All posts by Tia

Easy Ways To Make Your Home Feel Brand New

Easy Ways To Make Your Home Feel Brand New

Are you thinking about making some changes to your home? This doesn’t need to be as complicated as you might imagine. Here are some simple choices that could definitely be worth exploring here. 

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Change The Flooring 

First, you should consider changing the flooring of your home to make it look incredible. You might think that this means that you need to lay down new flooring. However, we’re delighted to say that this is not the case. Instead, it’s possible that you can get a new look simply by refinishing hardwood floors. Floor refinishing will give the floor a new brilliant shade that is sure to stand out and look incredible. Alternatively, you could just add some new rugs to the floor. This is a great way to add additional texture to the overall design of the room. 

Add New Life To The Walls 

Next, you could think about bringing new life to the walls. The right choices here can help invigorate different spaces around your property. The choices you make here don’t have to be tremendously expensive. For instance, you can think about adding decals to the different spaces around your home. Decals can look incredible while easily being removed or added as you see fit. This gives you complete freedom to design the ideal space for you as well as the rest of your family. 

Buy Fresh Furniture 


Alternatively, you might want to think about buying new furniture for your home. Investing in new furniture is a fun way to ensure that your home looks and feels completely different. You can even choose different types of furniture that are going to help areas of your property stand out due to the shapes and shades used. If you are interested in adding new furniture to your home, we recommend that you think about exploring the sales. Some of the best sales will allow you to keep costs low here while gaining exactly what you were hoping for. You should also explore interior design blogs to find on trend pieces that will match your home. 


Change The Lighting 


Finally, you might want to think about changing the lighting of different rooms in your home. The lighting can have a huge impact on the way a room in your home looks and feels. To handle this, you should think about altering the fixtures. New fixtures can have tremendous impact and there are lots of different choices that could be worth exploring here. For instance, you might want to explore contemporary lighting fixtures or go more retro with your design options. 


We hope this helps you understand some of the easy steps that you can take to ensure that your home feels fresh and exciting. By exploring the right options here, you can guarantee that you love the look and feel of your home once more. The best part is that a lot of these possibilities won’t break the bank. You can make awesome changes to your home even if you are working with a tight budget.

Tia, and TipsfromTia.com is trying to keep you looking good and
feeling good, from the inside out. If you’ve got a problem or a tip email me! Be sure to Like and share on Facebook or Follow-on Twitter or Instagram.

Workplace Confidence Zappers (And How To Beat Them)

Workplace Confidence Zappers (And How To Beat Them)

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Some people seem to blossom and shine when in the workplace. They show no fear when raising their ideas and they succeed in everything they do. These are the people who are often considered for promotion and who get glowing references when they move on with their careers elsewhere.

Then there are those people who don’t have that level of confidence. They don’t raise their voice, take risks, or put themselves forward for career enhancement. This is often a shame as they are often very competent, despite the way they view themselves in the workplace.

If you are relating to the latter group of people, there may be very good reasons why. Consider the following and take action, as by doing so, you might finally gain confidence and experience more success at work. 

#1: Fear of speaking

Are you that person who fails to raise their voice at workplace meetings? Do you back down whenever you are asked to lead training for other employees? Do you clam up every time your boss or work colleagues ask you a question? If so, you may have a fear of speaking. 

People fear speaking, for all kinds of reasons. Some are afraid of embarrassment by saying the wrong thing. Others avoid speaking because of speech impediments, such as stammering. And there are those who hate the thought of speaking to groups of people, which is why public speaking can be such a problem for them. 

To overcome this fear, there are solutions, depending on your particular situation. You could take courses in public speaking if this applies to you, or you could search for the best speech therapy if talking proves difficult. You could also take time out to consider how valuable you are to your company, as you may need to overcome that voice in your head that says you have nothing to offer. 

These are just some of the things you can do but as with most fears, you could push yourself forwards, despite the risks. By raising your voice, you may start to become more confident as you become more comfortable with speaking. 

#2: Workplace colleagues

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Some of us would rather work alone than with others, and this is partly because our colleagues can cause us to experience low self-confidence. We are thinking about the people who put us down, for little or no reason. And then there are those people we mentioned at the beginning, the work colleagues who seem to be full of confidence and inadvertently make us feel inferior when we’re in their company. 

If your colleagues affect your confidence, you should do what you can to manage them. If they are rude, critical, or judgemental, it might be that you need to tell them what you think. By standing up to them, they may have cause to think about their actions. 

You could also speak to a manager or to somebody else at work in a leadership position. Workplace bullying is common, and you might be the victim of this. There should be policies in place to counter bullying so if people are being unfairly mean to you, it might be that somebody higher up can intervene on your behalf. If they don’t, you are in your right to speak to a union rep.

But if your low confidence is related to feelings of inferiority, simply because you compare yourself to others, then once again, reflect on your place in your company. What do you do well? What have you achieved? It doesn’t matter if you other people are better than you in some regards as there are bound to be things that you excel at. Keep these in mind whenever you are feeling down about yourself. 

#3: Fear of failure 

If you fear failure, you will be less likely to take on new job roles. You will probably avoid the speaking situations we mentioned earlier. And you will be less inclined to push yourself forwards in other ways, in fear of making a mistake or looking foolish in front of others. 

The first thing we have to say is this. Don’t worry about making mistakes! You’re only human so don’t sweat it if you screw up in any way. 

However, you can overcome this fear by learning new skills, so commit to any training that is offered to you. You will then be better equipped to do new things. If training isn’t offered to you, do what you can in your own time. And as we suggested earlier, push yourself forwards. If you hold yourself back all the time, you might only regret it and start to feel as if you are a failure. By putting yourself out there and trying something new, you should naturally start to feel more confident, as you will have shown courage by moving out of your comfort zone. 

Do these confidence zappers relate to you? If so, do what you can to overcome them. By doing so, you will start to feel better about yourself, improve your chances at work, and have the opportunity to impress the people that are around you. We wish you every success!

Tia, and TipsfromTia.com is trying to keep you looking good and
feeling good, from the inside out. If you’ve got a problem or a tip email me! Be sure to Like and share on Facebook or Follow-on Twitter or Instagram.

Here’s The Best Ways To Get Your Kids To Engage With Sports

Here’s The Best Ways To Get Your Kids To Engage With Sports

It’s not hard to understand the benefits of sports for children. Sports will help keep kids active which means that their general levels of health and wellbeing will greatly improve. Another key benefit of sports and specifically team sports is that it teaches children vital skills that they will need in various different aspects of their life including working with other people or even leading a group, depending on their position. Completing a sport will also help your child develop positive social groups. This is all fantastic news, but it’s true to say that not all children are naturally interested in sports. So, how can you encourage levels of engagement here? Well, there are a few possibilities that could be worth considering. 

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Get Them The Right Kit

First, you do need to make sure that regardless of what sport you are encouraging that your child has the right kit. Giving them the right kit will make them feel as though they belong and they won’t think that they are the odd one out. You can also personalise the kit so that it matches their personality and who they are. This will make it more likely that they are going to want to wear it. 


For instance, you might want to consider exploring custom football cleats. These will look fantastic and can be custom designed in a variety of different ways. Remember, you should only buy a kit like this once your child has shown that they are interested in a particular sport or activity. 

Make It Fun

Next, you should ensure that the sport that they’re going to be playing is fun. Again, how you do this will depend on your individual child. Some children are naturally competitive. You can use a sport to engage their competitive nature and ensure that they feel excited to participate. Alternatively, your child might be more gentle. If so, then you should show them that playing sports isn’t about winning every game. It’s just about having a great time with others. You need to make sure that you find a group that does share this idea and doesn’t sweat over trying to win every game that they play. 

Find The Right Sport For Them


Finally, you need to make sure that you are finding the sport that is going to be perfect for them. When you think of sports, you can probably name about ten or so and these will likely be the main options. But it’s important to understand that there are actually hundreds of different sports and sporting activities. So, if you haven’t found the right one that appeals to your child then it might be worth thinking about widening your search. For instance, you can think about horseback riding or perhaps even water polo. Once you find the right sport, they’re sure to have a great time and will be begging to go each weekend or after school. 


We hope this helps you understand some of the steps that you should take to get your child to engage more with sports and perhaps find one that they are going to love. 

Tia, and TipsfromTia.com is trying to keep you looking good and
feeling good, from the inside out. If you’ve got a problem or a tip email me! Be sure to Like and share on Facebook or Follow-on Twitter or Instagram.

Car Maintenance: It Should Be Important To You!

Car Maintenance: It Should Be Important To You!

The car that you invest in is going to get you where you want to go, to work, to school. Your car is your key to freedom and without it, you can often be stuck in one place for much longer than you ever intended to be. The car you buy is going to carry you for what should be many years, so the most important thing that you do is ensure that you are taking care of it. The last thing that you need is your car breaking down on you and preventing you from completing your errands or preventing you from getting to work. It’s for this reason alone that car maintenance should be important to you and your family.

Most of the time (and with the help of things like OEM Lincoln repair manuals), you can complete car repairs yourself at home. Filling the oil and replacing the windshield wiper fluids are things that you can do in your own garage, but you need to know where to get the best car maintenance regardless. If you have a good mechanic on hand to help, you won’t ever have to worry about whether or not your car is going to wear out before you have a chance to fix it! So, why is car maintenance such an important part of life?

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  1. You’ll keep yourself and everyone else safe. When your car is working at its optimum ability, you’re going to ensure that you and all of your potential passengers are okay in your car. You want to maximize vehicular safety; it’s why you use seatbelts. Well, your car maintenance is just as important as using a seatbelt and if you take care of your car, you’re going to minimize the risks of any accidents occurring. You won’t need to worry about the brake pads wearing out or the brake lines being a problem. Safety first, always.
  2. Your car will continue to perform at its best. As well as increasing your safety, your car will be better performed than it would if you weren’t keeping up with maintenance services. Your car will continue to purr along the road rather than screeching as you drive, and you will have better tire traction, better steering and more reliable brakes.
  3. You’ll save money! When you are taking care of your car regularly enough, you’re going to prevent the larger issues that come along. It’s much better to pay a little now than to pay a lot later, and you can save money by booking an appointment with your mechanic at least a couple of times per year.
  4. You’ll save money on fuel. When your car is in good condition, you’re going to be able to save money on file because the car won’t be working so hard to keep moving forward. You want to be able to keep up on the maintenance services and you can do this by scheduling an appointment every six months to have your car checked over.
  5. You’re going to save time. No one wants their schedule interrupted by constant appointments at the garage. You are going to save yourself the time spent getting the car fixed and in the shop for weeks at a time because you took the time to have shorter appointments to check it’s working through the year. If you are really unlucky, you might have to deal with auto repair issues that can be huge, and you might not be able to drive your car for weeks if your car has some big issues.
  6. Your car will maintain its value. Sure, your car loses value the moment you drive it off the lot when you’ve bought a brand new one, but if you maintain your car, it’ll preserve some of the value. When you maintain and make upgrades, you can even improve the value of the car despite the original price point being lower. If you are planning to sell one day, staying on top of maintenance is a must and you’ll make for a much more pleasant driving experience when you do. 

Taking your car to regular checkups is just good sense when you are trying to keep yourself safe on the road, keep your cash in your account and not hemorrhaging it trying to constantly keep up with repairs. It’s important that you take this seriously as your safety matters. Once you notice any issues, getting your car checked is the best decision that you could make.

Tia, and TipsfromTia.com is trying to keep you looking good and
feeling good, from the inside out. If you’ve got a problem or a tip email me! Be sure to Like and share on Facebook or Follow-on Twitter or Instagram.

Plants are Companions

Plants are Companions

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When I was little, I heard someone say, ‘Plants are companions’. My child-ears thought this was nuts, but as I grew into adulthood, I kind of understood what they actually meant. Plants are a living, breathing-thing that have the ability to grow and die. They need care and sustenance to survive.

Plants and Flowers are Kinda Just like You and Me

Think about it… plants and flowers need food and water, just like us. Also, they need sun, just like us. Our human bodies need minerals and vitamins to grow. A lot of those vitamins come from the ground. It’s the same with plants and flowers. If the soil is rich in vitamins and minerals, the better they will grow. Yes, we eat plants and even some flowers, but that’s part of the whole food chain lesson. Humans eat animals, too, but a large number of humans have animals as pets. So, what’s so odd about having plants as a foliage sort of pet?

Benefits of Being Friends with Flowers

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Flowers are beautiful, aromatic and have the ability to change someone’s mood. That’s pretty amazing when you think about it. It doesn’t just work on one of your senses, some plants and flowers have the ability to work on several of your five senses at the same time.

  • Taking care of a house plant can reduce stress and irritability.
  • House plants and flowers can produce cleaner air to breathe
  • House plants can help teach young-ones responsibilities
  • Colors of leaves and buds can help produce relaxing chemicals in the brain.
  • Flowers can produce an aroma therapy with fragrant scents in the office or home.

Give Yourself the Gift of Flowers

You don’t need someone to give you flowers. You are an independent human that can be in charge of your own happiness. So, why not! Decorate your home or office with some flowers and plants. Some cars even come with flower vases in the console! See flowers and plants have the power to bring happiness. So if you’re feeling like you need a boost, make daily or weekly trips to your local florist. I know it’s much easier if you’re in a big city like New York to hit best NYC florists like Plant Shed. You can check out Plant Shed New York City locations to see if you are nearby.

Talking to Your Plants

Believe it or not, there have been studies done on this for years. And it turns out, according to even the Royal Horticultural Society, founded in 1804, talking to plants will help them grow. Another fun fact they found out, plants seemed to respond faster to female voices. Go figure. But that’s not saying it doesn’t respond to a man.  So, either way, talking to the plants and flowers will help them grow.

Doesn’t that kind of prove that plants can be companions of sorts. It responds to your voice, it helps eliminate stress, it can help make you feel happier and better, as long as you’re not allergic to them. You don’t need a garden to get the benefits of plants and flowers. It is easy enough for some to visit the florist and for others, it is possible that you can order online and have delivery right to your door from some florists. So I guess I would have to say, the words I heard all those years ago, were wise words, indeed.

Tia, and TipsfromTia.com is trying to keep you looking good and
feeling good, from the inside out. If you’ve got a problem or a tip email me! Be sure to Like and share on Facebook or Follow-on Twitter or Instagram.