posted19/10/11
Tips on booking the right one for you
Cruise ships
Picture courtesy of Stephen Birch
If you have never been on a cruise holiday before, booking one can probably seem like a daunting prospect, especially when many people also feel that cruising is just for the rich and that taking a cruise is expensive. However with some careful planning and research you should be able to find some great cruise deals and book the holiday of your dreams and learn to love the cruising experience.
The first thing you need to do is decide on where you want to go, the most popular destinations, with the most cruise lines running are the Mediterranean and the Caribbean, however areas such as Baltic and Scandinavian are becoming increasingly popular as well as Alaska and Canada. As we want to further our horizons we like to explore further afield or places which in the past may not have been popular tourist destinations such as the Middle East, Far East, South America, are now accessible by cruise holidays or you could opt for a round the world cruise. However if you don’t fancy far flung destinations, don’t worry there are cruises available around the British Isles too!
Caribbean - Mexico
Picture courtesy of Grand Velas Riviera Maya
There are different types of breaks available, many people choose to depart from a UK destination such as Southampton, and this is great for Mediterranean cruises however for further destinations such as the Caribbean this isn’t always available. However you do have the option of choosing a fly and cruise holiday or a cruise and stay holiday, which allows for time to get to your destination by air, before departing on the cruise.
Once you have chosen your destination, booking onto the right ship for you is your next task. Cruise lines offer a wide range of ships to cater to many different ranges from families, to couples and solo travellers which mean the will be plenty of options at your chosen destination. The size of ships can also greatly vary with smaller more intimate ships only holding a couple of hundred passengers, to the larger ships which can hold up to a couple of thousand. Smaller ships tend to have a more personal, intimate feel however sometimes on board activities and restraint choices can be less. Larger ships don’t always offer the same personal feel but they do have plenty to offer passengers entertainment wise.
Majesty of the Seas, a Carnival ship, and Oasis of the Seas docked in Nassau
Picture courtesy of dustin.askins
Finding a good deal is also relatively easy especially with the internet! Many cruise companies offer early bird discounts, for booking early you should also enquire about and free credits for on board drinks of for excursions, sometimes these can be included in an offer. However you need to check the costs on board before booking, it could tip you out of your price range, depending on how much you wish to spend. Sometimes packages for food and drink can be bought beforehand but again make sure you check what these include.
posted16/10/11
How to install carpet tiles
Carpet tiles can be a great option for play rooms, kid’s rooms and utility rooms. They are easy to install but also easily removed if a carpet tile needs cleaning or replacing if it stained. Plus it’s much easier than removing and replacing/cleaning a whole carpet.
You need to install the tiles onto a clean, flat surface, a lot of carpet tiles can also be installed on top of subfloors or hard flooring however you can’t put them on top of other carpeting.
To start off with you have to find the centre of the floor, this is easy if the room is square or oblong shaped with four parallel walls. Take a chalk line from one corner of the room to the corner diagonal from it then snap the line and repeat with the other two corners. This will leave an X in the middle of the floor. You then need to find the centre of all four walls and follow suit again with the chalk line. You will then have a precisely marked centre.
You now need to apply carpet tape around the perimeter of the room and over the chalk lines, do not remove the backing of the tape until you’re ready to place tiles on top of it. Lay the tiles next to the lines, not on top of them from centre wall to centre wall, making sure the tiles fit snugly together. You should also make sure the nap or pattern of the tiles is all going in the same direction.
The tiles need to be cut to fit the edges, to do this place a tile face down under the last whole tile in the row and lay it snugly against the wall then mark the back of the tile where the previous tile ends on it. To cut the carpet tile, place it on a piece of cardboard and cut it with a carpet knife using a carpenter’s square to ensure a straight edge.
Once you like where the tiles are placed you can remove the tape backing and stick them in place. To finish off, fill in the rest of the room work from the centre of the room to the corners of the room.
posted14/10/11
Loft insulation
Now we are officially out of summer and the cold dark nights have set in its time to make sure your home is insulated. By insulating your loft properly you could save around £145 per year on your energy bills, which is needed when you consider how much the energy costs have risen in the past few year and they are only going to get worse.
If your loft is not properly insulated you can lose at least a quarter of your heat, that’s a lot isn’t it?
The recommended depth for mineral wool insulation is 270mm, there are other forma of insulation available as well, a lot depends on the size, shape and accessibility of your loft space. Most loft insulation is effective for 40 years, if you have some already in your home but it looks old or thin it might be worth replacing it or topping it up to help you stop losing energy.
Installing loft insulation is fairly straight forward, the easiest way is by using insulation blankets or ‘quilts’ as they are also known. These can be laid over the loft’s area however make sure you cover the whole area any gaps can mean you lose heat.
Other insulation options include blown insulation which has to be installed by a professional. It doesn’t take too long to do an installer will use specialist equipment which blows loose, fire-retardant insulation material into the loft and typically takes just a few hours.
posted11/10/11
Slatted blinds, such as Venetian and wooden blinds, can quickly and easily attract dust and household dirt. The idea of cleaning these types of blinds often seems more fiddly and time-consuming than it needs to be and tends to be put off, sometimes for years, while the blinds continue to gather dust. With a little attention, however, it is easy to return slatted blinds to their original splendour. Blinds are one of the most visible signs of your home’s cleanliness, so it is important to keep them spotless.
Vertical blinds can be a nuisance to clean and are sometimes difficult to remove. First, clean any dust from the slats with a brush or feather duster, then go over each of them with a sponge, using warm soapy water. Do not forget to clean both sides of the slats. Make sure you rinse the blinds thoroughly, as any soap left on the surface will attract even more dust later. Dry the slats with an old towel or a clean dry rag and then let them finish drying in the air, opening the window to speed up the process.
All blinds should be dusted regularly and horizontal blinds can be cleaned in situ with a damp sponge, although they should be occasionally be removed from the window for a more intensive clean. Follow the same process as for vertical blinds, taking care not to tangle up the cords. Ensure that the blinds are completely dry before re-hanging them in the window.
posted09/10/11
Planting a hanging basket
Hanging baskets give more definition to your garden; if you have a small garden then having a hanging basket gives you more scope for having flowers in your garden. They are easy to use and easy to look after, below are instructions to help you plat a hanging basket.
There are a number of different sized baskets available, the larger the basket the more plant you can have in it, however make sure the basket isn’t too big for your size of garden you don’t want it to dominate your wall.
The basket needs to be lined you can either use a commercially available liner or moss, both available from garden centres. The basket needs to be lined with one inch of liner above the top of the basket. Then half fill with compost; add water retention granules and slow release fertiliser and mix well into the compost.
The basket is now ready to fill. You need to have set out, plants which are to go around the sides of the basket and plants which go on the top. For the side plants, make a small hole in the liner or moss and insert plant root first through the hole, making sure the roots are sitting right in the compost.
Once you have placed the side plants, you need to add more compost to about one inch from the top, with it right into the edges of the basket sides. Starting from the centre you can now add the main plants that go on top, working your way out, firming down the compost as you go. Make sure the compost slopes into the centre of the basket, this will aid watering.
Now that your basket is full, your liner or compost will have shrunk in to fit the basket from the weight, now you can neatly trim the edges for a tidy finish. You now need to hang your basket in a greenhouse or conservatory to grow and fill out. The basket will need to be hardened before you place it outside on its bracket.
Hanging Basket
Picture courtesy of DaveCrosby
posted05/10/11
Redecorating a child’s bedroom can be fun and exciting for adults as well, when children are between six and eleven they are open to a whole world of exploration and you can help them grow by decorating their bedroom accordingly. Normally at this mid age before children reach adolescence they need room to ’grow’, not just in size but in knowledge and personality which can be quite hard if your restricted with space.
Organisation is key, purchasing furniture which has numerous uses is always good, bunk bed with a desk underneath or pull out furniture, which can be tided away to give more room to play. Storage boxes as well also come in handy, just like us adults children also accumulate a lot of stuff and to have places to keep their belonging out of the way will also help with space.
When it comes to actually painting/wallpapering and choosing a theme, it’s great fun to work with your child however just remember their imagination can run wild and you may need to keep some ideas in check. A lot of the time kids normally choose anything to do with their favourite TV character which at the time might keep them happy but may not last for the number of years you may like. TV shows change as do the kids tastes so decorating in a neutral scheme may be more effective and will allow simple changes to be made as they get older such as: New pictures, bedspread and curtains which are cheaper re wallpapering the room.
When children are young education is important, however you don’t want to fill your nine year olds room with lots of stuffy books, instead look for educational pieces that can stimulate their imagination and also educate at the same time. If children are in an environment that they are comfortable and happy in learning comes a lot easier and stimulation in the form of fun educational tools is a lot better for learning.
A lot of the time many parents struggle with the decision whether or not to allow a TV, DVD and/ or computer game device into their child’s bedroom and this can become quite a sore point, especially if your child’s friends do! It’s not recommended that younger children have an electronic gaming device in their bedroom, instead this is better suited to a family room, where parents can monitor what they are doing on their and this also goes for computers to. When it comes to TV’s and DVD players parents discretion is best but if you do choose to allow them into the bedroom outline rules from the get go no TV until homework and chores finished and TV must be switched off by a certain time. Parental locks on channels also help and keeping a door ajar so you can actually see if your rules are being adhered to.
Redecorating can be fun for the whole family and involving children will also mean that they feel important to and that their ideas do count!
Kids bedroom decorating ideas
Picture courtesy of LJInteractive
posted03/10/11
If you are privately renting out of your home you need to make sure you take out landlords insurance. If you don’t take it out you could find that you are liable to pay out large sums of money if something was to happen to your property.
Landlords insurance is designed different to home insurance because your property is considered an investment rather than a home. So as with any investment you want to protect it. There are a large number of things you are liable for as a landlord and sometimes insurance is needed to cover costs that would otherwise cost you hundreds of pounds, sometimes thousands.
Not only are you liable for the structure of the building, but also all plumbing, gas and electricity as well as fixtures and fittings that come with it, such as cookers, fridges, freezers and even laundry goods. If anything goes wrong with these items, or if they are damaged and need replacing then as the owner you will have to cover this cost through your insurance. With landlords insurance your property itself is also covered against damage from tenant, fire of flood damage not only that many landlord insurance policies also cover you for Legal Expenses. So you can protect against non-payment of rent or tenants who refuse to leave your property, which can prove to be quite costly. If you have more than one property that is rented out then your one landlord policy will also cover multiple properties.
The different circumstances that you are covered for with landlords insurance vary greatly to a normal home insurance policy so you should always make sure you have the correct cover you need, otherwise you could find claims are invalidated.
posted24/09/11
How to change a light socket
If you want to change your light socket you don’t have to call out an electrician, in fact it’s a job you can do yourself as long as you take the right precautions. There are a couple of things you need for this DIY job:
Things You’ll Need
Step Ladder
Screw Drivers
Wrench
Before you start make sure you turn off the electricity from you breaker box otherwise you will get a nasty shock. Make sure you check the switches to fully make sure its switched off, also make sure no one else will turn it back on until you are finished.
Using the step ladder to stand on remove the encasement from the socket and put it aside, also retrieve the light bulb too for extra safety. Depending on what you need, use either the screw driver or the wench to unfasten the light socket from the ceiling. It will be un-hooked when the socket is dangling by wires. Just in case write down how the wires go together.
To remove the socket completely un-hook the wires from each other and keep the wire nuts if any because you can use these for the new socket.
No fit the new socket by attaching it the opposite way you took the old one off, make sure you attach all the wires and before you attach it to the ceiling you can pop in a bulb turn the power on and check that it works. Then turn the power off again and take out the bulb, now you can attach the socket to the ceiling, then reinsert the light bulb and put on the new casing if any.
Once you have completed the final steps you can then put the power back on for one final check to make sure the light now works.
posted22/09/11
There is nothing quite like relaxing in the conservatory. The light and heat a good conservatory provides is very appealing, but it can also cause problems when you are faced with the blinding sun, or if it gets just a little too hot during the summer months. That is when you need to think about having conservatory blinds fitted. Blinds are ideal for providing a little bit of shade or to prevent glare if you are using a laptop in a conservatory. There are many types of conservatory blinds available, the only difficulty you will have is choosing which kind and where best to hang them.
Roof Blinds, Window Blinds or Both?
First you need to establish what you require the blinds for – to add privacy, to protect against solar glare, to keep heat in during the winter or even noise reduction. If you want blinds for privacy you may only need blinds on one side of the conservatory. If you require the blinds to reduce solar glare, a well-chosen blind will block glare whilst still allowing the light through. If the purpose of the blinds is to reduce heat during the summer months, you may only need roof blinds.
What Else to Consider?
Consider the shape and style of your conservatory. Is it Victorian, Edwardian or of modern design? Is it predominantly glazed or half-brick? What material is it made from: PVC, wood or aluminium? With all this in mind, contact your blind manufacturer and get expert advice on which type and style of Roman blind would best fit your conservatory.
posted20/09/11
How to fit skirting boards
Skirting boards are not only decorative but also practical, they are used to hide the junction between wall and floor, which will help keep out draughts and also protect the bottom of the wall from marks and scuffs.
We have a quick guide into fitting a skirting board, whether you have to replace an old one or have to fit one in a home which doesn’t have one. Tools which you need for this are as follows:
Pencil
Mitre saw or mitre box
Coping saw
Tape measure
Hammer
Silicone gun
Skirting board
Screws
Instant grab adhesive
Decorator’s caulk
Nails
Screws
Drill
Wood filler
To start with you need to measure the area where you will be fitting the skirting board, add 20 per cent onto the total figure as a contingency for cuts. You should also measure up, cut and fit any pieces of board that can go in ‘square-edged’ on both ends using a Mitre saw to get it straight.
When working from an internal corner the next board you have to use needs to be ‘scribed’. This is because it has to slot into the board you have just fitted. All you need to do to achieve this is cut a 45 degree angle in the board using a mitre saw or mitre box, then using a coping saw cut away the waste section of the mitre and you’ll be left with the profile of the skirting board.
Boards that meet on an external corner need to be are mitred at 45 degrees to form a neat joint, you need to measure to the corner and then mark this length on the back of the board to be cut. Then place the board face out into the mitre saw, line the saw up with the mark you made. Follow instructions again to create the opposite side of the mitre, but remember to cut the 45- degree angle in the opposite direction so the boards will meet.
Wen fixing to the wall do this as you cut, but fit mitred external corners in pairs so you can adjust them to fit together accurately, you can do this using an instant grab- type adhesive. Place blobs of adhesive or run a couple of beads along the back of the board, then press the board firmly to the wall, making sure there is good contact. Then wipe excess adhesive away before it dries and leaves a mark.
If you have any gaps between the wall and the top of the skirting boar (which can easily happen with walls which are not plumb), then you can fill them with decorators chalk, finishing with a damp cloth for a neat line.
