Home Sweet Home

These fabric shelves are ideal for a dual-purpose room which is short on space.

(more…)

Slate has enjoyed great popularity with home improvers for many years, because of its toughness and range of natural earthy colours, which can vary from soft green to deep purple, mottled brown and dark charcoal.

The project is to apply slate to a family room, where its lasting strength will provide good service. (more…)

These decorative elements have outgrown their stuffy and slightly old-fashioned image of the past. They can now, with clever choices and use of fabric, totally complement what is really a plain set of curtains, and transform a room into a well-thought-out home decorator’s triumph. (more…)

Openings in houses may be voids, doors orwindows. Voids tend to be in areas where security is not a consideration, such as between rooms in an open-plan living area. Doors provide a means of access and security to the building. Windows, however, are designed to provide daylight and a means of ventilation. They should also provide a view, but still allow for privacy when required. (more…)

Give the lid of the paint tin a good wipe before opening it to avoid getting dust and dirt in the paint. Mix the paint thoroughly and pour some paint into the tray. (Cover the tray with clingwrap or tinfoil beforehand to make cleaning afterwards easier.) Before using a new brush the first time, work its bristles back and forth over your hand to get rid of loose bristles and dust.

Don’t dip the entire bristle area into the paint; you’ll have major job cleaning it and get paint clogging at the base, eventually turning your paint job into a mess. No more than half the length of the bristles should be covered in paint.

The basic rule is work top down and outside in. This means you’ll start with the smaller brushes, do all the corners and edges and cover for roughly 5 cm into the larger areas so that you leave enough space when working with the roller. (more…)

The toilet is hissing, spurting, gurgling and generally not sounding too health Maybe you’ve tried one of the following options to silence it — lifting, hitting, ignoring, or for those of you with a violent disposition — kicking! The latter became the most often tried remedy for us as we’ve been plagued by malfunctioning toilet for the best part of our independent lives. How silly, considering a pair of pliers and 5 minutes of fiddling would have solved the problempermanently, if only we’d known.

When you flush the toilet, it starts refilling wit water immediately so the next person who uses the toilet can follow suit. The toilet float-valve stops this flow of water as soon as the cistern is full. If the toilet float-valve does not work, the water keeps on running, driving youcrazy and wasting a lot of water. (more…)

Carpets

Vacuum regularly and get into those corners. If you entertain you would have had to get rid of some nasty stains; if you entertain heavily, you may have had to get rid of some more severe markings, and smells.

Generally, always work from outside in and never brush or rub too vigorously as you may damage the fibres. When using some of the stronger solutions, first test it on an inconspicuous part of the carpet. (more…)

There are countless ways that bead hangings can make that all-important decorating difference in your home. They can create a dramatic division and, at the same time, keep space free-flowing. Although they are revivals of the very ornate period of Victorian styling, today’s adaptations are equally at home in traditional, country, Mediterranean, or contemporary settings. They can be used to curtain a window, disguise a nonview, and at the same time allow light and air to filter through. As a divider, they take almost no space, yet give a feeling of semiprivacy in each of the separated areas.

Along with beauty and versatility, there is another factor in their favor—beads require no dry cleaning, laundering, or pressing; all you need to do is wipe them with a damp cloth to restore them to their original appearance. (more…)

Comfort is the keynote in bedroom planning, not only for the average eight hours of rest each day, but for the entire 24 hours. The bedroom should have an atmosphere that is conducive to reading, writing, sewing, and knitting, or just plain relaxing. It should have a feeling of privacy, yet should be the kind of a room where the door can be left open, and it will reflect the mood of the decor of the rest of the home.

Although furnishings should be chosen for comfort, convenience, and beauty, it is the background—colors, patterns, and textures in walls, floors, window treatments, bedspreads, and upholstery—that does the most to create a feeling of comfort and tranquillity. (more…)

Basements

The first place to look for that extra living space you need is your basement. Bright, cheerful colors and well-chosen, durable materials can work miracles in this often neglected area of the house.

Basin Stand

A piece of wooden furniture designed to hold a washing basin. The basin stand originated in England in the mid-eighteenth century. Thomas Chippendale included some in his design book, and the form remained popular through the Hepplewhite and Sheraton periods and even beyond. With the introduction of modern plumbing, the need for basin stands disappeared. Most of them stand 30 inches high on three legs that support a molded ring into which a porcelain wash basin can be fitted. Some have space for an urn for water and a cake of soap. (more…)