Smart Style

Get Healthy With the Help of a New Blender

Posted by admin on January 18th, 2012

Well I admit it, I did just what those crafty marketing guys expected me to do. As soon as the sun came up on Jan 1^st I raced out to buy a new book full of healthy recipes to kick start my resolution to become more clean and lean. Along with it came the need for a new blender, as smoothies are meant to become a staple in my quest.

Aside from making purchases, I actually have taken the time to read the books I bought. Let me share what I have learned about making smoothies. First, to uniformly cut everything inside the blender, it is best to add the ingredients in small quantities. Plus, it will help you avoid any overspills while doing the blending. It also is sensible to chill, or freeze ingredients prior to blending them, as this will keep the drink colder for longer. You know how a smoothie loses its appeal once it turns lukewarm.

Though you may not want to add an additional step to your smoothie process, it is always better to cut the fruit, or vegetables into pieces that are consistent with one another. It turns out nicer, and puts less strain on the motor. Oh, and most importantly, add the ice last.

Stylish Emergency Gifts That Have Saved My Hide

Posted by admin on November 10th, 2011

Nobody likes to be the person who is given a gift, but is empty handed when it comes to reciprocity. For some it happens yearly, for others more frequently, the answer is oh so simple. I adhere to a strick rule of having a whole shelf of emergency gifts, but I realise it is not truly necessary.

However, those emergency gifts have been my saving grace more times then I care to recall. For, I am the type of person that deplores being unprepared. So, here is a list of a few of the items I have on that shelf, feel free to follow suit: scented candles of varying sizes, a set of wine glasses, bags of specialty teas and cocoas, flavoured cooking oils in decorative containers. They are all appreciated by men and women alike, so I know I am always covered. The pricing range is good too, so I can exchange on the same financial level as the individual’s gift I received unexpectedly.

Outdated Kitchen to Outrageous Kitchen in a Matter of Minutes

Posted by admin on October 5th, 2011

The kitchen is one room that you can now reinvigorate style wise in a flash. Finally, there are really fabulous looking stainless steel backsplashes that can easily be inserted upon an already existing wall. So, you can reinvent the feel, and style of the room in a snapola.

The stainless steel backsplashes are affixed with good old epoxy, so you can conceal from view those hideous lime green and impossibly bright orange tiles, or eliminate that rooster, chicken and egg printed wallpaper altogether in a flash. Some of the most popular of the patterns are harlequin, diamond and checkerboard, but it is also available in just basic plain stainless steel.

Just think you could switch from an outdated kitchen, involving a grimy, antiquated, and discolored backsplash to a sleek and snazzy one in just a matter of

Single Beds with Added Extras

Posted by admin on August 3rd, 2011

Beds are beds, yes? Well actually, no. Now beds are far more than a bed, they come with accessories, as does everything else in this modern society.

You can easily buy a plain and simple single bed, but if you browse Dreams you will find that many single beds come with an extra twist.

For a start you have a single bed that can morph into a double bed. This seems impossible. But with the flip up side bed you are left with a double bed that only needs a single bed sized storage. The spare half of the bed resides under the normal bed, and is pulled out and up when needed. Genius!

On a similar theme you have single beds with trundle beds underneath. These, slightly smaller, single beds are kept underneath the taller bed and can easily be pulled out from underneath when needed. Your guest is sleeping lower to the floor than normal, but many who have tried it admit that they find this helps them sleep better. Perhaps we should all
revert to lower beds?

But perhaps the most unusual of single beds can be found in the children’s section on dreams.co.uk. These come in the form of cabin beds. They are your normal single bed but slightly higher; leaving more room for the shelves, pull out desk, and drawers! Who would have thought so much could be fitted under one single bed?

The wonder of these is that you have everything in one place, which is fantastic for a child, especially if they are sharing a room with their sibling. They have their area around their bed, it is no-one else’s, and it can be kept very neat and tidy.

Single beds with added extras are god sends. They embellish a piece of furniture that is a necessity and turn it into a fun and useful piece of furniture in your house.
If you want to purchase any of the beds mention visit dreams.co.uk, the home of cheap beds and mattresses.

Give Your Fireplaces the Attention They Deserve

Posted by admin on July 3rd, 2011

Yes, fireplaces can be wonderful pieces of a home, for they create interesting visual features, warmth, and are often a spot people gravitate toward. That is why we think it is such a shame when we come across one that has been dismantled, and made dysfunctional. Sure, old fireplaces might need some restoration, or even replacement, but considering all they can add to a space, it seems more than worthwhile in our opinion.

As you might have guessed, there are steps that need to be taken to keep a fireplace in working order once it is up and running. Just sitting back can work pretty well for awhile, but eventually you will start to notice that some fine tuning should be conducted on your behalf. We always find that making these corrections, and touch ups are best done when first noticed, instead of later on.

A good example of this is if you find small cracks on the fireback. These can be fixed with little effort and minor expense, just the type of repairs we love most. To do this, allow the entire fireplace to cool down over the course of a full forty-eight hours. You will need a paintbrush, fire cement and a trowel to complete the work.

Blow or brush the dust out of the cracks, and then use the paintbrush to apply water to them. Next, use the trowel to insert the fire cement and then smooth over the top. Even out the surface with another swipe of the paintbrush with water and leave to dry. Now, you can rest easy that you are treating your fireplace properly.

The Sane Approach to the Floral Trend

Posted by admin on April 11th, 2011

If you have been anywhere that sells fashion magazines, read any trend forecasts, or simply eavesdrop, then you will know that florals are whats happening this spring. So much so that it has been said that the way to get the trend right is to actually try to clash floral patterns as you pile them on top of one another.

Now, to me, whether you are dressing yourself, or a room in your home this is overkill. However, bringing this into your world in a smaller, more rational dose is a must if you want to be in the know. As such, stock up on floral pillow cases, inexpensive, but of course good thread count blossom covered sheets, or a whimsical artwork made by a student of a bunch of dahlias or poppies to hang on your wall.

So, get out there and floral up, but do it in a sane, controlled way so that once it becomes passé, you can retract all memory of it quickly. Believe me you will regret it otherwise, and so will your bank account.

Tips on Improving Generic Builder’s Cabinets

Posted by admin on January 10th, 2011

While generic builder’s cabinets are great on the wallet, they tend to be not so easy on the eyes. A common way to amend this is to go for the Swedish style, and paint them all white, and replace the hardware with all chrome. Or you could go to a more extreme measure, and get a bigger return on style.

The upper doors of cabinets look fresh and contemporary when they are replaced with windows. You can then line them with fun fabric, or paint them vibrant colours to make them uniquely yours. Once you have inserted toile fabric, or painted the interior a smashing plum, your cups, saucers, and dishes will become decorative pieces, as well as functional ones.

Then to tie it all together, you can stencil the same, or similar pattern on the cabinet doors below. It is recommended, that if you do go forward with a stencil design, that you keep everything on your countertops, and backsplash simple and toned down to establish a balance.

Smart and Easy Gift Wrapping Idea

Posted by admin on December 1st, 2010

This year I have decided to skip the wrapping paper on my gifts, simply because they will not need any. I have purchased plenty of beautiful small storage boxes with wonderful artwork, and lavish detail. Since they come in virtually all shapes in sizes these days I will be well covered no matter what I want to put inside of them as the gift. Plus, the boxes themselves are super presents as they can become integral parts of the recipient’s own stylish form of home or office organisation. All that will be added to them before I present them is coordinating bows and personalised calligraphy cards. This should make for a very interesting and colourful display underneath our Christmas tree until the big exchange.

How to Remove Candle Wax From Fabric

Posted by admin on October 20th, 2010

Candles can make a wonderful addition to just about any living area. The only thing is that if the wax ends up on any fabric that it may encounter then you must be prepared to remove it. So if you are a fan of candles too, then remember the following tips for the removal of wax from fabric.

If the wax has not hardened then freeze it. Once you have it hard enough, the first thing to do is to scrape off the surplus. Next, dab with a sponge coated in cleaning solvent. Then put a dry paper towel on either side of the stained fabric and press a warm iron on to it. You will have to replace the kitchen paper from time to time in order to absorb the entire mass. Finally, pretreat the area with a stain remover and place in the washer with any bleach solvent safe for the material you are working on.

The Latest Trend in Indoor Plants

Posted by admin on July 17th, 2010

If you have a need for some greenery in your home pronto, but want something rather smart looking then go with grass. Yep, you read that right, plant some grass in your home. Well, in pots of course.

This can produce several different effects depending upon the container style you pick for your grass seeds. Pick sleek silver or chrome coloured containers and and you will get a crisp modern look, but use china teacups and you will produce a more eclectic and delicate one.

No matter what holders you decide upon, you should have sprouts within seven to ten days. This is considered nearly instant gratification in the world of indoor gardening. Then as the sprouts grow, clip them back so they will remain controlled. Unless you are shooting for abundant overgrowth, then you will have it in no time at all.