Beautiful Counter Tops That Are Eco Friendly

By Jess Hendrich

Kitchens and food preparation areas have horizontal work areas called counter tops. Commonly, cabinets are installed above & below. Many different materials, such as stone, to wood, to plastic, to tiles, and even steel, among numerous others, can be used in making counter tops.

But because of the growing awareness for the environment, there are now materials for counter tops that are not only durable, but also great looking & environmentally friendly. So if you're looking for a new counter top and are leaning to materials that's a little kinder on the environment than laminate or stone, there are now several alternatives available that are created from recycled products, can be recycled at end-of-life -- or are both recycled & recyclable -- or are made from renewable resources.

Here are a few of the greener counter top alternatives:

1. Stainless steel - Stainless steel counter tops consist of, on average, 75% recycled steel and can contain up to 100% recycled content. They are non-porous & antibacterial, and emit no VOCs. However, they do show fingerprints & scratch quickly.

2. Recycled glass - There are many recycled glass counter tops on the market place these days. Each kind has their own unique charm.

3. BioGlass - This item is of 100% recyclable and recycled glass. It is available in 6 natural colours & can be used for backsplashes or counter tops.

4. Alkemi - This material is made from 35% "fine flake aluminum milling scrap," a post-industrial waste product. You can choose from 12 colours and three different surface treatments (textured, classic and honed).

5. Paperstone - It is a material made from either 100% post-consumer cardboard or 100% post-consumer office paper mixed with a non-petroleum based resin. It comes in a variety of colours and can be used for as kitchen & bathroom counter tops.

6. IceStone - This is made in Brooklyn, New York. The product uses 100% glass which is otherwise bound for landfill, mixed with concrete to create a surface that is twice as durable as marble. Like a stone product, it does need to be sealed on a regular basis. You can get it in a variety of colours.

About the Author:

Find Out a large selection of table top and counter tops making your kitchen a cleaner look.

College Logo Area Rugs

By Corey Barens

The start of every school term brings to mind another school year - assignments, research papers, exams and school clubs. It may be a dreadful thought to put the student life to gear yet again, but what gives it a boost is the school spirit that every student must feel when supporting the school's sports teams. Cheering for one's team playing against other schools is a serious matter. NCAA tournaments for instance generate such a huge following that it would be safe to assume that students spend a big chunk of their allowance on game tickets, parking, travel expenses (when alma mater is playing in another's home court) and souvenirs. The month of March is known as "March Madness" when the Regional and Final Four games are held.

Team loyalty greatly benefits the souvenir industry. With fans willing to buy anything and everything to support their favored teams, there are never enough T-shirts, caps, mugs, area rugs, towels, pens and other things displaying a school's color, team's logo or a player's name.

A very creative way to express a fan's loyalty is to show it right off, loud and clear, in a visible place. It can be his office, dorm room or home. And what better way than to lay out an area rug with the team logo or name for all to see? Now, that would be an undeniable truth of a fan's claim of devotion.

Rugs with team logos on them are usually printed in bright colors with standout type designs. They are definitely attention-getters and immediately become a conversation piece with first-time visitors. After all, how can you miss a three-foot white "T" on a bright orange background placed in the middle of the floor right where you walk? (The white "T" and orange background is the logo of the University of Tennessee Volunteers.)

The usual sizes of an area rug are 4' x 6' to 5' x 8', therefore using one for any room is possible. Ordering a bigger rug if needed is also feasible.

Souvenir items are sold in sport's venues, sporting goods store and the team's own souvenir booth or shop. However, area rugs may not be as widely available as the other souvenir items. They are obtainable in many Internet sources such as online stores, direct suppliers or collectors selling their goods online.

Area rugs as souvenirs are real prized possessions for die-hard fans. It's hard to miss out on these decorative items.

About the Author:

If you found this information about area rug decorating useful, then you are going to love these gray rugs.

Incorporating Area Rugs Into Your Home's Holiday Decoration

By Shawne M. Patrick

Decorating the house for the vacations is an experience that is's different for everyone. Whether you're the kind of person who likes to go flat out with flashy pieces or someone that likes to keep things straightforward, there are a great number of carpets that may slot in with your decorating preference.

Whatever holiday you are desiring to embellish for, there's often a standard color range that accompanies it. Halloween brings with it vibrant oranges and blacks while Thanksgiving is more for Earth tones. The holiday colors frequently mimic the season they are in such as the pastels in spring being used for Easter.

Of course you do not have to keep to tradition either. Purple, for instance, may be employed with gold and green to create a gorgeous Xmas motif. Nothing asserts you've got to be basic and conventional, but it is sensible to attempt to keep one palette going at a time vs bringing in too many different colors.

Area rugs are excellent for all rooms and this contains the kitchen. Most houses will have a small rug in front of the sink as a means to relieve stress on the legs and back when you're doing dishes. Even changing that rug throughout the year can bring new life to the room. There are a couple of things you should take under consideration when putting rugs in the kitchen. Don't get anything that is's too chunky and will not sit flat to the ground. You want to create a welcoming space not a trip danger. Also look into rugs that are flame retardant as well as water resistant.

What smarter way to enliven the dining room than with area rugs? Big meals are regularly key to today's vacations and gatherings. Add a subtle touch to the dining experience by putting an area rug under the table and chairs. This looks outstandingly nice if your dining room is hard wood. The color in the rug will draw guests' attention to it without being too overpowering. Your room can look complex with the rug being the decoration vs many pieces hung on your walls. If you do have hard wooden floors be sure to put a rug pad underneath it to avoid it from being moved around.

About the Author:

There are as many types of flooring and area rugs as there are reasons to employ them. Remember to stay with a color palette, think about what kind of traffic the rug will face, and most of all be creative!

Choosing a Quality Laminate Floor

By Shawne M. Patrick

No-one wants to be consistently replacing their flooring. People want to install something which will last, not only to economize, but also to save them the time and trouble of getting the floors redone again. In order to have your floors last as long as possible care must be taken when selecting, installing, and caring for your floors.

Laminated flooring is really easy to clean up if you know how. There are a couple of things that you should usually remember when you're caring for your laminate floors. When washing your floors, do not use a soap based detergent or a mop and glow sort of cleaner. This could only leave a lifeless soapy residue all over the floor that will build up and become hard and fragile later on . This can finish up cracking your floors or making them unstable if there's a enormous build up in a certain area and not in others.

See also: area rugs

when you have chose a sturdy flooring option for your room, you want to make sure that it is installed correctly . If it isn't installed in the right manner, it will be rather more likely to get damaged. Gaps or seams that aren't properly done can catch folk's feet and get torn up or damaged. Water and mud will be able to penetrate under the flooring as well . If you're not familiar and experienced with the installation process, it may be best to have your flooring installed by a professional. They know the right way to install different sorts of floors, and can even do the job a lot faster than you would be ready to do it yourself. There may be a wait if there is no installer available in your area right away, but it is going to be worth it to make sure your floor is well installed.

After installation, your flooring will need to have the right care in order to keep you floor looking nice so long as possible. This means that you need to constantly sweep, vacuum, and/or mop the floor as advised by the care instructions. You also want to be sure to put down protecting pads under furniture if you have wood floors so that the floor doesn't get scratched. Doing things such as not wearing your shoes in the house and quickly cleaning up any spills can help with this as well.

About the Author:

Overall, flooring can be lovely if you choose it in the right way. There is no reason that you can't have the look you want for a price that you are able to afford.

Fundamental Principles Of Interior Design

By Matthew Hilton

There are many crucial factors that must be kept in mind in the interior design of any area. Proper adherence to the principles given below will help in tackling with most of these aspects. Each of these has a special role to play and it may be utilized in many ways depending on the type of space you are dealing with.

Unity: As per this principle, while designing the interiors, care should be taken to maintain consistency in the overall design, as a structure should be treated as one entity, which is separated into a number of parts by walls. The core theme must always be kept in view.

Balance: This deals with the optimal spread of different items in an area. Objects which have equivalent visual appeal should be placed at different locations in the room to achieve a balance along a predetermined axis. Balance is categorized into three broad types. The first is symmetrical, which is the most traditional, and the easiest to achieve. Asymmetrical is the next kind of balance, which is very trendy, but requires a lot of deliberation and originality. The third kind of balance is radial, where you pick a proper centre and position objects relative to it.

Proportion: This deals with the relative dimensions of objects in an area. It is crucial that different articles are in sync with each other and with the space in terms of proportions. A lack of proportion will cause the room to lose its overall attraction as certain objects will be too visible, while others may stay hidden in the background.

Focus: Having a focus in a room is a sign of excellent interior design. Focal articles can be anything ranging from a furniture item to a beautiful painting or some other artistic piece. It is important that this object be related to the design of the whole room and that it has an impression on the observer. It must be eye-catching without appearing irrelevant in the room.

Rhythm: Having a rhythm too is absolutely important for attaining a good design. The design should appear to flow according to a pattern from one point to another. Using many arcs, ornate walls or floors, decorative fixtures at carefully chosen distances, alternate shades etc can help attain a perceptible rhythm.

Keeping these guidelines in mind will help in effective and appealing interior designing of your house. It is always advisable to take help from an interior design expert to take care of these factors and all the finer details.

About the Author:

Discover more about the best Interior Design firm providing an entire spectrum of Retail Design services.