Myia’s Renovations and Realty

John Billington our expert of the day, writes:

We are constantly discovering more astonishing truths about the environmental repercussions of living wasteful lifestyles. The national perspective regarding waste, recycling and energy use is undergoing a drastic transformation as citizens come to the realization that we do not have unlimited resources to sustain future generations. The effort to reduce our collective ecological footprint on earth is a matter of each person taking responsibility for their own consumption, rather than only a few citizens making enormous changes. One simple action we can all take to contribute to a cleaner future is instituting energy efficient solutions for home lighting.

Standard incandescent light bulbs, while initially cheap, have high lifetime operation costs and produce excessive energy waste. Incandescent bulbs only use a small fraction of the energy they consume to produce light, and give off heat that wastes a majority of the consumed energy. The easiest and most affordable action you can take to save energy and money is replacing all incandescent bulbs in your home with compact fluorescent lights, or CFLs. Fluorescent tube lights have long been used for commercial and industrial applications, but their miniature counterparts are revolutionizing our ability to reap the benefits of energy efficient lighting in standard light fixtures. While initially priced higher than incandescent bulbs, CFLs consume only about a third of the electricity used by incandescent bulbs and can last up to ten times longer! New technology also gives us the option between a CFL in cool white, which appears like the fluorescent lighting to which we are accustomed, or in a warm white, which looks the same as the light produced by an incandescent bulb.

Installing light fixtures with dimming capability is a more involved way to conserve the energy your home uses for lighting. The ability to adjust the level of light in a room gives you the flexibility of using only necessary energy, thus reducing your negative contributions to the environment. Fluorescent lights are now available with three level dimming capabilities, so you can optimize your energy conservation by instituting both fluorescent lighting technology and light dimming elements into your home.

Using smart, energy efficient lighting in your home will save more than money. By consuming less energy, you will reduce the amount of harmful carbon dioxide, sulfur oxide and nuclear waste that you would otherwise contribute to the atmosphere. Regardless of the extent of modifications you undertake in your home, every small effort is a part of a vast paradigm shift that will enable us to leave behind a cleaner, safer environment for future generations.

A.Caxton our expert of the day, writes:

Not everyone can afford the luxury of expensive interior decorating and these days it is all about saving money not spending it. Luckily there are ways in which you can save money when it comes to interior design so you should still be able to find something to suit you.

Where to Look For Bargains

You can look absolutely everywhere for ideas when it comes to interior decorating. Second hand shops are particular good and often you find some really good, cheap ideas in them. Remember that somebody’s rubbish is always somebody else’s treasure! So, do not be ashamed to look in second hand shops in order to find various items for your home. Discount stores can also be good and whilst many things in them may be tacky, you can sometimes find the odd treasure hidden in there. The kinds of things you will mainly find in these places include cushions, fabric, curtains, furniture and pictures as well as picture frames.

The internet is also an amazing place these days and auction sites such as Ebay can be a haven for interior designers. You can find literally everything you could possible think of and the prices are usually dirt cheap! You are bound to find something you like on an auction site so it is definitely worth a look.

Also, have you ever thought to look at a yard sale? Again, just like second hand shops, you are going on the theory that somebody’s rubbish is somebody else’s treasure and you may actually find something that you really like. If not you haven’t wasted anything but you could have gained a lot potentially.

Overall you can find bargains absolutely everywhere and all will help you to create that perfect overall look in the home.

The Unexpected Costs

Something you do not often think about when considering interior design is how much it costs to actually put everything together. It takes potentially a long time to redecorate a whole room, never mind a whole house! It usually takes more than juts one person and usually these extra workers can come at a large price!

Unfortunately usually it does mean that you do have to splash out on the extra expensive of professionals as even though they do cost money, they will produce good results. It is better than paying an average worker and getting left with less than impressive results for the same amount of work!

Overall it is possible to bargain hunt for items but when it comes to the actual work involved you may have to pay that extra cost!

Keith Londrie our expert of the day, writes:

You don’t need to spend a fortune by hiring a professional interior design company not to be artistic to have beautiful home. You don’t need huge budget to turn your home into a cozy place. All you need is a bit of time and the desire to make it a better living place.

First of all know the function of each room. Clarify the priorities is your living room solely intended for day activities or your home office is there too? Do you have separate dining room or an eat-in kitchen? Does your household has children and what’s their age? The aim of interior decorating is not only to improve the look but to improve the functionality of each room. Once with your hands on the subject you will find that there are plenty of solutions for big and small spaces that can serve almost any need and satisfy any taste.

The next thing to consider is your personal preferences. While clarifying the functions of each room is mostly about the arrangement of the main furnishings, the second part is about their style as well as the walls and floor coverings, their type and color. Generally speaking there are established color schemes that are deemed to be best for each room. For example peach orange is perfect for kitchens since is stimulates appetite and is not offensive. Bedrooms are often white or within the place spectrum of colors as they should provide comfort and relaxation.

Living rooms can benefit from much more bright and strong colors as well as of a combination of two or three colors. As to the floor coverings you only need to think about which type will e most practical. Obviously tiles are good to high circulation areas which are likely to be cleaned often kitchens, entry halls, while wooden floors are good for areas that need to be cozy, warm such as bedrooms and living rooms. Another significant factor when choosing your floor coverings is the budget.

Once you are done with the basics walls and floors, and have all your furniture placed properly, the fun part begins. And may be this is where interior decorating says it all. It’s about all the tiny bits and pieces of your interior design that will make your home unique, cozy and comfortable. A fluffy pillow on the sofa, a rug under the coffee table, a vase of roses on the dining table or a set of candles over the fireplace are the things that make difference. The accessories type and style depends on you. If you are keen on traditional stuff than go for simple but elegant vases, photo frames, candle holders. Want to go ethnic find an Indian shop and get some wooden baskets, rugs and leather pillows.

Once you go over this you are done with the interior decorating task. It is not that difficult and all you need to do is to free your imagination and check a few home decor magazines or websites. And remember interior decoration is not one of task it is a constant thing that should and will continue naturally in time as you and your lifestyle changes.