Taken individually, they may appear harmless. However collectively, the air leaks in your home could be compromising your indoor air comfort and increasing your monthly energy bills by as much as 25 percent. Many of these leaks occur around a home's “envelope,” or the roof, attic, subfloor, exterior doors, windows and exterior walls. “If you added up all the leaks, holes and gaps in a typical...

No carpet lasts forever. Depending on the quality of the carpet you purchase, it could last from three to 20 years. However, you should be able to make any carpet outlive its projected lifespan by following these proactive maintenance tips: Grab dirt in its tracks Place a water-absorbent mat outside your front door and a rug just inside the door to trap incoming dirt. Consider making your home a...

Color makes a big impact on our emotions. Blue can create a calming feeling, green is thought to reduce stress, and red brings excitement. Bringing a pop of color into your kitchen can quickly change the mood of your space. We'll show you how to make it happen with the following tips: Add a Coat of Paint When it comes to adding color to a room, the first thing most of us think of is changing the...

Creating an appealing and comfortable home environment is essential, especially in the bedroom. Whether you prefer lots of light or want to make sure it’s nice and dark while you’re sleeping, choosing the right window treatments that fit your personal style can make your bedroom a peaceful and relaxing haven where you can rest and retreat from the outside world. How to Choose Window Treatments...

Sick of looking at your yard through torn or dirty screens? Consider an upgrade that will add flexibility to your life: retractable screen doors. Here are three ways retractable screen doors from All Seasons, a division of Polar Shades, will spice up your home. 1. Reduce Your Cleaning Needs Traditional screens must be removed to clean the glass behind them, while screen-less doors and windows are...

If a friend has asked for your opinion on wallpaper, you might expect to see a sampling of pictures to decorate the screen on their computer. But these days, the wallpaper may be of another kind – the paper kind, printed with a design and pasted to a wall with adhesive. After dominating interior design during the 1970s and 80s, wallpaper is enjoying a comeback, proving that design trends really...

A contemporary design style offers a clean look to bring to your kitchen. People love the fresh look that clean lines, minimalist shapes, and cool colors provide. The only problem with this style is it can be uninviting. Adding warmth can help the kitchen feel like a cozy gathering place. Here are a few ideas you can incorporate when designing a warm contemporary kitchen. Include Wood in the...

Home organization isn't only good for the aesthetics of living spaces. A cluttered home can frequently cause a cluttered, stressful mind as misplaced and piling objects can make us feel anxious, invoke feelings of guilt (in which we know we should be more organized), frustrate us when things aren't easily found, and inhibit creativity and productivity. Thankfully, getting to a calm and...

Gardeners understand the love-frustration-reward bond that develops with a vegetable garden. In the spring, the ground cannot get warm fast enough. You till the soil and dig and plant, then you wait and wait for seedlings to emerge. Finally, you're rewarded with a harvest of vegetables – and an ensuing harvest of weeds to keep you hopelessly but blissfully tethered to your garden. The fall is a...

The scorching heat of summer is behind us. That means it's time to make sure your home is ready for the cooler fall months. Here's a list of 15 fall home maintenance must-dos to prepare your home. 1. Check Your Gutters Now that monsoon season has passed, take care of any loose gutters, broken pieces, and detached downspouts. While you're up there, make sure there's no leaves or other debris...

Designing your home should be a fun undertaking. You get to impart your own unique style while experimenting with colors, textures, and technology that can make your living situation brighter. If you take a wrong turn, however, your design dreams could turn into decorating disasters. To help you avoid those unfortunate pitfalls, take a look at these ten design don'ts: 1. Leave Red Out of Relaxing...

Tile comes in all shapes, sizes and colors. You can install it on floors, walls or as decoration. It can make a mural or mosaic and can transform an otherwise ordinary living space into something fresh, new and exciting. However, choosing the right tile for your home can also be a bit overwhelming. Using the right tile in the right space typically comes down to three factors: your budget, your...

You didn't intend to make them, but there they are, for everyone to see: the design mistakes you've made because you got carried away with what was fundamentally a good idea. Fortunately, four common design mistakes don't have to be permanent. If you're stuck for ideas, this condition is fixable, too, with the following: Design mistake No. 1: Shelves that look stuffed Fix it by removing all the...