I’ve just about given up on trying to install the evil blinds in my son’s room. I may just go with curtains instead. They’ll give him privacy and are a whole heck of a lot easier to install. I’ve been thinking about which curtains would look best in a boy’s room. I checked out The Curtain Shop, and immediately saw some pinch pleat curtains that look stately enough to be in a boy’s room. They have a lining, which I like, because that will give him more privacy. They also have them in a blue color that will match the accents in that room. At less than $60 for the pair, the price is right, too.

Even better, I think, would be the grommet top panels. They have a more casual look to them, and are not even close to being frilly, which is something he would hate! Those come in that same blue color that I like, as well as some nice neutrals.

My favorite part of picking out curtains, though, is choosing the hardware. The hardware is what gives the room a luxurious (or cheap!) feel. I’m going to go for something modern in metal. I’ll keep the finials metal as well. It’ll be very sleek!

I’ve been engaged in a dilemma about tableware. I know that it’s not all that serious, but I seriously can’t decide on a plan of action!

Here’s the situation. All of my tableware is now cracked and mismatched. It’s definitely time for a new set. The problem is that I can’t decide which one to get. I have a round table, and I don’t think the new modish square plates would look good on it. Or would they? I’ll probably get round plates just to stay on the safe side, as it were.

The other issue is color. I love the red plates. World Kitchen has this really nice set of Corelle Hearthstone dishes in a rustic red color. My husband does not like red plates, though. White is out, because my table is white. That would be too minimalistic. Fortunately, there are plenty to choose from. World Kitchen has 48 pages of tableware alone to choose from! I did find some plates with a nice paisley pattern on it that I like. It’s red, but not so much red, so I can probably get with it.

I need some new silverware as well, since the disposal ate a few of the forks and spoons. I’ve bought some cheap ones in the interim, but guess what! Nothing matches! That seems to be the overall theme of my table right now. World Kitchen has a Cambridge set that I like that is really reasonable. It also has enough pieces so that even if the disposal consumes a couple, there will still be plenty left.

Doesn’t it seem like everything has to always replaced at once?

We’re remodeling one bathroom and adding on another to the master bedroom. (We live in an old house that only had one bathroom when we bought it!) I’ve been looking at the steam showers at Decor Planet. They are really stylish and amazing. I’d love to have one of the ones with a bench and multiple jets of water. One with a ceiling rain shower would be really awesome as well!

The thing that amazes me about these showers is the price. I was thinking of them as luxury items, which I suppose they are. However, you can buy one for a surprisingly affordable price. I think it would be a good investment to put something like this in my home, because if we ever move, it would be a major selling point.

I was checking out some of the other bathroom items on Decor Planet, and noticed that they have some really unique medicine cabinets. The same thing goes for the faucets and other fixtures. I don’t see the point of building on a whole new bathroom unless I’m going to make it really spectacular. The problem with this, is that once it’s built, I may be spending way too much time in the bathroom…I’ll probably never want to come out!

It’s not even close to being done, but I’m already thinking about how good steam showers feel in the winter. Nice.

Some of the businesses in my town haven’t been doing so well, but I have to say, the party stores have been doing just fine. I think people will give up a lot of things before they give up entertaining. Here, where I live, if you don’t entertain, you lose a lot of social status. So as far as businesses go, I can see how starting something like a party supplies store franchise would be a smart idea, especially in towns like mine.

I’ve seen an increase in catering, cake decorating services and party rental places. So it seems as though there’s a trend happening. All of these things seem as though they’d be really fun jobs. Imagine opening up a Partyland franchise. You’d get to make all sorts of party decorations, which would be a blast. And their party rentals include fun things like cotton candy machines! That beats the heck out of renting a punch bowl! It’s really easy to see if it’s the right thing for you, since they have a quick form on their main page that you can fill out to get more information.

I think it’s a good idea to always generate new business ideas and generally keep your options open in this economy. When you come up with business ideas, you should always make sure that they’re something that you’d really enjoy doing. You’ll be spending hours doing whatever you decide upon, so that’s really important! As for me, a party store would rank really high on my list of potential businesses.

There’s something coming back into style lately, and that’s the business card as calling card. Today’s business cards don’t typically have the quaint look of days of old, but they can certainly serve the same purpose. Handing out a business card when you introduce yourself to new acquaintances doesn’t always have to be work related. For example, you can find some really nice custom business cards at 123Print.com, and instead of having your business name printed on them, simply put your own name, your email address, phone number and your personal website if you have one you’d like to share.

Think about choosing a design that doesn’t have a business connotation, such as flowers or an abstract design with bright colors. Order plenty so that you won’t worry about running out and can give them out freely. I carry mine in my purse, and it makes it so easy to give out my number when I meet new people without having to pull out my actual business card and give them my work number, which I don’t want many people to have.

This approach definitely works for me. I suppose you could call it a professional approach to friendship!

I have been seriously cleaning the house lately. I’ve actually gotten to the point where I have gotten rid of all the actual dirt and am beginning to get things organized. One of the things I was organizing was my box of envelopes, stamps and address labels. I realized that I could use the address labels to organize other things in the house, besides simply using them for my return address on envelopes. One of the things I did was stick them inside all of the books that I decided to keep, which meant I quickly ran out. I need to replenish my supply, so I went to 123Print, where they have an astounding supply of address labels starting at $4.95. I like that you can even buy them in a dispenser, which speaks to my little organized heart. I’m planning on taking a bunch of them up to school and putting them on my things up there. Last year, I had over ten books come up missing. I think people will think twice before taking them if my name and address are in them!