If you’ve had a rough week or want a laugh, watch the video above of salesman — or more aptly put, budding comedian — Kenny Brooks. He should be the poster boy of why it pays to be persistent. I could use a dose of his tenacity. What about you?
If you have long or tangly hair, the Wet Brush is a godsend. I’ve tried a number of brushes. The “best brush” on the market, the Mason Pearson, is in my arsenal. Yet, I always find myself reaching for the crazily inexpensive, yet-oh-so-effective Wet Brush. It detangles hair in seconds. Its bristles are soft against the scalp. And best of all, you can brush your hair when wet. Goodbye comb.
If you haven’t tried it and are tired of fighting knotty hair, I would highly suggest testing one out. And at its price, there’s nothing to feel guilty about.
The other day while on the new-home hunt, I ran across a home with a living room that literally did not have space for a sofa. The arrangement of the windows, doorways and staircase made it completely impossible to put a sofa in the room without blocking a walkway. And that’s not the only wonky room I’ve seen.
Dining rooms too small for a decent sized dining table. Bedrooms too narrow for a bed. Family rooms with no spot for a TV. Wonky, poorly-planned rooms are everywhere. And the sad part? Most people don’t realize their rooms are wonky until after moving in.
Empty rooms are deceiving. When you walk through an empty home, you assume the furniture will fit in each room. But there are no guarantees. And if the home does have furniture in it, there’s often so much to take in you don’t notice you have to suck in and shimmy against the wall to get around your dining table. Or even worse, you assume they just arranged the furniture poorly. But that may be the only arrangement that works.
So before you sign on that dotted line, always draw a floor plan. Sure, your realtor or potential new landlord may think you’re a little crazy when you whip out a tape measure. But it’s well worth it, because you’ll know without a doubt that your new home will work for you and the way you live.
And don’t worry about it being perfect. Your floor plan doesn’t need to be pretty. You just need to make sure your furniture — or any furniture — will indeed fit.
If you need help drawing floor plans or would like to discover how to make yours better, pick up a copy of my how-to decorating book. I go into great detail about how to create and optimize your floor plan, which happens to be my favorite part of decorating.
Happy hunting — and drawing!
Ever since spotting these gorgeous sunrise and sunset photos shot by the uber-talented Eric Cahan, I’ve dreamed of having one on my wall. They focus on just one small portion of the sky, capturing both the vibrancy and ethereal nature of a sunrise or sunset, which is what makes these photos absolute stunners. They’d be perfect as a focal point for a room, and talk about an awesome jumping off point for a color scheme.
If you’re swooning for his work as much as I am, be sure to check out his entire sunset and sunrise photography portfolio.
1. John Rocha Muse Kore Champagne Flute, Waterford | 2. Edge Champagne Flute, Crate & Barrel | 3. Society Hill Champagne Flute, Kate Spade | 4. Schott Zwiesel Pure Champagne Flute, Sur la Table | 5. Simplicity Champagne Flute, CB2 | 6. Vera Wang Orient Champagne Flute, Wedgewood | 7. Monique Lhuillier Atelier Champagne Flute, Waterford | 8. Facet Champagne Flute, Lalique
With our wedding just a little over a month away, I’ve been hard at work ironing out all the last details. One of them being: find a stylish set of toasting champagne flutes. Thinking the traditional cut crystal would dominate the options, I was shocked to find a number of fresh, fun and far from traditional options. Whether you’re toasting to a romantic dinner for two or festive, family occasion, these flutes will have you clinking in style.
Now whether they’ll stay in style, as in, for our 50th wedding anniversary? Only time will tell. I’m betting the ones I chose will, and if not, at least we’ll have something to laugh about while saying “Cheers.”