Building your own house is one of the most exciting things in a man’s life. It involves planning, thinking creatively, and making choices about where you will live for quite some time. Designing yourself gives you the chance to create a home that portrays your personality, lifestyle, and preferences.

However, it can also be overwhelming to think of all the activities involved in creating a home that is not only useful but beautiful as well. Decisions on the layout, finishes, and furniture are just some of the aspects that an individual needs to go through.

In this guide, we will walk you through the entire process of designing your dream home.

Start with a Vision and Budget

Consider your family’s requirements, desires, and the kind of life they would like to have in the chosen location. At this stage, it may be useful to envision your home to be. You can get ideas from magazines, websites, or social pages like Pinterest. Save pictures of rooms, colors, and materials that you find beautiful, as well as furniture that you like.

Secondly, building a house is not cheap, and in most cases, the costs may overrun when you plan poorly. The budget should be divided into subcategories, such as purchasing the land if necessary, the cost of construction materials, labor, permits, interior furnishings and decoration.

Select an Experienced Architect

So, with your vision and budget in mind, it is now possible to hire an architect or design professional on your project. Even though some people love to draw their own houses, using an architect will reduce time and ensure that your house conforms to existing building codes. It is always helpful to involve your architect, designer, and contractor during the planning phase to achieve the home of your desire with the ideal functionality.

Plan the Layout

Lot design involves making decisions on the position and arrangement of the rooms you want, how they are positioned, and the general structure of the house. Consider the orientation of the rooms that are in relation to each other according to their functional requirements.

For instance, it may be convenient to have the kitchen close to the living room or the dining room. The bedrooms should be on the quiet side of the house, as opposed to near noisy areas such as the garage.

The use of large windows facing the compound, especially in the living rooms and bedrooms, will make a house appear more lit and spacious.

Choose of Materials

The next step is to determine the kind of materials and the type of finish for the interior of the different rooms. Some of the most common choices for the floor are hardwood, tile, laminate, or even polished concrete, which may also be possible in your home. Marble, granite, quartz, and wood are good for counters in the kitchen and bath. Both materials have good qualities, including aesthetic, functional, and durability.

The type of cabinets you choose will determine the design you want to achieve in your kitchen or bathroom. Select themes that include traditional, modern, or custom design. The kind of colors you choose for the walls will vary from one room to another. However, note that soft colors can make the rooms warm, bright, and friendly.

The Finishing Touch

There are areas of the house that do not receive much attention when it comes to finishing, such as windows, doors, or any other opening. Most interior designers recommend the use of architraves. These ornamental structures surround and give a well-finished look to these interior or exterior spaces.

Though they are used mainly as decor, they also provide cover for joints between a door or window and a wall. Thus, when placed around windows and doors, architrave contributes to providing visual continuity, bringing the room to the finishing touch. They also add a sense of completion to a room and connect several aspects within its design.

Selecting well-done architraves enhances the outlook of a given room and adds a level of elegance. Customization may also be done to achieve different designs, including modern, complex, and traditional designs.

Final Details

When you are approaching the final stretch towards constructing a perfect home, you must think of the little things that will actually transform it into your perfect living space. This includes the installation of curtains, blinds, handles, knobs, and other accessories for the windows and doors.

For homeowners who want to have a garden, patio, or even a balcony, think about how you want to arrange and design those external areas. They must be in a manner that is equally elegant with the rest of your house.

As we can see summer is slowly coming to an end many people have moved into their new homes and might have seen a few things they would like to change. The reality is that since the housing market has become so competitive many people have been able to purchase homes at good prices because they require a lot of work. So, if you’re one of those who purchased a fixer-upper and lack inspiration when it comes to Sprucing up your property you are in luck. We will try to give you some great renovation ideas that will allow you to turn your fixer-upper into a real home that feels great to live in and completely fits your lifestyle to a T. So, let’s jump into it and see if perhaps you will find something that feeds your inspiration when it comes to going all in with renovations.

Utility over beauty

First and foremost, if you buy a fixer-upper, you should prioritize making sure that everything is top-notch. What we mean by this is obviously that if you live in a state where cold weather is something you have to worry about, you should look into ensuring that your home is properly winterized and that all the necessities have been updated. This is essential to keep yourself warm in the winter and to make sure you don’t spend way more money on utility bills than you need to. Once you’re done with those very important renovations you can start doing some renovations that you want to. So, let’s take a look at some of those.

Modernization

The reality of course is that when you purchase a home there are a lot of things that might be extremely dated both utility-wise as well as style-wise. Long gone are the glory days of popcorn ceilings and wood paneling. Despite the dated aspects of the 80s final choices, the reality is that modernizing insulation is much more important than getting rid of some unpleasant color choices. You will realize that most of the time when you decide to do renovations you will often have to rely on the idea of modernizing utilities that allow you to not only save money but also live more comfortably within your domicile. Whether we are talking about ventilation, heating, or electrical modernization you won’t find that there are many ways you can better the infrastructure of your home.

Outdoor renovations

When we talk about renovations many people seem to forget the fact that the outdoors surrounding your house is still very much part of your home in something that you can renovate. If you’re not somebody used to renovations all you need to do is to go back to this hardware shop that you’ve scoped out on your first time around your neighborhood. You will find that your local hardware store not only has great tools and materials to renovate the inside of your home but can also sell you dirt and plants to allow you to renovate the outside of your home and make it more beautiful. Sometimes taking care of a garden or seeding new and healthy grass can be a great way to spruce up your living space and make the most out of your yard.

Bathroom

If you are looking for a very time-consuming project that will elevate the value of your home 1 great place to start is with the bathroom. Generally, when you purchase a home, you might notice that the shower might be a little dated or even too small. One great idea to elevate your bathroom is to completely remove the shower and create a fully tiled shower instead of a premade shower. Reorganizing your bathroom and making a great effort to make it more water-efficient will also allow you to boast about having a great and modern bathroom for anyone you decide to invite into your new home.

Create a common living space

While the living room used to be the common room of the past the reality is that nowadays many people watch TV on their phones or their computers. This is why creating a room where many people can work and share a space can be a great way to open up your home and make it feel cozier as it allows you and your family to spend more time together while doing your activities. This is why for example you might want to modernize your living room by adding outlets and similar things so that many people can plug their phones into certain computers this way you can watch a show on your tablet and have your children do their work on their laptops in the same room. This might seem like a silly idea but in the long term being able to spend more time with your family is very important.

Your home Is bound to need a lot of tidying as long as you have kids. Combining your job and taking care of your home is a handful, especially when you have to deal with active toddlers. Tidying your home may come with a lot of stress but it is an inevitable task for parents.

Kids are always up to no good in the house. Their toys are always lying around, combined with other mischievous activities, leaving parents with no other option than to tidy up after them.

While tidying after your kids may seem like the ideal thing to do because you aim to maintain a clean and clutter-free home, doing it all the time may not be possible.

The best way out or solution as a busy parent is to follow A schedule that works for you, without interference.

Have you been struggling to maintain a clutter-free and neat home? Read on to learn about some nice easy tips that can help you tidy your home effectively.

7 Effective Home Tidying Tips For Parents

Attend to the worst chores first

Starting your tidying process with the worst chores is the best way to keep yourself motivated for the remaining ones. Once you’re done with the most difficult task, handling other chores won’t be much of a problem. Saving the worst for the last doesn’t always end up as planned. You will likely end up postponing the inevitable till it gets worse than it was.

Establish an efficient laundry system

As a parent, you are completely aware of how fast the laundry piles up because of your kids. Most children can change up to three to four clothes in a day, based on how hard they play. Trying to control their play to keep their clothes clean is almost futile, the best way out is to have a good laundry plan. Taking your dirty clothes to a laundry service provider is a great option for you, as it reduces your workload. Residing in Seattle places you at a higher advantage in terms of getting the best laundry services. There are hundreds of professional and reliable laundry service providers in Seattle. Wash and fold laundry services Seattle is one of the most successful businesses in the city, making it easy to locate one when needed.

Get the children to help

The help the children offer may not be tangible, compared to the chores you have hipped up for you, but at least it’s something. Letting your kids help with the chores is mainly more about teaching them how to be responsible for their actions. Ensure that you give them age-appropriate tasks. You can give them the task of picking up their toys or dirty laundry.

Dispose of the trash daily

Heaping the trash and waiting for it to overflow before disposing of it is never a good option; rather, it makes handling your chores more difficult. Daily disposal of trash does not only reduce your chores, it also improves your hygiene. Storing trash creates an avenue for unwanted pests, bacteria, and rodents to invade your home.

Tidy the house by task

Most people prefer to tidy the house from room to room, rather than going about it based on the task. If you fall under this category, why not try something new? Try to finish one task before the other. For example, vacuum the whole house at a time before moving to another task rather than cleaning one room and moving to another one.

Declutter as you go

Clutter makes a home look congested and untidy, this is why you need to declutter as often as possible. As a parent, you owe it to your kids to maintain a safe space for them in the house. A clutter-filled home is an unsafe space for growing kids. Declutter as you go to avoid putting yourself through unnecessary stress.

Set a timer

Set a timer to know how long it takes to accomplish a task. This way, you can draft out a plan for the next time you tidy your home. Knowing how much time it takes to handle a chore and trying to beat the record is a good way to make the tidying process a bit more lively. Do note that the time set for handling a chore may vary based on your mood or strength at the moment.

Conclusion

The key to achieving a clean and well-arranged home for busy parents is finding a balance between taking care of the home and work. The tips in this article will help you tidy your home effectively and provide you with more time to attend to other things.

The exterior part of a building plays a major role in determining its overall outlook and so does the interior. People often need to pay more attention to pouring most of their available resources or budgets on their home’s exterior, leaving very little for interior design. The best way to design a home is to pay equal attention to the inside and outside parts of the building.

Contemporary and modern designs are the two major styles used in designing the interior of a home. The unique aspect of contemporary and modern designs is that you can use either to design your interior or combine them. You, however, need to know what works best for your home. Sometimes, the pattern or structure of your home’s building determines the best design for the interior.

If you want a modern and classy interior design for your home, this article will help put you on the right path. Read on for more insights.

10 Interior Design Tips For Achieving a Modern Look For Your Home

Create a budget

The first rule to adhere to before embarking on a project that requires major funding is creating a budget. Having a budget makes it easier to organise a working plan and keep to it. Interior design often requires plenty of funding and you can easily overspend without a budget.

Have a plan

Have a plan or a visual idea of what you want your home to look like before beginning any major work. Starting up a project as important as designing your interior without having a clear decision on what you want can lead to a mangled-up outcome. You may end up spending money on meaningless items.

Use custom types of furniture

If you have specific tastes, the best way to get what you want is by going for custom-made items for your home. Custom items have many good qualities however, they are often more expensive. To reduce costs, you can have only specific custom items like kitchen cabinets, beds, and a few sitting room furniture. There are many stores to order custom items from both online and offline. They have custom kitchen cabinets, couches, dining tables, chairs, and any others you want. One downside about custom items is that you may have to wait for a while before getting your order.

Keep it simple

The key factor for achieving a modern home is keeping the design simple. The best way to maintain class and elegance without compromising the beauty of your home’s interior is to keep the design simple. Do not overstuff your home with items, add a few colours, and avoid hideous furniture.

Add color

Incorporating colour into your interior design adds more beauty to your space. Some people are under the misconception that adding colour to their home’s interior will produce a tacky outcome. Just try not to use unmatched colours and remember to keep it simple. Primary colours are the best options for designing the interior of a home.

Create a clutter-free space

Adding too much furniture to a space, no matter how luxurious the items are, is a bad design for a modern home. You can buy a few items for your space and have your home looking luxurious and elegant. With a clutter-free space, you can easily clean your home and have a sizable space for any activity.

Add arts

Arts have a way of elevating the look of a space. The key to achieving this is to know the right art and quantity to buy. Invest in modern arts and look out for simple designs. The placement of these arts matters a lot too.

Create harmony

Choose a palette of 2 to 4 colours to help you decide on which furniture or items to buy. Do this before getting anything to ensure that all the items in your space harmonise. Creating or buying a palette falls under the planning stage.

Large windows

If you reside in an area with an amazing view, installing large windows will help add to the beauty of your home. Large windows are a current trend for most modern homes. Aside from showcasing the amazing views, the natural lights reflecting in the room are quite elegant.

Hire an expert interior designer

You can handle the interior design yourself if you know what you are doing. Hiring an interior designer on the other hand guarantees a more professional touch. Hiring an expert to design for you is a better option if you can afford the service.

Well, many people worry about the current state of the housing market the reality is that other things threaten your home in a much more physical way. Nobody likes to deal with water damage from flooding or the results of natural catastrophes like tornadoes and hurricanes. There’s of course not much you can do against these types of accidents, but the reality is that there is one thing you can prevent and that is a house fire. You won’t be surprised to learn that one of the rooms that is most at risk of causing fires in your home is your kitchen. So, let’s take a look at six common fire hazards in your kitchen.

1. Oven

This goes without saying that the oven is one of the biggest and most obvious causes for fires in your kitchen but one many think of a gas leak causing a fire or leaving the stove on the reality is that there are other reasons why the oven might cause fires in your kitchen. Nowadays most appliances are electric and gas stoves are quite rare and electrical fires can happen very quickly especially if your oven is an older model. Making sure that your oven is well maintained and that no worries are exposed will help you prevent fire risks in the future.

2. Fridge

This might surprise many people to learn that while this appliance is meant to keep things cold and cool, they do cause many fires in the kitchen. As you can imagine the combination of electrical motors and water especially in the form of ice might cause short circuits that can cause your appliance to not only take fire but also overload which can make the motor inside the fridge burn. This is especially common with newer models which have a lot of electrical components to allow for screens and water dispensers to work properly. If your fridge makes a noise that you don’t recognize you might want to call a maintenance person to avoid any potential danger.

3. Crumbs

This might seem like an odd one, but the reality is that the buildup of crumbs inside your toaster especially close to the eating element might cause your toaster to eventually catch fire. This is why a lot of people recommend cleaning out your crumbs as often as possible and not forgetting to unplug them as you do it. This can be especially dangerous as many toasters in their later years can often have issues where the element doesn’t cool properly or aware the element might stick and stay out for a long time.

4. Grease

It’s important to understand that you could even if you’re careful grease will eventually accumulate on your stovetop as well as your fan. While these things by themselves are not dangerous you can imagine that if there are eventually any sparks or any risk of fires you might see that grease served as an accelerant which might make a bad situation much worse. Cleaning grease requires proper cleaning supplies which will truly scrub it out of your appliances and remove any buildup that could cause danger.

5. Dust

While this is always a fire hazard it is especially true in the kitchen since there are so many appliances that cause heat. It becomes even more dangerous once we realize that more often than not kitchens are filled with extremely heavy appliances which can often cause massive dust to build up under and behind them which you rarely will be able to clean. If you’re able to clean behind your stove in your fridge you might want to try and do it not only for safety but for cleanliness.

6. Yourself!

This one goes without saying but one of the biggest fire hazards in the kitchen is the cook itself. This is why when you are working over the stove you should wear short-sleeved clothes or roll your sleeves as well as tie your hair to prevent any risk of your person Catching Fire. While this may seem like a given the reality is that these types of accidents happen way more often than you may expect. While the leading cause of house fires is kitchen fires, you can still prevent them by being careful and making sure that you cover your bases by avoiding any potential fire hazard while you cook.