Tuesday, May 31, 2016

Hardwood Floors Almost Finished

We underestimated how long  refinishing hardwood floors takes especially that 75% of the house is hardwood.  HUbby and I took on this project anticipating that we would get be done in few weeks and here it is a month have gone by and we are still working on it.  We were actuially done with the last process last week but when it  dried out, we didn't like the  semi gloss poly urethane that my husband used so now he is re-coating it with the gloss finish polyurethane.  
According to the  articles he  read online, semi gloss is the way to go when you have pets so that scratches is not very visible.  The issue I have with the semi gloss is that, it looks like we did not refinish it at all so I was disappointed.  Hubby decided to re-coat it since he is not  satisfied of the semi gloss finish as well.  Another issue is that, it makes the  floor  looks so dark.
Here's how it looks after the semi gloss finish was applied.  It looks very dull to me.  It also shows all the imperfections that  hubby and I made when we were sanding the floors.
 
When my husband  put the polyurethane  on the stained floors, he was wearing a mask because the smell was unbearable.  It also said that it can  cause cancer when  exposed with thescent for a long time so we were all outside except him.  To make it dry faster, we used  stand fans to help the process.  This Ozeri 360 Oscillation tower fan, with Micro-Blade noise reduction technology was a great  help for our project.   
Unlike the other fan that we got, this one is very  easy to assemble especially the  base at the bottom.  You don't need any tools to assemble it.  I love that this fan oscillates at 60, 90, 120, or 360 degrees for partial to complete air circulation with 3 whisper quiet speed settings.
It utilizes advanced cylindrical motion technology with over 200 staggered micro-blades to generate airflow at the lowest possible noise factor.  The sophisticated space-saving design will surly  enhance room décor.  MY son is always  fascinated with the multi-colored LCD that displays all fan functions and the room temperature.
The extended range remote control and fan control buttons provide easy access to all features, it icludes the 8-hour programmable timer.  You can get this fan at Amazon for $70.34 with free shipping.  Now that the heat of the sun is super intense, these fans are a great addition to any home.
Here's how  the gloss finish looks like.  It makes the  wood floors looks lighter because the shine   catches the l natural lights from the windows.  It cost us  a little more to re-ciat the floors but I am happy we did it because it makes a big difference.  
Thanks to my hardworking husband.  We save thousands of dollars doing this project by ourselves.
I can't wait to move in.  We just need to wait for the polyurethane to completely cure before we can settle  in and occupy our new home sweet home.

Disclosure: The owner of this blog was NOT financially compensated to write this review.  I was provided with the product/s mentioned  to help me  facilitate this review but  opinions are my own.

Thursday, May 26, 2016

Leaving some of My Flowers Here

I have so many plants here in my garden that I want to transfer to our new home but  I can't because  I am not sure if they survive if I dig them out.  This pink roses are starting to bloom and  I will surely miss their sweet frangrance during the summer.  
 Another plant that I love when  in bloom is this clematis.  I was going to dig it out but I was worried that it won't survive so I will just leave it here.  I hope that the new owner of this house in the future will appreciate its beauty,.
I will truly miss all the plants I have planted in this house.  I poured sweat on these babies wqhen I was planting them lol.

Simple Ways To Help Your Garden Bloom

Our gardens can add so much to our home. They are very important when it comes to increasing a home's curb appeal. And they also create a peaceful environment in which your kids can play, and you and your partner can relax. But it takes a lot of hard work to get your garden up to such a high quality! You can’t just expect your garden to stay looking great. If you leave it for too long, it will become overgrown and look like a jungle! So it is very important to roll up your sleeves and get stuck into some gardening. Don’t worry, though; looking after your garden doesn’t have to mean a lot of hard toil. There are many simple ways you can transform your garden into a tranquil haven. Here are some of the best ways.




Take Care of Your Lawn


If you have a lawned area, this will need to be taken care of. Don’t leave the grass to grow, as this can look very untidy. The grass won’t grow through the winter, but during summer, you will need to mow it regularly. At least once a week if possible. Keeping the grass trim will improve the look of your garden and also make it safer for kids to play on. If your lawn has some brown patches on it, it could be worth buying some grass seeds from your local garden center. Once you have planted the seeds, it is a good idea to feed them frequently with plant food. Don’t forget to water them either!




Sort out Your Boundaries


How do you separate your garden from your neighbors’? With a hedge or a fence? Whichever method you use, make sure it is well-maintained. If your boundaries look shabby, your whole garden will look run down. You should prune any hedges once a year. The best time to do this is during the spring. If you need to fix some fencing, you will be able to buy materials in your nearest DIY or garden store. It is very common for weeds to grow up around a fence or hedge, so make sure you get rid of these as soon as you notice them. Many gardeners are starting to add place brick walls around their borders, as they are quite low maintenance. And you can use different materials to create decorative walls. Not sure about the best material for your wall? You can find it at FauxDirect.com.




Create Paths


If your garden is big enough, think about laying down a path through a lawned area. Paths can also cut through flower beds. There are loads of different materials you can use for paths. The most common are paving stones, pebbles, and wooden boards. If you don’t feel confident about creating a path yourself, call a local builder in to help you out. One of the best things about paths is that they encourage people to keep off your lawn. If too many people are walking across your lawn, the grass can die, and you will have to keep on sowing grass seeds on a regular basis.




Plant Seasonal Flowers


To make sure your garden blooms all year round, make sure you sow plenty of seasonal flowers and plants. This means that you will have blossoming flowers every season. If you plant seeds that will give you flowers of different colors and heights, then you will be creating a very pretty display of flowers. Don’t forget to have one month of the year set aside so you can leave the soil fallow. Most gardeners wait until winter for this, as there aren’t many plants that flower during the season. This will help the ground to regain any lost nutrients. After this month, sow all your seeds so that you can begin your next year of beautiful flowers!


Trees and Shrubs


Adding trees and shrubs is a very inexpensive way to add some sophistication to your garden. You can pick up young ones in garden centers or buy seeds to grow them completely from scratch. One thing to bear in mind is that they can be quite difficult to grow from seeds, so many people choose to buy seedlings or the young plants. Trees will need to be pruned once a year if they are evergreens. Most shrubs don’t need much pruning, but it will depend on the species you buy. If you are thinking about buying trees for your garden, consider buying fruit trees. There is nothing quite like enjoying an apple that you have grown in your very own garden!




Create A Seating Area


Creating a seating area is a great way to encourage you to use your garden more. During the summer, it will give you somewhere to enjoy al fresco dining and barbecues. Patios and decking are the best types of flooring to add to your garden. You can stand your garden furniture in these areas without the worry of them being too wobbly, which is often a problem when they are placed on lawns! You can even add decorations to your patio or decking and add cool features like brick pizza ovens and bird baths.




Encourage Local Wildlife


If you encourage local wildlife to visit your garden, you will be creating a unique environment in your garden. Bees are very important to help pollinate your flowers. You can attract them to your garden by planting certain species of plants. The more flowers you have, the more butterflies will visit your garden as well! You should also include bird boxes and baths to help the local bird population flourish. During the winter months, don’t forget to leave some bird seed out to help your feathered friends survive the cold weather. If you have a pond, look out for frogs, newts, and wrens. Your kids will love spotting all this interesting wildlife!


If you follow these tips, you can have a fabulous garden in just a couple of months. And it will create a great space for your family to enjoy!

Monday, May 23, 2016

Almost Done with our Flooring Project

After three weeks of  working on the house, we finally  finished sanding all the wood floors.  Sanding all of it was the hardest part.  We underestimated how much time it would take to do it but  glad it is done.  Here are the  sanded wood floors,  here is how it looks like on it's raw form.
Home Office, originally a  bedroom with a closet and  half bath.
Home Office
Dining Room
Dining Room
Living Room
 Stairs to the second floor.  
The hallways upstairs, we removed the  railing for a while.
Guest room with a walk-in closet
the other side of the guest room
Rylie's  bedroom
Walk in closet to Rylie's bedroom
Master Bedroom
Master bedroom's  Bathroom
Master's bedroom - window side
EJ's bedroom
EJ's bedroom 
Now that all that sanding is done, hubby started  staining last Friday and was able to  finished yesterday.  I did not help him do this  process because I concentrated on cleaning the walls and getting rid of all the dusts inside the house!  
 Now that stain is in the floors, we can see all the imperfections in it, scratches that the  sander failed to smooth out but it's okay.
 All the rooms, hallways, and closets are stained , now we wait  for it to  fully dry and we will start applying the polyurethane on it as a finall stage.  
I was hoping for a lighter color than this but hubby liked a darker color so  this one is okay.  Polyurethane stinks so  we will have to wear a respirator to do it.  I hope that we could finish this within this week,  keeping my finger's crossed.  We were looking forward on moving  this Memorial weekend but  it is unlikely to happen.  We will see.

Sunday, May 15, 2016

Gardening on Mother's Day

My husband and kids asked me what I wanted for Mother's day, I told them that I have  everything that I need.  They insisted to get me something so I told them to just get me some rose bushes and other plants I could plant in the new house, so that's what I got.
The former owner   has lava rocks in  the  garden bed so we removed it  so we can plant some flowers in it.  I will be  using it for something else  later  but for now, I put   it in the garbage  cans.  
We planted the rose bushes and other flowers after we cleaned  out the  garden bed.
Then we laid out the  weed control sheet  before putting the mulch.
This is the first Mother's day where we spent in the garden and I love it!
We recruited Daddy to dig some holes for us.  So this gardening project is memorable because it was our first Mother's day spent in the new house although we haven't live there yet.  All of us  can look back and say, we did this in Mother's day 2016!
The front of the house looks  alive now because it has   plants.  We ended up having a great time together doing the  gardening.
Hubby and I are planning to put  a fence sometime to  keep the dogs from running away.  That would be another project for us to do in the future in our   new home.  

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