There are times when you are home to yourself and you long for company.
Acute temperatures in uninsulated, ventilated attics affect comfort and energy efficiency in living spaces beneath. Many homeowners elect to seal and insulate the attic, cutting indoor heat gain in summer and heat loss during winter. A comprehensive attic sealing project typically includes applying polyurethane spray foam insulation to the underside of the roof sheathing. The…
A seat cushion might still be cleaned, even if it is not machine washable. The type of cleaning depends upon the nature of this problem: Pet hair, dander and dust require vacuuming to remove the debris and smells, while stains may require more special therapies. Dust, Dirt and Pet Dander Cushions, no matter what they’re…
Heat-tolerant, drought-tolerant and requiring minimum care, Gaillardia aristata “Arizona Red Shades,” a cultivar of this plant commonly called blanketflower, is up for just about anything, except moist soil. From spring through autumn, the big orange-red to yellow flowers bloom on 10- to 12-inch stalks. This cultivar grows in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones…
Serial and blogger thrifter Hilary Walker believes in the power of working with what you have got. Nowhere is that more evident than at the Fort Worth, Texas, leasing she shares with husband David, a music teacher. The Walkers stuffed the 1940s house with antiques, roadside furniture, exceptional artwork and repurposed household items that all…
Many contemporary and traditional sink designs expose our waste and water supply lines. If your new sink will show off your pipes, you will want to decide on a good sink trap — specifically a P-trap, named because of its shape, such as the letter”P” — and matching sink fittings. There are two fundamental sorts…
White insides are more popular than ever, but I will make a pitch for often-overlooked black because a characteristic colour on your dining area. Injecting a generous swath of shameful is a simple way to add sophistication and drama into a space. But before you clad your entire dining area in the colour, take a…
Basil, indigenous to Asia, is now a buckle staple in restaurants across the world. The familiar and aromatic sweet ginger (Ocimum basilicum) is grown as a summer annual that generally reaches roughly 2 feet tall. Even if you’re already committed to sweet basil as your herb garden mainstay, it is well worth taking a peek…
When this homeowner bought her Craftsman bungalow in Pasadena, California, it was stripped of a lot of its charms by bad renovations. She and her boyfriend at the time worked on the home constantly, but they went a bit overboard on Craftsman style. After she split from the renovation-helping Craftsman-inclined boyfriend, the home seemed just…
Maybe you have found yourself running back and forth between cooking inside and cooking outside on a hot afternoon? The best method to keep this from occurring is to properly design your kitchen so that it can be the indoor kitchen. Now, this does not mean you need a large outdoor kitchen in actuality, a…
If there’s one item midcoast Maine and Tuscany have in common, it’s rugged beauty. In Tuscany ruggedness comes in fieldstone villas, weathered timbers and aged bricks; in Maine it comes in the woods, sublime coastline and jagged granite outcroppings. So possibly a Tuscany-inspired exterior kitchen at the tony town of Camden, Maine, is not such…