New HomeOwner Newsletter Issue #2: Padded cells

When you finally get to move into your new place & a lil time goes by you might notice that you have forgotten to do a few important things. You’ll remember to buy furniture, soap, linens, smoke detectors (Very important btw), hangers, BUT then you’ll sit on your couch and realize, 

“Oh crap, I forgot to put up paintings on my walls!! Yeesh it looks a lil bit like a Padded Cell, YIKES!” 

Yeah my walls are still bare. I live in a studio so that’s the non-window wall & non-open space. However I’m a lil lost as to what to do with it. I could put a cluster of prints above my desk & then one big picture above my bed or vise versa? My color scheme is primarily red & white so I don’t want to have a painting with a lot of colors be the pink elephant in the room. Maybe a black & white big photo over the bed & then a set of photo or storage cubes hung above the desk?  I’m not sure.

Any Ideas for my Naked Walls? I’m very open to suggestions!

Now what else have I learned? A few very important things.

 

1. Replace ALL fire alarms & carbon monoxide units or if they are new replace the batteries. The BEEP of the battery dying in the middle of the night will be so annoying you will have to fix it in the middle of the night or least get up to take it down. 

2. If you are moving out of your parent’s house to your own place RESIST the urge to buy ONLY junk food. Keep chips & dips in your home only when you are having company. Midnight cravings will hit.

3. ONE HOLIDAY AT A TIME! Stick to just Valentine’s Day, just Christmas, just Halloween, etc. Do NOT OVERLAP! I realized I still had a mini Christmas tree up the other day in February. I quickly took it down.  Storage containers are great for extra ornaments, skeletons, & shamrocks. =)

4. This one may seem simple but it’s easier said the done. TAKE THINGS OUT OF THE BOXES! That set of bowls in the bottom cupboard, take it out of the box; the coffee maker won’t work in the box so take it out…I think you get the picture. =) 

5. Cookbooks will become your new best friend not just that gift you got from that weird aunt that is just decoration for your coffee table.

1.       6. Oh yeah btw just give your boyfriend a drawer for extra clothes & a place to keep his toothbrush. Or girlfriend. They aren’t going to move in with you they just want to be a lil more comfortable. Don't have this unnecessary fight.

               

Those are just a few things that I’ve learned in the past few weeks. I have an interesting idea for this feature that I will ask next time. 

Stay tuned.

New Feature: New HomeOwner Newsletter...

One of my highlights & big accomplishments of 2010 was buying my first home. It's has finally sunken in that I have my own place. It took a month to crack me over the head but it is real. I'm not going to wake up & be back in my parents house. I'm waking up in my new place & all the responsibilities it will now entail.

Geez how many "New" 's can I fit into that title? I think it's stressed enough just how new this process is to me. But I'm not alone. Whether it be your first home or you've just moved out of your parent's house or just moved you will find yourself with alot of New things to do.

Well let's get started...Here's a list of things that I've done today that without a ice storm making my job close I wouldn't have done BUT then realized,

"Oh I really need to remember to do this in the future."
                                                                                                                               

1. There are radiators in my condo. They will collect dust. There is no Dust Fairy or influx of wind that will clean them. YOU have to dust them & USE a cloth towel to do it NOT a paper towel. It's winter, they will be hot to the touch, duh.

2. There is no such thing as a vintage Valentino or Alexander McQueen broomstick with pail that you will need to preserve. Therefore USE your broom & pail to clean up your kitchen. Enough said.

3. When your Mom buys you a mini vacuum cleaner so you don't have to lug out the HUGE one you have in your closet...USE IT. The lil lint & pieces of paper & other crap you find on the floor isn't going to magically go into the garbage.

4. The Coffee Ring on your coffee table is NOT a wise Decor Choice. In none of these online magazines is someone showcasing "Fabulous Coffee Rings" so use the Fantastik to clean it up.

5. The bills will actually start piling up if you just bring your mail upstairs and NOT open it all until a day you're off from work. There is something called PAY BY THIS DATE. So you must open your mail everyday to avoid Late Fees & Interest. Thankfully I paid everything on Time. Whew!

                                                                                                                                 

I think I'm going to do this feature every once in a while in the next upcoming months to highlight lil things that might seem like common knowledge but yeah know every once in a while you need reminders of simple things.

Life as a new homeowner...what a new adventure this is...=)