Apartment Blog

Are you experiencing some difficulty decorating your apartment? As I’m sure you already know, decorating a small space so that it looks good and works well can be a challenge. There are several factors to take into consideration when you’re trying to figure out the style, space limitations, paint restrictions, budget, etc. So I’ve compiled some quick apartment decorating tips that should help get your creative juices flowing.

While you’re focusing on the aesthetics of your room make sure you remember it needs to be functional as well. You’ll need places to store your mail, groceries and paperwork. Whatever requires your daily attention must be readily available! You can have organization without sacrificing your style just by having colorful/patterned/textured containers to store those items in. Various shelving units also help with organization. Multi-functional pieces, such as storage ottomans which provide seating and storage, are a bonus as they make your smaller space work better for you.

If you’re in an apartment like mine, you aren’t allowed to paint the walls. This makes it tough to express your true design. However, there are plenty of alternatives to paint for putting color on your walls. For example, you can do a temporary mural, a large framed poster/artwork, fabric, etc. One thing I’ve tried at my apartment is cling stickers. I found them at the Dollar Store! In my guest bathroom there are little shells and fishes swimming on my walls! It’s completely different than any other decorative element I’ve tried, but it works and best of all: they don’t hurt the walls! So don’t be afraid to think outside the box when you are decorating your space.

Given that you may or may not be able to paint, accent pieces play an important role in getting the maximum impact. In any room you’ll notice the items that carry the most weight, meaning the items that have more vibrancy or add an interesting element to the space. They can include lamps, vases, curtains, pillows, etc. Whatever your motif, add an accent color, shape or pattern with these items; it’ll provide the extra glam that you’re looking for. For example, a paper lantern floor lamp or a unique arch lamp will create visual interest while being functional and cohesive to your design.

I hope these tips help you on your way to creating your stylish apartment. Do you have any more useful ideas to share? I know we’re all in the same boat trying to find unusual decorating ideas with our restrictions, so let your ideas flow!

Life is full of stress and headaches, especially from the world-wind excitement of buying Valentine’s Day gifts. So in honor of you, we want to post some tips to help you relax and focus on yourself for a change!!

Something that always helps me to relax is taking a bath. I love just sitting in a hot water with my eyes closed. It’s very relaxing. I feel like my mind can just take a break from all the things I worry about & for a moment, I soak up the steam and calm all my nerves.

Whatever way you take a bath will work. If you prefer some salts or turning off the lights and only using candles. Maybe you like hearing some soft music in the background? Whatever you prefer is what you should do. And no matter what other tasks you ‘could be’ doing or whoever may be knocking at your door, take as much time as you need! This is ‘me’ time!!

After your bath don’t rush to get dressed. While in your bath robe or towel sit and put some lotion on your legs and arms. Apply a good layer and just enjoy the feeling of being rejuvenated. This would also be a perfect time to do a mud mask for your face if you’d like! This is still apart of your ‘me’ time so don’t try and multi-task. You’re worth the extra time you’re putting into yourself. Otherwise, you’ll rush into doing something else and never really give yourself the amount of time it needs to unwind.

So once you’ve applied the lotion or any other type of beauty product, you can get dressed. My recommendation is to dress in comfortable clothes. If you don’t have a pair of silky pajamas, I urge you buy a pair. They feel beautiful on your skin. Other fabrics that would feel wonderful would be cotton, micro-fiber, a chenille blanket, etc.

And finally, the end to a wonderful pampering session is to actually do an activity you want to do. Maybe you want to have a cup of tea, hot chocolate, or coffee, sit and read a book. Or maybe you want to catch up on your favorite soap or do your nails. Whatever activity you enjoy (doesn’t necessarily have to be alone-although that’s usually when you take care of your needs versus someone else’s) do it! After unwinding, taking some time to do something you want to do will really make the ‘me’ time really worth it!!

It’s been a really long time since I’ve taken the time to do this, so I think I’m due for one!! I wish all of you the best pampering session as well! 

It’s no secret that rents are skyrocketing all over
the United
States. People are constantly looking at ways
to save money as the cost of living increases. One thought I find extremely interesting
is that couples are now ‘shacking’ up to save some money!!

According to the Census Bureau’s latest research,
there were an estimated 6.02 million unmarried-partner households in the
U.S. in 2006! Forbes.com researched these cities by
collecting data for 40 of the largest metropolitan statistical areas for five
different categories: marriages per 1,000 people, divorces per 1,000 people,
starter-home affordability, income disparity and availability of couples or
family counseling.

The round-up of the best cities for couples
were:

1. Dallas

2. Houston

3. Minneapolis

4. Denver

5. Austin, Texas

This is interesting news on Valentine’s Day!! We’ve
posted numerous blogs about the benefits of having a roommate, so why not
make that roommate your sweetheart!

For more information about how these cities were
selected, visit Forbes.com or Realestate.msn.

On Sunday we posted Single this Valentine’s Day? Here’s how to find a date, a blog about online dating and how to put your profile out on one of the sites. It seems that not only are generations x and y looking into online dating to find their special someone, but seniors are as well! In fact, seniors are the fastest growing segment of Internet users, and more and more of them are using the Internet to look for love. In fact, according to cbsnews.com, 16 percent of all those active on the top five Internet dating sites are 55 or older. A majority of the dating sites like eHarmony, Match.com and Date.com may cater to a slightly younger crowd, so there are senior specific dating sites popping up like SilverSingles.com and SeniorsCircle.com.

Whether you’re 28 or 57, everyone needs love in their life and online dating seems to be fulfilling a need for many. So why not try your hand at online dating? You never know who you may find!

Visit Find a Date on ForRent.com’s website and set up your profile today! You may even set upa date before this Valentine’s Day!

Source: cbsnews.com

Last year’s Super Bowl Winner Peyton Manning, quarterback for the Indianapolis Colts, spoke to For Rent Media Solutions and the multifamily housing industry at the 2007 National Apartment Association Conference and Exhibition in Las Vegas, NV. Peyton spoke on his success and accomplishments over the years that lead him to victory. He gave us all eight rules to follow for increased success, rules such as: ‘Enjoy the journey, not the destination‘, ‘Learn from your failures and quickly move on‘, ‘Trust those around you to do the job they are hired to do‘, and ‘Make it your time!’ Following his inspirational speech, For Rent Media Solutions went on to have its best producing year!

Will this be a trend to follow suit in 2008? Will another Manning win the Super Bowl, then speak to our staff and we’ll shatter records again? The Manning family has a lot of talent on the branches of its family tree, so the question in everyone’s mind is will Eli Manning beat Tom Brady in the Super Bowl to bring home another victory? For Rent Media Solutions hopes that whatever the outcome of the game, our record will still stand at undefeated!

What are your thoughts?

Everyone has experienced road rage. Whether you’ve been on the receiving end or directing it towards a fellow driver, it’s not fun. Larger metropolitan areas tend to have the majority of traffic therefore they have some of the most aggressive drivers. The number one city that topped the list for most aggressive drivers (for the second year in a row) is……….Miami, followed by New York, Boston, Los Angeles and Washington.

The most courteous cities, regarding hostile drivers, are Portland, Pittsburg, Seattle, St. Louis and Dallas.

Do you live in a city with high road rage?? The AAA website offers a three-step plan to avoid being a victim of aggressive driving.

1. ‘Don’t Offend’ which simply means do not cut off other drivers, don’t drive slowly in the left lane, don’t tailgate and DO NOT gesture to other drivers.

2. ‘Don’t engage’ other drivers, which basically means do not cause trouble. Don’t look the other driver in the eyes (stare them down) and call 911 should you feel that you are in a dangerous situation.

3. ‘Forget Winning’ If someone has done #1 or #2 to you, let it go. Don’t let it frustrate you till you become angry. Try to put yourself in the other driver’s shoes and free yourself from any aggravation.

I know on my daily commute to work I sometimes feel the need to bang on the steering wheel to alleviate my frustrations, but what about you? Do you have any constructive methods to help you release your frustrations while you are on the road?

Source: AOL AUTOS, ‘Road Rage and Aggressive Driving’ by Craig Howie

Christmas time brings a treasured tradition for me-Gift Wrapping. I just love to gift wrap presents (for Christmas as well as other holidays). But during the Christmas season is when I really get to strut my creativity.

In my house, I’m the gift wrapper. I even wrap my own gifts from other family members (taped securely of course). Something about taking a plain box and wrapping it in holiday colors/themes, adding some decorative elements and putting it under the Christmas tree gives me such joy! So I wanted to give all you last minute wrappers a game plan as there are only a few more days till Christmas!!

Okay, so in order for you to wrap the most amount of gifts in a little amount of time you need to set up a gift wrapping station. Here’s what your station needs to have:

Wrapping paper

Now while I love to wrap gifts, I still have a budget so I rarely spend a whole bunch. I usually buy gift wrap at the Dollar Store or Target where I get great deals. Now for paper you have a variety of colors you can choose from. You could pick whatever colors your décor is, specific symbol or theme of Christmas you love (i.e. Santa or Snowmen), or choose metallic wrapping paper that are colors of the season. (Bonus: if you get plain red wrapping paper it can double as your Valentine’s Day wrapping paper too!)

Gift Bags

Plain, colored, with or without handles, gift bags are terrific for giving presents that don’t have to be in a box or that have multiple items. I usually purchase these at the Dollar Store as well because I am able to get two for a dollar (which if you go to many other retail shops they can be up to $3.99!) Plus, with a little bit of ribbon, you can dress up any bag to be festive! (Which brings me to the next items at your wrapping station….)

Ribbon

I usually use curling ribbon for my gifts because they are inexpensive and I can create a unique touch by using a variety of colors and curling the ends. But there are many other ribbons you can use to decorate the gifts you are wrapping, such as: Wired ribbon, silk ribbons and more! Whatever you like best, make sure you have a lot of on your station so you can add a little embellishment to your gifts.

Tissue Paper

When lining gift boxes or bags, cushioning delicate items or for actual wrapping paper, colorful tissue paper will add some holiday colors to your gifts. I also get these at the Dollar Store as many sheets of paper are…you guessed it…..a dollar. I can get a variety of colors depending on which will coordinate best with my wrapping paper. And buying a few bunches will last me well into the next year.

Tags

I like to splurge a little on the tags because I think of them as the final touch on the ‘masterpiece’. I have some that are little cards with envelops, some I create from scrape booking leftovers and others that are holiday stickers. The actual gift and the ornamentation will determine which tag I use. But these are a must on your wrapping table as they identify who the gift is for and who it is from.

So now that you have your essentials for decorating beautiful holiday gifts, here are a few more tools you’ll need to complete your wrapping station.

○ Scissors

○ Tape

○ Pens (have a variety of colors and/or metallic)

○ Baskets (should you have any gifts that need to go in Baskets)

○ Cellophane (for baskets, if needed)

As you scramble to wrap your holiday gifts this season, I hope these tips provide you with some organization to make the process a little less stressful! Happy wrapping!

We often feel that we need to go overboard with the holiday season in order to show how much we care. Decorations need to be plentiful; gifts need to be expensive, etc. It’s no wonder so many are going into debt during the holiday season!

If you’re like me and hate the idea of going broke in the next few weeks, take a look at some of these ‘frugal’ tips to help you with the added expenses.

Reducing, reusing and recycling are definitely the motto here. If you don’t like the idea of re-gifting because you think it’s impersonal or tacky, just think of it like this: you have received a gift that is not your taste (a glass vase for example), however your best friend LOVES vases and would kill to have the ‘stunning’ piece you’ve received. Should you really keep the gift in a box to collect dust or should you give your friend joy by offering it to her? Other economical gifts would be to make coupon books for your loved ones. Include activities such as breakfast in bed, dog walking, shoulder/foot massages, etc. Everyone gets what they want!! And while you are already shopping for extra groceries during this time of year, why not pick up a couple extras of what you’re buying to make a holiday gift basket. For example, a baking basket can include, cake mix, spatula, vegetable oil, icing and a $5 gift card to your local grocery store for items such as milk and eggs-total cost less than $20!

You could also reuse some items for your holiday parties this year. Instead of purchasing something for everyone, play secret Santa or holiday gift exchange. That way you’ll save money not buying multiple gifts and everyone can dedicate more effort into getting one person a gift they’ll like. Another idea that is more of a multifunctional party idea is a gift wrapping party. Have each person bring wrapping supplies (i.e. gift wrap, tape, ribbons, etc.) and let the conversation flow while whittling down your checklist. (You could also have it be a pot-luck so everyone can eat while working!)

Decorating your home doesn’t have to be costly either. There are many inexpensive ideas you can use to add holiday spirit. Just check out our blog ‘Cheap and Easy ways to add Christmas Spirit to your Apartment’.

Here’s wishing you and me a debt free holiday season this year!!

On Wednesday night, ABC’s Family Channel showed “I saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus”. Being my first time seeing this movie, I thought I’d give you my opinion of it.

Of course if you have heard the song you know the story line. A little boy sees his mother kissing Santa Claus. What the boy doesn’t know is the Santa Claus he saw was really his father dressed up in a Santa suit. So Justin, the little boy, decides he must stop Santa from stealing his mom! With a little encouragement from his best friend he figures that in order to stop Santa from coming to his house, he must behave really badly! The resulting pranks include throwing snowballs at a street Santa, a whirl-wind mall fiasco and a ‘Home Alone’ styled booby-trap outside his house.

If you want to relive your innocent child-like view of Christmas, then you should see this movie! Justin, played by twin actors Cole and Dylan Sprouse (‘Suite Life of Zach & Cody and ‘Big Daddy’), was especially cute and his over-the-top ‘naughtiness’ will make you chuckle. While it’s not one of my favorite Christmas movies, I’d watch it again for the wholesome family value.

Hope you enjoy it!

You want to add a festive touch to your apartment, but what colors do you choose? It’ll depend on several factors as to what fits your apartment home the best. Here’s a list of some ideas for how to choose your holiday décor color scheme:

You can focus on the color schemes that your home already has. If your apartment has warm colors, go with gold or reds. If your apartment has cool colors, go with icy white and silver. And another idea is to take the colors that you already have in your home and use complementary holiday colors (i.e. red-green, purple-gold, etc.).

A piece of fabric is also a great way to bring in the holiday season/colors. If you’ve found a stunning table cloth, make it the focal point of your room, using colors that coordinate with that table cloth to bring out its beauty. Have those colors also follow throughout your home (like accent pillows and candles).

And an idea that I think is really cool is using holiday gift wrap as your inspiration. Use color schemes and motifs that you see in gift wrap and use it around the house. Like a candy cane red, green and white striped gift wrap being mimicked in your centerpiece of the dinning room table or the wreath on the door. Another nifty idea is to wrap picture frames that are all your walls like presents! You can create a masterpiece using left over gift wrap and ribbons. The possibilities are endless (and fun to create)!

Below are also some sample color schemes. These combinations are great for creating your personal holiday décor.

• red and green
• red and white
• all white
• any color and gold
• any color and white
• any color and silver
• white, blue, and silver
• ivory and brushed gold
• sage green, ivory, and pewter
• bright purple, blue, and green
• icy blue, lilac, and silver
• autumn tones of beige, brown, golden yellows, and rust
• forest green, burgundy, gold
• primary colors such as red, yellow and blue

Also remember that cooler colors tend to encourage people to eat less and won’t be mingling as much. So you may want to avoid using cooler colors in the dining room or eating area, and to opt for warmer colors like burgundy, purple, or red with gold accents in those spaces. In sitting areas, cooler colors are still okay, but again, adding a punch of color will help warm up the effect so it’ll have a unified look through your apartment.