Ideas for your home

Get your space back with these garage organization ideas!

Most people don't really have their car parked inside the garage, or if they do, there's barely little wiggle room left. The reason? There's too much stuff in it! Leaving your car out makes it vulnerable to sun damage, rain water damage and exposure to bird droppings and tree sap. So it looks like there's no arguing that your car will be much safer when it's stored inside the garage. Let us help you out with that. Get back your garage space with these garage organization ideas! Your car will thank you for this.

Getting Started: Clean it all out

It might look like quite a tall order to get started with the hardest part, but everything has to start somewhere right? The key here is to be organized, decisive and rational.

• Set aside at least a full day, or even a full weekend or two, to get the job done.

• Go through absolutely everything. Empty every box and bins that you have stored away.

• Sort all items into three piles: keep, donate or sell, and toss.

 

The nitty gritty

• What should you throw out? Let go off outgrown toys, items that are broken beyond repair, expired household chemicals, old paint, and anything you haven't used in two years or more.

• For the items that you will keep, sort them even further. They could be sports equipment, power tools, painting supply, etc. Store them in stackable clear-plastic bins for better...

Energy Saving Tips

Making simple changes in how you utilize energy in your household will not only help you save money by lowering your bills, you will also get to do your part in helping the environment. Check out these energy saving tips and start making these changes today.

Unplug

Most electronics and appliances continue to draw electricity even when they're turned off. Make it a habit to unplug electronics and appliances when they are not in use, not just when you're leaving the house.

Use Power Strips

It's easy to forget to turn off electronics when leaving the house, never mind unplug them. Plug similar appliances and chargers into a power strip so you can shut off several devices at once.

Use LED Light Bulbs

This is not a drill! Incandescent bulbs really are a thing of the past. And yes LED light bulbs really are energy-efficient. They use about just a quarter of the energy consumed by incandescent ones, plus, they last 25 times longer.

Don't Stock Up the Fridge

Your refrigerator and freezer operate most efficiently when not crammed with food items. Leaving room inside the refrigerator as well as leaving enough clearance behind it allows air to circulate freely.

Air Dry Dishes

Remember that any appliance that emits  heat uses up more electricity. Air dry dishes instead of using your dishwasher’s drying cycle. Just open the door after the rinse cycle and let mother nature do the rest. If you run your dishes in the evening, you can wake up to dry dishes without a single kilowatt being used.

Turn Off the Water Heater

Turn off your water heater if you plan on leaving home...

Fort McMurray New Homes - Design and Color choices

new home

Whether it’s new construction homes or remodelled homes, there’s no question that choosing the right paint colors and overall feel of the home’s interior plays a big part on your home faring well with potential buyers. Here are some design and color choices that you can take inspiration from to improve the overall aesthetic of your home.

Exterior Paint

Desert Beige

desert beige house paint

Beige gives off a classic look with a strong neutral tone. This particular tone of beige can transform your home’s exterior into something sharp and exciting. When working with this trending exterior house color, the most impactful applications are those that feature bold, contrasting colors used as visual outlining. Some ways to frame this rich beige color is to frame the siding with crisp white soffit, gutters and corner strips. The roof is another great area that can be used to offset beige siding.

Soft Lemon

soft lemon house paint swatch...

Spring Cleaning Tips and Tricks

woman mopping

Finally! Spring is here! Now that we are blessed with warmer days ahead. It’s time to tackle spring cleaning. While it’s a daunting task for some people, let’s look at it as a great opportunity to rid our home of unwanted clutter and regaining our shiny happy homes to pave the way for enjoyable sunny days ahead. Here are some tips to make spring cleaning effective and rewarding.

Make a list

checklist

Spring cleaning can seem overwhelming at first. There is so much to do, where do you even start? One of the easiest ways to begin is by making a checklist. Walk through your home and have a look at everything that needs cleaning and organizing and add it to the list. That way, you won’t forget anything.

Channel your inner Marie Kondo

decluttering

Declutter. Decide on which items in your home are to be donated or thrown away. Let go of clothes, shoes, kitchen items, books and other items that no longer “spark joy” to make cleaning your home easier. An added perk is that you will actually find it a lot easier to maintain the cleanliness of your home when it’s not cluttered with stuff that you don’t need.

Clean EVERYTHING

...

Fall Home Improvement and Home Maintenance Projects

fall pathway

As the weather gets cooler, you might want to catch up on some home improvement and home maintenance projects before winter sets in. Here are some projects that you need to put on your list and tackle sooner rather than later.

Make any necessary roof repairs and replacements

house roof

If there are any leaks or gaps on your roof, snow and ice will find its way in, so start replacing any missing or loose shingles before the first snowfall. Should you have the needs to replace your roof, consider roofing that is durable and can withstand snow and heavy wind, such as asphalt shingles.

Repair cracks in your driveway and walkways

house driveway

Fill in any small cracks in your driveway and walkways before winter arrives. Small cracks can quickly become large cracks if not properly filled in.

Clean and seal your deck

...

How to prevent floods and water issues in your basement

Unpredictable bouts of heavy rain from time to time can be alarming especially if your home is not prepared for the damages that it might do. This is especially true if your home has a basement. Be prepared and prevent your home from any possible water damage with these tips.

Maintain grade

yard leveling

Homeowners should take poorly graded yards seriously since water traveling toward the home can cause serious problems and damage foundations and basements. Poor leveling also poses issues with landscaping, gardens and trees. Make sure that your yard is properly leveled especially if your yard have lumps and bumps from tree and bush removal, sewer installation, tree-root growth and create swales if need be away from your home. Here’s a link on how to grade your yard properly.

Clear out window wells

window well

Make sure that your window wells are free from debris. It’s also important to check for proper drainage and to get window well covers if you don’t have them yet. This will make sure that your basement is protected from possible flooding.

Check sump pump

Sump pumps guard your home against flood or accumulating ground water. That’s why it’s very important that they’re inspected periodically to ensure that it’s in...

Get Organized! Free up some space in your home by sorting out all that clutter.

modern kitchen

The key to a successful decluttering project is knowing what to actually do with the items that you deem to be cluttering your home. Decluttering doesn’t necessarily mean that you need to throw  all the stuff away. There are things that you can sell or donate, and others that just really needs to be organized or stored someplace else. Let us help you out with categorizing common items that you encounter in a decluttering project. Get a list of which ones should be thrown out, donated or sold, and which ones should be put away for storage.

TRASH

stack of newspapers

Expired pantry items

Check your fridge or cupboards for expired items. Condiments, spices, snack items, superfood powders that you swore you will try, grains and cereal, pet treats, and other similar items. The real goal here is to be more conscious about the expiration dates of what you buy. Make sure that you don’t let them go bad in your fridge or cupboards and to only buy what you need.

Old makeup or skincare items

Get rid of old lipstick tubes and bottles of foundation that you swore you’ll get the last bit out of 6 months ago. This goes the same for makeup and skincare samples that you set aside to try them out but never did. Now the line is discontinued, but you still have the samples. Wet makeup products, such as foundation, lipstick and primers usually go bad after...