Archives for February 2014

Is Radiant Heating or Cooling Right for You?

Screen Shot 2014-02-18 at 8.01.07 AMQuestions to ask before you go for one of these temperature systems in your floors or walls (yes, walls)

With a radiant heating or cooling system, the goal is to make the temperature of a room more comfortable by changing the temperature of an entire surface. Most of the time we think of radiant heating systems, we think of them for floors, sometimes called underfloor heating or in-slab heating. But the principle can be applied to any surface: a wall, ceiling or even a mirror.

The concept, like many other modern sustainable design strategies, is actually quite old. Archeological evidence shows that ancient Roman, Korean and Chinese dwellings had various forms of heated floors and walls, with either water or smoke acting as the vehicle for transporting heat or coolness from room to room through hidden pipes. In the realm of modern technology, these systems have been improved and perfected so that there’s now a range of options.

General contractors, home builders, and more ∨Ideas for your living spaces, lighting and landscape design.
Search for a fun bar stool, clock, sectional sofa and storage chest to spice up your basement.

Heritage Classic 2014

I’m looking forward to being part of this event on Sunday. As a Habs fan, I’ll be cheering for a Canucks win!

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What Kind of Music Do You Listen to Music While Studying? [infographic]

do-you-listen-to-music-while-studying

How to Add a Kitchen Backsplash

Screen Shot 2014-02-18 at 7.56.06 AMThe options for kitchen backsplashes are pretty much limitless in terms of material, color, size and cost. Ultimately, you’ll have to decide what’s best for you and your lifestyle. Knowing how to navigate the process of installing a new backsplash can help ease some of the stress. Here’s what to expect.

 

Kitchen designs, bathroom designs, and more ∨Hire a decorator to find that just-right couch and coffee tables for your living room.
Select garden furniture to match your style, garden storage sheds or even greenhouse designs to personalize your landscape.

Staircase and Bed Made out of Two Salvaged Pianos

piano staircaseIn 2012 UK-based artist Tim Vincent-Smith converted two retired upright pianos into a custom staircase and loft bed. To build the structure, Vincent-Smith had to carefully disassemble the pianos in a process he likened to butchery:

Dismembering them put me in mind of the French restaurant where they kill a cow on the weekend and prepare every part for food. Nose to tail carpentry. The noises that came out of the carcass – as one by one the strings were cut, as the age-jammed creaking screws were forced loose with brace and bit, as the hide-glue joins were split with a wooden club and meat cleaver – composed the most extraordinary swan song. As with good butchery, great care is taken to preserve the best cuts and though to the faint hearted observer the scene is perhaps macabre, to the butcher it is an honour to pay homage to the life that has passed in this way. Even in the dry acoustic of the studio every sound resonates through the body of the instrument creating the effect of a large stone hall.

How To Maintain Granite Countertops

how-to-maintain-your-granite-countertops

How To Buy A House – As Told By Memes

This graphic outlines the home-buying process – from finding out if homeownership is a viable option to signing the closing documents – in a novel way: using “memes” to illustrate each step of the process. Millennials are more inclined to react positively to messaging that uses memes, which they are likely to regularly see in their social media feeds and on websites like Reddit, than the content of typical real estate marketing materials.

I-Can-Haz-Real-Estate

Source: http://www.marketleader.com/blog/2014/02/11/how-to-buy-a-house-as-told-by-memes/ 

 

Canada at the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics

An infographic that shows the progress of the Canadian team in the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympic games. Each ribbon represents the medal, the athlete who won and his/her discipline.CanadaattheSochi2014WinterOlympics

The Great Toilet Paper Debate [Infographic]

 

How do you orient your toilet paper? Over, under, don’t care at all? It’s a question that 50% of the population thinks about, yet seemingly never talks about. At first thought, this subject might be brushed off as trivial, however it could have psychological implications that are anything but.It wasn’t until 1879 when toilet paper rolls began being mass produced. Before this blessed day people used, well, one can only imagine. However, this feat of human genius raised one of the most important questions of our time: why do some people orient toilet paper rolls “over”, others “under” and a third, enigmatic group who seem to not care either way?Well, some studies suggest that the answer is more than coincidence. For instance, people who orient their rolls “over” are more organized and characterized as over-achievers. Think your older sibling who works harder and is more successful than you. This group represents 70 percent of the people who actually care that much about toilet paper.

The remaining 30 percent of this peculiar study group are the “unders”. Characterized as “laid-back”, “artistic”, and “dependable”. This could mean many things. If you were at a potluck, it might trigger your internal hippie-alarm system, or it could just mean that you’re hanging out with friendly people who can keep a secret.

At any rate, next time you are at a friends house, pot-luck, party, pay attention to the toilet paper roll, it might divulge the secrets of someones personality. [Via]

toilet-paper-infographic