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NEW YEARS RESOLUTIONS FOR YOUR HOME January – Remove your holiday decorations by the second week in January. Nobody wants to see icicle lights or reindeer on your lawn in February, whether they be your neighbors or prospective buyers. February – Apply a fresh coat of paint to any rooms that need it. This is one of the least expensive ways to add a change to the inside of your home. March – While Spring cleaning, move some things around from collectibles to furniture to give you a fresh perspective and appreciation of your belongings. April – Wash all your windows. Seems so simple but a lot of people don't do it. This will allow the maximum light into your home after a winter cooped up inside. On warmer days, open some windows to freshen up the house. May – Clean up your deck or patio, as well as any outdoor furniture. Start planting flowers and other plants after your last frost. You will, after all, be doing a lot of your living outdoors in the coming months. June – Bring your Fall/Winter window treatments and slipcovers to the dry cleaners for cleaning and pressing, so they will be ready for fall. Use sheers at your windows for the summer months. July – Bring candles outdoors to extend your enjoyment of your outdoor room into the night. Whether floating candles for the pool or pond, pillar or votive for the table, hanging from tree branches or tall candle stands for those dark corners, candles will make for a very relaxed atmosphere as you entertain, or even just for enjoying your home on your own. August – It's too hot to go outside? Crank the A/C up and organize your bookcases. Keep only those that you think you will read again or that have some reference value. Donate those you will get rid of to your library or local hospital. Take the paper covers off and intersperse the books with pictures and collectibles. Stop, stand back and look every so often to make sure the arrangement is pleasing to the eye. September –Change out your lampshades. Rather than purchasing a new lamp to replace a tired one, a lampshade can give a lamp new life. While you're at it, remove the light bulbs and clean them with a damp cloth. Dust cuts down on light output. October – Bring those throws back out and toss them over your sofa or chair. Fluff and freshen your pillows and throws by putting them in the dryer on a "fluff" setting (no heat) with a scented dryer sheet. November –Easy and inexpensive slipcovers can be found at SureFit, which constantly adds to its selection. Try chenille, corduroy or tapestry-like fabrics. December – Early in the month go through your holiday decorations, deciding what you will use, what can be discarded and what you need to get. Copyright 2007 - Kathy Passarette, Creative Home Expressions |




| What Is Green Design and How You Can Bring It Into Your Home Seeing Green? No, not the green-eyed monster, but eco-friendly decorating in your home. Also known as sustainable design or environmentally friendly decorating, using these products can have a healthy impact on people and the planet. Kathy Passarette of Long Island, NY-based Creative Home Expressions offers six simple tips for you to “go green”: Kravet supports the beauty and health of our planet by offering fabrics that are eco- friendly and environmentally conscious. This involves the use of all-natural and sustainable yarns or recycled components. The Kravet Green Collection is made of 100% recycled polyester. These fabrics are woven and treated with no additional chemicals. Best of all, after years of enjoyable use, these fabrics are recyclable. To view this beautiful line of fabrics visit www.kravetgreen.com. You can use these fabrics to re-upholster furniture, make pillows or for window treatments. Window treatments, such as bamboo shades are a naturally renewable resource that doesn’t require pesticides. Window treatments can also work with your heating and cooling bills. Smith & Noble’s honeycomb shades (also known as cellular shades) provide substantial insulation with little weight, keeping rooms warmer in winter and cooler in summer. These shades have 5 out of 5 stars for energy efficiency. Also available are solar shades, which provide UV protection to save your furnishings from fading and minimize glare on tv and computer screens. In sun-facing rooms they reduce heat transfer from outdoors, not only adding to your comfort, but reducing your air conditioning bills. These solar shades have 4 out of 5 stars for energy efficiency. Visit Smith and Noble at www.smithandnoble.com. Light bulbs such as those by Phillips, which offer higher-end fluorescent bulbs, whether overhead lighting or task lighting that will cast a pure white or buttery glow rather than the harsh light of lower-end fluorescent bulbs. These bulbs can be screwed in just like regular bulbs and they last 10 times longer. Another option would be halogen bulbs; they produce more light and use less electricity. These bulbs cost more, but each halogen bulb last approximately 2-3 years. Flooring by FLOR not only has great designs to choose from, but it is a functional and versatile product. In the last 12 years, FLOR has reduced their manufacturing waste by 63% and greenhouse gas emissions by 56% worldwide. They also have an R&R Program (Return-Recycle) where they will arrange for your used carpet tiles to be picked up and shipped back to their mill, where the old tiles will be recycled into new product. You can view the many available options at www.interfaceflor.com. Use EnergyStar appliances, such as energy-efficient dishwashers and refrigerators. EnergyStar qualified appliances incorporate advanced technologies that use 10-50% less energy and water than standard models. If just one in 10 homes used EnergyStar qualified appliances, the change would be like planting 1.7 million new acres of trees. Use “green” paint and other finishing materials that have low or zero levels of VOC (volatile organic compounds), which means that the rate of their emissions or dissipation is as fast as possible. Paint companies such as Sherwin Williams’ new Harmony line of paints, Olympic Paint and Stain and Benjamin Moore’s Pristine EcoSpec offer zero VOC paints. Adding a color tint usually brings the VOC level up to 10 grams/liter, which is still quite low. Low VOC paints use water as a carrier instead of petroleum-based solvents. These certified coatings also contain no, or very low levels, of heavy metals and formaldehyde. Low VOC paints will still emit an odor until dry. A little forethought put into your interior decorating plans can provide you with an environmentally friendly home with little effort. Kravet says it best with their Green slogan – “Reuse – Recycle – Redecorate”. Copyright 2008 Kathy Passarette, Creative Home Expressions |