The Domestic Diva’s Party Cookbook - Becoming a domestic diva has never been so easy! Want to throw a fabulous party but don’t have enough savvy ideas? Pat and Keely Hemming have got you covered! In The Domestic Diva’s Party Cookbook, the authors dedicate a chapter to each month of the year, giving you all the ideas you need to throw swinging shindigs all year long. Each chapter includes ideas for decorations, invitations, and all-inclusive menu plans with recipes.

Your diva work is already done!

Martha Stewart\’s Homekeeping Handbook: The Essential Guide to Caring for Everything in Your Home - Martha Stewart’s new home reference book is a must-have for many reasons, not the least of which is the fact that it’s gorgeous. Printed on thick, glossy pages covered with subtle sepia photos and that perfect Martha-blue as an accent color, Martha Stewart’s Homekeeping Handbook is a pretty and practical package for everyone: “all mothers and daughters, fathers and sons who have a room, an apartment, or a home to care for.” Stewart’s exhaustive handbook features a handy “how to use this book” introduction; a room by room guide with weekly, monthly, and seasonal checklists; tips for cleaning, creating a comfortable and safe home, and moving; and a guide for identifying and caring for materials in your home. Curious? Take a look at some excerpts below. You’ll be sweeping and shelving your way to a happier home in no time.

When the first issue of Martha Stewart Living was published in 1990, I could not have begun to anticipate how wide-ranging our readers’ homekeeping concerns would be. Since then, we have discovered new solutions to age-old problems, brought in experts to advise us on very specific questions about very specific?c concerns, and experimented with all the new (and not so new) home-care products. Over the years, I’ve brought these lessons home with me, too, which has made me more organized and made my homes better cared for and maintained.

Households are busy places, works in progress where there is always something needing immediate attention and always something more that can be done. With that in mind, I have organized this book to address the tasks at hand and also to address the “more that can be done” for when you have the time and the inclination go beyond the essentials.

It starts with the big picture–an examination of every room and everything you will find within each. The eleven chapters in the “Room by Room” section take you on a tour through the house, focusing on the surfaces and furnishings you might find in any room, and offering strategies for their care and maintenance. Starting with the kitchen, the central staging area in any home, these chapters open with practical space-planning advice, followed by the golden rules of organizing. This information is intended to help contain your belongings and make each room clutter-free and functional. Relevant homekeeping concerns particular to each room are explored in depth–so stain-removal basics appear in “Laundry Room,” the best way to clean grout in “Bathroom,” and easy sewing repairs in “Utility Spaces.” The equipment essential to each room is also addressed, so if you are considering what kind of bathtub to install during a bathroom renovation or whether a gas or electric range would best suit your style of cooking, you will have the information necessary to make such an investment with confidence.

Whether your home is small or large, an apartment in the city or a country cottage, it is a space that should be at once beautiful and livable. The key to that is managing the upkeep without feeling flustered. Until now, there has never been a comprehensive resource that not only tells how to care for your home and everything in it, but that also simplifies the process by explaining just when. With secrets from Martha Stewart for accomplishing the most challenging homekeeping tasks with ease, this detailed and comprehensive book is the only one you will need to help you keep your home looking its best, floor to ceiling, room by room.

In Martha Stewart’s Homekeeping Handbook, Martha shares her unparalleled expertise in home maintenance and care. Readable and practical–and graced with charts, sidebars, illustrated techniques, and personal anecdotes from Martha’s decades of experience caring for her homes–this is far more than just a compendium of ways to keep your house clean. It covers everything from properly executing a living room floor plan to setting a formal table; from choosing HEPA filters to sealing soapstone countertops; from organizing your home office to polishing your silver and caring for family heirlooms.

Martha Stewart’s Homekeeping Handbook is organized for clarity and maximum practicality:

Room by Room covers the upkeep of the appliances, tools, furnishings, and surfaces found in each room, from the entryway to the kitchen, from the attic to the laundry room.

Throughout the House instructs the reader on the proper ways to routinely clean and periodically maintain everything in the home, including dusting, sweeping, vacuuming, polishing, scrubbing, waxing and much more.

Comfort and Safety focuses on techniques to ensure your home is running properly and safely, such as recognizing when to clean vents, fixing a leaky faucet, and eradicating pests.

A-to-Z Materials Guide provides an invaluable resource that explains the unusual materials that many favorite objects are made of–from abalone to zinc–
and how to care for them so they last.

Encyclopedic yet friendly, Martha Stewart’s Homekeeping Handbook is a seminal work–a must-have for everyone who wants a well-cared-for home that will endure for generations.

The following is a paid review:

Matching homeowners with the right contractor is sometimes a tricky business. Ever been dissapointed by the contractors you’ve brought into your home for various home improvment or fixes? I’m sure you have — I know I have.

All Around The Home is looking to solve that problem by playing matchmaker between contractors and homeowners.. hoping to find that magical connection that will create a partnership for life. (How’s that for a nice Valentine’s Day spin??)

Homeowners can login there and search for contractors in their local area - - and they can search by specialty. Exterior, Interior, Commercial, Residential, Remodling, Service & Repair, and Utilities are the current contractor categories you can actively search in.

Contractors looking for leads? You can Sign up at All Around The Home and add your business today. All leads are sent to your firm only, they do not take one lead and sell to multiple contractors.

Note - you must be 18 years old in order to enter into a binding contractual agreement.

Homeowners: Find a contractor today!

Contractors: Add your listing today for Top-Quality Home Improvement Leads

The following is a paid review:

Littman Bros. Lighting offers up some very unique Bath and Vanity Lighting, as showcased on their site. They offer contemporary bath lighting and vanity lighting from manufacturers such as Besa Lighting, Forecast Lighting and Kovacs Lighting and more traditional bath lighting or transitional bath lighting from Minka Lavery, Murray Feiss, Hinkley Lighting and Designer’s Fountain.

You can purchase the lighting systems right off their website, with any major credit card. Littman Bros. have their showroom located in Schaumburg, IL:

Lighting Showroom
905 S. Roselle Rd.
Schaumburg, IL. 60193
847-895-5155
Click here for a map

If you’re not sure what you want today - at Littman Bros. website, you can develop a Lighting Wishlist - and make up your mind later. I think the only place I’ve ever developed a Wish List is on Amazon — can’t really imagine creating one for bathroom lighting - - but you might!

One of my favorites listed there are the contemporary vanity lights from Framburg and Besa Bath Lighting

Need more information before you purchase bathroom and vanity lighting? No problem - Littman Bros has an entire section of Lighting Tips and Articles for you to browse through while you make a decision.

From the Littman Bros. Website:

The Littman Brothers story began in 1979, with one small retail store in the Chicago area while importing ceiling fans and lighting fixtures from Taiwan under our own private “Littman Bros.” product label. Growing our business over the course of the last 26 years, we have evolved quite a bit. In that time we’ve expanded our company from the humble beginnings of that first store to a 10,000 square-foot custom lighting showroom along with a 20,000 square-foot warehouse and office facility. As market conditions have changed, we’ve changed with them to adapt to the needs of our customers. In 1999 we launched www.LittmanBros.com, our online showroom, to bring the selection and service of our local showroom to potential customers all over the country, as well as give our local customers the ability to shop with us easily from the comfort of their own homes.

LittmanBros.com was (and still is!) a large-scale online fan and lighting retailer well before the e-commerce shopping boom began in full force - and it has subsequently evolved into the full-service website that you enjoy today. During the past seven years we have spent a great deal of time developing relationships with our online customer base through product selection, great pricing and tremendous customer services levels (after all, that is what it’s REALLY all about). We feel that every customer should be treated professionally and enjoy their shopping experience with us. In a market with a lot of choices from which to purchase home furnishings, we constantly strive to make your shopping experience with us an enjoyable one.

Housekeeping Hits - Music to clean house by!

1. I’m A Woman - Jerry Leiber
2. Respect - Otis Redding
3. I’m Every Woman - Ashford
4. I Will Survive - Dino Fekaris
5. Morning Train (Nine To Five) - Florrie Palmer
6. Proud Mary - John Fogerty
7. On The Radio - Donna Summer
8. (You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman - Carole King
9. Walking On Sunshine - Kimberley Rew
10. You Can’t Hurry Love - Edward Holland

The following is a paid review for Greentea Design - Kitchen Cabinetry.

If you’re like me, you look for unique and special designs for your home to make it unique. Vastly different than the usual cookie-cutter kitchen cabinet displays found in so many homes today, Greentea offers some really interesting modular units with designs that are asian inspired. The modular part is attractive to me, because you can stack them or stand them side by side - or order seperate pieces to stand alone.

Greentea can custom make pieces for you, as well - cut to your specifications and designed to match the colors that already exist in your home today. You can also order single items like islands, counters, and hanging cabinets.

Here are a few pictures of some of the items I enjoyed on their website:

I especially enjoy their pantry furniture (shown in the second picture above) because if you’re anything like me? Your pantry is a bit on the disorganized side of life - and from the looks of it, their pantry set ups are just the ticket for organizing all that… STUFF!

They also have this great collection of room dividers as well - which isn’t really directly related to kitchen cabinetry - but it could be if you were dividing your kitchen from another room - - or, even possibly using one as a very unique and distinct wall hanging. (I know - call me strange).

Their prices seem to be reasonable - if not a bit above the average of what I would expect. It’s hard to guage quality based on an internet presentation - because of that, I did search their website for client/customer testimonials and reviews, but didn’t find any listed there. It would be nice to see some statements from some real people who have ordered from them and their experience with Greentea.

From Greentea’s own website:

The guiding element behind all our furniture is flexibility – that’s why all our designs are based on stand-alone pieces that work beautifully together.

You can find out more about Greentea Design here. Learn about Greentea Design’s Satisfaction Guarentee and their 30-day Return Policy. Greentea Design’s full FAQ is located here.

Disclaimer: I have been paid to provide a review of Greentea Design - Kitchen Cabinetry by the company owner. They do not require that I provide a positive review or make any other requirements for my review. This review does not go through an editorial process - I review ‘em as I see ‘em!

Creme Brulee Set - Whee! I LOVE Creme Brulee! Crème brûlée, a classic restaurant dessert, is simple enough to make at home with the proper tools. BonJour’s Crème brûlée set includes all the tools needed for perfect creme brulee. The set includes BonJour’s most popular kitchen torch, four, four-ounce fluted, oval, white porcelain ramekins, plus a delectable creme brulee recipe. Additional uses for the torch include browning meringue-topped desserts, melting or browning cheese on onion soup or casseroles, and blackening peppers and tomatoes for smoky salsas.

The rubberized body of this compact black torch has a comfortable ergonomic grip and the flame is controlled with a simple thumb-activated button at the top. A safety lock prevents unintentional ignition and snaps back into place each time the ignition button is pressed. A simple slide button adjusts the length of the flame, while the flame width can be altered via a sliding air-control lever; these two functions allow the user to focus the flame as tightly or as broadly as is necessary. A removable rubberized stand allows the torch to be stored upright in a cupboard.

The ramekins are dishwasher- and microwave-safe. Each ramekin has a 4-ounce capacity. Butane fuel is not included, but can be easily purchased at gourmet, hardware, or convenience stores. The torch comes with detailed instructions for fueling, igniting, and adjusting the flame

So you want to try your hand at crEme brulEe? Well, go right ahead, this kit contains instructions, a recipe, a torch, and four oval ramekins. You’ll have a creamy and luscious dessert in no time. What’s more you can use the butane torch for many other kitchen tasks such as browning gratins or meringues, melting the cheese atop your casserole, blackening peppers glazing fruit tarts and more!

YUM!

Dyson DC17 Animal - The most powerful upright for pet hair. Outcleans all other vacuums, room after room. Level 3 Root Cyclone technology. Unique cleaner head and motorized brushbar for the bets pick-up across all floor types.

You know how sometimes, you vacuum your carpet and it looks clean from one angle but when you look at the carpet from the other side of the room you can still see stuff that the vacuum cleaner left behind? That was an increasing problem with my old vacuum cleaners. I vacuum from one direction, then end up having to make a second pass from the opposite direction to make sure I got everything.

Now I know we just got it, but I CAN tell you that with the Dyson, even if you vacuumed only once and in only one direction it’s clean from ALL angles. THAT’S impressive. We just ran a Rainbow vacuum twice over our carpets a week ago and the Dyson STILL picked up 4 canisters’ worth of dust and hair. It’s kind of funny because after running the Dyson through our beige carpet, it’s so much more obvious which spots need professional cleaning . And it wasn’t kidding about the “Never loses suction” part, because the last room I vacuumed was just as clean as the first room I vacuumed.

Sure it’s expensive, but my husband and I have already gone through 2 of those $100-range vacuum cleaners. At this rate we were going to end up spending our way to the cost of a Dyson.

Emergency Food Storage & Survival Handbook: Everything You Need to Know to Keep Your Family Safe in a Crisis - What if your life was disrupted by a natural disaster, food or water supply contamination, or any other type of emergency? Do you have the essentials for you and your family? Do you have a plan in the event that your power, telephone, water and food supply are cut off for an extended amount of time? What if there were no medical or pharmaceutical services available for days, weeks, or months? How prepared are you?

With this guide by your side, you and your family will learn how to plan, purchase, and store a three-month supply of all the necessities—
food
water
fuel
first-aid supplies
clothing
bedding
and more—simply and economically.

In other words, this book may be a lifesaver.

Inside you’ll find 10 steps to an affordable food storage program plus how to:

·Prepare a home “grocery store” and “pharmacy”
·Use what you store and store what you use
·Store water safely and provide for sanitation needs
·Create a first-aid kit, car kit, and 72-hour emergency kit for the whole family
·And many more invaluable hints and tips

“This clear, concise, step-by-step program is not only affordable and doable, it’s essential in these uncertain times. Now, everyone from apartment dwellers to basement owners can store a three-month supply of the essentials, including peace of mind!”

Foodborne Pathogens: Hazards , Risk Analysis and Control - Considering the recent problems with food-related illness - the most recent being the E.Coli spread in the spinach products we buy at the grocery store, I thought I’d look up some resources to inform myself, and keep my family safe.

As trends in foodborne disease continue to rise, the effective identification and control of pathogens becomes ever more important for the food industry. With its distinguished international team of contributors, Foodborne Pathogens presents an authoritative and practical guide to effective control measures and how they can be applied to individual pathogens. The book covers general techniques in assessing and managing bacterial hazards, modeling pathogen behavior and carrying out a risk assessment, good management practices, hygienic process design and operation, and more. Foodborne Pathogens is an essential guide to successful pathogen control in the food industry.

Covers modeling pathogen behavior and carrying out a risk assessment as the essential foundation for effective food safety management. Focuses on good management practice in key stages in the supply chain, starting with farm production. Also covers safe practices for consumers and food handlers in the retail and catering sectors.