HOME IMPROVEMENT TIPS

Most people are happiest living in rooms that are bright and sunny in the daytime and are softly lit without glare or sharp contrasts in light at night. In most rooms, lamps and indirect lighting is the way to go. Window treatments that leave most of the glass in windows uncovered when they are open during the day are good for letting sunshine and pleasant views in and give your home a cheerful feeling.

When purchasing your wallpaper, take the measurements of your room first, and bring them with you to the store. Remember that it's better to have too much than too little; there's nothing worse than wallpapering a room, discovering you have too little and then finding out that the store has run out of the pattern and/or color of wallpaper that you need. While you might be able to order it, sometimes you can't. To avoid that castrophe, purchase more wallpaper than you think you need.

windows

Indeed, if windows have been referred to as the "eyes" of a room, then doors are the mouths, speaking volumes about the rooms they complement. Take the entry door, for example. How much of an instant impression does a beautiful front door make on you? Windows, cut glass, carved oak, arched, or decorated with brass accents? While waiting for this door to open, it's an eye-catching item to study, from a visitor's point of view. Simple front doors can be replaced by fancier ones to exude your own sense of style. Even a modest home can seem palatial with a beautiful front door as a greeting.

Your family room can be transformed by the change-out of a sliding door to a French door, opening wide to a manicured yard, or just "look" like a French door with panes of glass and beautiful hardware (there are several manufacturers of sliding French doors.) But what if you prefer more wall space in the family room and less glass? You can investigate the possibility of changing a larger sliding door to a single "atrium" door and adding sheet rock, texture and paint to the recipe, making more room for sofas and entertainment pieces.

Take a moment to consider what you can live with -- and what you can't. The dirty dishes should be taken care of and the kitchen floor swept, the carpet should be vacuumed and the clothes strewn about the living room should be assorted. But that stack of magazines in the corner -- the one you've been meaning to sort through and donate to your local library -- that, perhaps, can be designated a post-new year's job. After all, it's not as if nobody lives in your home; let's be realistic here. It's OK to have shelves in your living room that look as if people occasionally remove books from them. You just dust around your books and slightly disheveled objets d'art, and resolve to organize them after you bid your guests aideu.

FOR HOME SELLERS
According to the National Association of Realtors, For Sale By Owner (FSBO) home sellers comprised nearly 14% of all home sales in the United States in 2003. The Boston Globe reported that nearly 25% of homes sold in that area during that same time period were FSBOs.

Although many FSBO home sellers have saved thousands of dollars in commissions, many others have lost money, and current statistics show that 80% of FSBOs will eventually list their homes after unsuccessfully trying to sell their homes themselves. However, if you're thinking of trying to sell your home without the aid of a real estate agent, here are a few tips for getting the most from the experience:

Advertising:

Signs: Pick up directional signs at a home improvement store, list your phone number and the address of your home on them, and then display the signs in prominent places around your neighborhood. Most buyers use the services of a Realtor to look for a new home, but if your home's in a desirable neighborhood where other houses are also for sale, potential buyers may see your signs and come back later to visit your home. Place a professional-looking sign in your front yard, featuring your phone number in print large enough to be easily read from the street.

HOW TO WIN A HEART
Flowers have a wonderful way of making people feel good. Send a beautiful bouquet of roses, or fresh blooming bulbs to your loved one, and fill that loved one's home with fragrance through a floral arrangement. Vacations are the right time to surprise someone with a beautiful bouquet or arrangement at their doorstep, but you can also send flowers when any special friend is thought of, log on to the Internet and order a quick floral gift to let them know that you really miss them.