All posts by TipsfromTia

Prevention, Tips and Remedy is what you find when you read Tips from Tia. Tia is Radio personality, with tons of answers and tips on Organic Beauty, Health, Life, Home and Sex. TipsfromTia.com; a place where you can trust the tip you're given, and not rely on a dozen different answers. Some Tips are decades old, and all I can say is it may be your grandmother's tip,but with more appeal! Tipsfromtia.com a source you can trust. Remember, looking good; feeling good.

What First-Time Homeowners Wish They Knew

What First-Time Homeowners Wish They Knew

Could there be anything more exciting than setting foot in your first home? If you are a first-time homeowner, you will probably find that there is nothing more thrilling in the entire world. However, if you are a cookie monster, you may disagree, but this is a story for another day. Your first home is full of potential and possibilities to explore and discover, and naturally to improve. There is no doubt that you have already thought of décor ideas for the living room, the bedroom, the bathroom, and all the other rooms too. But there is something that you probably haven’t thought about. Don’t worry, most first-time homebuyers wished they had thought about it too. Here are the top four things that first-time buyers forget to consider.

new-england-378726_960_720My dream first home

#1. Choose Your Financial Options Carefully

It’s likely that you will only look at mortgage options when you decide to buy a house. Most young people don’t get to deal with these until they hit the property market. However, navigating the sea of home equity loan rates is a trip for an experienced sailor. There are many shipwrecks at the bottom of the sea, and most of them have only realized too late that they were drowning. It is essential, when you pick a mortgage that you carefully calculate how much you can repay every month. It may mean that you can’t afford the house of your dream for now. But don’t worry, that manor with a swimming pool can wait. After all, all you need to do is to climb the property ladder, one house at a time.

#2. Research The Neighborhood

When you move into a new home, you are moving into a new neighborhood too. In short, getting to know the neighbors beforehand is a smart move. It’s not specifically about introducing yourself, but also about understanding what the common issues in the area are, and whether you are about to step into an old neighbors’ dispute by buying the house. For example, when a couple found their new home, they were over the moon, But when they talked to the neighbors, they discovered that the basement of most houses was regularly flooded, which wasn’t mentioned in the seller’s description.

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Meet the neighbors

#3. Take All Costs Into Account

Buying a home come with more costs than just the price of the house. Indeed, you need to consider the home insurance, the utility bills, the cost of remodeling and maintaining the home, and much more. So it is important to be aware of these additional fees when you come to make an offer. Remember that buying a house that you can’t maintain has no value to anyone.

Feel free to use this image, just link to www.SeniorLiving.Org
Feel free to use this image, just link to www.SeniorLiving.Org

Flickr image

#4. Spend Time In The Area

Last, but not least, make sure to spend a few days in the area before you make your final offer. This will allow you to find the local shops and facilities and to discover what the region is made of. When you buy a house, you choose to live in a new region. Therefore, it is essential that you learn to love this region. Additionally, don’t force it. If you don’t like the town, there’s no way you will enjoy your new life in your new home.

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

How Healthiness Leads To Happiness

How Healthiness Leads To Happiness

pexels-photo-113758Picture Source

Everybody wants to be happy, but it seems that so few of us figure out how to find that route to happiness. Life puts so much stress on our bodies and minds that it seems impossible to pull away from a negative and defeatist view of the world. Of course, it doesn’t need to be such a struggle. There’s better help for you out there. Your happiness is so dependent on both your physical and mental health that working harder to improve both of these things could be the key to finding some joy in your life. If you’re wondering how healthiness could lead to happiness then here are some things you could change in your life which might alter your perspective on life.

Diet.

The things you eat affect not only your body but the way you think. Treats shouldn’t be something that you entirely ban from your life, but you shouldn’t be indulging in excessive amounts of sugar every day. Sugar sneaks into so many of the foods we enjoy, and cutting back on it could be the difference you’ve been looking for in terms of not only shedding weight a little more quickly but avoiding those horrible crashes and low moments when you’ve not had your fix. Weaning yourself off the stuff will give both your body and your mind a little break, but you can still allow yourself the occasional slice of chocolate cake.

Sleep.

A healthy body will lead to a healthy mind. You should be allowing yourself time to recharge, given all the strain you put on yourself both on a physical and mental level during the average day. In the modern day, we all ask a lot of ourselves, and sleep often doesn’t fit into the busy schedules we set. There aren’t enough hours in the day to do everything you want to do, but that doesn’t mean your allocated time for rest should suffer.

You won’t function well on a mental level without sleep, and you’ll definitely start to notice physical deterioration if your sleeping pattern deteriorates. You could look into somtex sleep science if you’re wondering how a comfy mattress and bed contributes to better rest for your body and mind. If you’re finding that you’re slow during the day and there aren’t enough hours to do everything, maybe sleeping for more than seven hours a night will make you alert and productive whilst you’re awake; that could be your solution to getting more done on a daily basis.

Exercise.

Don’t groan. Exercise seems like a dull and strenuous chore from the outside, but that changes once you actually start doing more of it. Keeping active will help alleviate aches and pains you may feel on a daily basis, and cardio or strength training can do wonders for muscle mass and losing fat. Not only does this keep your heart healthy but exercise is a great way to keep the mind healthy. The physical stimulation can also lead to mental stimulation and reduce the effects of depression or anxiety.

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

Talking The Talk: A Simple Plan For Getting The Most From Tradespeople

Talking The Talk: A Simple Plan For Getting The Most From Tradespeople

When you hire someone in to do work on your home, it’s always going to be a leap of faith. You are entrusting your pride and joy to another person, and no matter how much research you do, there’s always going to be an element of trepidation.

It’s also an inherently fraught process, even if the person you are dealing with is the nicest person in the world. You’re bringing in an expert, be it an electrician, someone to fit carpets or a plumber, because there is a gap in your knowledge. That means you don’t know what you’re doing; they do… but you’re the one who is going to control the process.

Communicating effectively when you hire someone to do work on your home is a part of the process that you have to master, even if it doesn’t come easy to you.

DO Be Upfront About Timescales

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If you need something doing in a specific amount of time, then you have to be upfront about it. Don’t say “sometime next week would be fine” if you really mean “it has got to be Monday or Tuesday”. This can lead to resentment on your part, as you wonder what’s taking them so long. If you then ask them what’s happening – and they are keeping to the more vague timescale you gave – then that could lead to resentment on their part. That’s not a happy working relationship.

DON’T Be Demanding

It might feel like the work you are undertaking is the most important thing in the world, but to the tradesperson, it’s just another job. So don’t expect them to move heaven and earth for you, or make any demands on their time or availability. Your work should be important to them, but it’s unrealistic to expect them to put it above everything else in their life and career.

DO Admit That There Are Gaps In Your Knowledge

Don’t try and pretend that you know everything and how to go about it. If they say something that you don’t understand, then ask for clarification. It might be a touch embarrassing, but it’s better that than you agree to something that isn’t what you had in mind! Any competent tradesperson will be happy to explain to you when there’s something you don’t understand; they should want to ensure you get the most out of the work as well.

DON’T Hover Over Them

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If you have trusted someone enough to bring them into your home, then there is no need to supervise their every move. Leave them alone to do their work, rather than hovering over them checking what they are doing. By all means, find a reason to pop in every so often (an offer of tea or coffee is rarely going to be badly received!) and check up, but don’t try and linger.

DO Write Everything Down

If you have long, protracted discussions with a tradesperson, then write everything down once you reach a conclusion. That way, you both have a hard copy of the work that’s being undertaken and how long it’s estimated to take. It’s far simpler than relying on memory alone, and should discourage any arguments from taking place.

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

Embrace Your Individuality In Your Kitchen

Embrace Your Individuality In Your Kitchen

We all love a beautiful kitchen. When you go to buy a house for the first time, it’s one of the first rooms that seals the deal for you. The kitchen is the hub of the home and a space you need to stand out so that you can impress your guests. It’s also the space you may use to do most of your entertaining.

modern-luxury-italian-kitchen-large-design-with-modern-false-ceiling-design-2015Image Source

The kitchen is one of the rooms that is most renovated in the home. Sometimes it’s down to the fact it needs a refit, but others it’s purely for decorative purposes. Kitchens are built boring – it’s just a simple truth. They’re so uniform in their looks that it’s easy to just move in with a space that is done for you with cupboards and cabinets already installed. Customising your kitchen to make it look a little different isn’t a cheap job, but you can make your kitchen look fantastically expensive with just a few tweaks.

  1. Start with your layout. Your kitchen has to work for you as you will be the one using it the most. You need to make sure the distance between the sink, the stove and the refrigerator are as short as possible and make sure that you choose counters that are the right height for all who will be using them. If you’re not a fan of kitchen countertops, why not choose a kitchen island instead?
  2. Don’t forget your sink. Most sinks are built-in to cabinets and are under the kitchen window. You can place your sink anywhere you like but if you want to be truly different, why not go for a free standing kitchen sink cabinet? You can really put a touch of originality into your kitchen simply by going for a freestanding unit instead of a built-in one.
  3. Remember that the kitchen backsplash is important, but know when to splurge your dosh. Your kitchen backsplash is the exact place you want to spend your money. Kitchens are visually exciting, and you need to ensure that your backsplash fits the bill. Express your style, express your personality and make them unique to you!
  4. Lights matter! Most kitchens are pre-installed with those horrible strip lights that make you look like the walking dead. Swap these out for a feature light like a chandelier or a set of spotlights, and install a dimmer switch. Sometimes you need a bright, slightly harsh light so you can see what you are cooking. Other times, you want softer lighting so you can enjoy a meal. It’s all about ambience.
  5. Always think long term when you design your kitchen. Think about the design down to your faucets so that you can have a kitchen that will last you through time. Well, until the next time you decide to redesign it.

Your kitchen is your social space to entertain and you want it to look as luxurious as possible without spending through the roof to do it. Have fun designing your kitchen – it’s yours to transform as you see fit.

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

Eco Home Inspiration

Eco Home Inspiration

Thanks to growing concerns about the environment, more and more of us are becoming more eco-conscious in our home choices. Rising CO2 levels are dangerous for the planet, and so we want to do our part to cut back.

green-energy-eco-homePublic Domain Pictures

According to estimates from the International Energy Agency, about a third of all the energy used in the world is used by households. This means that individuals, like you and I, can make a big difference to our carbon footprint by thinking carefully about house design. Here are all the ways to make your home more eco-friendly.

Go Small

Large homes are great if you’ve got a big family, but if it’s just you and a partner, then you might want to go small. Smaller homes are far easier to heat up during the winter thanks to their lower energy requirements and the fact that there is a smaller volume of air to heat up.

Insulate Everything

According to Conserve Energy, around 50 percent of a household’s energy consumption goes into heating and cooling. That’s why it’s so important to invest lots of money into thick insulation for the walls and the roof. To do the work on the roof, you’ll need a specialist roofer. Once you’ve got the insulation in place, you can reduce your energy bills by up to forty percent.

Make Use Of Sustainable Building Materials

When it comes to looking after the environment, it’s not just the amount of CO2 we care about. It’s also the effect of extracting building materials from the natural world. Extracting conventional building materials can cause damage to ecosystems and damage the water table. As a result, many more eco-conscious home buyers are looking for sustainable products which pose the least risk to the natural world. You can use all sorts of products to build your home, including things like reclaimed plastic, lumber and glass.

Harvest Rainwater

Many homes, especially homes located in drier climes, can damage the natural environment by drawing down too heavily on the natural water table. This is why so many eco-conscious homeowners are now investing in systems that help them to harvest rainwater, taking it from the sky, rather than from depleted local lakes and reservoirs. Collected rainwater can be used for some of the most water-intensive home activities, such as sprinkling the garden and flushing toilets.

For those who really want to conserve water, there is also the option of buying “water-conserving fixtures” – showerheads and taps which use less water than their regular counterparts. These water-saving fixtures can help you cut your water bills while protecting the natural environment and saving energy.

Plant Trees Strategically

1169px-1exterior_at_night_4x5Wikimedia Commons

Ideally, you want sunlight to be able to pour into your home and warm it up during the winter. But some landscaping prevents this. Make sure that your trees are positioned in such a way that they don’t block the sun’s ray’s from coming through your windows. If you do want to plant trees on the southern end of your home, make sure that they’re deciduous. In the summer they’ll help shade your house, and in the winter, when they lose their leaves, they’ll allow the sunlight through.

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