Finding Your Fire Pit

As the weather turns colder, the wanting to be outside inevitably diminishes. The grill goes into the garage, the tarp goes over the pool, and the jackets, mittens and hats come out. Still, for some the winter changes very little and if the Polar Bear Club isn’t exactly your speed (I am a proud member), a fire pit is one of the more relaxing and simple outdoor projects you can undertake to still enjoy the outdoors in the wintertime. Some people just like having a simple unit to sit around while others prefer to devote an entire section of their yard to create a solid mood for the activity. Here are some choices for everyone.

Optimizing Your Garage Space

As we start getting into fall, the anticipation for the winter season is already starting to grip homeowners. One of the more favored home improvement projects in the colder months is organizing your home and opening up some space. This even extends to areas like the shed, the terrace and, finally, the garage, which is an area rife with possibilities for space saving. Of course, the central question when thinking about this is what you use (or rather WANT to use) your garage for. Is it simply a depository for your car(s) and a snow shovel? Is it a space used for your tools? Knick-knacks? A second refrigerator? Bikes and sports equipment? Considering the ideas below, you might very well be able to fit all of these things into your garage…oh, and maybe your car.

Prepping Your Paint Job

No matter how easy or hard the task, preparation is the key to a successful remodeling job or outdoor project, which is why I try to encourage consultation with and hiring of home improvement professionals while also embracing DIY. In the future, we’ll discuss plenty of jobs that need to be well thought out but let’s start with an easy one: Painting your interior walls.

There is the temptation to just hire a crew and have it done during the day when you’re at work, but then there’s that nostalgic image of you and your partner in your own home, painting the walls together. In the latter case, you should take the steps suggested below as a way to ensure your paint job, certainly the most aesthetically noticeable facet of your interior, is done in a professional manner.

Looking into Lady Caves

The term “mom cave” is an unfortunate bit of vernacular. Let’s forget, for the time being, that not all female homeowners are moms and focus rather on the innumerable interests that women indulge in when they want some time alone away from their job, their partner, their everyday struggles and, yes, their children. As much as most men need their man caves, most women are in dire need of a similar lady caves that speaks to their unique identity and their loves. And men, take note: This is the sort of project that could earn you major points and, depending on your home, can be a DIY affair. Whether you’re putting together a space for yourself or for your partner, you should consider the ideas below when looking into the home improvement concerns that often surround the building of a lady cave.

Floor Resurfacing the Right Way

It’s an inescapable fact that the relatively simple task of resurfacing floors is often confused and considered interchangeable with the process of refinishing floors. Neither job is particularly pleasant but unlike refinishing, resurfacing is something that an ambitious amateur could undertake and likely succeed at. Here are some simple A-Z steps you can take to ensure that the job gets done right.

Avoiding That Sinking Feeling

If I were to sit here and type out every option available when it comes to bathroom faucets, this post might run the length of Moby Dick. Technologies advance, trends change, and handymen, plumbers and contractors install new, uniquely designed sinks every single day. The choices of faucets are innumerable but the bathroom sink is a central part of the bathroom and home improvement professionals of all sorts will tell you that the days of everyone installing the same simple sink unit with a vanity mirror and cabinets underneath are over. There are new ways to save room, ensure a more modern and stylish design, and make cleaning a breeze. Here are three or four options to consider talking over with your local NYC plumber.

Taking A (Proverbial) Bath

With a few notable (and largely private) exceptions, the bathroom is still largely considered a place where one goes to be alone. It’s a place of personal business, things we don’t really like to talk about. More and more, however, I have found myself talking to friends who are planning or have already completed remodeling jobs that distinguish the bathroom as a place of utmost comfort and even luxury. To be perfectly frank, these are not always cheap fix-ups. However, it won’t be long until they are as normal as getting a new tub or new fixtures put in.

Below, you’ll find some of the more interesting and provocative advents that have become popular as of late and piqued my interest particularly. With the amount of fresh and modern ideas coming in concerning how we use our bathrooms, it’s only a matter of time before the bathroom is as regularly remodeled as the kitchen.