How to Improve Your Homes Curbside Appeal

To improve your homes curbside appeal install security doors, put up a veranda, plant
garden and put down outdoor pavers.
There are a number of things you can do to improve the look of your home from the front, or
it's curbside appeal. If you are planning on ever selling your home this is something you should
definitely be conscious of doing as it is this first impression that will influence potential buyers
whether or not they will come in and have a better look or make further enquiries. You can
improve your garden, add security doors or security screens to your windows or even build a front
veranda.
veranda design
veranda design

Security doors

Security doors do not need to be just a steel door with wire on it to keep out the bugs. There
are many styles of security doors, some which incorporate good looks into their secure design.
Depending on the layout of the front of your home you could have a larger iron wrought security
door that is more of a gate, with intricate patterns and designs that will vastly improve the look of
your home. Contact a company specialising in security doors and you will see there is a whole
range of different products to suit your style of home.

Security screens

Putting security screens on your windows will appeal to anyone wanting to buy your house because
they will feel happier knowing their future investment is secure. Security screens no longer have to
be ugly attachments to your windows that block out the view. Security screens will keep out any
intruders and insects but let you keep the window open to let in the breeze, while not disturbing
your view.

Veranda

Install a veranda along the front of your home and you will greatly improve the look of it. A
veranda can give you home a more period look, it gives you somewhere to sit out of the sun and
will keep the rooms along the front of your house cooler as the veranda will shade them from the
hot sun.

Garden

A garden will definitely make a difference to the look of your home from the curb. If your land
slopes away, or if your house is built down lower than the front pathway you may need to build
a retaining wall. Build any structures that you need to first before sowing any lawn and planting
plants. Roses are easy to look after and always look beautiful. For a garden that is simple to look
after you might want to choose a more minimalist style of garden or native plants which will thrive
in your environment.

Outdoor paving

Paving will look great in your garden. You can lay a pathway to your front door or around to a

side gate way. You might choose sandstone pavers or other stone like blue stone. Pebbles look
nice along the side of pavers, or you can use them around your garden.

Water feature

You might choose to have something like a water feature in the centre of your front lawn to break
up your garden. Another idea is having a statue of some kind or an ornamental tree like a Weeping
Cherry or Japanese Maple.

read more "How to Improve Your Homes Curbside Appeal"

Show and Tell Friday!


Welcome to Show and Tell Friday!  Wow, time is flying!  I've been trying to find time to get these photos from the Goat Hill Fair up for awhile now!  It's been almost 2 weeks since I took these! 

As you can see, there where lots of beautiful things there! I would have loved to spend more time looking around but it was hot and I was wearing a black top polyester type top...pair that with hot
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Kitchen Designs and Decororations Tips


When decorating your kitchen remember to have enough storage, plan your kitchen around the fridge, bench and stove being in a triangle and pick a colour to suit the style of room.

There are a few things you should consider when decorating your kitchen. As well as planning a stylish and pleasant looking kitchen to suit your tastes you also want something that is functional. If you are building a new home you might want to choose your major appliances first, such as your Bosch dishwasher, and build your kitchen to comfortably fit. Once your have finished decorating your kitchen don't forget to check that any improvements are included in your contents insurance.
Kitchen Designs

Storage
Every kitchen needs plenty of storage space. You want to be able to put all your smaller appliances, such as the mixer, the toaster and slow cooker away. If you don't have space for them they end up sitting on the bench and give your kitchen a cluttered look. Have big deep drawers where you can store your pots and pans, have a specific cupboard or drawer for your plastic containers, which always seem to take up a lot of space, and create bigger shelves or drawers that will hold your small appliances.

The working triangle
For your kitchen to function as a proper working space you should have three main parts of your kitchen joined up by an invisible triangle. That is you can easy walk from the fridge, to the stove and to the bench in a triangle shape. Having this working triangle shape within your kitchen means that you will save time when cooking, that is you are not walking from one end to the other constantly, and cooking will be much easier. 

Quality appliances
When choosing appliances make sure you go for quality brands. If it is a matter of a few hundred dollars you are better to save that bit longer and get the better quality product or the one that you really want. Having a good quality fridge and dishwasher are important, as well as the oven that you really want. 

Style
When decorating your kitchen you will most likely choose a style to match the rest of your house. If you have a period home then you will want to have a more old fashioned kitchen. You can buy old fashioned tap ware and sinks, such as the Butler sink or the Farm House style sink. There are great modern kitchen designs which are simple and uncluttered. There are plenty of magazines available where you can gain inspiration in choosing the right style of kitchen to suit your home. 

Light
Make sure your kitchen is as light as possible both during the day and in the evening. If the kitchen windows are small you might want to consider renovating and putting in bigger windows to let in more natural light. If this isn't feasible you could always put in a sky light. Having spot lights over your bench is a good idea so that you can see properly when you are cooking. 

Colours
Kitchens look great in most colours. For something bright and cheerful yellow looks great. White or cream are flexible shades that give you the option to change the colour in your kitchen just by changing the colour of your accessories or brightening the room with flowers. For a modern kitchen you might want to try a vibrant red or dramatic black paint. In an old fashioned or country style kitchen any shade of blue or green looks great or more neutral tones.
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Luxury Bedroom Designs and Decors for Teenage Girls

Teen girls always requesting a something special in every thing, that's why on this time I will share you a luxury bedroom designs and decors especially for teenage girls. Many optional features of bedroom decor for teen girls such as sporting, minimalist, retro style, pink-themed, romantic, purple-themed and etc.., this is one of the luxury bedroom decor for teen in smooth colors allowing for it to become more luxury rooms. Bedroom could demonstrate how they want to express themselves because of bedroom is a place to spend most of their time when at home. This time, one of the luxury decor for teenage girls “Pop” is from Altamoda. All luxury, a soft bed and very beautiful in the mix of bright colors, accessory and luxury bedding sets throughout the design looked very appealing in a modern style of luxury. Just feel free and take a look of this..
Luxury Bedroom Designs for Teenage Girls

Bathroom on Luxury Teen Bedroom

Teen Bedroom Designs
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Upper Valley Home Improvement Guide

Did you see the article on Bonin Architect's lakefront cottage project makeover in the Upper Valley Home Improvement Guide?

This great cottage has won several design build awards, including a Merit Award and the People's Choice Award from the 2011 AIANH Excellence in Architecture Awards!

The homeowners were involved from conception to completion, reusing every bit of material they could in the cottage renovation.

Missed that issue?  Read all about this cottage on our website at http://www.boninarchitects.com/en/selected-projects/selected-projects/83-portfolio/selected-projects/119-le-petite-pointe-cottage.html.
read more "Upper Valley Home Improvement Guide"

Show and Tell Friday!



I've shared my heart-shaped rock collection here before but I recently found some new ones so thought I would share those today!  I found all these on my Saturday morning hikes.  For those that don't know, I hike about 10 miles every Saturday morning.  The morning I found the two above I also found a huge one...about the size of a dinner plate!  I actually thought about throwing it in my
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Goat Hill Fair Part 1

 
Last Sunday, my guy and I went to the Goat Hill Fair! It was amazing, there were so many beautiful things there!  I took a lot of photos but I haven't had a chance to go through them yet. I thought I could at least share one of my favorite things there...THIS BIRDCAGE!  It was amazing! It was way out of my budget though.  It was from a shop in San Jose, California called "Not Too Shabby".   
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americasreportcard

americasreportcard
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Expectations



This weekend is special... And that means usually we are having guests! After 10 years my parents are visiting again from Europe, as well as my sister - for the very first time coming to America and my oldest son arrives with his girl from Berlin! It's going to be a wonderful reunion.
There has been lots of prepping and sorting, making space and fluffing up featherbeds....
The culminating expectations for the coming days could not get any higher.
It's not so much the actual plans, we try to keep this in motion and easy going, but to have them here at our place is just wonderful!
Of course you might ask what the occasion might be and here I will reveal that yours truly turns fifty in the coming week... this has been looming for a while ( duh) and although aging has never bothered me, I felt over the last months how this milestone has occupied my mind.
I have the strongest urge to reinvent myself. To turn over a new page in my life and fill it with all that, what I have been dreaming up lately. When I was younger to refer something to later times made often sense and meant only that priorities were such that my own plans had to wait a bit. Now I feel the time has come where I can't wait for more suitable times. The time is now!
There are so many things I have experienced in my life: Multiple immigrations, many moves, parting from people I love and people I do not, meeting the dearest friends in the most unlikely places and learning to make a home, when roots have been cut off.
I look back and count my blessings!




What's the essence of my life until now?
Firstly I am a mother! It has shaped everything within me! Nothing could have prepared me for the overwhelming love with which I would receive 4 children over quite a span of time. I never thought I might have four. I did not think about this for the longest time. What it would mean for my career, my personal growth, my own development.
I wanted children!
That they might have also been an alibi for my insecurities, well this occurred to me only later in life. But it changed the course of my life and now I am utmost content with motherhood. I grew up with all my children. They teach me so many valuable lessons. To love, to be patient (somewhat), to hold my horses, so give without expecting anything in return, to be rewarded by all sorts of small and large tokens of appreciation, to look at life with new eyes. To be more flexible.
They are young and modern and independent and above all they are wonderfully confident!
If anybody would have foretold the insecure, ugly little duckling I thought of myself as a twelve year old, that I would move to another continent, marry twice and have a large brood,  speak another language almost better then my original one, I would have laughed out loud. Impossible, I would have said.
But nothing is impossible. I learned that! And to have faith in one's abilities.




Being married to a man who loves me deeply, challenges me regularly and devotes all living hours to his family has been the most wonderful thing that could have ever happen to me. After a failed relationship in my youth I have now a mature, responsible and sheltering marriage. But perhaps this also was only possible after the lessons of the first one. I feel now that everything carries a lesson in life. Sometimes it just takes a long time to learn it! 




Marriage is movement: We change and to love the changes, the different people we become is not always easy. There are so many challenges, but one of my lessons has been: Live and let live! And to keep it special. With open arms...I love!
I try not to take anything for granted! Life can change in an instant and to cherish every day together has become so important to me. I remind myself often and I forget sometimes.




Deep inside me resides the artist, after many years of dormant life she has reappeared on my mental doorstep and I am ready for the new ideas, which do not let me sleep at night.
Or perhaps these are my tumultuous hormones, not knowing which direction to choose?


My thoughts are more and more turning towards writing, but the form still eludes me.
When I read I notice the shape and texture of a story, the way the language shapes feelings and mood. Years of reading have been my education, but it does not guaranty success in writing myself. I am probing and like a blind person, I feel my way in uncharted territory.


Life ahead is uncharted as well and I love the idea. To move along in it, still full of energy, with great expectations and many more years is what I hope for. I feel so young!


The path ahead is filled with wonder!








All pictures by V.Zlotkowski
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Show and Tell Friday!

 This week I'm pulling something out from an old post to share again.  This was a fruit tart that I made awhile back. It was really good!
 
It's a Paula Deen recipe and it can be found here.
 
I also found this old photo of a fruit bouquet I made years ago!  This was really fun to do..I just used some cookie cutters to shape the melon flowers and then used bamboo skewers to put it together! It
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Reminder: Goat Hill Fair is this weekend!


This is for all my friends in Northern California! An antique and artisian fair called Goat Hill Fair will be held on September 17-18, 2011 in the Santa Cruz Mountains!


GOAT HILL FAIR
Saturday, September 17 th 10:00 am – 5:00 pm
Sunday , September 18th 11:00 am – 4:00 pm
Location: 24915 Soquel/Old San Jose Highway Los Gatos, CA 95033
For more information please visit their website: Goat Hill
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Pinterest, the next best thing to blogging!

Source: hgtv.com via Cindy on Pinterest

I'm sure you are all aware of Pinterest by now...it's the next best thing to blogging!!!
Source: bhg.com via Cindy on Pinterest

Just in case you don't know about Pinterest, it's a place where you can save every beautiful image you see on the internet in one place.  You can make different boards (like inspiration boards) with your pins...think of it like
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Autumn polish

Fall is for me like the beginning of a new year. Perhaps the onset of a new school year makes me feel that way. Spring moves seamless into summer, but it's different with autumn. It always fills me with the need for autumn clean up and I am off to a good start:




First the dining room: 
I sorted out, moved china on display in my china cabinet, left only things out for daily use:
Coffee maker, coffee, toaster, much loved salt and pepper pigs, a small silver lidded box holding stevia bags, my daily silverware in easy reach to set the table!



It looks so clean now. I moved things away from my window ledge and now the sun streams through glass candle holders and a small fern plant in my copper planter.


Old postcards from the mirror were removed and only the most important ones are left on the large world map!
I waxed the table with delicious table wax and the room is done for the next few weeks!


Image



Then I moved to our family room to give it a thoroughly check up. There is a dresser, filled with games and a drawer with candles, but the top has become a catch all for spill over china....
So I sorted: The melamine plates down to the basement, glasses back into the cabinets,
vases restored to their original purpose: holding flowers...


Do I see still some lego under there??? The basket candle holders need to go back to the deck table....And the old torchiere has to go elsewhere!


Better!



What's left?
My desk, the sorting of magazines, cleaning out of the bookshelves.




The winter room needs a fixing as well: Fire place and chimney cleaning, piano tuning, and a new wall paper.
My husband declared it's good to have visitors coming on the weekend, the house looks spic and span... Well, it's sheer coincidence!!!
So much has been removed: I am clearly heading for my own yard sale...
But there is more: bedroom sorting, clothes sorting and give aways, looking through my winter wardrobe.
I am trying not to hold on to things I haven't used in a while, I am learning! It's hard though!


Still I hear the cicadas in the trees, but I am so looking forward to the long cozy hours at the fire place, the rustic meals, pumpkins and the harvest of apples.
Autumn, I am yours!








Pictures by V.Zlotkowski and as indicated.
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We remember


Today I we remember the September morning 10 years ago,  filled with sunshine only to turn into terrible terror! I remember the many lives lost!
No words can describe how it moves me to see these pictures again!


I will never forget!


New York is my city as well and to see her rise from the sadness to new beginnings fills me with such hope and joy!



Image

"When you are sorrowful look again in your heart, and you shall see that in truth you are weeping for that which has been your delight." 
--- Kahlil Gibran









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Show and Tell Friday!

 
Welcome to Show and Tell Friday!  
The other night I was looking at the large silver tray I have on my coffee table...it's loaded with shells and candles. I tried to remember the last time I even lit those candles...it's been way too long.   Now that it's September and I know that the cooler weather is right around the corner (although it really doesn't start to cool down here until the end of
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My Jag is Purring thanks to OnStar FMV!






I was thrilled to be chosen by BlogHer and OnStar to try out the new OnStar FMV in my Jaguar!  (and you get a chance to get something too...there is a giveaway at the bottom of this post)

Everyone that knows me knows I love cars and I really love my Jaguar! It's even better now that I have OnStar in it!
OnStar FMV (FMV = For My Car) is an aftermarket rear view mirror that you can buy at
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Survival of the fittest


After some time I have fallen back into the old habits of gathering and collecting.
It's a mystery to me how it happens!
My house begins to look like a pawn shop, everything is everywhere, I am not a hoarder, or am I?
I love things and I love to surround myself but then there always comes the breaking point where I begin to feel overwhelmed. I need to clean out, reduce, separate the good from the not so good, things overdue to part with, the old, but not old enough to keep and the simply not needed objects. Oh, where to draw the line?
I have done it before. 
There are too many magazines around my house and collected mementos from travels around the world, shells and plant bits and pieces, books of course and dresses I do not wear anymore but I hang on for the memories I have in them.  There are movie and opera tickets, trolley stubs from cities I have toured, a fan from Venice and paper napkins from Paris. Old travel brochures and older travel guides, perfectly outdated.


Perfume samples and bottles without a scent left in them.
Paint from years back, artwork provided by my children, old suitcases filled with  toys and memories of childhoods past, books and more books. Birthday wishes and cards  from yesteryear.
A whole shelve filled with cook books I have hardly used! Anyone?
Piles of shoes and boots in all sizes.
Simply much what life has passed to me! I tend to keep it!
But it is cathartic to clean out, refreshing to start anew and it eases the load to maintain.


So I will start again tomorrow, sorting and giving away, selling and tossing, for a fresh autumn and a clean house!
Wish me luck!
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Have you seen? Ladurée

Just when I needed a little lift......


There is this lovely brand new LadurĂ©e shop in town. New York City that is and a few days ago I've been there and only the line-up out the door stopped me from trying out some of their delicacies...


The blog world is full of delicious stories of their macarons, I do not need to tell you what they are, right?
Good to know that we now can have the originals this side of the Atlantic!
I guess I need to stop by soon again.

Ladurée, 864 Madison Avenue (71st Street), (646) 558-3157, open Monday to Saturday, 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Sunday, noon to 6. Macarons in 15 flavors are $2.70 each; chocolates, $10 and up.
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The parting





Another summer comes slowly to an end by way of sending our kids back to school, our older ones off to college and our selves back into the rhythm of the working routine.
Today I am sad; my second oldest boy had to fly back to Europe, back to his life and studies, so far away from us. We will miss him dearly. 
Every parting pulls on my heart and in these moments I reflect on distances and our wants and wishes. 
But it is as nature has intended it: The young ones need to go off without us, learn on their own terms and we need to let them go!
There is the driving and packing, hugging and kissing, tears and laughter, last minute advise and the hope for phone calls.
Although my older children have been away from me for long, it's the same every time never the less: 
My motherly instinct comes forward and for seconds I imagine them lost without me...
But no, they will do fine, they will call and they will go on without me!
I am happy to have such loving children, strong and independent, full of life!
I tell them often how much I love them! 
That is what they need to hear!


I feel a little lost too at these times, but I will go on as well, looking forward to reunions and the sweet moments of arrivals home!
The texts written and received and the hour long talks, walks around the block and the meals cooked together!
To listen to their adventures, the news, the heart breaks and the victories, the tough decisions and the battles lost!
They need us to be there, in the distance, but ready!


There is so much to look forward to!
Good speed, my boy and wonderful beginnings!




“Our battered suitcases were piled on the sidewalk again; we had longer ways to go. But no matter, the road is life.” – Jack Kerouac




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Show and Tell Friday!

 
Happy Show and Tell Friday! Can you believe it's September already????  Where has this year gone? In just a blink it will be time for the holidays!  My mom was right when she told me that the older you get the faster your life goes by! I get it now! Whew!
So for this week I'm sharing just a very small portion of some of my linen and lace...or should I say "my addiction". I'm actually
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