5 things you should remember for before painting your living space

Though a dull white wall seems quite boring, especially in your living space, we somehow manage to put up with it only because the idea of painting intimidates us. That’s the story of many people like you and me, but the truth is, a dull white is a gloomy colour that also affects your mood. So, the best idea is to get your walls painted and that too, without much worries. So, let’s talks about painting your walls and some important pointers that you just can’t afford to overlook while doing the task.

image:pixabay.com/en/brush-roll-painter-painters-masking-1034901

1. Opt for the Colours that Reflect Light

This is one of the most important parts of painting your walls and unfortunately we fail to notice this. Today, the concept of micro-housing is drawing so much of attention and the space crunch is the biggest problem. But, with proper planning, you can actually make a space look bigger. For that, you need to choose colours that reflect light. Recently, I have visited one of my friend’s 2 BHK flat in Rajarhat, where I have seen wonderful use of colours. The entire living room was painted lemon yellow, which looks stunning when the sunlight peeps in from the opposite window. She has also used ceiling lights, which also helps in reflecting light from the walls, thus making the yellow look absolutely splendid. Apart from lemon yellow, you can also choose ivory, peach, light blue, to reflect light and make the space look bigger

2. Choose appropriate designs and textures

Textured painting is highly in vogue these days. You can opt for it too. A single colour in every corner of the house makes it look boring. But, you need to identify the perfect area for textured paint, as it does not look good everywhere. There should be a theme in choosing the textures and make sure that the colour is in perfect line with the furniture and decor artefacts in your home.

3. Avoid using same colour in the entire room

Avoid monotony in all forms. One of them is painting the entire house with the same colour. It doesn’t mean that you have to make an overuse of different colours. Just choose the colour palate in such a way that each of the colours complement each other perfectly. However, make sure that the colour of the sitting areas, dining, study rooms are warm and inviting.

4. Get Appropriate Primer

You just can’t apply paint directly on the walls. To maintain the sheen and luster of the paint, you need to get appropriate primer. Primer seals the walls, thus making the base to put up the paint. It fills the holes and cracks, so that the paint can adhere well. What’s more! A primer also prevents flashing or a shiny spot on the wall, thus giving it a balanced look throughout.

5. Brush before rolling

After priming the walls, make sure that you are brushing and rolling the walls properly. The better the brushing, the better the finish. So, don’t just forget to brush the wall before rolling. Use high-quality brush to paint about an inch out from corners, the ceiling, and the baseboard. These are areas that a roller cannot reach. Following the brush, use a roller to flatten out the brush marks. This way you will get a flat surface, where the paint will sit well.

Paint colours can dramatically change the mood and interior design of your home. At the same time, it enlivens your drooping spirits.

Summary: Painting your walls can change the aura of your interiors but at the same time, you need to make sure that you are doing it right. This blog will help you to get an idea about room painting.

Here are the 5 Things in Your Home You Should Clean Every Week

Cleaning is likely no one’s favorite chore. This task is extremely tedious and the fact that homeowners usually have to do it after work when they feel tired or during the weekend, when they should be relaxing doesn’t help. That’s why cleaning services like The Moxie Maids are so popular these days, as they offer homeowners a break from this tiresome chore.

The most difficult part of it is the cleaning itself. But equally challenging is remembering what you already cleaned and how often you need to clean your home. Sometimes we tend to forget what’s left in our home to clean.

Obviously, some things in our home are a higher priority when it comes to cleaning. In this article, we are going to discuss some of the items and areas in your home that require a weekly cleaning.

The Bathroom

Let’s start with the most obvious one – the surfaces in your bathroom. Everyone knows that it’s important to maintain your bathroom and ideally clean it once a week. Why is that?

The bathroom is the dirtiest place in any home and most likely to harbor a lot of bacteria and other dangerous microbes. Coincidentally, it’s also the place where we clean ourselves.

Therefore, it’s in your best interest to give your bathroom a thorough cleaning more frequently.

Rugs and Carpets

While this article isn’t titled “The most obvious places you need to clean”, we feel this one also deserves a mention. While some of the items on this list are fairly obvious, we bet you don’t know the reason why they need to be cleaned this frequently.

Case in point – how often do you clean your carpets? Bear in mind, cleaning a carpet takes more than vacuuming, you need to wash it more frequently than you probably do.

Carpets and rugs tend to gather a lot of buildup of dust, dead skin cells, pet hairs and other debris that is not easy to reach as it gets pushed deeper every time you walk on the rug.

Bed Sheets

You might think replacing and cleaning your bed sheets every week is an overkill, but let’s face it – replacing your bed sheets can be tiring and you’re using that as an excuse to keep them way longer.

However, bed sheets contain a lot of sweat, body oils and dead skin cells you leave behind night after night. That’s why if you want to have a good night’s sleep and a proper rest, you need to sleep on clean sheets.

Kitchen Appliances

Every maid cleaning service will tell you that cleaning your kitchen appliances once every week is mandatory. As you prepare the food on the kitchen surfaces and using the appliances, some bits of the food tend to stay behind.

These pieces invite bacteria, insects and even rodents. That is why you need to make sure you don’t leave out food for unwanted guests and clean your kitchen appliances (and kitchen surfaces) regularly.

Dusty Furniture

Dust does not only look unsightly but can also damage your furniture if there’s too much build up, as it’s abrasive and can scratch the surface of the furniture.

Furthermore, dust can be really dangerous for people suffering from allergies or a weakened immune system. This is why you need to dust your home at least once a week.

4 Things to Consider when Choosing a Hot Tub

Hot tubs are a lot of fun and unmistakably a great addition to your home. There’s plenty of room for various activities ranging from casual relaxation after a hard day’s work to hydrotherapy and exercise. Invite your friends over and make a little hot tub party, or spend a nice, romantic evening with your partner.

As you can see, options are plenty, but so is the choice of hot tubs on the market and picking the right one is exciting, but can be confusing if you are new to the scene. We’ve reached out to guys at Aqua Paradise and they were kind enough to let us know what to be on a lookout for when buying the right one.

Size matters

Before making any purchase, first, you need to ask yourself a few questions: how you will be using it, and what would the main purpose be? How many people at average will be spending time inside? There’s no point investing in something too expensive to upkeep with add-ons you are never going to use.

You should remember that hot tubs require regular maintenance, and the bigger the hot tub is, the more time and effort it requires. It’s not just that, hot tubs need a power source to warm, and whether the whole family is going to use it or maybe just your partner and you, you need to pick the size accordingly.

You should also consider picking the best materials, it is better to choose energy efficiency over luxury because you are going to save more money in the long run plus you’d be thinking green.

Are you comfortable?

Since hot tubs are made for relaxation, there’s no point stressing that comfort is crucial. Looks and size don’t really matter in this case if you are annoyed by the way seats are arranged or if jets are poking your kidneys everywhere you sit. That’s why any serious Jacuzzi store will let you try before you buy.

You should thoroughly test the tub when it’s filled with water, you and your friends and family should make yourself at home and try every angle, every seat and see how it feels. This is the proper way of telling if it actually fits your demands.

Pay attention to jets and their distribution, are they helping or annoying. More jets do not guarantee comfort.

How do you plan to use it?

Another thing you should consider is the main purpose of the spa. If you plan to use it for therapy or exercise, there are those designed just for that in terms of shape and jet functionality. There are spas that focus specifically on exercise and have a longer and more narrow shape designed for swimming in place.

You can also choose between in-ground and above-ground hot tub, and consider also using a built-in model with all of its add-ons included in the package, or maybe you’d like to get a skeleton tub and customize it to perfectly suit your needs.

Less is more

Before you go out and buy you should do a little research and see what is offered on the market, check all the prices and then balance between your desires and budget. You don’t really need to spend a fortune on gadgets which make the tub aesthetically luxurious.

If hydrotherapy and massage are your focus then you will do just fine with the basic model. Remember that you can always upgrade with almost any feature so you should not feel let down if you didn’t get some of the fancy add-ons which do elevate the whole experience, but are not necessary to enjoy a hot tub for what it is to its fullest.

Ways to Make Your Home Healthier from the Inside Out

Our homes are places where we put our own personal touches on decor, entertain our loved ones on special occasions, and watch our families grow together. However, there are many risks involved with home ownership. One of these risks is that we do not always have control over everything that enters our homes. The air quality in our neighborhoods may not be something we have direct influence of, but it can always be improved from the inside. Below are a few ways to improve the air in your home and protect your family in the process.

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Phase out harsh chemical cleaners

Chemical cleaning products are great for getting rid of dirt, germs and bacteria from surfaces in your home, but they can wreak havoc on your organs. Bleach is poisonous if ingested and even items like rat poison, which are intended to keep our families safe, can cause extreme harm if they come in contact with the skin or if they are accidentally ingested. There are a variety of home cleaners that you can make yourself from simple ingredients like vinegar or lemon juice, or if you are not handy, you can buy non-toxic cleaners at many super markets. Most importantly, here are some store-bought cleaning products that contain the most toxic chemicals.

Upgrade your air filtration

Air quality in any room of a home should be a top safety priority. The cleanliness of the air directly affects the health of every person who enters that room. If your home still uses radiant heat, you are running the risk of dangerous lead pipes contaminating the home. If your home uses forced air heating, every time the heat starts up, dust is forced upward along with the heated air, spreading germs, pet dander, dust and pollen into the air. If your home has not upgraded to an HVAC unit for heating and air conditioning, now may be the time to invest in this change. HVAC units are not only cleaner for the air by filtering it as it comes in, but they also tend to lower the costs of heating and cooling a home.

Look at the source of allergies

Allergens in the home can come from a number of sources. They can be caused by seasonal forms of pollen, grass, leaves and other plant life in your neighborhood. They can also be caused by an allergy to a pet, ingredient in a cleaning product, or even mold or mildew in damp rooms like the bathroom. If your home has mold, it can lead to respiratory infections, allergies, persistent coughs and in severe cases, even pneumonia. Removing all sources of mold from your home is one of the quickest ways to protect the lung health of every member of your family.

Remove any asbestos from your home

Asbestos is a chemical compound that can be found in the insulation, flooring, and tiling materials of most homes in the United States built before 1980. While it has incredible heat and flame resistant properties, it has a tendency to fracture when its particles are disturbed in construction, earthquakes, or over time as a house moves. When these microscopic asbestos fibers are disturbed, they become airborne and will become lodged in the lungs, stomach and heart of anyone who breathes or ingests them. This can lead to mesothelioma, an incurable cancer that leaves newly diagnosed patients an average life expectancy of less than two years. The only known way to prevent mesothelioma is to remove asbestos from your home, which can be done easily by an abatement professional.

There are many sources of air impurities that can make their way into our homes. However, with good care and precaution, our homes can be kept clean and safe for ourselves and all of our loved ones.

Healthy Lung Month is recognized every October as a time to raise awareness around the importance of proper lung function and preventative measures people can take to protect their lungs from illness and disease. Familiarize yourself with common air quality concerns and take this month to consult your physician about any dangers to your lung health.