Cozy Home Décor
A warm and welcoming home is so nice, especially in the winter months when it seems even the bathroom mirrors have frost on them and you can never really get warm. Today’s focus on reduced fuel consumption coupled with the high cost of heating means that many houses are drafty, chilly or downright cold. There’s no need to shiver throughout the season when you can keep warm with some clever home decorating tips and tricks.
A warm bathroom makes bathing more pleasant plus a nice hot shower can do a lot to get you fired up and ready to start the day. A plush bat mat will keep your feet off a cold tile floor; chose one with an anti-skid backing to help reduce the chance of slipping or falling. Toilet lid covers and other bathroom textiles help to hold heat in what can otherwise be a cool room – fabrics are a good way to keep more heat in a room. Look for heavyweight window treatments and use both a shower curtain and a shower curtain liner to hold more heat in the bathroom.
A towel warmer or heated towel rack is another great idea – not only will you enjoy hot fluffy towels after a bath or shower, the wet and damp towels will dry faster after use. A heated towel bar can be used to warm blankets, baby clothes, scarves, sweaters and mittens plus it is great for drying swimwear and fine washables.
When decorating a bedroom you will again want to look to textiles as a passive way to trap and enhance warmth. Bedrooms can be warmed up with everything from electric blankets and throws along to down comforters to cozy fleece or flannel sheets.
Read MoreVacationing With A Secure Home
With summer break coming up for schools all over the country, many families are beginning to plan vacations during the summer months. Indeed, it can be very nice to get away with your family to a nice destination and simply relax and have fun for a week or so. However, as any parent with experience planning such a vacation knows, it is never quite as simple as picking a destination and getting there – you have to worry about preparation, managing your children while on vacation and, most importantly, how to keep your home safe while you are away! This last aspect of preparation is particularly essential, as you cannot put yourself fully at ease until you are sure that you have left your home in a safe and secure condition. So, with that in mind, here are some tips for keeping your home secure while away.
o Talk to your neighbors before you leave. This is a very simple, very practical step that you can take, and can have a huge impact on your home remaining safe in your absence. If you have neighbors whom you trust, you can ask them to simply keep an eye on your property, so that if any suspicious activity occurs they can take steps to protect your home. Additionally, your neighbors can pick up your mail and newspapers, which is helpful because criminals look for things like piled up newspapers as indications that homes may be empty.
o Leave your home looking occupied. Of course, you don’t want to leave all the lights on and the doors open – but you don’t have to completely shut it down either. Try to have a friend drive you to the airport, so that you can leave your car or cars in the driveway and garage, giving the appearance that people are home. Additionally, it can’t hurt to keep a light or two on inside your house, though try to avoid making it obvious just which room is lit, as this can be noticed after a few days.
o Finally, make sure that your actual home security system is in good working shape before you leave. Ideally, you should have a working house alarm, in addition to extra features such as motion detectors and/or security cameras. You should also make sure that your smoke detectors are working, as these can play a crucial role in defending your home from an unfortunate accident such as a fire while you are not there to help on your own. If all of your security system’s features are working and set, and you take the precautions listed above, you can be as certain as possible that your home will remain secure in your absence.
- Max Neufeld is an online blogger and professional freelance contributor to multiple social media outlets. He contributes to marketing campaigns for websites like Home Security System.