Why Match When You Can Contrast

Want to give a room in your house a mini-face lift for the end of summer? Just add a few accessories in contrasting colors to your overall decor. So in my family room, which has lots of warm tones like browns and orange, I chose these teal blue curtains (the opposite of orange on the color wheel is blue). Other basic complementary pairings you can try are yellow + purple and green + red.  You can do these colors together in pastels (think pink and lime green) or in their darker versions (like burnt yellow and eggplant).  I really like the pop this creates. If you do add a contrasting color, it helps to include a few instances of it - like curtains, a vase, a pillow - to draw your eye around the room. This will connect it all together and help it visually feel right. 

Crap, I Broke A Curly Lightbulb.

Okay, so it's going to happen  to you if it hasn't already. You will break one of those compact fluorescent light bulbs and probably start to freak out about how to clean it up. These bulbs release mercury vapor when broken and can be tricky to recycle ... even illegal to just toss in the trash. So what's the right way to cleanup one of these broken CFL bulbs? Here's the official EPA website method. In short, get out of the room for 5-10 minutes to let it air out (shut off your A/C to stop circulating any vapors). Then use sticky tape or wet paper towel / wipes to sweep all the debris and powder onto a stiff piece of paper. Funnel the broken shards into a sealable container, like a glass jar. Finally, put the container outside until you can dispose of it properly according to your local rules. Two other good tips I found: always screw the bulbs in and out holding the base (not the curly glass part) and put a beach towel under your lamp when changing the bulbs, just in case one falls.

Put Your Stuff In One Place

Guys, this is the #1 mantra you should be living by... 

"Put your stuff in one place."

When you come home from work or wherever, don't leave a debris trail behind you. A cell phone on the dryer. A wallet upstairs in the bedroom. Car keys outside on the patio table. That is why you feel like you can never find anything... you can't. Find one place in the house, and put it all there. Maybe it's a basket, maybe it's a drawer. You decide. The significant others in your life will love you for this. You will love yourself for this. At the very least, put your stuff in one place the night before you have to go to work in the morning (see pile pictured here). Make the morning exit peaceful. Repeat after me... put your stuff in one place. Kiss kiss.