Category: Exterior Design

You might have a place to sit outside and sip drinks with your friends, but do you have a true  outdoor home bar?    The outdoor bar is a second living room, and when it’s done right, it’s the place where  everyone wants to be. Here are the four things you need to create the perfect outdoor bar at  your home:

The bar, of course 

Ideally, you’ll have a bar with electricity and a sink. Unless you really know what you’re doing,  leave the wiring and plumbing to a professional—you don’t want an electric shock cocktail!   

With power and water, you can install a mini­fridge, ice machine and sink. If you don’t have  these, you’ll have to haul buckets and trays back and forth to the kitchen, which makes it very  hard to be a laid­back host. Plus, with an extra ice machine on hand, you won’t run the risk of  emptying out your fridge and having to run to the store for more ice mid­event.
  Music 

There are so many different ways to get music into your speakers; I’ll just focus on the  speakers themselves.    You’ll want at least two weatherproof outdoor speakers with quality mounting brackets. A  built­in amplifier is a good idea to make sure that you can fill the outdoor space with music,  even when there’s a crowd of people talking. Four       speakers, one in each corner, is an even  better idea.

Caption: Outdoor speakers by Omaker $35 from Amazon
Did you know that you don’t always have to position speakers at ceiling or shoulder­height?  Speakers in unexpected places are a pleasant surprise. Try hiding a speaker among plantings  or even in a sculpture for a truly immersive auditory experience.

Lights 

Lighting an outdoor space is a delicate art. Make sure that your walkways are lit with  ground­level footlights. I prefer solar­powered stake lights that are easy to position. The  surface and workstation of your outdoor bar come next—you and your guests have to be able  to see the food and drinks.    Top your tables with candle lanterns with glass enclosures. Good ol’ tiki torches are a hit, too,  if you can position them safely and you don’t expect kids or rowdy pets to be running around.  Last, hang strings of tiny lights or paper lanterns to create a soft, romantic overhead glow.

Seats 

Arguably just as important as the bar itself is your seating. Depending on how you and your  friends will be using your outdoor bar, you’ll want to plan seating accordingly. Place matching  barstools at your outdoor bar, they’re low­maintenance and look great in pairs. Go for  backless stools or armless stools if you want to encourage turnover of the seats. If you expect  people to stay in their seats and hang out, choose padded stools with backs and arms.

Backless and armless stools are great for guests who want to get in and out frequently.

Stools with arms are great for guests who want to sit back and relax, enjoy the conversation!      Scattering a few flat benches throughout the lawn area will encourage a natural flow and give  guests the ability to move them as they wish. If you have space, set up a few intimate nooks
with two­person seating options in the farther reaches of the outdoor space—go for  Adirondack chairs, a wicker love seat, or even a hammock.    Here’s a few examples of outdoor settings that inspire us (and hope to inspire you too!):

Now just add people

Once you have your outdoor bar and entertaining space set up, call your friends and family  and relax! Add a firepot and an outdoor heater or two and you’ll be able to use your outdoor  bar year­round. Cheers!    Stephanie Bertha is a writer and co­owner of BarstoolComforts.com, a site for everything  exciting in ​   ​ outdoor bar stools and home accessories ​ . She puts fun in furniture by creating  memorable, unexpected and delightful places—indoors, online and outside.

Many of us wish to grow a garden, but not all of us have enough space to do so. So, if your backyard space doesn’t allow you to have a garden, choose to grow an indoor garden. Plants not only cleanse the air inside your home and increase the aesthetics of your indoors, but they also offer your family various organic, yummy foods.

Plants don’t occupy much space, you can set up your garden on a windowsill if that’s all the space you have for a garden. For people having some outdoor space, the indoor garden can be used to grow some starter plants, for the outdoor garden when spring comes.

However, setting up a garden indoors needs you to consider several factors. Paying due consideration to these factors is important to ensure healthy growth of the plants in your indoor garden. Listed below are the key factors among them:

1. SPACE:

Whether you wish to give a little or a lot of space to your indoor garden, your garden would do well in that space. You can grow different kinds of large indoor plants in a small space, like on a table or a windowsill. If you wish to grow a larger garden, consider setting up a bench or table especially for the garden with the help of a handy carpenter tool bag.

Choose a space having a linoleum or tile floor for catching water drops, or put a tarp beneath the table.

Shelves offer a lot of planting space, while occupying a little space. If you choose to use shelves, ensure that every plant gets adequate light. For this, each shelf may need a separate grow light.

2. LIGHT:

Plants need to do photosynthesis for surviving, and they need light for photosynthesis. Without sufficient light, plants would grow spindly and tall. Even if enough energy is there for the growth of leaves, the leaves may not expand completely. Without adequate light, you may not find fruits or flowers.

Even the plants growing close to the window may not get adequate light in the winter months for thriving. So, you need to buy a grow light. Here are a few factors to take into account when buying a grow light:

• Plants contain photo-receptors, which absorb certain wavelengths of light. The wavelength of the light you use, should be the same as that of the sun, and that’s why, a regular light won’t work.

• The location of the light should be as near the plants as possible, without burning of the leaves.

• Most of the vegetables and other types of plants work best by getting 14 to 16 hours of simulated light or sunlight. Whether your plant is receiving adequate light or not, can be detected in several ways. If it’s not getting sufficient light, it would usually have small leaves, a lighter color than usual and thin stems.

• Budding and flowering is controlled by a hormone known as “florigen”. Long day plants need light for about 14 to 18 hours for producing the required florigen amount, for flowering and reproducing. Short day plants need light for about 10 to 13 hours. If you expose short day plants to a large number of hours of light, florigen can get destroyed, thereby preventing blooming.

3. CHOOSING A GROW LIGHT

You can find a variety of grow lights out there, and it’s often confusing to pick up the one that’s right for your plants in the indoor garden. Listed below are the chief types of grow lights, to give you some clarity:

• Incandescent lamps:

These are low cost lights and you can buy them at a nursery or a hardware store. Although they are suitable for houseplants, but are not the ideal grow lights for indoor garden.

• Fluorescent lights:

These lights are most suitable for cultivating herbs and other types of plants, which don’t need a large amount of light. These are not fit for flowering or budding plants, since they don’t emit adequate light. They are inexpensive, and you can buy them at a local garden supply or hardware store.

• High Intensity Discharge (HID) lights:

These are the most efficient and brightest lights you can find, but can be costly. The amount of light emitted by one 1000 watt HID bulb is the same as that emitted by 50 fluorescent lights of 40 watt.

HID bulbs are of various types:

• Mercury Vapor
• Metal Halide
• High Pressure Sodium
• Low Pressure Sodium

The Metal Halide and High Pressure Sodium lights are the only grow lights gardeners would need.

What size of grow light should you choose?

The size you should choose for the grow light depends on your indoor garden’s size and the reflector’s mounting height i.e., the height at which the light is, above the plants.

Size of Light (Wattage)	Area Coverage	Mounting Height Above the Plants
400 Watt	no outside light, some sunlight	5′ x 5′ area 8′ x 8′ area	1 to 4 Feet
600 Watt	no outside light, some sunlight	7′ x 7′ area 10′ x 10′ area	1.5 to 5 Feet
1000 Watt	no outside light, some sunlight	8′ x 8′ area 12′ x 12′ area	2 to 6 Feet

4. TEMPERATURE

The best temperature range for most plants is 65 – 75°F. A variation of 10°F on either way, probably won’t be a problem. Plants that grow in too hot temperatures, would be weak and small, whereas those grown under too-cold temperatures, might have yellowish leaves, which fall off.

5. HUMIDITY:

For indoor gardeners, lack of humidity may be a challenge. Winters are usually drier than summers, and in case you run the heating system in your home, the trouble increases.

Watch for the following to know if the humidity is low:

• The tips of leaves are becoming brown
• Plants appear puckered or withered
• Plants are losing their leaves
• You have researched about the humidity required by a particular plant of yours, and it is not receiving it.

Take the following measures for increasing humidity:

• Mist your plants regularly, or more frequently as required. However, don’t do this for plants with hairy leaves, as water stays for longer on such plants, and may cause disease.
• Fill a tray with water and place it near the garden. (Don’t put any plants in this tray, as that can cause other problems). Fill the tray using lava rocks, so as to largen the area for evaporation.
• Arrange plants close to each other, for building a microenvironment having a greater relative humidity.
• Use a humidifier.
• Buy an environmental controller that can dehumidify or humidify as per your needs.

Apart from these basic factors, there are a number of other things to consider before heading out to start your indoor garden. Consider seeking the help of a gardening specialist to get some valuable tips on indoor gardening. With the right knowledge, you can set up a beautiful indoor garden and watch your plants flourishing.

Mia Jones lives in California and works as a gardening specialist. She suggests people who love gardening, to use eco grow pots for faster and healthier plant growth.

For the majority of the homeowners, remodelling or updating the home is one of the greatest concerns that are always going on in their mind. The home is preferably one of the most important assets that a person owns or may be in future paying off. Other than that, there are also majority of people who want to uphold and maintain this investment by keeping the property well maintained as well as up to date.

As a result, there are number of significant choices that could be made in order to improve the value of one’s home. So here are listed some of the most important tips that can help you in maintaining as well as improving value of your home:

• Focus on Lighting: Installing the proper lighting is another great option for improving value of your home. Various additional lightings contribute in improving your home’s value. Conservatories are the most perfect ways for achieving this. These conservatories do not help the owners by adding extra space to their properties, but these conservatories also help in acquiring more natural light into your home. Also, it gives a refreshing feeling as more light and more fresh air circulate through it. As a result, various conservatories in London are having much-improved value when installed in a home. It is important for picking up the right model while ensuring that it really fits in according to the style of your house. If, in case, you don’t have an additional space for building a conservatory, it’s just easy to create more light by simply investing in a decent set of windows. You could also opt for a style that offers more portion of the glass and fewer frames.
• Setting up Home Office: Setting up a home office is one of the easiest and sure-fire ways for adding up the value to your home. Home offices are the most convenient as well as the practical addition as compared to other possibilities of adding up a room. For majority of potential buyers, this is really a great option, as the number of people working from home is eventually increasing these days. So, it should be taken as a primary consideration and in order to widen the appeal of your property as well as increasing value in a professional market, this choice could be made.
• Installing Solar Panels: For various environmental conscious buyers as well as homeowners, the solar panels would be a great centre of attraction. In addition to improving value of your home, these solar panels would also help in reduce your energy bills. In addition to that, these solar panels also have great potential for actually creating an additional income for the lucky homeowner. This helps in contributing to the government’s Green Deal by saving the extra costs. The installation is increasingly more affordable and as a result you could think of choosing this technique.
• Loft Conversion: Loft conversions are another easiest way for adding value to a household and one could have the top of the most buyers’ wish lists. There are numerous options as well as lots of possibilities for a loft conversion. An office space or a gaming room or even an extra bedroom along with bathroom is among the most preferable choices. If the conversion is useful as well as well-built, you can definitely predict an increased and much-improved value for your property.

Thus, these were some of the most significant choices that would help in improving value of the home.

Like every other thing, the trends in interior designing and architecture are also getting changed and perhaps these drifts are becoming faster with ever-increasing technological developments.  Earlier, people preferred to have heavy-wooden doors all inside their houses but now the trends are being shifted as now people prefer to choose glass doors for various reasons. Most of the modern house designs in Pakistan are prepared while keeping latest interior designing and architectural trends, where using glass doors is common.

West Marina Block is another great opportunity for modern investors, where may customize the interior design of homes.

Here are the following four reasons for which people are more inclined towards using glass doors inside their houses.

1. Maximum Natural Light Entrance

The glass doors inside a house serve as best wall replacements as these gliding entrances allow maximum light to pass through ultimately making all the interior bright. The brighter is your house from inside, the lower are your utility bills because you don’t need to keep your lights on, all the time. You may not want to have light inside all your room, especially your bedroom all the time; therefore, hanging curtains can make your work easier. Spread the curtains, when you want to rest or sleep. The other major advantage of light entrance inside your house is healthy indoor environment. Light passage keeps the inside fresher and bright especially in the winters, when you really need the sunshine.

2. Outside View

Glass doors allow you to have a clear view of the outside, especially of your lawn, where you can keep an eye on your kids. Even sometimes to enjoy the outside weather while sitting inside becomes easier if the barrier between the two areas is transparent. Glass doors never disturb your privacy because these are best sound barriers allowing no sound in or outside of an area, provided it is not too high.

3. Create More Spacious Feel

Allowing natural light to pass through, glass doors help creating more spacious feel inside a house. A brighter area naturally gives a more spacious feel and another reason for which these doors help adding extra space in an area is their minimum thickness. As compared to traditional wooden doors, glass doors are far thinner, which cover minimum area and provide maximum space. Therefore, you can use mirror doors in the areas, where there are more concerns of space availability. Moreover, in a sunroom (a latest addition in residential building), using glass door is necessary to allow maximum light passage.

4. Adds Style

Undoubtedly, whatever we choose for our house construction or interior, is chosen while keeping the functionality above all but another factor which plays a significant role in making a final decision is the trend. The trend-savvy people like to adopt every new change just to make their life-style up-to-dated. For the past few years, there is seen a tremendous increase in the use of mirrored doors equally in residential and commercial buildings. A house or a building with a mirrored doors, gives a chic and luxurious feel and even mirror is also used as a separation wall in connected areas inside a house.

Author Bio:

Nabeel Abbas is an experienced author, having more than 9 years of experience under his belt, is currently contributing as a senior author for Amir Adnan Associates (http://www.ameradnan.com).

Having to struggle with space in modern houses and flats, a lot of people seek alternative solutions, such as building outdoor structures, adding a new floor to their houses or installing counters in their kitchens and platforms/decks in bedrooms. However, when resizing your rooms isn’t enough and there’s no other option, you should look into shipping containers and their purpose in modern homes – even though they’re not brand new structures and have been present on the market for some time, only now are they getting well-deserved attention and finding their purpose.

Unusual Purpose

So, how can this huge structure primarily built for overseas transport of large objects be integrated into your home and what advantages does it bring? Shipping containers can enrich both your outdoors as well as indoors, and it’s only a matter of creativity and budgeting. First of all, they make great garages or sheds and can, with very little modifications, provide quality solutions for your crammed space. Also, you can transform them into workshops, space for children to play in, storage rooms or even guest houses – but that might need quite a bit of modification. As for your indoor projects, you can incorporate shipping containers into your house by inserting them into big rooms creating separate space, or even adjoining them to the existing house walls. And the best part is that one container can always be combined and connected to others!

A Garden and a Farm in a Container

For all those who wish to have a personal garden or grow fruit and vegetables in an urban area, shipping containers are the right choice. They are transformed into portable farms that can be placed on building rooftops or even uninhabited spaces in cities. Moreover, these structures, also called “pods,” create an environment for themselves and are often self-sufficient and can produce about an acre’s worth of food even though they are only about thirty square meters big! Taking space of a living room or a slightly larger bedroom, these second hand containers are an effective and innovative solution that fits not only several types of vegetables, but also have a special addition to the roof where you can grow grass!

 

A Modern Solution from a Modern Designer

Not being completely satisfied with the initial concept of shipping containers-turned-gardens, designer Damien Chivialle created a new solution called “Urban Farm Unit” that, as the name suggests, takes the idea to the next level. Starting in 2010, his innovation combines several separate parts into a multi-level organization – there is a fish tank/pond on the lower level and a place for vegetables, herbs, small plants and flowers on the upper one, right in the sun, but that’s not nearly all. The thing with Chivialle’s solution that turns shipping containers into fully functioning gardens is the enabled circulation – water from the plants goes down and is stored in the fish tanks and is later, together with decomposed excrement of the fish, enriched by minerals and returned into the soil of the vegetables. By mimicking nature’s already present highly organized and quite perfect circular system, this solution brings urban gardens into a new phase and realizes their full potential.

 

Shipping Containers and More

It’s obvious how simple, everyday objects you didn’t consider useful and practical can be repurposed, recycled and given a new meaning. The same goes for shipping containers and their newly-found role in modern world – whether you want space to store your equipment and unused things, place for your garage or want to grow food in the urban environment, shipping containers are the right choice.

 

Image sources:

Yellow shipping container garden found on theownerbuildernetwork.co

Urban Farm Unit images found on inhabitat.com

Shipping containers have always associated us with the large, plain and simple metal constructions that help us pack our stuff and put them onto the ship. But, if you believe that these constructions can’t be used for something more creative, well, you are terribly wrong. However, in the last few decades, modern architects have started many projects and redecorated many shipping containers into amazing facilities. Here are some most interesting facts.

The first thing you should know about shipping containers is that are multifunctional and eco- friendly. For they are off-the-grid constructions, they help us preserve the nature. The sole fact that they could be easily constructed and transported, inspired talented architects use them in their innovative projects.

Home is where you feel at home

One of the most interesting ideas is to turn the shipping container into a real dwelling and this venture could have numerous pros and cons. Since they act like a green house which is rather cheap and eco-friendly, many people have chosen to actually live in them. On the other hand, for there are no supplies of water or energy, they need to be additionally insulated and to prevent the construction from rusting. The diapason of possible ideas is really wide, from construction a guest home to a full time single family home. You could also choose the dimensions of the house, and use a single container or the combination of the several ones. Anyhow, if you think that this project is a mission impossible, here you are several facts that will prove that you are completely mistaken.

One of these examples is the impressive Beach Box by the architect Andrew Anderson, which is located in the dunes of Amagansett, near New York. The house of 2000 square foot is constructed of six containers and looks really impressive.

Another great example is the three story container house that was recently built near Brisbane. This breath-taking 6000 square house is constructed of thirty one brand new shipping containers and it numerous astonishing rooms including four bedrooms, four bathrooms and large balconies with an amazing view.

Finally, another extraordinary example is the Containerlove home by LHVH Architekten, which is situated in Kall, Germany. This interesting construction of three containers is placed in a quite rural environment, which emphasizes its modern design even more. One of the most fascinating things about those mansions is that, apart from their luxurious and cozy interior, their exterior looks spectacular, and not simple or hideous at all. This kind of dwelling could be a perfect solution for those who are interested in uncommon ventures.

Relieving monotony

Many talented architects have also proved that container shelters could be also used in even more complex projects, such as the construction of public institutions. A colorful library in Batu, made from eight recycled shipping containers is certainly a perfect example. Apart from bringing vivacity and relieving monotony of its surroundings, it was extremely cheap costing only $820 USD.

There is also The Bharati Antarctic Research Station, which is a self-sufficient energy composition of 134 containers, which use metal constructions as an insulation. It raised the purpose of the station on even higher level, making it both functional and magnificent.

And last, but not least, there is also ECOntainer Bridge, which will soon be constructed in Israel. However, this miraculous construction will be used by pedestrians and light vehicles, and more importantly, it will be really easy to repair or replace its parts, without some larger reconstructions.

Finally, as you have probably notices, these facilities have two important functions, Firstly, since they don’t waste natural resources, they will help us raise ecological awareness and save our planet. Secondly, they are affordable and easy to maintain. For every design enthusiast, constructing and decorating a dwelling made of shipping shelters would be a real pleasure.

There is this type of people that seem to be some kind of ninja DIY masters who simply take the tools into their hands and get every single job done in the best possible way. However, since the percentage of that population is really small, it is best simply to do all you can and just leave the job of fixing things to the professionals. It is hard to determine which things you can do on your own and which require some professional touch. Here is what you should solve only by picking up the phone and dialing the right number.

Electricity

The only correct way to deal with anything that is remotely related to electricity is by hiring an experienced electrician of royal heights to ensure electrical safety. Not only that messing with wires is dangerous in terms of electric shock, it can also cause far bigger problems like fires. Therefore, if you are not sure, simply call for help and leave it alone.

Tiles

This is something that seems so easy and it is extremely difficult to do right. Installing the new tiles looks like a kid’s game and it seems like all you need to do is to put some glue down and put tiles one near the other. However, there is so much more to it than that. You need a good base, you need to calculate the tiles and their surface and you really need to be very skilful to place the tiles in the surface and make them all even, with the grooves between them all of the same size. Also, it is a quite tedious task so calling somebody to do it, which makes Sydney-based bathroom renovation services your best bet.

Masonry

Precision, know-how and dedication are essential for masonry. The fact that it may seem easy is only because people who do it are very skilful and in most cases, very experienced. This is not the chance to make sure your DIY skills are cool enough, especially if you are trying to fix the roof of your house. If you see the cracks on the walls, your roof leaks or you want another wall in your room, make sure that you are not the one who will be solving these things.

Plumbing

From time to time, it is advisable to prevent some pipe blockage by pouring the boiling water or vinegar into the drains to clean them up. However, when you see some wet patches in your bathroom it is time to call the plumber. Bathroom renovation has everything you should avoid doing: electricity, tiling, plumbing and the like. This is really difficult and it is not a work to be underestimated.

The real wisdom is knowing when to stop and call for help when it comes to home renovation tasks. Therefore, stick to woodwork and thorough cleaning and call the professionals for anything else that you may want to do in your home.

Author Bio: This article was provided by Andrew Newitt. Besides being a full-time husband and dad, Andrew enjoys blogging about different home improvement techniques from garden decoration to available bathroom renovation options in Sydney.

It’s Christmas time and most of you would packing your bags for a long vacation with your family. After all it is a great opportunity to see how Christmas is celebrated at other parts of the world, right?

But before you leave for the vacation make sure your home is safe. Your home is probably your most important asset, and damage to it can be very costly to fix. Review the checklist below to ensure that your home will be safe and sound upon your return!

 

Energy Costs and Regulating Temperature

 

Air conditioning costs can account for half of your energy bill so turn your thermostat up before you leave. You may be tempted to set your thermostat low if you’re leaving during winter, but frozen water pipes can lead to burst pipes, which can in turn grow to thousands of dollars worth of property damage. Simply managing general plumbing in your house while you’re away is not enough – you will need to spend money on heating home enough to keep things from freezing.

 

Your Kitchen Can Be a Source of Problems

 

 

Remove perishable items from the fridge and pantry to avoid cleaning the mess when you get home. In addition, spoiled foods can often leak from their original packaging onto the shelf or floor in the form of sticky liquids, perfect for household pests. It’s always better to prevent unwelcome bugs than it is to remove them from your home.

 

You’ll Need a Friend to Check your Plumbing

 

Shut off the main water valve before you leave to prevent leaking or flooding, which will go undetected until the next person enters your home. For absences of a month or longer, ask a friend or neighbour to switch the valve on and run the faucets to keep pipes from drying out and cracking. In addition, mechanical devices tend to run better with regular use, so in the same trip, your friend should also flush the toilets around the home.

 

Prevent Dangerous Situations from Starting

 

Shut down all gas devices and unplug electronic equipment because when things go wrong, although no one is around to be injured, there’s also no one to alert the authorities. In addition, you should test your smoke alarm before leaving in case of emergency. In the worst case scenario, a neighbour can overhear the noise and take the appropriate steps to address the issue.

 

Avoiding Home Break-ins

 

There are many ways that a burglar might be tipped off to your absence:

• fallen leaves, dust, or cobwebs on your car
• piled up mail through the mail slot or in the mailbox
• gathered newspapers and flyers on your front doorstep
• unruly front yard indicates no one has been caring for the lawn
• lights are never on in the home

 

There are a number of ways to address the indicators above. You may have your mail directed to an alternate address and install automatic light controls to turn on periodically. You will need to rely on a friend to help with all the other tasks. In addition, alert the company of your home security system of your intended absence, and check that all your house windows & doors are locked, including small ones and windows on the second floor.

And now that all these things are taken care why wait? Pack your travel bags and set off to enjoy the holidays!

 

Author Bio: Anne Flemings loves interior designing and is always in pursuit of the latest changes and trends in home improvement. Her other interests lies in cooking, painting and blogging. She is an enthusiast homemaker who lives in Toronto with her husband and two kids. She can be followed on twitter @AnneFlemings

 

Image source:www.shutterstock.com