Better Home Club

After a recent foray into the art of redecoration, my bathroom is looking splendid . We fitted a new hydro-massage shower column, elegant ceramic tiles and a contemporary styled mirror cabinet to create a chic, spa-like feel to the room.

Now my other half has finished with the DIY side of things, I’m enjoying my luxurious new bathroom – and of course cleaning it. Having replaced our shabby old bathroom shelf units with a gorgeous mirror cabinet I want to do everything possible to preserve that perfect look.

I don’t know if anyone else is like me, but I can’t stand seeing smudges, smears and finger-prints on mirrors! Obviously, the bathroom sees a fairly high level “traffic” from ourselves and visitors to our home, so all those unwanted marks tend to appear on our mirror cabinet on a regular basis.

As a housewife, those annoying marks on the bathroom mirrors could be the bane of my life, but making some adaptations to my cleaning routine has proved it doesn’t have to be a tough job. Our mirror cabinet came with manufacturer’s instructions explaining that abrasive products should be avoided as they can scratch the mirror’s surface – so I started our by using a window cleaner spray from our local supermarket and a clean cloth. However, the results were not as impressive as I might have hoped, as the mirror required plenty of good old fashioned elbow-grease before it looked acceptable. I also found that the soft cloth I was using seemed to gather up dust and drag it around the mirror, as well as leaving tiny, unattractive pieces of lint across the surface.

For my next cleaning session, I spent some time researching on the internet to find the best way to clean a mirror cabinet. Reading through a number of forums and articles, I found that many people were turning to microfibre cloths or sponge-pads as an efficient and modern way of cleaning (and not just for mirrors!).

Microfibre fabric is usually made from synthetic materials such as polyester and, as the name suggests, are made from microscopic fibres. Fans of these cloths say that they are economical as they can be washed and reused, and environmentally friendly, as a microfibre cloth can clean efficiently without the use of chemical-based household cleaning products. Microfibre is also very good at cleaning oil or grease residues, as well as sweeping away dust and lint.

Having digested all this information, I popped out to the shops and picked up a pack of very reasonably priced microfibre cloths to put the theory to the test. As microfibre cloths can be used both dry or wet, I decided to start with a damp cloth and was quite amazed at the results. Grubby finger-marks left by my son and residues of my daughter’s make-up almost slid off the glass and onto my cloth, making it a much quicker job then normal. Another bonus that I discovered was that after using the damp cloth, a quick polish with a dry microfibre cloth left the mirror looking spotless.

Overall, I’d say microfibre cloths are the ideal choice for anyone who wants their mirror cabinet to look as shiny as the day they bought them!

I have always liked the idea of spending time in the garden.  Sipping some homemade lemonade while playing chess and admiring my geraniums sounds terribly refined, doesn’t it? The problem is that I don’t have any geraniums. Actually, I don’t know how to make lemonade or play chess very well either, but I reckon that I could learn those things.

The big problem is really that a lot of us like the idea of a quality garden but aren’t that keen on the harsh reality of doing something in order to get it. If you want to get a great outdoor space then you really need to get your hands dirty first. This is the bit which most of us are not so keen on.

A friend recently gave me a suggestion for fixing this which I am thinking of taking up. He said that he just got an orangery added to his property and that this helps him make more of his garden. It sounds a bit of a strange concept at first, as this is a type of greenhouse structure which I had always thought people only bought to grow exotic fruits in.

It turns out that he has fitted his out with some bamboo furniture and a mixture of lovely plants. When I went to visit him recently I was amazed at the change when we stepped from his living room into the orangery. It was like another world. The point of this is that it gives him two different ways to enjoy his garden more.

Inside Looking Out

If you want to look at your garden without having to go out in the cold then a lovely, warm greenhouse lets you do just that. You can be nice and cosy and have the telly switched on or the radio chattering away while you look around your prized patio. This idea seems to be best for those among us who already have a good stock of geraniums but perhaps it could also provide a handy incentive to the rest of us. If you know that you have a wonderful place to view your flowers from then it should be easier to motivate yourself to actually get some.

Making the Connection

What my friend told me was that he found that the conservatory room helped him link the house to the garden in a way he had never managed before. Now he sees this as a sort of half way house in which he feels as though he is in his garden even when he is indoors. This means that he is far more inclined to step out of doors and do a few of those odd jobs which are so easy to neglect otherwise. It sounds like a fine idea and it means that I can finally treat my garden the way it deserves to be treated. Now all I need to do is work out how to turn those lemons, a bowl of sugar and a jug of water into something cool and refreshing.

When you move into a new house there are so many things to think about that it can be difficult to get them all done straight away. Sorting out the furniture, tidying up the garden and doing some odd jobs to fix problems are usually enough to keep new homeowners busy for a reasonable length of time.

However, we mustn’t forget the importance of protecting our family and possessions from intruders. The last thing we want is to have our early days in our dream home ruined by thieves breaking into it. This is why home security is such an important issue which it is worth sorting out right away. The longer you put something like this off the more likely it is that you will end up not doing anything about it. You really need to take advantage of the enthusiasm and energy which comes with moving into a new home.

Below are a few ideas for getting this right. These are obviously just a few basic steps and there is plenty more that you can do to protect your loved ones if you do some further research on the subject.

Choose a Top Security System

Wireless burglar alarms and CCTV systems are a couple of the most popular types of thief deterrent these days. These home security products are cheaper to buy and easier to maintain than you might think. With one of these pieces of equipment in place you will definitely sleep a lot easier at night.

Check for Hiding Places

Another point which it is worth checking is whether your new property has any shady or overgrown areas which undesirables could use to hide in while checking out the house. You will need to do this at night time, as what is an inoffensive bush or tree during the daylight hours could transform into something far more unpleasant at night. Try taking a walk around the property and looking for weak points which burglars could take advantage of.

Check the Windows and Doors

When you live in a house for a long time you get used to the little problems it has, but when you are new to the place then it can take you a while to work these out. Just as you walked around the outside of the property to look for weaknesses so you should also check on the inside. This usually just means seeing whether the windows and doors are up to scratch. You might want to add some high quality locks and bolts to these if you feel that they are not good enough for your needs.

Add a Fence

The simple addition of a fence with a lockable gate might not sound like much but it can be enough to deter opportunist thieves who are looking for an easy target. The same sort of logic applies to putting possible burglar aids such as ladders and ropes out of sight. You want to make sure that no one looks at your new home and sees the chance to get in and out easily and quickly.

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Selling mobile phones for cash is easy on the Web. You can find a provider that purchases used mobile units who will send you cash money in a flash once you send your mobile phone to the company. Most companies offer at three-step process, e.g. 1. Fill out the form online, 2; send your phone, 3. Get cash. It is that easy.

Most companies claim to send your money the same day your cell phone arrives on their desktop. On the other hand, it may take some time to receive your money via UPS. Usually it is 7 to 11 days for the money to come via UPS. (more…)

We have searched through time to gather information about traditional rug making. We have spent time in ancient china, Persia , Morocco and Turkey but all of the rugs seen in those places we have seen emulated in the 20th and 21st century by intelligent collectors, preservers and retailers who, working with the country of origin, find weavers who can still make rugs using the traditional methods. These methods are then employed to make custom rugs to the very particular requirements of a client.

Watching the care taken by these guardians of traditional arts I could imagine that these rugs were still being made for Persian Shahs, English Queens or Indian Moguls. That they were actually being manufactured to fit into the plan of an interior designer certainly highlighted the changing social stratum between pre 20th and post 20th century societies. The top strata had not been removed but were smaller in number.

In the 21st century they had also, at last become aware of human impact on the environment and so these rug makers were using the cleanest and most sustainable of traditional and modern materials and techniques. Perhaps the clients ordering these custom made rugs were more environmentally aware and so chose their rugs from people like Doris Leslie Blau for that reason. I only hope they were as careful with the rest of their interior decorating materials and as aware of their impact on the Earth in the rest of their lives.

As we settled down into the twenty first century we noticed how all the wealthy countries used rugs on their floors as part of their room design. People chose large motifs and bright colours as if they were expressing their own ease with themselves. The comfort of previous decade’s wall to wall carpets was replaced by large carpets or rugs that showed some of the beautiful stone or wooden floors around the edge. Some people even had their rugs designed for them, choosing every detail and material themselves.

Contemporary rugs of this period were eclectic, celebratory, paid homage to many designers from the past and were completely free from limitation or expectation of fashion. Certainly households with greater wealth had more choice as is always the case but even homes with more modest means found one or two bright textiles to liven up their homes. There was also a call for more subtle contemporary rugs as well as rugs of antiquity. It was strange to see Rugs being sold as antiques that I may have seen being made new on another part of my journey. Anyway, it all seemed to be a matter of personal taste.

It was about this time that a growing awareness of human kind’s impact on the environment was compelling customer and retailer alike to think of the materials and methods of production; hence we found even rug manufacturers offering natural yarns such as jute as well as plant dyes instead of manmade colours. Later of course, in our time, we see that this should have been started much sooner.

Contemporary Rugs

As I said in previous notes, while in Yorks (New York) in the 21st century, we spent time at the showroom of Doris Leslie Blau, famous for their collection and very knowledgeable about rugs. My subject specialism being design, I was thrilled to find this company encouraging home owners to design their own rugs. It was DLB’s contention that rugs are the main focal point of a room and so could be the first choice when designing an interior and we had conversations with designers who actually did this.

My fellow research student Max, who is a chemist, became involved in one particular designer’s work because he involved the client in every detail at an early stage, even in the mixing of the dyes. Max found the method of emulating colours and weaves from another age, fascinating. This was made possible in these bespoke rugs by using weavers in the actual countries where the rugs were originally made. Solil, another student friend, though not with us at the time, made good use of Max’s notes on the use of environmentally safe materials and methods of manufacture. We noted that they still used the phrase ‘environmentally friendly’ which we long ago decided against using as being too vague.

It was hard to continually use the same excuse for our lengthy stay here without ordering anything (they may have seen us as rivals from another company) and so returning for a third day became impossible.

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