Wednesday, 11 March 2015
Tuesday, 10 March 2015
Monday, 9 March 2015
Tips for Buying High-Quality, Low-Priced Furniture
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1. Know your wood types
Wood furniture falls into three categories: solid wood, veneers, and particle board or composite wood.
Solid wood furniture is typically more expensive than other types and looks great, but can be susceptible to scratches and water rings. Veneers have an inexpensive wood base covered by several thin layers of better-quality wood. Because of the cheaper core, veneers aren’t as expensive as solid wood pieces. Particle board and composite wood pieces are made from a combination of wood pulp, plastics, and resin, basically the scraps of the furniture world. These are the cheapest type of wood furniture and can look decent, but won’t hold up for decades.
2. Check drawers and cabinets
Open the drawers and cabinets. Make sure the drawer pulls all the way out, latches properly, and then shuts evenly. Make sure doors open, remain in an open position (instead of snapping closed while you’re trying to get something out of the cabinet), and shut again. Check the handles and knobs. They should fit tightly and not jiggle or turn.
3. Avoid nails and glue
Look for wood joined at ends and corners, not glued or nailed in. Known in the manufacturing world as wood joinery, these pieces are studier and can take more weight. Check out Basic Woodworking Joints from Wood Magazine to see examples.
Furniture tips: fabric
4. Consider your lifestyle
Let your lifestyle determine what colors and fabrics you choose. For example, I have a large, hyper dog constantly climbing on the furniture. If I brought home a white suede couch, it would be torn apart and stained in minutes. If you have kids or pets, stick with dark colors and stain-resistant tough fabrics like linen or tweed.
5. Be realistic about colors
I once bought an orange corduroy armchair at a furniture outlet store. At the time, my house was decorated in orange, blue, and white, and I thought I’d love those colors forever. As it turned out, “forever” was about a year. I got so sick of the bright orange I sold the chair for a fraction of what I paid. Learn from my mistake: Stick to neutral colors for your bigger and more expensive pieces. Save bold colors for décor pieces.
6. Inspect the legs
The legs should be heavy, wood, and jointed to the frame of the sofa or chair, not nailed. Plastic, rubber, or metal legs don’t look as nice, can tear up your floors, and won’t hold up as well. Same goes for nailed-in wood legs. If you’re spending more than $1,000 on a sofa, look for one with a fifth leg in the middle. They provide extra support – you won’t find them on many cheaper sofas.
7. Check the springs
If you like firm sofas, look for one with traditional coiled springs. If you want a softer feel, go with zigzag coils. Before you buy, take off the cushions and press down on the base of the sofa. The coils should push down and spring back into place immediately.
8. Test the cushions
Look for firm cushions with a removable cover matching on both sides. Firm cushions hold up better over time. Fully covered cushions cost a bit more than ones with the pattern on one side and a plain white or tan backing, but they’ll last longer and wear evenly if you can flip them over every few months. Find removable covers that are easily washable.
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Tips for Buying High-Quality, Low-Priced Furniture
Friday, 6 March 2015
Thursday, 5 March 2015
Wednesday, 4 March 2015
Monday, 2 March 2015
BEDROOM: FIND YOUR INNER ZEN WITH FENG SHUI
“Your bedroom should be your inner sanctuary, somewhere where you can rewind and switch off. Here are ten Feng Shui tips to improve your bedroom… don’t worry, there’s no wizardry involved.
There’s nothing like chilling out in your own bedroom. It’s the only place where you can get a few moments to yourself away from the kids, the wife, parents, partner, or whoever is wrecking your buzz. One great way to make your room more relaxing is to give it a bit of a Feng Shui makeover.
You don’t have to believe in any type of hocus pocus powers for Feng Shui to have an effect on your mood, because it’s all about de-cluttering your space and mind. Still not convinced? Sure what’s the worst that could happen?
Step 1: Freshen up the air
Make sure you open up the window regularly to let in fresh air… even in winter. Fresh air will add more oxygen into the room and you’ll definitely notice a difference after a short while. Plus the stink of man should shift fairly rapidly.
Step 2: Clear out clutter
Underneath your bed should be completely clean and tidy. There should be nothing left hiding under your bed, because clutter under here will just catch and hold dust, grime and stale air. It’s about time you got rid of those magazines anyway… you know what we’re talking about.
Step 3: Position your bed properly
The position of your bed is an important part of Feng Shui. Make sure that you can see the door from your bed, but don’t have it too close or you won’t be able to open it. Another place to avoid putting your bed is directly under a window. It has something to do with losing energy and you’ll want to hold on to as much energy as you can.
Step 4: Get a head start on your headboard
Go out and buy yourself a headboard, if you don’t already have one that is. If you can, make sure to get a strong wooden headboard and avoid anything that’s metal or hollow. Hollow ones make more noise, if you catch our drift.
Step 5: Be careful of what you hang
Hanging paintings in your room can have an immediate affect on your mood. Make sure not to have any dark or sad wall hangings.
Step 6: Avoid electrical equipment
This is probably going to be the hardest part for any man to do, but you’re going to have to get rid of the TV, Xbox and computer because it’s doing you no good in your bedroom. A good way to look at your house is by dividing it into three sections: work, play and sleep. Keep all unnecessary electrical items in your ‘play’ area and out of your ‘sleep’ area.
Step 7: Avoid hanging stuff from the celling
The only thing that should be hanging from the celling is your main light. Other than this, your celling should be clutter free. Take down the giant flag of your county colors because they’re doing you no good up there.
Step 8: Soft colors are best
Soft colors are the best for your bedroom. Don’t go for anything too bright or too dark and avoid having too much artificial light in the room. Your main light and a small table lamp should suffice.
Step 9: Mirror, mirror on the wall…
If you have a mirror on your bedroom wall then take it down. If you’re a bit vain this may be hard, but it does wonders for your ‘chi’… whatever that is. If you can’t, or simply refuse to take your mirror down, then make sure to point it away from you or cover it when you sleep.
Step 10: Work, Play, Sleep
Just like we recommended in step 6, you should never bring anything work related into the bedroom. You can worry about work when you’re in work. Your bedroom is for sleep and relaxation only. Follow these easy steps and you’ll be well on your way to de-cluttering your bedroom and your mind.
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BEDROOM: FIND YOUR INNER ZEN WITH FENG SHUI
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