Mellow Yellow : Yellowish Sunset

It’s time for Mellow Yellow! This sunset moment was captured from our balcony, a few days ago. Happy Monday…

Little Bees and Lotus Flower

It’s my first Monochrome Weekend. Nice to join and share my photos here. Have a great weekend, every one…

How to have an Efficient Laundry Room

If you still have an untidy and unorganized laundry room, this article, written by Amanda Hinnant, will help you. An efficient laundry room will make you easier to do your all laundry jobs.

Transporting and Sorting
Few moments are more absurd than the times you beg your loved ones for their dirty laundry. That's why you should put a few receptacles in strategic locations that will make transporting and sorting clothes easier.

• A hamper, a basket, or a bin should go in each family member's bedroom or bathroom. Even if you can't get every family member to do his or her wash, you can save time by giving everyone a portable receptacle. Make sure the hamper has soft edges.


• Set up a central three-bin sorter in the laundry room where people bring their individual hampers. Laundry that doesn't make its way to the sorter doesn't get washed. (If your child's jeans du jour are left dirty, it's not your problem.) Any family member over four feet tall should be able to separate lights and darks. Hand-washables go into the third bin.


• Keep dry cleaning away from the laundry room to avoid confusion. A bag with handles, kept in the closet, works well.

Dabbing, Pouring, Restoring
Keep everything you need near the washer, on a shelf preferably at eye level. If you don't have room, try a rolling caddie that slides between the washer and dryer.

• Arrange products from left to right in the order you use them. For example, start with stain removers, then follow with bleaches and detergent, then fabric softener, and lastly spray-on starch and distilled water for ironing. Be sure to keep bleach and ammonia (this includes many window cleaners) away from each other; when mixed, they can produce toxic fumes.


• Boxes or baskets on the shelf make grouped items more accessible and less likely to topple over and leak. For example, keep stain removers, both commercial and homemade, in one box.


• Consider corralling all wardrobe-related items (sewing supplies, shoe polish, spot remover) on this one shelf. If there is room, rags, paper towels, and household-hint books can find a home here, too.

Drying
For clothes that might shrink in the dryer, get a folding drying rack or a collapsible drying mesh to avoid creases.

A set of pant stretchers will dry pants and make creases down the legs so you can spend less time ironing them.

I’ll divide it into two posts. Next post will mention folding, hanging and ironing. See you…

Source:realsimple.com

Mellow Yellow : Yellow Orchid

It’s my first entry… nice to join this meme! I have this beautiful yellow orchids in my front yard.

Make Your Own Wall Gallery!

Are you still looking for an idea to decorate your wall? Painting is beautiful thing and it’s perfect for home decoration; but it can’t be so expensive. Instead of investing in one massive piece of artwork for the space, why don’t you consider on creating a gallery of smaller works. Depending on the pieces and frames you choose, the look can range from polished and cool to original and cozy. The process is easy, and chances are you probably already have enough miscellaneous prints, postcards, sketches and photos (including your own masterpieces!) to get started.

I’ll share here guidance to make your own wall gallery; written by Meryl Levin. Check it out…

Step 1: Choose Your Art
Any image is fair game. If you want a streamlined, modern look, keep the artwork uniform, such as all black-and-white photographs, or all illustrations by the same artist. For a more eclectic display, mix a wide range of styles and media (photos, sketches, etc.). Even if you’re going for an eclectic effect, try to keep most of the pieces in the same basic palette, adding one or two contrasting images to keep the display dynamic.

Get creative in your search. Include postcards and snapshots you’ve taken yourself, or images clipped from books, calendars or magazines.

Step 2: Frame Your Art
Custom framing can be pricey, and choosing art in standard sizes -- 4x6, 5x7 and so on -- will enable you to find a variety of affordable frames anywhere (Exposures has a good selection). For an odd-sized piece, order a custom matte from a local frame shop or online (try pictureframes.com) and put it in a standard-size frame. The simplest approach to framing is to use the same style for every piece. Whether you choose black, white or metal frames, the look will be clean and unfussy, and will place emphasis on the artwork.

Step 3: Arrange Your Gallery
Before you put anything on the wall, place the framed works on the floor or a table, and play with the arrangement. Try to keep the spacing between pieces similar throughout. Once you have a layout you like, take a picture so you don’t forget what went where.

Step 4: Make a Template
Trace each frame on contact paper and cut out the shapes to make templates. On the front of each template, mark with a Sharpie the spot where the hanging hardware should go.

Step 5: Adhere Your Templates to the Wall
Remove the backing and adhere your templates to the wall in the arrangement you’ve chosen. This is your chance to adjust placement, spacing and leveling (use a level for best results).

Step 6: Hang Your Art
Once the contact-paper version of your gallery is perfected, use the markings to install hardware. Nails can be hammered through the contact paper and the paper cut away; for screws, poke a hole and use a pencil to mark the wall underneath so you’ll know where to drill. Carefully hang each piece, then step back and admire your gallery!

Source:ivillage

Planting a Vegetable Garden Tips

There are many tips on planting a vegetable garden that will help you find success, whether you're growing a wide array of vegetables or just want to grow the best tomatoes in the neighborhood.

Finding your place
The most important thing you can do to ensure success for your vegetable garden is to locate it in the best place in your yard. The vast majority of things you will want to plant in your garden like full sun best, so planting your garden in a sunny spot will go a long way toward ensuring the success of your crop.

Of course sunny spots are often dry spots as well, so if you have a sunny spot that holds moisture well without being soggy, that's a good place for your garden. If all your sunny spots tend to be dry, however, you can always amend the soil to make it more hospitable for your plants.

If you're going to plant some things that like less sun or need a cooler environment, such as lettuce, consider planting your lettuce under a plant that will get tall and cast shade on your seedlings.

Preparing the soil
The most important tips on planting a vegetable garden don't really have to do with planting—preparing the soil before you plant gives your vegetables a good head start.

If you don't know much about the quality of your soil, a soil test kit can give you a lot of information about what's going on down there. You can do the tests yourself or give a soil sample from the area where you would like to put your garden to your local cooperative extension service. They can recommend soil amendments based on the types of vegetables you want to plant.

In general, most vegetables like a well-balanced and well-drained soil. Use of a conventional or organic fertilizer, as well as any amendments needed to change the pH of your soil should be done before you plant. Most common vegetable plants thrive in soils with a pH of five to seven.

To make the soil more friendly to vegetable plants, it's a great idea to add compost or manure to your garden plot as well as the other soil amendments. You can't really add too much compost, as it provides nutrients and a good home for beneficial microbes, as well as aerating the soil and improving its drainage.

If possible, till these amendments into the soil a few weeks before you want to plant your vegetables and water the soil well after adding them.

Another tips:

• Planning the design of a vegetable garden will take a lot of your time when you are getting ready to plant. You need to know what vegetables you are going to plant, what kind of light requirements they need and when they should be planted for best results.


• Knowing what planting zone you are in will tell you when to plant different items, or find out your area's frost-free date from the county Cooperative Extension Service. Most plants can safely be planted after that date, but some cool-weather plants like broccoli may need to be planted before that date to get a good growing season.


• Mulching the vegetable garden is a good idea, because it helps cut down on weeding and keeps the plants moist. Mulch in combination with a drip-irrigation watering system will lower your water bill and ensure that more water is going to the roots of the plants, where it is needed most.


• Pest control is very important after you have planted your vegetables. Do a regular inspection of your plants and remove unwanted insects that you can see, or spray with chemical insecticides or use organic methods when necessary to get rid of pests.


• If you have a dog that likes to dig or other wildlife that is encroaching on your garden, try fencing in the garden space so your animals can't access it. You can also buy netting to help prevent the birds from eating your berries.

Site selection, soil preparation and planting your plants at the appropriate time for where you live are the most important tips for planting a vegetable garden. Controlling weeds and pests and ensuring that the garden is well-watered will go even farther to make sure you get to enjoy the fruits (and vegetables) of your labor.

Source: here