Posts tagged holidays

Move Past the Holidays

Jan22
2010 Leave a Comment Written by Alicia

holidaycards

Wrapping up the holiday season and moving on can seem like a chore not worth doing. Often, we feel lazy after all the hustle and bustle of the holidays, as well as discouraged to strip down our holiday décor, and we don’t know where to go with the sweaters that didn’t come with gift receipts. However, if your house is currently or soon to be on the market, you really need to step things up and move on from the holiday season.

Homebuyers are already prepared to move on from the holidays and to now keep themselves busy in a new way: finding the perfect house. If other home sellers are prepared to show their houses before you, that could lose you a sale. How do you make sure this doesn’t happen? Prepare your home now by reorganizing with these five simple steps!

• Find space for your new gifts by cleaning out drawers and closets. Replace old clothes with new clothes, and then bring the old clothes to a home shelter or a local charity.

• Don’t allow your children to cover the home with toys from Santa. Keep the toys in one designated room, and provide containers for the toys to be neatly put away after playtime.

• Take down all of the holiday décor, restore it in boxes and then store the boxes in the basement, attic or somewhere away from sight. Reposition your regular décor, so the house doesn’t appear bare.

• Sweep, dust and clean after the decorations are successfully stored away. Sweep up remaining pine needles or sparkles of tinsel, dust away leftover food crumbs, and clean windows where stickies might have left marks.

• Keep a homey, cozy atmosphere available for visiting homebuyers, without it feeling like the holidays. Light a fire in the fireplace, brew fresh coffee, replace winter candles with spring aromas, and have little pieces of chocolate on hand.

Homebuyers will be impressed at your quickness to move on from a time we all love, and to get down to business with selling your home. Good luck!

Posted in Home Improvement, Tips and Ideas - Tagged , ,

Top 5 Tips for Storing Your Holiday Decorations

Jan15
2010 Leave a Comment Written by Carrie

Christmas-Trees

The holidays have come and gone. If you already have a system for storing your decorations, keep doing what you’re doing. However, if you have recently moved into a new home or are looking for a new way of organizing, this article is for you!

Here are the top 5 tips for storing your holiday decorations:

  1. Trees
    • DO NOT store a fake tree in its original box. The cardboard will deteriorate over time.
    • DO store your tree in a commercial “tree bag” if it is a whole tree or inside several black garbage bags if it comes in two or three parts.
    • If you do not have room inside a hall/basement closet, the garage is a great place to store a holiday tree, especially if it’s six feet tall.
  2. Ornaments
    • Small ornaments fit well inside empty egg cartons, so save those convenient containers throughout the fall months.
    • Although it may be tough to keep track of the original boxes belonging to older ornaments, try to keep the box in which each ornament is packed. It is a lot easier to store boxes rather than oddly shaped ornaments.
    • If you cannot find an original box, plastic cups and shredded newspaper work just as well.
  3. Candles and Potpourri
    • To prevent scratching, wrap candles in newspaper or tuck them inside old socks.
    • DO NOT store candles in a very warm places, as the wax will melt. Even the slightest bit warmth may leave with you a misshapen candle.
    • When it comes to potpourri, there is no way around storing little bits and pieces other than to dump them in a plastic container. Make sure the lid is secure; duct tape it if you have to.
  4. Figurines (and linens)

    • Treat figurines the same way you would ornaments. If an original box is unavailable, try newspaper.
    • If you have holiday towels or linens, easily store them by wrapping them around your figurines (or even by laying them in between layers of ornaments).
    • The best place to store figurines would be on a shelf inside a closet. If you have to put a box on the floor, keep it towards the top to avoid breakage.
  5. Lights
    • Cut a large piece of cardboard, perhaps the side of a box, into a rectangular shape. Then make small slits on each side and keep them an inch or two apart. Wrap the lights around the board, tucking the cord in each slit as you move down.
    • Carefully wrap the strand in a circular motion and place the strand into a plastic bag. If you toss the lights in unprotected, they may tangle or even break.
    • The garage may not be the best place to store lights if you live in a cold climate. You may find that a lot of the works don’t work after sitting “outside” in the cold.

How do you store your holiday decorations? Share your ideas below!

Posted in Home Improvement, Tips and Ideas - Tagged , , , , , , , , , ,

Beat the Winter Blues

Jan08
2010 Leave a Comment Written by Alicia

winter-house1

After the holidays come to a close and the decorations are neatly restored into boxes, our homes tend to appear emptier and drabber. There are no more strings of multicolored lights, sparkly tinsel and fuzzy Santa hats to brighten our spirits. Though this drab feeling will pass with time, and you’ll soon remember what you love about your year-round décor, why not add a bold touch here and there? Little additions to your home’s winter décor will add just enough flare to beat the winter blues!

• Add throw rugs, pillows, vases or other miscellaneous knickknacks in warm, earthy tones that will increase the energy of a room. These tones will lift your mood by reminding you of the warmer days ahead. When those warmer days arrive, your décor will already be ready for them!

• Hang a new piece of framed artwork on your wall. Anything new to your eyes will lift your spirits. Opt to hang a framed picture of your family or friends, from over the holiday season, to remind you of the good times you shared.

• Go shopping at an antique store, a thrift store or a flea market for small and affordable finds. You can add flare to your home without feeling guilty for shopping post-holidays.

• Switch your winter, holiday candle scents with fragrances that will remind you of spring, the season of rebirth. Choose floral favorites or an ocean/rain aroma.

• Purchase some herbs to plant in indoor pots, and set the pots on a windowsill or near a window. The herbs will provide natural fragrances and a healthy addition to meals. When summer arrives, bring the pots outside!

• Replace heavy curtains with light, airy alternatives. These will allow the short hours of sunlight to stream inside, and it will remind you of warm summer breezes to come.

• Drape blankets and throws over your couches and chairs to add new patterns to a room and to have on hand during blistering cold nights. Also, keep fresh logs of wood in the fireplace for a quick strike of a match!

• During winter clearance sales, score some visually appealing mugs and some convenient hot chocolate, tea or coffee mixes. Place packets of hot chocolate or tea inside the mugs, and use these sets as a centerpiece that is easy to reach!

Before you know it, you’ll be hanging red hearts and Cupids around your house while you nibble on chocolates. After that, spring will be here before you know it!

Posted in Home Improvement, Tips and Ideas - Tagged , ,

Holiday Joys of Home Ownership

Dec23
2008 Leave a Comment Written by Shanna

Never are the joys of home ownership as sweet as around the holidays. Friends and family gather to share food and gifts, usually in someone’s house, celebrating their blessings by fellowshipping together and making new memories.

And if you’re hoping to own your property someday, these are the dreams pushing you forward as you save money for a down payment, research neighborhoods and plan for the future.

Think of the experiences you will enjoy in your own home: painting the rooms to your specifications, hanging framed photos of your loved ones, setting the dining room table for company, cooking up festive gourmet meals, hosting overnight and out-of-town friends, celebrating important firsts like Baby’s first steps or your big promotion at work. Around the holidays, you can decorate your property with twinkling lights and other seasonal accents, creating your own distinguishing curb appeal for everyone who passes by.

As you celebrate this holiday season, picture yourself experiencing the next in your own home!

To check out properties currently listed for sale by owner, go to BuyOwner.com!

Posted in Buying Tips, Tips and Ideas - Tagged , , , ,

A Green Christmas

Dec11
2008 Leave a Comment Written by Carrie

Sleigh bells ring… are you listening? Happy Holidays from Buy Owner! Continuing our Green Decorating series, Buy Owner is here to help you spread some holiday cheer in a more eco-friendly manner. Not only are these suggestions healthier for the planet, but they are also more affordable. So get ready to break out those red and, more importantly, green decorations!

Reuse, don’t renew
Tons of people use the same holiday decorations year after year. Maybe you put a wooden Santa sleigh on your front lawn or hang plastic candy canes on your tree. Whatever is it that you use to give the ins and outs of your home some holiday cheer, you should consider using these items more than a few times. Rather than buying the latest trends each year, reusing ornaments, wall hangings and lawn decorations is healthier for the environment.

Let those lights shine
Usually, extra lighting in your home may cost you quite a bit of money. However, stringed Christmas lights use little energy. So don’t be afraid to wrap them around an entire room, hang them from railings or even string them along window sills! Because of our world’s growing concern for the environment, most of the strands boast LED light bulbs, which are very energy efficient. And with all these charming lights strung about your home, you won’t have to use any conventional lighting, such as table lamps, lighted fans and chandeliers!

Choose edible decor
Over the years, some of your holiday decorations might break or they might even become lost. Don’t run out to buy new ones! Food writer Barbara Albright has come up with a list of fun, festive, edible decorations for Christmas trees! From angels to ornaments, your entire home can be spiced up with holiday decorations that are so sweet… you can eat them, too! And if you are looking for a centerpiece for your dinner table, a great suggestion is a gingerbread house, a warm pie or a double-layered cake. Your dessert can function as an enticing, edible centerpiece!

Create your own eco-friendly decorations
If you live in an area where the winters are cold and blustery, you may be able to find fallen tree branches and pine cones scattered about your yard or nearby forest preserves. Bring the beauty of Mother Nature into your home to create a connection between your cozy living room and your snow-covered front lawn. You could even dress up the branches with some faux (reusable) holly from a craft store. If you live in a warmer climate, small palm trees and other tropical houseplants can also be dressed up to accommodate each holiday celebration!

Posted in Green Living, Tips and Ideas - Tagged , , , , , , , ,

A Green Halloween

Oct24
2008 Leave a Comment Written by Carrie

And so it begins… the holiday season! This October marks the beginning of homeowners’ decorative showcases both inside and outside of their houses. After the 4th of July, many front yards and picture windows seem plain and bare, unless there’s a happy sunflower decal on the window or a few colorful flower bushes on the lawn. So after three months of decoration-less landscaping, October arrives, and people start erecting frightening ghouls, ghastly gravestones and spooky spider webs. They begin with Halloween, move on to Thanksgiving and then the winter festivities come right around the corner! Follow that up with Valentine’s Day and a few other holidays and people are almost celebrating Independence Day again!

This year, and beyond, forget about buying disposable holiday decor at a home depot store, a grocery store or an outlet mall. Why not try some more environmentally responsible alternatives that keep our planet healthier? Buy Owner will help you make greener choices when decorating and entertaining during the holidays, starting here with a green Halloween!

Use live greenery as part of your outdoor decorations!           

Planting colorful flowers is a sure-fire way to spice up outdoor Halloween decorations! Pick a universal color that can be used for mostly all holidays: white, red or black. Red impatients blossom into full, flourishing mounds! In a colder climate, they can bloom as early as spring and last as late as mid-November. Any white flower will add some delicacy to the decor. The following black flowers will help create a ghoulish garden: Black Diamond tulips, Black Barlow columbines and Alcea Rosea Nigra hollycocks.

 

Once you have chosen the universal color, place potted plants around your flower beds. For Halloween, go to any nursery and pick up orange chrysanthemums, red-orange heleniums (sneezeweeds), yellow helianthus (perennial sunflowers) or blonde goldenrods!

 

Inside the home, decorate with yummy edibles

All kinds of fruits and vegetables make the most appealing, appetizing centerpieces. Place a large bowl in the center of the table. For fall, look to fill it fruits that boast brown, orange, red or yellow hues: oranges, pears, pineapples, pomegranates, bananas and kiwi. Green veggies (like asparagus, broccoli and green beans) also enhance the warm, rich tones of the fruit. You may even want to decorate with pumpkins! Nothing says Halloween like a spooky Jack-o-lantern. Take the leftovers and whip up some tasty pumpkin pie. You could even save the seeds and plant pumpkins!

 

Think lasting, not disposable

Paper napkins that feature candy corn and pumpkins offer style and convenience, yet they waste resources. Try a greener, lasting linen that is washable and reusable. Visit Rawganique for some burgundy, russet orange or ivory organic hemp napkins. The GreenSage Store offers color-grown organic cotton tablecloths! You may want to use plain white linens and dress them up with colorful, reusable ribbons that match each holiday!

 

Check back in November for tips on how to have a greener Thanksgiving!

Posted in Green Living, Tips and Ideas - Tagged , , , , , ,

New Series: Green Holidays

Oct15
2008 Leave a Comment Written by Shanna

From presidential debates to news articles to conversations among neighbors, the same topic keeps emerging. It’s on everyone’s mind these days, and it’s only going to grow in importance: reduced energy costs and green living are the future. And that goes for real estate, too.

If you own your own home, now is the time to become more green-aware and to make renovations and changes that will create lower energy costs and greater marketability in years to come. Home buyers are increasingly aware that energy-efficient remodeling can greatly reduce costs, as well as help the environment. So updating your home accordingly is one way to make your home outshine the competition and increase in value.

Here at the Buy Owner Blog, we’ve been suggesting ways to reduce energy costs and go green with your home all year, from ways you personally can use less and conserve more in practice to plants you can add to your interior and lists of other specific suggestions for being more green. (Just take a look at our “Green Living” category for more.)

A new spin we’re bringing to you now is “Going Green during the Holidays,” where we’ll highlight eco-friendly tips and suggestions that correspond with seasonal changes and festivities. First up is Halloween, so stay tuned!

Posted in Green Living, Tips and Ideas - Tagged , , , , , , ,

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