5 Bonuses of Plants in Small Spaces

When managed correctly, plants can make just about any space feel more healthy and green, whether it's a large space or a little one. For the latter, there are a couple of little bonuses that make plants work even better! Check out the 5 extra perks below.

1. Humidity: Although many folks are okay with remembering to water their plants, many plants need additional humidty to look their best. In a small space it's easy to mist, or simply take warm showers, to fill the place with a little extra.
2. Use Your Walls: Even though the same options are open to those living in larger spaces, somehow it seems less scary to use your walls for hanging planters or wall planters. When it's your only option, you just do it instead of looking at 1,000s of pictures of them on Pinterest for months without pulling the trigger.
3. Light Control: Plants, and the light they receive, have a symbiotic relationship. In a smaller space, this is easier to control and see the exact light each one is getting.
4. Watering: When my environment was larger, the plants at the far ends of my home always seemed to suffer the most. My watering can would either run out, or I would simply forget. In a small space it's easy to flit around, water them all, and call it a day!
5. Design: In a smaller space, you're much more aware of each and every thing in your home. Plants become art pieces and specific choices, instead of just something you got on sale or a friend handed down. Their pots are suddenly worth their designer prices as they've become show stoppers!

Full article here: http://bit.ly/11OpBgy

Your Old Fridge Might Be Costing You A Lot More Than You Think

Energy efficient technology is very popular these days, and although those products may cost a little more, it might end up saving you money in the long run. Your old fridge might be burning through so much energy that a new one will help you on your utility bills. Read more below.

The government's Energy Star website has a nifty refrigerator retirement savings calculator that will help you calculate how much money you'd save by replacing your main refrigerator or freezer or removing your old one from the garage entirely.

I plugged in my own old General Electric refrigerator from 1998, and it estimated an annual electricity cost of $126.05 (based on $.11 per KWh). This cost was more than double what a new energy efficient model might cost to run, which Energy Star estimated at $58 per year. With the average homeowner staying in one spot for 13 years, a savings of almost $70 per year would net $910. That's the entry price for a decent brand new Energy Star refrigerator. You'd gain back the purchase price difference, and enjoy the convenience of a brand new fridge.

That timespan is just about the lifecycle of an average refrigerator also, and consider that the older your appliance gets the more inefficiently it's likely to run as components fail, filters go uncleaned, and so on.

So think about whether it's worth hanging on to that old crusty fridge in the garage just to store a few extra bags of ice and juice. It might be time to trade in or recyclethe old workhorse and get yourself a newer model, or simply go without the extra convenience. After all, how many cans of soda do we need to have in the fridge at one time anyway?

Read the full article here: http://bit.ly/1264wAF

5 Ways to Put Your Old Candles to Work

Everyone has little tips and tricks they use to keep their home in good shape, and we’ve got some for you. If you, like many people, have candles that are old, partially used, or just unwanted then you can reuse them in several interesting ways. Check out the following tips on how to make ‘useless’ candles useful again!

• Use a candle to weatherproof a shipping label! (See photo above). I live in Seattle, so this is a great trick for eight months out of the year here!

1. Write your label and wait for the ink to dry.

2. Stick onto your package or envelope.

3. Gently rub a soft end (usually the bottom flat edge) over the entire label. This will keep the ink from running in snowy or rainy weather.

• Use an old candle to fix a sticky drawer!

1. Get your drawer open (this might be hard before using the candle).

2. Use the edge to rub wax along the bottom corners of the drawer and the tracks to help with friction.

3. Open and close the drawer a few times to set.

• Use an old candle to lubricate a difficult window latch.

1. Open the latch.

2. Simply rub the soft end (usually the bottom edge or side) everywhere all over the latch.

3. Open and close several times to fully lubricate.

• Use a lit candle to avoid tears while slicing an onion. -- this one is definitely my favorite!

1. Light a candle next to your slicing station.

2. Grab a super sharp knife, brace yourself, and slice.

3. Don't tear up!

• Use an old candle to fix a stubborn zipper.

1. Unzip the zipper.

2. Rub wax over the difficult area.

3. Zip and unzip a few times.

Full article here: http://bit.ly/13nR9Hf

5 Tips to Make Your House Appear Cleaner Than It Is

Uh-oh, company’s coming over soon and you don’t have much time to clean your place! What’s the best thing to do with the few minutes you’ve got between now and when guests arrive? Don’t grab the vacuum or try to wash dishes, there’s no time! Check out these tips on speedy ways to make your apartment seem a little cleaner than it actually is.

1. Clean the Three T's: Toilets, Tabletops, the Television. What? The television? Yup! Most living rooms are centered around your tv and the amount of dust that hangs on it, your netflix stack and dvd box set pile that's off to one side could be tell tale signs of why the rest of your house isn't exactly spotless. Plus if you sit chatting in the living room, you'll be staring at it wishing you would have moved it. Toilets and tabletops are a bit more self explanatory, but important none the less.

2. Stash with Efficiency: When company drops in we've all been in a situation once or twice where things get tossed in a basket and shoved in the spare bedroom or closet. It's a quick solution, but it can be done with more efficiency so you can find your stuff later on. Add things to your basket according to the room they go in. That way when company leaves, you can remove the items easily without making 100 trips across your house or apartment to put things where they belong.

3. Pet Hair: Even if you have a sparkling clean house, if your sofa is covered with a layer of dog or cat fur, it suddenly looks less tidy. Keep a rubber glove or your favorite pet hair busting product on hand to knock it all down in a few sweeps.

4. Dishes Be Gone in Seconds Flat: Please don't judge me for this tip. Admitting that I've done it more than once is punishment enough alright? So here goes. Put your dishes in your oven. Wait, what? If you pile your dishes in the sink then it looks like you threw them all in there at the last minute as everyone knows you can't really wash dishes in that manner and you'll still look like a slight slob, even though you have clean counters. Instead, grab a baking sheet and stack like items together and slide them in the oven. They'll slide right back out, be prestacked and ready to be washed so you can recover from the guilt you just gave yourself for following through with this tip. Side note: don't preheat your oven... even by accident... until they're removed.

5. Spend 5 Furious Minutes on Your House Everyday: Isn't that cheating? We're talking about last minute company here, not preparing all week long for them to come! True, but think about how much you can clean in those few minutes before they arrive. 10 blocks isn't much. With traffic and parking and walking up your stairs, 5 minutes is a safe estimate. Bring that panic to your life every day and clean with the same intensity for just 5 minutes and your house will always look better for it. Plus, you still have time to watch Raising Hope without telling yourself you'll pick up on commercials.

Full article here: http://bit.ly/LJZT0F

Organizing and Purging Your Closet

Do you have small closets, or do you just have a lot of clothes?  Separating your clothes by season can be a great way to save space. It also gives you the ability to periodically go through your clothes and clean out what items you do not want anymore.  Keep reading to learn three great reasons about organizing your closet by season.  If you want some tips or more information, you can check out apartment therapy.

When I was a kid growing up in New York, it was a spring ritual to go through the box of summer clothes my mother had packed away the previous fall, trying them on to see what fit and what was, and wasn't, usable.

Now that I live in Los Angeles where it's always sunny and 70 degrees (not really), I'd fallen out of the habit of packing away summer clothes. After all, a particularly hot day in February might encourage a spontaneous trip to the beach, when I'd need a bathing suit. But, recently, I've picked up the habit again, sucking everything meant for three digit temperatures into Space Bags for the winter.

Now that the temperature's starting to warm up (seriously, it does get chilly here), I've started unpacking my stuff while making a mental list of the wintery things that will be the first to be packed away. Besides a closet in which I can actually see what I own, I've discovered a few other unexpected benefits to this childhood ritual:

• I'm forced to go through my clothes with a critical eye, discarding what no longer works or fits, or is beyond repair. The forced examination of my wardrobe has resulted in its considerable thinning. Unexpected benefit: a smaller wardrobe but one which actually works better (which means getting dressed in the morning — getting dressed period — takes half as long as it used to. No more clothes tornadoes. Another benefit.).

• With a few modifications, my closet can hold everything I need in one place: By keeping only the present season's wardrobe in my closet, I discovered that I didn't need a dresser after all. Unexpected benefit: more room in my bedroom, no money spent on storage furniture.

• Grouping clothing by season and by activity, it's easier to assess what works for my wardrobe and my life and what doesn't. Now I can look at a catalog and quickly figure out if I need something or not. Turns out, I have enough black tie dresses to last me an entire awards season (if anyone needs a date). Unexpected benefit: saving money.

Do you pack away clothes when the seasons change?

Leap for Literacy

Check out this great fundraiser that was held in Dawson County to support literacy.  Participants took the leap into the lake at War Hill Park.  They raised over $4000 dollars this year for WEE Books.  This program strives to put age appropriate books into the hands of children that are four years old and younger.  For more information, you can check out the Dawson News.


Dawson County residents didn't let 40-degree weather or stormy skies dampen their spirits for a good cause Saturday as WEE Books held its third annual Leap for Literacy.

According to organizers, the fundraiser at War Hill Park has grown more successful each year.

"We did a few dollars better than we did last year," said Bob Inman. "This year we ended up raising a little over $4,000 for WEE Books."

The program strives to put age-appropriate books in the hands of children from infants to age 4.

Saturday, 11 teams took the plunge into Lake Lanier They included two solo acts, Barry Mayes and Brian Burke.

"Back when my kids were in school here, we did PTA, Boy Scouts, that kind of stuff," Mayes said. "Both my kids are out of school now and my youngest just moved out yesterday.

"I wanted to stay active in the community and this is the first event I saw in the paper, so I decided to come down and do it. Plus I'm training for the Tough Mudder, which benefits the Wounded Warrior Project and I figured this would be a good test."

Mayes added that he plans on looking for future community events to take part in.

Burke said he jumped the first year because he knows Jane Graves, whose husband Lionel is president of WEE Books, through Rotary.

"I know what WEE Books does in the community," Burke said. "Studies show that when you expose young people to books, they are much better off when they are older."

While Burke was jumping alone this year, he did show support for the Interact Club, the Rotary Club's high school arm, whose members also jumped this year.

"Literacy is a big thing in Rotary Club, as well," he said. "We have a scholarship that Rotary gives to high school students each year, so this event hopefully is the genesis of that."

Interact is Rotary's service club for ages 12 to 18. Sponsored by individual clubs, which provide support and guidance, Interact groups are self-governing and self-supporting.

This year's Interact team had a special guest jumper, Maj. Tony Wooten of the Dawson County Sheriff's Office.

"I'm with Rotary and one of the sponsors of the Interact Club," Wooten said. "I told them if we raised the money, I would jump in full uniform. There were four kids that were willing to jump in the lake, so I did it with them."

Wooten didn't completely cross future jumps off of his list.

"It wasn't as bad as I thought," he said. "I think the anticipation was worse than the actual water - except for the initial shock of ‘where did my breath go' and ‘why can't I feel my hands?' Other than that, it's fun."

Judges Christie Haynes, president of the Dawson County Chamber of Commerce, Jan Whetstone of Jan's Family Daycare and Dawsonville Mayor James Grogan observed the jumps and gave out awards.

The Interact Club team received the Best Leaping award. Most Creative went to KISSing Illiteracy Goodbye, the Dawson County High School team.

The honor for the Highest Sponsorship Team went to Robinson Elementary's Three Blind Mice team, who raised $750, while Best Leaper went to Mayes.

Spring Cleaning Checklist

 Are you ready for some warm weather?  If you are, you can start prepping now for your apartment's spring cleaning.  Check out this week by week chart to get your house ready for summer and spring.  Keep reading to learn some tips and tricks for your spring cleaning marathon.


I don’t know about you, but by mid-February each year, I’ve had it with winter. I’m tired of the short days, the cold weather, and flu season. Maybe most of all, I’m tired of the dirt and grime that seems the settle on everything — my house, my car, my kitchen floors — after the snow becomes mixed with road salt, soot, and dirt and finds its way into every nook and cranny. You can imagine, then, how delighted I am to say that spring cleaning season is just around the corner. (See also: Control Your Allergies with Regular Cleaning)

Don’t know where to start with your own spring cleaning? Try breaking it up into small, manageable bits by assigning just three tasks to each weekend in March. Follow my week-by-week checklist below to restore order and cleanliness to your home and prepare for a relaxing, rejuvenating spring!

Week One: De-Clutter Your Kitchen

1. Fridge

I know, I know. We all hate to clean the fridge, but what better time to do it thoroughly than spring cleaning? Start by cleaning out the freezer. Although the USDA says frozen foods remain safe to eat indefinitely, you do start to sacrifice taste and food quality after a certain amount of time. Use their chart to determine whether to throw away that casserole in your freezer. Next, clean your freezer with a sponge and 1:3 mixture of vinegar and water (vinegar is safe on areas that touch food and will remove stains and odors). Repeat with your refrigerator. Finish by dusting the top of the fridge, wiping down the sides, and vacuuming your refrigerator coils. Added bonus: Keeping your coils clean can help your refrigerator run more efficiently, saving you money.

2. Cabinets

“Cabinets” is a broad area to clean, I know. My advice pertains more to organizing your kitchen cabinets than to cleaning the outside of them, however. Attack your spring-cleaning cabinet organization by assessing the problem areas (junk drawer, Tupperware cabinet, or pots and pans cabinet, for example). Try to articulate what the problem is, and why it’s a problem for you. For example, my pots and pans cabinet is in shambles because my BF loves to throw things in there all willy-nilly after they come out of the dishwasher. Think of a solution that might address the root of the problem. For me, that would involve either buying a pot rack to hang my pots and pans (one per hook; problem solved!) or making clear dividers in the cabinets (skillets on the left, sauce pans on the right, thank you very much). It could be as simple as delineating the spaces with two tablecloths, or could be solved with an organizational tool from the store.

3. Oven/Dishwasher

OK, there’s nothing really similar between an oven and a dishwasher, but I said just three tasks per weekend, right? Plus, all you really need to do for the oven is turn on the self-cleaning feature or, for a lighter cleaning, use these oven-cleaning tips from Good Housekeeping. To clean your dishwasher, start by wiping down the outside and work your way in. Wipe the front, sides, and bottom (none of which gets washed during a normal cycle), and then clean debris out of the spinning arms and the grate/grill under the arms. Finally, run an empty cycle with distilled white vinegar to help remove hard water deposits and other grime you can’t reach. Week one: done!

Week Two: Beautify Your Bedroom

1. Thin the Herd (in Your Closet)

I clean my closet every six months or so but still seem to find a bounty of clothes to discard after each go-round. To decide which pieces to keep and which to give away, I go with the six-month rule: If I haven't worn it in six months, I probably won't miss it if it goes. In fact, I can't ever remember thinking, "I wish I had kept that out-of-date white sweater; it would go great with these shoes!" After a healthy wardrobe trimming, switch out your winter clothes for the lighter-weather wear. Decide whether you’re a person who likes to organize by color or by type. Store out-of-season clothing under the bed or in an out-of-the-way spot.

2. Organize Dresser Drawers

Dresser drawers are kind of like kitchen cabinets and luckily, you have experience organizing those from week one. Do the same for your boudoir boxes and systematically identify problem areas, causes, and solutions. In my case, my sock drawer is a real pain. I have trouser socks, warm fuzzy socks, and running socks all jumbled together in one, socky mess. A simple solution is to sort socks by use (work, casual, and running) and divide the drawer according. For a budget-friendly solution, try using shoe boxes, pencil organizers, or tissue boxes.

3. Tend to Bedding

There is conflicting advice on whether you should flip your mattress every so often in order to lengthen its useful life; I’m in favor of the practice. You might also want to vacuum your mattress using the upholstery attachment on your vacuum cleaner and then cover your mattress with a good cover to help keep dust mites and allergens at bay. While you’re at it, either replace old pillows or check to see whether you can wash them (most types of pillows, whether made from natural or synthetic materials, are machine-washable). Lastly, change out your warm, winter blankets and comforter for lighter bedding.

ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW

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Week Three: How About That Home Office?

1. File, File, File

Of all the tasks on my spring cleaning list, this is the one I dread the most. On the other hand, I know it will feel amazing to finally have my file drawers organized. During week three of March, organize your file drawer. If you don’t have a designated file cabinet or file drawer, you should. Motivate yourself to organize by buying brightly colored labels (I love Post-It® Filing Tabs! Download coupons here.) and hanging file folders. Then, get to filing — my folders are divided by categories like insurance information, taxes, medical bills, receipts, coupons, etc. If you already have a filing system in place, use this time to go through documents and shred what you no longer need. Here is a list of how long to hold on to important documents.

2. Clean Up Your Computer

Spring cleaning isn’t just about cleaning your physical space; it’s about the electronic sphere, too. There are a number of quick tasks you can do to improve the speed of your PC or Mac, including getting rid of unused files and programs, cleaning up your desktop, and defragmenting your hard drive.

3. Update Antivirus & Anti-Spyware Software

After you’ve improved the speed of your computer, keep it safe by updating your antivirus and anti-spyware software. Top Ten Reviews has a comprehensive list of the best antivirus and anti-spyware programs available, while PCWorld has reviews of the best free antivirus and anti-spyware out there. Finally, don’t forget to put a file backup strategy in place, so you don’t lose all your important electronic documents or programs.

Week Four: Tackle Outdoor Spaces

1. Clean Gutters

If you’re a homeowner, you’ll want to periodically clean out your gutters in order to prevent water damage to the roof and walls of your home. DIY Network has a great tutorial on cleaning and repairing your gutters yourself.

2. Clean Outside of Windows

As the weather gets warmer and the days get longer, let in more sunlight by cleaning the outside of your windows. Start by clearing away cobwebs and debris using a soft cloth, then clean the glass itself using a window-cleaning product or a 1:1 mix of vinegar and hot water (vinegar to the rescue again!). Make your job easier by purchasing a squeegee to wipe of excess water and prevent streaks. Wipe dry.

3. Clean Patio Furniture

Nobody likes to sit on a dirty, mucky patio chair. Increase the chances that you’ll make use of your outdoor spaces this season by cleaning your patio furniture. Mix dishwashing liquid with warm water and use this with a brush to scrub tables and chairs. While you’re at it, clean up your porch or patio by clearing away debris and sweeping the area. Treat stains with a 1:3 mixture of bleach and water and scrubbing the area with a hard-bristle brush.
There, you’ve made it! Four short weeks of three tasks per week. Now sit back, and enjoy the weather! Or, if you have extra time, take care of some other miscellaneous once-a-year tasks:

1. Change your air filter
2. Clean out your dryer ducts to help prevent fires
3. Inventory items in your home in case of theft or fire
4. Discard old beauty and bath products
   For more information see Wisebread.