How To Build a Website

There are many methods you can choose when you decide to build a website. The method you select will depend on your knowledge of coding and/or programming. If you are a total novice to the web designer industry then there are programs that allow you to drag and drop items, place text via text boxes and change the colors with a click of a button. These are known as WYSIWYG editors (what you see is what you get), they are very helpful in order to get a nice looking website up and running in a short amount of time if you have no html (hyper text markup language, the coding used to build websites) knowledge. The main downside to using a WYSIWYG editor is that the coding will be full of rubbish and useless variables which will give you the disadvantage in the search engines as messy code will confuse the bots and penalize you for it. You could go through each page after it has been made and take out unnecessary bits of code making the page clean and user friendly, but by doing this you will have to have a good knowledge of html so you would be better starting from scratch in the first place.

If you are fairly comfortable with the way html works, you can make a website by just using notepad and saving the file with the .html extension at the end. This method is not used as often in today’s world as you can get programs such as Microsoft Front Page and Macromedia Dreamweaver. These both allow you to see a WYSIWYG view, a core code view and a split view in which you can make something and then tidy the code up straight after saving you a lot of hassle in the end. My favorite out of these two (and probably the most popular) is Macromedia Dreamweaver as it has inbuilt FTP access so you can manage a whole website from the one interface. By using the remote view, you’re able to see what’s on the server. This allows you to make adjustments and update your revisions directly to your server. Once complete, you can view the changes immediately in through the domain name the site is linked to.

The main benefit of this is being able to see what your website looks like in different browsers as they interpret the code in different ways which can make your site look absolutely fine in Windows Internet Explorer but completely messed up in Mozilla Firefox. While the majority of users use Internet Explorer you still have to make it compatible with Firefox as a small percentage use it and you would be loosing vital traffic if your site is not compatible with it. You are best downloading the main browsers (explorer, firefox, opera and any other you are willing to) and checking your site on a regular basis in each making it look the same in each one. Another way around it is to complete your site and then pick the next browser and adjust the code until it matches and then move onto the next one.

If you are not using a WYSIWYG editor then I always find it best to design each page in a program such as Adobe Photoshop so you can get the feel of the layout and color scheme before you actually start making the site in a code editor. The benefit of this is you may start coding your website and decide you want to change bits around, this is a lot harder once you have integrated the code into your website so by making the final layout in Photoshop and moving bits around with ease, it will make your life easier in the long run. Also it’s always easier to follow a template then thinking from scratch making it up as you go along.

Once you have mastered the basic html code and getting a website how you want it to look you can then move onto the more advanced coding which will make your website stand out from the rest of the competition in your niche. There are other variations of code such a PHP and JavaScript which you can learn in order to add more advanced features into your website.

Another common method of making websites in today’s world is using a CMS (content management system) which will make it easier to update and maintain your website once you have made a basic template adding ‘PHP includes’ where you want the data to appear. There are many free CMS templates available in which you can download for free and use to give a professional look to your website.

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How to Attract Butterflies

If your perfect garden comes complete with flittering butterflies, you must attract them using the proper collection of plants. Fortunately, these plants are easy enough to find in nurseries and do not require a great deal of work outside of your normal gardening routines. All butterfly attracting plants have a similar element, however – they all possess a great deal of nectar.

Plant a Butterfly Friendly Garden

When you plant your garden, design it with butterflies in mind. Include flowering plants that have been proven to attract butterflies with their nectar. Some of those plants include lilies, lavender, thistle, blanket flower, and rock cress. Additionally any other flower, even wildflowers, with high amounts of nectar can attract butterflies.

Plant a large variety of bright and colorful plants. Arrange plants in clusters so that you have bold splashes of color in various sections of the garden. Butterflies are attracted to large riotous splashes of color, so don’t be timid when it comes to planting flowering shrubs or even trees.

Give Them Mud

Balance these flowers with a small water garden. Growing irises around a pond beside your butterfly garden can create a variety as well as give butterflies a full habitat right in your backyard. The pond can also help create a mud patch. Butterflies love to frolic in the mud, and you can make yours even more appealing with a few pieces of fermenting fruit.

Experiment over Time

Each season, try new plants with different colors and blooms to see if you can attract more butterflies and their caterpillars. Over the years you’ll soon find the perfect recipe for attracting the butterflies native to your area.

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How to Paint a Room

There is no faster, or less expensive, way to change the appearance of a room than to give it a new coat of paint. Painting a room requires a bit of prep work and time, but the more carefully you attend to the details, the better the result.

Buy Paint

The first step to painting a room is to determine what paint color and any texture you will be using. You can obtain samples from a paint or home improvement store to see what colors work best in your room. Then, with a color in mind, head back to the store to buy your paint. Plan on at least two coats, so a small room may need only one can, but two gallons of paint is your best bet. If you are painting over stained walls or dark paint, you should also buy a gallon of primer. Be sure to also buy paint supplies such as rollers, brushes, painter’s tape and paint trays.

Tape the Edges of the Room

While professionals shun painter’s tape, it can help keep your ceilings and floors paint free. Take time to carefully apply painters tape to the outside of your paint area. This will give you a bit of freedom in case a brush slips or there are drips while you are painting. Tape the ceiling, doorways, floorboards, and any other built-ins that will not be painted.

Remove Wall Art and Spackle

Remove any wall art or other hangings and spackle the holes left behind. Sand down any spackle that dries uneven with the wall texture.

Prime and Paint!

Cover your floors with a drop cloth and carefully pour the primer (if you are using one) into your paint tray. Use a roller to carefully roll the primer onto the walls in a V pattern. Overlap your strokes and refill your roller with paint frequently to get the best coverage. Avoid too much paint on the roller at a time as this can lead to drips and splatters.

When the walls have been primed, clean the tray, attach a new roller, and pour in your paint color. Ensure the primer is completely dry, and then begin rolling on your paint color using the same V technique. Use a brush to paint the narrow spaces where a roller won’t fit such as corners, the tops and bottoms of walls and the areas around windows and doors. Allow the first coat of paint to dry, then repeat with a second coat. Some dark colors may require three or possibly even four coats of paint for solid coverage.

Clean Up

Allow the paint to dry completely before removing the tape. Pull the tape carefully to reveal crisp corners and straight lines. Throw the tape away, clear away your tools and drop cloth, and enjoy your painted room.

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How to Match Furniture in a Bedroom

If your bedroom is an odd assortment of furniture pieces, you may be able to make them match more easily than you think. Here’s how to match furniture in a bedroom.

Decide on a Décor

Your first step is to decide on a pattern of décor for the bedroom. Some styles are easier to use as a basis for making furniture match than others. If you have your heart set on traditional styles, you may have a harder time than casual, eclectic, or even southwestern decor. Find a kind of style your comfortable with.

Take an Assessment

Your next step is to take an assessment of what furniture is already in the room. Are there various grains of wood or just different styles? Are some pieces of the furniture modern and other pieces classical? Look at other rooms of your home for pieces that you might be able to move into the bedroom to make a more unified look.

Start with a Core

Now, find a core. Do you have two matching pieces and only one or two unusual accents? If you have two coordinating pieces, such as a chair and dresser, make those your core. Then you have only to deal with the other pieces such as night tables, headboard and accents.

Paint

One way to help match furniture in a bedroom is to paint all of the pieces the same color. You may also choose to paint only some of the pieces. For example, if you’ve selected a casual style, you may opt to paint the uncoordinated pieces a creamy white. These white pieces will offset your chair and dresser you’ve left their natural wood color.

Fabric

Another way to match furniture in a bedroom is to use fabric to simply cover up the unsightly pieces. You can easily create a headboard cover using fabric, a staple gun and some cushioning. You may even choose to create an entirely new headboard using fabric and plywood. Side tables that don’t match can be hidden under fabric tablecloths.

To make them unified, find two circles of MDF or plywood and place the circles on top of the existing tables. Then drape the new table clothes over the circles to make two round bedside tables. You may choose to make only one new round table which can still coordinate with another wooden table on the other side of the bed.

Accessories

At the very least, use pillows, curtains and runners on dressers and side tables to help bring the room together. Use the fabric in a chair, headboard or linens to select patterns and colors, then lavishly cover the room in throw pillows and drapes. Soon, your disjointed bedroom will be a comfortable, matching place of rest – even if nobody sees it but you.

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How Hang a Shower Curtain

Shower curtains come in all shapes and sizes, but hanging a shower curtain is almost universal. Of course, if you want to dress up your shower a bit, you can hang your curtain with extra flair, which is simple enough. Here’s how to hang a shower curtain.

Buy the Curtain and Accessories

When begin shopping for a shower curtain, take note of the many styles of hanging accessories. There are simple metal rings, colored plastic rings, decorative glass rings and many more. First select a shower curtain. Then find a set of coordinating curtain rings. You may choose to buy a set of curtain rings that match your bath accessories such as trashcan and soap dispenser, or you can opt for the basic plastic rings in a color that coordinates with the curtain itself.

If you’ve selected a fabric shower curtain, you’ll need to find a liner to protect the fabric from water. A liner is inexpensive and comes in a few different colors of vinyl, however your best bet may be a transparent curtain to let in the most light in the shower. You can easily use the liner as the shower curtain if you’d prefer although it is bathroom décor at it’s simplest. At the end of your shopping trip you should have a liner, a curtain, and one set of curtain rings.

Hang the Curtain

To actually hang the curtain, unfold the vinyl liner and lay the top of the liner underneath the top of the curtain. (You may wish to iron your new shower curtain – follow manufacturer’s instructions.) There are prepunched holes at the top of each piece, align those holes and thread a curtain ring through.

Start with one end or the other to ensure your liner and curtain are aligned properly. Then also check to be sure the outside pattern of the rings, if yours has one, is facing out on the side of the curtain, not the liner. If your rings lock together, don’t lock them yet.

Once you’re treaded all rings into all holes, carefully lift one side of the curtain up to the bar above your bathtub. Again start on one side to avoid miscalculations. Fit the ring over the bar and lock it into place. Repeat with all of the rings. Your curtain is now hung.

For extra variety, purchase a second bar to go over the tub. Hang the liner separately on the standard metal bar. Then place your new bar slightly higher than the original. Hang your decorative shower curtain with rings on this bar. Now you can open each curtain individually to let in more light as needed.

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How To Decorate a Living Room

The living room is the center of your home. The formal living room often sets the tone for the rest of the household, and the decorating style you select has bearing on every room in the house.

Find a Theme:

When you decorate a living room, you must first consider your preferred style. Are you a fan of country decorating with gingham and lace? Or perhaps you prefer classic styles with display tables and curios. Modern styles with bold lines and bright colors are increasingly common as are comfortable styles that use neutral colors and oversized furniture. Flip through decorating magazines or websites to see examples of what appeals to you.

Find a Focus:

The focus of your living room will be the starting point for decorating. The focus should be a large item that brings your personality to the room such as the fireplace mantle, picture above the fireplace, sofa, rug, or even an ottoman. Use that piece to find your color pattern and inspiration for the rest of the room.

Living Room Colors:

Once you have your focus, select a wall color and accenting colors for accessories and additional furniture. Don’t be afraid to be creative, but using a focus piece will help keep the room coordinated rather than matching. Paint the walls or use wall paper, then select window treatments, rugs and upholstery that coordinates with the rest of your selections.

Living Room Window Treatments:

Window treatments such as drapes, blinds and shutters give a room a polished look. Shutters can be a more beautiful alternative to basic blinds, and drapes or window hangings bring a room together.

Living Room Furniture:

The furniture in the living room can be many things, but most often consists of a sofa and additional seating. Chairs, chaise lounges and love seats all find their way into living rooms as do rocking chairs, ottomans and foot stools. Desks and bookcases are common additions as are coffee and side tables. Buy furniture according to the size of your room and your particular decorating style. Minimalist styles will have little furniture while traditional styles will have much more.

Living Room Accessories:

Finally, once the colors, windows, and furniture is selected, you can focus your attention on finding accessories such as pictures, lamps, curios and houseplants to help bring a room to life. Don’t overwhelm your living room with accessories, but tasteful accent pieces scattered throughout the room make the room comfortable and personalized to your unique taste.

Living Room Arrangement:

Arrange your furniture according to the shape and traffic flow of a room. Many believe the arrangement of furniture can affect the tranquility of a home, and at the very least a misplaced table or sofa can be the cause of repeatedly stubbed toes and bashed knees. Leave plenty of room for navigation and ease of motion. Group chairs together for conversations and be sure to play up the focus of your room as it is the piece that brings everything together.

Once you have your focus, select a wall color and accenting colors for accessories and additional furniture. Don’t be afraid to be creative, but using a focus piece will help keep the room coordinated rather than matching. Paint the walls or use wall paper, then select window treatments, rugs and upholstery that coordinates with the rest of your selections.

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How to Decorate a Guest Room

Guests should be welcomed into a warm and inviting space, and your decoration in a guest room can help make guests feel welcome or more like an intrusion. When you decorate a guest room, be sure to think of as many small touches as you can to ensure your guests know you are delighted to have them – even if that’s stretching the truth a bit.

Accommodations

When decorating your guest room start first with furniture that is accommodating for your guests. If most of your guests will be young single friends or young couples, a futon and blankets may suffice. But if your elderly grandmother is coming to stay, consider a raised daybed or full sized bed to ensure her comfort (and safety.) Two twin beds are also more accommodating than a full size or queen size bed. A couple can easily stay in a full bed, but two brothers may be more comfortable in separate beds.

Welcoming Décor

The décor in the room should be tasteful and welcoming. You don’t want to overwhelm your guests with bright colors and odd lighting. Stick with the most traditional welcoming accents when you use pineapple décor – the pineapple was a sign of a home friendly to visitors historically, or use something more exotic but try to keep colors and accessories tame.

Thoughtful Touches

Be sure to include as many thoughtful touches as you can. For example, put black out curtains under the drapes in the room to keep it dark should your visitors be battling jet lag or fatigue from a long journey. If you have a coordinating bathroom, leave plenty of towels and washcloths out for guests to use. Also prepare a guest basket of travel sized soaps, shampoos and lotions you can leave in the bathroom cabinet until needed.

Be sure to offer guests a place to put their luggage. Keep an inexpensive luggage rack in the closet or clear a dresser or desk and cover it with a towel so that guests don’t have to dig into their bags on the floor which may be challenging for that elderly granny. Finally, be sure you provide an alarm clock in the room along with a bottle or two of water so that guests don’t have to feel their way around your kitchen or bathroom at night when they are ready for a drink.

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How to Decorate a Dorm Room

A dorm room is a pretty tight space often shared by one or more roommates. It can be particularly challenging to decorate a dorm room as the walls are often an unattractive material, you’re unable to paint them, and there are few places to actually put decorative elements. That shouldn’t stop you from doing what you can to spruce up a dorm room, however, you’ll just have to be creative.

Coordinate with Your Roommate

If you’ll be living with a roommate, your first step is to discuss any decorating plans. You may find your roommate doesn’t care about decorations. She might also be interested in buying matching bedspreads and accessories to be sure the room is coordinated. You might also find that your roommate has her own special plans for the room. If this is the case, you can go along with the plans or you can agree to simply decorate your own space.

Find Decorations that Fit

The most area you have to decorate in a dorm room are walls, ceilings, and floors. Any shelves will most likely be crammed with books, desks are covered in computers, and of course your bed will have a bedspread. There will be little or no room for furniture and certain accessories, such as candles, may be illegal in the dorm.

Decorate the Floor

Floor coverings such as a carpet remnant or rug offer you some comfort under your feet and a starting place for decorations. Classic beige carpet allows for any type of décor while a colorful woven rug may lend itself best to sometime more exotic such as Moroccan décor which lends itself well to colorful pillows and blankets. Find a floor covering that fits your budget and space allotment.

Decorate the Beds

Your bedspread might be the largest splotch of color in the room if you choose bland colors for the floor and wall. Find a pattern that appeals to you. Don’t be limited by department stores. Search out markets that sell colorful spreads and blankets as an alternative to the traditional bed in a bag. Your bed may match your roommates or it may not – it’s up to the two of you.

Decorate the Walls

While you’re grabbing fun blankets for your bed, grab a few for your walls, too. Hang a lightweight blanket with an interesting pattern behind your bed to give your walls color since you can’t paint. You can even tack the blanket up over your bed in a kind of drape to give your room a truly unique flair. Twinkle lights, posters, and picture collages are another fun and personal way to add touches to your room. Add what accessories will fit and enjoy your new, if tiny, space!

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How to Decorate a Christmas Tree

The Christmas Tree is the central decoration for the season. Decorating that tree can be intimidating, especially if you’re trying to work around your existing décor or creating a design that any professional would be proud of. Here’s how to decorate a Christmas Tree.

Create a Theme

The first step in decorating a Christmas Tree is to decided on the theme of your decorations. You may opt for the basic cheerful multicolored balls and lights, or challenge yourself with something more ornate such as finding a theme that incorporates golden decorations and lights into your living room’s existing apple décor. There are many ways to do this.

Shop Around the Theme

Once your theme is determined, begin your quest for decorations. Simple decorations such as bright glass balls and tinsel can be found everywhere, including local drug stores. Golden apples may require a trip to a decorating warehouse or specialty shop. You can also make ornaments using parts from craft stores or have your kids create fun ornaments from any number of household items.

Assemble the Tree

To decorate your tree you’ll need the following:

• A Christmas Tree – The tree can be real or artificial. Both options have pros and cons.
• Christmas Tree Stand – If you’re using a real tree, invest in a good tree stand. Also be sure to water the tree regularly to prevent the needles from drying up and falling off. Stand up the Tree and position it correctly.
• Tree Skirt – A tree skirt can be simple or ornate. It keeps the floor a bit cleaner, provides some extra color and decoration, and hides the tree stand or base of the artificial tree.
• Lights – If your tree is not prelit, and only a few artificial trees are, buy strands of lights. White solid lights are most common, but you can also buy colored lights, blinking or chasing lights, or even specialty lights such as snowflakes or chili peppers for your tree.

  Put the lights on your tree before any other decorations. Try to hide the strands in the branches so that only the lights show, not dangling wires.

• A Tree Topper – The tree topper can go first or last, but every tree should have one. If you’re using an angel or star, especially one that is lit, it should probably go on first to be sure you have it hooked into the lights correctly. A large bow should go after the rest of the decorations so that it is line with the rest of the garlands.
• Ornaments – After the lights and possibly the tree topper, hang your ornaments. You may opt to use a collection of ornaments in multiple colors that simply appeal to you or that your children have made. You might use only gold and red decorations to continue with a specific theme such as the apple theme mentioned above.

  If you’re going for a more casual look, hang a variety of ornaments including glass balls of every color and include ornaments that are fun and meaningful to you. Be sure to cover the tree evenly from top to bottom and side to side. Hang the ornaments from the tips of the branches in front of the lights.

• Garlands – The final stage of tree decoration is to place any garlands on the tree. Garlands can be strands of tinsel or beads. They may also be long strands of ribbon. Tinsel and beads usually are draped around the tree horizontally.

  Ribbons can be horizontal or can be twisted and run from the top of the tree to the bottom. This looks especially nice if the tree topper is a very large bow of the same ribbon. Ribbons go on top of all decorations, but smaller garlands, especially those with beads may be hung following the lights.

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How to Choose a Paint Color

Choosing a paint color for your walls is critical to the overall feel and design of the room. The wrong choice will be apparent quickly, but will require a great deal of patience, time and resources to repair. To avoid this, be sure to pick the right color the first time.

Paint Choice Fundamentals

Paint comes in any color, but the most common wall color is white. Unfortunately, this is the least decorative wall color for design purposes. White walls can be suitable in any home, but they will not give your room the completed feel that color would.

Matte and satin paints are best in most rooms with glossy paint suitable in kitchens and bathrooms where it helps to repel water. Paints with texture and special techniques are simple to learn and can produce a designer’s effect.

Design a Room

When selecting a paint color, your first step is to design the room overall. What sort of room are you creating? What furniture will be in the room? What is your focus in the room – a fireplace? Wall décor? Find inspiration in magazines or websites so that you have an idea of what you would like your finished product to resemble.

Explore Color Families

Once you have a feel for your room, you can begin working in color families. Red and pink paint colors are exciting while blue paint colors are cool and soothing. Greens are comforting and yellows are invigorating. You may prefer the neutrality of browns or grays, or want something truly unique such as purple. Look at your design and find the color family that works best with your image of the final product.

Collect Paint Chips

Your next stop is to collect paint chips or samples from a paint store. Do not select the paint inside the store without first taking the samples home to see how they look against your furnishing and other colors of the room. Gather a full range of colors in your selected color family as you may discover that you want to try a deep forest green when you had originally be considering a muted olive.

Mix and Match

Layout your paint chips in the room with the blinds open to let in the sun. Paint chips are small, but they will give you a rough idea of what you’d be working with. Hold the colors next to your pictures and furniture – do some work better than others? Narrow your choices to two or three and get a second opinion if possible.

Make the Choice

Finally, take a deep breath and select the color that appeals to you the most yet works best in the room. If you simply can’t decide between two colors, get a small can of each from the paint store and paint a section of wall to see how it dries and looks in the room. You can then determine which is best and paint over the section of color that you won’t be using.

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