(ARA) – In addition to decking the halls of your home this holiday season, you can create a warm and inviting atmosphere for guests with a little DIY flooring updating in high-traffic areas like kitchens and bathrooms with simple and inexpensive home-improvement projects.  With a few easy steps and just one basic tool, these projects can be done on a budget and make a big impact:

Repair broken floor tiles/install new tiles

To spruce up the bathroom or kitchen, repair broken tiles and install new ones.  Try using the Dremel Multi-Max Oscillating Tool for best results.  Insert a grout blade into the oscillating tool and orient the blade on the tool so you can best access all four sides of the broken tile.  For hard set grout, use the maximum speed; softer and less-set grout can be worked at a medium speed.  Keep the blade at a right angle to the floor, being careful not to knick the remaining good tile. Remove all the old tile and dust. Read the rest of this entry

Technorati Tags: DIY Flooring

(ARA) – A disorganized home wastes time, and time is money. It can be frustrating if you’re constantly misplacing items, throwing out spoiled food that went missing in the kitchen and paying surcharges for unpaid bills that got lost in the shuffle.  But it’s easy to put a little happiness back into your life if you just get organized. Here are some tips for getting your diy kitchen – and your life – back in order.

Get organized

Tackle one room at a time to get a sense of accomplishment right away. The kitchen is a logical place to start since it’s typically the landing place for all things that get dropped while passing through, from cell phones to car keys to school notes. Get rid of visible countertop clutter. Throw out what you don’t need and corral small items in great-looking woven baskets or pottery bowls.

Next, de-clutter behind the scenes in the drawers and cupboards.  A few well-chosen cabinet accessories can help you here. A wood cutlery divider added to a crowded utensil drawer will keep your flatware in place, and give you a fighting chance at locating the pie server or pizza cutter. One option is Diamond Cabinet’s easy-access, Wood Tiered Cutlery Divider, which has a top tier that slides back so you can organize more items.  And, if you can’t open a lower cabinet without a pile of pots and pans clattering to the floor, find your headache prevention in the Utility Storage Cabinet With Pot & Pan Pull-Out, featuring both a pot and pan rack and pantry pull-out within one cabinet. Read the rest of this entry

Technorati Tags: DIY Kitchens