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Cozy Cooking – 5 Ingenious Ways to Save Space in a Small Kitchen

April 22, 2019 by Painter Mommy Leave a Comment

Photo by Brooke Lark on Stocksnap

If you live in in a small home, a studio apartment, or a big city where space is at a premium, and you love to cook, you may feel frustrated some days by the minuscule size of your kitchen. There is hope! Instead of allowing the size to discourage you, you could flip your perspective and enjoy the creative challenge of a small kitchen. Below are five ingenious ways you can kill it in the kitchen when the space is tight.

Don’t be Afraid to Hang Things

Get out the hammer, nails, and ruler and prepare yourself to hang everything you can. Get your knives up off the counter onto magnetic strips, capture potholders on wall grids, and scoop up your measuring spoons into little containers that you can string off of racks with hooks. When shelf space is a struggle, don’t be afraid to hang your cookware from your ceiling above your stove. Another way to save space and make cooking more convenient is to attach your most commonly used utensils on the wall above your stove.

Get Vertical

What can’t fit in drawers could go up! Vertical shelving could be your ticket to additional storage on your counters, above your appliances or in any open space. If you remove the doors, you can add an artistic flair to your kitchen as you thoughtfully decorate with pieces like mixing bowls and mugs. If you do incorporate open shelving, consider investing in either matching or purposefully mismatching jars to store your various flours, grains, and spices—your kitchen will look attractive, clean and organized!

Roll Whatever You Can

Your small kitchen most likely does not include a kitchen island, so consider purchasing a rolling island to create some additional counter space anywhere in the kitchen. Another option on wheels is a tiered storage or bar cart that you can seasonally decorate and scoot from place to place easily if company arrives. Finally, if you are feeling crafty, you could consider making your very own rolling pantry.

Enlarge your Cutting Board

If you are struggling for space to chop your vegetables or roll out your pie dough, you may want to invest in a cutting board that fits over the top of an open drawer, your sink or the stove. You will immediately gain counter space instead of your cutting board monopolizing precious real estate.

Fold Up Your Kitchen Table

Don’t worry, this is not where you go back to your early twenties and eat off a folding card table—instead, it is where you might consider adding a table that can fold up into your wall, similar to the functionality of a murphy bed. Instead of a typical kitchen table chair, you could use a soft bench to create a seamless flow to the room when the table is folded up and make the absence of the table less obvious.

If you enjoy cooking you are going to spend a great deal of time in your kitchen, so why not create something that captures your style while strategically allowing you to save space? When shelving is tight, don’t be afraid to add more and go vertical. Maximize your counter space by hanging whatever you can, finding a cutting board that fits over your sink and adding a rolling island or bar cart. You can even throw tradition to the wind and put in a kitchen table that folds up into the wall. Allow your small kitchen to morph from your nemesis to your most significant accomplishment.

Sweltering Style – Switching Up Your Patio For Summer Vibes

May 21, 2018 by Painter Mommy Leave a Comment

After the colder winter and the associated hibernation, many of us welcome the return to warmer climate through extended stays in outdoor entertaining areas.

If your home’s outdoor space is in need of a bit of a spruce-up, the following ideas may help you create a space which is ripe for summer enjoyment, right in the nick of time.

Gimme Shelter

Although the warmth of summer sun can be pleasant and relaxing, the full heat of Australian summer can also be both dangerous and uncomfortable. If you’re looking to get the more use and enjoyment from your outdoor entertaining area, it can be a good idea to install adequate shade and sun protection.

Outdoor blinds are an ideal way to block out direct light and to control the temperature and glare of an area. They’re also available in a wide range of designs and colours, meaning that you can find a solution for your patio which will enhance the area while providing you with much needed comfort.

Another excellent solution is shadecloth. Shadecloth can be directly installed to overhead wooden beams to partially block out overhead light and dim the area, without completely shading the space.

For a tailored and comfortable solution, combining methods of sun protection is a great way to ensure you get the most from your space.

Light It Up

Outdoor lighting is another key consideration if you’re in the process of revamping your outdoor entertainment area for summer. With longer evenings and warm nights, the temptation to entertain and remain outdoors grows, and so it becomes necessary to provide a source of outdoor lighting.

Solar lights provide a cheap and environmentally friendly way to illuminate your social occasions. They can be installed in a number of ways, including lanterns, spotlights and fairy lights – meaning that you can light the area in a way which suits your space and your occasion.

LED lights are another low cost alternative and are able to be installed to a level of brightness which suits your needs.

Consider providing a lightsource which will deter bugs and pests, such as a bug zapper or a citronella candle. These light sources can keep you comfortable throughout the mosquito prone months.

Taste The Outdoors

If you’re spending more time outdoors socially, it makes sense that you may be considering outdoor cooking facilities. The barbeque is a much loved and time tested outdoor cooking apparatus, and can be used in summer with great gusto.

For a high-quality change, consider installing a wood fired oven or an outdoor cooker to really create a foodie heaven. A wood fired oven can make more than delicious pizza. It can also cook cakes and roast meats and vegetables. An outdoor cooker is like an indoor stove – without the restriction of walls. These are great for preparing high dexterity and high heat dishes such as curries, stir fries and deep fried dishes.

Outdoor cooking solutions provide you with an extra way to cook at all times of year – even in the cooler months. You might find them particularly handy when cooking particularly pungent or less welcomed foods (eg; cabbage soup or kimchi).

Pump Up The Volume

Speakers. Music. Action! An outdoor entertaining area isn’t complete without a little bit of entertainment. An easy way to integrate some fun into your outdoor area is through the installation of speakers or a sound system.

Clever positioning of speakers will allow you to enjoy music outdoors without incurring the anger or wrath of any neighbours. It will also allow you to enjoy streamed indoor content or radio broadcasts without the need for a clunky, static-filled boombox.

Setting up your outdoor entertaining area for summer as easy as preparing in advance. Get your climate and shade sorted, figure out your cooking methodologies and choose a playlist. Then it’s time to get the party started!

The Household How-To: 10 Tips For Decorating a Master Bedroom

December 27, 2017 by Painter Mommy 1 Comment

Master bedrooms are arguably one of the most important rooms in any given house. It’s the room you, the owner/renter of the house spend quality time by yourself or with your partner, it’s where you sleep, it’s where you have privacy and it’s where your more personal items are stored. It isn’t a room for anyone or everyone, it’s a private room, and that’s why it’s important.

Making sure your master bedroom is set up the way you want it to be set up is key in ensuring the bedroom feels like your room, and getting it right can be a finicky project. To help you out with this all-important task, we have written down 10 tips for decorating your master bedroom.

Use of Space

While some people like bedrooms to be spacious and relatively uncluttered to promote a clear and free feel, others feel like this wastes crucial space in your home on nothing more than floor space. If you lean more toward the latter kind of person, getting yourself a two-storey bed frame might be a good idea. It elevates your bed to above head height, making room on the floor while still keeping a bed set up.

Lighting

The lighting in your room helps to contribute to the mood, and therefore has a direct impact on how you feel about this personal space of yours. Warmer coloured lights give a more homey feel to a space, while cooler lights in white or blue give a less personal, more sterile feel to your space. Whichever you prefer is what you should go with, after all, it is your bedroom.

Curtains

The curtains in your room should reflect your personal sense of style, as they are the covering for the entryway for the most light in your bedroom. Blinds are just as effective as large, heavy curtains, and often cost less too, so exploring based on taste and preference can be more affordable than you previously thought possible.

Art

The art in your room or lack thereof is entirely up to you, but many people feel that the presence of art makes the room feel more personalised and comfortable. Large sculptures are usually only appropriate in larger rooms, however paintings and small sculptures work well in master bedrooms and promote a healthy artistic outlook on life.

Furniture

The furniture in your room is usually decided by how much space you have, although a couch is often a good addition to a medium to large sized bedroom for working on or to have as a place to sleep if a friend comes around.

Utility Items

Utility items are things like dirty clothes baskets, wardrobes, or bedside tables. Having a bedside table with power point facilities and a lamp is a good idea, as this allows you to charge your phone, plug in an alarm clock, and read by lamplight if you want before bed.

Entertainment

Having a television in your room is a divisive issue, as many people like to fall asleep watching movies or at least like to have the option to watch something if they can’t sleep. There are studies, though, that have proven that a television in your room restricts your sleep cycle significantly, so do your research before plugging in that new 50” screen.

Storage

Storage options in your room could be limited, depending on the space, so making use of all of your available room is important. Try buying plastic tubs and storing them under your bed, packed full of items. This will prevent them from getting dusty while keeping your room clear.

Walk-In Wardrobe

A walk-in wardrobe is an incredible thing, and if you happen to be lucky enough to have one you’ll understand all the space you save in your main bedroom. Try using the space for all of your clothes, and not just the hanging ones. This frees up a lot more room in your main room than might seem possible from such a small adjustment.

Ensuite

One of the best features of a master bedroom is the ensuite. Decorating your ensuite should be fun, because it’s your own personal bathroom. Put a speaker in there for music, and some scented candles for those times when you just need to relax.

With these 10 tips in mind, your master bedroom will basically decorate itself. Have fun with setting up your personal space, and remember to make it represent you!

Developing your Garden Space

April 30, 2014 by Painter Mommy Leave a Comment

A bland, dull outdoor garden can easily be spruced up to become a lush oasis with a little work.

It takes a bit of planning and a green thumb, but everything can come together neatly. To learn how to create a garden space, it is ideal to speak with a garden specialist or take out a book from the local library. Help from this article will also help you understand what to do, when and how.

Preparing the Ground

The weekend before you plan to put items in the ground it is ideal to prep the ground. What this means is that you should rototill the ground, add plant food, fertilizer and water. The next day, rototill the space again.

This ensures that everything is incorporated into the ground well and that it is soft enough for planting.

Carefully outline your space for each type of plant, shrub, tree or vegetable. You can use landscaping molding to ensure that this area is separated from green space and walking paths.

Laying out the Plants

How to lay out the plants:

Trees along the edge of the space
Shrubs staggered between the trees
Ground cover plants and flowers toward the front
Arrange vegetables in raised beds in designated areas

The reason for laying the plants out is to visualize how the garden is going to look ahead of time. Of course, you can rearrange before packing them down into the soil if you prefer. It is just easier to view the garden before plants are packed down.

Installing Irrigation

Irrigation is important. Rather than carrying watering cans out each evening and morning, it is ideal to install a timed sprinkler system. This dispenses only a set amount of water for a specific amount of time.

It can also be setup to irrigate at a specific time of the day or evening.

The irrigation system should be installed prior to planting the ground. Once the plants are laid out you can see where the ideal areas are for the sprinklers to go.

Feed and Fertilize the Ground

Right before planting the ground, feed and fertilize again, but do not mix it in. Leave it sit on the top of the ground. Slowly mix it in as you plant. What this will do is put the fertilizer and plant food right next to the roots of the plant.

It boosts the growth in a more rapid manner.

Plant Everything

Now that the soil is ready and the irrigation system is installed, it is time to plant. Ensure that you make the holes deep enough so that about ½ inch of the stem of the plant is covered. All of the roots and included soil must be covered.

Pack the soil around the plant down tightly.

Install Lighting

Solar lighting is ideal for outdoor spaces. What this will do is create highlighted areas and a safe walking area after dark. Solar lighting soaks in the sun during the day and illuminates the garden after dark.

This is the easiest way to go about creating a garden. These simple steps, when carried out properly, will have your garden space looking like a professional did it for you.

Creating and building a garden space is something that the whole family can partake in. Children might have a better idea for the placement of a specific tree or shrub. The suggestion for a water feature might also be brought up.