30 Original Alternatives to a Common Bedside Table

By Fresh Home Design

When it comes to our comfort zone, bedside tables are a must. Books, glasses, eye-drops, various types of body cream, objects we forget we ever had- it always surprises us how many things can fit into the drawers of a nightstand or on a small bedside table. Since Freshome is all about creative ideas, we decided to dedicate a post to bedside tables with an unusual appearance, miniature storage units which can enhance the overall look of your bedroom. If you did not know how to reuse those wooden tables scattered in the garage or those old suitcases, there are some ideas below that could help. If you like ladders, but thought it would be crazy to place them near the bed, here is your chance. And if you thought you cat’s crib was too unaesthetic for your bedroom, simply reorganize it like in the picture below. We believe you will find these unusual bedside table ideas useful and we are looking forward to your help in finding more.

10 Surprising Reclaimed and Recycled Building Materials

By Steph in Art & Design, Home & Garden, Tricks & Hacks

Sheet rock and brand new lumber from the hardware store seem awfully boring – and incredibly wasteful – when you see the beautiful ultramodern homes and other structures that can be built from recycled once-new materials. An entire Buddhist temple made from glass bottles, modern modular shipping container homes, houseboats perched on land and resort lodging in a vintage ‘60s airplane are just a few of the awesome buildings that make use of unconventional and sometimes offbeat recycled junk.

Bottles

(images via: green upgrader)

Don’t throw those empty glass beer bottles in the recycling bin – use them to build a house! Or, perhaps, an absolutely amazing Buddhist temple in Thailand. It took one million beer bottles to create this temple, which stands not only as proof that recycled and reclaimed building materials can be truly beautiful, but as a reminder of the waste that we generate.
Because of their translucency and ability to hold thermal mass, glass bottles are also often used in cob building to enhance natural daylighting for a stained glass effect.

Silos

(images via: dornob)

Who would have thought that grain silos could be so luxurious? Ubiquitous sights in rural pastures, disused grain silos can often be purchased and moved to create unusual circular homes. Some people use them for quick, upcycled eco-friendly dwellings on the cheap, while others have given them a remarkably modern makeover. Grain silos even have potential for durable, inexpensive prefab housing.

Cans

(images via: beercanhouse.org)

When John Milkovisch retired, he got bored – but he didn’t turn to golf for entertainment. He began adding ‘aluminum siding’ to his Houston, Texas home in the form of flattened beer cans “for both practical and decorative reasons”, he says on his website. The house is now covered in 50,000 cans.
Of course, Milkovisch’s home isn’t the only building made from this rather random junk material. Aluminum cans are often used as ‘bricks’ in earthship building, stacked and mortared with lime or earth.

Shipping Containers

(images via: dornob)

When piled high on a barge, shipping containers aren’t exactly fertile inspiration for recycled architecture – but creative thinkers have managed to turn these boring rectangular boxes into surprisingly beautiful homes, offices, apartments and dorms. Like giant modular metal Legos, shipping containers can be stacked into all sorts of configurations with a crane – and of course, they’re really easy to transport.

Tires

(images via: global giving, making this home)

Millions upon millions of tires end up in landfills every year in the U.S. alone – but many are salvaged for creative uses like – drumroll please – building houses and other structures. Packed with rammed earth, tires make an incredibly solid building material that helps retain heat in winter and keep the building cool in the summertime. Off-gassing is said to be a non-issue, and tires work especially well when built into the earth as earthships often are.

Ships

(image via: sea-fever.org, MR38)

Boats aren’t just for the water – as proven by numerous ‘house boats’ seemingly stranded on land, which people actually use as a primary residence. And how better to recycle a ship that’s no longer seaworthy? Huge ships like the Great Lakes Shipping Boat (top) – now known as The Ship Residence on an island in Lake Erie at Put-in-Bay, Ohio – make incredible seaside mansions that are quite a sight when seen from the water.

Wood Pallets

(images via: dornob)

Wood pallets are plentiful, thrown out every day by companies that no longer trust them to keep merchandise safe during shipping. So how could they possibly be reused as a building material? Well, wood pallets are often still in great shape and can easily be nailed back together. And while they may not be a great load-bearing material for anything other than a shed, they do make a fantastic addition to building exteriors to filter sunlight.

Cardboard

(images via: inhabitat)

A cardboard building may sound like the most temporary of structures – something you expect to find in a shantytown, not a suburban neighborhood. That it is, but imagine how such a material could be put to use for inexpensive emergency shelters that set up ultra-fast. Architects Stutchbury and Pape developed a $35,000 flat-packed prefab cardboard house made from 100% recycled materials with a waterproof outer membrane made of HDPE plastic.

Scrap Metal

(images via: dwell)

Surrounded by industrial scrap metal every day for years, a former scrapyard owner saw a lot of potential for reuse – and put those ideas to work in his own home, a modern metal masterpiece 90 minutes northwest of Toronto. A rusted metal gate made from an old truck chassis, old galvanized steel siding and I-beams rescued from a demolition job are just a few elements of the mostly recycled home. And what will happen to this recycled home when it’s finally due to be demolished?
“With most houses, when they’re torn down, everything goes into a bin,” homeowner S. J. Sherbanuk told Dwell. “When this house gets pulled down 60 or 80 years from now, they won’t even need a bin. It’s all gonna get reused.”

Airplanes

They’re not exactly known for comfort when you’re flying the friendly skies, but take out all those seats and airplanes are really roomy. Just take a peek inside the 727 Fuselage Home at the Costa Verde resort in Costa Rica, a two-bedroom suite made from a refurbished vintage 1965 Boeing 727 airframe. Retired from its former hectic life as part of South Africa Air’s fleet, the salvaged airplane serves as a cozy and unique lodging perched atop a 50-foot pedestal for the feel of being in the air.

12 Bookshelves Design Ideas

12  Bookshelves Design Ideas



If you love reading books and want to buy a bookshelf, you might need several bookshelves designs as consideration before deciding to purchase one. It can be avoided that the first thing attracts your attention while looking at any furniture, including bookshelves, is the design. People really want to have stylish bookshelves that are also functional as well. Nowadays, there are so many styles of bookshelves you can choose, yet don’t forget to make sure whether one of them will be fit with another furniture and theme of your room. Dreamhomedesign.com



 

weburbanist

 

 

 

Dornop

 

 

Dreamhomedesign

 

 

Dreamhomedesign

 

Dornop

DIY

 

Green Bookcase Shawn Soh

Jordi Mila Wisdom Tree

 Kitchenisty

 

 

Dreamhomedesign

 Spiral Dreamhomedesign

Contemporary

 



Pumpkin Centerpiece

The Coastal Gardener Makes a Pumpkin Centerpiece

By Melissa Caughey on October 3

 

 

A beach inspired centerpiece for fall.

With all of the gardening talent out there, we thought we’d share some of the blogosphere’s most intriguing voices in our regular Guest Speaker series. First up: Melissa Caughey, a Massachusetts chicken and garden blogger at Tilly’s Nest with an avid following who will offer her coastal gardening insights and tips.—HGTVGardens
Each year with the arrival of fall, I can’t help but notice a more diverse selection of gourds and pumpkins available at both pumpkin patches and local garden centers. This week, I have decided to share a wonderful living centerpiece that, for me, evokes memories of a bonfire on the beach while surrounded by water, sand and sea grasses dancing in the dunes. The blue pumpkin represents the sea while incorporating a variety of air plants (tillandsia) aids in mimicking sea grass. The entire project takes less than 30 minutes and would make a lovely centerpiece indoors or out.

You'll just need a few supplies for this easy-to-create centerpiece.

Here is what you will need:
1 blue pumpkin — approximately 12 inches in diameter
1 glass cylindrical vase — approximately 4 inches across
Approximately 10 cups of beach sand
1 small candle (I used a tea light).
5 air plants
3 dried starfish or shells
Ink pen
Sharp knife
Glass plate
Directions:
1. Invert the cylindrical vase and center it on the top of the pumpkin. While holding the vase, trace around the circumference of the vase with the ink pen. Remove the vase and set it aside.

Use an ink pen to trace out an opening to use as a cutting guide.

2. Increase the circumference of the circle that you just traced onto the pumpkin by approximately 1 ½ to 2 inches. This will serve as your entry to the pumpkin.
3. Slowly and carefully cut around the outer ink pen circle with a sharp knife. Remove and discard the top and scrape out the pumpkin until the entire inside contents are removed and the walls are clean.
4. Pour some beach sand into the empty pumpkin to act as a base for your vase. When the pumpkin is almost half full of sand, add the vase and continue to fill in the sand around the vase until you reach the upper rim of the pumpkin. Fill the vase half-way with sand. Insert the candle into the vase on top of the sand.

Step four: completed!

5. Tuck the assorted air plants into the sand around the vase. Add some shells or starfish for decoration.
6. Place your arrangement on a sturdy glass or ceramic plate. Light the candle and enjoy.

And voila! Your beautiful coastal centerpiece complete with air plants and starfish is ready.

This centerpiece, inside the home at room temperature, lasts approximately 4-5 days depending on the freshness of the pumpkin at time of purchase. The centerpiece will last longer in cooler outside temperatures. Air plants can tolerate temperatures to 45 degrees F and can remain outdoors all year round in Zones 9 and greater. Indirect sunlight and a weekly misting of water is all they require to keep them happy. Also, as a safety reminder, be sure to never leave a burning candle unattended.

Loft Bauhaus by Ana Paula Barros

Loft Bauhaus by Ana Paula Barros Brasilia

Architects: Ana Paula Barros Location: Brasília, DF, Brasil Design Team: Rafael Papi, Beatriz San Salvador Project Area: 160 sqm Project Year: 2011 Photographs: Edgard Cézar



 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Report: Tax Sales Fueling Second Foreclosure Crisis

The Boston-based National Consumer Law Center (NCLC) says outdated state laws that permit local governments to sell property through tax lien foreclosures are fueling a second nationwide foreclosure crisis.
"Homeowners throughout the nation, particularly (the) elderly and people with cognitive challenges, have lost or stand to lose family homes along with long-term equity which may represent their sole savings and security for retirement," said NCLC attorney John Rao, author of "The Other Foreclosure Crisis: Property Tax Lien Sales." A tax lien sale may be started over nonpayment of a small delinquent tax bill for a few hundred dollars, and then sold at a tax lien sale for simply the back taxes owed on the property. If the homeowner fails to buy back the property, the purchaser acquires the home for very little. Thus a $200,000 home might be sold for as little as $1,200, and then resold for a huge profit. Currently, annual tax lien sales total approximately $15 billion nationwide and are on the rise due to the weak job market, depressed home values, and an increase in mortgage foreclosures, the NCLC said.
Homeowners most vulnerable are those who have fallen into default because they are incapable of managing their financial affairs, such as individuals suffering from Alzheimer's, dementia, or other cognitive disorders. And one government study found that last year property tax foreclosures in New York City were highly concentrated among low-income communities with large African American and Latino populations, groups also targeted by subprime mortgage lenders.
"Our report is a wake-up call for states to reform tax sale laws to keep speculators from reaping huge windfalls at the expense of fragile citizens while still ensuring local governments receive much needed tax revenue," Rao said.

FHA new rule on "Collections Accounts" will affect new homeowners.....

A little-noticed mortgage rule change that took effect April 1 could create hassles for significant numbers of homebuyers who plan to use low down-payment FHA financing this spring.
The change affects anyone with one or more “collection” accounts buried away in national credit bureau files. These include medical, student loan, retail and other debts reported as unpaid – correctly or incorrectly – by creditors and subsequently sent to collection agencies.
In a reversal of its previous policy, the Federal Housing Administration says it will no longer approve applications where the borrowers have outstanding collections or disputed accounts with an aggregate of $1,000 or more in unpaid bills. Previously, the agency took a more lenient approach, allowing lenders to review borrowers’ overall credit situation and approve applications despite the presence of such accounts.

Mission Statement

Under its new rule, when collection items total $1,000 or more, the accounts will need to be paid off over a period of several months or be paid in full at or before the closing. In cases where the collections or disputed debts are attributable to identity theft, credit-card theft or unauthorized use of the applicant’s credit – or when collection accounts total less than $1,000 and are at least two years old – the new rule may be waived.
The policy shift, which the agency says is part of its ongoing efforts to reduce loan defaults and insurance claims, has upset some mortgage lenders specializing in FHA business. Clem Ziroli Jr., president of First Mortgage Corp. in Covina, Calif., estimates that under the new standard, “35 percent of borrowers who’ve obtained FHA financing historically (would be) ineligible.” He complained in an email that “FHA’s mission has always been to serve low- to moderate-income borrowers” – a population segment where the presence of one or more collections on a credit report is not unusual.
Jeremy House, a loan officer with national mortgage firm Prime Lending in Tempe, Ariz., noted that there are vast numbers of consumers with medical collection accounts outstanding in their credit files, sometimes long forgotten or dating back years, who will be hit hard by the policy change.
“I’m talking about people with solid incomes and high (credit) scores,” he said in an interview. He cited the example of an applicant with a FICO score of 770 who recently discovered that two new medical collections had popped up on his credit reports. The applicant said he had no knowledge of the unpaid bills or the doctor, and believes them to be in error. But the sudden appearance of the collection items knocked his FICO score down to 655. Under the new FHA policy, it could take months – at best – to dispute and resolve the issue.

Underwriting Minefield

Brad Yzermans, a loan officer with First Priority Financial Inc. in Temecula, Calif., says the heaviest impacts of the rule change will be in areas that have experienced high unemployment, negative equity and foreclosure problems over the past several years.
“I think this is a big deal,” he said in an interview. Large percentages of potential home purchasers – many of them minorities – inevitably have accumulated collection accounts as direct effects of local economic struggles. Yzermans said he’s already had to short-circuit the applications of three buyers who have open collections in their files but previously would have breezed through underwriting for an FHA loan.
Worse, he added, there are buyers who are now somewhere in the pre-closing pipeline whose case files won’t be assigned numbers at FHA by the April 1 deadline. Those people may now be forced to postpone their plans – or even lose the house they wanted to purchase.
Yzermans said that as a result of steadily rising insurance premiums and tightening of underwriting rules at FHA, “I’m starting to move my business more in the direction of conventional loans” – those eligible for purchase by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac – where borrowers can obtain low down-payment financing using private mortgage insurance.
Bottom line: If you are considering applying for an FHA-insured mortgage to buy a house, be aware of the new policy. Well in advance of any loan application, order your credit reports from all three national bureaus – Equifax, Experian and TransUnion – or get them free at the bureaus’ jointly run online site, www.annualcreditreport.com. If you find outstanding collections that exceed $1,000, dispute them, negotiate them down, pay them off or otherwise make them disappear if you want to zip through the FHA underwriting minefield.
Ken Harney’s email address is kenharney@earthlink.net.