Laying the footprints for design
www.DesignYourselfInteriors.com
Let’s face it: Sometimes moving into a new apartment is about as painful as a broken arm or a “Road Rules” marathon, and arranging the furniture is one of the hardest parts. If you’re buying new furniture, those 1/4" scale replica drawings offer little help in visualizing your new space. Instead of throwing your hands up and going out for a martini, visit DesignYourselfInteriors.com. DYI offers life-size paper furniture templates that act as “footprints” of your actual furniture. The templates come in standard furniture sizes, which you then cut or fold to match the shape of your existing or potential furniture. By moving the templates around you can determine the best arrangement of your furniture before you even buy it. The price is right—each set is only $29.99.
Cheaper being green
www.Dsireusa.org
Trying to save the planet and a few bucks? DSIRE—the Database of State Incentives for Renewables and Efficiency—proves that good acts don’t always go unrewarded. The website details incentives for using renewable energy sources and upping energy efficiency. If you’re looking for tax deductions and benefits associated with the use of alternative energy, this site organizes extensive data on incentives by location. (Turns out Charlottesville is one of several cities in Virginia that offers a property-tax exemption for residential solar panels!) DSIRE also links to the U.S. Department of Energy’s Alternative Fuels Data Center, where you’ll learn about the benefits of owning electric or alternative fuel vehicles. Plus, there are several electric and natural gas companies who offer loans to increase energy conservation in homes—and guess which site has a list of them?
Vintage 2.0
www.HistoricHouseParts.com
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There’s an undeniable satisfaction in finding a “diamond in the rough” in an old antique store. However, cluttered and sometimes overwhelming consignment shops full of broken teakettles are not for everyone. Lovers of order who nonetheless crave reclaimed goodies should visit Historic House Parts, where lovely and unique items from swan weathervanes to vintage French doors are clearly organized by style and function—in other words, more diamond, less rough. The site offers both inexpensive conversation pieces and more costly furniture and hardware. However, serious shoppers be warned: Many of the items listed are reproductions and the history of antique items is not always explicitly stated. We suggest browsing through the garden section, where you’ll find fantastical sculptures of dancing frogs and cats and “tinkling toadstools” that chime when the wind blows.
Easy gardening for the nude thumb
www.the-landscape-design-site.com
For those of us who are less like Martha Stewart and more like Jessica Simpson, planning a garden or a landscape can be rather daunting. That’s why Steve Boulden, a qualified landscaper, has created a website to aid us normals in everything outdoor design. Our favorite part of Landscape Designs is the link to over 120 free garden plans and designs, ranging from exotic features like the Japanese and African gardens to more classic choices: Southern and Country. Many layouts also incorporate immovable features like gazebos, boulders, ponds and walkways right into the plan, so you can turn a landscape eyesore into a centerpiece. One notable drawback is that many of the layouts are vaguely sketched and difficult to read. Because most of the plans lack simple step-by-step instruction, they may be confusing to the inexperienced gardener. However, you can get the how-tos from Landscape Designs itself; the site supplies a bevy of information about DIY gardening projects from installing sprinkler systems to laying sod.
