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How to Select Interior Paint Colors for Your Home

Aleeya — Sun, 19 Feb 2012 14:27:08 +0000

By stephhicks68

Interior Paint is One of the Least Expensive Ways to Update a Room

Thinking about home improvementprojects? One of the easiest, least expensive ways to update a room in your home is with interior paint. But what color or colors should you choose?

The answer to that question depends on a number of factors:

1. The mood you are looking to create (calm, bold, exciting, soothing);

2. The purpose of the room (relaxing, entertaining);

3. Artwork, furniture, pillows, window coverings, carpet/floor coverings, and other décor in the room;

4. The colors to which you are naturally drawn (peek in your closet for this answer!);

5. The amount of light in the room – natural or lighting fixtures; and

6. Existing paint colors (if any)

If you’re ready for a fresh coat of paint, let’s figure out how to select interior paint colors for your home!

Select Interior Paint Colors to Set the Mood

Interior paint colors can help set the mood of a room. For example, the walls in our kitchen are a warm, brick color reminiscent of a brick oven. During winter months, its very cozy and welcoming. We love entertaining in the kitchen.

Our bedroom has classic pale blue walls, in a soft, soothing color. Although we have not repainted recently, I would probably choose a warmer color, like a soft butter yellow. The tone would literally warm up the room and it might feel less chilly than it does right now.

In the playroom, we’ve used bright, cheery colors on the walls. Using a chair rail, only the top half of the walls are painted, with the bottom half covered in white beadboard. This prevents the loud colors from feeling overwhelming.

The guest bathroom is painted a deep eggplant, which lends a luxurious, pampered feel to the room. But the walls in our own bathroom match those in our bedroom. The two rooms are adjoining, and the continuous “soothing” blue paint actually makes the two spaces feel more expansive.

Decorating With Paint Color Tips

White walls are usually boring, but there is something to be said for selecting a relatively neutral color as the anchor color, used throughout your living spaces. Whether you go with a warm ivory, a cool gray or soft beige (or yes, even white), applying the anchor color to about 60 percent of the wall, ceiling and trim surfaces in your home will help create a unified look (this is known as the 60:30:10 concept). Consider whether you wish to paint doors to match surrounding trim.

The secondary color is where you can have some fun! Using any shade that has the same undertones as the anchor color, paint about 30 percent of the surfaces. The remaining 10 percent of the surfaces are painted with a third, accent color, that also has the same undertones as the first two shades.

But don’t let the 60:30:10 concept limit you to only 3 colors of interior paint! The more shades you choose, you will probably still want to have one, dominant anchor color (maybe it covers 50% of the surfaces instead).

Select Interior Paint Colors to Complement Furnishings and Décor

Its one thing to select interior paint color that you like and that you believe will suit the mood of the room. You should also consider the furnishings and décor that will fill the room after you’re done painting. A bold wall color may help showcase a special piece of art work, or complement beautiful tiling or cabinets. On the other hand, if the focal point in the room is a gorgeous Oriental rug, you might want to keep wall colors neutral and low-key.

Don’t forget window coverings and carpeting. You will want to have enough contrast between the colors of all three to keep things interesting. Ivory curtains hung over beige walls might be boring.

Before choosing your paint colors, take a look at the colors you already have in the home – whether on artwork, rugs, pillows, towels or bed coverings. Chances are you will find a common theme that will be a great anchor or secondary color (mine is sage green). Either bring a sample with you to the paint store (a swatch of fabric or throw pillow itself), or take home a number of paint chip cards to compare and contrast to see how certain colors will complement furnishings and décor in your home.

Remember that when you initially apply paint, the effect is not the same as when all coats are applied and have dried. Colors may appear darker or brighter when first applied, rather than later.

Select Interior Paint Colors to Match Your Personal Palette

This paint selection tip is probably the most important of all. After all, if you dress in certain colors and are drawn to certain colors, shouldn’t you ensure that your interior spaces feel completely comfortable? Let’s say you love warm colors like orange tones or sepia. Painting your walls blue or purple probably will not lend a familiar feel for the rooms in your home.

Not sure what tones speak to you? Take a look inside your closet, and consider what shades draw you to them when you go shopping. For me, the shades are often deep, eggplant purple, biscuit tan and sage green. Accents of brick red work well with these colors. There are many variations across the color palette in these tones.

Work With Existing Interior Paint Colors

If you don’t want to entirely repaint the interior of your home, you can work with existing paint colors and update from there. Perhaps you want to leave the trim, or an accent wall, as is. Choosing a complementary color is now your task.

Before you head to the home improvement store, take a look at the paint colors to determine what undertone exists. Every color on the spectrum – including white – is either warm or cool. Warm undertones include yellow or pink. Cool undertones are bluish. You will want to match undertones when selecting new paint colors for a unified feeling at the end of your paint project.

Just remember that you don’t have to repaint everything! You can update the look of your home with a few rooms, or even just a few walls. Give your interior a quick update without breaking the bank. Why not undertake an interior painting project this weekend?

Cut Flowers – Ways to Make Fresh Flowers Last Longer

Aleeya — Sat, 18 Feb 2012 04:24:48 +0000

By Linda Myshrall

Why Give Someone Cut Flowers?

When there are no words, there are flowers.

Flowers can say, I love you, I’m sorry, Congratulations, Happy Anniversary, Happy Birthday, It’s a Boy!, It’s a Girl! They can even say, Thank you for inviting me to dinner.

Best of all, cut flowers are fluent in any language.

Flowers are remarkably articulate and diplomatic. Flowers are willing to eat our hats when we are not. Where we are timid, they can be naughty and sassy. Flowers can be joyous or somber, riotous, powerful, thankful, hopeful, even playful.

Cut flowers can just as easily add a splashy dash of just-for-fun color to a room as they can send a message of love and encouragement to those we care about. They can cheer up a sick friend in the hospital, serve as a reminder that we share in the grief of a person’s passing, and even mark the happier milestones of a person’s life like a wedding or birthday.

Looking at a beautiful vase of cut flowers evokes the feeling behind the message they were intended to convey over and over again, so it is important to make them last as long as possible.

Here are my tips to help you make your cut flowers last longer.

Ways to Make Cut Flowers Last Longer

Try these tips to keep your cut flowers looking fresh and attractive longer.

Always cut stems at an angle with very sharp scissors or pruning shears
Do not overcrowd the flowers into the vase
Double the life of your flowers by placing them in the refrigerator overnight. Just as refrigeration slows the decomposition of food, it also does the same for flowers. That’s why flowers are refrigerated at flower shops!
Remove all leaf material below the water line. The leaves will rot and decay, making the water poisonous to the flowers. Remember, the stem is pumping the water up to the flower!
Split the ends of flowers that have very thick stems. This increases their ability to absorb moisture.
Add two tablespoons each of vinegar and cane sugar to each quart of vase water. The sugar makes a great cut flower food, and the vinegar inhibits growth of organisms.
Cut stems under water to prevent air bubbles from forming in the stem. These bubbles can inhibit the flow of water through the stem.

How to Revive Wilted Cut Flowers

If your cut flowers wilt a bit, you can revive them by cutting the stems on an angle then place them in hot water and move them to a dark place. Wait for the hot water to cool then transfer them to cold water, and they will be as good as new.

Tips for Cleaning Dried Flowers

Dried flowers quickly get dusty and unattractive looking, and their delicate nature makes them a little nerve wracking to clean. Try these tips to keep your dried flowers looking beautiful.

Remember to regularly blow them off with a blow dryer set on on low.

For stubborn dust, place them in a bag with a bit of salt and cornmeal.Gently shake the bag, then blow them off with the blow dryer.

Remember to spray your clean, dried flowers with hairspray to protect them from dust.

Decorating with Antique Shaving Stands

Aleeya — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 07:21:07 +0000

By Marye Audet

Antique shaving stands were narrow and tall. Made of wood, and sometimes cast iron, they often had an adjustable mirror on the top that allowed Victorian gentlemen of means to care for their personal grooming needs comfortably. There might be a couple of drawers and storage in the stand so that razors, strops, and other supplies could be stored conveniently and easily.

Another type of shaving stand was three legged with a shelf on the bottom and a cut out to hold a pitcher and bowl in the top. A moveable mirror could be adjusted as needed. These simple stands are sometimes misrepresented at wash stands in antique stores today. These stands were popular in the Edwardian Era into mid century, or from about 1900 to 1930.

Dresser Top Shaving Stands

Dresser top shaving stands were about 18 inches high with a mirror and a storage drawer. They were meant to be placed on the dresser or held in the lap when shaving.

Like many items from this era, shaving stands were often ornate and heavily carved.

Home Decorating with Antique Shaving Stands

If you are lucky enough to have inherited or purchased one of these stands they are perfect as an accent piece in bedrooms, bathrooms, and even that narrow area in the hallway that needs a little bit of spark. Placed near the front door the stand can provide a mirror for a last check of your makeup, as well as hold a basket for the mail. They provide a little added storage while giving your home the antique ambiance that you are looking for.

If you have a larger stand with closed shelving you can use it to store towels or shampoo and bath items in your bathroom or DVDs, cds, books, and other small items in the bedroom.

The portable stands can be used to hold jewelry and other small items on top of a dresser or dressing table. You can place one on the bathroom counter to display antique bathroom items, for storage of small things like cosmetics, or purely as a decorative item with a small floral arrangement on the top.

Should Your Repair a Damaged Shaving Stand?

Generally it is best not to refinish an antique with normal wear. Most collectors love the old, imperfect look of stain and varnish that is worn, slightly scratched, or even chipped. Always talk to an appraiser or expert antique dealer to get their opinion before undertaking such a task. If you do refinish your piece then try to match the original stain as closely as possible. While painting an antique white seems to be very popular currently it will, in most cases, render the piece totally worthless.

If your stand is missing antique knobs, pulls, hinges or other hardware you should look on eBay and other places that carry antique hardware for an exact match. If you can’t find an exact match then get all new hardware in a style that compliments the era of the piece.

For example, an Art Deco Bakelite drawer pull from 1927 will not look right on a heavily carved Eastlake mahogany stand from 1897.

Try to look at several images of stands to get an idea of what is appropriate for yours.

Where to Buy Antique Shaving Stands

The local antique shops are always good places to find stands but because of the one of a kind nature of antiques you will have to search diligently and often to find what you are looking for.

Internet Shopping

Another way to find the stand that you want is to keep an eye on the Internet venues. While you won’t get a chance to give the piece a thorough examination you will be able to have more of a selection. Just remember that shipping charges can really add up.

Cost of a Shaving Stand

The cost of a shaving stand can vary a lot depending on where you buy it and the individual characteristics of the stand.

Found Old Vintage Items For Decorating.

Aleeya — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 05:15:57 +0000

What to do with old Vintage Items

This hub is about Found Items For Decorating. Some of my items and just ideas for what you can do with cheap items you have picked up here and there.

Anything can be turned into something great and cheap for your home. I decorate with whatever I can find. Add some paint in a bright color bring the item into the modern world.

Old dressers can be turned into sideboards for your dinning room in a small house they work great because they are so good for storage.

They can also be painted and used as end table either by your bed or your sofa. If you like leave them rustic.

We used our old dresser in our bathroom for our sink. We left the large mirror on it. It’s really nice, it’s big has lots of counter space and love the large mirror that’s with it.

You can always bring the outdoor items in and the inside items out. Old outdoor wicker chairs look nice around an old farm table.

We had an old screen house without the top and we used the pieces from it as a trellis for our grape vine. The vine is so big the trellis can’t be seen.

Reusing old furniture is also very green, less in the landfill.

Watch any of the decorating shows and they always use old pieces.

An old bookcase can be painted used for a bookcase or for storage of other items in your house. If the items in the bookcase need to be hidden add a rod and make or buy a curtain for it. Beef the look up by adding trim. Paint in a bright color.

The white bookcase you see is now upstairs in our house with a fresh coat of paint. This bookcase came out of my husband’s childhood home. I’m using it for my sewing items.

I love drop leaf type of tables. They can be used for a side table in the bedroom or living room. I use one I have for my sewing machine. I like it for that because it can stay small but if I need more room while sewing I just lift the leaves on both sides or just one side, then I have lots more room to spread my fabric out.

The same goes for old antique sewing machines in those pretty old cabinets, if no longer in use they can be used in a hall to hold keys, a place to drop items when you come in the door or for side tables by a sofa. Little drawers can keep tv remotes and other small items you need near by.

Turn old wagons into a place for your flowers or a mini herb garden. My old wagon is still in the barn. One of those projects we have to get to.

I have seen them done as coffee tables with a piece of glass on top. You can also leave off the glass and you have a place to put books, remotes and maybe a plant.

Old ladders have so many uses. Put them in the garden for plants.

Hang one up to hang hummingbird feeders, candles, or chimes from or hang plants on them

Hang one in the house for pot and pans or for a book shelf.

Hang on wall and use for pictures or knick knacks.

Use in bathroom for towels.

Hang your beautiful quilts on a ladder.

Side of the bed for a night stand to hold your book, clock, glass or bible.

Two ladders together 3 boards in between them for shelves that will hold lots of your items.

Use them to hang your prettys on.

Use them to put your shoes on.

Put a top on a ladder and turn it into a ladder stool.

Leave them rustic or paint them in a pretty color.

Use an old ladder to grow a grape vine on.

Anything vintage and old can be turned into something great. Old baskets for puppies, flowers, magazines or kitchen towels.

Old chairs, old wicker chairs paint and add cushions. If their no good for sitting on put flowers in them for the yard.

Old garden chairs paint in bright colors place around the yard. A yard always looks good with a pop of color. I have purple garden chairs sitting by an old white picket fence.

Collect old chairs paint them all one color and use them at your table.They will look great. I’m sure I have Gypsy I would love the color around a table.

Old lanterns hang from a branch you find outside and place indoors like the ones in the picture. I use the lanterns around the house on different shelves. They can also be used to hang in tree branches outside and candles or solar lights placed inside. Use them on shepherds hook add citronella oil, keep the mosquitoes away.

Old kitchen stools repaint and recover in any kind of fabric. If you have room stools in the kitchen are always handy.

Old windows can be used for anything. Hang pictures in them or collections I had one in my kitchen to hang my pot and pans on. Add mirrors to an old window and it will look nice hanging anywhere in the house.

Old rake heads or full rakes for hanging aprons or dish towels on. You can also put stem glasses on a rake head. They are cute decoration on the porch or deck.

Old antique refrigerators paint use to keep books in or anything you want to store that will be safe.

Old stoves, add a light kit and place outsideon deck or just use on deck as a wood burner. If usin as a wood burner just be sure it vents and sits on a safe floor. Paint in a pretty fire safe paint. You may also be able to add glass crystals to old vintage fireplaces. That you would have to check on, it would sure be pretty. Looking at the crystals glowing on your deck at night

By moonlake

Colourful pillow covers for home

Aleeya — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 15:15:04 +0000

Whether you want to increase look of bed sheet or want to give new look to sofa. Pillow covers play a very important role. Although we use the pillow to free us from fatigue but they give beautiful touch to interiors of our house. Therefore it is important that as you take care of other things while decorating your house ,so don’t forget to experiment with pillow covers.

Some unique pillow cover for you home

Leather pillow cover

This is best option of those women who like Italian touch in the interiors and classy look in their furniture. There are two type of ranges present in leather covers, first –shine leather and mute leather that doesn’t have shine. You can buy right leather cover according to fabric of sofa and bed sheet. Although this costly but if you can spend some extra this will give very good look to your home interior.

Jute pillow cover

Jute pillow covers is very appropriate for hot season because they remain cool in the hot weather. Therefore welcome coming hot season with jute pillow covers. Jute pillow covers are not very costly and they remain new for a very long time. Other than that if you wash them number of times, still they will look new. Jute pillow covers are also of two types. First is of simple ropes, other of coloured ropes.

Tribal pillow cover

If you like aboriginal art then you should decorate your sofa and bed sheet with pillow cover of tribal print. Neither they look too linnet nor simple. The best thing about these covers is that they will always be in the fashion. Currently eco-friendly fabric s is being much liked in tribal pillow cover range. This way you will associate with aboriginal art.

ajasthani pillow covers

Whether it is suite, duppata (it is like medium cloth usually wore with women suite), bed sheet or curtains, there is no one that can compete with rajasthani designs. It is so famous you will find it in everywhere. Therefore if you like traditional decoration then rajasthani pillow covers is best choice for you .keep in mind that don ‘t forget to include bolster pillows.

Woollen pillow cover

If you have A.C in your house then woollen pillow covers is best choice for you. If you like then you can make it yourself in the home by cutting old sweaters or weaving it. Woollen pillow coves are very comfortable. Especially if you have old person in your house ,who always has problem of joint pain then these covers will give warmth to them.

Banarasi pillow cover

If you want bring Indian style then Banarasi pillow cover is especially for you. Although they are costly in comparison to other pillow covers, but they will make the look of your house colourful. If you don’t want to buy pillow coves from the market then you can make pillow covers by cutting your Banarasi sarees. This will be major boost to creativity.

Multicolour pillow cover

It is best option for your daughter’s room .There is two varieties available in multicolour pillow range .First-with bright shades, second-with dim shades. Choose pillow cover of right range according to taste of your daughter. If you want then you can prepare multi strip pillow cover with your daughter in the home. For this you can use colourful laces .

Mirror Finish

If you like bright interior in home decoration, then choose mirror pillow cover. Currently plastic stripped mirror are being used in place of small size mirrors. You can make pillow covers by sticking different variety mirror in simple pillow covers. If you have children in your house, then don’t take these pillow covers because often children will remove mirror from pillow or they may swallow it.

By nityanandagaurang

How To Grout Floor Tiles

Aleeya — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 04:46:23 +0000

Grouting floor tiles is not that difficult but you must keep your grout cleaned up and not left to dry too long around the areas you are trying to grout (don’t leave it to dry onto the tile surfaces to long as it can be difficult to remove after). And do not grout a tiled area that has not had time to completely cure after laying it. Grout comes in basically two types sanded and non-sanded. Generally use non-sanded if your grout lines are less than 1/8″ wide and sanded if your joints are larger than 1/8″ wide.

Difficulty Level: 3/12

Tools Required

rubber grout float
11/2″ stiff putty knife (to mix grout)
3-4 sponges
small container to mix grout (large margarine container works)
grout joint scraper
clean water bucket

Materials Required

grout
water

How to grout floor tiles

Before starting to grout, check over all of the grout joints and make sure you use the grout joint scraper to scrape out any excess thinset that has squeezed up between the tiles while you laid them. Also be sure to vacuum up all of the loose bits left behind.

Start by deciding where in the room you would like to start. Try to not work yourself into a corner or a space where you need to walk across the areas you just grouted and are still not cured. You also do not want to do to big of a area at a time or you will not be able to reach across it to sponge it clean later. So now you can put some dry grout into the small clean container and add little amounts of water into it as you mix it by hand. I usually mix about 1 cup of powder at one time. You want a fairly dry but smooth mix that will still stick together but is not to crumbly. If it is too wet, it will have less strength and usually shrink and crack as it dries. So like when you mixed the thinset to lay the tiles, mix the grout, let it sit for 10 minutes and re-mix again before applying to the grout joints. The grout mixture should remain workable for about 2 hrs but try to use it up quicker then that. If it sits for more than 10 minutes re-stir again.

TIP: Do NOT re-apply more water to already setting grout that is mixed in your container. This will only make the mix weaker. If stirring the grout mix does not seem good enough to use, mix a new batch.

So now we can start applying the grout. Use the rubber grout float and force mixture into the joints working diagonally when ever possible to keep from gouging the grout out of the joint as you work. Use the float to remove excess grout from the tiles surfaces as you go. Apply the grout to an area you can easily reach with out having to walk over the are you just grouted.

After about 15 minutes of set time use a damp sponge to wipe tiles clean of excess grout, regularly rinsing sponge out in bucket of clean cool water. I do each area twice before I move on to more grouting and will use more than one sponge through the process of the whole room. Try to work diagonally while sponging as well, just like when you where using the rubber float.

TIP: You will need to change rinse water often to keep it fairly clean. Do not dump this water into the toilet to get rid of it as this usually leaves a stain in the bowl.

Continue this process over the whole room one area at a time. Try to keep your grout mixtures fairly consistent in wetness or some times when it’s dry you will see a difference in the texture of it in the joints from one area to the next. You will notice that as areas that you have cleaned start to dry that there will be a haze or film on the surface, this is the fine particles in your rinse water that where left behind after the water dried. This is normal and can be buffed off with a soft clean cloth after the grout joints have set firmly (usually 60 minutes). The cleaner you sponge the tiles, the less work to remove the haze later. Be cautious when sponging though to not get excessive water from the sponge into the grout lines.

After grouting is complete, clean all tools to remove grout before it dries on. Keep people off the freshly grouted floor for 24 hours. You may also want to seal the grout lines and or tiles if they are in a wet area or may be prone to staining. Wait about 72 hours after install before applying a sealer.

How To Change a Razor Receptacle to GFCI

Aleeya — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 04:46:03 +0000

In the bathrooms of many of our homes that are Pre-1980′s you will probably have a plugin in the wall with a large front cover and a small single plugin the middle. These where for razors most of them are so large because there is a small transformer behind there that reduces the voltage so it can be used by razors that did not need 120 volts of electricity. You have probably over the years tried to use it for other things like hair driers and curling irons but it either would not work or not work well. Many people would like to have a working receptacle in their bathroom and I will tell you here how to change one of these old razor type plugs out and install a new and much safer GFCI receptacle.

Tools Required

Multi ended screwdriver
utility knife or wire strippers
voltage tester

Difficulty Level
3 / 12

Very first step as always when working with electricity is find the proper breaker and turn it off. If you are not sure which breaker controls that plug than turn off the main breaker to the house. Once the power is turned off remove the old razor plug from the wall and determine if the existing line has a ground wire.

TIP: The ground wire will usually be a bare copper wire or it may have a green plastic covering.

If the existing wiring does not have a ground wire then the GFCI plug you want to install will not work properly and you should not install it. You will want to contact a licensed electrician at this point to determine if they can help you to ground this circuit properly so that the GFCI can be installed.

If the wiring is grounded then you should be fine.Next determine if there is more than 1 pair of wires attached to the existing plug, if not then disconnect the wires from the old plug and discard it. Connect the wires to the new GFCI at the terminals marked “line” on the back by following the instructions that came with your new GFCI.

If there are more than one set of wires connected to the old plug than you must determine which pair are feeding the plug. To do this you can use a voltage tester. Remove all of the wires and discard the old plug. Figure out which wires are pairs and then use wire nuts or electrical tape to cover the exposed bare wire on the end of each pair but one set. Keep those exposed wire safely away from any exposed metal and do not allow anyone near who might touch them. Have someone else turn on the power for a sort time while you use the voltage tester to check the exposed wires for electricity .

TIP: Place the voltage testers dial on “ACV” , “200″ then contact the black lead to the white wire and the red lead to the black wire. DO NOT TOUCH THE BARE WIRE OR THE BARE LEADS. BE CAREFUL!!

Continue checking each pair ,being sure to turn off the power while changing to each different pair. When you get a pair that reads between 118 and 121 on the meter you know these are the pair that are feeding this plug and they get attached to the “line” screws on the GFCI all the other wires go to the “load” screws as described in the instructions that came with you GFCI. Don’t forget to attach the ground wire as well.

Once all wiring is secured attach the new GFCI to the metal electrical box in the wall. Now turn the power back on and test the new GFCI by first pushing the “reset” button on the front and then plugging something in to try it. Your new plug should be powered up now and working, if it does work try pressing the “test” button on the front and you should now not have power to the receptacle. Just simply press “reset” again and everything is fine.

You can find covers that are big enough to cover the large hole in the wall and they have a hole in the center to accommodate the new GFCI you have just installed.

Not all electrical codes are the same everywhere so you may have to check your specific codes in your area to completely finish your application. Good luck!

How To Install A Kitchen Faucet

Aleeya — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 04:45:38 +0000

Changing your kitchen faucet should take 1/2 – 1 hour and is generally very easy.

Start by shutting off the hot and cold water supply. Then open the old faucet to drain the lines.

If you look under and behind the sink, you can see where the water lines attach to the water supply on one end and faucet on the other. Remove these lines. Now look to see how faucet is mounted under the counter top and undo it. Pull faucet out of the countertop and clean up the surface that was under it. Remove new faucet from its box and mount it using the supplied instructions. You can now attach new water supply lines to the faucet supply pipes.

TIP: I recommend using steel braided supply lines. They come in two lengths and are very flexible and easy to install. No cutting required!!

Turn on the hot and cold water supply and check for leaks. Then check the faucet to be sure it functions properly. If there are no leaks found, then you are done this easy DIY Job.

I would not recommend buying the cheapest faucet you can find but go with a good name brand that has a good warranty on its cartridges.

Difficulty Level: 3/12

Tools Required

Adjustable wrench

Materials Required

faucet
braided water supply lines

How To Connect Multiple Light Fixtures To One Switch

Aleeya — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 04:44:15 +0000

I have a video showing how to connect a recessed light (pot light) to a switch but usually most people want more than one light on a switch. So this article will explain the easiest way to connect multiple light fixtures to one switch.But you may want to watch the video as well.

TIP: Remember always shut off the power at the electrical panel before starting any electrical work.

Tools Required

proper screw drivers
pliers
wire cutters and strippers

Materials Required

two wire cable (14/2)
single pole switch
light fixtures
metal switch box
various sized marrette connecters
bulbBasically the simplest way to have multiple lights on one switch is to run a power supply wire to the switch first. This would be a two wire cable (black, white, ground) take the black wire and connect it to one screw on the switch and connect the ground wire to a screw inside the electrical switch box mounted to the wall. Now run a two wire cable from the first light location to the switch box. Connect the black wire from it to the other screw on the switch and the ground wire to the box as before. Now take both white wires and connect them with a marrette wire connecter and fold them into the back of the electrical box out of the way. This will complete your switch connection. Now for all light locations run a two wire cable from one location to the next,this should give you two, two wire cables at every light location except the very last one, it should have only one two wire cable.
TIP: Make sure to allow extra wire at each switch or fixture to work with easily so that it is not to short. I like to leave about 16″. Only strip about 6-8″ of outer jacket off though. The outer jacket is the rubber coating holding all three individual wires together that make up the two wire cable.

To make the connection at all light locations do the following…. connect all same color wires together including the light fixture wires. So blacks to blacks, whites to whites and grounds to grounds using marrette wire connecters. Now carefully go back to each light and switch and tuck the wires into the areas provided and mount the lights and switches. Finally place proper bulbs into each fixture and then turn on power breaker and test switch and light operation.

You should now have a working set of lighting. Enjoy!

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Strategies Tricks, Heat Resist with Bamboo

Aleeya — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 08:50:32 +0000

Has a bedroom with large windows overlooking the street and yard is fun. However, it would be another story if your home faces east or west.

Many of the incoming light and heat when the sun rise or set precisely to make the temperature in the room increases. Installation of curtains on the window only serves to hold the sun’s rays, but not heat.

One possible solution is to create an extra layer of building on the front or secondary skin. Secondary skin can reduce the amount of heat entering the house.

Many materials and design options to choose from. One of the bamboo curtain.