Posts with tag 'Seasonal'

Hosting a holiday party at your home can be a fun experience but can also be very stressful. Here is a checklist of tasks that can make it organized and beautiful!

A Few Weeks Before:

• Make an invite list. Remember that for a typical party, the attendance rate is 70 to 80 percent of those invited. Plan accordingly based on the space you have in your home.
• Pick a theme. This way you can focus on decorations, menu and music to help bring the theme together.
• Send invites. This can be done in a variety of ways. Traditional print invites or handwritten ones are always good but even phone and email invites are acceptable. Social media is another avenue as well, and Facebook is great for creating events, updating information and tracking the guest list.
• Plan the menu. Put together the menu and decide if it can be prepared at your home or if a caterer is necessary. Will it be a quick assemble or all day cooking event? What about...

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One unique feature of the real estate market is that it doesn't close for the holiday season. It is always open, every day of the year.  Like other businesses, the real estate market can be cyclical. This can be based on mortgage rates or economy but can also be based on the time of year.

Fall is a busy time of year for many activities, including housing. There are certain advantages to buying or selling during the autumn months, including end of year tax breaks, greater selection of homes to choose from and good moving conditions. Mortgage interest and property taxes can be deducted from gross income and in some situations if interest is prepaid before the due date of the first house payment toward the end of the year it can be deducted.

Fall is also an optimum time to...

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Old Colony is now a part of Charleston's biggest yard sale held on Charleston's East End. This year, May 11 from 8am until 2pm (rain or shine) serves as the date for 2013 Old Colony East End Yard Sale, which is held in conjunction with East End Main Street and the East End Community Association. 

Going 23 years strong, this event brings out more than 3,500 bargain hunters one spring Saturday a year to the historic East End of Charleston who search for everything from furniture one of a kind household items among the 200 sellers for this event.  Non-residential selling spaces are sold out but spaces are still available for residential sellers from the East End by visiting charlestoneastend.com for a registration fee of $10.

Old Colony recognized the longevity and community spirit behind this event and knew that partnering with the East End Association was a perfect fit for their goal of being involved in...

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Spring is the time of rebirth...and there's nothing better than bringing your home back to life through easy, inexpensive concepts. Why else do you think they call it spring cleaning? It doesn't matter if you are applying a fresh coat of paint, cleaning out the garage or picking a new candle scent – you will be amazed at the difference it can make and here are some quick and easy ideas.

Windows. Yes, we all clean the windows. But ALL of them? Think about those windows upstairs or in that back room that not one goes into. Take an hour and wipe all of those down. Let the sun shine in and show off that beautiful spring sunshine. Even the darkest and quietest of rooms can benefit from a little sunshine.

Fixtures. One of the easiest ways to give a new look to a room is to change a fixture. Evaluate your light fixtures. Do they fit the décor? Are they old? Is the current light too bright or too soft? Not only can you change the focal point or personality of a room throu...

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The birds are chirping. The air smells different. It's spring and it's time to get a little dirt under the fingernails.

Whether you are creating a new flower bed or resurrecting an old one, it's time to start planning before you start planting.

First know your zone

West Virginia has several mild climate zones. The planting season varies. Before you plant, know your zone by going online to the West Virginia University extension at www.ext.wvu.edu. This free service has 55 offices throughout the state to help residents.

Knowing your zone is important if you order plants from a catalogue or a gardening magazine. The climate zone maps are tools to assist you if you are selecting a shrub, a tree or a perennial. Your planting must be able to tolerate the extremes of summer and winter temperatures.

The USDA developed a Hardiness Zone Map to provide hobby gardeners w...

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