needed, from library books and school projects to dry cleaning.

Keep your dining table set. A neatly set table has a clear purpose, and that makes cluttering it up less of a temptation. In the evening after dinner, clean off the table and set out some breakfast things ??? this not only helps encourage a clutter-free table, it makes for a smoother routine in the morning. After breakfast, take a moment to set out a few fresh placemats and cutlery for dinner, and your table will be a much less tempting spot to toss your stuff when you get home in the evening. If you have curious cats who are likely to walk all over your lovely table setting while you???re out, you can set out candles or flowers and perhaps a stack of dishes with a napkin laid across the top to protect it from prying paws.

Designate a bin for your ???worn-once??? clothes. Flat surfaces in the bedroom (the bed, floor, dresser top and chair) tend to become receptacles for articles of clothing you???ve worn once but plan to wear again before laundering. (Sweaters often fall into this category.) Rather than dump these items onto the nearest surface, give them a home. An open-top basket or bin is a good solution because tossing the item there is just as easy as tossing it on a chair. If you have a closet system, clear out one basket or drawer to use for this purpose; otherwise, a second laundry basket can corral the items.

Avoid clutter catchalls. A tray or basket on the coffee table or counter to hold clutter might seem like a smart idea ??? until it???s full and overflowing onto the surface around it. Remember that clutter attracts more clutter, so when a group of random little items (hair ties, loose change, buttons, pens) ends up in one spot, you???re far more likely to add other (larger) random items (stack of mail, shopping bag, pile of dry cleaning) to it. A better practice is to create a spot for each type of item ??? for instance, a jar for coins, a cup for pens, a hook for keys, a tray for mail, and a drawer organizer with little slots for small items like hair ties and stamps. It then becomes easy and satisfying to drop things into their individual containers.

—————–
Looking to declutter and organize? Checkout this article about declutter and organizing tips that could be of interest to you.
—————–

Read the entire article here: http://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/55288753/list/10-strategies-for-keeping-surfaces-clutter-free

Interested in What the Design Trends of 2016 Are? Find Out Here!

With every passing year there are more trends. Home design trends aren’t any different. If you’re looking for the trends of 2016 then you’ve come to the right place. We hope this article helps you design or redesign your home into your dream home!

———————
If you need Baton Rouge dryer vent cleaning services, then Dryer Vents Plus is your #1 choice! Call Jeremy Leake today at 225-612-7752 to schedule your 100% Free, No Obligation Quote!
———————

From the article:

The modern home is always evolving. And to get an idea of what it???s evolving to, look no further than what???s happening within its walls today. With that in mind, we delved into our New This Week series, sifting through Houzz discussions and data to find out what materials, strategies and concepts will be coming to more homes in 2016.

Outdoor fabric used indoors. Outdoor fabrics are becoming increasingly hard to distinguish from traditional indoor fabrics, and many Houzzers are bringing them inside, where their durability makes them perfect for high-traffic dining room and living room furniture.

Colored stainless steel appliances. Black stainless steel is making a buzz on Houzz. In a poll, nearly two-thirds of Houzzers say they would consider the dark alternative to shiny silver metal. Not into the darkness? Head to the light with Whirlpool???s Sunset Bronze finish.

Deep kitchen drawers. Houzz data shows that ease of storage is the top kitchen priority during a remodel. And while deep drawers have been creeping up to replace lower kitchen cabinets for a while now, they???re only getting better ??? and more affordable. Dividers and inserts let you organize any shape or size of dish, pan or utensil under the sun, and there are even clever options for deep corner drawers, and drawers under range tops and kitchen sinks.

Workhorse islands. Kitchen islands provide additional workspace, but they???ve taken on so much more than that. With deep storage, prep sinks, room for seating and more, workhorse islands are becoming the central feature in modern kitchens.

Mixing modern materials in the kitchen. Looking for something a little more lively than white cabinets and granite countertops in your kitchen? Consider mixing several modern materials, finishes and colors. Here, butcher block countertops get broken up with soapstone near the stove and Carrara marble on a nearby baking station. These mix with olive-green cabinets and stainless steel appliances for an eclectic, sophisticated look.

Farmhouse entryways. Stripping away the need for fancy flourishes or decor for decor???s sake, farmhouse style gets at the root of function. That???s why the style makes sense for mudrooms, where simplicity in storage and durability in materials are paramount.

—————–
Interested in universal design? Checkout this article about universal design that could be of interest to you.
—————–

Read the entire article here: http://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/58454857/list/25-design-trends-coming-to-homes-near-you-in-2016

Like the Idea of All Natural Cleaners? Clean With Vinegar!

Most cleaning products on the market work but they aren’t very safe for people or pets. In order to help you out we found this article all on how to clean your home with vinegar. We hope it helps!

———————
If you need South Louisiana dryer vent cleaning services, then Dryer Vents Plus is your #1 choice! Call Jeremy Leake today at 225-612-7752 to schedule your 100% Free, No Obligation Quote!
———————

From the article:

It’s cheap, it’s natural, and it’s tough on bacteria, mildew, and dirt. Read on for some smart vinegar cleaning tips for every room in your home.

Kitchen
Refrigerator: Definitely skip the toxic chemicals where you store your food. Instead, wipe up spills with a 50-50 vinegar-water mix. You can even keep a bottle of the mixture stored in your fridge!

Drain: Pour vinegar onto a scrub brush small enough to get inside the disposal. Sprinkle the brush with baking soda, then scrub to remove odors and built-up crud, says Mary Findley of GoClean.com, a former pro cleaner and author of The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Green Cleaning.
Cutting boards: Spray with straight vinegar, then rinse to clean.

Microwave: Place 1/2-cup vinegar and 1/2-cup water in a glass bowl. Microwave 2-3 minutes, or until it boils. Wipe buildup away with ease!

Stained plastic containers: Coat in vinegar. Let sit. Wash as usual, says Leslie Reichert, aka The Cleaning Coach.

Bathroom
Toilet: Pour a cup of vinegar in the toilet. Let sit overnight. (For tough jobs, empty the toilet water first.) The next morning, sprinkle with baking soda or borax; scrub, then flush.
General bathroom cleaning: Use straight or diluted vinegar to clean, especially around the toilet, where it can curb urine staining and odor.

Tub or sink drain: Pour 1/2-cup around closed drain and let sit several hours. Scrub to remove buildup. Drain, then rinse.

Shower: Findley’s shower deep-clean regimen: Bring vinegar to a boil, then use it to wipe down the shower door and walls. Keep them damp by wiping them down every 5 to 8 minutes for 30 minutes. Then, dampen a nonscratch sponge in vinegar, sprinkle with baking soda, and scrub. Rinse. Bye-bye germs, mold, water spots, and soap scum!

Showerhead: Pour some vinegar into a plastic bag, and secure it to your showerhead with a twist-tie. Make sure there’s enough vinegar so the bottom part of the showerhead is submerged. Leave the bag on overnight. Remove the next morning just before showering.

Laundry
As a fabric softener: Use vinegar instead of fabric softeners in laundry, Findley says. “It softens clothes and removes the static at a fraction of the cost of fabric softeners,” she says. “Just add a cup to the final wash or rinse water.”

—————–
Looking for more all natural cleaners? Checkout this article about all natural cleaners that could be of interest to you.
—————–

Read the entire article here: http://www.bhg.com/homekeeping/house-cleaning/tips/cleaning-with-vinegar/

Have Too Much Clutter? Learn How to Better Store it Here!

Clutter is everywhere. It seems to accumulate out of nowhere. In order to help you store it better we found this article with 13 different storage ideas. We hope they help!

———————
If you need Condo association dryer vent cleaning services, then Dryer Vents Plus is your #1 choice! Call Jeremy Leake today at 225-612-7752 to schedule your 100% Free, No Obligation Quote!
———————

From the article:

Don???t worry. I???m not going to tell you to throw out your stuff or give it away. And I???m not going to give you advice on how to part with it. Instead, I???m going to give you design tips on how to get it out of sight, quickly and easily. The trick to living without clutter is to make it super easy for you and your family to clean up fast. Follow these tips, and you???ll be amazed at how quickly your home can go from chaotic to calm in no time.

Bathroom. The same rules apply for the bathroom as for the kitchen. Keep your counters clear of stuff. Use a vanity with drawers. Don???t even consider a pedestal sink or a vanity with doors if you tend to be a hoarder. Get the most convenient, easy-to-use storage with drawers. (The drawers can even be organized.)

And don???t stop at vanity storage. Maximize your storage by using your mirror as a medicine cabinet as well. If you don???t like the feel of a bulky medicine cabinet at your sink, recess it into the wall. This can often create even deeper storage.

Bay window. As a designer, I???m always struggling with how to best deal with a bay window when I???m laying out a space. I love this idea of squaring off the wall and using that space as trunk-style storage.

Note: It???s really important that your window storage has locking hardware to keep the lid open. It makes it much easier to clean up faster.

Basement. This is another area that doesn???t always need closed storage, especially if it???s a space dedicated to storage. Stock up on budget racks and store everything you don???t want to part with but don???t actually use. If you apply the Pareto principle, you probably use only 20 percent of your stuff. So that means you can store the other 80 percent.

—————–
Looking for more clutter and organization tips? Checkout this article about organization tips that could be of interest to you.
—————–

Read the entire article here: http://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/54104714/list/13-storage-solutions-to-banish-the-clutter

Interested in What Features Homeowners Want Now? Find Out Here!

Every few years it seems to change what homeowners are looking for. In order to help you out we found this article. We hope it helps you plan your remodels and builds!

———————
If you need Denham springs vent cleaning services, then Dryer Vents Plus is your #1 choice! Call Jeremy Leake today at 225-612-7752 to schedule your 100% Free, No Obligation Quote!
———————

From the article:

You’ve heard the real estate adage “location, location, location” as the golden rule of a home’s desirability. But today, homebuyers are thinking “features, features, features” — ones that add “convenience, livability and energy efficiency” to a home, according to a recent survey by the National Association of Home Builders.

Inspired by HGTV real estate shows and by images of gorgeous home designs on Pinterest, buyers — especially younger buyers who want a home to be turnkey, not needing upgrades or repairs — look for the following top features, and may put higher bids on homes that have them:

??? An open floor plan.
Buyers love to see wide-open spaces, with the kitchen open to the dining room and great room, as opposed to each room being blocked off by walls. An open floor plan fits with their dreams of entertaining, as guests can be in different spaces, yet all in the same area together. Guests are not out of view, sequestered in different, closed-in rooms.

??? Large kitchens with lots of counter space and granite counters.
With families cooking together more, and again with entertaining high on the homebuyer’s lifestyle wishes, a roomy kitchen with plenty of space for the preparation of meals and the display of buffet-style platters is a must. Granite counters, especially on a kitchen island with its own sink, offer beauty as well as easy maintenance, as do tile floors, another wish list feature.

??? Updated kitchen and bathrooms.
Buyers prefer updated kitchens with modern appliances and designer hardware and faucets. Since buyers plan to put most of their budget on the down payment for a home, they prefer to see that they won’t have to then spend a fortune on bathroom and kitchen remodels, which are among the priciest home projects. Kitchens are gathering spaces, a hallmark of the owner’s style and affluence, and bathrooms are now considered the home’s peaceful oasis, so they may have glass-wall showers, steam rooms, multi-jet showers and claw-foot baths as well as chandeliers and fireplaces.

??? High ceilings.
The National Association of Home Builders says that the desirability of high ceilings is important, perhaps a deal-breaker, with first-floor ceilings at least 9-feet high to begin with, with 20-foot ceilings in great rooms impress homebuyers who love the lofty, open look.

??? A home office.
Buyers who work from home full time and those who have office spaces but spend time working from home as well want a sizable, well-decorated, modern home office. Not a corner of the dining room with a laptop. They desire a large room, connectivity, great lighting and a view, in addition to plenty of storage space. The experts at Bankrate say that female homebuyers are especially interested in home offices, although both genders list this feature as among their preferences.

—————–
Looking for more trends? Checkout this article about home remodeling trends that could be of interest to you.
—————–

Read the entire article here: http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20140830/entlife/140839998/

Looking to Be Super Productive? Adopt These 7 Habits!

A new year means another opportunity to change habits about yourself that you don’t like. If you’re looking for ways to be more productive then you’ve come to the right place. We hope it helps you start off the new year with a bang!

———————
If you need Apartment complex dryer vent cleaning services, then Dryer Vents Plus is your #1 choice! Call Jeremy Leake today at 225-612-7752 to schedule your 100% Free, No Obligation Quote!
———————

From the article:

There are some people who wake up at 5 a.m. without hitting snooze, meticulously write to-do lists, and keep their work area so clean you could eat off of it (not that they would ever have a sad desk lunch).

So how do they do it? Are they able to multitask at the speed of light? Can they leap over huge piles of paperwork in a single bound? Turns out, you don’t need any superpowers to be super-efficient. Below, productivity experts let you in on some of the habits that keep them on task.

They don’t check email as often as you do.
Do you keep your email up and running all day long? It could be draining your productivity. “Most super-productive people only check their email 2 or 3 times a day,” says Jennings. When you’re always hearing new message alerts you’ll never get anything done because there’s always something else to tend to. But if you can’t bear to turn off your email, at least enlist the help of filters. “We have this idea that everything that hits our inbox is urgent,” says Alexandra Samuel, Ph.D., author of Work Smarter with Social Media. But that’s far from the case. Filters — like sending anything with the word “unsubscribe” directly to the trash — can seriously up your efficiency.

They don’t forget about themselves.
You can’t be firing on all cylinders if your health is out of whack. “Your best resources are your body and your mind,” says Maura Thomas, author and founder of productivity website RegainYourTime.com. Getting enough sleep and exercise is the key to clear thinking, more creativity, and increased energy — which, in turn, make you more productive, she explains. And if by some fluke one of these super-productive people didn’t get quite enough sleep the night before, they’re not opposed to a midday nap. “Really, the most productive thing you can do is close your eyes for 10 minutes — even if you don’t actually sleep, that rest period is just as good,” says Thomas.

They like to sweeten the pot.
A little bribery can go a long way. If you have, say, an expense report that you’ve been dreading, allow yourself a little indulgence when it’s finally done, suggests Thomas. Time limits also have the same effect. “Set a timer and say ‘I’ll do this for 10 minutes,'” she suggests. Chances are, once you dive in you’ll keep going. “Getting started and getting over that hump is always the hardest part.”

They make technology work for them.
Technology can be both a blessing (calendar apps!) and a burden (Facebook!) during the workday. For example, Samuel has turned her phone into a personal assistant of sorts by setting reminders for everything that she has to do. It’s all about anticipating procrastination and then limiting any wiggle room you might have to keep you from getting a task done, says Pychyl, who lives by his color-coordinated email calendar. “Every category (work, personal, family) is a different color,” he explains. This way, he can see at a glance when he’s giving too much (or too little) time to one specific area of his life, and can prioritize accordingly.

—————–
Looking for organization ideas for your life? Checkout this article about organize your life that could be of interest to you.
—————–

Read the entire article here: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/prevention/7-habits-of-super-productive-people_b_8637820.html

Looking to Declutter and Organize Your Entire Home? Start Here!

If your home is like most homes there is just too much stuff and too little organization. In order to help you out we found this guide on ways to declutter and add some organization to your life. We hope it helps!

———————
If you need Condo association dryer vent cleaning services, then Dryer Vents Plus is your #1 choice! Call Jeremy Leake today at 225-612-7752 to schedule your 100% Free, No Obligation Quote!
———————

From the article:

Take advantage of the new year and give your home a fresh start. We???ve compiled some of the best cleaning and organizing guides from Houzz, room by room, to help you start off the year with a clean slate.

Kitchen. Whether your refrigerator needs a good scrubbing, your drawers need to be reorganized or your pantry needs a complete overhaul, we’ve got you covered. Get your kitchen spick-and-span and ready for family dinners and parties all through the new year.

Organize Your Kitchen Drawers
Clean Out the Pantry
Spring Clean Your Kitchen
24 Hot Ideas for Stashing Spices

Bathroom. Even for those lucky enough to have a massive master bathroom, it can be hard to pinpoint what needs organizing in this part of the house. Usually the mess hides ??? under the sink, in the medicine cabinet or in the towel bin. Keep those tucked-away spaces tidy too with these bathroom organizing guides.

Organize the Bathroom for Well-Earned Bliss
Bathroom Storage: Where to Keep the Towels
8 Easy Tips for an Organized Bathroom

Living room. The living room often combines several spaces ??? a media area, a playspace and a dining room, to name a few. Get the craziness of your living room under control by determining your plan of attack: Choose one corner or part of your living room to tackle per week. These ideabooks can help you get started.

Organize the Media Cabinet
Lose It: CDs, DVDs, Cassettes and VHS Tapes
How to Hide Your TV Cables
How to Style Your Bookcase

Laundry room. Keep your laundry room from becoming a chaotic clothes-filled free-for-all, and aim for a pleasant space to clean clothes instead. Simple works better for this room ??? and you can get a surprisingly soothing laundry room of your own with these guides.

Make a Clean Break With Laundry Chaos
6 Ways to Care for Your Washing Machine
How to Give Your Laundry a Boost

—————–
Looking for more ideas to organize your home? Checkout this article about home organization ideas that could be of interest to you.
—————–

Read the entire article here: http://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/6006100/list/your-total-home-organizing-and-decluttering-guide