Modern Home Decorating

i was having this conversation with my mum yesterday, and she was giving her opinion to why she does not like living in canada (we used to live in england).
she said that everything (or so it seems) is revolved around your house in north america. she watches home television shows where they decorate the house, buy the house (etc etc) and it seems as though canadians and americans want huge things in their home such as office, big basement, games room, 3 bathrooms, 4 bedrooms (even if theyre only 2 people living in the house)

then in europe, a big house isnt as important. i remember living in england, we lived in a small home and every weekend we went to the beach, to the sea!, we drove places because not everywhere was too far from eachother.

maybe this doesn’t make sense.
but it’s true! everybody lives differently, but why does it seem as though canadians don’t enjoy the european lifestyle? :S

They have the room for it, we don’t. That’s as simple as that and for the last two hundred years they have been enjoying all that space. Any of the big European countries have twice or more people than the most populated US state (California). And California is bigger than the UK.
Just a few examples, Texas is bigger than France but with less than one third of its population.
UK is slightly smaller than Oregon but has 20 times its population.
When you swing your arms in those states you don’t risk hitting you neighbour in the eye.

You can add as well the latest fad to have as big a house as possible as a status symbol but this race for bigger and bigger has stopped with the fall to death of the housing bubble and the economy. But still US and Canadian houses are bigger than ours in general.

My Fiance and I are planning a beach wedding for April of next year (in Myrtle Beach, SC)! I want to rent a huge house and have the wedding on the beach, right outside of the house then have a cookout / reception there. My Fiance and I are not the "fancy" type ..we are jeans & t-shirt kind of people but I DO plan on wearing a wedding dress. My questions are, how should I decorate the house for the cook-out reception? And would it be okay to do a beach themed reception when we come home? We live in West Virginia and will be having our reception at the Knights of Columbus banquet hall.
Also, is it okay to skip the dancing at the house – besides the fun party dancing after a few drinks.. and save the first dance, father daughter and all that for our reception at home?
I’ll check it out when I get home. Work has YOUTUBE blocked!

I always say…. do what you want!
Some people follow all the traditions and others follow none.
I say decorate the house however you like. It can be elegant with candles, white flowers, and greenery. It can be crazy and fun with bright colored flowers and a fun cake to match.
I say do what YOU want as this is YOUR day. Have fun )

Have you seen that dance entrance video on youtube? See the bright flowers, dresses, and glasses? Endless possibilities

If you’ve not seen it… go to youtube and type
JK Wedding Entrance Dance

*I can’t see why it would be a problem to save the first dance and all that good stuff for the big reception back home.

I’ve done weddings with two receptions but usually they are the same day and the more formal one is where they do the dances…but searching the web it seems peope are just doing what they want. At the second reception, some wear their wedding dress again, some wear another less formal dress, some just call it a dinner party. So… it seems that anything goes. Just consider the wording on the invitation to let people know what type of event this is. Well, that’s my two cents anyways

When I was 6 my parents divorced My mom moved to Laguna Beach California and I chose to live with her
- I had straight A’s and loved life
- When I was 9 my brother was born (now 6)
- I had the best friends and amazing opportunities

when I was 12 my mom was faced with depression after her best friends son was killed in a car accident– later that year she became an alcoholic and lost my brother and I to our dads
-she lost everything she had but is now three years sober
- she lives by a great high school and has a very nice home and decorated two room for my brother and I
-since then I have been living with my father in Northern California but it has never been the same
-my grades are barely passing and my friends could be better

My dad and I dont get along at all and I really want to live with my mom again. I understand that she is facing a day by day struggle with addiction but I really want back all I had before this whole mess. Dose anyone have any advice for me?
I still have a very strong relationship with my mom and i continue to see my friends that live there
ok first of all NorCal doesnt have even close to good schools as nor cal second I only drink water and wouldnt drink a soda or an acholic drink if you paid me a hundred dollars

If you think you can be happier living wiht you mom, go ahead. Someone facing addiction isn’t the same as before, though. If it doesn’t work out with her…switch back to your dad. Just do what’s right for you. I’m not you, and I’m not in your shoes, but if I was, that’s what I would do.

Got this email from my aunt the other day. She’s sent it to a bunch of her friends, including me. I figured, why not reach out and ask the YA Family? Hahaha. so yea, here it is….

I have a family (3 kids plus me and my husband are expecting a 4th), 3 pets (all dogs, planning on more), love spending time together in the yard (swimming, gardening, decorating), we currently live in a wonderful community in North Carolina, but we want to have our options open seeing as my husband is reaching out with his career (which pays enough to live in a nicer community, a bigger house, but prefferably not a big city). Our children’s education is extremely important to us. Our eldest is 8, and we are expecting our youngest in around 7 months . Our family is spread all over the country, but we would like to stay along the east coast. Love to live near the beach, waterfront would be amazing! Swimming and sunsets is one of our favorite things. We visit florida every summer and stay with my grandparents for a week and our kids love running around on the beach with the labs. Very family oriented, have cousins, brothers and sisters, parents, aunts and uncles, etc visiting ALL the time. We love to grill (like I said, outside outside outside!) If you have any suggestions, we would love them! Hubby is needing to look at new job oppertunities because of this sweet, sweet economy, and we want to have a few places in mind before we need to begin the home hunt!

Southwest PA

FOR SALE BY OWNER

1 bedroom flat* Sandown* £112,950

1 double bedroom * Ground Floor * Purpose built* Garage en bloc * Communal gardens * UPvC double glazing * Recently decorated and refurbished * Convenient to all shops, amenities and a sandy beach * Chain free sale* Council Tax (Band A) *Owner & visitor parking * Roofing and glazing under guarantee* Laminate flooring * Economy 7 heating * Chain free sale

YOu could try gumtree

http://www.gumtree.com/

this allow you to post in sevral diff areas around where you are.

you could also try vivastreet

Can you get several "for sale signs" using one or two near the property.

Can you flier the local area, pub restaurant etc.
Is there any source of possible buyers nearby
be it industrial, commercial hospital etc
they may put a notice up for you
they may also have employees moving into the area.

Long story short, my fiance and I are getting married mid November. We are having a shoe string budget wedding lol, and a very simple one. Originally we had planned to hire a hall and have a garden wedding close by. Even going the least expensive route possible this was going to cost us a few hundred dollars plus money to decorate and get flowers, and this was just for the venue itself, not counting food, drinks, etc.

Well my Aunt has a beautiful backyard with a Bali/Island theme. She is getting a gorgeous hand crafted Bali gazebo in a couple of months and their backyard has water walls, tropical plants, etc and is big enough to fit the small number of guests we’re inviting. She has offered to have our wedding ceremony and reception at her home. Personally I think it will not only save us money and time, but it will be an absolutely gorgeous setting for a wedding, but my fiance is a bit unsure about having it at someone else’s house. My Aunt and I are very close and she has taken the place of my Mum who passed away 3 years ago so to me it isn’t weird at all. Plus we are having a tropical themed wedding where I will be wearing a nice beach-style dress with sandals, and my fiance is of Pacific Island background, so I think it all ties in nicely!

What do you think to this idea? Any pros or cons?

Anne,

There are NO cons for this choice, in my opinion. I would definitely take your aunt up on this very generous offer and speak with your fiance. I find it to be everything you want! And, in my opinion, is more personal and elegant than if you would have had it at a hall.

Just explain to your fiance what you said here. This is a "second mom" to you, so you are definitely fine with it and that it means a lot to you to save the money. I also suspect that it will mean a lot to your aunt. Also…it fits in perfectly with your theme!

It sounds beautiful! I hope you get your wish!

My MIL is one of several hosting a bridal shower for a friend’s daughter. My MIL is in charge of the decorations. The wedding will be beach-themed, i.e. sand, sea shells, silver-dollars.

My MIL needs some great ideas on how to decorate the main table at the shower. What can she use? Any home-made or bought decorations ideas? Certain flowers got better with beach-theme? Help me brainstorm, please. Any of you great wedding answerers have any awesome ideas? Thanks!
In USA; indoor bridal shower, far from the coast.

If you are serving cake, it can do double duty as a decoration as well.

Make a regular cake and while the tan icing is still fresh, sprinkle brown sugar on it and decorate with sea shell shaped chocolates. If someone is creative, the cake can be in the shape of a sand castle. The brown sugar and the shells will set a great beach theme. Or, have individual cup cakes made with the icing, brown sugar and a chocolate sea shell and a miniature sand shovel poking out of the top.

You can get fish netting at a craft store to arrange in the center of the tables and decorated with shells bought in bags at the dollar store. You can also find light house figurines, sun glasses and other beach related items at the dollar store to set in with the netting. Also check out the beach toys, too. Craft stores may have miniature Adirondack chairs to decorate. Burn coconut candles so it smells like suntan lotion.

Just walking through a party store, a fabric store, a craft store and the dollar store, will give you the inspiration to help begin decorating for this party.

Set up a beach chair and umbrella for a place for the bride to open her gifts.