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- Your Backyard: A Private Resort
With gasoline prices reaching unprecedented levels, some families are deciding to forgo the annual family road trip and focus on lasting entertainment closer to home. With a few changes or additions, you can turn your backyard into your own personal oasis.
Average food and lodging expenses for top vacation destinations in the USA have reached $559 per day for a family of four. Fuel or airfare costs raise the bill even higher. So many families choose to stay close to home and create a resort environment in their own backyard. Hot tubs, gazebos, comfortable all-weather furniture and outdoor flat-screen televisions are among the features many families enjoy all year. - Exteriors Make Your Great Outdoors Greater
Keeping wood properly protected is a growing challenge, especially as homeowners have made it a top choice for exterior surfaces--not just siding, but decks, furniture and all the other accessories that are part of the extended outdoors lifestyle.
"Homeowners are upgrading their outside living and garden areas with unrelenting zeal," says Kurt Denman, product manager of Benjamin Moore Paints. "Terraces, decks, patios, cabanas, pool houses, gazebos, and outdoor kitchens are additions that Americans spend $40 billion on annually." - Make Your Landscape Firewise And Waterwise
Among the many steps that homeowners living in fire-prone areas can take to protect their homes from wildfires, developing a Firewise landscape is at the top of the list. Not only will a Firewise landscape have an effect on the home's beauty and value-it can also be the deciding factor in whether or not a home survives a wildfire.
Homeowners who take appropriate steps to limit the level of flammable vegetation and materials surrounding the home and incorporate fuel breaks can increase their safety from wildfire while creating a welcoming, healthy and beautiful home environment. - Paving The Way Toward Better Curb Appeal
Curb appeal. It's that good impression that a prospective buyer receives when looking at a home for purchase. It starts at the curb before the buyer even walks into the home.
As more homeowners recognize the value of improving such first impressions, there's a growing interest in landscaping-with plantings, stonework and the creation of points of interest, such as fountains or enclosed spaces. As some designers have said, "the garden is the new kitchen." - Landscape Architects Identify Trends For 2007
According to a recent survey of landscape architects, homeowners will be adding firepits and fireplaces for outdoor entertaining in 2007. And they, along with commercial building owners, will be paying a lot more attention to environmentally friendly landscape options, such as adding native plants and managing storm water more effectively.
The survey identified the most popular requests from homeowners and commercial clients for 2007. In addition to firepits and outdoor fireplaces, requests for sustainable solutions-such as using native plants that require less watering and maintenance-are also popular. - Highlight Your Hometown
If you're like most people, you take pride in where you grew up and where you live. Whether you're a busy entrepreneur or a working parent, you have an affinity for your hometown. You want to show people around, you want to show it off, you want to guide people to local landmarks large and small-any place that means something to you or to the community.
Now it's easy for people with a digital camera to share what they love most about their hometown. Staples, the world's largest office products company, is offering amateur photographers a chance to have their photos viewed and sold to countless customers in stores throughout the country. - Function, Beauty Added To Pergolas
Pergolas have become an increasingly popular way to add a classic architectural touch to a home. Gracing patios, decks and gardens, pergolas add striking form and elegance to an outdoor room.
The beauty and functionality of pergolas have recently been expanded with the addition of retractable fabric canopy systems that fit into the spaces between the overhead beams. The shade canopies ride in tracks attached to the beams and glide smoothly from a closed to open position and come in a wide selection of colorful, weather-resistant fabrics. - Plant A Tree For A Canopy Of Protection
Transforming your home into a "green" home is easier than you might imagine. It starts outdoors with trees. Trees can block cold winds hitting the house in winter and create a canopy of cooling shade in summer.
The savings in home heating and cooling costs from just a few well-placed trees are more than 10 percent and can be as high as 50 percent, according to the Missouri Department of Conservation. - Transform Your Outdoor Living Space With Paint
Home decorating trends come and go, but one thing is certain: Americans have rediscovered the potential of outdoor spaces. Last year alone, homeowners spent nearly $5 billion on outdoor furniture and accessories, sparing no expense to bring the indoors out and create high-end outdoor living spaces.
Don't have the money to invest in new outdoor furniture or high-end accessories? It's easy to transform your backyard into a luxury outdoor environment on a "real-world" budget. All it takes is a little imagination and a few cans of spray paint. Here are some outdoor decorating ideas from the experts at Rust-Oleum: - New Outdoor Furnishings Focus On Stress Relief
With Americans working harder than ever, more homeowners are investing in outdoor living spaces where they can enjoy some well-deserved rest.
From sleek contemporary chaises to warm, traditional rocking chairs, this season's outdoor furnishings are designed to offer a much-needed respite from their frantic lifestyles. - From The Boardroom To The Backyard, Projectors Brighten Up Any Occasion
More and more families may be enjoying big-screen entertainment at home-thanks to the latest advances in affordable projection equipment.
That's because projectors aren't just for the office anymore. Today's bright projectors move easily from the boardroom to the backyard-delivering big-screen fun whether watching movies, playing games or even viewing family photos. - Building A Better Entryway
If you want to improve the look and feel of your home, learn to make an entrance.
That's the advice from interior designers who say that since entryways are the first thing houseguests see, they set the tone for the home's style. - Creating An Outdoor Sanctuary
Be it a small urban terrace or a palatial deck, it's fun to turn an outside space into your own private sanctuary.
To help, lifestyle expert, HGTV personality and best-selling author Susie Coelho, who has a home collection on QVC, offers some tips: - Adding Green To Your Lifestyle
Here's a tip that could help ensure your family's well-being: Remember that green matters. Researchers say this is true not only in leafy salads and vitamin-filled vegetables but also in the green outside your home. In fact, studies show that paying more attention to exterior "green space" can play an important role in the way we feel and act.
According to Den Gardner, executive director of Project EverGreen, "There's strong evidence that planning to achieve the right mix of trees, grass, shrubs and plants has real benefits not only for your family's lifestyle but for your neighborhood and your community as well.
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