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Make Your House A Home
By Lata Tokhi
When thinking about polished floors, cushions in place, an exquisite flower
arrangement, crisp and folded napkins on the table, take time to think about
comfort, family time and kids activities also when decorating or designing
your house. A lively place full of warmth and chatter is what makes a 'House'
a 'Home'. There are times when we overlook some important details to give
that 'Designer Touch' to our houses. Household accidents, unhealthy personal
conditions and lack of family activities are the result.
To avoid such a situation, take care to make your house a comfortable and
healthy place to live in. Look around you and observe carefully if any difficulty
and threats are being posed due to faulty placement and wrong choice of objects.
Here are some tips to get you started:
1. Rubber Mats: Though not much decorative, rubber mats are the best things
to have outside your bathroom or near the kitchen sink. They will help avoid
slipping and add safety to your home. Never use any kind of rugs at the top
or bottom of stairs.
2. Work Delegation Diary: Keep a diary in a conspicuous place and write down
in it, the daily chores of all members. Make sure everyone takes turn feeding
the pet, mowing the lawn, dusting the furniture and setting the dinner table.
3. Sitting Space: Keep some extra, light-weight chairs or stools that can
be carried to any place to make immediate sitting space. Garden sitting space,
preferably under a tree or any other shade, is a lovely idea for spending
family time. Get cane chairs or a bench placed in your garden. Chairs and
a table in the porch is another great idea.
4. Door Knobs: Round door knobs give your room a nice appeal, but are down
on the Comfort-level. Children and Elders suffering with Arthritis etc. find
if difficult to grip them. They are also difficult to grasp with wet hands.
They can be replaced with Lever Handles both on the inside as well as the
outside for ease and comfort.
5. Showers: Though showers are top on Elegance list and Hand Showers are
blamed for 'spoiling the look' with their long hose, there cannot be anything
better than an adjustable hand shower with a hose for bathing big dogs and
kids.
6. Lighting: Make sure that all your rooms have ample light. Reserve subtle
lighting and other lighting effects for special occasions and parties. Good,
clear light helps maintain everyone's health care easier and is especially
good for school-going children and elderly people.
7. Artifacts: The next time you see your little kid hardly daring to breath
when passing by your favorite antique lamp for the fear of breaking it, you
know its the time for a revamp. Place glass objects and other breakable treasures
in safer areas so your family members can move freely without worrying about
spoiling your decor.
8. Comfort Level: At all times, keep in mind that your home needs to be
comfortable and not rigid. Things get monotonous when they are 'too perfect'.
A cozy nook by the window with a small coffee table, extra pillows thrown
in for a comfortable tête-à-tête, a sparkling fireplace
with a warm rug sprawled across are some examples.
9. Family Space: A 'Home' is all about a family! Include in your design/decor,
special 'Family' places like a sufficiently large dinner table, a card table
for indoor games etc. Like I said above in 'Sitting space', a mini dining
table or wicker table-chair set in your garden or under a tree in the backyard
is a lovely idea. If you have a spare room for your crafts, make a separate
shelf for Family crafts like Scrapbooking. A Wall Gallery of photos is a
great way to bind family members - past and present.
You know what works best for your family. So develop this list further according
on the needs of your family and watch your pretty house take the shape of
a 'Pretty Home'.
Lata Tokhi is the Founder and Editor of Dot Com Women - a popular women's
website, Celebrating Christmas - a resource for celebrating Christmas in
style and I Love to Craft - a website full of free craft projects and ideas.
Visit her websites for lots of homemaking and business ideas, free downloads,
free Ezines and message boards for women to network and share.
Article Source:
http://EzineArticles.com/