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Showing posts from July, 2016

19 Organizing Tricks That Take 5 Minutes or Less

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Getty Digital Vision 1. Donate unused mugs. Unless you're a true mug aficionado, you probably have more than you need. Separate your favorites and donate the rest. 2. Sort your food containers. Double-check that there's a lid for every container, get rid of loners, and stack them by size to clear up room in your cabinets. 3. Hang your coats. Did the weather recently change? Gather up all the outerwear you haven't worn lately — and won't wear again — and hang them out-of-sight in a closet. 4. Rearrange your coffee table. Tuck rarely-used remotes away in a drawer, bring out your classiest coffee table books, and corral the rest of the clutter in a pretty tray. 5. Declutter your desk. Put pens back in their holders, recycle unneeded paper, and straighten up messy stacks of books or Post-Its. 6. Create a home for a collection. Do you have an excess of candles or water bottles or board games just sitting around without a home? Find a place for them to live. 7. Add hooks. Wh

Here's What $500K Buys You Across the Country

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In some places, a lot — in others, not so much. Engel & Völkers Austin, TX: $$$,900 Square feet: 3,160 Beds: 5 Baths: 5 Engel & Völkers Austin, TX: $$$,900 This five-bed wooded Austin home features two guest suites (or studio apartments) in its attic space and luxurious living spaces throughout with pine and slate floors. Berkshire Hathaway Cave Creek, AZ: $$$,900 Square feet: 2,952 Beds: 3 Baths: 3 Berkshire Hathaway Cave Creek, AZ: $$$,900 This territorial-style home in the Phoenix suburb of Cave Creek features an expansive open floor plan and a newly-redesigned pool — all with amazing views of Black Mountain. @properties Chicago: $$$,000 Square feet: 1,700 Beds: 2 Baths: 2 @properties Chicago: $$$,000 Looking for a family home? You can't go wrong with this renovated duplex, which features an expansive basement recreation space and bar area to entertain your guests and your kids. More on HouseBeautiful.com: Here's What $$$K Could Buy You Nationwide REcolorado

11 Essential Tips for Creating a Rose Garden

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Getty 1. Choose a sunny plot; roses like six to eight hours of sunlight in the summer. 2. Roses really need good rich soil, so dig in lots of organic matter, humus, or well-rotted mature before you plant. 3. Invest in a garden hose because the bushes are thirsty, particularly when newly-planted and if growing in well-draining soil. 4. Consider how they look during the colder months. "Sticks in mud" is how garden writer Christopher Lloyd described roses in winter. If possible, make sure they're not the main view from your window. 5. The naming of different roses is overly complicated, but go for 'bush roses' and you'll get the right kind of thing. Getty 6. Most have some aroma, but if you want highly-scented varieties, make this a key factor in your search. Rose suppliers, online garden centers, and the Royal Horticultural Society all have a search function you can use to find exactly what you want. 7. Decide on a color palette. Go for bold shades like

9 Sounds Your House Should Never Make

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Getty Certainly, some of the sounds you hear in your house are totally normal (your fridge intermittently running, the occasional creak of the house settling) but there are others that are cause for concern — indicators of what might need to be fixed, replaced, or even exterminated. We asked professionals which thuds, clanks, or hisses could mean that something is amiss. Once you've identified the source of a troubling sound (or even if you can't), we absolutely recommend you call in a pro to fix the issue. 1. You hear water running — but nobody is using it. "First, check the house quickly to see if any toilets are running, or flappers are sticking," says Alfonso Jimenez, master plumber and president ofMr. Rooter Northern Colorado. "Next, check if your sprinkler system, dishwasher, or washing machine is running. If you're still stumped, I would turn off the house's water and check for visible water damage throughout the home, and look for water poolin

11 Costume Dramas to Fill the Downton Abbey-Sized Hole in Your Heart

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Downton Abbey fans said goodbye to their beloved Crawleys last night, but that doesn't mean time-traveling to an earlier era (with better clothes) must end as the doors of Downton close. Below, a selection of period shows to make Downton 's farewell a bit easier to handle.  PBS Mercy Street PBS's newest original series is based on the writings of nurses and doctors who worked inside Mansion House Hospital in Alexandria, Virginia during the Civil War. It chronicles the lives and work of two nurses: Mary Phinney (Mary Elizabeth Winstead), a New England abolitionist and widow, and Emma Green (Hannah James), whose family home is turned into a Union-run hospital during the war. Getty Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries Essie Davis plays Phryne Fisher, an amateur detective with strong feminist views and a wardrobe to die for in 1920s Melbourne. Getty Call the Midwife Call the Midwife chronicles the work of Jenny Lee (Jessica Raine) and her fellow midwives as they tend to exp

From a Standard-Issue Bathroom to a Masculine-Yet-Romantic Escape

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Jonathan Stiers, the blogger (and designer) behind The Stiers Aesthetic, bought his house eight years ago — and since that day, he had left the master bath exactly the same.  And it was fine space. The room featured all the trappings of an efficient, livable bathroom, including decent-looking builder-grade fixtures, a soaker tub and separate shower, but between the plain brown walls (and ceiling!) and travertine tile, the room just seemed cramped and, in Spiers own words, "dreary." So he decided it was time for an upgrade. But first, to get a real sense, here's a before glimpse: The Stiers Aesthetic Stier's main inspiration for the renovation came from a Marilyn Monroe print he had. After realizing how much he admired it, he knew the new room should be an ode to 1940's Hollywood glamour, starring black, white and gray.  The revamp brought in charcoal ceramic tile in a woodgrain pattern as well as a classic pedestal tub from Rejuvenation. Stier painted the wal

15 Clever Hacks that Will Change the Way You Use Facebook

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1. Hide certain posts or pages from popping up in your News Feed. After logging on to Facebook, you likely scroll through your News Feed to see what your friends are up to or to find interesting articles. However, you might have that one friend who seems to be constantly cluttering your feed with status updates and photos. Instead of unfriending someone completely, you can unfollow friends, pages, or groups by clicking on the arrow towards the top right of a given post. If you're on mobile, select "Unfollow X," and if you're on desktop computer, select "Hide all from X." Then you can say goodbye to News Feed clutter for good. 2. See the most recent posts first in your News Feed . Facebook is programed to automatically show you top posts for your friends and pages. However, sometimes that means seeing older posts that are no longer relevant. Reprogram your News Feed to be chronological, with the most recent posts at top, using the left-hand sidebar. If you&