Friday 28 October 2011

Be the Envy of Your Friends with One of the Solid Oak Kitchens


There is nothing quite like genuine solid wood to provide an air of quality and comfort to any home. Whether you live in a modern property or a listed building solid oak kitchens will give you the country look that everyone with envy. You can choose warm, polished oak or if you want a lighter look plain oak that has simply been sealed and where you can see the true beauty of the wood. You will get solid oak kitchen units much more cheaply if you decide to install it yourself. You may need the help of professionals when it comes to things like dismantling and putting in a gas cooker and anything to do with gas or electricity. Nowadays equipment and wiring have to be installed or at least checked by a person who is Corgi registered. If you don’t have a Corgi certificate for your installations then you could be breaking the law.

Most people love the idea of solid oak kitchens and visualise a large, homely space with plenty of copper bottomed saucepans suspended from the ceiling or hung on the walls. When it comes to splash backs and work tops, granite looks great in light oak kitchens but if you prefer dark oak then you may want to think about contrasting work tops and splash backs. Why not get one of the solid oak kitchens installed and be the envy of all your friends.

e-Decking Ideas - Make use of unusable garden slopes and inclines


e-Decking Ideas - Think about how you can really make use of that wasted space resulting from eroded banks and poor landscape foundations that cause ugly slopes and drainage in the back garden. You need to feng shui that uphill garden and put a paper bag on the head of that tarnished garden space. It's easy! Top Garden Feng Shui Tip: Make use of unusable slopes and inclines in the back garden with a clever use of decking materials!

Decking is a great way to spruce up your garden and to provide a separate space for al fresco dining. If you are lucky enough to have a fair sized back garden then you might welcome some decking ideas that will make it uniquely your own. Not all gardens are flat or square and some of them have a steep incline, which generally means that area of the garden is wasted. Some quick and easy decking ideas will mean that the space you thought was a lost cause could actually be a great spot to start with. If you do plan on having a deck in a sloping area then it’s a good idea to consult a professional to find out what is needed. You may need information on building codes and planning restrictions. Decking doesn’t usually need permission but councils differ on this so it’s always a good idea to check before you buy any materials.

If you have a garden that is fairly regular in size and shape then you might want to put some decking at one end. A lot of people now have water features in their gardens and often put these close to the decking area from where they get a good view of the rest of the garden. If you have French windows then you may want to consider having your decking right outside rather than up the other end of the garden. If your garden is quite small then you could build a triangular shaped deck in one corner rather than something that stretched the whole of your garden. It’s worth taking a look online to find some more decking ideas for your home.

Tiffany Lights | Art Nouveau | Art Deco | The influence of Louis Comfort Tiffany


There are fashions in lighting just as there are fashions or fads with most other things. The kind of lighting that you have in your home can either add to or spoil the interior of your home. For a number of years Tiffany lights have been extremely popular, largely because of trends towards Art Nouveau and Art Deco styling. Tiffany, was actually Louis Comfort Tiffany was an American who designed windows, glass mosaics, jewellery and lamps. By the turn of the nineteenth century, Tiffany had made a name for himself among elite New York socialites as a designer of merit. The artist was commissioned to undertake some work in the White House he installed new designs in several of the rooms and redecorated and painted them. Part of his design plan for the Whitehouse was to use brightly patterned glass shades for gas lamps, and these shades became known as Tiffany lights.

In 1885 Tiffany had become sufficiently wealthy to start his own glass making company and by 1902 the firm was known as the Tiffany studios. The designer built a further studio in 1893, eventually named the Tiffany glass furnaces. Tiffany used brightly coloured, opalescent glass to give the appearance of stained glass, and the first Tiffany lights date back to 1895 – the beginning of the Art Nouveau movement and enjoyed further popularity in the Art Deco period.