How to Make a Bouquet for Home Decor

Looking to make your own bouquet? Going the DIY route is not only fun but saves you money if you’re looking to cut down on costs. Plus, making your own bouquet allows you to customize and make it unique to you!

Whether you want a bouquet for a special occasion or to spruce up your home decor, Read more to learn how to make a bouquet in five simple steps. 

1. Gather Materials 

• Flowers: Pick out your favorite flowers from your local shop to use for the bouquet. 

• Scissors: These will be needed to clean up the stems as you create the bouquet handle. 

• Floral tape: This helps keep the flowers in place after arranging them.

• Decorative ribbon: Placing ribbon of your choosing around the bouquet will give it a special. 

Picking Your Flowers

Picking out flowers that are in-season and from your local shop will ensure that they will be fresh — plus it gives you an opportunity to support small businesses! Additionally, flowers that come from local shops are usually more budget-friendly. 

Make sure to order your flowers two months before to ensure the exact flowers you want are in stock! Also, we recommend ordering more flowers than you might need in case you make mistakes while making your bouquet. 

2. Prep the Flowers

After gathering your materials and picking out the flowers, you’re ready to begin. Place everything on a tabletop and make sure the extra foliage has been taken off the stems. 

3. Cut Stems 

The next step is to trim the leaves off where you’ll be tying the bouquet together with floral tape. This will make it easier to either carry the bouquet or put it into its vase. 

4. Putting Together the Arrangement

After prepping, decide how to arrange the flowers. Begin by choosing up to four flowers that will look great as the base or focal point of your bouquet. Make the bouquet bigger by adding more flowers around the base.  Do this by turning the bouquet continuously and adding stems until your arrangement is at your desired size. 

5. Securing the Bouquet

Once your flowers are arranged as desired, secure the stems tightly just below the blooms with your floral tape. This will ensure that everything stays in place and gives your bouquet the extra support it needs before placing it into a vase. If your bouquet has any excess stems at the base, feel free to trim these until the length is to your liking. 

Place the finished bouquet in a vase with fresh water and add it to your favorite spot in the house! 

Congratulations, you’ve learned how to make a bouquet! Have fun with it — experiment with different flowers and decorative ribbons to get the perfect look. Whether you’re making one as a gift or for your home, these five steps will help you create a unique floral bouquet with ease. 

How to Redesign a Kitchen for Comfortable Aging In Place

Aging in place has become many elderly’s preferences in recent years. The more time the elderly spend on their own at home, the more prone they’ll become to accidents and hazards if the home is not safe for them. As we age, we cannot expect to be as fit, quick and strong to maneuver around the kitchen in our 60s as we were in our 20s. That’s why if you have an elderly loved one aging in place, you should consider redesigning a kitchen to make their everyday life more comfortable. 

Allow for enough lighting to improve safety

Many elderly face decreased eyesight as they age. That’s why they’ll need as much light as possible in every room, including the kitchen. Make sure you install light switches at easily accessible spots. They should be very easy to use and reach. We suggest you place it near the entrance of the kitchen, within arm’s reach. That way, the elderly will have enough lighting from the room they’re exiting and will be able to reach the switch easily before they can risk hurting themselves on any sharp items or small appliances. An automatic light switch that turns on as soon as a person enters the kitchen would be a great addition to your home. Alternatively, rocker-type light switches would be just as convenient for aging in place home. 

Modify the cabinets for accessibility

Another important part of a kitchen redesign are the cabinets. They should be very easy to reach so that the elderly would be out of harm’s way. When it comes to upper cabinets, try to place them around 3 inches lower than their usual height. A pullout step around the perimeter of the floor is a perfect addition for especially tall upper cabinets. If you’re afraid that your loved ones will hurt themselves while trying to overreach when trying to access kitchenware, consider adding a pull-down shelf in your upper cabinets. To make lower cabinets more convenient to use, add pullout shelves which will reduce back strain. Furthermore, they will maximize the storage space as well. Open shelves will allow aging residents to reach the most frequently used items without any fuss. If you need cabinets that offer both convenience and more access, Lazy Susan cabinets are a perfect choice. 

Slip-Resistant floors to prevent hazards

The kitchen is the room where slipping is very often, especially when it comes to the elderly. To prevent any hazards, make sure you replace the old flooring with new non-slip tiles, for example. If you opt for a floor covering, make sure it’s non-glare. Cork floor coverings will successfully prevent slipping accidents while allowing for more comfort while standing. People who have hip or lower back pain will have a difficult time standing, so it would be a good idea to provide them with comfortable anti-fatigue mats that will make their time in the kitchen more convenient. 

Countertops for the elderly

To make sure your aging loved ones have all the space in the kitchen needed, consider multilevel countertops. Not only will they increase maneuverability, but choice as well. If your elderly residents are having trouble seeing clearly, color-coded edges on countertops will be lifesavers. By giving a visual signal with their vibrant hues, any potential accidents will be successfully prevented. Instead of keeping the sharp 90 degrees corners on countertops, think about installing countertops with rounded corners instead. All the countertops are usually installed at a hip/abdomen level, so any time an elderly person bumps into it, they will be at risk of bruising or more severe injuries. Therefore, rounded countertops will be a much better option. Also, be sure to install an emergency grab handle along the entirety of the countertop to help break a potential fall. That way if a person starts to fall, they can grab a hold of a handle instead of an unattached appliance or utensil.

Final thoughts

Providing the elderly with the utmost comfort in their home is essential for their health and safety. Therefore, to be sure they’re never in harm’s way, do your best to redesign the kitchen in a way that will allow them to live worry-free. Make all the meal prep activities peace of cake by improving the design of the kitchen with the previously mentioned suggestions. 

How Hailstorm Can Damage Your House

If you happen to live in one of the southern and central plain states, then hailstorms should not be an uncommon occurrence to you. Hailstorms in this region are the result of collision between the moist dry air from The Gulf of Mexico and the cold and dry air from Canada. In general, hailstorms don’t cause casualties, or as severe damage as other natural disasters such as tornadoes or typhoons. However, house owners in hailstorm prone areas do consider hailstorm as an acute nuisance, because of the damage it causes to property. 

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has recorded over 6,000 hailstorms during the year 2017. Even though hailstorms were not that much destructive in the past, in recent years the damages caused by this calamity have increased quite significantly. Hailstorms account for 70% of all the losses caused by different types of storms in the US. That pretty much sums up why you, as a homeowner, should take them more seriously. Understanding how a hailstorm can ravage your property will help you take measures to mitigate the damages as much as possible in case a hailstorm occurs in your area. 

Roof Damage

Unfortunately, roofs are the most obvious victims of hailstorms. Depending on the degree of the storm, your roof can suffer from minor to major damages. A hailstorm can even reach more than 100 mph speed, and when your roof is struck by such speedy hail, damages can certainly occur. The worst part is, it is very difficult to detect hail damage on your roof. If your roof has a metal structure, you will notice the dents, but for flat roofs, that is not the case for sure. Be sure to carefully examine your roof to detect potential damages. This way you will be able to avoid any potential conflict with your insurer during the time of settling hailstorm claims.

Window Damage

I think this is very obvious as well. Just like your roof, your windows are completely exposed to hail during a storm. Glass windows can get shattered very easily because of large hail particles. If hail breaks through your windows, it can cause a much more serious problem. Even your family members can get injured by the pieces of glass. If you live in a hailstorm prone area, then it is important for you to add protection to your windows, and even doors if possible. 

Siding Damage

While the lion share of hail damage on your home’s siding would be cosmetic, a too intense hailstorm can even cause leaks and cracks. Just like roof damage, siding damage can be difficult to notice. If your house contains painting instead of siding, then you need to examine the damage in a bit different way. You’ll have to look for any fresh peel in the painting, and carefully look for potential damages in the wood underneath. This is an issue you need to sort out as soon as possible, because exposed wood can rot very soon, increasing your repair costs by quite some margin. Unfortunately, if the damage caused by hail falls under the cosmetic damage category, you are not likely to receive any insurance coverage for that. Usually basic homeowners insurance doesn't account for any damage that does not affect the functionality of your house. That’s why you should consider adding a separate scheme to your insurance policy to cover for cosmetic damage if you live in a hailstorm prone area. Sure, this will push the price of your premium up, but it will be worth it for sure. 

Miscellaneous Damages

Among other common types of hailstorm damages, air conditioning system damage is a notable one. If large pieces of hail fall on the fins of your air conditioning unit, its function will surely impede because of restricted air flow. Flue vents, as well as chimneys, are susceptible to hailstorm damage as well. However, most probably hailstorm damages will not affect the functionality of these units, as most of the time they suffer cosmetic damage. If you happen to have a garden in your house, hailstorms can cause damages like destroying the flowerbeds, making a mess of newly plowed land etc. For this reason, the houses in hailstorm prone areas don’t have gardens that often. 

Conclusion

The types of damages I have explained in this article are just the most common ones, and there are many other types of minor damages that I have not mentioned. Hailstorms are indeed a very serious problem for homeowners in some areas, but it’s the reality. That’s why you should consider getting specific insurance premiums that cover hailstorm damages should you live in one of such areas. 

Do you live in a hailstorm affected area? What is your experience with hailstorms? Let me know in the comment section. 

Tips To Help You Remodel Your Kitchen Safely During A Pandemic

We all have experienced lots of new things because of COVID-19, as this pandemic has changed our lives in so many different ways. Some things have been difficult and hard, whereas certain changes have done us good also. Take, for example, the lockdown that came with a lot of side effects and some advantages also. We all got ample of time to spend with our loved ones and nurture our interests. Cooking turned out to be a go-to option for many who were bored and wanted to put their extra time during the lockdown to good use.

Kitchens because of the Corona Virus pandemic became so busy that many started to feel the need to remodel or renovate their cooking space. However, the safety concerns didn’t let many homeowners do so, for they wondered whether it is safe to remodel their kitchen during a pandemic or not. If you also have been wondering this for long, we have an answer for you. Yes, you can go with your kitchen remodel plans but with all the required safety measures or precautions mentioned below.

Schedule a Virtual or Phone Interview with Kitchen Remodelling Company

As you have decided to get your kitchen remodelled, you would start the process with meeting a kitchen remodelling team that you have shortlisted for discussing several things. However, you should avoid face-to-face meetings, as the coronavirus is still hanging around. You can opt for telephonic meetings or virtual meetings to discuss the scope of work, quartz worktop prices, your ideas, requirements and budget.

Plan a Virtual Tour

You have conveyed your kitchen remodelling requirements and expectations to the kitchen remodelling team, but now you are supposed to show the actual kitchen space to the team. Again, an on-site visit is not a feasible option here because of COVID-19 pandemic. You can arrange for a virtual home tour that would enable the professional remodeler to take a walk through your home and kitchen. Just have a good internet connection and mobile device to make an uninterrupted video call to show the cooking area and convey your remodelling requirements. 

Likewise, you can have a virtual tour of a kitchen remodelling company for shortlisting the most ideal kitchen design elements and utilities. For example, you can check out the top quartz worktops London collection online and place an order for the most suitable one.

Sanitation and Hygiene

Whenever the kitchen remodelling professionals visit your home, make sure you provide them with a proper sanitation and hygiene facility. You have to arrange for a separate washbasin and sanitizers so that the entire team can wash hands and sanitize it properly. Making provision for hand sanitizers and clean water is your responsibility, which, in turn, would ensure your safety and that of your family members.

Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)

Hiring kitchen remodelling professionals today is not just about checking their experience, offerings and quartz worktop prices but also whether the team and company are compliant to the COVID-19 norms on not. As per one of these norms, the team members of any service provider or company are supposed to wear personal protective equipment at all times. They should be wearing a proper mask when working at the site, accompanied by gloves and face shield. The type of face mask and gloves changes depending on the size and scope of work. PPE equipment isn’t just about the safety of customers but also the safety and comfort of the team members.

Social Distancing

Social distancing is another crucial step that can help prevent the spread of dangerous coronavirus. Therefore, check with the kitchen remodelling company whether it is following these norms religiously or not. You can also confirm with the company whether it is going to provide a COVID-19 safety supervisor who will ensure social distancing of the team members at all times. If it does, you wouldn’t have to keep worrying about social distancing while the team is at your home for the kitchen remodelling project. You can ascertain your distancing from the work team, which should be at least a 10-feet distance.

Keep your Family and Workers Separate during Kitchen Remodelling

You have fallen in love with quartz worktops London and wish to get it installed as quickly as possible in your kitchen. There is coronavirus and danger out there, but you can still manage to get the kitchen remodelling done with some safety precautions. You can ensure that you keep your family and workers separate throughout. You would have to make certain arrangements for creating barriers between the kitchen area and the rest of your home. You can try to create a separate entry or exit if possible, which only the kitchen remodelling team members would be using during the renovation process.