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Whole-House Humidifier Pros and Cons In general, a whole-house humidifier is an install-it-and-forget-it appliance. It’s integrated into the blower system on your furnace and draws water directly from your water supply. There are some different types, including a sprayer that injects mist into the airflow inside your ductwork and a foam cylinder that rotates in a water tray with air blowing through and around it. The whole-house system’s greatest advantage is it requires virtually no maintenance and keeps your entire home at a set humidity with a one-time setup....

Take Things One Step at a Time Before you tear apart your home, make a plan. “Go through room by room,” Jessica Litman, of The Organized Mama, suggests. “Don’t try to reorganize and rearrange everything at once. Plan out a strategy for how you are going to set things back up.” Need help determining where to begin? Litman weighs in with a piece of advice. “I like to start in the bedroom because you want to ensure you get a solid night’s rest after all the holiday festivities,” she says....

Memory foam pillows like the Xtreme Comforts Adjustable Thickness Bamboo Pillow are hugely popular, and for good reason. Made from materials that conform to your head and neck, these cushions claim to keep your spine properly aligned while you sleep. The goal is to wake up feeling refreshed, without stiffness or soreness in your upper body. They usually come in one of two varieties: slab foam, meaning there’s one large piece of foam that makes up the pillow, or shredded, meaning that the foam is broken down into pieces....

Wallpaper comes in thousands of designs, patterns, and colors. With wallpaper, you can even incorporate trompe-l’œil for the effect of shiplap, stone, or brick. Wallpaper’s reputation in the bathroom has always been fraught with the notion that wallpaper, though beautiful, is never a good idea. But with adequate preparation, you can use wallpaper in the bathroom. Is Wallpaper in the Bathroom Ever a Good Idea? Bathroom conditions are often antithetical to wallpaper....

With so many different laundry detergent options, it might be easy to overlook Zote Soap laundry bars because they’re designed for handwashing clothes, but they’re also really budget-friendly. Each bar is made from natural ingredients that are OK on sensitive skin and can be used directly on fabrics for general washing, as a stain remover, or shredded to create a homemade detergent. Read on to learn more about this unique product and how well it performs....

From chunky furniture to bright colors, there are just some trends that come back into vogue again and again. Here are some of our favorite ’80s design elements that still work well today. Read more about our Diversity and Inclusion Pledge to make The Spruce a site where all feel welcome. If you want your decor to be an eye-catching conversation starter, Memphis Design is for you.

As one of the most unexpected recent décor trends, designers and homeowners have been focusing less on using them to create flashy, maximalist spaces, and more on weaving them into décor that’s modern, fresh and even neutral in some cases. They add just a little pop, a little zing, to corners, tables, and vases, communicating a fun and “We don’t take things too seriously,” vibe. When they’re not using them to add an exclamation point to a space, people are bringing them into their DIY projects as well, especially around the holidays....

To motivate you to tackle your next weekend project, we’ve rounded up some amazing custom closets and tips on how to design a closet. Click through for our favorite walk-in closet, small closet design ideas, and DIY closet designs.

The plants that slugs eat the most are typically those with leaves that are thin and soft. Hosta plants, for example, are well-known magnets for slugs; think of them as “slug lettuce.” By contrast, it is often safer to grow plants with leaves that have unappealing-looking textures. For example, these slimy pests tend to leave alone leaves that are rigid, that bear a waxy coating, or that are bristling with tiny hairs....

Need help picking a no-fail shade for your nursery? We’ve got you covered. Each of these professionally chosen pastel paint colors strikes the perfect balance, creating a winning combination of sweet and chic that is practically guaranteed to take your little one from crib to college. Here are our picks for pastel nursery colors. Sherwin-Williams Intimate White SW 6322 Behr Almond Kiss RD-W13 Sherwin-Williams Faint Coral SW 6329 Sherwin-Williams Wishful Blue SW 6813 Benjamin Moore Morning Sky 2053-70 Benjamin Moore New Age 1444 The Spruce Best Home Rose Power SPR-20 Looking for that perfect shade of minty magic?...

To prepare the allspice for cooking, you pick the fruit before it matures and then dry it. They can be used whole or ground into a powder. The flavor will usually be better if the fruits are kept whole and ground up right before use. The name allspice refers to the fact that it smells like a combination of several different spices including cinnamon, cloves, black pepper, and nutmeg. Several different kinds of peppercorns are produced on the black pepper liana....

Alstroemeria will keep in a vase for 6 to 14 days. USDA Hardiness Zones: 7–10Color Varieties: White, pink, purple, yellow, orange, and redSun Exposure: Full sunSoil Needs: Rich, well-drained, slightly acidic Bird of paradise will last in a vase for 7 to 14 days when cut fresh. USDA Hardiness Zones: 9–11Color Varieties: Orange, whiteSun Exposure: Full sunSoil Needs: Rich, loamy, slightly acidic Carnations will last in a vase for 7 to 21 days....

She applied a concrete product designed to fix gouges and ridges in concrete subfloors to her existing countertops. Before applying she roughed up the laminate surfaces using a box cutter and then thoroughly cleaned them so the concrete mixture would stick. Once the concrete dries and sets, you should expect to spend up to seven hours sanding your new countertops to get an attractive honed finish. 

Take a look at these cookbook storage ideas to help you add style and function to your kitchen, whether you have two cookbooks or 20.

No matter which direction you’re headed, you’ll certainly want to take a look at the 15 gorgeous tray ceilings below. She offers specific guidance for those who plan to incorporate a statement-making light fixture into such a space. “If you want the lighting fixture to be the focal point, do not add too much texture or detail in the box-up feature.” “This is a great opportunity to have some fun and add a layer of personality to the space,” Shapiro notes....

Here are 17 stylish moss walls for any room in your abode. Read more about our Diversity and Inclusion Pledge to make The Spruce a site where all feel welcome. Because Kinsey’s creations are natural plants that have been preserved they do not require sunlight or water and even better don’t attract bugs. Another good to know if you have outdoor allergies moss walls like this one do not produce spores or pollen....

Here we walk you through 18 items you should not put in the dishwasher. If you do choose to slip them, opt for the top rack and be prepared to accept your mistakes! Wooden items should be hand washed quickly with a mild detergent in warm water. Do not allow them to soak because that can cause the wood to swell and distort. If you feel the wood needs to be disinfected, use a mild solution of chlorine bleach and warm water—1/4 cup of bleach to 1/2 gallon of water....

No need to use your finest olive oil like Graza Sizzle or Drizzle; opt instead for a bargain brand for household uses. To make it even more useful, keep some oil in a spray bottle. In the Kitchen Protect Wooden Cutting Boards, Salad Bowls, and Utensils After hand-washing wooden kitchen pieces, give them a light coating of olive oil to nourish the wood and prevent cracking and discoloration. Let the oil sit on the wood for about five minutes and then buff with a soft cloth....