Quick, Easy Staging Ideas

Staging your home when it’s for sale really does have an impact. It helps people better visualize where they would put their own belongings if they did indeed buy your home. While an empty home may appear more spacious, it also tends to feel a bit more overwhelming, especially if it’s larger than the home the potential buyer currently occupies (which is often the case since many people purchase a new home in order to move up to bigger and better things). An empty home may leave the buyer questioning, “How will I fill all this space?” As we know, … Continue reading →

If the Weather outside is frightful…

It is that time of year again. The weather can do some crazy things, and that’s even more true if you live in an area that is prone to drastic weather changes. We actually have days here that may be sunny and a nice, warm 75 degrees but drop more than 40-50 degrees by late that night. That’s a big difference in a 24 hour period! Sometimes, it’s even more extreme. Have you ever had the air conditioning on during the day and the heat running at night? I try to avoid such uses of energy, but there have been … Continue reading →

Winterizing Tips: Outdoors

Even if it is already getting cold where you live, it’s not too late. You can still winterize or weatherize in several ways that will help protect your home and family throughout the winter months. Clean the Gutters If you can do it yourself, carefully go ahead and clean out the gutters. Always make sure someone else is home when climbing a ladder and be sure the ladder is stable. If you aren’t up for doing it yourself, hire someone to do it sooner than later. Make sure the person you hire is insured. It’s not a bad idea to … Continue reading →

Winterizing Tips: Indoors

With winter winds beginning to blow (or coming soon), these winterizing tips may come in handy. Clear the Clothes Dryer Now is a good time to replace your clothes dryer vent or at the very least, make sure it is obstruction free. By checking or replacing your vent hose at the same time you winterize (doing such things at the same time each year), you will develop a good habit. This is one of the best ways to ensure that such things don’t get overlooked. Get the Fireplace ready for Santa If you have a fireplace, it’s a good idea … Continue reading →

Ready for Winter?

One important step in winterizing your home is to be sure that you’re keeping warm air in and cold air out. One good way to do this is by making sure your insulation is in good shape and is sufficient. This is something you may be able to do yourself. If not, a handyman should be able to help you out at a reasonable rate. If you turn on the furnace and find that you’re getting no heat or very little heat in one area, it may be a problem with your duct work. This is something you need to … Continue reading →

Quick, Temporary Fixes

Maybe you haven’t been able to do some of the things you had hoped to do before the holiday season. Here are some temporary, alternative options: Don’t have time to paint? Wash your walls instead. You might find that you don’t really need to paint right now after all. Instead of getting new carpet or installing a different type of flooring, consider an area rug for a temporary fix. To save even more time and money, go to Target or another store that carries basic home furnishings, and look for an area carpet. You can often find good quality carpet … Continue reading →

Easy Paint Clean up Tips

Want to spruce up your home before the holidays? There is almost nothing faster that makes a big impact like a new coat of paint. It looks clean and fresh, no matter what else you do to a room. New paint is the perfect backdrop for all of our holiday decorating. Here at Romansville, I have been trying to get my daughter’s room painted. It isn’t an easy task, since I have two little ones at home all day and another one at school. So I have been taking the painting in stages, literally doing one wall at a time. … Continue reading →

How to Choose a Paint Finish

Do you know the different between an eggshell and a semi-gloss finish when you are choosing paint? Here is an easy guide that tells you what all of the terms really mean and how you can choose the right finish for your paint project. As if choosing the paint colors for your home wasn’t hard enough, you still have to pick a paint finish. I have to confess that one time I spent so much time choose the color, shade and hue for our old bedroom, that I was completely clueless when it came time for the finish. The paint … Continue reading →

Quick Trick for Extra Seating

Well, I won’t bore those of you who aren’t into football with the kick off of a new NFL season, especially since my team the Chicago Bears, lost their first game. However, as autumn emerges, there are going to be other get-togethers besides football games, and you may need some extra seating for last minute entertaining. A great way to add some extra seating without a lot of effort or expense is to utilize your existing patio chairs. No, I’m not suggesting that we just throw them into our living rooms or family rooms “as is,” but there are some … Continue reading →

Two More Painless Ways to Protect the Environment

If the effort is painless, why not do our part, right? What if it’s even better than painless? What if these tips could make life even easier, and at the same time be good for the environment? They do both. That’s why they are two of the favorite tips I’ve found: conduct as much correspondence online as possible instead of through [paper] mail, and curb the flow of all that [paper] junk mail. Computer Correspondence You can pay bills and receive your monthly statements online, as well as asking questions about products or looking for coupons, rebates, etc. You might … Continue reading →