Embellish

Photo by e-magic on Flickr. Licensed under Creative Commons.

Wouldn’t you love to call an expert in home improvement or remodeling projects free at anytime during your DIY endeavors for advice? Remember this number: 1-888-MONEYPIT. Dialing this toll free number at anytime to get your questions answered by how-to gurus Tom Kraeutler and Leslie Segrete. On their podcast radio show, this former home inspector and carpenter take calls from listeners all over the U.S. advising them on home improvement projects from roofing to flooring. You can even submit questions online at MoneyPit.com if you’re shy about picking up the phone. To get DIY tips at anytime, subscribe to their podcast on ITunes for free.

Kraeutler and Segrete aren’t the only ones streaming DIY tips at ITunes. The digital media player features an entire DIY section of free podcasts with video and audio streams full of step-by-step instructional guides, tips and ideas for décor and repairs. To subscribe to a free podcast visit the ITunes store. You’re sure to learn something new from One Minute How-To.com and Make magazine’s DIY technology projects. At the least, you’ll be entertained for a few minutes.

-Taniesha Robinson

Photo by boliston on Flickr. Licensed under Creative Commons.

Sure air conditioners get the job of cooling your home done, but it’s at the expensive price of carbon emission. Here are three energy-efficient home-cooling technologies you didn’t know about.

1. Absorption cooling
If you have a large residential home, absorption cooling may be for you. The cooling technique is essentially air conditioning driven by a heat source other than electricity i.e. natural gas, propane, solar-heated water, geothermal-heated water. Solar absorption cooling technologies can cut costs for cooling your home. However, most absorption cooling systems use natural gas and are more expensive to operate. Yet, the peace of mind you’ll receive from using renewable energy that reduces greenhouse gas emissions may be worth it.

2. Evaporative Cooling
For homes located in low-humidity areas, evaporative coolers can provide cheaper and energy-efficient cooling. They cost about one-half as much as central air-conditioning units to install and use about one-quarter as much energy. Coolers pass outdoor air over water-saturated pads, cooling the air with evaporated water and providing a continual flow of fresh air in the home. Although, they’re more efficient than air conditioners, they require more maintenance. You’ll save yourself more work and money, however, by draining and cleaning the cooler regularly.

3. Whole House Fan
For homes in humid areas where temperatures aren’t reaching 100 degrees Fahrenheit every day, whole house fans are a great substitute for air conditioning. The fans pull in air from open windows and exhaust it through the attic. They can be noisy when ran at high speeds. It is possible to use heating and air-conditioning ducts to ventilate your entire home, also. You should check with a professional to see if this is a good option for cooling your home.

Source: U.S. Department of Energy

- Taniesha Robinson

Photo by karenwithak. Licensed under Creative Commons.

Have you ever marveled at perfectly creased napkins presented on dinner tables at fancy restaurants? Create those fancy folds for your table at home. Here are a few simple ideas to get you started.

Candle napkin fold

This napkin fold mimics a pillar candle. To get the look fold a square napkin - cloth works best - in half diagonally and fold the long side of the triangle up an inch and flatten. Tightly roll either end until the napkin becomes a cylinder and tuck the end into the base.

French napkin fold

What’s fancier than French? Fold a napkin in half diagonally and turn the fold vertical. Fold the far corner down diagonally to the right. Fold the farthest right corner toward you, pivoting at the same place as the last fold.

Find step-by-step photo guides to these napkin folds and others at www.napkinfoldingguide.com.

–Taniesha Robinson

See something wrong in the picture below?

Photo by mroczknj. Licensed under Creative Commons.

Some DIY projects just shouldn’t be. Check out Thereifixedit.com for more examples.

-Taniesha Robinson

If you’re like me, you haven’t completely jumped on the “going green” bandwagon, yet. It’s not that you don’t care about the environment; it’s just that you don’t know where to start. Too many aspects of your daily living are dependent on synthetic chemical products and carbon emission. But if you’re serious about helping out the environment, “green cleaning” is a great way to start.

Cleaning with eco-friendly products not only help the environment, but they can help you, too. Green cleaning products don’t include those toxins and chemicals that become allergens when used in high concentration in the home. Substances like baking soda, vinegar, lemon juice and elbow grease can conquer most household cleaning tasks, but in case you need a product that comes with instructions check out this link for a comparison of marketed green cleaning products.

For more on the basics of green cleaning visit http://planetgreen.discovery.com/go-green/green-cleaning/green-cleaning-basics.html.

-Taniesha Robinson

I’ve always been intrigued by all the different ways in which people fold clothing. (I can hear your laughter.) Growing up, my family traveled to the local laundromat to wash clothing, and I’d often have to stop myself from lurking over people’s shoulders after they’d taken their clothes out of the dryer. I became envious of the department-store folding displayed on tables nearby. My family’s folding style left a line down the center of my t-shirts, which I despised. Then, one fateful day I discovered the Japanese method of t-shirt folding! See the mind-boggling video here. It intrigued me for a while, but eventually I returned to mom’s folding method. Now, my interest in t-shirt folding has been renewed after seeing a nifty little homemade tool on YouTube. Check it out the DIY T-Shirt folding machine here. If you’re not good with crafts you can buy a a version at www.flipfold.com.

Check out a back-to-basics video series on t-shirt folding at eHow.com. And I’ve never used a wood shirt folding board, but apparently those exist, too. You can purchase one on Amazon.

- Taniesha Robinson

There are few pieces of furniture in my home that my cats, Lady Kay and Mikey, are not allowed to climb on. The mattress in my bedroom is as much theirs as it is mine. I’ve tried to attract them to their own beds and furniture around the house, but they’d rather enjoy the comfort that humans indulge in.

Now that it’s summer and my cats are shedding more hair, more frequently, cleaning up behind them is becoming more difficult. I groom and bathe them more often, for which I’m sure they hate me. I change my sheets every three days and vacuum excessively.

Yet, these efforts alone still leave little white, black and gray hairs resting on furniture and clothing, leading me to bust out my secret weapon: a lint roller. This little contraption saves me a ton of time and energy in cat hair removal. There are special pet versions of hair rollers, but lint rollers do the same job.

I know I’m not the only person who can’t bear to wake their pet curled in a neat little ball in the center of the bed. Maybe preventing my cats from climbing on the furniture might make it easier to purge my home of their hair, but try telling that to Lady Kay and Mikey.

-Taniesha Robinson

Although the 4th of July is one of my favorite days of the year, I’m not always gun-ho for the traditional outdoor aspects of this holiday. Of course, I think fireworks, warm weather and grilled food are the necessities for a great 4th of July party. Still, I think there are some other must-haves to make sure everyone enjoys the festivities:

1. Insect repellent

As a kid, I hated getting sprayed down with this stuff before going off to play, but now I don’t step on picnic grounds without it. Nothing ruins holiday enjoyment faster than a mosquito bite on your shin or elbow.

2. Hand sanitizer

When you’re grilling in the park, sometimes the bathrooms are just too far away or too dirty when you finally get there.

3. Non-alcoholic beverages

For some, the buzz from the bees is enough.

4. Seating and Shade (preferably seating in the shade)

Fold-away chairs, benches or blankets all do the job of giving party goers a resting place, but the rest will easily be interrupted if they’re baking in the sun. If the festivities can’t be parked under a tree, invest in a canopy or table umbrellas.

5. Music for all

Spin the summer-themed oldies for mom and dad and more recent chart toppers for you and your friends. And don’t forget to throw in some Kidz Bop tunes for the little ones.

Learn how to twist a lemon peel or fire up an orange for the perfect summer drink garnish.

Photo by Divine in the Daily. Licensed under Creative Commons.

Visit http://how2heroes.com/videos/beverages/citrus-garnishes for a video how-to. It features a detailed guide to get a perfectly curled peel and an easy way to do multiple twists at once. Dress up all the drinks at a summer get-together or make yourself smile at home.

-Taniesha Robinson

Sun catchers make great summer window treatments and fun crafts for kids that you won’t mind displaying in your home. You can get elaborate with this craft using stain glass or adding chimes, but for an easier way to catch the sun, grab a few CDs and string. Use a few old CDs that skip on your favorite parts – it’s time to upgrade to digital MP3s anyway – or find some in your junk mail.

The sleek shine and circular design of CDs provide a luminous, modern finishing touch to your window. Also, because they’re reflective, they’ll complement any room’s color scheme. You can even add a little paint for accents to further match the space. Here’s a link to a step-by-step guide for making a CD sun catcher from eHow.com.

Photo by Eternal*Voyageur. Licensed under Creative Commons.

A recycled-CD sun catcher is a great green design idea for any window at home, but for methods on creating sun catchers visit http://crafts.kaboose.com/how-to-make-suncatchers.html and http://www.essortment.com/hobbies/stainedglasssu_saih.htm

- Taniesha Robinson