Upholstery Cleaning Home Remedies

Carpet cleaning machines come with many attachments that make cleaning upholstery and curtains a lot easier. You can even find smaller machines that are designed only for the purpose of cleaning upholstery. Before you head out the buy the next great thing at some big box store, you may want to try some home remedies for general cleaning and spot cleaning that will save you time and money.

Elbow grease gets the job done on the cheap

Word to the wise: before applying any water based cleaners to your furniture upholstery make sure it is rated either W, S or WS ( W means clean with water based detergent and WS means; S means use waterless cleaning method similar to dry cleaning; WS means you can use either type of cleaner depending on the type of stain.) Once you know which kind to use, you can prepare for the job.

You can either buy a cleaner designed to clean upholstery or you can make it yourself. The homemade version is right there in your laundry room. Measure out ¼ cup of the detergent and had 1 cup of water to it. Mix this into foam with either electric hand mixer or with a whisk. Test the mixture on an inconspicuous spot on the furniture and allow it to dry to make sure it won’t damage the material.  If all goes well then use this inexpensive cleaner on the rest of your furniture.

Preparation is important, so you should vacuum the furniture to get rid of lose dirt or animal fur. If there is any crusty stuff on the furniture you can use a thin edge tool like a spatula or butter knife to remove it. And then you can just brush or vacuum later.

After preparing the area, dip a clean white towel (a colored towel may “bleed” its color) into your home made solvent and gently apply it to your furniture. You shouldn’t scrub hard or you may damage the material. Instead, use a wiping motion while lifting up and away from the material to prevent rubbing the stains in deeper.

After the foam becomes dark apply a clean while towel to remove the foam.  Once the furniture is washed and the foam has been removed apply a fresh wet clean towel to rinse off the furniture completely. Allow the furniture to dry before using it.

Smaller spot cleaning jobs

Let’s face it, accidents happen. Quick action will make those times easier to deal with if you plan ahead. You probably already have the ingredients you need for a quick clean up right there in your kitchen. Different stains require different cleaners:

•  For a sudden soda spill you can add a squirt of dish soap to 2 cups of warm water and apply it to the spill with a smooth wiping action, lifting the stain away from the surface as you work. This can’t be stored for later use, but it is so quick and easy to make you really don’t need to store it.
•  Berry stains are tough stains that can be cleaned with 1 tablespoon vinegar and 2/3 cups rubbing alcohol. Use a blotting action rather than rubbing to remove the stain. After the stain is completely removed apply a small amount of cold water to clean the solvent off the upholstery.
•  A paste made with baking soda will help clean a small stain with little water if you do not want to use water and wait for it to dry. Once the paste dries, brush or vacuum the paste away.

Cleaning household upholstery isn’t hard and a little preparation comes in handy for sudden cleaning jobs. A little elbow grease goes a long, long way.

Sharon Freeman is an Australian freelance writer who writes about www.carpetcleaningmelbourneelite.com.au  and loves giving readers helpful tips to keep your homes tidy and clean.

Classic Car

 I always like seeing classic cars. This yellow classic Volkswagen beetle that I saw yesterday attracted my attention straightly. I dream to have one :)

MellowYellow

Things to Consider When Buying a New Mattress

We all know that buy new home furnishings can be a costly deal, especially if you have purchased a new apartment and want to fill it up with essential furniture items. Out of all the furniture pieces in a home, bedding or mattress is the most important purchase one make in terms of comfort and stability. The significance of buying a perfect mattress for yourself and other members of your family lies in the fact that uncomfortable bedding can cause severe health problems including body pain, spine injuries, neck pain etc. Other than these problems it can also cause sleeping issues, which is itself a root cause of various kinds of mental and physical problems.

If you have just shifted to a new place or looking to replace your old worn out sealy mattress, you must keep certain things in mind before making the final purchase. In this article, we will guide you with some basic factors that you must consider while buying good mattresses sealy.

Considerations to Keep In Mind While Purchasing A Mattress

Budgeting:  Since it can be an expensive deal, make sure you have a good amount of money to spend on it. You must take your budget into consideration and requirements before walking into the showroom. You can look around for some reasonable options as well by shopping around to various malls and nearby marketplaces. However, it is always advisable to buy branded mattresses if you really want to experience comfort for a longer period of time. Buying online can also get you some good deals and help you save lots of money on good good brands.

Comfort and Firmness: Comfort and firmness is the primary feature and should not be overlooked in any circumstances. Even some expensive mattresses may seem appealing and comfortable at first look, but can actually cause spinal problems in the long run. Pick a mattress having firm-soft scale right at the center of the bedding to ensure that your spine bends in the correct posture while you are asleep.

Coil: The number of coils present in a mattress plays an important role in determining the quality and comfort level of it. Pick a mattress with good number of coils so that it is able to provide individual support to your shoulders and hips while keeping your back straight. However, if you are considering interlocking coil mattress to buy, fewer coils will be appropriate.

Size: Size of the sealy mattress is directly proportional to the size of the bed you have purchased. A queen-size mattress is appropriate for double beds, for average built couples. But, if you or your partner is taller than 6 feet, consider going for king sized mattresses, followed by king sized bed. On the other hand, if you are looking for a single bed mattress then standard sizes may work well.

Warranty: Once purchased, mattresses sealy can be used for over 10 years. In some cases, they can also last up to 25 years. However, to be on safe sides consider opting for a model providing at least 10 years of warranty.

Environmentally Conscious Joinery – Making Wooden Furnishings and Fittings Sustainably

Wood, a natural resource is a basic component of joinery. These days companies involved in joining and carpentry are including environmental programme in place. Sustainable joinery is about sustainable supply. The first step here is finding suppliers whose own environmental policies ensure that your wood is not impacting in an adverse way on the environment.

Organisations like Forests Forever ensure that trees are planted to replace the trees felled for the industry. As such material sourcing is the key. Whenever wood and materials are sourced from more than one country, as is often the case with joinery and carpentry, it is important then to make sure that the suppliers in each country operates within the laws of that country.

The Forest Stewardship Council or FSC is a key body in this area. The FSC independently inspects any forest from where timber is taken and certifies the forest as being sustainably managed. This certifies the wood an accreditation increasingly required by many customers, which in turn has made the industry itself still more environmentally conscious.

Higher end joinery companies make serious efforts, at the very least, to match the legal requirements in all countries from which they source their timber. In actual fact many of the best respected joinery companies in the UK are making an effort to surpass the legal requirements for sustainable sourcing and forestry. These companies ensure that the whole level of industry is steadily focussing on growing sustainable sourcing.

It’s important to note that timber and wood products are themselves very energy efficient. Properly sourced, they require very little in the way of energy to prepare and are extremely thermally efficient when they are installed.

Good quality joinery also has another sustainable facet to it. By using properly treated and prepared wood, which rejects moisture and retains its strength for decades, if not longer, customers are able to have installations done only once, rather than having it repeatedly. Properly prepared and assembled joinery will last for a lifetime meaning that replacement materials should rarely be required. An industry that builds to last, rather than building to be replaced in a few years, is an industry that truly understands the concept of sustainability.

Wood is a beautiful substance to look at. With the environmental governance of bodies like the FSC controlling the industry, it’s once again possible to look at a new joinery installation and feel that it is as harmonious with the environment as it appears to be.

Modern joining and carpentry is often used in conservatories, orangeries and other add-ons to existing homes. Using exposed timberwork and modern glass you can design and build a structure of great beauty with an element of tradition combined with a more modern feel thanks to the glazing. Timberwork also forms the basis for roof lanterns, which are a wonderful way to allow natural light into a previously dim space and can make glorious talking points in their own right, while providing dramatic views of the sky at day and night.

Modern joinery is as environmentally conscious as it is long lasting. Thus, a perfect combination of beauty and reliability.

Author Bio:

The above article is composed and edited by Irene Simpson. She is associated with many Home and Garden communities as their freelance writer and adviser. In her free time she writes articles related to orangery, joinery, conservatory designs and many more.

When You Need to Prepare an Efficient Travel to India

India is one country in the world that is rich with culture and diversity. A nature and culture lover will surely like to choose India as their next travel destination. I know someone who has been staying in India for four months; even she said that she still needed more time to explore this country. I can tell that she loves this country so much!

 

Anyway, last night I chatted with a good friend. She’s a really big fan of Bollywood movies.  It’s no wonder at all if India is already becoming her dream destination since a long time. She ever told me several times that seeing the Taj Mahal with her own eyes is a special moment that must happen in her life. She planned to visit India next year but the restricted funds made her in doubt.

I told her that preparing an efficient travel isn’t impossible nowadays since she can benefit from travel portal websites. AirtoIndia.com is a much recommended travel portal that will help her to prepare her trip to India. For everyone with limited budget, saving money on every aspect of travel expenditure such as flight tickets, accommodation and transportation expenses are always becoming their most concerns. You can rely on AirtoIndia travel agency; it’s the right place that allows you not only to book cheap flights to india, but also to find best deals of hotel room and rental car cost that you can afford! Having a travel planning helper surely reduces your hassles. Like my friend, are you ready to prepare your trip to India?