The Gourmet Cupboard

Is your kitchen the least appealing room in your home? Do you tend to spend as little time as possible in it? This can have an effect on how healthily you’re cooking! If the thought of cooking and spending time in your kitchen disheartens you somewhat then you’re more likely to opt for microwaveable meals. Microwave meals aren’t generally the healthiest of meal choices, and so you should be encouraged to cook things from scratch! What other way can help to motivate you, than having a stylish and mess-free kitchen?

Clean your kitchen for a healthy environment

First, let’s eliminate any potential mess! Set yourself a time period on one or more days of a week, in which you’ll spend cleaning your kitchen. Write yourself some goals, such as; mopping the kitchen floor, changing the bin, and cleaning the cooker. Each week on the days you have decided on, you can tick off these goals. Achieving goals will also help to make you feel motivated.

Every evening (after you’ve done your day’s cooking), make sure that you or anyone else within your home does the washing up! Although this is a tiresome job, it needs to be done. What will deter you from cooking, more than a kitchen full of dirty pots and pans?

Re-decorating/designing your kitchen can help to persuade you to cook! Even color plays an important part in how hungry you feel, and how motivated you are to showcase your culinary skills. For example; the colors red and orange (with the connotations of warmth) help to increase your appetite, were as the color blue decreases it.

Modernize your kitchen by purchasing stylish kitchen taps, new cupboard doors, new kitchen surface tops, or maybe even invest in a new cooker or fridge. New cooking appliances can also help to persuade you to cook, as surely you’d want to try out how well they work?

Create a kitchen you’d like to spend more time in!

A few simple changes, to help modernize your kitchen can enable you to feel motivated when you enter that particular room, as it can help to make your kitchen feel more welcoming. It is also a good idea to buy a radio or television for your kitchen, so that you can listen to music or watch your favorite show, whilst you’re creating a meal. Also, if you have a few recipe books on show, these will tempt you to start using more recipes.

So follow these tips to liven up your kitchen and keep it clean, then instead of snacking and microwaving meals, you can start chopping up fresh ingredients, using spices and herbs, and cooking your food in numerous ways. Also, as we all know, a home-cooked meal is second to none!

Written on behalf of Tapshop321 kitchen taps and Stagetecture who are the original source of How Your Kitchen Can Help You To Be Healthy

Having your family spend quality time talking and eating together is a fantastic way to communicate with each other and maintain a healthy relationship as a family. Creating a suitable and well- structured kitchen can provide you with the perfect family bat cave; a place where everyone comes together to eat breakfast and dinner and discuss work and education. Planning a kitchen renovation can be a wonderful way of creating this place, but there are things to consider before any remodeling starts.

You must consider factors such as the layout of the kitchen, the space available to you, suitable features and fixtures and an appropriate color and design. Doing this correctly can have a wonderful effect on both the design and presentation of your home, and the how practical your kitchen is for your family’s needs. Here are a few simple ideas to consider when creating your dream family kitchen!

Have a Suitable Kitchen Layout

Planning ahead and thinking about where you want to position features such as the family dining table (if you decide to place this in the kitchen) can help you get a good idea of how much space you will have left over. Having a suitable amount of space left in your kitchen is quite important if any family members make home cooked meals on a regular basis; squeezing through a crammed kitchen whilst preparing an family dinner is not practical and can potentially be fairly dangerous.

If you choose to purchase a matching set of kitchen appliances then strategically space them out around your kitchen, this is an effective way of bringing a matching color scheme together. Coordinate this with the color and tone of curtains and blinds, tea, coffee and sugar pots and other small features around the kitchen.

Kitchen Family Features

Ensure the fixtures and features of your new kitchen provide for all of your family’s needs. If the working members are usually in a rush first thing in the morning then an coffee maker that has a timed feature may be hugely useful to them, as might a high powered toaster. Modern fridges are available with built in water and ice dispensers, this can prove to be a great way of encouraging the young ones to drink more water. The simple function of pressing a button to get water and having ice available next to it is somehow much more appealing to kids than water from kitchen taps! Including modern, hi-tech features is a great way to interest the kids and encourage them to get involved. Adding a smoothie maker or a juicer can encourage healthy living and help them to get their recommended five fruit and vegetables a day.

So there we are; some simple kitchen design ideas that can help you to create a kitchen that looks great, serves the family well and can bring the whole house together.

Your kitchen is one of the busiest centers in your home, where practicality and movement are on an equal level to the overall visual effect you’re trying to create, and how you feel when you’re in that space.

So, a kitchen remodeling project is a common ambition. But, in these times where money is tight, how do you get the results you need when your budget is limited? Writer and remodeling enthusiast Stephanie Staszko is here with a few pointers on where to start …

Kitchen remodelling is incredibly popular at this time of year, but with the expense of Christmas on the horizon it can seem ludicrous to start thinking about a new kitchen. Using thorough research techniques and subtle changes however, you can create high impact changes that will transform your kitchen without the high price tag.

Make subtle changes using lighting, fixtures, kitchen cabinet accessories

Certain subtle changes to your kitchen design and décor can completely transform the appearance of the room. If you currently have dim lighting in your kitchen then switching to halogen bulbs can help to brighten things up. The additional light won’t only enhance your visibility, it’ll also make your appliances and fittings appear shinier, which is essential if you’re aiming for a contemporary look.

Chrome is currently an incredibly popular finish for kitchen taps , cupboard handles and hinges and displayed crockery. Chrome fixtures complement black appliances such as refrigerators and toasters incredibly well which is why black is currently the height of kitchen fashion. If you’re due to upgrade kitchen appliances opt for black, energy efficient models. Energy efficiency is essential if you want to keep energy bills to a minimum so think of it as a long term investment.

Research reputable kitchen remodelers

If your kitchen is desperately falling into a state of disrepair then there are methods in which you can have a new and improved fitted kitchen on a budget without compromising quality. To get a bargain you’ll have to dedicate time to research and obtain recommendations from reliable sources. If you have any friends or acquaintances who’ve just had a fitted kitchen enquire; who fitted it, what their standard of work was like and most importantly, if they’re happy with the finished project.

Gather details of several different recommended and reputable kitchen remodelers who are willing to provide you with a quote. Now comes the interesting bit – you’ll need to haggle and bargain if you want a high quality kitchen for a reasonable price. Often kitchen remodelers can be swayed on their price or may throw a few extras in for the amount you pay. Never accept the first price (unless it’s very reasonable). Obviously you’ll want the installer who boasted the best recommendation, so work on bargaining with them to reach a price that suits you both.

Gather ideas for your dream kitchen to help you visualize what you want

If you’re unsure about what aspect of your kitchen needs transforming in order for you to feel satisfied, then starting a scrap book can help you to gather some ideas. Collect snippets of kitchens which you love from home magazines and interior design websites, then identify any recurring themes. Perhaps it’s a kitchen island that you desire? Or maybe you find those marble worktops simply irresistible?

If you call in a professional to do renovation work it can help them to understand exactly what you want if you show them pictures. Many people are unhappy with the result of their kitchen transformation due to misunderstandings between homeowner and kitchen fitter on exactly what the homeowner wants. Be very clear and describe how you visualise the finished project to the best of your ability to avoid confusion and disappointment – having the work redone can be incredibly costly.

Home improvement television shows can help to spark some ideas that you may never have thought of. They often advise you of how much each particular renovation project typically costs, so pay attention to find some hidden gems and note them down in your trusty scrapbook.

Kitchen remodeling doesn’t have to break the bank, you can get the kitchen you so badly desire if you use common sense and creativity. Also, getting your hands dirty with a spot of DIY can save you money for small projects. So get those overalls on!

Having your family spend quality time talking and eating together is a fantastic way to communicate with each other and maintain a healthy relationship as a family. Creating a suitable and well-structured kitchen can provide you with the perfect family bat cave; a place where everyone comes together to eat breakfast and dinner and discuss work and education. Planning a kitchen renovation can be a wonderful way of creating this place, but there are things to consider before any remodelling starts. You must consider factors such as the layout of the kitchen, the space available to you, suitable features and fixtures and an appropriate colour and design. Doing this correctly can have a wonderful effect on both the design and presentation of your home, and the how practical your kitchen is for your family’s needs. Here are a few simple ideas to consider when creating your dream family kitchen!

Have a Suitable Layout

Planning ahead and thinking about where you want to position features such as the family dining table (if you decide to place this in the kitchen) can help you get a good idea of how much space you will have left over. Having a suitable amount of space left in your kitchen is quite important if any family members make home cooked meals on a regular basis; squeezing through a crammed kitchen whilst preparing an family dinner is not practical and can potentially be fairly dangerous.

If you choose to purchase a matching set of kitchen appliances then strategically space them out around your kitchen, this is an effective way of bringing a matching colour scheme together. Coordinate this with the colour and tone of curtains and blinds, tea, coffee and sugar pots and other small features around the kitchen.

Family Features

Ensure the fixtures and features of your new kitchen provide for all of your family’s needs. If the working members are usually in a rush first thing in the morning then an instant coffee would be hugely useful to them, as would a high powered toaster. Modern fridges are available with built in water and ice dispensers, this can prove to be a great way of encouraging the young ones to drink more water. The simple function of pressing a button to get water and having ice available next to it is somehow much more appealing than water from kitchen taps! Including modern, hi-tech features is a great way to interest the kids and encourage them to get involved. Adding a smoothie maker can encourage healthy living and help them to get their recommended five fruit and vegetables a day.

So there we are; some simple ideas that can help you to create a kitchen that looks great, serves the family well and can bring the whole house together.

Renovating your kitchen is a fantastic way of adding renewed life you your home; it can give you extra space, practical appliances and desirable fixtures. There is a wide range of modern and contemporary kitchen suites available and choosing one that is right for your needs is vital before you commit to buying.

Many people crave the fashionable style and modern amenities that you find in a 21st century kitchen, but feel that the homely charm and character of traditional kitchens express their personality a little better. If this is the kitchen for you then you’re in luck! Here are a few useful thoughts to help you find a nice compromise between hi tech modern and charming traditional kitchens.

Style

A great way to add a classic look to traditional kitchens is by adding vintage cook’s tables and china cupboards; this gives off a strong classical feel, accents the theme of the kitchen well and shows you have a keen eye for style. Combining this with some granite wall and floor tiles can add a modern touch to the design of the room. Choosing vintage features in modern colours is another way to combine these two styles, most vintage units are available in black and other modern tones so consider this when designing the layout and colour of your kitchen. Small modern features in a classic looking kitchen such as venetian blinds and new styles of kitchen tap/washing basin units can add a 21st century feel to traditional kitchens. Keep an eye out for features such as these; it is important not to choose anything that looks too out of place and detracts from the overall impressiveness of your new kitchen.

Practicality

If you are looking to stay with a purely vintage look in your renovated kitchen then there are still many options available to you when shopping for practical amenities. Features such as vintage or ‘retro’ fridge freezer units can really add character to traditional kitchens, as well as being a spacious and practical addition. Smaller features such as the household toasters and kettles can be bought as part of matching sets in a truly fantastic classic design, these look great when bought as a set and can help to bring the entire room together if placed strategically around the kitchen. Ovens and cookers are also available in classic designs; as these are more expensive, use them to base the colour scheme of your kitchen accessories (kettle, toaster etc.).

So there we are; a few simple hints and ideas that can help you to add a fantastic looking traditional kitchen to your home without compromising in practicality or luxury.

Written by Daniel Travis – Brown on behalf of Tapshop321 who are the original source of Traditional Kitchens follow him on Twitter @DanTravisBrown

Who doesn’t salivate at the thought of a sparkling new kitchen or a luxurious new bathroom? We both do! I (Sarah) even have three scrapbooks chock-full of clippings from shelter magazines like Veranda and House Beautiful with her “dream” kitchen, bathroom, and home office. A girl can dream, right?But let’s get real about home improvements for a moment. Ogling over pretty pictures in a magazine is one thing. Committing to and then living through a renovation is another thing entirely. There’s a reason all those home makeover shows do so well in the ratings. They let us enjoy the visual payoff of a total room transformation without actually having to lift a finger. The fact of the matter is, taking on a home improvement is no small feat; it requires time, money, and, if you want to conserve those first two elements, organization. If you’re busy, and who isn’t these days, adding managing the dozens of details of a home improvement project to your overflowing to-do list can be just the thing that pushes you over the edge into total chaos.Breathe.It doesn’t have to be so stressful. There is a way to right-size home improvement projects so that they don’t upend your already full life.

Here are five ways to keep any project, big or small, under control and yourself sane during the process.

1. Know before you go.
If you don’t have real clarity on what the real project priorities are for you before you turn to an expert for guidance, whether that’s a magazine, blog, or interior designer/architect/contractor, things can get unwieldy quickly. Industry experts of all stripes tend to err on the side of “all details are important” if you don’t tell them otherwise. So step one of any project should be: decide on what the real priorities are. For example, if you’re working on a kitchen, you might prioritize cabinets and counters over appliances and light fixtures. Clarity on your priorities means that, when the inevitable budget-busting options are presented down the line, you’ll know how to choose (or direct someone else to choose).

2. Don’t give out any cookies.
There’s a marvelous children’s book out there titled If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, which is about a boy who gives a mouse a cookie, who in turn, keeps asking for additional things. It’s a good metaphor for the world of home improvement. If you give a contractor (or a spouse, or a decorator) the okay to expand the scope of the project once, they will likely keep asking to do more and more things as part of the project going forward. If you’re not careful, what starts small can easily become an unwieldy, expensive mega-operation. Before you hire one person, set foot in a home improvement store, or sit down with a decorator, designer or architect, get very, very clear on the scope of the project and the budget. Write them down. Give copies to everyone involved in the project. Not only will this save you money, but it will also save you time; you’ll be able to cut short any and all discussions related to work that is outside the scope of your project.

3. Make a GANTT chart.
In plain English, a gantt chart is a bar chart that shows the general flow of a project, from left to right. You can create them by hand, or use a computer program like Excel or PowerPoint if you’re so inclined. In the left margin of a page, generate a list of tasks required to get the job done, estimate how long each will take, and whether or not any one is dependent on another being completed first. Then, put dates across the top of the page. Then simply map out when each task can be done. To keep a project on time (and as a result, more likely on-budget too) you will need to pay close attention to any and all dependencies as the job progresses. If you’re hiring a contractor or outside expert to manage things, this is a great thing to ask them to complete as part of the bidding process.

4. Make “option” selections in bulk.
Walk into any home improvement store and you’ll be struck by how many options there are. Who knew that knobs came in so many shapes and sizes? It is very easy to get bogged down by all of the details, especially if you deal with them as they come up. Remember one email or phone call interruption in your day costs you a whole lot more than the 5-10 minutes it takes you to answer the question. It takes your brain another 20 minutes to settle back down from the interruption and get back to what you were doing. So, rather than making decisions piecemeal, designate a few hours on one day to make all of the decisions you need to make regarding knobs, light fixtures, door handles, paint finishes, fabric selections, and the like.

5. Keep it together with a project folder.
There is always lots of “stuff” that accompanies a home improvement project – from estimates to swatches and the like. Keep it all together in one binder and you’ll likely save yourself hours, not to mention blood pressure points.

We know following these simple tips will help keep you on track and your home improvement project organized and on time!

Buttoned Up is dedicated to helping stretched & stressed women get organized. Co-founders Alicia Rockmore & Sarah Welch team up with a group of Gurus to give you tips & products for all your messy, stressed needs & introduce “imperfect organization.” Visit http://www.getbuttonedup.com to see which Guru matches your style & get info on Everyday Life, Life Essentials & Life Events

It is possible to make a decent wine using ordinary household items and grape juice from concentrate. You will need 3 cans of grape juice concentrate. You need enough to equal 144 ounces when prepared. Read the labels to determine this amount. You will also need ½ cup of sugar, and yes, you need real sugar and a gallon jug.

The idea is to keep it as cheap as possible so any old milk or juice jug should do the trick. You will also need water for this process; distilled water does not work very well for this purpose. Regular tap water works best. Oh, don’t forget the balloons these are imperative.

The final ingredient is yeast and you will also need a pin. There are a few accessory items that will be needed, namely a siphoning hose, a funnel and a measuring cup. Now that we have all of our ingredients we are ready to make our wine. What you have may not look like much but these common items will produce a most remarkable common wine.

The yeast is the most important of all of the ingredients. Without yeast fermentation could not take place. It is used to make all alcoholic beverages. Yeast is a fungus that eats the sugar combined with the water and what they excrete is alcohol. This is a very simple explanation for the process of fermentation but it is accurate. There is yeast made exclusively for making wine but baker’s yeast will do in a pinch. It gives the wine a very strong and pungent flavor.

1. Make the grape juice but only use two cans of water per container of concentrate. The yeast will eat a lot of sugar so you want more concentrate than juice. Another consideration when making wine from grape juice is the high acid content of concentrated grape juice. You will need to neutralize the acidity of the grape juice. This should be done before you add the yeast. The method here will neutralize about 50% of the acid. Using a common antacid in the amount of 500mils per 1.3liters you can neutralize enough acid to make your wine actually taste more like wine than grape juice. Crush the tablets and mix them into the grape juice. Another tried and true method is to simply add 1 teaspoon of baking soda per gallon of grape juice. This concludes step one.

2. Shake the mixture up well. This is also a very important step. The juice needs to be properly aerated for the process to work to perfection. Now add the sugar and shake again, make sure it all dissolves to avoid flavor problems later on.

3. Hydrate the yeast before adding it to the mixture. Follow the directions on the package, let stand before stirring. Now add a few spoonful’s of sugar and watch out for the foaming action. Use the funnel to add all of the ingredients to the jug. This will help to avoid spillage. Shake vigorously to completely incorporate the mixture into the juice.

4. Put a few pinholes in a balloon and firmly seat the balloon on the top of the jug. When fermentation takes place the pinholes will allow gases to escape. Push the ballooning end inside the container and if you desire use a rubber band to hold the end in place around the mouth of the jug.

All that is left is the wait. Within 12 hours you should be able to see and hear signs of the fermentation process. The balloon should begin to rise from the inside of the jug. If this takes more than 24 hours you may need to add additional yeast. In 2-3 weeks the second stage of fermentation should begin.

The balloon is the indicator if it has deflated then it is time to remove it and add the cap. Now place the jug in a cool place that is around 55 degress and let sit for a month or two for the best flavor. If you strain the finished product into a new container it will give you a better quality wine.

Pat Lindle owns an e-commerce store where customers can buy wine online. He is a wine broker with many years of experience in the wine industry.

It had to happen I suppose. I often used to imagine I’d be sitting at home watching the box one day and someone would actually die in front of the camera. A real life death, as you might say. When it did take place, they brought the curtain down double quick, so nobody was sure if it was part of the act or whether Tommy had really heard God calling, “Exit stage left.” Even the broadcaster went off air to cover up. But we all knew in our hearts what had happened.

The act was his usual bumbling ‘failed’ conjuring tricks mixed up with jokes and off-beat anecdotes. In anyone else’s hands it would have been a shambles; an invitation to lob rotten fruit and shout “Get off…!!!” But with Tommy, the audience dissolved, begging for more. He only had to lumber on to the stage for them to laugh. It’s a gift given to few.

How fitting if he’d just finished it all with one of his brilliant one liners: “A man went to the doctor’s. The doctor said, “You’ve got four minutes to live”. The man says, “Is there anything you can you give me?” The doctor says, “A boiled egg?”

I was thinking about Tommy Cooper the other day. It happened a week before I started wearing my new prescription glasses. They’re great. I always get online spectacles, have done for years, these really are cheap glasses. Nothing wrong with low price glasses, in fact I’ve got myself designer frames. Gant, can you believe? And this year’s styles…!!!

The latest glasses came courtesy of a bout of DIY, although to be frank I can’t be doing with it normally. Get an expert in, I always say. On the other hand it was only a bit of wood on the shed door. Needed a swift nail, so I thought it wouldn’t hurt to do a tiny harmless repair. Did I say ‘wouldn’t hurt’? If only.

I selected the nail from a bag I keep in the kitchen. It was a flat-headed two incher if memory serves. I wiped the rust off the head of the hammer; I think the next door neighbour was the last to use it, and carried the step ladder down the garden path to the shed where I keep the mower. A piece of planking was flapping around in the wind, about seven feet off the ground. The noise kept the neighbourhood dogs awake, and they in turn made a noise that kept the neighbourhood awake. It needed fixing quick.

I stood on the second step, lined up the plank, held the nail between thumb and forefinger in the position I thought I wanted, and tried to focus on the head. To the regret of my thumb, I found I couldn’t focus clearly on the nail. It seemed there might actually be two nails, possibly three. In a rare show of bravado, it could have been stupidity, I decided to go ahead anyway and hit it. It’s difficult to describe quite how painful a full blow with a hammer is to an unprotected thumb. In the seconds that followed I did my utmost to let the neighbours know how exquisite was my agony. I might have used unusual words.

I arranged to get an eye test. My optician is Polish. She looks about fifteen and wears bifocals in a designer frame.

“What you do to thumb?” – looking at the bandage. She waggled her own thumb in case I hadn’t quite understood. I could see she was struggling to keep her face straight. I told her I couldn’t focus on a nail I was trying to hit. I told her I needed new prescription glasses.

“You need glasses.” Smart girl. “Maybe try intermediate focus lenses. Is half between reading lens and distance lens. Intermediate is standard for computer – yes. Be standard for hitting nail as well I guess.”

I got my prescription and disappeared on to the street to the sound of muffled laughter. I always buy my glasses direct. It’s best to get glasses online, in my opinion. There’s a great selection of low price frames and designer glasses and savings of more than half the high street prices. I didn’t bother with the intermediates lenses, I don’t think I’m going to be doing DIY any time soon. I stuck with the low price bifocals in the Gant frames.

The whole episode reminded me of the great Tommy Cooper skit. He puts a bottle and a glass on a table, with a rubber ball in between. He looks at the audience as if they need to know what’s on the table. “Glass, bottle. Bottle, glass,” he says. He moves them around the table and brings them together quickly before palming the ball. “Bottle, glass. Glass, bottle.”

In my case it was, “Hammer, thumb. Thumb, hammer.” Like Tommy, I brought the two things together quickly. At the time I felt it might be like dying on stage, only probably not quite as bad. The good news is, at least I can see what I’m doing now with my new spectacles.