New York Renovator

I have a home business. Somewhere in here, lol. It’s kind of in limbo right now, because of our ongoing renovations… but I DO actually have a home office here at home. I am realizing how very, very important it is to have a quiet, tidy, and organized home office, because mine is always dirty and chaotic right now. If it’s not filling up with plaster dust wafting in from the demolished kitchen, then it’s full of sneakers, dishes, boxes, pet supplies, and more…. wow I sure miss my tidy, organized space! I will have it, soon, once the kitchen and dining room are rebuilt and organized again.

I’m rethinking a lot of the organization here. My house has no storage space– there’s no attic (not for storage, anyway!) and the basement floods. So the only space I have is the attached garage… and the small bedroom closets.. and my office here in the living room. :-p Thank God that Buy.com has a special section for office storage and desk workstations. I’ve been looking into getting a corner desk (those are such great space savers), and other things like bookshelves and carts. This Kathy Ireland Huntington Club Executive Desk is absolutely gorgeous. Wow, this would look SO good in my living room. At $1300 and some change, it had better! It’s not in my budget right now, but it’s definitely what I’m looking for in a desk: warm wood tones, a furniture-like appearance, and lots of drawers.

If you;re inthe market for office supplies, or even school supplies since school is right around the corner, you should definitely check out Buy.com. They have loads and loads of stuff for the office and school: binders, storage boxes, desk organizers, pens and pencils and everything that goes with them, file cabinets, desk chairs, printers, tape, staplers, everything! The prices are very good, and Buy.com’s shipping is SUPERB bar none. When I order stuff from Buy.com, it is always here in a matter of a day or two, even with free shipping. They are just amazing with their customer service. I haven’t found anyone better than Buy.com, and I do a lot of online shopping, believe me.

Anyway, do check them out. Buy.com is renowned for their exceptional electronics sales and deals– they have them every week and weekend– but they are also a great place to get everything else, like household goods, clothing, books, household supplies, and more.

This woman, anyway.

I am dissatisfied with the duct tape at WalMart. That is, the stuff is useless!!! It doesn’t stick, hello?! Blahhh.

I am a duct tape fiend. We love duct tape. I think every old house homeowner loves duct tape. It comes in SO handy: for furnace seams (temporary of course), holding old door joints, taping window cracks, sealing doors and windows, wrapping around pipes for a temp fix, “fixing” soles of shoes that have come unglued…. etc etc etc…. but it’s kinda important to find duct tape that, like, WORKS. So I’ve been hunting around for the glorious duct tape.

Can you believe that Buy.com even sells DUCT TAPE?!?! Every kind of duct tape you can imagine! Intertape Polymer, wide, High Performance, Gorilla Duct Tape, duct tape in designer colors, “Sumo” duct tape, duct tape sheets and even transparent duct tape! All those choices, what is a girl to do?!

I think I’ll just get one of each, please.

That “Sumo” duct tape sounds terrific. LOL. And the HIGH performance stuff. I have to seal a billion doorways and heater vents… and I can’t have the junky, cheapo duct tape flopping off in the middle of my project, now can I?! And we all thought Buy.com sold only electronics! I love Buy.com. They have a huge selection of… well, everything! Prices are great, shipping is free on lots of stuff, and Buy.com takes PayPal as well as a variety of other payment choices. I get their weekly sale notice via email– that is mostly about electronics and computers– but loads of household stuff is always well-priced, too. Be sure to check them out if you need vacuum cleaners or parts, dishware, linens, books, clothes, shoes, tools, and tons of other stuff. AND DUCT TAPE! Yay!

Now that the snow is just about gone, I feel invigorated enough to start some planning for the new kitchen, and do some supply comparison shopping. I had this amazingly bright idea when I visited my local Big Box Home Improvement Store— take a camera to snap photos of the products! And to think I used to write it all down on paper with a pencil! No one in the store seemed to mind one bit. Maybe everybody does it, now?? It is extremely helpful to snap photos of the stuff. I can look at the photos and compare with other products online or at other stores.

Sheetrock prices are still steady. I have to find out from what country this stuff originates– I won’t buy Chinese-made sheetrock because of all the health problems it’s caused. I wrote a post about that here, if you are interested: Chinese-Made Drywall Causing Headaches.

I have determined to get Traffic Master Allure flooring. I LOVE the stuff, LOVE it. I wrote more about it, here.

Of course, I have to plan all the electric, too. Wow, prices have really creeped up on this stuff. I will also *hope* to be getting some help installing the electric this time. I did the Living Room and girls’ bedroom all by myself, but the kitchen has special needs. I’d appreciate an expert or two for this. And just think– soon my entire house will FINALLY have electricity!! It’s almost too good to be true!

Yep, I’m installing Cat5 Internet wiring in EVERY ROOM. I dislike wireless. I’ll have to build a control panel somewhere, to accommodate for all the ports we’ll have.

So that’s the latest. I’m really, really getting excited about this. I’m working very hard while it’s still winter, to earn enough money to pay off my bills and save some for this project. I’ll probably have to get a bank loan to fund it all, though. :-p But Lord willing, everything will fit into place. I’ll be sure to have loads of posts with photos as we progress. I am n the process of making the electrical, plumbing, and furnace duct schematic. I figure I’ll start demolition sometime at the end of April or mid-May.

Quite a number of weeks ago, I signed up for a Brylane Home freebie; since then, I’ve been getting their catalogs in the mail regularly. I’m not very fond of shopping catalogs at all, but I took a peek at the Brylane Home, and I’m pretty impressed– impressed enough to mention it here! I think they have excellent prices. I’ve been in need of some new cookware (and my bread machine died and I STILL haven’t replaced it), so I’ve been keen on housewares stores. I’ve been very dissatisfied with WalMart’s stuff– the stuff breaks or the non-stick coating wears off after minimal use— and refuse to buy any housewares there anymore. So I really like Brylane Home’s stuff, and I think things are very well priced. They have not asked me to mention them; I’m doing so because I like what I see and I thought you might benefit from it, too. The Brylane Home website is here. The prices on the website are the same as in the catalogs I get. While the inventory is good, you won’t find car accessories and everything under the sun here– just cookware, housewares, linens, bedding and bath stuff, etc. With the holidays coming and everyone’s attention turning to cooking and decorating the home, you may like the deals!

Summer is over and winter’s chills are beginning to roll in. Need a good reason to start planning your mid-winter vacation early? There’s an incredible travel promotion if you’ve been waiting in the wings for a deal. It’s the Accor Hotels 3-Day Super Sale Asia Pacific deal. I’ve spent the morning looking it over and it looks amazing!

Accor Hotels has opened up more than a million hotel rooms around the world– for all needs and budgets– for three days: October 27th, 28th, and 29th, 2009. You can obtain the steep discounts when you order online for stays from December 9, 2009, to April 10, 2010. The Super Sale is occurring at a time of record-low airfares across the Asia Pacific area. It’s a frugal paradise, people. The hotels are simply beautiful: locations available for Accor Hotels 3-Day Super Sale Asia Pacific include: Australia, Singapore, Thailand, Korea, China, Japan, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, Fiji, Indonesia, Taiwan, India, and Bali. Rates are as low as $30 per night (Thailand!) with most rates in the $50-70 range. Accor Hotels, the European leader in hotels around the world, has hotels in over 90 countries with over 4,000 hotels. I’ve browsed the site and the hotels are just exquisite!

Next to the beautiful hotels and outstanding service, the great thing about Accor is that they have built a structure of hotels to accommodate various needs and budgets, all revolving around the “name brands.” For example, the All Seasons Accor hotel brand is perfect for economically-minded travelers, or brief visits. The Mecure and Pullman and other name-brand Accor hotels are more expensive and have more luxurious features (such as regional, gourmet dining experiences and such). So no matter your travel need, be it a backpacking experience in New Zealand, or a business meeting in Japan, or a honeymoon in Hong Kong, you can stay with the reliable Accor brand. Plus, Accor is known throughout the world for it’s outstanding hospitality and beautiful locations.

This is such a great getaway opportunity! I would think that this would make a beautiful gift, too, and just in time for the holidays. See the Accor Hotels 3-Day Super Sale Asia Pacific page for more details.

Well, the outdoor activities will soon be ending here in the Northern Hemisphere.. and with it comes up to six months of dormancy for us in the Northeast. :-p The only nice things about it is that we have plenty of time to plan out our designs for the next coming outdoor season. In mid-autumn, I start to acquire a growing stack of books and software to help me learn and plan the next steps for my gardens and home renovations– and I SURELY hope to get that new kitchen in next summer!

So of course, the natural thing to do is look for deals while I’m acquiring. And the natural thing to do is to check out Buy.com! They have literally EVERYTHING– from toenail clippers to trowels to college textbooks to computer equipment and software! And better still, they have outstanding deals on them all! I visit Buy.com several times a week, to scour through their sale pages, looking for sales on stuff we need. And look what I found! Some very cool home design and landscape design software is selling for very low prices! That’s the 3D Home & Architect Home & Landscape, on sale for $36 with free shipping! That’s 40% off retail price. Plus, Buy.com has a wealth of other such software, including the popular Punch! Home Design series, all at great prices! See?! Didn’t I tell you that Buy.com has everything and anything, all for dirt-cheap prices?!

Seriously– if you have not taken a peek at what’s at Buy.com, then you should! It’s a great place. Not only do they have everything at spectacular prices, but they also have grat customer service and shipping policies. Plus, they have those very funny Howie Mandell video ads– nobody can top that! Check out Buy.com. You will love the place!

So what does a gardener do, all winter long?

Why, we read our gardening books.

This is the time of year when I scarf up cheap gardening books for the coming inactive days of winter. Yes, while my beautiful plants sleep their dormant slumber, I am busily planning away our next exploits for the coming growing season. And in the autumn, many books go on clearance and on sale, so it’s easy pickins. Buy.com has a terrific selection of books, did you know that? They do! This lovely little book, Stonework: Building Rock Gardens, Walks, Wall, and Ornaments is on sale for $9!! And Buy.com has a lot of the “Guide for Idiots” books that I always find handy, lol! I like those because they are so simple that, well, and IDIOT can understand them.

So this is a great time of the year to nab up any books you will need for the coming season– it is always cheaper to get things at the end of a season; I do that with just about everything! And while you’re at it, you may want to look around for other great deals at Buy.com. I love this place! They have everything– from firewire cables to garden tools to footwear! Buy.com has special deals on everything, and many times it all comes with free shipping. Definitely check them out next time you need anything under the sun. Or the latest “Idiot’s Guide To” book.

I recently blogged about my “I shoulda had a V-8!” moment (buying construction materials at salvage yards), and I just had another idea– buying refurbished or sharply discounted materials! I often go to Buy.com to buy my electronics stuff now (they have the best prices and free shipping), and I recently discovered that Buy.com has home and outdoor stuff, too. And actually, you can get building materials, tools, and household supplies at great prices there, too!

For example, check out this DeWalt replacement battery for my power drill. I’ve been looking for new batteries, but have been balking at the price at my local Home Depot: $100!! Guess how much this is at Buy.com? Go on, GUESS!

$57!!! That’s almost HALF the price!! Very cool.

I can’t believe I used to buy retail prices for all the stuff we need around here. Holy cow, think of all the money I wasted! I love Buy.com– they are the only place I get my electronics from anymore– and they have a great variety on everything (stuff like baby items, jewelry, books, clothing, etc). The home products are at good prices, and they variety is impressive– spray paint, garbage bags, plumbing joints, glass cutters, sandpaper, smoke detectors, power tools, etc etc! Pretty neat! Check out the weekly sale page at Buy.com for good deals, too. I love Buy.com!! Before you buy anything retail, check them out for deals first.