Keeping your carpet clean can be a tough task!

Todays home maintenance tip relates to the wonderful world of carpet. One of the few things that can make you feel comfortable and warm all at the same time in the colder months. By maintaining a regular cleaning schedule for your flooring, you can continue to enjoy any occasion without any ghastly stains or spills being seen.

General carpet cleaning tips

For dust or dirt spillages, for example knocking over a plant pot onto a nice clean carpet,  you will first want to get the hoover out. Hoover the affected area to ensure that all dirt and grime is lifted out. Do not try to wet the area as this will only engrain the dirt further into the pile.

Cleaning minor spillages

For liquid based stains, such as red wine or fruit juice you will want to blot the initial moisture out of the pile. This means getting an old rag or strong kitchen towl and pressing this onto the damp area. This should soak up some of the liquid and help lessen the stain.

Following this, use a carpet cleaning solution (which can be found in most home DIY stores) or your local supermarket and following the instructions found on the packet. Usually this works by leaving the solution on the affected area for a few minutes, blotting away and then repeating with a damp cloth.

Get technical!

For heavier stains, or ones that simply wont shift, you could opt for an electric carpet cleaner. Whether you hire, buy or pay someone to do the task for you, you can often get good results. These machines clean carpet extremely effectively, but are also a hygienic way to kill off dust mites and bacteria that are ingrained into the carpet after years of use.

Be sure to leave adequate drying time once cleaned. This will ensure you dont walk fresh dirt into the carpet. With a few small cleaning tips under your belt, you carpets will look as good as new!

Whether it is an apartment, a house or a flat all homes have various demands made upon them, predominantly this will depend heavily on the ever-changing circumstances of family life.  When youngsters come along, most of the house seems to be overtaken by them and their needs, then, as they grow older, you may have to think about extending or altering the house to accommodate them. Again, as they start to leave home and make their way in the world, the house needs to adapt to yet another change of pace and lifestyle.  All these opportunities give the homeowner a chance to change and improve their home.

Decorating the home or improving it means that you can make it as individual as you are.  A new kitchen, say, will necessitate a change of colour scheme which, once completed, can result in a room that is totally different from the one it used to be.  Introducing some fine collectables may add a touch of class to a hallway. A change of layout can have a drastic effect on the way the room is used; for instance, altering a sitting room slightly to make room for a big dining table will mean that it will suddenly become a place where the whole family can sit doing different things at the same time, without getting in each other’s way.

A big home improvement such as an extension or a loft conversion will maximise the use of any house, is an ideal way of making extra space for a growing family, and presents a design and decorating challenge, especially if the homeowner has been yearning for a new space to work on.

Of course, every room in a home needs to be practical, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that it has to be boring and devoid of personality. Look at your home as if it belongs to someone else. This may seem strange at first; however this strategy will in fact help you take a completely new approach to redesigning, allowing you to look at thing afresh and notice possibilities and potential all over the household.

Lighting can make all the difference to a room; it alters the entire look, feel and mood of any given space. You can really make your home sparkle with proper consideration to your lighting home designs:

• Firstly what ambience you are hoping to achieve?
• Will you require ‘task lighting’? This is lighting to help you perform the task at hand, e.g., reading, cooking, shaving, etc.
• Are you looking for accent lighting? This is lighting used to illuminate a sculpture, piece of art, or architectural element in a room.
• Always consider what natural lighting a room has. Natural lighting being lighting that comes through windows, doors, and skylights. This will make a huge difference on your choice of lighting in the room and the type of light bulb you decide on.

As with all of your decorating efforts, do a little planning before you rush out and purchase your home lighting equipment and fixtures. Think carefully about the activities that will occur in each area of the room.

Due to certain advancements in home lighting over the years, you can now take a little more control of your energy bills. You can easily reduce your consumption of electricity using dimmer lighting controllers to 80%. I doing this you will no doubt make a saving on your monthly payments.

Another wonderful money saving tip is to invest in automated lighting timers. These lighting timers can schedule certain lights to turn ON/OFF anytime throughout the day or night.

Let’s take ‘Night Lights’ as an example. Those of us that have had children or perhaps you can even recall the dread of bedtime and sheer fear children have of the dark. If nothing else, we all know how costly this scenario can be for a home owner. H =o[paskfdo[pHowever due to the fabulous creation of lighting timers, you can schedule your child’s light or a nearby hall light to turn ON to 25% or 40% depending at 8pm when they are heading to bed and turn them off at 11pm when they are fast asleep. Therefore scheduling you automated timer to turn ON/OFF during specific parts of the day or night to suit you and your life’s schedules will not only you mind at ease but also keep you bills nice and low!

Nevertheless, it is always best to try and remember to turned OFF your lights when a room is no longer occupied for safety reasons if nothing else.

We are now a few weeks into 2010. Perhaps like us, you are probably coming to the end of you seasonal celebrations and are looking forward to a productive year ahead. With a view to this, we thought we would put together some of the best tips and tricks to get you started with any home improvement ventures you are looking to embark on:

Clever decorating tricks:

• To make a room brighter, hang a mirror on a wall opposite a window to reflect the light
• When painting skirting boards, hold a thin piece of board against the edge to avoid getting paint on the floor.
• Mask off light switches and plug sockets to keep them clean when painting.
• Old bathroom or kitchen tiles can be given a new lease of life by painting over with special tile paint.
• When using gloss paint, use a special gloss roller to avoid drips.
• · To make radiators less visible, you can buy radiator coloured radiator paints to match your walls.
• · When hanging pictures in groups use similar frames to synchronise the look-. This gives a really great art-deco symmetrical look!
• Use a small amount of brown shoe polish to age gold frames.

House work:

• Add a few drops of essential oil to a water spray and spray onto clothes before ironing as an alternative to expensive ironing waters.
• Use scrunched up balls of tin foil when you run out of scouring pads.
• Brown sauce is apparently good for cleaning up old brass.
• Some of you may already know this, to remove stubborn stains from your vases, simply pour in a small amount of white vinegar and a handful of rice, swish around for a bit then rinse well and your glass should look brand new again.
• For cleaning very delicate surfaces try using baby wipes, they are much gentler than more household detergents. Nevertheless, no matter how tempting it may be avoid scrubbing delicate surfaces.
• Use 2 drops of lemon juice when rinsing glassware to add sparkle and shine.
• Nevertheless, vinegar is the best non detergent in order to remove lime scale.
• “Cif” cleaning liquid is great to clean marks off stone fireplaces.
• Use an old pillow cases to use for machine washing delicates.
• Go that extra mile for your guests without over spending. Collect all those free toiletry samples from magazines and put them in guest rooms/bathrooms.

Gardening:

• After the rain has stopped (fingers crossed it will be very soon) use a window cleaner to polish glass table tops and make them fit for the summer BBQ’s.
• Remember to dust/clean outside light bulbs as dirty ones can lose up to 30% of its light.
• This is our favourite trick: Rub scrunched up newspaper over window for a smeary free shine.
• In order to remove marks left on carpets by heavy furniture and sofas, place an ice cube over the dent, as the ice cube melts the moisture will soak into the fibres causing them to plump up again! That would be just amazing when reorganising furniture… must give that a go!

Final thoughts:

• Make a new year’s resolution and tidy away before you go to bed every night…start your day off well by waking up to a clean and tidy household!

]]> http://www.homes-suite-homes.com/2010/01/21/household-tips-and-tricks-for-2010/feed/ http://www.homes-suite-homes.com/2010/01/14/only-1-month-until-valentine%e2%80%99s-day-ladies/ http://www.homes-suite-homes.com/2010/01/14/only-1-month-until-valentine%e2%80%99s-day-ladies/#comments Thu, 14 Jan 2010 17:23:21 +0000 admin http://www.homes-suite-homes.com/?p=319

Although Valentine’s Day is a hugely popular celebration, not many of us actually know where it actually originates from...

Every February 14^th, across the UK and Europe, chocolates, flowers, and romantic and luxury gifts are exchanged between loved ones, all in the name of St. Valentine. Many of us do all this without questioning who this mysterious saint was and why we celebrate this holiday. Unfortunately the history of Valentine’s Day and its patron saint is shrouded in vagueness. All we really know for sure is that February has long been a month of romance.

St. Valentine’s Day, as we know it today, contains relics of both Christian and ancient Roman tradition. Nevertheless, the big question is who was Saint Valentine and how did he become associated with this ancient rite? Today, the Catholic Church recognizes at least three different saints named Valentine or Valentinus, all of whom were martyred. One legend contends that Valentine was a priest who served during the third century in Rome. When Emperor Claudius II decided that single men made better soldiers than those with wives and families, he outlawed marriage for young men considered his crop of potential soldiers. Valentine, realizing the unfairness of the ruling, disobeyed Claudius II and continued to perform marriages for young lovers in secret. When Valentine’s actions were discovered, Claudius ordered that tragically he be put to death.

Other tails suggest that Valentine may have been killed for attempting to help Christians escape harsh Roman prisons where they were often beaten and tortured. According to one legend, Valentine actually sent the first ‘valentine’ greeting himself. While in prison, it is believed that Valentine fell in love with a young girl. Some even believe that this girl many be the jailors daughter, talk about forbidden love!! It is believe the daughter visited her beloved Valentine often during his sentence. It is alleged that he actually wrote her a letter just before his death, which he signed ‘From your Valentine,’ an expression that is still used often today.

Although the truth behind the Valentine Day legend is rather murky, the stories certainly emphasize sympathetic, heroic, and, most importantly, romantic elements. It’s therefore no surprise that by the middle ages, Valentine himself was one of the most popular saints in England and France.

Meanwhile some believe that the Christian church may have decided to celebrate Valentine’s feast day in the middle of February in an effort to counteract and ‘Christianize’ celebrations of the pagan Lupercalia festival. In ancient Rome, February was the official beginning of spring and was considered a time for purification. Houses were ritually cleansed by sweeping them out, consequently the creation of a good old ‘spring clean’ happens about then too. Lupercalia February 14^th was considered a fertility festival dedicated to Faunus, the Roman god of cultivation, as well as to the Roman founders Romulus and Remus.

With a view to this, Pope Gelasius declared February 14^th St. Valentine’s Day around 498 A.D. Lupercalia was considered a Roman ‘lottery’ system for romantic pairing and was deemed un-Christian and outlawed.

Another notion commonly shared by many throughout the years is that this celebration was in fact the beginning of birds’ mating season, which added to the idea that the middle of February, formally known as Valentine’s Day should be a day for romance.

Interestingly, the oldest reserved valentine was a poem written by Charles, Duke of Orleans to his wife while he was imprisoned in the Tower of London following his capture. The greeting, which was written in 1415, is part of the manuscript collection of the British Library in London, England. In Britain, Valentine’s Day became a popular celebrated holiday around the seventeenth century. By the middle of the eighteenth century, it was common for friends and lovers in all social classes to exchange small tokens of affection or handwritten notes. By the end of the century, printed cards began to replace written letters due to improvements in printing technology. Ready-made cards were an easy way for people to express their emotions in a society that was full of emotional, sexual and romantic repression.

Channel 4 seems to be going all out this year for their last ever Celebrity Big Brother, first with a brand new eye design and tagline and now the brand new Celebrity house fitted with nearly 50 surveillance cameras and 25 microphones. Thankfully, shortly after images of the new house were leaked to the press, the show commenced and we could get a real look at what was in store for the next month. Yes that’s right, love it or hate it our TV screens, magazines and newspapers are set to be overwhelmed with the eclectic range of ‘a/z list’ celebrities, Stephan Baldwin, Nicola Tappenden, Alex Reid, Lady Sovereign, Sisqo, Dane Browers, Jonas Basshunter, Katia Ivanova, Vinnie Jones, Heidi Fleiss and Stephanie Beacham, for an entire month!

Here at Homes Suite Homes we are excited about the show, but far more thrilled about seeing what fantastical, whimsical and quirky interior the new house will have in store for us… the show itself is just an added bonus ;).

Now let’s start with the most notorious room of the house, the diary room! The diary room is usually regarded as the most significant room in the house, the chair design changes dramatically year on year and this year is no different. With a new eye and house it’s no surprise the new chair is also very different, and we think it is the best yet!

The interior of the house has a very aristocratic and upper class feel to it with gothic twists. The basic shipping container bathroom from BB10 (non celebrity show) has been taken out to make way for a luxury tub and couch. Furthermore, the living room has a fabulous and rather elegant 12 seater table where housemates enjoy all their meals.

In the bathroom an imposing roll top bath is centre stage whilst a chaise longue and dressing table mean the conversations can continue whilst the celebrities are busy preening. The shower is still large enough for multiple occupants but unlike the summer series you cannot see in to it allowing the celebrity housemates a few moments of privacy away from the cameras, although hidden microphones mean that all the chatter is still captured for the viewers.

Off the main living space is the kitchen which is full of outsized equipment. Inspired by a hospital morgue the kitchen is clinical and painted autopsy green. Unlike the summer there is no space in the kitchen to eat and so the celebrities will all have to share the large banqueting table that dominates the dining area.

Finally, the garden resembles a courtyard, the brick walls and ivy have been designed to hide the cameras and make it feel private and enclosed. If the celebrities really need to get away from the main house however, they need to head to the garden. In the garden, hides a wood panelled snug. Leather sofas, blankets and a fireplace give the room a relaxed and cosy atmosphere but with only space for a few housemates at a time it is bound to be the room of choice for a private ‘tete-a-tete’ or a good old gossip, as long as the celebrities find the room at all of course!

Gothic chic is most definitely the perfect look to start off with this year:

It may seem a bit early, but taking a few minutes to think about reusing holiday decorations for Valentine’s Day will save you time and money in a few weeks. As you are packing away your ornaments and lights, keep an eye out for anything red or pink that, with a few additions can look entirely new and appropriate for use on Valentine’s Day. You may not want to start these projects yet, but you may want to select some items to put away in a separate box - so they will be easy to grab when the time comes in about 6 weeks.

I must admit these tips are taken from a dear friend of mine, and her designs and creations always turn out great! I have some fabulous red wooden beads that i bought from my local haberdashery. They make a wonderful Valentine’s Day garland especially with the addition of glittery paper hearts strategically placed.

I start by buying glittered paper from my local scribblers (if you can’t find red glittered paper, you can buy red glitter glue and produce your own). I simply draw and cut out a heart and repeat this process using the original as a template. I then punched a hole into the middle using a hold punch and then cut a slit from the edge of the heart to the hole.

Making this type of cut, allows the hearts to slip on easily in between the beads.

Another of my favourites is Valentine’s Day treat bags. These treat bags are great and so quick and easy to produce. In particular these treat bags are fun to make with the kid as the process is fabulous for keeping restless kids occupied during those boring, cold and wet winter afternoon.

They are made from mesh from grapefruit or orange packages. We eat a lot of oranges and grapefruit in our home so we always have the mesh packaging at hand. At this time of year, they are at their best and are sold in red, plastic mesh sacks that have a certain look to them that inspired me to reuse them to make these delicate bags. The bags turn out fabulously well each time and you can put pretty much put anything in them and are suitable for most holiday occasions. Nevertheless think ‘RED RED RED’ and make them delightful little treats in February!

It may still be bitterly cold outside, but luckily it is still bright as the sun is still shining. Other than an immediate mood-boost for us humans, sunlight’s great for keeping plants happy. Admittedly, you’d probably much rather stay indoors with tea, a warm quilt and watch ‘This Morning’ than venture into the garden to tend to some flowers, plants or vegetables. But, according to past studies, a sunny windowsill is all you need for plants to thrive. There is a range of tools and advice out there to help you grow plants, herb, flowers, and vegetables from the comfort of your own home. These tools range from make shift home equipment, ideal if you have time on your hands, and if not try state of the art hydroponics tools.

I myself am on my holiday break and all I seem to have at the moment is time! I started to knit, alas that did not last long. I now have one and half baby sock/leg warmer thing for my sister’s new baby. I’ve read book i own, walked everyday and cooked (i feel i am sufficiently padded out for the cold winter months ahead). Cooking is evidently by far my favourite new hobby so far. However, since it seems to be getting colder at record rates I considered how I am going to get fresh produce for my new found talent. Mobility may not be on my side for much longer, as i don’t drive and the shops are miles away and frankly boredom is setting in, hence why I have decided to grow my own veggies at home!

A simple recipe for growing tomatoes involves a yoghurt pot with a few holes in the bottom, some compost, three seeds and a bit of water. You can then fashion a greenhouse for your crops using the top half of a large plastic drinks bottle (and I don’t know about you, but there is something hugely appealing about the Blue Peter-esque way of recycling rubbish for this project). Keep your pot in the sunlight for a fortnight, watering every couple of days, and then remove the greenhouse when you begin to see some shoots.

The next stage is called ‘pricking out’ (don’t laugh) – easing out the strongest-looking four-leaved shoots from the batch and placing them in individual containers with compost in. If you still have the bottom half of that greenhouse bottle, this will work well; just make sure there are some holes in the bottom. After a few months, the seedlings should be tall enough (about 20cm) to be transported to their final pot, which could just be a bucket if that’s all you have to hand. With regular feeding and watering, and some organic fertiliser, you’ll have some lovely tomatoes in the summer.

Or, if compost isn’t really your bag (and let’s face it, who wants to do more cleaning than they have to, really), then fear not; the more lazy amongst us can actually cultivate plants without using soil at all. The system of course is hydroponics. This allows you to avoid the mess altogether, and let water do all the work. Apparently among the many benefits are a quick yield and the ability to use pretty much anything as a plant-pot, from a fancy vase to a fish tank. (Note: it should probably be an empty fish tank. Everyone else will probably be hugely impressed with your plant-growing skills, but any fish you have in there probably won’t be.)

I personally loved the initial idea of creating everything from scratch; you know embracing your inner creativity. Nevertheless, in reality I ended up opting for the easier option of hydroponics. The results are amazing; of course my husband will now be presented with tomato, red pepper and basil soup for dinner until the end of the year!

For many of us, we don’t have much time left at the end of a busy day to do anything extra, but still want to do something to make our homes look festive and special during the Christmas period. Here are some ideas for quick and simple ways to add a festive look to your home without spending a lot of time or money.

1. Decorate everything with bows

· Tie a range of ribbons to chair backs, candlesticks, picks in plants, wreaths, garlands, basket handles, drapery tie-backs, stair railings, and doorknobs.

· Bows look really festive. The ribbons you choose should tie together with the rest of your decorating. Choose ribbons in colours and patterns that coordinate with your decorating scheme; personally we love tartan for this time of year!

· You don’t have to stick with red and green. Nevertheless if you can’t find anything that looks quite right, then choose contemporary metallic silver and gold or stay traditional with green and red.

· Choose a ribbon that you can untie and re-tie each year. This will save money in the long run, and you’ll end up with a good collection.

· When the holidays are over, untie the ribbons and press them lightly. The bows won’t get crushed and the ribbons will be ready when you want to take them out the next year.

· A handy tip is to use wire. By using wire to make your bows, you’ll be able to attach them to many objects.

2. Table decorations

· Make sure you have a matching table set. Laura Ashley is a good place to look for a chic table set.

· Be sure if you select a table set with a pattern that it can be reuse year to year. When in doubt keep it simple and just add table decorations, such as candles and bows. These little touches if chosen well add a touch of Christmas.

· If you’re brave, you can opt for different place settings for each of your guests. Arranging different dishes around the table will give a boho chic feel. This doesn’t just suit Christmas however, it works all year round. Furthermore, when your table sets are not in use, they can be displayed around the room.

3. Lighting

· Arrange lots of candles on the dining table and dine by candlelight, making the main meal on Christmas day feel special.

· If you have a fire place, light it!

· Arrange candle throughout the house. My mother chooses cinnamon and spice scented candles for Christmas time.

· Nevertheless, be very careful with candles around the house.

4. Hang wreaths

· Putting a wreath on every door you have will add an instant Christmas feeling. If this is too much, be sure to put one on the front door to welcome guests.

· When making wreaths, use real pine, holly, or grapevine, decorated with bows, berries, fruit, pinecones, raffia, ornaments, birds, photos, or even sweets such as the traditional candy cane.

· Wreaths will last year after year if you buy artificial wreaths and accessories.