Apartment Blog

If you plan on throwing or attending a Halloween party, don’t you want to be the center of all the festivities?  Don’t let anyone outdo you this year.  When wearing a costume you get to become someone else for one night.  Why not make it memorable for you and all attendees.    We’ve posted a blog about Halloween Couple Costume Ideas, but here are some hot costumes for Guys and Gals:

Guys

• 1. Geico Caveman- Team up with a buddy or two and purchase caveman masks. You can wear the laidback button up shirts seen in the commercials or even go with the biker outfits. This will surely garner a lot of laughs when you arrive and will make it easier to talk to the women at the party. Who can resist a rugged and famous Caveman?
• 2. Iron Man- If rugged and hairy is not for you, maybe you want to show off the iron you have been pumping. Even if you haven’t been pumping iron, I am sure that the Iron Man costume comes with pre-pumped muscles for you to show off. If ladies love the man of steel..wouldn’t they love the man of….Iron?
• 3. Michael Jackson- This year we tragically lost the King of Pop. Many people will probably wear a Michael Jackson costume in commemoration of him, but make sure that you go all out. You must have the infamous white glove and you might want to learn a few moves before showing up so that you can battle against all of the other Michael Jackson wannabes!

Gals

• 1. Pirate of the Caribbean(Elizabeth) - Argghh..Nothing cooler than a female pirate. With the success of the Pirates of the Caribbean Franchise, pirate clothing is still in. Make sure to bring your sword with you because you may have to show Iron Man and the Caveman who is boss!
• 2. Race Car Driver- Danica Patrick is kicking butt in the racing world and you can remind all of the men at the party with your race car driver costume. Make the super heroes look outdated and the athletes look lost.
• 3. Betty Boop- If you get sea-sick or car sick, the Pirate and Race Car driver costumes may not be for you. They won’t be believable. But, I’m sure you wouldn’t mind showing up as a starlet. Let it be your night and come to the party knowing that all the attention will be on you. Maybe you can even bring your own fans and lights. Why not?

This can be your year to win the “Best Costume” prize.  Don’t let the opportunity pass you by!

For some people Halloween means as much to them as Christmas would to another person. As such, this occasion would be deemed gift giving. I have actually received a card and flowers from a friend on Halloween because it is her favorite holiday. Regardless if you are the gift giver or receiver, here are some great Halloween gift ideas.

Get Creative! Potion labels are a cool way to personalize a bottle of your friend’s favorite drink or bottle of wine. Just add a themed label appropriate for Halloween and you’re set!  Or creating a collage scrapbook already decorated, just waiting for the photos of this year’s party to frame or bind.

Homemade goods are a unique way to show your friends, or guests at a party, that you appreciate them. Everyone loves a good homemade treat. For this holiday, why not do a candied apple or pumpkin spice bread or ghost shaped cookies. 

Tickets to a fun Halloween themed event. There are bound to be places in your city that will celebrate this spooky holiday. Why not help the Halloween enthusiast in your life celebrate by buying them a ticket. It could be a hayride, haunted house, roller coaster theme park or maybe even a special movie premier.

Provide some type of entertainment by purchasing a Halloween book or movie. If your friend is into the whole scary experience, there are plenty of Halloween movies guaranteed to spoke him or her. Check out our list of 10 Awesome Halloween Movies.

If there are other Halloween gifts you have given or received, let us know! It would be nice to see all the imaginative ideas for this holiday.

The Economy is still struggling to gain momentum. Cable news reminds you that we are still in a recession. Friends, Family, and Co-Workers add to the water cooler talk, which can really get you down if you listen long enough.  How do you escape from all the negativity??? One way is to organize and arrange your apartment bedroom into your personal sanctuary of positivity and motivation.  There are many ways to do that, but here are few ideas to get you started:

1. Pictures/Portraits

- What is the first thing you see when you wake up? A white ceiling? The ugly alarm clock? The bathroom? Instead of waking up to bland surroundings, spruce up your apartment bedroom with pictures/paintings/portraits that motivate you. It could be a picture of your grandparents or parents who went through so much just to afford you the opportunities you have. You can also have pictures of your dream car, island, or vacation to make sure that you wake up every day with the goal of moving one step forward towards those dreams. It is said that a picture is worth a thousand words. So wake up every morning to a thousand words and let the pictures encourage you to take on the day with zest and zeal.

2. Quotes

- Quotes can be just as inspiring as paintings or pictures. A combination of both is probably best. Find a quote that really resonates with you and look at it every morning before going to work. This quote should help you stay focused and remind you of whom you are. The quote should be posted somewhere in plain sight for you to see every morning, either in the bedroom or on taped to the bathroom mirror.

3. CD/Alarm Clock

- What do you wake up to every morning? Chickens? Traffic noises? The dreaded default alarm setting??? Why not get an aesthetically pleasing CD/Alarm player. This way you can wake up to your favorite song or motivational speaker. The negative energy associated with the default setting is sure to induce another 5 minutes of sleep, but your favorite song or speaker will get you excited about the challenges ahead.

Most people in the United States celebrate July 4^th with barbeques and fun in the sun with friends & family. But do you really know why the holiday is so important to our country? I read a terrific description on Kaboose that really breaks it down for kids and adults to understand the significance of this Saturday. Take a look…

Imagine how you would feel if someone older than you (maybe an older sister or brother) kept telling you what to do all of the time and kept taking more and more of your allowance. That is how the colonists felt in the years leading up to 1776. Great Britain kept trying to make the colonists follow more rules and pay higher taxes. People started getting mad and began making plans to be able to make their own rules. They no longer wanted Great Britain to be able to tell them what to do, so they decided to tell Great Britain that they were becoming an independent country.

The Congress met in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and they appointed a committee to write a formal document that would tell Great Britain that the Americans had decided to govern themselves. The committee asked Thomas Jefferson to write a draft of the document which was officially adopted the on July 4, 1776 after some changes were made. That is why it is called “Independence Day.” Congress ordered that all members must sign the Declaration of Independence and they all began signing the “official” copy on August 2, 1776.

As you may know, the Declaration of Independence is more than just a piece of paper. It is a symbol of our country’s independence and commitment to certain ideas. The signers of the Declaration of Independence wanted the citizens of the United States to be able to look at the document and immediately think of the goals we should always be working for, and about the people who have fought so hard to make these ideas possible. The people who signed the Declaration risked being hanged for treason by the leaders in Great Britain. They had to be very brave to sign something that would be considered a crime!

So every time we look at the Declaration of Independence, we should think about all of the effort and ideas that went into the document, and about the courage it took for these people to stand up for what they knew was right — independence!

On this Fourth of July, it is important for you to remember those people as well as the people who are still to this day fighting for our right to be independent; for our rights of freedom.  And that is largely done by our military countrymen. 

If you’re anything like me, the idea of Father’s Day is a daunting one. Not because I don’t enjoy celebrating my father, I do! He’s an unbelievable man who has taught me so much and I love him dearly. But, because I am always at a loss of what to get him. What to get a man that has loved me and cared for me all these years? What to get someone who has truly been there for me whenever I needed someone? Those are the questions that always creep up when Father’s Day rolls around and I rack my brain trying to think of something. 

And of course, I want it to be something creative. Something I’ve not done before to really show him how much I appreciate him. Well after racking my brain for hours, I’ve come up with a list of five ingenious ideas (if I do say so myself).

1. Go the sentimental route. A video montage or collage of photos with you and your father (or the whole family) would really be something special for your father to receive. It’s something he can truly cherish for many years to come.
2. Make an afternoon date with him! If he would enjoy activities such as miniature golf, ice cream, lunch, then why not take him out? He deserves to have a bit of fun doing child-like things for a day!
3. Splurge for some hobby supplies. Every father has a hobby he enjoys! Whether it’s a sport like soccer, racing or maybe just fixing up cars, give him something that he would benefit from. Be careful though, you don’t want to overuse this tip as it could become predictable.
4. Bring him humor! There are a plethora of items that would fit the bill, books, trinkets, etc. In fact, I was on Barnes & Nobles web site and saw quite a few books that poke fun at ‘Dadisms’ or have cartoons to depict father-like situations. Guaranteed to make every dad grin, chuckle and laugh out loud.
5. And finally, time is all your father really wants. He enjoys spending time with you, his child. So be sure to spend good quality time, even if it’s not doing anything special, just to be with him.

This photo is something my father and I did when we were in Key West….father-daughter bonding! J

Continuing our weekly trend, here is an article with some fantastic tips on how to refresh your home using the color blue! Bring the outdoors inside with a splash of sophisticated and refreshing blue!

Make a bold statement by using deep blue. If you can’t paint, curtains are a great effect for your walls (especially if they are floor to ceiling length).

For added excitement in a bathroom, replace the knobs on your vanity and/or medicine cabinet with blue ones (just make sure you keep all the screws and original knobs when it’s time to move out). White and blue bath accessories, artwork and towels would really complete the look.

Blue checkered details really add a lot of fun as well as a retro twist to any space. You can use this idea for pillows on a bench in your apartment or for cushions around your dinning room table.

Silvery gray and pale aqua is a perfectly glamorous combination for a vanity table. An ornate mirror makes an elegant topper, however if you can’t take down your mirror, removable stickers to adjourn your mirror will work.

For a beach themed apartment, you can use removable cushion covers from an outdoor patio set. A blue stripped rug and an antiqued painted coffee table add dimension to the space; as would blue stripes and fun accents like a nautical star or chandelier.

Also, don’t be afraid to mix a variety of patterns - just stick within the same color palette. A delicate blue-and-white curtain blends beautifully with a shag rug, toile quilt, and boldly striped cushions. My favorite pattern, besides the classic stripes, is damask. Having a piece in the room using blue damask instantly makes it trendy and chic.

Paint and furniture aren’t the only ways to bring color into a room; fun knickknacks in the same hue will do the trick also!

What’s the next color on the menu? Yellow! Soon we will post ideas for decorating in the powerful color of the sun!

Source: Country Living and Better Homes & Gardens