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Home Decorating

Keep a clutter free home with a “launch pad”

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Tips for a clutter free home

Keep your house organized as soon as you come home.

Your doorway is the first place you enter and exit your home so maximize its space. And minimize clutter.

The first obvious is the door mat. Duh. Don’t want muddy paws, both yours and your pet’s, ruining your nice entryway.

Second is coat and key rack. Whatever, it’s the spot where you can immediately grab your coat going out or hang it coming in. Grab your keys going out or hang them coming in. That’s where you also hang your hat, umbrella, dog leash and whatever daily items you use.

Next is have a small trash or recycling container right there at the entryway. Make sure it’s small and nice looking so you don’t have a big ugly blue recycling container.  You grab your mail and all of those ads that you immediately see and don’t want, you just toss them in the container and it’s already out of your way.

Another mail organizing tip for the front way is to create two spots for the other mail. Use a shelf or a small/thin accent table or drawer cabinet next to your door.

One spot or stack is for the very important such as bills. That’s if you’re still paying bills through the mail. The other spot or stack is for ‘you’re going to read’ just right now. Like the furniture catalogs or magazines you subscribe. Again, that’s if you still do those in paper form.

Have a mirror right there. Oh, the vanity but you need to make sure you’re presentable on your way out and in.

A lanch pad creates a set mechanism for a clutter free home mindset and design to immediately place things in order and out of the way as soon as you leave and return to your home.

Just another Shop RTO home lifestyle tip.

ShopRTO provides consumers home living and decorating tips and rent to own as a shopping option for affordable home furniture and more.

Measure the correct way when picking the right dining room table for your home

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Make sure you have the correnct dining table dimensions.

Pick the right size for your dining room table.

There are several key factors when picking out your new dining room table. The most important is the proper size for your dining room table which means measuring first. And most people use the wrong measurement process so use these.

When you determine the room you’re going to put that dining room table, you need to measure three things going backwards to find out the dimension and type of dining room table.

First measure exit/entrance distance from any walls that you plan to put the table. Ideally, you want at least three feet of room to get in and out of your chair to enter and exit the table. Measure from the back of the chair and back legs to the edge of the wall, bookcase, etc. Some chairs have legs that stretch beyond the top of the chair so make sure you remember that when picking out the chairs that go along with the table.

Secondly you measure the exit/entrance room from chairs pulled out from the table. As if you’re through eating and relaxing in your chair talking to your family and friends. The way you measure that distance is to have your chair pulled out from the table to fully extend your legs.

Then, you can measure your table by your knees. In other words, your knees need to align to the edge of the table when your legs are fully extended. Once, you have gone through steps one through three, you will be able to measure the correct dimensions of your table with the chairs.

Hopefully you will have a sitting chair in your house to base these measurements on and give yourself some wiggle room when shopping. Now you have solid measurements to go into furniture stores that factor in the length from your home wall to your knees fully extended sitting.

Those measurements will basically dictate whether you need a square, rectangle, oblong or round dining room table. Try to go with dining room sets so you don’t have to worry about chair height. But make sure when you’re testing out the dining room chairs to sit at the very edge of the seat and the very back to see if they wobble or tip. You will not be happy with chairs that wobble or tip but most people don’t test to that extent then have those regrets later.

You can avoid buyers remorse through rent to own furniture stores. Test the table out at home for a month and if you like it, execute the early purchase option. Better yet, exercise their 90-days same as cash option and if you like the table after a month testing it out then make those last two monthly payments to really save while not putting yourself in a buyers remorse bind.

And if you don’t like it have them pick it up then choose another. Many ready to own stores will let you replace while keeping previous payments. BUT, make sure first. Every rent to own store have different policies and wiggle room so ask before.

Just another ShopRTO Home Decorating and Home Furniture Tips.

ShopRTO provides consumers home living and decorating tips and rent to own as a shopping option for affordable home furniture and more.

Try some homemade Halloween decorating tips as a family event

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Halloween decoration tips.

Construction paper, scissors and glue is all you need for Halloween decor.

ShopRTO.com offers simple homemade Halloween decorating tips for some ghostly fun and to spend quality time with the family.

Shop RTO encourages family fun decorating the home for Halloween. The underlying theme for the tips is to create a family event centered around creating decorations from scratch. Each of which is important to child development through quality family time and fostering creativity.

This year’s list is aimed for children three to ten years. Their short and simple list include construction paper, markers, tape, glue and scissors. Shop RTO “Fun Experts” recommend creating a theme event for the project to fully enjoy the experience. Their website include the following steps.

The first one is to collect the necessary supplies. Shopping for the construction paper can be simple with the four primary Halloween colors of black, orange, yellow and white. Get the necessary amount plus some extra as there will be some rejects that will happen during the craft process. Concentrated amounts of certain color of construction paper may mean a trip to the art supply store but most larger grocery stores should carry them.

The rest of the supplies can be easily found at any grocery or home supply store such as Target. Add simple glue, scotch tape, scissors and felt markers. The next key step is to find templates for Halloween symbols such as witches, ghosts, pumpkins, bats and cats. Those templates are easy to find on the Internet and are free.

Try to print each of the templates on hard stock paper as they will be the template to trace upon the construction paper therefore need to be durable. Try to get as many different sizes and shapes of templates to add variety.

Next is to put the kids to work tracing, cutting, drawing each of the templates to their own personal tastes. Encourage the kids to use their imagination whether scary, humorous or artistic. Construction paper cut outs can provide dozens of decorations to fill each window door or wall. Be careful when taping to a painted wall so as not to peel paint off.

The same materials can also transform a door or window into monsters especially Dr. Frankenstein’s monster as the square window and rectangle door lend itself to the monster’s head. Cut out triangle pieces of construction paper to use tape at the top of the door to resemble the hair then other shapes that reflect stitches, mouth, electrodes and the eyes.

Again, encourage the children to use their imagination when creating these monsters and all decorations. Shop RTO “Fun Experts” cite the many studies showing creativity help develop problem solving skills for children.

They also say that quality family time helps children develop better communication skills, improved academic success and psychological well being.

While Shop RTO recommends these activities aimed at younger children, these can be executed at any age and that the older the children then the more complex and creative the decorating can be done.

Holidays reflect the best opportunities to create special family time. Add the opportunity for creative projects furthers the event as more memorable and beneficial to overall child development.

About Shop RTO:
Shop RTO offers holiday tips such as these for Halloween and posts articles that focus on creating the best family home on a budget. Shop RTO is sponsored by APRO, the national trade association for the rent to own home furnishing industry.

Buying used furniture? Shop rent to own first

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Find your local rent to own store for used home furniture.

Try rent to own stores when shopping used furniture.

When talking about buying used furniture, appliances or electronics, the first places Americans think is garage sales, newspaper ads or craigslist. What most people don’t realize is that rent to own stores can be a treasure trove regarding good used furniture at great prices.

Statistics show that new rent to own home furnishings are returned within the first four months. And the return almost always has nothing to do with the quality of the furniture but personal circumstances.

Add to the fact that most customers want new merchandise so there is an incentive for rent to own stores to get rid of used merchandise quickly. They still make a profit, get rid of used inventory and you get a great deal on furniture that has just a little wear and tear.

So if you’re going the RTO option, follow these tips.

Find out the local rent to own stores in your area then call each to express what you’re looking for. Each rent to own store has different policies regarding selling used furniture and obviously what is available.

Because each have different policies, try to talk to a manager or the owner. It is in their best interest to get rid of inventory and they’ll have the most flexibility to cut a deal.

Find the stores that are eager to work with you and try them first. You want those rent to own stores that have the mentality and business model of wanting used merchandise out of the showroom floor so will have you on their mind. That’s why you work with the manager or owner as it is in their best interest.

If you don’t need the furniture immediately then use patience and shop around or wait.

Research prices of similar furniture to know what you can offer regarding what they can offer. And research through craigslist, newspaper ads and garage sales. Heck, those may offer you a better deal anyway. Always shop around, the consumer is in full control in these retail times.

Never buy before you try. Always visit the store and sit on the furniture before and inspect it closely. Rent to own stores are good because they spend a lot of time refurbishing the product.

Rent to own used furniture. If you’re not sure about the furniture, then rent it for a couple of months to try. If you like it then exercise the early purchase option.

The beauty of renting to own used furniture, you’ll get smaller payments or smaller time periods or both. And if you’re renting to own it, the product is under their warranty during the rental period.

If you’re buying it outright, make sure they deliver it for free. That shouldn’t be a problem as they’re in the business of customer service.

You have four choices when acquiring home furnishings for your abode. Keep them all in mind to make sure you get the best home that your money can buy.

Just another ShopRTO Home Decorating and shopping lifestyle tip.

ShopRTO provides consumers home living and decorating tips and promotes rent to own as a shopping option for affordable home furnishings.

Clean out the garage tips

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Garage sales or donations.

Time to clean out the garage!

According to Harris Poll, 50% of Americans name their garage as the messiest room in their house. The garage is also one of the most prominent curb appeal of your house and 1/4 of Americans are embarrassed to open their garage doors for the neighbors to see. And, one more, the garage can be the most functional room in the house except for the fact that it is the messiest therefore unusable.

I think those stats speak for themselves so let’s get started with the tips to get your garage cleaned. First things first. Take a deep breath. Even meditate if need be. But take it one step at a time.

Set aside two consecutive weekends and recruit family and/or friends to help. Pick the weekends accordingly. Many cities have junk collection days every six months which means perfect timing or pick the weekend you can borrow your brother’s truck for a trip to the dump. But, plan ahead. And, have a goal in mind.

Set aside some space to create four piles. 1. Keep 2. Throw away 3. Sell 4. Donate.

First things first. Purge. Throw away anything that you haven’t used or looked at in 18 months. Don’t overthink. Don’t say “one day I’ll use or want  it” because if you haven’t used it within 2 years then get rid of it. The exception to that rule is tools and building materials to a certain extent.

As such, organize your tools in one area, box, shelf, etc. That’s both for space saving and for practicality. And organize by seasons because that snow blower is useless in the summer but, oh so necessary in the winter.

Organize the holiday items. When that holiday comes, you’ll want to decorate with ease and items that you have already bought.

Organize the sentimental items. If you have old photos, designate a family member to scan all the photos and put them in your computer so you can actually look at them when wandering down memory lane. Then box up the real photos in an air locked container and tuck away.

Then there’s the decision you have to make regarding items that you’re getting rid of but are still usable. You may want to consider a garage sale, craig’s list, ebay, etc. Otherwise donate them. But do it within the two weekend span you dedicated. So you’re on task and follow through.

Get to a point where your entire garage is empty and clean and/or repair any necessary parts. Then look around and find spots where you can put shelves or racks to maximize space.

Then put everything you going to keep in its proper, designated spot. And if the clutter is not more than half gone that means you’re a pack rat or do a good job at keeping your garage clean.

One thing to note which many people do not yet do is to digitally archive. Many boxes are filled with paper work. Files of tax returns, warranties, instructions, journals, etc. Turn those into PDFs and store them on your computer, in the cloud and on a back-up and continue the digital process from then on.

I hope that gives you enough of a guidance to turn that garage into  a room that you can use and like. For more tips, go to Shop RTO’s “De-clutter” tips article.

Just another ShopRTO get-your-act-together and home lifestyle article.

ShopRTO provides consumers home decorating and living tips and promotes rent to own as a shopping option for affordable home furnishings.

 

 

 

Did you know window treatments could be so creative?

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Curtain and blinds decorating ideas.

Go decorative with your windows.

We’re so ingrained in thinking curtains or blinds for our windows that we forget the whole purpose is to provide privacy, shade or a decorative element for our windows and homes. So, think outside the window and you can find all sorts of garments and items to decorate your windows and still serve the functional purpose.

Curtains are fabrics that cover your windows. So, pick all sorts of fabrics to go creative. Burlap sacks, bed sheets, quilts, rugs, shawls, shirts, etc. All of those are fabrics and with some creativity and a good seamstress,  you can create some of the most imaginative and unique ‘curtains’ ever seen.

Or create your own patterns. Take a one-colored bed sheet and stencil words on it – names of your children, pets, words of wisdom, etc. Go Picasso or abstract and paint or water color your own designs. And, if it’s an old bed sheet and you end up not liking the design you created. Then try again and no real harm on the pocket book.

What about curtain rods? It’s a rod! Do you know how much you could do with those decorations? How about yarn, scrunchies (I hear they’re back), thick stock paper, rope, necklaces or whatever else you can think of or that you have just sitting around. Wrap those around the rods in whatever way that looks the most pleasing and you become an original designer with your own feature story in HGTV. It also gives you a neat project. For the kids, too. They will have a blast.

Just for decorating purposes, think of what you could hang down from a curtain rod. Take some colored ropes, string, shoe laces, belts, scarfs, etc. and tie on glass or ceramic jars with flowers in it. Or junk art like painted wheels from a kids wagon. Whatever you can imagine. The trick is painting the objects, attaching them and arranging so it looks like a really cool design and not strewn junk.

Ultimately, though, your window is a 3-D painting that can be designed into whatever creative art to be imagined. Make it loud or subtle but remember it doesn’t have to be just a curtain or a blind.

Just another ShopRTO Home Decorating tip.

ShopRTO provides consumers home living and decorating tips and rent to own as a shopping option for affordable home furniture and more.

How to decorate your wall with great artwork

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Home decorating tips on hanging art.

The high art of hanging art.

Add your own style and personality to your home with some tips on how to decorate your walls with artwork. Before you start, though, keep these arranging and hanging guidelines in mind.

Make sure the artwork is at a good height. Most people tend to hang art too high. The center of the art should hang around 60″ to 65″.

If you’re decorating with several pieces or creating a grouping then you need to plan your arrangement. Start by placing the pieces on the floor and moving them around until you find the grouping that you like the best.

Try different grouping styles. A traditional method is the symmetrical art arrangement. Draw an imaginary line down the wall then mirror the arrangement on each side. Then there’s the salon style arrangement where you position your most prominent in the center, eye level then work around that central piece.

Once you’ve found your arrangement that you like, cut out shapes of paper equal to the size of the items that you want to hang, then use painter’s tape to place each paper shape on the wall in the arrangement you created on the floor. The tape won’t damage the wall and you can make sure your design is what you want before you put nails on the wall.

Mark each paper template at the place where your nail will be needed to hang the corresponding item. Pound nails into the wall through the paper templates at the marked spot, hang your artwork and enjoy.

Just another ShopRTO Home Decoratin’ tip.

ShopRTO provides consumers home living and decorating tips and rent to own as a shopping option for affordable home furniture and more.

Does your house dream in color? Here’s some ShopRTO color tips.

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Tips for picking colors for your home

A little colorful advice for your home interior

Repainting a house can be a daunting task unless you hire it out of course. But the real work, effort and headache is picking the colors that will stay on those walls for some time. So take these Shop RTO color tips with you to the paint store when ready to take that colorful leap.

Don’t get the blues for blue. They’re the latest neutral color. Try turning to blue and use it the same way some people might use brown or black. For example, paint a room blue, then mix blue upholstered pieces with white or gray pieces and add touches of yellow, green, and orange.

And when looking for neutrals, make sure you go one step more colorful than what you see on the paint chip.  That’s how you can ease your way out of the “safe” neutrals and remember most colors look darker on walls.

If you’re going with the traditional gray, notice that each gray as a hint of color or undertone. A gray with a blue undertone works well with lighter colored furniture such as white and tan. Whereas a gray with green undertones work well dark wood finishes. Grays with warm undertones means you’re at least veering away from the standard beige. And, besides, experts say the warm undertones advance peace and harmony. And we can all use some peace and harmony on our walls and in our homes.

If you’re really going out on a sunny limb and go with yellow, make sure it is a well lit room from natural light otherwise will make your room look dingy. The same works with pink. Those colors need natural light. And the room furniture should not match the yellow or pink on the walls otherwise it will look one dimensional and flat. Go with different hues.

If you go with a whole new look for your interior color, you might need to stage some home furniture for a short period of time or test it first. If so, go to your rent to own store and do a ‘try before you buy’ so you’re worry free.

Just another ShopRTO  home decorating tip.

 

ShopRTO provides consumers home living and decorating tips and promotes rent to own as a shopping option for affordable home furnishings.

Can you rent to own Feng Shui for the home? And what is Feng Shui anyway?

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Rent to own Feng Shui

Rent to own a stress free Feng Shui

Because rent to own home furnishings is renting without the obligation to own, finding the best Feng Shui for your home doesn’t have to be so stressful. Change furniture, lighting, and art in an instant without any penalty if you return the items and start over. And when you’re finally satisfied that your home is Feng Shui’d, then you are ready to own.

First of all, though, what is Feng Shui? Sounds weird. But, is it? Feng shui for your home is basically a philosophy of furniture placement, types of furniture, lighting, color, artwork, everything for your home that creates a flow and positive atmosphere. And, thus, a better place to live.

Experts say one of the first Feng Shui-ing tactics is to clear the clutter in your home. Then clear every piece of furniture and accessories in your mind or for real. You want to start with a clear mind and an empty room. Next step is to determine how the house flows. Open the windows to find the direction of wind and light through the house.

Monitor the lighting throughout the day to see if there are drastic changes between morning and evening. Another first step is to walk through your home as you naturally do when you enter the home, leave the home, go to the bathroom, preparing dinner, etc.

Each of those aspects set up the floor plan and when you’re doing these exercises, imagine each room without any furniture because you’re most likely are going to change the way the rooms are arranged. Or you’re going to change and replace the furnishings all together.

ShopRTO plans to explore the many aspects to decorating the home Feng Shui style. And touting the fact that Feng Shui, rent to own style, will guarantee a stress-free process for a positive flow to your home and wonderful place to live.

Just another ShopRTO Home Decorating tip.

ShopRTO guides consumers to the best tips when decorating their homes and promotes rent to own as one of the means when shopping for affordable home furnishings.

Make the most out of your kitchen space

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ShopRTO's best way to organize a small kitchen.

Make the most from a small kitchen.

Your kitchen is where you make the family meals. It’s where you really wake up with several cups of coffee and, in most households, is the central gathering focus for the family.

So. maximize your kitchen space especially if you have a small kitchen.

 

 

 

Here’s some tips to make the best use of your kitchen.

  • Here’s the first and most obvious. Organize according to uses. Put all cooking pots and pans together. Put baking and cooking materials in one cabinet such as flour, spices, sugar, olive oil, etc. Then put all other food items like your rice, canned goods, pasta, etc. in another.
  • Tier your spices. There are small three step tiered shelves that fit perfectly in a cabinet that maximizes the vertical space in one area. Some experts say to alphabetize them but I think that’s a little obsessive and weird. Put the most used spices in front – salt, pepper, garlic powder, oregano, etc. Come on, how many times do you use Tarragon? Put that one in the back when you use it that infrequent time.
  • If you have a cooking island, use hanging shelves for ladles, oven mitts, spice racks, etc.
  • If you have high vertical cabinets, get vertical dividers. They’re fairly cheap and store cooky sheets, serving platters, pans and such. You can even put hooks in the vertical dividers to fully maximize the space.
  • Rotating shelves within your cabinets. This way you’re not reaching in the back knocking things all over making a bunch of clanking noise.
  • You know that small sliver of space under the kitchen sink next to the water pipe? Get a narrow, vertical shelve to hold sponges, soap, dishwasher liquids and the like.
  • Pull-out shelves. They need to be tiered to maximize the entire cabinet.
  • I know you already have one but it needs to be just one – a junk drawer. The one where you put, well, your necessary junk in. We all have them and need them and we need to just come out of the closet (pun intended) and be proud but useful with our junk drawer but you need to whittle it down to one!

Those are enough tips to hopefully re-think how you use your kitchen space.

Just another ShopRTO home lifestyle tip.

ShopRTO provides consumers home living and decorating tips and promotes rent to own as a shopping option for affordable home furnishings.

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