Here are three out of "30 Makeover Ideas" from House Beautiful, I found on msn.com today;
http://lifestyle.msn.com/your-home/room-design/staticslideshowhb.aspx?cp-documentid=17327897>1=32001
They coincide with my post, "What Does Your House Smell Like" and a mixture of other posts - go back and refresh your memory.
"I don't use fragrance normally, but there's nothing quite like Santa Maria Novella's potpourri. People walk into the house and say, 'Oh, what is that?' It's just incredibly clean and fresh." -Jackie Terrell
"I was visiting a friend in the south of France, and every night she would light a Jo Malone candle in my bedroom and close the door. When I walked in to go to bed, there would this waft of scent — basil, lime, and mandarin orange. Now, whenever I light this candle, I think of France." -Katie Ridder
"Make your bathroom feel like a spa. Get rid of the clutter. Buy fabulous over scale towels in a new color. Add a few small candles and light them at night when you have guests." -Mary Douglas Drysdale (Tuesday Morning is great for inexpensive, very nice towels - and other home items too.)
If you're looking for some fun, inexpensive ways to brighten up and change your home, check out what House Beautiful has to say.
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Monday, February 9, 2009
Sunday, February 8, 2009
A Little Housecleaning Tip or Two
I was asked for a few tips on how to keep a housecleaning routine ongoing, rather than feeling like, "I'm always catching up."
Here are a few ways I clean at my home, perhaps they will be helpful tips to you.
1.) Keep the house clean all the time, so it's never a big overhaul cleaning.
How do I do that, you ask???
- Keep the washcloth next to the faucet (as mentioned before), and wipe the bathroom counter/faucet down each use.
-Pick up the lint/crumbs as I walk by them. (Pick the crumbs up right when they fall - use of 2nd sponge, right! Or, I lick my finger tip and poke the crumb and wash my finger tip.)
-Keep a tiny dust pan and brush (the ones that connect - can be found at the Dollar Store) under the kitchen sink for larger spills. Kids love to use these and feel as though they have contributed with clean up after a meal/art project.
-Take shoes off at the door. Don't trace dirt around your home - especially winter chemicals from the street.
-Only eat at the table or counter (That goes for everyone!); and definitely not over any open drawer or cupboard.
- Keep a Swiffer ready to go (Duster and Sweeper) and use it while you're on the phone. If you know you call relatives or friends once (or more) a week (My mom on Sundays), then be prepared and walk around your house with a Swiffer as you're having a phone conversation. Mindless and effortless work being accomplished while doing something you enjoy.
-Put things away the first time (ONLY TOUCH SOMETHING ONCE!) If you're making sandwiches, put all the ingredients away before eating. Your kitchen should look like nothing just took place in its space. When finished with your sandwich, don't leave the empty plate on the counter or sink, open the dishwasher and pop it right in! Wash out your sponge every use, AND wring the water out completely - or mold will grow.
-Purchase a small ceramic dish or flat surfaced/no holes soap dish (mine is an olive oil dish to match my bath travertine stone) for your shower bar soap. Also purchase/use a flat, round makeup sponge to soak up any excess water/suds. The sponge is small enough to be hidden under your soap, yet will keep you from cleaning the shower's excess soap scum.
-Hose down your shower each time you finish. If you don't have a shower head hose, nor a handy family member to install one, leave a bucket/pitcher in your shower to collect the wasted water, while you're waiting for it to warm up. Toss the extra water over the walls and shower curtain. This simple task will conserve water and keep your shower walls from having to be scrubbed so often.
Take 30 seconds now and you'll save yourself hours in the end.
Okay, enough tips for now.
Here are a few ways I clean at my home, perhaps they will be helpful tips to you.
1.) Keep the house clean all the time, so it's never a big overhaul cleaning.
How do I do that, you ask???
- Keep the washcloth next to the faucet (as mentioned before), and wipe the bathroom counter/faucet down each use.
-Pick up the lint/crumbs as I walk by them. (Pick the crumbs up right when they fall - use of 2nd sponge, right! Or, I lick my finger tip and poke the crumb and wash my finger tip.)
-Keep a tiny dust pan and brush (the ones that connect - can be found at the Dollar Store) under the kitchen sink for larger spills. Kids love to use these and feel as though they have contributed with clean up after a meal/art project.
-Take shoes off at the door. Don't trace dirt around your home - especially winter chemicals from the street.
-Only eat at the table or counter (That goes for everyone!); and definitely not over any open drawer or cupboard.
- Keep a Swiffer ready to go (Duster and Sweeper) and use it while you're on the phone. If you know you call relatives or friends once (or more) a week (My mom on Sundays), then be prepared and walk around your house with a Swiffer as you're having a phone conversation. Mindless and effortless work being accomplished while doing something you enjoy.
-Put things away the first time (ONLY TOUCH SOMETHING ONCE!) If you're making sandwiches, put all the ingredients away before eating. Your kitchen should look like nothing just took place in its space. When finished with your sandwich, don't leave the empty plate on the counter or sink, open the dishwasher and pop it right in! Wash out your sponge every use, AND wring the water out completely - or mold will grow.
-Purchase a small ceramic dish or flat surfaced/no holes soap dish (mine is an olive oil dish to match my bath travertine stone) for your shower bar soap. Also purchase/use a flat, round makeup sponge to soak up any excess water/suds. The sponge is small enough to be hidden under your soap, yet will keep you from cleaning the shower's excess soap scum.
-Hose down your shower each time you finish. If you don't have a shower head hose, nor a handy family member to install one, leave a bucket/pitcher in your shower to collect the wasted water, while you're waiting for it to warm up. Toss the extra water over the walls and shower curtain. This simple task will conserve water and keep your shower walls from having to be scrubbed so often.
Take 30 seconds now and you'll save yourself hours in the end.
Okay, enough tips for now.
Saturday, February 7, 2009
"Get Rid of 365 Things in 365 Days"
Although the new year has had a running start, pick up your first of 365 items and place it in a donation bag/box. From today on, choose one - or more - items a day to donate. Get everyone involved! With your family members, choose a donation bin and a location, and start donating. Make a tally sheet and attach it to the bin (or a small calendar, to write down the items - for a tax write off.)
This is a wonderful time of year to go through your over stuffed closets and toy shelves. The holidays have passed and the closets have become swollen. Take time to go through your closets with a decluttering eye and let go of unworn items.
If you're holding on to that particular shirt/dress/pair of shoes because of fond memories, take a picture and keep the image on your computer - less clutter!
Purchase/create tags for each hanger. Write the date on the tag each time you wear the article of clothing. If the item hasn't been worn at least THREE times in a year, it needs to be passed on (with the exception of fancy dresses/clothes.) Plus, you'll start to realize which clothes you wear often - generally only about 30 items - and which clothes are just collecting dust.
"One man's trash is another man's treasure'!
"Viewing your home with an eye for decluttering helps you see more and more things you no longer need. It may also change your world view about possessions, clutter, and what makes a home." (Body and Soul, March, 09)
This is a wonderful time of year to go through your over stuffed closets and toy shelves. The holidays have passed and the closets have become swollen. Take time to go through your closets with a decluttering eye and let go of unworn items.
If you're holding on to that particular shirt/dress/pair of shoes because of fond memories, take a picture and keep the image on your computer - less clutter!
Purchase/create tags for each hanger. Write the date on the tag each time you wear the article of clothing. If the item hasn't been worn at least THREE times in a year, it needs to be passed on (with the exception of fancy dresses/clothes.) Plus, you'll start to realize which clothes you wear often - generally only about 30 items - and which clothes are just collecting dust.
"One man's trash is another man's treasure'!
"Viewing your home with an eye for decluttering helps you see more and more things you no longer need. It may also change your world view about possessions, clutter, and what makes a home." (Body and Soul, March, 09)
Friday, February 6, 2009
Do You Know What's in Your Laundry?
"Bacteria thrives in warm, moist places like the washing machine." says Weida, M.D.
If you're anything like me, I multi-task and do the laundry at random times in the day... or night. Until now! I just read an article from my Vigor Magazine; Healthy Living for the People of Colorado, and was dumbfounded when I read the article Home Clean Home. Three important facts I learned from Weida, M.D., were: (1.) "Be sure to dry your clothes quickly to avoid bacteria formation." Don't go off for three hours (or eight) and let your clothes sit in the wash; they aren't clean anymore! (2.) Wash your whites in hot water, using bleach, to kill the most bacteria (not just to turn them their whitest whites!) And (3.) - (most important and shocking!) "Wash your underwear separately from the rest of your clothes," he says. "Every pair of underwear contains about a gram of feces, and you don't want this transferring to other clothes." Who would have thought!
Now you need four separate bins for your laundry; whites, darks, misc., and UNDERWEAR!
If you're anything like me, I multi-task and do the laundry at random times in the day... or night. Until now! I just read an article from my Vigor Magazine; Healthy Living for the People of Colorado, and was dumbfounded when I read the article Home Clean Home. Three important facts I learned from Weida, M.D., were: (1.) "Be sure to dry your clothes quickly to avoid bacteria formation." Don't go off for three hours (or eight) and let your clothes sit in the wash; they aren't clean anymore! (2.) Wash your whites in hot water, using bleach, to kill the most bacteria (not just to turn them their whitest whites!) And (3.) - (most important and shocking!) "Wash your underwear separately from the rest of your clothes," he says. "Every pair of underwear contains about a gram of feces, and you don't want this transferring to other clothes." Who would have thought!
Now you need four separate bins for your laundry; whites, darks, misc., and UNDERWEAR!
Thursday, February 5, 2009
I'm Simply Asking...
Did you follow my suggestions from my post last week, "Banish Paper"? If you haven't, here is another sweet reminder: Publications. It's time to toss all publications, newsletters, magazines, newspapers from 2008 and older. (I'm sure you did this when you ripped off the company address to send them a 'Stop Sending Me Your Publication' notice.) Resist the urge to say, 'but I might need it or have to refer back to it.' The bottom line is, you probably won't. You will continue to have more arrive and the pile will just get larger. If you're saying, out loud to me, "BUT, I HAVE TO KEEP THOSE ..." Then call/e-mail me and we'll set up a time to create a filing system - one that holds those 'have to have' articles/future purchases.
Ask For What You Want
Whether it's the "best price for a multiple night deal," an upgrade to a suite, or breakfast, at your next hotel, ask for what you want. There's a difference between being a "squeaky wheel" and asking politely, with a smile, for what you desire.
My motto is: If you don't ask (with a smile), you don't get!
I called the hotel where I would be staying last week, the day prior to my arrival, and asked for exactly what I needed for my client - who needs handicap accessability. After repeating my needs twice, I was guarantied that everything would be ready. Therefore, when entering my room, I was shocked that three of my requests were not met. I asked for a new room - AND BREAKFAST for three. The following day, when our second set of rooms were not acceptable, I asked for something more appropriate - I was given a SUITE. At a late dinner, I was cold and asked if the air conditioning could be turned down (only two other tables in the restaurant,) and I was told there was a problem with the controls and we were OFFERED TEA or COFFEE.
I want to add that I use Travelocity.com or Kayak.com for all of my travel plans; yet, I always call the hotel to ASK if they have any special deals going on at the time. (I travel every six weeks with a particular client, and numerous other times throughout the year.) For example; when I checked for prices on line one day, Travelocity's price was $284. A few days later it was posted at $168, same as the hotel's new price. When I called the hotel to inquire about multi-night deals, or any other deals, I was quoted $111 - if I was willing to for it to be nonrefundable. You bet I did! Representatives are not willing to reveal any deals unless you ASK.
I truly believe it's how you ask, and that this motto can be used in anything you do in life.
It goes along with my other motto: If you think you can, you will; If you think you can't, you won't!
Be assertive, not aggressive, and ask for what you desire - of YOURSELF and others.
My motto is: If you don't ask (with a smile), you don't get!
I called the hotel where I would be staying last week, the day prior to my arrival, and asked for exactly what I needed for my client - who needs handicap accessability. After repeating my needs twice, I was guarantied that everything would be ready. Therefore, when entering my room, I was shocked that three of my requests were not met. I asked for a new room - AND BREAKFAST for three. The following day, when our second set of rooms were not acceptable, I asked for something more appropriate - I was given a SUITE. At a late dinner, I was cold and asked if the air conditioning could be turned down (only two other tables in the restaurant,) and I was told there was a problem with the controls and we were OFFERED TEA or COFFEE.
I want to add that I use Travelocity.com or Kayak.com for all of my travel plans; yet, I always call the hotel to ASK if they have any special deals going on at the time. (I travel every six weeks with a particular client, and numerous other times throughout the year.) For example; when I checked for prices on line one day, Travelocity's price was $284. A few days later it was posted at $168, same as the hotel's new price. When I called the hotel to inquire about multi-night deals, or any other deals, I was quoted $111 - if I was willing to for it to be nonrefundable. You bet I did! Representatives are not willing to reveal any deals unless you ASK.
I truly believe it's how you ask, and that this motto can be used in anything you do in life.
It goes along with my other motto: If you think you can, you will; If you think you can't, you won't!
Be assertive, not aggressive, and ask for what you desire - of YOURSELF and others.
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