Cook's Interior Door Company

Much like the way your face is the first thing anyone who first meets you judges you by, the door is the first thing that any new comer to your home sees first. The doorway is the first impression everyone gets of your home and by association, of you.

Cook's Doors and Windows has been in business for over 80 years and it still remains a family run operation. The company is located in Los Angeles, California where they are a premier interior door company and exterior door company. They work with building contractors, designers and architects, providing them quality doors from a variety of reputable manufacturers to ensure that clients get just what they want or need for their doorways.

Cook's is also a great source as a replacement window company. You don't have to be building a major building project to avail of their services, they also provide support for retrofit or renovation projects. If, for instance, you are just looking to replace your old windows, Cook's uses the same high end door manufacturers for their windows. Check out the beautiful designs and craftsmanship of the doors and windows offered at their site.

And if you didn't already know it, another advantage to making sure the windows and doors to your home are energy efficient is that you can get up to $1500 in tax credit when you file your taxes this year! There is a little known credit called the Federal Energy Tax Credit Program which pays 30% of the product cost up to $1500 whenever you install energy efficient features to your home. This includes doors and windows that are manufactures to minimize heat loss and heat reflection. Contact a Cook's representative and they will tell you more about how to lower your energy bill and also how to earn this tax credit.

Pop Up TV

Pop ups are almost becoming cliche' but these pop up tvs are pretty cool. Most living rooms I walk into, including ours, is dominated by the TV. We all can't afford home movie theaters so we use our living rooms for that. Nothing wrong with that, but there are times when if would be nice to be able to use the living room without the TV blaring. Wouldn't it be nice to be able to hide the thing away when not in use?

Want to have a Green Thumb?

I've always been the grim reaper of plants (or should I say GREEN reaper?). My thumb is black and every plant I've ever had in my home was doomed to die, but I was too much of a snob to resort to 'fake' plants. That's why I married a man with a green thumb. So now he's the only one who handles plants. I handle the kids.

Here's an article that offers a new solutions to the question, How to Get a Green Thumb? The article gives some pretty compelling reasons for using silk flowers and plants to go green when decorating your interiors.

Mailboxes

The holidays are upon us again, I realized, as I eyed some Christmas cards at the drug store this morning. Pretty soon your mailboxes will be full of Christmas cards. Wouldn't you want to have an attractive receptacle to receive these bounties? There are a variety of mailboxes out there like the Gaines Mailboxes that are not only stylish but also durable. If a curbside Gaines pedestal mailbox is your style, they have a variety of styles that you may find appealing. They also have community mailboxes for apartments and businesses.

If you are into classic designs, the Original Keystone Mailbox series may be just the thing for you. The mailboxes are durable and will stand all types of weather for a long time. They are made of rust proof aluminum, and the paint will resist UV rays making the color of your mailbox last longer.

Floor me

My sister just had wood flooring installed at her house for what seems like a lot of money to me. While she was getting estimates, we were discussing whether it would be cheaper if she bought the flooring herself and just had it installed by someone else. She said that most of the contractors she talked to were against that idea because they said they wouldn't then be able to guarantee the quality.

Too bad because iFLOOR has a variety of quality flooring at reasonable prices. The good thing is, they now also offer a warranty for flooring purchased online. See the press release below.

iFLOOR, America's largest online flooring retailer, today announced a $1,000,000 limited warranty designed to protect its customers from predatory manufacturer policies that exclude warranty coverage from online purchases.

The policy, which goes into effect immediately, offers up to one million dollars of coverage in the event that a customer's warranty claim is denied specifically because they made their purchase online. It is complimentary for every iFLOOR customer, and protects the buyer under the same terms as the original product warranty.

iFLOOR, Inc. CEO, Steve Simonson, came up with the program to combat "scare tactics" used by manufacturers of hardwood floors and laminate flooring. "Their idea is to discourage you from buying at a discount!" wrote Simonson in his blog "It's About Flooring". "This is not right! You deserve to save money! So we're going to take care of this problem once and for all."

And it would appear that federal law is on his side. Section 108 of the 1975 Magnuson-Moss Act, states that, "In general, tie-in sales provisions are not allowed. Such a provision would require a purchaser of the warranted product to buy an item or service from a particular company to use with the warranted product in order to be eligible to receive a remedy under the warranty."

Under iFLOOR's new warranty, a key provision allows for iFLOOR to "seek justice" on behalf of the customer in the event of legal action. According to Simonson, "I'm putting iFLOOR's money where my mouth is."

About iFLOOR, Inc.
Since 1998, iFLOOR.com has been the leading online and retail flooring company, with 36 local retail stores nationwide offering more than 70,000 products, including hardwood floors, laminate flooring, bamboo flooring and cork floors. iFLOOR.com is the largest online flooring retailer according to Internet Retailer Magazine, and was named by Inc. Magazine as one of the fastest growing private companies in the United States for the past three years. Committed to quality customer service, superior selection and friendly expert advice, iFLOOR.com enables customers to buy flooring both online and in its retail stores at a substantial savings over traditional retailers. For more information about iFLOOR, please visit www.iFLOOR.com.

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Light up your life

This weekend is Daylight Savings Time; it's again time to set our clocks one hour back. That means it will be darker when you go out in the morning. The season of light is upon us and what better time to start considering the lighting inside of your homes too? For quality and classically designed lighting, you may want to look at quoizel lighting. Their timeless look and elegance will enhance any room in your house for years. They are not only beautiful, they are built to last. What ever type of lighting needs you may have, they will probably have just the right chandellier, wall scones or ceiling light for you. Cast a glow to your home by installing the right type of lighting.

Light up your life

There is something about getting just the right lighting in a room that makes a huge difference in how you feel. Lighting sets the mood as they say. If you are looking for lamps and other lighting fixtures, farreys.com is a new place to go.

They carry a large selection of lamps and lamp shades, table lamps and floor lamps among many lighting fixtures. Farrey's carries other accessories for your decorating needs aside from lamps. They also carry bath and kitchen accessories, and ceiling fans. They have a 30-day return policy and claim to have fast shipping.

So stop reading in the dark or bathing under harsh fluorescent lights. Look through their various selection of lighting options and pick one that is just right for you and your lifestyle.

Faucets that flow

It is a little sad and endearing at the same time; when the girls came home after their month long summer vacation was the brand new Price Pfister faucet their dad had installed in the kitchen. I don't blame them, they were probably thanking their lucky stars that they won't be reminded to turn the faucet off properly. The old was was not only ancient, it was also leaky and had to be turned just the right way so it wouldn't drip all day and night.

Now we have one of those faucets that sits high so you can easily put a large pot under it and a pull out sprayer which just makes dish washing a pleasure. Now it fun again, well as much as it could be being a chore, to wash dishes.

Visit faucet.com for their large selection of quality and attractive faucets. I'm sure you'll find something that fits just exactly what you need.

Sleek, trim and stylish

I think that I am innately attracted to decor that is sparse and uncluttered. That is one reason I am often drawn to modern platform beds. There is just something about their clean, open lines that appeal to me. I love the sleek and simple look that is at the same time stylish. I especially like that most platform beds do not a a box spring. I hate squeeky springs! I like that this type of bed reminds me of Asian decor too. This clean, sparse decor is what I have been aiming for with little success, but I can dream, can't I?

Snuggle time

The weather is starting to turn cooler already. The leaves have started turning colors and falling, the shadows are getting longer and you can practically feel it, smell it in the air that autumn is coming. It's time again to pull out our winter wear. It's also time to pull the duvet covers back onto the beds, and put away the light summer spreads. We don't use duvet covers to cover duvets though. We have several antique quilts that we use on occasion and we found that with three kids, duvet covers work really well in protecting and preserving our treasured quilts.

If you are in the UK, the place to go to spruce up your beddings is Terry's Fabrics. They have a beautiful collection of duvets and bedspreads to choose from. They don't only carry beddings and linens though, they also carry other items for decorating your home. They also carry curtains, blinds, lighting accessories and rugs. In addition they stylish have accessories to finish off your design like hooks and holdbacks for your curtains and draperies and if tiebacks and tassles are more your thing, they have those too.

Heads up, UK DIYers!

Do-it-yourselfers in the the UK go to Anglian Home Improvements for home improvements and home repair projects. They provide quality materials whether you are working on a new sunroom (conservatory, they call it), driveways, or garage.

One of their featured products is double glazing on windows. And for a locale like the UK where it is more often cold, having an efficient window system is important. It's important because double glazed panes keep the heat in and the cold out. This will help decrease your heating bill. All windows from Anglian not only have this double glazing, they are also custom made to fit your home and are guaranteed for ten years.

One other feature that I found interesting is that they also specialize in garage conversions. That is, converting your existing garage, whether you are using it as such or not, into an additional living space. We have been contemplating doing this for a long time to make more room for my husband's art study. I like the fact that they can handle your conversions from start to finish including getting permits and approval for the project.

If you're in the UK and are in need of their services, contact them for a free quote.