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There’s something to be said for bringing your personality and style to your home. Sure, gorgeous paint color and great furnishings make a home feel cozy and can really bring life to otherwise blank walls and open space. When you’re decorating on a budget, there are some great ways to add a spark of your own style and create never-ending conversation pieces at the same time. Double-duty furniture, letter pictures, and creative uses for paint can bring life to your space and be easy on the wallet. Here are a few ways that you can decorate on a budget and feel like a million bucks when you’re finished.
One great way to stay on track with your space and your budget is by assigning double-duty to your furniture. Any space, small or large, can benefit from the creative hiding spaces that can be found in furniture. Ottomans are a great way to add seating and storage at the same time. If you can’t find one that you can afford to buy, consider making one of your own. This way, you’ll have function and personal style all in one!

Bare walls don’t speak to your personal style or to your guests. Look into adding some letter pictures to your space, which will allow you to add personal pizzazz as well as your own chosen message. This is sure to be a talking piece for anyone that joins you for dinner or drinks in your new home. Letter pictures, when chosen with care, will transform a simple name, word, or phrase into an amazing work of art that will not only tell your guests more about you, but they’ll delightfully showcase themselves as proud pieces that are unlike anyone else’s. Sure, you could spend tons of money on expensive art that everyone is familiar with, but when you spend just a little bit of money on something so personal and unique, you’re sure to get a long-lasting life out of the conversation and comfort that will be created by the everyday objects that make up your great wall pieces.

You likely have tons of spaces in your new home that would benefit from a little creative use of paint, and you probably haven’t even thought about most of them. Besides your walls, of course, there are many places where a splash of color would do amazing things to your space. Spray paint a wicker chair or paint the back of a bookshelf to add instant flare!

Decorating on a budget can be easy and much more satisfying than using what everyone else has. A little bit of time, creativity, and research will make your space a central conversation piece in no time.

Imagine how uncomfortable would your home be without windows. However, windows are also the main threshold that keeps the flow of the heat and humidity through your house at bay; studies have shown that plantation shutters on windows can keep the indoors up to 90% cooler in the summer months and up to 50% warmer in colder months.

Plantation Shutter History
As hard as it is to believe, perhaps, the first window shutters originated in ancient Greece. They were made of marble, and were used for several reasons; during the day the shutters provided a ventilation system and allowed for the control of light entering the room while during the night, closed and bolted down, they offered privacy and security.

While shutters were becoming widely accepted throughout the Mediterranean, marble was not the easiest building material to use. As the idea spread to inland Europe, wood became the main shutter material within wealthy populations.

With a breakthrough in the production of glass in 16th Century, glass had become a fundamental building material for windows. However, it was quite expensive and fragile, leading to an even wider spread of window shutters, even outside of hot climate regions.

With the colonization of the “New World”, window shutters started to appear on the buildings in 18^th century; British valued their aesthetic and architectural impact while French and Spanish clearly understood their significance in providing shade, cooling system, and protection from storms and rains. Because of their practical use, the shutters were an essential part of buildings in the South Plantation area, thus getting the name plantation shutters.

These days, an increasing number of people have been inclined to use the shutters for increased security. With this feature in mind, a variety of metal and polymer constructions have been used. Metal roller shutters, usually made from steel, are a particularly strong and are still considered a security innovation, despite being around for decades. However, they aren’t aesthetically pleasing and can be somewhat expensive to buy and install.

The era evolves constantly, and in the 21st Century the use of polymer materials in shutters has become a common practice. Poly-wood constructions, poly-core innovations, and metal core additions for superior strength of the shutters are only some of the developments of the modern age. However, one of the most noteworthy is the production of eco-friendly shutters, made of FSC certified wood and other non-toxic materials.

Why Should I Use Plantation Shutters for My Home
Nowadays, window blinds are more commonly used to block the sun and provide privacy. However, plantation shutters can be used for the same purposes without reducing a home’s charm. As a matter of fact, window shutters are widely recognized as one of the most efficient energy-conserving window treatments; their impact is compared to a double glazing.

Trends in Hardwood Flooring

Hard wood flooring really are a stunning as well as special method to give a magnificent feeling to your house. In the current housing industry, increasing numbers of people are searching to enhance the entire feel and look of the houses rather than promoting all of them. Home owners find which hard wood flooring provide a distinctive method of achieving the strikingly clean décor that provides their house an entire brand new look.

Previously, presently there was not a lot when it comes to choices for hard wood floors. It had been offered possibly having a organic lacquer complete or even having a more dark lacquer colour to include just a little richness towards the appear from the space. Nevertheless, the current hard wood floors can be obtained in a number of unsightly stains as well as colours. A few of the possibilities tend to be cherry, nutmeg, caramel as well as cinnamon. The colour spot is actually put on the actual hard wood prior to the complete, or even coloured along with lacquer to make a more potent colour whilst nevertheless displaying the actual organic feed from the wooden.
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Tags: Hard Wood, Hard Wood Flooring, Hard Wood Floors, Wood Flooring

A fresh coat of paint is a great way to spruce things up if you’re planning on selling your home. After all, with the number of homes for sale in Lexington ky, you’re going to want your house to look its best for potential buyers. Take the pain out of painting with these helpful tips:

• Set your budget – Painting your home is a worthwhile investment but it doesn’t have to break the bank. Decide how much you want to budget ahead of time but also keep in mind that higher quality paint and brushes will result in an overall higher quality paint job.
• Make a list -Avoid multiple trips to the home improvement store by making a list of materials you’ll need. Making a list ensures you’ve got everything you need from drop cloths and painters tape, to the paint itself and cleaning supplies.
• Buy your paint -There’s nothing more awkward than to run out of paint in the middle of painting. You can same time and frustration by being sure you know how much paint you’re going to need to finish the job. Use a paint calculator to make sure you’ve got enough.
• Carefully prepare -Painting goes much more smoothly and easily when you’veproperly prepared. Patch and sand any holes, clean the walls if needed, lay drop cloths and tape off trim with painter’s tape.
• Get painting! -The actual painting can now begin. Start with the ceiling and then tacklethe walls. If you need a hand, consider inviting friends over for a painting party.Don’t forget to offer plenty of food and drink!
• Let it dry – It’s important to wait until the paint has dried before staging your home. Drying time varies widely depending on the type of paint used as well as differences in air temperature and humidity.