Matt Adams
How To Pick Outdoor Patio Lights
I became charmed with the drama of outdoor patio lights at an exceptionally romantic restaurant in the old part of Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. We sat in the courtyard garden surrounded by outdoor art sculptures while rope lights wandered up and down the trees. It was the first time I had recognized the beauty and impact of outdoor lighting and outdoor art. I was mesmerized. Since that initial night I have visited many other romantic restaurants and have admired their outdoor lighting and outdoor art but nothing makes an impact like the first night.
At my own house, I have tried to replicate the feel of bringing the indoors out which is what properly placed outdoor patio lights should do. I have met with moderate success and I love to experiment. In choosing your outdoor lights there are a number of things you should always consider. I have tried to list the 4 most important considerations below.
1. Determine the purpose of your outdoor lighting. Is the lighting going to be primarily functional and safety oriented or will it be more atmospheric? Some amount of outdoor lighting is needed for general safety. These bright outdoor patio lights should be placed at every door including your garage door. Other types of lighting can be simply for atmospheric effect. Lighting for effect can be dimly illuminated. Mood lighting should be changed about for greater dramatic effect.
2. Determine the placement of your outdoor lights. Be sure to highlight any outdoor sculptures you may have or a pond or a swimming pool. You can use rope lights to highlight distant objects. Often lovely and simple white Christmas lights make a nice year-round twinkly setting. The lights needed for safety should be by each door of your house at a minimum. It must be relatively easy to maintain safety lights. If the light requires a 20 foot ladder to change and you don’t have a 20 foot ladder then the light position should be changed.
3. Determine the type of light you want. These days cost and energy efficiency are important considerations in choosing a type of outdoor patio lights for your home. You could choose solar lights. Solar lighting is very popular and has been recently hyped. Solar lights require careful and cannot be counted on in cloudy or rainy areas. The most energy efficient and thus environmentally conscious is LED lights. These lights can be used as both safety lights and background effect lighting. The price of LED lighting is reasonable and these lights are often chosen.
Visit outdoor lighting for more information about outdoor patio lighting.
Finding Patio Furniture Covers
When I was choosing new patio furniture covers I felt a bit lost. I was really tired of having to wash my patio table each time my family wanted to eat in the backyard, which in the summer is almost every other day. I live in an area that has a lot of squirrels and birds and raccoons and I just wasn’t comfortable with my children eating off the table before I had a chance to wash in it good warm soapy water.
The other reason I wanted patio furniture covers is that the sun and the rain and the snow can really damaged the finish on my wooden furniture. I have some lovely furniture that looks teak but isn’t teak. I got a great deal on it at Canadian Tire a few years ago. It has really held up well and I’m pleased with it. However, it can show some age.
Almost every autumn I have a fall clean up ritual that involves the whole family. I lightly sand the table and chairs, re-apply a teak or walnut stain and then rub some furniture oil into the wood. The patio furniture really looks fresh and nice when I’m finished. Undoubtedly, this little effort has saved me money by adding years to the life of my furniture. I don’t really mind the job and enjoy the fact that it has become a family tradition. However, having some new outdoor patio furniture covers might allow me the time to do other fall clean up jobs.
I have spoken to a lot of people about buying covers and it would appear that I might be the only one in my circle of friends that has ever thought seriously about these covers. Furthermore, I have gone to a handful of patio furniture shops and very few of them sell covers for the furniture. The covers that were available were either the wrong size or far too expensive for my needs. Most of the staff at the patio furniture shop only thought about covering the furniture for the winter. One guy who was trying to be helpful suggested I just use a table cloth for family dinners.
Given the effort I’ve put into finding the covers, I have been able to clearly define what I need to get out of the covers. The covers need to be water resistant and washable. I’m ok with covering the furniture with a tarp during the harsh winter so the patio furniture covers don’t need to stand up to snow and freezing weather. They need to be reasonably priced. In my mind, I should be able to cover 4 chairs and a 3.5′ by 6′ patio table for under $100US.
Buying outdoor patio furniture covers is not as simple as I first expected it to be. The covers themselves are fairly hard to come by. Finding something in your price range and colour and that fits your furniture can be daunting. On the advice of a friend, I’m going to continue to write articles and post on my blog on outdoor patio furniture covers until I finally find a set to call my own.
Find more articles about outdoor furniture covers by visiting outside furniture covers.
Cheap Closet Organizer Ideas
How big of a hassle is it every time you go to look for something and just can’t seem to locate anything? Does it seem like you are perpetually unorganized, and your closets need a makeover? But you can’t justify a closet makeover when your bedroom and bathrooms are still waiting for their 10 year renovation? Well I’m here to help, with a whole list of cheap closet organizer tips and ideas.
You might be surprised at how many really simple and cost effective ways there are to organize your closets and get your clutter under control. My favorite starting point with any closet that I’m trying to organize is to find oversize Tupperware (Rubbermaid) bins, preferably transparent bins, and use them to organize and stack things that aren’t used very often. Storage bins like this are easy to find on sale if you keep your eye open.
The cheap closet storage system mentioned in the last paragraph can be made even cheaper. Instead of purchasing your materials you can use recycled materials. Look around your house, basement or neighborhood for things you might be able to use. People often make shelves using blocks, bricks and pieces of wood. Wash whatever you want to use thoroughly. You might want to sand the wood a bit. Visit your local grocery store to get some boxes. Any type of box will do but the sturdier the better. Make note of the contents and tape the list to the end of the box using wide strips of packing tape.
Another way to help organize your closet without breaking the bank is to install rows of hooks at eye level around the closet. You would be surprised at how many things actually come will a little loop that allows them to be hung up. You can also hang cloth grocery bags that can be used to store items such as mitts and scarves.
Another cost free way to arrange closet storage is to examine the actual stuff that is stored in the closet. For the best organization closets’ should be homogenized. That means the stuff should more or less the same and accessed at the same rate. A coat that is used every day should not be stored with a tennis racket that is never used or Christmas decorations that are pulled out once per year. If you don’t use something throw it out. If you use it once or twice per year, store it in a closet with other items used with the same frequency.
With all the shows about life organizing and closet makeovers, it’s easy to think that you need to go out and buy extensive and expensive organizers and organizing gadgets. This is not really necessary, and you can end up saving a lot of money by just thinking about innovative ways to create cheap closet organizers.
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