Category Archives: Home Improvement

Painting Exterior Stucco

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Southwestern-styled homes will traditionally use stucco as a decorative siding and finish to homes. Stucco is a fine plaster coated onto walls wet, which dries with a very grainy texture. This plaster handles great against the desert heat and looks great as well. However, these extreme climates can really wear down and fade the paint on the walls over time. If your paint is beginning to fade, it may be time to repaint the exterior of your home. With stucco being so texture, it can propose several dilemmas. To help, here are some of the best ways to paint stucco:

Prep

Before you are going to start painting, you will need to prep the surface. For the exterior of your home, you will just want to remove all the outdoor dust and dirt that has accumulated on your home. This step can easily be done by spraying your house down with a hose. Let it air dry completely before you begin to paint. Tape off or tarp any areas you do not want the paint to get.

Roller

For stucco, there are generally two main ways of painting. A roller is less effective but generally foolproof. When you get your paint, let the supplier know you will be rolling the paint. This paint will be sold much thicker and can be applied with a roller. You will still need to use a brush for harder areas like corners and edges.

Spray

A more effective technique but takes practice and equipment is spraying the paint onto the stucco. With such an aggressive texture, this will allow you not to have to go over the same spot multiple times, as the roller may. Simply add the paint and spray it directly onto your home. You can keep the spray gun very close to the house because bleeding paint is uncommon with this high of texture.

Stucco is excellent but will need to be repainted after many years of sun exposure. Make sure you can complete the task before starting it. If this seems too far out of your expertise, you may want to consider hiring a professional. For more tips and tricks on home improvement, make sure to subscribe.

Tips & Tricks for Keeping Your Home Smelling Fresh

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You can easily master your design, yet if your environment does not smell fresh, your home’s presence can quickly be ruined. You may not be a messy or dirty person; however, our lifestyles can contribute to unwanted odors in our homes. Pets, children, long hours at work, and many other factors can give our rooms a foul scent. You spend too much time making your home beautiful to ruin it with unwanted smells. There are two main ways to tackle this problem: eliminate bad odor and create pleasant ones. Here are some great ways to help enhance the smell of your home:

Drawer Scented Sachets

When clothes and lines sit for extended periods of time, they can start with hold scents. Drawer scented sachets are packets that can be placed at the bottom of all your linen drawers in your home. They can provide a pleasant smell in your drawers and will also help scent your linens.

Scented Dryer Sheets

After washing your clothes and throwing them into the dryer, throw in some scented dryer sheets. Investing in some good fragrance dryer sheets can help put the scent into your clothes. It is especially nice when you wash your sheets. Nothing better than hopping into a lovely lavender-scented bed after a long day at work.

Air Freshener

Air fresheners are another must-have in your home. There are thousands of scents to choose from for your home. Find a scent that you love and apply it to your home. Plus, air fresheners come in a variety of ways to allow them into the atmosphere. You can get a simple spray for manual use or invest in an automatic time-released air freshener. Either way, air fresheners are great for sprucing up your home’s aromas.

Closet Fragrance Freshener

Like your drawer scented sachets, you can also get closet fragrance fresheners. These typically come on a hanger that can be hung in your closet. They are another great way to freshen an area of your home and improve the scent of your clothes!

Candles

Add some warmth to your atmosphere by investing in some candles. Candles are a great way to make your home smell better. Try to find candles that work with your personal taste. You can even invest in seasonal candles like winter scents or spring scents for different times of the year.

Smells can be an essential element to control in your home. Remember, your task is not just to mask smells with new ones. Instead, try to eliminate any unwanted smells in your home first. Additionally, remember to keep your home clean to prevent undesirable odors.

Best Plants to Improve Home Air Quality

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Our homes are our safe havens and refuge. They are the spot we can retreat from the rest of the chaotic world; therefore, having our homes be a place of comfort and relaxation is essential, but we also need to consider our health. Air quality is an important attribute that correlates directly with our health. You do not want to go home to a house full of airborne allergens and pollutants after a long day of work. Luckily, having clean air can be as easy as buying some plants for your home. Plants give off oxygen and can help purify your breathing air. Selecting the right plants is ideal for having the best atmosphere. Here are three high-quality plants that can help create better air quality in your home:

Aloe Vera

Aloe Vera is a very versatile plant. It can help remove volatile organic compound pollutants from the air while being beautiful. In fact, these pollutants are unwanted chemicals that are in the air in our homes, so it is important to have them removed. Aloe Vera also can easily increase oxygen levels while minimalizing carbon dioxide in your home. Having a plant like Aloe Vera is great because it is easy to keep alive and low-maintenance.

Chinese Evergreen

Chinese evergreen is a beautiful and colorful plant. It is also low-maintenance and can be watered as little as once a week while growing in low-light atmospheres. Chinese evergreen is known to be an excellent air-purifying plant. Chinese evergreens are great for pulling unwanted toxins from the air. This is an eco-friendly solution to purifying the air around your home or office.

English Ivy

Another option to consider is English Ivy. Typically, hung in baskets, these house plants can grow quite easily in semi-shady atmospheres. English ivy can cleanse benzene, formaldehyde, xylene, and toluene from the air. These solvents can be dangerous to our health. Studies have also proven that English Ivy reduces the chances of mold in your home.

Your air quality should never be overlooked. Investing in some or all of these plants is a significant, proactive step in freshening up your home. Plants have many benefits in enhancing your atmosphere. Make sure you facilitate them!

How to Create Your Home Theater

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A home theater is a way of bringing the theatrical experience and premium sound to your own home. This is great for any movie buff or individuals looking to host entertainment. Home theaters offer the convenience of a movie theater in your own home. However, there is more effort that goes into this than just buying a big-screen television. Movie theaters offer premium surround sound and quality comfort. If you have a room you are looking to convert, here are the essentials you are going to need:

Television or Projector

Your initial thought may be to purchase a big-screen television. While televisions can offer many benefits, including smart televisions and crystal-clear picture, you may also want to consider a projector. Quality projectors can provide clear, high-quality images in the size you choose to display them. You can purchase a motorized projector screen or even just paint a wall white and create a fixed frame around the image. First, you will want to consider if you want a 16:9 screen for HDTV and movies or if 2:35. One is more preferred to allow you to watch CinemaScope movies while eliminating the bottom and top black bars.

Speakers, Connection Path, & Media Source

A traditional style for home speaker’s surround-sound is a 5:1 method. This contains five speakers and one subwoofer. The five speakers will be right front, center, left front, right rear, and left rear. You will need some sort of connection path to allow your speakers to communicate with your projector. Some of these can work via Bluetooth or may need to be hardwired. If you are going to need to hardwire your surround sound, make sure you think out the wire path and find the best way to hide exposed wires for a neat finished look.

You will also want to hook up a media source. How do you plan on watching videos? Consider multi-platform options. While Bluetooth is great, you will have to own every movie you want to watch. Options like X-Box or Playstation can create your theater into a smart theater by offering gaming, Hulu, Netflix, Youtube, movie streaming, and more.

Seating

The last element to add to your home theater is seating. Any entertainment room only goes as far as the comfort you can provide. You may want to have gaming chairs closer to the screen, whereas movie seating can be further back in the room. Consider how big your space is and what is the best form of seating. Individual recliners are excellent options but may not be optimal for your space. Study the room and tailor the seating to how it will work with your layout.

Creating a home theater is an excellent home addition. You will use this room for many events when hosting guests and enjoy it for your own personal use. Adding the right form of seating, screening, and audio will all play critical roles in how your room feels. Make sure you have a good understanding of how everything will come together prior to investing in the space. For more tips and tricks on home improvement plans, make sure to subscribe!

Inspiring Design Hacks to Transform Your Patio for Autumn

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When it comes to home investments, you may not think of exterior modifications right away, and maybe, it is time to change your way of thinking. Autumn is the season to enjoy the outdoor weather and experience the beauty of change. Hosting outdoor festivities and gatherings is a great way to encapsulate this change through your home. Tailoring your patio for the seasons and adapting to different criteria can be a daunting task at first but the reward is well worth the time invested. As some of the Arizona trees begin to alter their leaves with a crimsons and golds spectacles and the nights grow longer, change is inevitable. We put together three simple fall patio changes worth your investments. Let’s take a look!

Fabulous Firepit

A great social modification to your patio is adding a firepit. Yes, even in Arizona. Plus, there are so many budget-friendly options as well as some very classy, elaborate setups for homeowners to select their favorite. Decide which investment best suits your house, design, and budget. Also, consider the number of people you plan on hosting. If you plan on entertaining large groups, you will want to add more seating to accommodate everyone. Lastly, make sure the firepit is well kept, and no trees are overhead that could catch fire.

Feature Fall Decor

Exterior decor can make a powerful statement outside your home. Adding hay barrels and pumpkins is an easy way to adapt your home for the fall season. Fall is harvest season and adding creative reflections of that around your outdoors can boost your home’s exterior value and fall pride. Try incorporating scarecrows and even decorating for Halloween to add flair. Plus, with Thanksgiving around the corner, it is also an excellent opportunity to add other festive pieces to your design.

Functional Furniture

Make sure you get the proper patio furniture. This is your chance to add your taste and design style outside. The exterior design option can be branched from bar seating to chairs or even stools. Designing your patio with the right seating and furniture is crucial for adapting your patio to become an outdoor hangout. Try buy autumn theme cushions or even a fun fall colored umbrella to help amplify your seasonal pride. Make sure you have different gathering spots and tailor your patio to accommodate the events you may host. You may also want to get a grill or set up an outdoor kitchen to make cooking and serving easier outdoors.

Investing in your patio this season is a great way to improve your home. It shows you care about your home and take pride in even the exterior.

Inexpensive Curb Appeal Ideas

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You are driving through a new neighborhood, what is the first thing you notice? You are probably looking at the neighborhood’s homes. The beauty of your house is not the only thing that sets it apart, but in fact, your curb appeal does. Curb appeal can be one of the biggest selling factors for a home. If you are looking to spruce up your home’s exterior on a budget, we have five tips for you! Because, we believe that creating great curb appeal, should not cost a fortune. 

Inexpensive Curb Appeal Ideas:

1. A Bold Entrance.

Your home’s front door says a lot. If you are looking to update it on a budget, you can begin by hanging a door wreath and adding a doormat. These simple decor pieces can help say “welcome home” without breaking the bank. 

2. You’ve Got Mail.

Make sure your mailbox is making a statement by replacing your current one with an updated, modern one. If you are on a tight budget, you can try repainting it and adding new numbers to its exterior. 

3. Can I Have Your Number?

Guests will be searching for your house numbers; therefore, it is important to make a good first impression. Make sure your house numbers look clean and fresh. If you are planning on replacing them, consider all the different places you could put your house numbers:

  • Painted on flower box. 
  • Placed on a tree. 
  • Hung above your front door. 
  • Installed next to your garage.

The options for displaying your house numbers are endless! Be creative with your house numbers and they will get more attention. 

4. Pretty Please.

Nothing adds beauty like fresh flowers and plants surrounding your home’s exterior. From garden beds to flower boxes, you can instantly upgrade your home with a few added plants. To make sure your plants thrive, be sure to ask your local nursery for plant suggestions. You want to make sure you choose plants that are appropriate for your climate and seasons. 

5. It’s Lit.

The exterior lighting of your home can be an important curb appeal factor. A well-lit home can help guests find your house at night and even deter burglars. 

6. Welcome.

Greet your guests with a welcome mat outside of your door. You can pick up an inexpensive doormat at your local store or customize your own with spray paint and stencils. 

We hope you enjoyed these six types! Check out our other posts at https://proudtobuild.com. 

Home Staging – Affordable Ideas

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Preparing your home for the real estate market will require an investment. While some homeowners choose to hire a professional home staging company, for many it’s just not in the budget. But do you really have to seek the help of a staging service to achieve optimal results? Don’t fret, getting help from a staging service isn’t the only way to get a Sold sign slapped on your property.

Below are some affordable ways you can get professional level staging results without investing thousands of dollars.

  1. Don’t Forget the Welcome Mat
    Something as simple as Welcome Mat at the entryway makes a difference when selling your home. Prospective buyers will usually linger at the front door for a few minutes before they enter the house, so you’ll want to make sure that the entrance of the home is appealing. A quality welcome mat will run you less than $20. To make the entryway even more enticing you can add some hooks to the wall where the coats will go and a fresh plant or two.

  2. Give Some Attention to The Bathroom
    You’ll want to give your bathroom that fresh and spa like feel. First, you have to remove the toiletries from around the sink, get rid of the tacky shower curtain and novelty bath towels. Easily freshen up your washroom by staging the area with all white towels, bath mats and neutral color shower curtain. Top things off by adding in a fresh flower or a scented candle.

  3. Make the Necessary Repairs
    It’s easy to neglect things that need to be fixed around the house. Before you know it you’ll have a long list of things that need to be repaired. Don’t invite potential buyers into the house unless you’ve fixed what need to be fixed. Be sure to freshen up the paints on the walls and fix any cracks in the flooring. Even minor things can turn would be buyers away.

  4. Remove Personal Pictures from The Walls
    While removing the personal pictures that you’ve curated over the years sounds a bit harsh, it’s necessary. The purpose of staging a home is so that buyers can envision themselves living in the house. That’s impossible if there are pictures of your family everywhere you turn. Instead, you can purchase inexpensive yet quality pieces of artwork to hang on the walls.

Ideas to Declutter Your Home

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How often to you walk past items that are stacked in a corner or piled up on a table? If you are like most people with busy lifestyles it is almost a given. We get so busy with work, school, children and home we start to ignore those messy spots and even program ourselves to walk past and not even notice! I was abnormally brilliant at overlooking, lol! Spring is the perfect time to declutter and purge alongside our often overlooked spring cleaning. Just by decluttering one room per month you will be surprised at how much better you feel and how nice and tidy the house looks! Our easy tips and tricks are listed below for creating a better work/home balancing act just by decluttering!

  1. Start in the bathroom using a 40 gallon heavy duty yard bag and begin cleaning underneath the cabinet and medicine chest. Of course, with expired medicines remove or mark out the identifying information. To be eco-friendly, simply drain the remaining contents of plastic bottles and containers, rinse with water and place in your recycle bin.
  2. Next head to the kitchen. We know the kitchen will take some extra time especially if you declutter well. Begin in the fridge and check all the bottled and packaged items expiration dates. Next move on to the freezer and do the same thing. Again, use a large yard bag and take the time for the environment and recycle the bottles and plastic containers, etc.
  3. Now look elsewhere for unwanted paper around the house like junk mail, advertising flyers, old homework, expired newspapers, etc. Again, place in a large yard bag, but make sure you use a shredder for anything that has personal confidential information.
  4. Old broken toys and sports equipment are always a given and should be discarded for safety purposes. Many of these items are large and take up a lot of room. Also, many of these are covered in dirt and other things we don’t want to think about that will most definitely contain bacteria. If there are items that are still in good shape, then donate them, sell at a consignment stores or sell them online.

As always, please let us know how your task turned out and please share your thoughts and ideas. Happy Decluttering!

Affordable Living Room Decor Ideas

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Are you looking to add quality without spending quantity? We have seven genius and affordable decor ideas for you to use in your living room this spring. Let’s take a look! 

 

Affordable Living Room Decor Ideas: 

  1. Rearrange. 

If you feel stuck in the same, underwhelming design, an easy fix is to rearrange your living room furniture. By rearranging, you can transform your space into something completely new while spending zero dollars. When rearranging, you want to keep these aspects in mind: 

1. The room’s flow/traffic pattern.

2. The furniture’s function.

3. The focal point of the space. 

  1. Repaint. 

You may be surprised by what a gallon of paint can do for your living room. If your current color scheme is feeling dull, you can freshen it up with a new wall color. You can even repaint some of your furniture to make them feel brand new. 

  1. Redesign. 

While redecorating, you may decide that you want a completely new design. You can redesign your space into something completely new. Leaving the same base of your room will help stay on budget. The base will be items like your furniture, but items like your pillows, curtains, blankets, and decor pieces can be swapped out to match your new design. 

  1. Reimagine. 

Before you get rid of older items, try and reimagine their use. For example, a stack of old books can be used as a decor piece on a coffee table. The best way to save money in your design is to use things that you already own. You can go through your home and find items that are not being used then incorporate them into your living room’s design.

  1. Refocus. 

Depending on your space, you may have the opportunity to switch focus to a new point in the room. A different area may be able to become your new “focal point.” For example, if your furniture has always faced the windows, you may want to try something new. Try adjusting your furniture’s focus to point in a new direction. Maybe you have a gorgeous fireplace that you want to show. Now is your time to redirect the focus to that specific area. 

  1. Renew. 

Antique and thrift shops are the perfect places to find old, well-kept furniture for an affordable price. While shopping, you want to get creative and try to see items with all of their possibilities. An old dresser may look unappealing now, but with a fresh coat of paint and some new hardware; it could look brand new! 

  1. Repurpose. 

If you are on a tight budget, buying all new furniture may not be realistic. Instead, you will want to try to repurpose some items that you currently own. You may be pleasantly surprised by what you can accomplish with your own items. 

 

We would love to hear your decorating ideas!  Leave your thoughts in the comments below!

 

Understanding Weeds

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Tired of those pesky invaders marring your garden? Yes, when your garden springs to life during the spring and summer season so do the weeds. Managing the weeds that pop up in your garden can be super challenging. It often results in an all-out war. The key to effectively managing weeds in your garden is understanding their role in the ecosystem. It may seem like spring is still far off, but now is the time to start planning.

 

What Are Weeds?

What exactly are weeds? Weeds are unwanted plants that grow in a garden. They don’t take on one specific look. In fact, they can belong to a branch of any plant family including; grass, tree perennials or even an annual. A weed can be a native species plant or a plant that has already been introduced to the garden but grew out of hand. Weeds can change based on their geographic location. They even spread by roots, seeds, and runners.

 

While these unsightly plants are often undesirable they can offer many benefits. Some weeds are edible while others serve as a food source for pollinators.

 

Removing and Preventing Weeds

It’s impossible to completely prevent weeds from growing in a garden. However, there are few strategies you can implement to limit them from cultivating in your garden. Here are some important tips:

 

Build Rich Soil

Weed grows in compacted soil and rich soil will greatly reduce weeds. If you have a vegetable garden you should form your soil beds at least twelve inches high and fill it with high-quality soil. Line the bottom of the soil bed with cardboard which will smother intrepid weeds.

 

Regular Maintenance

The smaller the weeds are the easier they are to remove. Therefore, you’ll need to perform regular maintenance to remove them while they are small before they have time to go into seed mode and spread further. Weeds on raised beds can simply be plucked away with your fingers.

 

Remove the Root

When removing weeds, you’ll need to pull them out by the root or the whole plant. Weeds with fibrous roots you will have to dig around the entire plant.

 

Smothering Plants

If you have a big weed problem, you can try smothering or solarizing them which will starve the soil of oxygen over a few weeks. While this is a drastic measure it will definitely be effective at staving off weeds.