About House & Home: How to Paint Like a Pro

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House & Home From Diane Schmidt, your About House & Home Editor With fall officially here, it's time to think about revitalizing your home, both inside and out, with rich, deep colors that reflect your sense of style. Paint is the perfect way to do just that. How to Use a Paint Brush the Right Way This might seem pretty basic, but I didn't know that you should never scrape the brush across the edge of the can to remove excess paint or that...well, you're just going to have to read this excellent guide (with helpful pictures, too) to find out more. See More About:  tips on using a paint brush  loading a bush  applying and distributing paint from a brush 10 Essential Rules For Painting a House's Exterior I had our house painted last summer and while the company did a great job, the color was horrible (to avoid this mistake see the article below), which was my fault entirely. But it also meant that my husband and I had to repaint the entire house again, by hand. I was lucky that I came across this great article about how not to go insane when faced with this seemingly daunting task. See More About:  self priming paint  exterior house colors  exterior house preparation seal and patch No Fail Color Palettes As I already mentioned, my color palette for our house's exterior produced a shade of green that was so horrible our neighbors would stop to ask what happened , like a terrible accident had befallen it (and, I suppose, it had). But with the help of this easy-to-follow guide to no-fail palettes, our house is now picture-perfect. See More About:  color  color schemes  color in decor How to Get Your Cat to Paint a Masterpiece While you're busy painting the exterior and interior of your home, why not have Kitty create the ultimate in family decor? A painting that is unique and expresses her creative side, one that will adorn your walls for years to come. See More About:  gifts for cat owners  cat toys  cat gifts House & Home Ads Exterior House Paint Interior Painting Wall Paint Colors Paint Living Room Paint Featured Articles Where to Get a Mortgage Landscaping for Small Spaces How to Create a Dish Garden Knit a Bunny Hat for Kids Guide to Internet Home Theater 10 Surprising Uses for Vinegar   More from About.com Essential Medical Tests for Women For women, certain medical tests and health screenings are recommended on a yearly basis. Learn which screenings are essential for your health, and why. More> Finding the Right Doctor Whether you need a new primary care doctor or a specialist to take care of specific symptoms, you'll want to follow these guidelines to choose the right physician for your medical care. More>   Sign up for more free newsletters on your favorite topics You are receiving this newsletter because you subscribed to the About House & Home newsletter. If you wish to change your email address or unsubscribe, please click here. About respects your privacy: Our Privacy Policy Contact Information: 249 West 17th Street New York, NY, 10011 © 2011 About.com   Advertisement

About House & Home: Tips for a More Productive Home Office

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House & Home From Diane Schmidt, your About House & Home Editor My husband and I both work from home, which I had assumed would be a recipe for disaster. In fact, it's worked out pretty well, if I keep my husband's office door closed most of the time. If I didn't, I'm sure I'd spend my work hours straightening all the piles and cleaning off his desk, never mind lecturing him about the relationship between organization and productively. Instead, I sent him the following articles as a not-so-subtle hint. How to Create an Efficient Work Space No matter where you work, efficiency is key to productivity. When you work at home, it seems to play an even greater role since work days can often entail throwing in a load of laundry at lunch or cleaning out the refrigerator at break time. Having an efficient office space means that you'll get a lot more done. Period. See More About:  home office furniture  workstations  desks Control Paper Clutter It took me a while to forward this list of great articles to my husband, simply because I was caught up in all the tips, suggestions and solutions for clearing my own office space of paper clutter. Like the weekly organizing routine - brilliant! See More About:  declutter  paper management  office organization 5 Cable Management Secrets Okay, so I actually didn't forward these solutions to my husband since he's pretty organized when it comes to his cables. In fact, he's always lecturing me on cable management. So after I accidentally shut down our wireless router right in the middle of my husband's teleconference meeting, because my toes got a little tangled, I was forced to take some action. Yes, these cable management secrets probably saved my marriage. How to Set Up a Study or Work Space If you're planning to work at home or even if you're thinking that you need a quiet place to pay bills, write in your journal or read the latest bestseller, this article provides all the tips you need to create the perfect work space - not matter how much space (or lack of space) you have. See More About:  homework help  homework areas  House & Home Ads Office Design House Cleaning Home Office Desk Decorate Office Office Interiors Featured Articles Aromatherapy for Office Stress Office Yoga Pet Infomercial Product Reviews Green Lawn Mowers How to Create a Budget Build a Knick Knack Shelf   More from About.com Essential Medical Tests for Women For women, certain medical tests and health screenings are recommended on a yearly basis. Learn which screenings are essential for your health, and why. More> Finding the Right Doctor Whether you need a new primary care doctor or a specialist to take care of specific symptoms, you'll want to follow these guidelines to choose the right physician for your medical care. More>   Sign up for more free newsletters on your favorite topics You are receiving this newsletter because you subscribed to the About House & Home newsletter. If you wish to change your email address or unsubscribe, please click here. About respects your privacy: Our Privacy Policy Contact Information: 249 West 17th Street New York, NY, 10011 © 2011 About.com   Advertisement

About House & Home: Fall Gardening and Harvesting

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House & Home From Diane Schmidt, your About House & Home Editor With fall quickly approaching, I'm starting to long for those long afternoons spent in my garden, weeding, watering and wondering just what my plants would produce. But just as I started to reminisce, I found some great articles with tips on fall gardening, including what to plant, tasks to do, and ways to preserve the harvest so you can enjoy the fruits of your labor even as the cold winds begin to blow. Veggies to Plant in September I've never planted a fall garden before and at first I was a little intimidated, thinking I'd have to keep a close watch on the weather, panicking when the temperatures dipped too low. Little did I know that the cooler temps allow me to grow veggies that summer suns are too strong for - like arugula that always went to seed far quicker than we could consume it. See More About:  vegetable gardening  planting a vegetable garden  september garden tasks Tips for Growing a Cool Season Vegetable Garden Now that you've decided what to plant, find out how to prepare the soil, when to plant and how to sow for the best results. For instance, did you know that you can plant seeds directly into the ground even when the temperatures dip below zero? I didn't either! See More About:  vegetable gardening  cool season vegetables  fall gardening How to Ripen Green Tomatoes This is the problem I'm facing right now. My tomato plants are bursting with green fruits that won't ripen in the now-cool and rainy weather. I'm just glad that I came across this article on how to turn green to red so I can start to enjoy my fall harvest. See More About:  container vegetables  container pictures  Canning Tips & Resources My mother was a huge believer in canning. Every fall we spent days preparing vegetables and fruit for winter feasting - cleaning, dicing and cooking - knowing that the fresh garden flavor would be so welcome once the snow started to fall, reminding us of the warmth of summer suns. See More About:  dehydrating  recycling  pressure cooking House & Home Ads Gardening Fall Harvest Fall Foliage Fall AZ Gardening Tips Gardening Web Design Featured Articles America's 9-11 Memorial Quilts Pet Health Insurance 101 10 Thrift Store Shopping Tips How to Drain a Flooded Basement Host an Apple Theme Dinner Party Replace Your Headlight Bulb   More from About.com Favorite Summer Frozen Drinks Blended with ice or chock full of fresh fruit, these yummy drinks will liven up any warm-weather gathering. More> Best Frozen Summer Desserts Ten easy, delicious, make-ahead desserts that will cool you down on the hottest of summer days. More>   Sign up for more free newsletters on your favorite topics You are receiving this newsletter because you subscribed to the About House & Home newsletter. If you wish to change your email address or unsubscribe, please click here. About respects your privacy: Our Privacy Policy Contact Information: 249 West 17th Street New York, NY, 10011 © 2011 About.com   Advertisement

About House & Home: Help Kids Do Well at School

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House & Home From Diane Schmidt, your About House & Home Editor Now that kids are back in school, it's a good time to consider how you might help them learn more, do well and have fun in their classes all while keeping them on track and motivated. Since this might seem like an impossible task, this week we're providing some simple ways to ensure kids are doing their best, and at the same time, learning some life skills that will serve them well long after they leave the class room. Feng Shui For Success at School This is an information-packed article that discusses all kinds of ways to help children do well at school. You'll find everything you need to know from creating the best learning environment to ensuring your child's bedroom provides the necessary rest and relaxation required for kids to be at their best. See More About:  feng shui home  feng shui decorating  feng shui tips Back to School Tips for Staying Organized When I was in school, my problem had nothing to do with understanding what I was taught, but everything to do with staying organized. It took me a long time to develop these essential skills - skills that, had I received some help, would've set me on the right track from my first day forward. I highly recommend this exhaustive list of articles, tips and suggestions for helping you and your child be, and stay, organized for school. See More About:  time management  productivity  organizing tips Help Kids Manage Homework Part of staying organized is ensuring that homework is completed on time. Such skills as managing schedules, setting priorities and understanding consequences are all important aspects of helping a child succeed at school. And it starts with being able to organize school projects and assignments. See More About:  cleaning with kids  organizing papers  5 Best Home Office PCs While this article focuses on PCs for home offices, I think it's a great resource for older children and teens who need to upgrade their computer. This list provides detailed information on each brand, including quick links to view costs and specs. House & Home Ads School Back to School Child Care School All Girls School Kids School Labels Featured Articles All About Sunflowers How to Find Reputable Plant Nurseries Free Printable Calendars How to Unclog a Drain How to Remove & Prevent Ticks Fun with Vintage Postcards   More from About.com Favorite Summer Frozen Drinks Blended with ice or chock full of fresh fruit, these yummy drinks will liven up any warm-weather gathering. More> Best Frozen Summer Desserts Ten easy, delicious, make-ahead desserts that will cool you down on the hottest of summer days. More>   Sign up for more free newsletters on your favorite topics You are receiving this newsletter because you subscribed to the About House & Home newsletter. If you wish to change your email address or unsubscribe, please click here. About respects your privacy: Our Privacy Policy Contact Information: 249 West 17th Street New York, NY, 10011 © 2011 About.com   Advertisement