The Home Know-It-All

Fridays with designer Martin Amado

It's that time again! For those of our readers just joining us, we're bringing you the video of our interview with Martin Amado—a renowned home decor and lifestyle expert best known for hosting HGTV's Small Space, Big Style and appearing as a guest designer on that network's Decorating Cents. 

Be sure to tune in next Friday for another of Amado's informative answers to our design and green living questions. For more information on Amado's work, visit his website.

Today's Question: 
What is this year’s most unique and revolutionary green decorating product?

   

 

If you're unable to view the video, click here to watch it on YouTube.

Until next time,
The Home Know-It-All

Storing Wine

You don't need to be a wine connoisseur to appreciate a wine, and you certainly don't need a wine cellar to keep bottles properly stored. Here are a few easy tips for storing wine at home. 

Storage Temperature
The optimum temperature for storing wine is 50 to 55°F. Naturally, this presents a bit of a predicament: If a comfortable room temperature is around 70°F and a typical refrigerator temperature is 35°F, where are you going to put your wine? Though there are reasonably priced wine coolers available, you can keep wine around without them. Wine tends to age faster in warmer temperatures, and it doesn't develop the subtle complexities it would if kept cooler. In too cool a room, wine develops deposits or other undesirable suspensions. Try to avoid drastic or repeated changes in storage temperature to keep your wine from changing substantially. 

Humidity
A moderate amount of humidity is necessary when storing wine in order to maintain the integrity of the cork—try for a relative humidity of 50 to 80 percent. Excessive humidity will do more damage to the labels of your wine bottles than to the wine itself, but low humidity can dry out the cork and allow air in the bottle. If crust develops around the cork, oxygen is getting in.

Darkness
Light can damage the taste of your wine. While dark bottles don't let in as much light as clear bottles, ultraviolet light can still penetrate both. Limit light exposure to keep your bottles safe. 

Angle
Table wine should be stored on its side to keep the cork moist and lock out oxygen. Keep the labels facing up to make it easy to identify sediment that has formed on the side of the bottle. Fortified wines—those with spirits like port, sherry, or vermouth—should be stored standing. 

For more information on collecting and enjoying wine or to connect with wine experts, visit IntoWine.com.

Until next time, 
The Home Know-It-All

 

Artist Spotlight: Melissa Miller

Next time you need to spruce up a corner of your home, consider commissioning a local artist to create handcrafted pieces for your abode. Melissa Miller of Melissa's Motifs is an artist from Des Moines, Iowa, and has professionally created art in the style of pique assiette (a type of mosaic that uses found objects) for the past 10 years. Check out our interview with her and be sure to take a look at her website and galleries.  

THKIA: Tell us a little about what makes your artwork so unique.

Melissa: My work is unique because it contains customizable elements. For instance, many mosaics use tile or glass shards, but most do not incorporate other found things, which are the essence of pique assiette mosaic. Coins, jewels, and Capodimonte flowers give the pieces a rough-hewn look, more similar to a grotto than the picture-perfect, mass-produced mosaic tables we see in discount stores.

THKIA: According to your website, you are very particular about the pottery shards you use for your art. How do you choose the pottery pieces? 

Melissa: I generally use only damaged antique china because the colors, textures, and glazing of those old pieces give them more of that weathered look that I love. Older china is also easier to cut with my tile nippers, and cuts into more interested shapes. Newer dishes tend to shatter, and I've even found that some of the color of those dishes actually wipes off in the grouting process. I do make an exception in some cases, however, for customized pieces, such as a kitchen table that matches the everyday dishes and accents of a particular kitchen.

THKIA: How did you get started with this? What drew you to this kind of artwork?

Melissa: I learned about pique assiette from a book I picked up at a bookstore, Making Bits and Pieces Mosaics. After several years of working at it, I started showing my work at local art fairs. I now sell mostly wholesale to galleries and stores in the United States, Canada, and Hong Kong. I also work with interior designers, and recently completed a patio table for an historic bed and breakfast in Charleston, South Carolina. 

THKIA: What resources do you need to create pique assiette mosaics? 

Melissa: I have created an e-book that I've improved and adjusted from my own experiences and several years of teaching this craft in Des Moines. The feedback I've gotten indicates that people feel this book is more detailed and descriptive than most books found in book stores.

Remember to check out Melissa's website for more information about Melissa's e-book and see examples of her work.

Until next time, 
The Home Know-It-All

Fridays with designer Martin Amado

Recently, The Home Know-It-All was fortunate enough to participate in an interview with designer Martin Amado. A renowned home decor and lifestyle expert, Amado is best known for hosting HGTV's Small Space, Big Style and appearing as a guest designer on that network's Decorating Cents. Pay us a visit each Friday for the next two weeks to find out another of Amado's informative answers to our design and green living questions. Meantime, for more information on Amado's work, visit his website.

Today's Question: 
Do you have suggestions for decorating windows without spending a lot of cash?

   

 

If you're unable to view the video, click here to watch it on YouTube.

Until next time,
The Home Know-It-All

Finding New Closet Space In An Older Home

Though the word "renovation" inspires thoughts of colossal expense and time, it doesn't need to be such a dramatic undertaking. A renovation can be as simple as converting an unused space into something more useful. One of our editors here at The Home Know-It-All recently undertook the goal of creating more closet space in her home by finishing an otherwise unutilized under-eaves crawlspace. 

Above: Though the space is completely unfinished and poorly lit, it's structurally ideal for a large closet. 

Above: With the simple addition of an under-cabinet light, a plywood subfloor, and birch-veneered plywood on the walls and ceiling, the room is already visibly transformed. 

Above: Simple decorative trim, an attractive cedar panel, carpeting, paint, and hardware (such as eye-hooks and a closet rod) ready the space for easy-access storage. 

Remember, you could do this, too. By looking at unused space through a creative lens, you can convert it to a pivotal part of your home.

Until next time, 
The Home Know-It-All

 

 

Insulating a Garage Door

With winter fast approaching, it's time to turn our attention to reducing heat loss in our homes. And we often overlook the garage, especially the garage door. Often un-insulated and constantly exposed to outside weather, garage doors are a major source of preventable heat loss. Here's how to quickly and easily save that heat this winter and turn your garage into a more comfortable place when the weather outside is frigid.

Kits
Ranging in price from $70 to $200, garage door insulation kits make insulating your garage door an expedient project. Kits typically include double- or single-sided reflective insulation, double-sided tape or screws, and alcohol wipes to clean the application surface. Installing is as easy as sizing and cutting a piece of insulation to fit a panel on your garage door and securing it with the included adhesive or screws. 

Benefits
Insulating your garage door increases its thermal performance, allowing it to keep warm air inside on cool days and cold air in on hot days. Plus, adding insulation to your garage door qualifies you for homeowner tax credits (30 percent of the insulation's cost if you install before the end of this year). 

Until next time, 
The Home Know-It-All

Help With a Clogged Drain

We recently received a comment from a reader who is struggling to clear a clogged drain. A plumber ran a camera into the drain and found the culprit: a plastic cap from a spray can lodged in the main drain under the living room. The plumber suggests cutting into the terrazzo floor and through the pipe to remove the cap. Cost? $1,500.

We contacted Larry Rothman, Roto-Rooter's director of plumbing and engineering services, for his advice on a possible alternative solution to our reader's predicament. 

Rothman says the plumber or sewer technician should first try to use a high-pressure water jetter to force the spray can out of the pipe. "Ideally, the water-jet operator would insert a jet hose into the main line through a cleanout access port on the pipe itself, usually located in the basement or a capped riser in the front yard near the foundation," Rothman says. Though some older homes were not originally equipped with cleanout ports, most had them installed later. The jet operator should be able to access the sewer line from the nearest manhole.

The jetter hoses are able to reach up to 500 feet and can blast water at more than 3,000 PSI! That's powerful enough to pulverize solid debris if it can't be dislodged. After using the jet, many operators work a fiber-optic sewer inspection camera back into the line to be sure the obstruction is gone. While jetting isn't considered an inexpensive option, it could still be a more cost-effective (and less disruptive) solution than tearing into the floor. For more information on jetting, check out Roto-Rooter's website.

We hope this helps!

Until next time, 
The Home Know-It-All

Natural Solutions For Pet Pests

When Fido or Mittens is assaulted by fleas, it's easy to run to the pet store and grab the first anti-flea treatment you can find. However, many commercial pest solutions are pumped so full of chemicals that they may do more harm than good. Why not try putting nature to work against nature instead? Here are some natural, healthy ways to eliminate or prevent pet pests. 

Fleas
To get rid of fleas, try sprinkling diatomaceous earth on your pet's coat, bedding, and even the floors of your home. Diatomaceous earth, a natural rock dust consisting of fossilized algae, contains microscopic particles that are sharp enough to penetrate a flea's exoskeleton and dehydrate it until it dies. The product is widely available at lawn-and-garden centers. As a preventive measure, try sprinkling your pet's coat with brewer's yeast. It's disagreeable to fleas and harmless if your pet licks it off. 

Ticks
Many of the same tricks that work with fleas can be used against ticks, since both pests feed on your pet's blood. For example, adding a little apple-cider vinegar to your pet's water helps make the animal less appealing to the unpleasant arachnids from the inside out. You can also try making an anti-tick citrus solution by placing a sliced lemon in boiling water and letting it steep overnight. Use a spray bottle to apply the solution to your pet's body. Be sure to spray in problem areas—behind your pet's ears, around the head, at the base of the tail, and in the armpits. 

Mosquitoes
Mosquitoes pose a two-part problem: their bites not only leave an unpleasant itch but can also infect your pet with heartworm. Though you should keep your pet on a regular regimen of heartworm medication as prescribed by your vet, some additional topical solutions can help. For example, the vapors from Vicks VapoRub, when applied to your pet's coat, tend to keep mosquitoes at bay. There are also cedar oil sprays and shampoos sold in pet stores that function as natural insect repellents. Just be sure to use only the varieties designed for use on pets. Cedar insecticides intended for garden or outdoor use can be hazardous to your pet's health. 

Until next time, 
The Home Know-It-All

What To Do About Rotting Window Frames?

Recently, a reader asked the Home Know-It-All if we had any suggestions or explanation for the crumbling wood window frames on her 1887 home. Though we can't promise an easy fix to the problem, we can offer an idea of what is causing it, and what it will take to address the underlying issues that are causing those window frames to fall apart. 

First, wood window frames suffer a constant barrage of changing humidity and moisture levels. In our reader's case, her home's frames have held up for well over 100 years—an impressive feat. Though those window frames may have faithfully kept moisture from entering when they were new, time has a way of breaking down those defenses. If the moisture levels in your window frames reach 20% or higher, they become a prime environment for the fungus that causes wood rot—characterized by discolored or crumbling surfaces. This is probably our reader's culprit, though any signs of insect damage from termites, carpenter ants, or powderpost beetles should be taken into consideration as a possible contributing factor. 

If the rot is contained in one area, you may only need to remove the rotted portion (and a little of the healthy wood, just to be sure you got it all), and replace it.  Cut a piece of wood to fit the void (try to use the same wood species used in the existing frame) and apply construction adhesive to lock it into place. A little putty, sanding, and paint will make the old and new areas appear uniform. If you have stained window frames, matching the patch to the original frame will be more difficult.

Unfortunately, when you remove the rotting portions of your frame, you may find that the rot extends into the surrounding wall. If that's the case, you could be looking at significant repair and replacement costs. It also means that you have underlying moisture issues that need to be addressed before you repair or replace the window frame. 

Wood treatments available at home and garden centers can help prevent and solve future rot problems. Try to use products formulated with propylene and polyethylene glycol, as they work well and are believed to be safer to use than typical rot-prevention products.  

It might be time to replace your windows entirely. If you do purchase new windows, be sure to buy ENERGY STAR qualified windows—they can save you energy and money, and might make you eligible for additional federal tax credits.

We certainly hope this helps!

Until next time,
The Home Know-It-All