Homeowner Archives - Page 7 of 10 - Marybeth Heckler | Blog

How a Tidy House Can Make You Happy

Written by Marybeth Heckler on April 19, 2021. Posted in Homeowner.

In the last decade, scientists, researchers, and health professionals have focused on studying the impact of clutter on the brain and the body. Is a messy house detrimental to your overall health and wellness? Can clutter impact your mental health?

Starting Your Own Herb Garden

Written by Marybeth Heckler on April 5, 2021. Posted in Homeowner.

Herbs are a great way to get started with gardening for those with an interest but no experience. The added benefit is that herbs can be used in the kitchen and dried for longevity. There are a lot of options when it comes to herbs and having a mini-garden in your yard including the fact that they look and smell great!

Avoid These Interior Design Mistakes

Written by Marybeth Heckler on March 1, 2021. Posted in Homeowner.

Once you’ve found the right home, the fun really begins. Each room of your home is a blank canvas, waiting to be explored and designed. Before you head out on this new venture, here is our best advice on avoiding some classic interior design mistakes.

Bringing Simplicity Back with Japandi Design

Written by Marybeth Heckler on February 22, 2021. Posted in Homeowner.

When it comes to home decoration, the rise of IKEA has also lead to the popularity of classic and simple design concepts that come from Scandinavia. If you pay attention to interior design trends, the Japanese have a pretty classic and simple style as well. What happens when you combine these minimalist designs together? You get Japandi – a design trend that seems to be growing in popularity right now.

What are the elements of Japandi design?

The Best Plants for Decorating

Written by Marybeth Heckler on January 24, 2021. Posted in Homeowner.

If you are looking for new ways to freshen up your home this year, consider adding houseplants. Struggling with home decor and interior design? Make greenery the central part of your decorating strategy. Everyone loves the look, smell, and feel of a houseplant. Plus, plants have a lot of additional benefits other than just being eye candy for you and your guests.

Getting Organized This Year

Written by Marybeth Heckler on January 3, 2021. Posted in Homeowner.

New year, new you? Well, maybe that’s a bit of a stretch but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t take advantage of the energies of the new year by getting organized. What better way to get a fresh start than by tidying up your home and office space? Here are some ideas that you can tackle to freshen up your work and living areas this year.

Creating a Winter Emergency Survival Kit

Written by Marybeth Heckler on December 7, 2020. Posted in Homeowner.

If 2020 has taught us anything, it’s that we need to be prepared for almost any kind of emergency that can be thrown our way. So as winter approaches, it’s necessary to put together an emergency survival kit that can help you stay safe during severe winter weather. We’ve probably all heard horror stories of people stuck at home for days during blizzards (or worse, those trapped out in their cars during this weather).

Here’s what you need on hand to protect yourself and your family during a winter emergency:

Heating options — The first thing you are going to want to stock up on is some form of heating option if you lose power. If you have a fireplace, then make sure you have your chimney cleaned and a good supply of logs and other options to get a good fire going. If you don’t have a fireplace that works, then you should invest in a kerosene heater. (These need to be handled with great care, so make sure you follow all safety procedures when using them.)

In your car, make sure that you keep several heavy thermal blankets and a heavy-duty sleeping bag in your car in case you are stuck in a snowdrift and need to stay warm. Another good choice to keep in your car is hand-warmers like those used by hunters. These can be shaken up to create a small heating source.

Basic supplies — There are several items that fall under basic supplies that you should keep for any type of emergency. These include:

Flashlight and batteries
Candles and matches
First aid kit
Portable weather/FM radio
Rapid charger for phone

Food and water — A big problem when winter weather is nearing is that everyone seems to buy all of the bread and milk in the grocery store. You want to keep a good supply of non-perishable and canned food items on hand before the grocery rush starts. At home, you want things that can be opened and eaten without a lot of food preparation (as your stove and microwave may be incapacitated by a power loss). Good options for the car are unsalted canned nuts, peanut butter, protein/granola bars, and hard candy. Finally, have lots of bottled water on hand. Even if the expiration date has passed on the water, don’t toss it. You can still use this water for other tasks such as cleaning if your water pipes stop working.

Before the winter moves in, you need to spend some time getting your home and car ready for the possibility of a winter emergency. By stocking up on these items early on, you can ensure that you keep your family safe this winter.

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Whether you’re buying, selling, refinancing, or building your dream home, I’m here to help you explore the many financing options available. Ensuring that you make the right choice for you and your family is my ultimate goal. I am committed to providing my customers with mortgage services that exceed their expectations. Find out more by visiting my website.

Time to Upgrade Your Front Door?

Written by Marybeth Heckler on November 16, 2020. Posted in Homeowner.

We all know that first impressions are important and often very hard to shake off. So, if you want your home to give a great first impression, you need to start with some of the first things you notice.

For many homes, that’s the front door itself. Unfortunately, when it comes to sprucing up the house, your front door often doesn’t get that much love or attention. The good news is that an upgrade to your front door can be an easy project that you can complete in a weekend.

Ideas to give you inspiration for upgrading your front door:

New Door/New Material — Many homes are still featuring the basic front door that came with the original house. Over time, this can become dingy, cracked, and even warped. So, if you start with a new door, you might also want to start with a new material. If you choose an old standby such as wood, the possibilities are endless from the type of wood, the amount of glass/windows set into the wood, and color. If you want something more durable, steel or fiberglass are also great options for a new door.

Change the Color — If you don’t want to buy a brand-new door, you can give it an upgrade by simply painting or staining the old door to make it look fresh. Don’t be afraid to choose bold colors that will really make the door stand out from the rest of the house and call attention to itself.

Go High-Tech — Another great option for door upgrades is to go high-tech and add digital components. For years, keyless entry/keypads have been a popular choice for homeowners. Now, you don’t have to worry about getting locked out; you can simply enter the correct keypad code and unlock your door. Some of these locks are also moving towards voice recognition and will open up at a word (but only when it is a recognized user at the door). If you want extra security for your entryway and porch, you can consider the new doorbell options from companies such as Ring. These connect to your tablet or other device so if someone rings the doorbell, you can get a video feed of them, even if you aren’t at home. These can also be set to record while you are gone so you can catch any porch bandits stealing packages that are dropped off.

Your front door probably hasn’t been changed or updated in years. And if that is the case, then chances are it’s starting to show. Simple upgrades or even digital ones can really add to your curb appeal and make your home nicer looking and safer.

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Dressing Up the Guest Room

Written by Marybeth Heckler on November 9, 2020. Posted in Homeowner.

There’s a great scene in a classic episode of Friends where Phoebe has to stay with Chandler and Monica in their guest room. Monica, always the over-the-top personality, greets her with warm cookies and a “Welcome to Hotel Monica.”

Now, most of us aren’t going to go quite that far with our guest rooms and accommodations. But when you have family and friends staying with you, especially for an extended period of time, it’s important to spruce up the guest room to make it look, and feel, comfy.

Here are four ideas on how to create a cozy nest for your guests:

Make it warm and inviting — First and foremost, your guest room should look warm and inviting and not just like a storage room that you clear out when guests show up. Make sure that you have nice cushiony comforters and fresh sheets on the bed. But also, get sheet sets and linens that work nicely with the color scheme of the room. Speaking of color schemes, one area that can add an extra layer of comfort is by painting the ceiling, especially if you choose a warm color to accent that of the walls.

It’s not just a bedroom — Remember that your guest may not want to spend every waking moment in the main living area of the house with you. At some point, they are going to want to retire to the guest room to unwind. Besides the obvious choice of a bed, your guest room should also feature a chair that they can sit in to relax. If possible, create a little reading nook with a comfy chair and a reading light so they can just sit and read or reflect quietly.

Share your space — Let’s face it: a lot of us use our guest rooms as storage space. If you have a dresser in the room that you use to store your off-season clothes, clean a section out of it for your guest. No one likes to live out of a suitcase, and they can unpack and feel a little more at home. And speaking of sharing, make sure that you give your guest your wi-fi password on a note in the guest room so they don’t have to ask for it.

Hotel touches — Lastly, you can make your guest room feel a bit like a five-star hotel with a few little touches. From mints on the pillow to warm cookies and coffee or tea on the table, these are all ways to make your guest feel at home. And if you can pull off towel sculptures of animals then go for it!

Your guest room doesn’t have to be a bland setting with only a simple bed. If you dress it up a little bit and give it a little flair, then you can make a home away from home that your guests will want to visit again.

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How to Organize a Playroom

Written by Marybeth Heckler on October 5, 2020. Posted in Homeowner.

All of the time that kids have spent at home lately, thanks to the COVID-19 outbreak, has probably left you with a disorganized and chaotic house.

This is especially true of your child’s playroom. With the holidays coming up, you might want to get this area under control before you add even more items to their play area.

Here are tips to get the chaos of your child’s room under control and organize their playroom:

Sweep through the room for trash — Before you try to do any organizing, you need to get rid of some of the items your child doesn’t need anymore. First, throw out any items that are broken. This includes toys that are falling apart, puzzles or games that are missing pieces, and anything else that is trash. Make sure you do this alone. Your kids may get a little sentimental and want to hold on to broken items and you don’t need that. Now is the time to absolutely get rid of whatever is broken.

Clear out items to donate — Now that you’ve gotten rid of the broken toys, go through with your child and help them pick out toys that they don’t play with anymore. Point out to them that it is especially nice to help those who are less fortunate by donating toys, games, and puzzles. Encourage them to practice charity and, at the same time, clean out the room as much as possible.

Get a system of bins — Playrooms don’t tend to be very big and you want to maximize as much floor space as possible so your child can actually play. To do this, get a bin system that is vertical and goes higher rather than taking up a lot of horizontal space in the room. Get multiple smaller bins instead of one large “toy box.” With the toy box, your child will throw everything out as he or she looks for that one toy they want to play with. With smaller bins, they have less things to go through to find what they want. Also, use clear plastic bins so you can see inside easily.

Sort by type — After you set up the bins, organize and label them by categories. If your child loves race cars, then you might want to create a bin to just hold these. If they are into board games, then separate those into an individual bin. Whatever system works best for you is ok, but it is essential to have some kind of system.

Only get down one bin at a time — Your child might have a couple of toys that they always gravitate towards. But if you want to get them to play with a variety of toys, you might want to consider only getting out one bin a day. This way, your child has fewer options and doesn’t feel overwhelmed. And, if the bins are stacked up, they won’t be able to get into the other toys that you haven’t put out for them. Plus, cleaning up one bin is a lot easier than five or six bins.

Getting your child’s room clean and organized isn’t just an important activity for keeping your home orderly. It’s also an important practice to help teach your child so that they can learn responsibility and how to keep themselves organized as they get older.

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