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Before renovation

In case of buying a used property in poor condition, time, money and difficulties caused by the renewal, always have to be considered. If we decide to do it by ourselves, it’s recommended to think some issues over before starting.
Find a constructor who is reliable, working nice and free in the required timeframe. It is not easy, but if we can plan for 6-8 months before starting, it has a good chance. If a construction company is proposed by someone, the situation is luckier since we can go and see their references in the proposer’s home. Quality job means not the same for everybody! That is why it’s worth the time. If we look for a specialist on the internet, always ask for references. It can tell a lot about if it is given wholeheartedly. Ask for proposals from more companies. As soon as the new property is available, take the constructor to a survey and ask for a quote. The latter will contain not only the cost but the contracted time also. Of course, it has a cost (per implementer) but it is worth this little investment compared to the cost of the whole renovation. This way we can choose the best nominee for us. If we don’t want to work with a constructor to reduce costs, be prepared to make coordination tasks, time table, control, and purchasing by ourselves. In this case the renovation usually takes longer time.
Look after the nowadays prices. Costs are continuously rising, so we cannot depend on the paid cost of the new entrance door of our neighbour two years ago, for example. Examine more companies’ websites, where we can buy what and on what price. Obviously, there will be products that might be priced after a measurement (e.g. windows) but we can ask for approximate amounts. If we have an idea of the style and colors, we can choose products in advance fitting for our purse.
An important factor is the delivery time from the order. Only a few things can be bought immediately, from store during a renovation. Shops deliver in 2-3 days from their own stocks, but it could be 2-3 weeks from an offshore store. In case of unique production this can be extended even to 6-8 weeks. These times should be calculated in the order of works and the implementing timetable.
Usually everybody knows the available amount to spend for the renovation. Anyway, we shall count on sudden difficulties which cause plus costs (usually there are) and allocate further 10% for these.
We can ask for help of an interior designer even from the survey of the property before buying until taking the keys of our renovated home. We can save a lot of time, money and worrying with this decision.

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Drying herbs

It’s time to dry and store herbs

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Advertising objects

Advertisement has thousands of years history. For example Egyptian papyri, a Chinese bronze plate, wall and rock paintings in Africa and South-America certify this. The bigger part of the population couldn’t read in Europe in the medieval ages, so their attention was attracted for the services and goods by pictures (e.g. trade-signs). The first newspaper advertisements appeared in England in the 18th century. Thomas J. Bratt was the father of the modern advertisement who used Bubbles painting of Sir John Everett Millais for the advertisement of Pears’ Soap. The first advertising agency was founded in Philadelphia in 1842. Ads were already on the radio from the 1920s. Television got the leading rule in advertising from the 1950s. Separate channels were started for advertising and immediate shopping by the appearance of cable television (1980s). Internet gave new perspectives in this field from the 1990s. Of course, there are still many printed advertisements beside these, for example on vehicles, giant placards and leaflets. Original packaging of products is among these also.
Ads on TV, internet and e-mail are spectacular but not touchable. However, ads of „old times”, first of all placards, trade-signs, sandwich-boards (wood, metal, cardboard) are already very valuable and even sought after by collectors. A rarer piece is not only a good investment but a great decorating possibility at home also: hanging on the wall as a picture, standing on the mantelpiece or on a shelf, being a part of a vintage collage, getting a new function (e.g. tray, top of a table) etc. They can be focal points by their sizes or colors.
Ask for help of an interior designer for perfect displaying of your collection.

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Sage green

Sage green is a soft and earthy grey-green, a mix of slate and citron colors

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Small summer house

The rare-used, small summer house can be stylish, cosy and comfortable also

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Shutters DIY

Creatively repurposed old shutters

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Brick floor

Old and sliced bricks can be reused as floor covering – perfect solution for classic country styles

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Brown kitchen cabinets

Dark brown kitchen cabinets are not so popular recently, though combined with sutable elements (lighting, countertop, backsplash, wall colour) can be very attractive

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Wooden panelled fridges

Wooden panelled refridgerators are perfectly fit into classic style kitchens

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Parquetry patterns

The history of parquet flooring goes back to the Renaissance. The wooden floor tiles were laid in V-shape since the middle of the 16th century. The two oldest patterns are herringbone and chevron. These are the most popular today also but they are frequently mixed up.
Reputedly herringbone patterned parquetry was first laid by Italian craftsmen in 1539 for the French king Francis I. In this classic pattern, the pieces are in right angle so that the short side of one piece gets to the end of the other’s long side. Actually they show a zigzag pattern but its line is broken.
However, there are pointed peaks in chevron pattern (named after the V-shaped rank sign), this way the chock-shape is created. The pieces are cut in mitter, the ends are joined this way, so the pattern will be continuous. Nowadays ready-made floor and wall tiles are available.
The two patterns mentioned above are frequent not only as floor but as wall decorations also. They can be created from wall tiles (e.g. subway tiles), floor tiles or even vinyl flooring, not only from wood parquetry. They look good both in classic and modern interiors.
Luckily, parquetry is fashionable again, more and more people want to save the old wooden flooring of the building being renovated. It is really worth to spend money and time for it unless it is in too bad condition, since it will be beautiful and valuable part of the interior. It will look as good as new with gap-filling, grinding and lacquering (probably changing its color by burnishing).
Ask for help of an interior designer for choosing the proper patterns.

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