Remodeling
We're pleased to announce the launch of 5 more blogs which will focus on Kitchens, Paint, Green Building, Tools and Home Security.
The depth of these categories is huge so we felt they needed their own websites.
You can reach these other blogs from the navigation bar at the very top of the page and don't forget the content on every blog is also segmented into specific categories which you'll find along the right-hand side of the website.
We can now offer direct advertising opportunities across our entire network or on a single blog within the network.
We'd like to thank Maggie Hong of Pixrelated for creating our great crest logos and Chad Everett for his Movable Type mastery in developing the back-end of our blogs.
We'd also like to thank our bevy of bloggers who pump out great content on a daily basis, Katy Ryan, Tabatha Muntzinger, Laura Serino, Diana Dart, Deren Monday and Jennifer Volland. You can also check out the rest of our team here.
If you're interested in blogging for Charles & Hudson or have a product or service announcement you think would be a great fit for our home improvement blog network please contact us.
Thanks for reading and we hope you enjoy our new blogs.
We've been following this great home renovation series from the Wall Street Journal as a tech editor, Julia Angwin, continues to renovate her Harlem Brownstone.
This week she shares a humbling experience regarding the chain of command when it comes to a renovation. It's a lesson learned and fortunately Julia's pride doesn't seem like it will hinder this project.
There is definitely something to be said for making executive decisions but also for letting your paid professionals make the decisions you've employed them to make. They know their subs and teams the best and will usually make decisions much faster and with more information than you as a homeowner could. But it also never hurts to follow up and check up on everything.
Ah, the housing market. For those of us who have property up for sale, we're either forced to lower our asking price or take it off the market, crossing our fingers that it's only a matter of time until it's a seller's market once again. Until that happens, it's important to keep your home updated.
An upgrade doesn't necessarily mean a heavy kitchen reno or a landscape lift. DIY Network has come up with a great list of updates for under $1,000. But my faves? Some major changes for under $100. Now that's in my budget.
Here's some of their under $100 tips:
Pay A Pro
Yup. An hour consultation with a pro is usually under $100. They'll point out things you've never even thought of doing. Who knew brick linoleum was passe?
Hire An Inspector
A full home inspection will nip little problems in the bud - before they can become big break-the-bank problems. They can pick up on things that aren't cosmetic - like deteriorating roofs, termite infestation or outdated electrical systems.
After the International Builders' Show, Forbes asked some consumer experts what they thought the 10 "must-have" items are in the new American home. The list was published in Feburary and can be seen in full here.
With the economy being slow to rebound and many families looking to downsize their homes, the list compiled illustrates how views are changing when it comes to a home and its amenities. Many people are now looking for multi-use space, less "top of the line" details and more simple creature comforts.
It's inevitable that, when living and working as a 'Jobbing Builder' in France, you are eventually going to have what are known as 'One of those days', Well yesterday, for me, was such a day!
In all truth it didn't start that badly, even though it was a cold and frosty morning the traffic could be seen moving on the roads, indicating that the journey to site shouldn't be too bad, So I wished my son happy birthday (16 today, already!!) So, whilst my wife took him and his sister off to school and I set about sorting out the tools I thought I was going to need for the day.
When I eventually got to my site with thought of perhaps doing a half day, after following several cars along completely clear roads at the obligatory snails pace, I met up with my clients, a lovely Anglo-French couple, and discussed the order of the day.
The beauty and strength of a concrete countertop can be yours with planning, some basic materials and a little patience. Create a beautiful, unique piece of art for your kitchen or bathroom with a DIY concrete countertop.
Start With the Template
A lot of the work in making concrete countertops happens in the planning stage. Make sure you make an exact template of your countertop - use cardboard or something with the same strength and flexibility.
Make your measurements twice and be sure to account for all fixtures and drains.
Wedding stationers Rebecca and Dade moved from Florida to New Hampshire in 2007 with the intent of finding a property with a barn to renovate for their online business, The White Aisle. (Which has TOTALLY AWESOME wedding stationary, if I do say so myself ... my wedding invites were from here, which is how I've been following this couple's story for years now.)
Due to some complications like the economy, some health issues, and just life getting in the way, the couple are just now working on being able to move into the barn, and lucky for us, Rebecca has been documenting and blogging the process on her business/personal blog.
I'm constantly surprised by just how hard it is to have an easier life. When we moved to France just over 6 years ago, it was with dreams of part-time work, spending time with the family, maybe keeping a few chickens and growing some fruit and vegetables!
So, Where are we now?
We've moved from a managably small property that would have needed extending to comfortably fit us all in to a Old Manor that is really to big for a family of four and the occasional visitors (4 times a year in truth) all sat on around 2 hectares of land.
We do keep a few chickens (normally around about 20 in fact) some for eggs and some for the table), around 40 Doves and Pigeons Geese, 2 Pheasants, Turkeys around Christmas time and the most recent acquisitions - 5 ewes, 1 Ram (more about him later), 4 Boars and 3 sows. Hopefully this year we'll add to these with some ducks for the table and who knows what else? All of this is in addition to the 3 dogs and 4 cats!
Most of the internal renovations are finished, to the point that we are now going back over some of the same jobs for a second time, there are just two bathrooms to install inside, the outside walls of the kitchen to render and a patio to lay, then several hundred metres of fencing, animal shelters by the dozen and the barn to renovate, a ruin to rebuild, block built walls to face in stone and so the list goes on and on and...all of the and I still have to work to earn a crust modernising other peoples houses.
As a part of my project-planning build-up, I research my idea to death. My degree is in Sociology (a very research-heavy field), so I get sort of a twisted enjoyment out of searching out information, comparing sources and methods, and divising my own conclusions about the subject at hand. This is no more true than when dealing with my home renovations.
And while the internet is obviously one of the quickest, easiest, and most expansive research tools there is, you have to proceed with caution. Just because a website says adding to existing plumbing is as easy as 1-2-3, doesn't mean really anything without the experience to back it up.
So here are a few tips on properly researching your next DIY project:
1. Check your information
Is the site you're looking at a well-respected site (like the one you're reading here)? Or is it just a Yahoo Questions page where any Joe Schmo can throw in their five cents? Make sure that when you're pulling from the Internet that some sort of expert or tradesperson is at least consulted on the project you're looking at.
