Modular vs. Traditional Building [Infographic]

Are you in the market for a new home? Ever consider modular homes or kit homes, or are you looking forward to building your new home the traditional way? Here's an interesting infographic from modspace.com comparing modular and traditional building.

Top 5 Favorite Wall Décor Ideas

You don’t need expensive photographs, famous paintings or art pieces on your wall to make your interior space look beautiful, impressive, and creative. Sometimes all you need is some inspiration, ideas, and a bit of resourcefulness. Here are my top 5 favorite ideas for wall art.

1. Mirror with great frame

Photo credit: Monica Arellano-Ongpin (flickr.com)

Mirrors are useful for its basic purpose but with a great frame, it can double up as a nice wall decoration. There is also nothing like a nice mirror for a random selfie.

2. Typography

 

Photo credit: Ben Didier (flickr.com)

Do you have a favorite inspirational quote that you live by? You can turn that inspirational quote into wall art typography. Everyday you can see that on your wall and be reminded of great words to live by. #goodvibes

3. Chalkboards

Photo credit: Sean Purdy (flickr.com)

Got this inspiration from café menu chalkboards that show the day’s specials. They are usually designed in colorful and simple text and drawings. Why not have one in your kitchen that you can easily customize daily, weekly or whenever you feel like it. It will also encourage you to come up with something new or creative. Express yourself through your own chalkboard.

4. Photo Wall

Photo credit: idiosyncraticamy (flickr.com)

You can ditch the frames and create a collage of photos on your wall. It doesn’t have to be family photos but can actually be more interesting with random shots of daily life from still life, landscape, and travel photos or postcards. Instant stills or polaroid photos are also very popular and artsy.

 5. Framed Origami 

Origami will always be simple and beautiful. The best part is you can easily make one by checking out tutorial vids on You Tube. To make it even more special, you can buy a small photo frame and hang them on your wall to complete a lovely and extraordinary wall decoration. Here is a piece made by a friend that I bet you can easily make for less than $3.

Do you have your own wall art ideas? Share them in the comments below :)

Bringing the Outdoors In

Photo credit: valleykithomes.com.au 

Bringing in the outdoors to spruce up the interiors is a trick that’s been used by homeowners and designers for ages. Plants are natural accessories that can do wonders in an otherwise bland or lifeless space. They make perfect accents that keep evolving on their own, giving you a more exciting environment without much effort. And more than beautifying your home, plants can also serve as powerful filters to give you fresher air to breathe.

So if you haven’t placed any plant inside your house yet, these gorgeous greenery options will help you start:

Attention–Grabbing Corners

  

Make some corners come alive with large plants. An oversized plant like a towering fiddle-leaf fig or a gorgeous braided ficus is a good way to bring in the natural beauty of the outdoors inside your home. Areca palms are also popular house plants ideal for large spaces. Not only are they beautiful, but they’re known to be effective air purifiers, absorbing harmful elements like carbon monoxide, formaldehyde, and benzene. Figs, ficus, and palms are also hardy perennials that are easy to grow and care for.

A Splash of Color

Photo credit: Maja Dumat (flickr.com)

Who wouldn’t want some colors accenting their homes? Excellent additions flower-bearing plants that you can place beside your bed, on coffee tables, in bathrooms, or on counter tops. Humidity-starved phalaenopsis orchid with long-lasting blooms will look and grow well in bathrooms especially when planted in a low glass cylinder that traps moisture. Peace lilies have blooms that last for days and can act on several kinds of toxins, such as acetone, ammonia, and methyl alcohol, among others. Make another level with hanging baskets of drought-tolerant succulents like sedum and echeveria or a mixture of flowering plants with knockout colors and textures, such as Italian bellflower and lipstick vine.

Mid-air Garden

Hanging indoor potted plants are the décor sweethearts of today’s home fashion. From east to west, designers are lacing and looping up plants in upside-down classic to contemporary vessels, in cantilevered, vertically mounted packets of walls, in modern macramé pods, and in so many odd styles and containers while beautifully suspended in mid-air. There’s an endless variety of plants you can use from traditional selections like the Swedish ivy to special cultivars like the Emerald fern. You can also choose plants that burst in colors (goldfish plant) or those with silver veins (silver net plant) or deep red veins (mosaic plant).

Photo credit: Thomas Chappel (flickr.com)

Give your home and yourself a pick-me-up by speckling your indoors with plants in green and other colors. Today, space is a problem in most homes, but adding indoor plants will bring in a breath of freshness – literally and figuratively.

You might also like:

5 Practical Ideas to Personalize Your Walls (lifestylesdecor.blogspot.com)

15 Fabulous Indoor Garden Ideas (babble.com)

Landscaping and Garden Design (yourhome.gov.au)

10 Simple Ways to Bring the Outdoors Inside (freshome.com)

Infographic: What To Expect From California's Drought

I saw this infographic while searching for information on California's current drought. The drought emergency was declared last January while everybody was enjoying the cold winter vortex and it's still dragging on today.

And I would just like to share this infographic because droughts aren't exclusive to California alone. It could happen anywhere and people should be aware of the consequences that a drought will bring to our land and waters.

Don't Miss The 8th WA Power & Gas Conference 2014

All you need to know about the current state of utilities in the region will be talked about in this year's WA Power & Gas Conference. Find out new innovations on the country's energy conservation efforts. Understand the market and the challenges that the region faces in the private and public sectors.

If you're planning to start a business or you already have a business involving gas, electricity, and energy, then this is a great opportunity to get an insight on consumers and get rare opportunities on the making the most of the future of Western Australia's energy developments. All the key players of the industry will be present and you will get to hear what they are currently up to in the market.

Keynote speakers will include Hon. Mike Nahan from the WA Minister for Energy along with private representatives like Allan Dawson for Independent Market Operator, Frank Tudor for Horizon Power, Jeff Dimery for Alinta Energy, and many more.

The conference will be held in the Fraser Suites Perth on the 11^th of March and will run for two days. Check out the full schedule of activities for the conference here along with all the other necessary information you will need like rates, address and contact information.

More Ways You Can Save Water At Home

Photo credit: Metabrilliant (flickr.com)

It's increasingly important that we treasure our water supplies for the future. With the constant threat of global warming , pollution, and other threats of water shortages, we never know when we will run out with the safe potable water. I do not want to sound apocalyptic but it's just something that every homeowner should do. If everyone were conscious of their own water use at home, that can make a big difference in the grand scheme of things. So here goes 10 saving tips that you might not have heard of yet:

1. Place a large barrel outside for harvesting rainwater. Rainwater is free and you can use it to water plants, clean the car, do the laundry, and the like. ­­­
2. Throwing dropped or leftover ice immediately into the sink is a waste. Instead of the sink, throw those cubes into your plants or your lawn. Ice cubes are great for cooling down your plants and give them a drink without using flowing water.
3. Leave your lawn clippings on the ground. They hold in moisture and will cool the soil so you don't have to water them as much. You can also add more plants to reduce the amount of lawn space. Put on a layer of organic mulch on your plants reduce the growth of weeds. Weeds will compete with your plants for water and other nutrients.
4. If you have kids, minimize buying them toys that use water like water guns. Also, if you've got a pool, turn off the waterfall and other flowing water decorations. Keep an eye on your pool when you're running an automatic refilling machine. Don't let it overflow. Or better yet, just use the community pool!
5. Sweep instead of using the hose to clean off the driveway, the sidewalk and the patio.
6. Do a leak inspection regularly on all faucets, pipes, and connectors both indoors and outdoors. Same goes for your sprinkler system. Check the heads if they're still in good shape.
7. Shower fast, keep it under five minutes tops. Use toiletries that are easy to rinse to avoid wasting water in the shower. Use a showerhead that doesn't let out too much water than you really need for showering. If it can fill up a gallon under 20 seconds, then it's a wasteful showerhead.
8. Always check your water meter. The water meter will be able to tell you if you've got a leak somewhere inside the house.
9. A dual flush toilet is another neat way to save on water. You have an option of releasing just half the amount of water it normally would for liquid waste.
10. Start a compost pile. It will hold more moisture in your soil so you won't need to water your plants as often. A compost will also save you from using the garbage disposal frequently and you will save more water this way.  

Related Articles:
Scientists Predict California May Be Headed For A 100-Year Megadrought (inhabitat.com)

Saving Money On Your Utility Consumption (homeysolutions.blogspot.com)