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How to Host an At-Home Wedding

June 16, 2015 By

Many brides and grooms choose to host their wedding at home — home is where the heart is, after all. Before vows, the first kiss, and cutting the cake, say, “I do” to these tips.

Make some room: When drafting your guest list, be realistic about the number of people you can comfortably hold in the space. You may need to trim down a bit. If you’re planning on having an outdoor wedding, make sure to have an indoor backup plan in case of inclement weather. For a seated reception, you’ll need approximately 10-12 square feet of space per guest.

Tend to your lawn and garden: You may keep up with maintenance regardless, but for a wedding, the yard should be in tip-top shape. That means a perfectly manicured lawn and your favorite flowers in full bloom. Consider hiring a professional landscaper to reseed and replant. When choosing your flowers, consider the time of year and which varieties will be in season.

Book rentals: Rent tables and chairs from a rental company (or your caterer). Leave the setting up and cleaning up to the professionals. You’ll also likely want to rent a tent and a dance floor. Not only are they practical, they look snazzy too.

Chat with vendors and the officiant: Cover your bases! Don’t forget to check with your officiant to make sure that he or she is able to perform the ceremony outside a place of worship. Talk with vendors about your space and bring them by for a visit. Have your caterer sign off on your kitchen supplies.

Be a good neighbor: This isn’t just a party. If they’re not already invited, let your neighbors know of your wedding plans far in advance. Make sure they know the time of the ceremony (so that it’s not interrupted by lawn mowing or dog barking) and aren’t planning another event the same day. Ask if they can offer extra parking space (and if they’re generous enough to do so, send over a little thank you gift).

Get creative: One of the best things about having the wedding at your home may be the fact that you have permission to get as creative as you want. You’re not tied to the restrictions of the venue. Take advantage! Mix and match china sets and centerpieces. Go nuts with the DIY and personal touches.

Delegate tasks: You may not be able to do this all on your own. Ask help from friends and family members (or hire a professional wedding planner).

Enjoy your big day!

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How to Decorate for Outdoor Entertaining

June 1, 2015 By

Even though you don’t have a sprawling backyard, that doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy entertaining outdoors. Make the most of your petite patio and turn it into a pocket-sized paradise. Here are our tips for how to decorate small spaces for outdoor entertaining.

● Arrange furniture the right way: The best way to maximize space is to arrange your furniture around the perimeter of the deck or patio. Think twice before placing a table in the center, and instead give your guests plenty of room to stand or move around.

● Add extra seating with large pillows: Get a few extra spots for guests to sit without taking up too much space by throwing in some large floor pillows. They add an extra element of coziness, plus they’re easy to add or subtract.

● Use color wisely: Color can make all the difference when decorating, especially in such a small space. Keep things fresh and airy by sticking to a monochromatic palette in whites or grays. Or add a bit of fun by using colorful accents in eye-catching patterns.

● Be strategic when choosing furniture: Save space by investing in two-for-one pieces of furniture, such as nesting tables, storage ottomans and benches (which can also be used for seating), and folding tables and chairs.

● Bring on the plants: There may be plenty of foliage outside already, but use it strategically in your entertaining area. Plants are a simple way to liven things up and make your modest space feel like an exotic retreat.

● Hang up lights: Strings of bistro lights can instantly open up a small space. Plus, that warm glow will give things a cozier vibe.

Get ready for a summer full of outdoor entertaining!

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Essentials of a Happy Home

May 26, 2015 By

What we surround ourselves with may significantly affect our mood and outlook on life. Make a few simple changes around the house and you may instantly feel happier.

Here are five essentials that may make you happier at home.

Plants: Not only do houseplants draw carbon dioxide from the air and filter out toxins, they may also improve mental health. Studies have shown that when we care for living things, we’re more optimistic, calmer, and fulfilled. We recommend aloe, peace lily, or spider plants to de-stress your home.

Sentimental objects: Studies have also found that experiences may make us happier than material objects. Collect things that remind you of positive events and display them around your home to remind you of the good times, bring up positive emotions, and continue the cycle of happiness.

A well-made bed: It can be an annoying daily chore and even seem pointless (it’s just going to be unmade again by the end of the day), but making your bed can actually make a huge difference on your happiness. As Gretchen Rubin, author of The Happiness Project, explains, this “keystone habit” acts as a catalyst for other good habits that will improve your life. Having a freshly made bed may leave you feeling more productive and motivated to conquer the day ahead.

A fresh coat of white paint: White walls may sound like a boring idea, but while colorful paint seems like the more cheerful choice, white does the best job of brightening things up. White paint will reflect light and transform the mood of a room.

A no-stress zone: Have at least one “refuge” space in your home where you can relax and clear your mind. Try to extend this to the rest of the house as well, whether it’s making a point to take shoes off before entering or clearing stacks of bills and paperwork from surfaces.

These little things in your home can make a big difference on your happiness.

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5 Tips for At Home Entertaining

May 18, 2015 By

Entertaining at home is a great way to get together with friends and family. Going out to dinner or events is fun, but there is something special about hosting at home.

Here are five simple ways to set your home up for entertaining.

1. Put appetizers on the coffee table: When the party starts you’ll be busy greeting guests. Put appetizers like a cheese plate, crackers, and olives out on your coffee table so guests can munch and mingle.

2. Set up a buffet table: Serving people adds an extra task to your entertaining to-do list. Push a side table against a wall or use your kitchen island to set up a buffet table so people can serve themselves. People may enjoy being able to set their portion sizes and food choices, plus it will leave you with more time with your guests — and less time in the kitchen.

3. Set up a beverage bar: If you have a bar cart, set up all your beverages in one place. If you don’t have a bar cart, assemble everything on a large side table.

4. Rearrange the furniture: Rearrange your living room couches and chairs so they are conducive for chatting. If you’re short on furniture, bring chairs from the dining room or kitchen into the living room while people enjoy hors d’oeuvres.

5. Delight in the details: Little details like fresh flowers, candles, and place settings can make the evening even more special. Have fun designing the table aesthetic by curating your cutlery, china, serving ware, and napkin choices.

6. Take it outside: If it’s a beautiful day take the party outside! Clean off your patio furniture, set up an outdoor umbrella, and add some comfortable seating. For an added touch, incorporate flowers from your garden and lanterns or candles.

These tips may make entertaining at home more enjoyable! Call some friends and invite them over to your place.

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Spring-Inspired Paint Colors

May 7, 2015 By

Spring is here and you may feel the need to do a little redecorating. Whether that is simply trading out your heavy blankets for light linens, or switching your curtains to a lighter cotton material, there are countless ways to bring the spring season into your home. If you really want to change up the look and feel of your home, consider repainting. There is nothing like a bright blue bedroom or serene yellow walls to add some life to your home. Take color psychology into account when you choose paint colors. For example, blue has been found to make people calmer, and green has been found to make people concentrate more.

Start the season with these spring-inspired paint colors.

1. Benjamin Moore Jet Stream: This soft blue is filled with hidden lilac undertones, resulting in a peaceful and serene blue. It creates a very soothing feeling, perfect for a bedroom or nursery!

2. Benjamin Moore Peony: If you want a bolder look, try this bold purple color. The color of some flowers, this peony purple will breathe life into whatever room it graces.

3. Sherwin Williams Classical Yellow: As the name suggests, this is a classic yellow. It’s pale in shade, but bright enough to put a smile on anyone’s face. Yellow is the signature color of spring, so why not add it to your home? It’ll brighten up any room in no time.

4. Sherwin Williams Julep: This color is a tad bit darker than your typical mint julep, but it still screams springtime! It’s the perfect mix of teal and green, giving off a deep, spring vibe.

5. Pratt & Lambert Moss Green: With just a subtle touch of green, this incredibly light shade goes with any room. It has gray undertones and would be a great accent color.

There are so many incredibly beautiful paint colors that can add a bit of the springtime season to your home. Whether it’s bold, or barely there, these colors may bring something special to your home.

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5 Books to Inspire You to Get Organized

May 5, 2015 By

It’s time for spring cleaning. The beginning of a new season is a great time to make your home look its best. Between clearing out clutter, packing up your winter items, and making every room shine, getting your home in shape can also be time consuming.

It may be tough to figure out where to start, but with these inspiring books, your inner professional organizer can come to life.

Here are five books to help you get started.

1. Unclutter Your Life in One Week by Erin Doland: Expert organizer, Doland gives great advice and insights on how to quickly clean up your home…and clear your mind. She explains the best ways to part with sentimental items, something a lot of people struggle with, and offers advice on how to prevent procrastination.

2. Real Simple: The Organized Home by Real Simple Magazine: From the popular magazine, Real Simple, this book focuses on creating a more productive, clutter free, home and life. The authors dish out advice on everything from taking care of one room to giving your entire home an organizational makeover.

3. The Joy of Less, A Minimalist Living Guide: How to Declutter, Organize, and Simplify Your Life by Francine Jay: This is a book for the person looking to declutter multiple aspects of his or her life. It walks you through how to adopt a minimalist lifestyle. The book is divided into four parts: inspiration to get organized, a ten step process to pare down possessions, a room by room guide to decluttering, and how to declutter your life and be more productive.

4. Banish Clutter Forever: How the Toothbrush Principle Will Change Your Life by Shelia Chandra: Chandra explains that if everyone follows the “blueprint” that naturally neat people follow, organization will come naturally. Chandra also explains the “Toothbrush Principle” which states that even the most disorganized person doesn’t lose their toothbrush, it’s just in the midst of clutter. The author explains that a clutter free home will lead to a more productive life.

5. Home Organizing Workbook by Meryl Starr: Starr produced a straightforward handbook for home organization. The chapters are filled with questionnaires to make readers aware of their core organizational problems. The author also gives strategic solutions and tips for tackling projects, no matter the size.

Organizing your home can be fun—with the right inspiration. Whether you are taking on your refrigerator or your attic, decluttering your home and getting organized is the best way to start living a more productive life!

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What to Do With the Extra Room in Your House

April 21, 2015 By

What would you do if you had an extra room in your house? Get creative because the possibilities are limitless.

 

  1. Home Gym: Do you love to start your mornings with a good workout, but hate dragging yourself to a crowded gym? If you have some workout machines at home, transform your spare room into a gym. Even if you just buy some weights, a yoga mat, and other inexpensive equipment, you can turn your unused room into something useful.
  2. Playroom: If you’re tired of tripping over your kids’ toys in your nice, fancy living room, turn that extra room into their own space. Paint the walls with chalkboard paint so they can write on the walls, store all of their toys in the room, and allow them to play. They’ll love a space of their own, and you’ll love not having a mess all over the house.
  3. Contemplation Room: Ever just need some time alone with your thoughts? If you find yourself wanting to escape the craziness of the day and not knowing where to go, consider creating a contemplation room. Decorate it in all white with comfortable furniture, throw pillows, and blankets. This creates a serene space where you can go to clear your head, meditate, and relax.
  4. Library: If you’re a bookworm, you’ve probably always dreamed of having your very own library. Now is your chance! Install bookshelves from wall to ceiling, add comfortable, sophisticated couches, and throw in cozy area rugs to make a comfy and inviting space. Just imagine relaxing after a long day in your library with your favorite book, a cup of tea, and candles.
  5. Entertainment Center: If you don’t have a den or finished basement, and only a formal living room, you may want to consider turning the spare room into an entertainment center. Use dark woods and deep colors, reclining chairs and a sectional couch, and top it off with a flat screen television for the perfect movie theater feel. It can be a great place to have a movie marathon on a rainy day!

 

Having a spare room in the home leaves you with countless opportunities to be unique and create a special room that’s all your own!

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How to Organize Your Kitchen

March 23, 2015 By

Organization is key to keeping your home neat and tidy. When everything in your home has a specific place, it’s much easier to find what you need in a pinch.

 

One room in the home that can really benefit from a good organization system is the kitchen. Between plates, glasses, silverware, and food, getting a good system in place can help create better flow.

 

The kitchen is one of the most used rooms in the home, why not make it better?

 

  1. Lazy Susan: Incorporating a lazy Susan into your kitchen cabinets or on your countertops allows you to organize similar items neatly in one place. It also helps you find things much faster.

 

  1. Hang things up: Hang pots and pans on the wall or from a ceiling organizer to free up space in your cabinets. It’ll be much easier to organize pans by size and use if you can see them! You won’t have to dig through a mess of metal every time you want to cook dinner.

 

  1. Store items by use: This is an easy way to quickly organize your kitchen items. Whether it’s in your cabinets, drawers, or refrigerator, keeping like items together makes it easier to grab what you need, when you need it. For example, store everyday dishes on a lower cabinet shelf and special use items on a higher shelf. Put each type of food together – like cereals and breakfast food, snacks, pasta and grains, and baking ingredients.

 

  1. Filing System: Tupperware is an item that a lot of people have trouble storing. It takes up space and putting matching tops and bottoms together sometimes seems impossible. The tops and bottoms might be disappearing to the same place as the matching socks that always seem to get lost in the dryer. Instead of storing them in cabinets, put a dish organizer in a pull out drawer and store the Tupperware tops and bottoms with no problem.

 

  1. Over the Door Organizers: If you have a large pantry in your kitchen, consider an over the door organizer. You can store your most used food items in a clear organizer to eliminate search time and keep things neat.

 

The kitchen is the heart of the home. If you develop an easy, simple organizing system for your kitchen, it’ll pull everything together, make it easier to prep and cook meals, and set the tone for a more organized home.

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Organization 101: The Best Home Organization Inspiration on Instagram

March 17, 2015 By

Have you ever heard the saying, “An organized home is a happy home?” When your home is organized, life can be calmer. Everything in the home has a place, but sometimes finding that place isn’t so easy. Get inspired instantly by these expert home organizers on Instagram.

 

 

 

One look at these Instagram accounts and you may want to reorganize every room in the house. Seriously.

 

  1. MindOverMatter: There is something so motivating about watching a ‘before and after.’ LeAnn Wolf gives you unique ideas and tips that help make organization easy and fun.

 

mind

 

  1. NeatMethod: This account is run by a professional organizer who posts daily organizing tips and pictures of beautifully organized rooms. We hope that it will make you feel inspired to color coordinate a closet or two.

Neat

 

 

  1. A Bowl Full of Lemons: When life gives you lemons, get organized. Toni Hammersley’s covers everything from how to clean and organize a bathroom to how to pack lunch. Help simplify your life by doing the tasks she describes almost daily.

abowl

 

 

  1. Simply Organized:  As a member of the National Association of Professional Organizers and owner of the blog “Simply Organized,” Samantha Pregenzer is more than qualified to offer organizational advice. Her Instagram account is filled with beautiful photos of perfectly placed binders, baskets, gorgeously organized closets, and much more.

simply

 

What are you waiting for? Get some inspiration then start organizing!

 

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Here Comes the Sun: How to Prepare Your Home or Spring

February 25, 2015 By

Open the windows. Come out of hibernation. Spring is just around the corning! Rejoice by getting your home in shape for spring.

1. Inspect air conditioning units: Hire a professional to install or examine your air conditioner. Clean the filters and replace them as needed because dirty filters make the system work harder, increasing energy costs.

2. Change the doormats: Doormats collect a lot of dirt. By the end of winter, your doormat has seen better days. Buy a new doormat to reduce the amount of dirt and grime that is carried into your home.

3. Prep the outdoor areas: Dreaming of lounging by the pool, playing soccer, or dining al fresco? Get your outdoor space ready. Take out the patio furniture, power wash your deck, and plan your gardening.

4. Inspect the roof: After a rough winter of holding heavy snow and ice, your roof may be in need of some TLC. Take a pair of binoculars and inspect your roof from the ground level. Check to see if there are any leaks, broken shingles, or other damages. If you spot something, hire a professional to come repair it.

5. Repair broken walkways: Snow takes a heavy toll on the grounds around your home. The snow and sleet may have caused cracks in your driveways, walkways, and sidewalks. To make sure that the perimeter of your home is safe, check for cracks and fix any problems.

These tips can make your home safer and help you get ready for spring!

 

Recommended Reading:

-How to Keep Your Home Cool Without Touching the Thermostat

-5 Ways to Create a Beautiful Backyard

-Landscaping 101: Great Grass Alternatives

 

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