Maximize Space in a Small Bathroom
One of the smallest areas in most homes is the bathroom. This creates a challenge for home owners and renters alike when it comes to storage, aesthetic and functionality of a bathroom. However, there are a variety of ways to make your bathroom appear larger without the high renovation costs or lengthy construction time of an expansion.
Pay attention to colors. It is commonly known that white and lighter colors can make a room appear larger and cleaner. Choose white cabinets, proper lighting fixtures and a calming color palette. You also want your bathroom to be a place of peace and relaxation, and lighter colors tend to create these feeling more than bold or darker ones. Mirrors are great for making a room feel bigger, and the bathroom couldn’t be a better place for a large mirror. Put plenty of lighting above the mirror so it can be as wide, or wider, than the vanity. This will open the space up significantly.
Choose the proper fixtures. The majority of bathrooms feature a shower or a tub and sometimes they are combined in one. Think about which one you really need and if possible remove the other. For example, if you prefer showers and rarely take baths, it makes sense to remove the bathtub to create extra space.
Re-organize everything. If you’re lucky enough to have a built-in closet in your bathroom, re-organize it to get maximum space. If you don’t have a closet, bring in items such as shelves, towel racks and storage units to store all your necessities like towels and bath products. If it’s at all possible, store only what you need in your bathroom- sometimes people end up making their bathroom a medicine cabinet or laundry room as well. Stick to keeping just what you need to shower and get ready for the day in your bathroom. Cleaning out your under the sink cabinets that you haven’t touched in months can also free up some unused space.
Ready to assemble cabinets will maximize the useful space in a bathroom and provide a built in look. These cabinets can be found in a variety of shapes and sizes and will help get you the most bang for your buck.
Keep it simple. Avoid heavily patterned wallpapers or trendy lighting- it will only distract the eye and make your space appear chaotic. Opt for simple colors and decor, remember with a bathroom, less is more.…
Tips For Planning a Home Renovation Project
If they offer a good bid, one which is affordable in the budget that one has for the renovations, then hiring them is the smart choice. If their bid is too high, one can always choose to do the project themselves.
If one is like thousands of home owners, who want to get renovations started on their homes, have the funding to do it, but do not know where to start, here are some tips for beginning a project. First, how well do you like the layout of your living room space? If your home is like many, there is probably a wall between the living room and dining room, which divides the space, but also makes the house look smaller than it is.
Consider either taking out the wall completely, if the support beams and walls of the house will allow such action, or cutting an archway in the wall, if the support beams still are necessary in the house’s design. Should the wall still be needed and an archway be the option that you choose, fill the remaining wall with shelves that can display favorite family pictures, collectable items like classic cars or figurines, or the children’s artwork from school. Either way, you have opened up the space between the rooms and given a fresh look to the house.
Second, do you live in an area of the country that sees very little cold weather, like the desert southwest or southeast? Do you have a feature in your home, like a fireplace, that you use perhaps twice to three times a year and is completely not functional in your home? If so, consider having it removed and replace it with an entertainment center.
How nice would it be to have all the stereo equipment, the big television, the gaming systems for the children, and the family computer in one place where they can all be closely monitored by you and you would not need to worry about what the kids are watching on the internet or what they are listening to in their IPODs. Shelving can be utilized here as well for DVD and CD storage, which can be customized to however many you own at that time, or think you will own. There is also a shelving option for knickknacks that you like to collect, like Precious Moments or classic cars.
Because this shelving is being built for your equipment, you can customize it to fit exactly, or you can give your television space some room to grow. It is all up to you and depending upon your end goal, it can be tailored to your exact needs.…
Latest in Faucet and Cabinet Designs for Your Kitchen
Nothing has changed in the fact that the kitchen is the heart of any home. More so if it is connected to the dining area, the kitchen can be the busiest part of a house day in and day out. It is vital for any kitchen to be equipped with all the utensils and equipment for food preparation and cooking, so that food will come out special and out-of-love. For devoted cooks, it is frustrating not to have a rolling pin when making a pizza or a baking pan that can accommodate twenty cupcakes for a bunch of visitors.
However, as utensils are extremely important, kitchen utilities also serve essential roles in food preparation. The faucet, the counter, and the cabinet fall under this category, and without them, a kitchen plan is incomplete. These assist in the kitchen by providing a place to organize utensils, a surface to work on and a sanitary environment. Although it may be enough to have the simplest types of them around, it adds to the drive and excitement to cook if they are maintained well, or at the very best, replaced once worn out.
In the market, there is a wide array of kitchen faucet, cabinet and counter designs available that makes shopping challenging and time-consuming. Thus, before going out to the stores, it is a good practice to think and plan first; survey your kitchen and visualize the utilities that will work best with the design, appearance and other fixtures in it. Having a list of the specifications you want for each will reduce shopping time and give you focus on the ones that you should buy. Also, checking out websites and magazines will open your eyes not solely on some latest kitchen faucet designs, but also on the trendiest kitchen cabinet and counter types that are most popular.
When shopping for faucets, factors to think about are the type of handle, the finish and the features. Faucets can be single-handled or double-handled, the second allowing more comfort whether you are left-or right-hand dominant. Double-handled faucets have separate controls for hot and cold water, while single-handled ones offer easy control with one handle. Finishes for faucets are varied, including stainless steel, chrome, copper, nickel, bronze and brass. One useful feature that you may want is the pull-out sprayer, which can be a great help when washing vegetables and cleaning the entire countertop, as it allows a reach exceeding the sink area. Spout style and height are also varied, and there are additional features for convenience such as touchless controls, water purifiers and soap dispensers.
In terms of cabinets, the trend has moved toward the use of invisible hinges that can be easily adjusted. Designs can be simple or grand depending on the motif being followed, but customization is still highly preferred. On the other hand, countertops are becoming modern with the use of various durable materials. Solid countertops are still in demand, and the options are more varied including acrylic, quartz, granite, and natural stone. These materials are a bit expensive, but they are worth the investment because they have longevity and resistance to elements. You can also opt for laminate countertops and cabinets, with the advantage of being resistant to scratching and scuffing, as well as having a wide variety of colors, textures, patterns and finishes. If you have a rustic taste, a butcher block countertop is perfect; it is highly durable, ages well, and can be finished and refinished to last longer, although the downside is that it requires extra maintenance.
When having a kitchen renovation, it is necessary to match things out with the overall look of the kitchen. Although guidelines are loose, it is still wise to follow a certain standard, may it be color, finish or material. Because cost is a great factor, it is recommended to do the shopping yourself in home improvement shops and look for sales and discounts.
Every homeowner has a mission of completing the fixtures in the house, especially in the kitchen. If you will soon do a big kitchen renovation, heeding these insights on latest and advisable specifications for faucets, cabinets and counters are sure to increase the likeability and functionality of your kitchen.…
Different Types Of Wood Used To Install Hardwood Floors
Installing hardwood floors is an important part of the entire idea of home remodeling. Such wooden floors come in different types, shades, colors, and wood variety and look extremely stunning. Known basically for their uniqueness and beauty, hardwood floors also add charm to any room, thus helping in home remodeling to a great extent. Mainly due to this feature, numerous homeowners in a number of US cities like Beaverton (Oregon) and Tigard (Oregon) prefer to change the floors of their homes as a part of their plan of home improvement.
There are different types of woods that can be used for hardwood flooring. However, you have to keep a few things in mind before you decide what type of wood to use. For example, wooden floors can easily get scraped, scratched, and beaten down from regular wear and tear. Here are a few types of woods that can be used for hardwood flooring:
1. Engineered wood: These types are constructed with 3 to 5 layers of different types of woods and each layer is glued together under pressure and heat. Since engineered wood floorings are least affected by humidity, these can be installed either on or above or below ground level.
2. Laminate wood: These are versatile in nature since they look almost like real wood. Laminate woods are actually plywood with layers of veneer that look like real wood. These are durable and strong and the superficial layer cannot be scratched and is resistant to moisture. It is often seen in US cities, like Portland (Oregon) and Beaverton (Oregon) that residents use this type of wood to install hardwood floor for their homes.
3. Plastic laminates: These types of flooring are made of a fiber wood center which in turn is sandwiched between twin layers of laminates. These wooden floors cannot be sanded and refinished, so when they wear out after regular use the only option is to get them replaced. Plastic laminates are easy to install and are suitable for those parts of the home where people move around regularly like the kitchen or the passage-way.…
Should You Always Go With the Lowest Quote for Your Kitchen Renovations?
As consumers we often use the price of a product or service to determine its relative worth, by judging a highly priced item to be luxurious and decadent, as well as reliable and durable. It makes sense, then, to stop and think before you choose the lowest quote for your kitchen renovations. While getting a home improvement project finished way under budget is always an exciting prospect, you also need to consider the extended life of your kitchen renovation, and the impact it will have on your daily cooking habits and lifestyle.
Cheap contractors and designers need to cut costs somewhere, after all, and that might mean that your budget kitchen renovation is completed using weak and unstable materials and dodgy time saving techniques. To properly judge the price estimates given to you by prospective contractors, you need to have a good idea of the costs involved in an average kitchen renovation and a firm set of requirements for your perfect space.
You should also ask your kitchen renovation professionals about the techniques, processes and materials they plan to use, which make up the quote given to you. You can then evaluate these methods instead of just making a blind judgement based on monetary costs. The price of a kitchen renovation can be significantly cut, for example, by re-finishing and reusing elements and materials from your existing space. In this case a low price estimate could still indicate a high quality construction project.
You also need to weigh up the different pros and cons offered to you in each quote given to you by a home interiors designer. While a ‘green’ or environmentally friendly builder might give you a very high quote in comparison to other contractors, the price might be worth the budgetary compromise as the construction of your kitchen renovation will have less of an impact on the environment and will consume less energy in the future.
To make sure that your contractors and designers aren’t adding in hidden costs anywhere in your quote, you can use an online building costs calculator to find an unbiased estimate for the entire project. These automated estimators can include the cost of contractor services, of various materials and include product prices such as appliances or a particular cabinetry system in the final figure given to you.
Remember that the cost of your kitchen renovation will largely depend on the style you prefer for your home, so it is important to use a consistent design brief to find a contractor that offers the best value for money service.…
Should You Install a Shower Stall?
Most homes in America have a bathtub that doubles as a shower. Not that many homes have a separate shower stall and a separate bathtub. You may be remodeling your bathroom and feel that it would be a nice option to have a separate shower stall rather than a combined shower/bath.
Your first consideration when thinking of installing a separate shower stall in addition to your bathtub is whether you have enough room. If you are doing a major bathroom remodel then you can plan it down on paper, all the measurements of the various items like the shower, bath, toilet and cabinets so that you can fit these items in your bathroom.
If you’re not doing a major bathroom remodel, you’ll have to evaluate any spare space you have in the bathroom, measure it up, and do some research to find a shower stall with those dimensions that will fit easily into the bathroom.
Once you have your measurements for your new shower stall it’s time to go shopping. You can find complete shower stalls at most home improvement stores. These usually come with a molded shower floor and walls and the shower door. These all in one shower stalls are quite easy to install as everything you need is built into it.
However you may want to make use of the tiles you’ve already got laid on your bathroom floor and use those as the shower floor. You’d obviously have to put in a drain and build up the sides of the area to create the base of the shower, and then buy some sliding doors to finish it off.
This entails a lot more work than just buying the all in one shower stall, so it comes down to weighing up the amount of money you have to spend versus the amount of time you have to build a shower from the ground up yourself, or have it done for the professionally.…
Ideas For Remodeling Without Taking a Bath on Costs
Home improvements are quite popular and one of the most remodeled and upgraded rooms in people’s homes is the bathroom.
There are literally thousands of bathroom remodeling ideas but all projects begin with the same type of process and that is choosing a theme. The theme you choose will guide all of your choices from that point on. Things like which wall cabinets you choose or the types of tile flooring you will consider will all be guided by the motif that is chosen.
If your theme is an ultramodern and sleek look, you may choose the most modern of the polished chrome Moen faucets and place them over a top-mount sink that looks like a glass bowl on your vanity.
Other choices that fit a modern theme may follow the polished chrome look such as medicine cabinets that feature mirrors to reflect the clean look of the room.Bathroom remodeling ideas with a more old-world feel may lean toward using antique vanities in the room rather than the usual storage found in most baths.
These pieces are warm and elegant and far more like fine furniture in the room than a built-in mass-produced piece. Lighting is something that is available in all possible styles and materials and for every motif that is out there, options abound.
You can add bars of light over the mirror or pendant lights over the vanities. Recessed lighting is an option and do not overlook the option of small table lamps that can add a warmth and softness with their homey touch.Designer touches are the things that can elevate the bath to a more spa-like feel and those can be found in everything from beautiful fabric shower curtains with patterns that warm and enhance a room, to unique accessories that will add touches of color to carry your theme throughout the room.
There are also extra long shower curtains now that allow for the newer tubs that are deeper and more spa-like, always a luxurious item to have in a home bath.
The vast array of things available may seem a bit overwhelming but bathroom remodeling ideas have come a long way and there are now bathtub liners available that allow changes in your current look without the need to demolish what is currently in place.
These are just a few of the points to ponder when deciding to upgrade and add exciting decor to the room that gets so much use in your home.…