Greening The House On A Budget

The idea of making a house more environmentally friendly makes a few people nervous. It’s not that they don’t accept the idea of going green, many certainly do, but the cost seems frightening. Even though energy-efficient modifications pay for themselves in the long run with lower utility bills, some still shy away because of what they think are large upfront costs. These homeowners need to put their minds at rest. A house can be made more energy efficient and use considerably less fossil fuel with several modifications that don’t cost a lot of money.

Perhaps the easiest way to conserve energy is with good insulation. Those areas of the house that don’t get much use, such as the attic or garage, can be insulated against the cold. If this activity is followed up with programmable thermostats, then the energy expended to heat these less used sections can be reduced to just what is needed to prevent pipes from freezing. The thermostats work extremely well with under floor heating pads. The pads are means of keeping warm just those areas of the house that need to be heated. Just as with insulation, the use of heating pads in home offices or a basement room will allow the thermostats to be lowered, conserving energy as a consequence. Older homes can become drafty as the wood surrounding the windows warps and
deteriorates. Newer models are available that have better insulation, keeping the warm air in and the cold air out.

Needed repair work can also be green and easy on the wallet as well. Older houses sometimes need to have the floors replaced. Anyone who owns a home with hardwood floors hates to lose the beautiful appearance but those worn-out floorboards can be replaced with bamboo, which looks just as good. Tile can be used in the kitchen for replacement work and cork can be used in the bathrooms. These materials are not terribly expensive and, most important of all; it means that scarce hardwood doesn’t have to be used.

Appliances and computer equipment consume a fair amount of energy, often more than what is truly needed. The homeowner who intends to replace the refrigerator or computer can easily get more energy-efficient products. The ENERGY STAR program awards its label to those products that are proven to be energy-efficient. This includes refrigerators, air conditioners, and even laptops. Anyone who purchases a product with the ENERGY STAR label is buying something that leaves a very small carbon footprint.

Very few houses are totally energy inefficient, and there really is no reason to spend money on what is not needed. Those who are thinking of doing some house modifications may want to have a home energy audit performed. While this does cost some money, it also pinpoints where corrections have to be made to reduce excessive energy use. It consequently allows a homeowner to spend home-improvement money that much more effectively.

There is, by the way, some financial assistance possible for those wishing to make the house more energy efficient. Depending on location, there are tax incentives and rebates purchasing energy-efficient products, and to help with the cost of any renovation work. This public assistance will vary from place to place, and the ENERGY STAR website has identified a number of possible sources of financial aid.

All the discussion about energy and cost efficiencies shouldn’t hide the core idea of going green. It is a principle which accepts prudent stewardship over scarce natural resources and a desire to maintain a healthy environment, both inside and outside of a house. Creating a more Eco friendly residence needn’t be a frightening expense. It can be done on a strict budget and the results are both lower utility bills and a greener, healthier environment.

About the Author

Jared Diamond is a contributor with Home Star Search, an online informational resource of homes for rent to own. Jared writes extensively on topics ranging from energy efficiency to personal finance.

 

How To Winterize Your Garage For Lower Energy Costs

In today’s economy everybody is looking for ways to cut down their monthly costs. People are reducing expenses in a lot of creative ways. Some people are spending less money at restaurants, while others are avoiding their former shopping haunts. The especially economically minded do all their shopping bulk. You and your family are probably employing your own budget minded plan. Hopefully that plan includes ways to cut your energy usage, because that is not just good for the environment, it is good for your bank account.

In addition to saving money by using less water and electricity, you can also reduce your energy expenses through winterization. Different parts of your house require different winterizing strategies. Here are some ways to winterize your garage for lower energy costs. Once you have finished the garage, you can move on to the rest of the house.

Keep your garage doors closed. This is a simple way to reduce the amount of heat that escapes from your home. Just be sure to always close the doors to your garage, even if you are only going to be out for a few minutes. Think of your open garage door as a giant gaping hole in your wallet, just letting all the money fall out!

Winterize the garage doors. Closing your garage door is the first step, but heat can escape from the edges of the garage doors as well, and even these relatively small cracks can have real impacts on your bill. Sweep the doorway and then examine it. Is it worn out and in need of replacement? Add rubber weather stripping to seal the air inside.

Install solar lights outside. This is actually an investment with benefits all year round but that is especially useful in the winter. In the winter months the sun goes down earlier, making lighting more important and used for more hours every day. Solar lights will cost you very little up front and the energy is free.

Clean up and organize your garage. If you let your garage get messy enough, you won’t be able to park your vehicle inside of it. This is fine in the summer months but in the winter it is always better to keep your car inside your garage. It will keep it protected from snow, hail, and other severe winter weather. You will save money on maintenance for your car if you take better care of it. Use the opportunity to get rid of anything that you have been keeping in the garage that you no longer need. Donate it all to a local Salvation Army or Goodwill. If you find something really valuable, sell it on eBay!

Insulate your hot water heater. A lot of people keep their hot water heaters in their garages and that is okay. It still needs to be weatherized, though. Most hardware and home supply stores sell hot water heater insulation, called jackets or blankets. This can save you as much as 9% on your bills for hot water heating, according to the Consumer Guide to Home Energy Savings.

These are just a few ways you can start winterizing your home, beginning with the garage. Winterization is good for you and for the planet, so it is a win/win situation!

About the Author

Jerry Davidson has been writing about eco-friendly home improvements for several years. You can find Jerry reviewing garage doors, high speed traffic doors and other products for Door Systems, in hopes of perfecting more energy efficient door technology.

Tips For Green Living In Apartments

The more we learn about our role in the degradation of the environment, resource depletion and global climate change, many are looking for ways that they can reduce their impact on the environment. There are tons of things that everyday people are doing that are reducing their carbon footprints, and thus their impact and burden on the environment. For those who own their own homes, going green is fairly easy as one has complete control over what changes can and cannot be made to said structure. However, there are many millions of people who live in apartments.

Renting an apartment means that one does not own their residence and this significantly constrains what they are and are not allowed to do on their property. What ways can someone who lives in a rental, who does not own their own home, go green and help reduce their impact on the environment? Is it possible to go green in a place that one does not own? Absolutely. There are tons of small things one can do in an apartment that will really add up to a reduction in one’s energy usage, waste and thus their impact on the planet.

Recycle

This is one of the easiest things that one can do to reduce their impact on the environment. Most apartment complexes now have deals with municipal trash collectors or private companies to provide receptacles for recycling in the complex. This makes it as easy as taking out one’s trash to recycle. Many cities can easily handle a wide variety of different materials, taking tons of garbage out of the waste stream.

Reduce Energy Usage

While one cannot change out the major appliances in their apartment, they can make better use of them. Rather than heating one’s whole apartment, consider efficient space heaters that will heat just the room that you are in. This can save a significant amount of energy and money, while one does not have to sacrifice comfort during the colder months. During the hotter months, taking advantage of fans that will help to increase air flow can help to keep one’s dwelling cooler with less air conditioning.

Little Changes that Make a Big Difference

There are tons of small ways that one can become more efficient and green in our apartment living. Change out all lights with more energy efficient compact fluorescent bulbs. These save a significant amount of energy in our home lighting needs. There are also attachments for shower heads and sinks that reduce the flow of water and can actually be turned on or off while the water is still on. This means you can easily turn off the water while you soap up. Then, turn it on again when you need it. This can significantly reduce water usage. Also consider other water-saving techniques such as using stale drinking water as a means of watering one’s plants.

The activities described above are, by no means, the only things that one living in an apartment can do to reduce their impact on the environment. These tips are just amongst the most obvious and common. The more people who make these little changes, who take these little steps, really reduces the impact that humans have on our environment. Even if one lives in an apartment, it is easy to play your part and live a greener life. These tips are just first steps, once one gets into the mindset of efficiency, of using less, more and more ideas for ways to become even more efficient will become apparent.

About the Author

Alex Jordan writes on anything from green living, to mortgages, to purchasing Tribeca apartments.

How To Install An Electric Car Charging Station In Your Garage

More electric vehicles are popping up on the roads today as consumers decide to ditch their gas-guzzling cars for a ride they can simply plug in each night.

Driving an electric vehicle is only half the process in saving gas, however. You also need a place to plug it in every night. That means you need to install — or have someone help you install — an electric vehicle charging station in your garage.

There are a few things to keep in mind before going out and buying a do-it-yourself charging station kit, including:

• How much power does your car require to fully charge?
• How big is your garage and where is the best spot to install your charging station?
• Is this something you can really do on your own, or do you need the help of a professional electrician?

Whatever the case, here are some easy steps to follow when installing your electric charging station in your garage.

Determine the amount of power needed

Off the bat, it’s a safe bet that you’ll need at least a 220/240 volt outlet. This should ensure more than enough power to give your EV the amount of juice it needs every night for the morning’s commute.

Most new electric vehicles, including the Chevrolet Volt and Nissan Leaf require a 240-volt home charging dock. And more importantly, if you buy one of these new vehicles, they will come with a branded charging station that you can pay for and even have professionally installed, leaving the guessing game out of the whole process.

Make EV charging look good in your garage

Charging stations don’t have to be an eyesore for your garage. In fact, you can make them look really fun and attractive.

One idea that I’ve seen before is making the charging station look like an old-time gas station pump. Because you essentially are “filling up” your car (thankfully not with gas!) it makes total sense and is fun for your friends and family to look at.

Most charging stations are quite sleek and can look great in any garage.

What if I want to do this on my own?

If you’re confident enough in your handy-man skills, you might choose to forgo on a professional installing your charging station. Just remember that if you’re not a trained electrician or have ample experience in working with electricity, it’s highly recommend you pay someone to install your charging station.

There are kits out there, however, that run anywhere from $900 to $1,500 on average. There’s even a video that the U.S. Department of Energy put out to help in your do-it-yourself efforts, although it’s certainly not geared toward amateurs.

These kits will include instructions, but we cannot express enough how important it is to have some kind of electrical expertise when making this decision. You don’t want to zap yourself and cause injury.

The bottom line

Building your own car charging station is a very technical task that shouldn’t be considered a simple weekend project. In fact, it’s dangerous if you don’t know what you’re doing.

Most car dealerships that sell electric cars know reputable contractors that will install your charging station for anywhere from $1,200 to $2,200. Some dealerships may even throw in a deal that includes free installation of a car charging station.

If you’re interested in an electric vehicle, you’re doing a great thing for this world by limiting the amount of emissions in the world, but make sure to have a solid plan in place on installing your electric car charging station in your garage.

About the Author

Sarah Bolt works and writes for Steel Line Garage Doors and hopes to see an electric vehicle charging station in every garage one day.

Are Tankless Water Heaters Worth the Price?

It’s best to understand all the potential factors when making the decision to buy a tankless water heater. We look at all of these, ranging from monetary cost and space used, to being eco-friendly when deciding if they are worth the price.

Save energy

Water heats only on demand with a tankless water heater system, making them more energy efficient. With a conventional water heater, the water is sedentary and heats all the time, waiting until it’s needed. Heat is lost from the storage tank as it sits. This is wasting the energy. Since most energy originates from dirty sources, such as coal, wasted energy is not good for our planet.

Unlimited Supply

I don’t like to run out of hot water in the middle of taking a shower. This will not happen with a tankless heater because of it heating on demand. This is especially important for big hot water users such as large families or laundrymats.

Conserve water

Water conservation is high up on the list for those of us concerned about the environment. Having an unlimited supply may encourage some of us to use more. Installing a recirculation system allows us to improve water conservation by avoiding having the hot water run all the way from the unit to each individual water outlet.

Save Space

Having a hot water tank takes more space. So, if saving space is a big consideration, making the switch to tankless is certainly worth it. I often see apartment buildings benefit enormously from getting rid of the tanks. Installation is even done outside of the building with certain units.

Water Quality

We like tankless systems because it’s easier to maintain the quality of the hot water. Sedentary water may develop bacteria when it sits too long or is not hot enough. This bacteria causes nasty odors. Water also builds a bigger density of minerals, making it harder when it sits in a tank. Because of quality issues, it’s recommended not to drink or cook with hot water from a traditional water tank.

Money

Whether these units are cost effective depends on a number of factors. Initial costs for the system, including installation will be higher than a tank heater. Energy monetary savings vary depending on exactly how energy efficient they are and the type of energy used. However, tankless heaters last about ten years longer on average and are always more efficient than the alternative, making it likely you will save money in the long run.

Individual Preference

Certain benefits are more attractive to some than others. This is why we consider all of them when deciding if a tankless water heater is the best option. Being eco-friendly is a bigger consideration for some, than if it will be cost effective. Some are more concerned about up-front costs than long-term price savings.

Ben Franklin, a plumbing company in Allen, specializes in tankless water heater installation and services. 

Why Use A ‘Green’ Removal Company?

There’s a lot of pressure for people to be ‘green’ nowadays, be it turning lights off when you leave the room, walking instead of driving or simply recycling your used items. Although many people do use these simple tips to using less energy, you can easily take it one step further by researching the companies you use, so if you’re moving house soon why not choose a green removal company? Some benefits of doing this include:

Saving money – Using greener solutions can often be cheaper than not, so these companies may be able to give you a better deal.

Raising awareness – People will see that you’re using a ‘green’ company to help you move house, so they will hopefully do the same when the time comes!

Saving the environment – Reducing greenhouse gases by using a company with low C02 emissions can seriously help the atmosphere.

A warm fuzzy feeling – When you’re helping the environment by going green you can’t help but feel good about yourself!

Using a removal company can save a lot of stressing over small details, giving you time to successfully pack and get ready for your move whilst the rest is sorted out for you. Choosing a green removal company couldn’t be easier, you can use search engines, your local phone book or comparison websites such as the House Removal Company to find the best one for you. Researching the company you choose beforehand is a great idea, as you can truly see what steps they’re taking to save energy.

Why use a removal company anyway?

Hiring a removal company when moving home can save you a lot of time and hassle in the long run. Although many people feel that if they hire a van themselves and do their own move independently that they will save a lot of money, whilst this is true the money that you save can often not be worth the work you have to put in to organize your move! It can be very difficult to plan your move as there are an awful lot of little details that need sorting and coming home from work then having to try and organize your move will get old very quickly.

When it comes to moving in day a few extra pairs of hands will not go unnoticed, it can be very tiring having to drive all the way to your new home, particularly if you’re moving a long distance, and you won’t feel up to having to move all the boxes out of your van by the time you get there. This can all be resolved by hiring a removal company, and I can assure you it will help ease a lot of the stressful moving in process.

Greener Solutions

One of the biggest problems we face today is global warming. Many bigger companies are now using vehicles with lower greenhouse gas emissions, such as using hybrid vehicles or bio-diesel to try and help the problem. Although there’s going to be a lot of driving around when moving, try and cut down on the number of vans that are used, or the number of trips that are taken to get you all moved in by using efficient packing techniques. It is very important nowadays for companies to reduce their carbon-footprint, so selecting a company that are actively working towards low CO2 emissions is a perfect green solution.

Packing and Storage

Another way of reducing their carbon footprint is by using recycled products. If you buy a moving kit from your removal company you will see that a lot of the items available are recycled, particularly cardboard boxes. Buying recycled products doesn’t only save on energy, it also helps reduce the amount of waste going to landfill, another rapidly growing issue today. The added bonus of buying a moving kit is that you can use all of the materials you bought for moving as storage in your new home! Any plastic boxes can be used to store toys, spare bedding or books, and are a neat solution to putting away any spare items. Leftover cardboard boxes are also great to keep stuff in the attic or garage, as you can fill them up, label them and bring them down when you need them, for example when storing Christmas decorations. Alternatively, if you don’t need any of your moving kit any more you can take it to your local recycling center so it can be made into an entirely new product and someone else can enjoy the same benefits as you!

About the Author

This article was written by Viviana Alberti for The House Removals Company. The House Removals Company are market leaders in relocation services. Viviana has two teenage children and has relocated her family several times. She is a green enthusiast, who enjoys writing about solutions to being more eco-friendly for the various blogs she writes for.

Money Saving Green Gardening Tips

When it comes to hobbies, few are as rewarding as gardening can turn out to be. Building your own little patch of fruits, vegetables, herbs, spices, or flowers is one of the most engaging activities around, and can connect you with the world and with your living space in ways that you might not have previously realized. Gardening is great for a variety of reasons, and many of them have to do with a direction interaction with the environment — something we can get from few other activities. As such, it’s not uncommon for gardening and an interest in environmentally-friendly frugality go hand in hand. We’ll talk about a few tips that will help you take care of both objectives in one fell swoop, so you can be cultivating the most environmentally-friendly garden in a way that’s completely sustainable and winds up saving you money in the process.

Reuse is a hugely important principle when you’re talking about frugality, and it might very well apply doubly when it comes to gardening. There are tons of ways to reuse objects all throughout your life and your home to save money, but gardening is especially great for reuse and recycling in the truest way possible. Many know about composting, but few actually do it. Try saving things like dead leaves, grass clippings, organic trash, and even pet waste. (That last option, of course, is by no means a requirement.) This compost heap in your backyard is not only a great way to reduce your environmental impact by making sure those things don’t wind up in a landfill or elsewhere, but will also help you fertilize your garden and any other parts of your yard that might benefit from it. Building a quality fertilizer in your backyard is easier than you might think. And reuse extends even beyond your compost heap. Plenty of items you’ve got laying around the house can be re-purposed for gardening. Egg cartons and milk jugs can be retrofitted to foster baby seeds, and so forth. There are no limits to the things you can reuse for gardening.

Trading is actually another great way to grow your garden frugally and organically. You can cut down on your environmental impact by keeping your commerce small and intimate, and it’s a great way to feed the community while also meeting your own needs as well. There are plenty of forums, discussion boards, and online sites that can help connect you with local plant lovers, and trading grown plants for baby seeds or vice-versa is a great way to spread the plant love in a way that’s completely green and totally frugal.

Every home’s exterior should be as beautiful as its interior, and a gorgeous garden is a great way to supplement those fancy indoor waterfalls. What’s more is that your gorgeous foliage can be as inexpensive as you want, so long as you use the strategies we’ve talked about today.

Easy Tips For A Greener Garden

Many gardeners get so caught up in what plants and soil they use that they forget the little short cuts that make planting and gardening so much easier and more productive. Here is a list of some simple tricks that can help you make the most of your garden time!

1. Herbs Made Easy – Herb gardens are popular but notoriously hard to keep from spreading everywhere. Some people stick to pots to keep the herbs from spreading, but others only have room outdoors for their herb garden. An easy solution is to do both. Simply use large pots sunken in your outdoor garden! This way the plants will stay in one spot, but you still get to use your outdoor space. Best of all, everything stays neat and tidy.
2. Keep Hanging Plants Moist – Hanging plants are fun to grow and don’t take up precious space, but they frequently dry out, especially the coconut husk ones. To get around this, line the bottom of the planter with a disposable baby diaper! The plastic will keep the water in and the cottony insides will keep your plants safely moist. Not for use in the ground, but great for hanging plants.
3. Dirt Free – To keep dirt from escaping pots, line the bottom with coffee filters before you add the soil.
4. Potato, Po-ta-to – Don’t have acres to grow your potatoes in? Fret no more! These simple to build potato towers give you tons of potatoes without having to have lots of space.
5. Keep on Flowering – For long lasting blooms, try staggering your bulbs. Pick bulbs that bloom a few weeks apart and need to be planted at different levels for the best effect. You’ll have beautiful flowers all season!
6. Tomato Time – If you are trying to grow tomatoes and it is getting a bit chilly out (or just warming up) boost their growth with their own mini green house. The effect is easy to achieve and well worth it come harvest time!
7. Laying Down the Mulch – To keep weeds and grass from growing through your mulch, take an easy and Earth-friendly tip. Lay newspaper underneath before you spread the mulch. It will form a protective barrier that is much better than plastic.
8. Earthy Soil Saver – To save from having to use so much soil in your pots, and to make your pots lighter and more manageable, fill up the bottom with biodegradable items like pine cones or even wine corks! Not only does this help save soil, but it also aids in drainage, making your plants healthier.

There are so many more great gardening tips out there. So, before you tackle your next big planting project, take a look aroundand see if someone hasn’t come up with an easier, more effective way of doing it!

About the Author

This guest post is contributed by Debra Johnson, blogger and editor of Liveinnanny.com. She welcomes your comments at her email Id: – jdebra84 @ gmail.com.

Water-Saving Fixtures For Your Home

These days a lot of people are doing anything they can to cut down their carbon footprint. Being energy efficient is not just good for the environment, it is usually good for the bills too. By turning off the lights, for example, you not only use less energy, you get charged less money. A lot of people are figuring this out and using less electricity, but did you know that you can apply the same logic to your water usage? There are a lot of good reasons to limit how much water you use – saving on water bills is just one of them.

Besides taking shorter showers and washing fewer dishes, there are a lot of ways you can cut your water use. You can install specialized water saving fixtures in your home so that the activities you do that involve water can be done the exact same way, but with a lower environmental impact. If you want to cut your water usage, here are a few different water saving fixtures you can have installed in your home today.

Who doesn’t enjoy a nice hot shower to start the day? Sometimes showers are rushed, but when you have the opportunity to enjoy a long shower, you might not want to give that up. That is totally understandable – and you don’t need to feel bad. Try using a low-flow showerhead in place of your current showerhead. These showerheads use as much as three to five gallons less every single minute than a conventional showerhead. This can save as much as two thousand gallons of waters every month!

Another option to a low-flow showerhead is a showerhead with cut-off valves. These kinds of valves allow you to easily turn off the water while soaping and shampooing and turn it back on when it’s time to rinse. Plenty of showerheads come with both functions: low-flow showerheads with cut-off valves are available at plenty of hardware stores.

Limiting your water use, though, goes far beyond the shower. Consider making the investment to install faucets with aerators or flow restrictions to cut down water usage at your kitchen and bathroom sinks. Call a plumber to do this kind of work, it can be very complicated. But the cost on the plumber will be well worth it – you can cut your water usage by as much as half!

Think about the other devices that use a lot of water in your home. These appliances are ones that we rely on for some of our most basic needs. Dishwashers use a lot of water to get the dishes clean. The machine washers used to launder our dirty clothes and linens similarly use often excessive amounts of water. But there is good news for those of us who depend on these appliances! Plenty of manufacturers make energy efficient and water efficient versions of dishwashers and washing machines that can be purchased in any regular home appliance store.

Although some of these devices and the expertise required to install them can cost a bit of money, the upfront investment is almost always worth it. Consumers will earn their money back quickly, and they will be assured to know that they are using less water than they used to. And that kind of peace of mind is priceless.

About the Author

Jim Klossner has been writing about environmentally-friendly solutions for Northbrook plumbers for several years. When he’s not writing, you can find Jim volunteering at his local community center.

Recycling Tips For A Truly Festive Home This Christmas

Old bits and bobs into new Christmas decorations

So you want to create the perfect festive home to snuggle down in, especially for when the cold discourages you and your family from going outside? Although packed with memories and good times, Christmas for many can be a struggle when your budget isn’t as easily stretched as the waist line on Santa’s pants. Why not save money and be eco-friendly at the same time by recycling some of your unwanted bits and bobs to create your own unique decorations. Here are a few ideas to get you well on your way to creating that winter wonderland and the ultimately festive atmosphere that the whole family will be sure to enjoy!

Stick star ornaments

If you want a starry, starry night on Christmas Eve then why not try making your own Christmas tree decorations out of twigs from your garden?

To do this you need to use a good pair of garden shears to cut some straight branches. Keep in mind that thinner sticks are easier to bend in place.

From the branch you will need to cut 5 stick pieces the same length and approximately the same diameter, do this by cutting the first stick and using it to mark the length of the remaining sticks. Simply then begin to tie the ends of the stick together with string or ribbon, and entwine each to form the basis of your star shape.

If you fancy something a little less rustic then try covering the stars with an old brown/manila envelope or spraying with glitter.

Button wreath

For this unique yet highly decorative idea you will need PVA glue, a piece of board at least a4 sized to be used as the backing of the wreath and buttons – lots of them! A piece of ribbon, or anything else you would like to hang your wreath with and some scissors.

Firstly, you will need to make your cut out. For this, make a doughnut shaped piece of card, any size you like. But remember, you only have so many buttons so don’t make this too big or thick as you won’t be able to fill the whole piece.

Next, you need to grab your biggest button and start laying them out onto the wreath cardboard, this will give you an idea of where to place the buttons and how many you may need.

After this, you can begin gluing. I would recommend gluing the biggest button down first. Fill in all the spaces you can and overlap buttons to make a 3D effect. Once you have added all the buttons you will need to let it dry overnight, but make sure you do this on a flat surface.

Finally, you need to add your buckle and ribbon for hanging, if you don’t want to use ribbon then string, or other materials would also be appropriate. Use and design it any way you want.

Christmas bunting

So last year’s Christmas cards are still lost in the attic somewhere, why not put them to use and redecorate your home with lots of colour and happy memories?

For this you will need a variety of cards, glue, a long piece of ribbon and scissors.

To begin decide on the size of the triangle you want, try and cut the triangle so that the main image to the card will be in the centre. After this, glue the triangle cut out onto a piece of card, you can either cut this into the same shape and size as the front piece or use decorative scissors to make a festive boarder.

The next step is simple; just pull back the top of the card (the base of the triangle) and sandwich the ribbon between the front Christmas card and the back piece of card. Keep doing this until all of your triangle cut outs are on the ribbon. Remember to keep an even space between each one.

Once this is done you could add a different coloured ribbon or a decorative band to the top which will add a dimension. If you would like to spell out a word such as ‘Christmas’ or ‘Frosty the snowman’ then do this by sticking the letters onto the spike of the triangle. Add your own touch to the banner by adding glitter, gem stones, or any other interesting accessories you may have to hand. Let your creative side flow and create a banner suitable and perfect to bring a festive feel to your home.

Christmas is a great time to settle down and keep the kids busy. Getting them involved with creating your decorations will be sure to encourage the festiveness and fashion the most unique and family friendly interior. Display some of yours and your children’s crafty talents proudly around your home and save money for those extra little stocking fillers!

About the Author

Writer Rachel Coope is an interior design enthusiast who avidly blogs for Tapshop321.com on topics covering all areas of home design and ways to improve interiors by looking for new ways to re-use and recycle everyday goods.