A resource for those seeking information on organizing and transforming spaces.

Home Ideas Ben Soreff Home Ideas Ben Soreff

Organizing Your Kitchen For Your Healthiest Year

After a tumultuous year with the global pandemic, being and staying healthy is a top priority for the coming year. But establishing healthy habits can be hard. With all the moving parts of day-to-day life, we tend to rely on what is convenient instead of what is best. Especially when it comes to food. Having an organized kitchen makes achieving these healthy habits easier. By facilitating healthy choices, the best option becomes the most convenient one as well.

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After a tumultuous year with the global pandemic, being and staying healthy is a top priority for the coming year. But establishing healthy habits can be hard. With all the moving parts of day-to-day life, we tend to rely on what is convenient instead of what is best. Especially when it comes to food. Having an organized kitchen makes achieving these healthy habits easier. By facilitating healthy choices, the best option becomes the most convenient one as well.

Prepackage Your Snacks

Prepackaged snacks, though easy and convenient, are normally really processed and packed full of salt and sugar. They can be tempting to grab because sometimes you just don’t have time to make something to eat. Enter homemade prepackaged snacks. By portioning out and packaging your snacks, not only do you get to customize what goes inside but how much. Based on your health and fitness goals, knowing exactly what you’re eating and how much is important. You can personalize your fruit and nut mix in Ziploc bags. Or hard-boil some eggs and put them in small containers. By having these snacks ready to go in a minute, you won’t think twice about grabbing them over the bag of chips or sugary granola bars. If you’re a busy parent, this is a lunch hack that will help both you and your child live a healthier life.

Easy Access To Fruits and Vegetables

Fruits and vegetables are some of the best foods we can put in our bodies. Yet, as a country, the United States is lacking. 90% of Americans do not meet the recommended goal of 2 to 3 cups of fruits and vegetables per day. Having easy access to fruits and vegetables in your fridge is the first step to incorporating more fruits and vegetables into your life. Start by finding containers that fit on the shelf that is closest to your eye-line. Research shows we tend to reach for the first thing we see when we are hungry. After selecting where the produce will go, begin to prep it. Prewash your fruits so they’re ready to eat when you grab them. Peel and chop your vegetables for snacking and for cooking. You’re more likely to cook some fresh vegetables if half the prep work is already done. To prevent food waste, make sure you keep the most perishable items at the front. Some people put together an “eat first” bin in their fridge where they put the produce that’s closest to expire. 

Pamper Your Pantry

If you’re anything like me, the pantry is your weakness. All the sweet and salty treats can be hard to resist. The first step in organizing your pantry for optimal health is to purge it. Take out all the snacks and sweets that you’re trying to avoid and either toss them out or put them in a separate area that you’re less likely to gravitate to. Out of sight, out of mind is effective when it comes to making better choices. When choosing which snacks to keep, look for items that are healthier but still satisfy a craving whether it’s something crunchy, sweet, or salty. Instead of potato chips, try crunchy baked chickpeas or green pea crisps. For sweets, try freeze-dried strawberries and bananas for a little sweetness. If you’re a chocolate fiend, look for options that are lower in sugar. Similar to the produce, place the foods you want to eat right at your eye-line. 

Spice Up Your Life

Herbs and spices are some of the best ways to make your food taste better without adding extra salt, fat, and sugar. Live herbs can offer a freshness that is unmatched compared to the dried ones that you find at the grocery store. When it comes to organizing spices, there are a few trains of thought. You can opt to arrange them alphabetically so you know where to find each one. Or, if you know which spices you use most, arrange them from most used in the front to least used in the back. If you’re a fan of herbs, consider organizing a place in your kitchen for a small herb garden. Unlike other plants, herbs are relatively easy to grow and low maintenance, aside from a watering schedule. Having fresh herbs on hand is a motivator to get into the kitchen and cook up something healthy. Herbs are great for salad dressings, to put in dishes, and on top of dishes. 

Bottom Line

Healthy eating can be hard. Especially if our habits lean more towards unhealthy choices. Organizing your kitchen is the best way to promote healthy eating for yourself and other people in your household. These tips should be a solid foundation for a healthier diet. Depending on your eating habits, there may be some that work better than others. As you experiment with different organization methods, you may even find new ones that work even better. As humans, we are creatures of habit. And the hardest part is just getting started. 

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Home Ideas Ben Soreff Home Ideas Ben Soreff

How to Find the Right New Windows for Your Remodel

Now that you have decided to remodel your window, you must make the right choice. Windows have a significant impact on the style and performance of the house. You can end up spending much on energy bills when you don’t properly ventilate your home. Therefore, windows should act as ideal ventilators and serve in every season. Meaning, choosing the right window for renovation is not a walk in the park. You need to do your research right and consider every aspect involved. This article explains how you can find the right windows for your remodel.

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Now that you have decided to remodel your window, you must make the right choice. Windows have a significant impact on the style and performance of the house. You can end up spending much on energy bills when you don’t properly ventilate your home. Therefore, windows should act as ideal ventilators and serve in every season. Meaning, choosing the right window for renovation is not a walk in the park. You need to do your research right and consider every aspect involved. This article explains how you can find the right windows for your remodel.

Consider Style

It would help if you considered the architectural style of your house before you reinforce new windows. Not every window type will fit in your home. The window should provide an aesthetic effect to both the interior and exterior of the house. It should create elegance and ventilation in the house. The materials and painting on the window should match the décor you choose for your house. Therefore, you have to choose from various options; casement windows, sash windows, French windows, among many more. Also, the exterior style that the window brings would have a significant effect on its value when you consider a resale.

Efficiency

When considering a new window, efficiency should be one thing that you need to have at the top of the list. An efficient window will help you save on electricity bills. Meaning, the window should serve its purpose of ventilation and temperature control in the house so that you don’t have to depend on heating and lighting most of the time. During the day, the window should let in the required amount of light and breeze. When you need it for security, you can consider translucent panes. Ask your installer about the efficiency of the replacement windows, or do some research to find the best option.

Safety

It would help if you felt secure when you are in your home. There can be emergencies like strong wind or hailstone. These can have damaging effects on the window, and if you install substandard quality windows, you can sustain severe injuries. An ideal option is if you consider laminated glass or toughened glass. These have different patterns when they break, unlike regular glass. Regular glass can leave sharp edges that can easily cut an operator. However, laminated glass has a layer of plastic in between, and in case of any breakage, the glass particles will remain intact. On the other hand, it is hard to break toughened glass, and when it does, it breaks into smaller pieces leaving no sharp edges.

Choosing the right windows for your remodel can be a daunting task, but you will enjoy the fruits when you choose the suitable options. You’ll end up saving more on bills and improve the elegance in your home.

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Home Ideas Ben Soreff Home Ideas Ben Soreff

How to Plan for Potential Disasters That Can Happen in Your Home

As a homeowner, you need to take full responsibility for whatever happens in your home. This means planning for any disasters that could occur. Without planning for disasters, you can end up with a home in an unlivable situation. Make sure you plan for these disasters.

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As a homeowner, you need to take full responsibility for whatever happens in your home. This means planning for any disasters that could occur. Without planning for disasters, you can end up with a home in an unlivable situation. Make sure you plan for these disasters.

Fires

Fires can scare homeowners a lot. Homeowners should be scared, as fires can end up quickly burning down your home before you have time to react. To prevent harm from fire, you'll have to take a couple of measures. First, make sure all of your fire detectors in your home are working. These make it so that you're alerted of any fire happening, allowing you to sleep and walk around your home without having to worry about a fire. You'll also want to make sure that you purchase a fire extinguisher for your home. With a fire extinguisher, you can take care of small fires around your home without having to wait for the fire department to come by. Make sure you take both of these measures to ensure that your house doesn't burn down from a fire.

Water

Whether it be from a regular storm in the summer or a hurricane, you need to worry about water getting in your home. To do this, get an inspection on your home to see if you have any spots where water could get in from the outside. Without doing this, your home can end up having mold through the walls, costing you a lot more money than if you just paid attention to your home more.

If you have water damage, you need to make sure that you take care of it soon as possible. That means going through a company like Servpro of Beaufort County to fix your water damage, assuring that you aren't racking up bills over time. Ensure that you prevent water from getting into your home if you want to prevent disasters.

By knowing how to take care of disasters, you can ensure that you have a home to live in for the rest of your life. Just make sure that all of your equipment is up-to-date all of the time, otherwise, that equipment could be useless in times of emergency. 

You'll also want to make sure that everyone living in your home knows how to stop disasters as they occur. This ensures that your home will be safe, regardless if you're home at the time or not.

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Home Ideas Ben Soreff Home Ideas Ben Soreff

How to Buy a House with Student Loans

For many college graduates, graduating with student debt is fairly common. However, this is a great time to start investing your money early, such as investing in a starter home. Buying a home with student loan debt is not impossible, but there are financial factors you should consider when applying for a mortgage.

For many college graduates, graduating with student debt is fairly common. However, this is a great time to start investing your money early, such as investing in a starter home. Buying a home with student loan debt is not impossible, but there are financial factors you should consider when applying for a mortgage.

Here are a few steps you should take that will improve your chances of qualifying for a home loan as a college student, even with loan debt. 

  • Pay off as much debt as possible: The most important step to take when working to qualify for a mortgage is lowering your debt-to-income ratio. The earlier you can start paying off your student loan debt, the better. If you have another source of debt, such as a credit card bill, this is a good time to pay it off if you can.

  • Improve your credit score: A healthy credit score is one of the more important factors lenders will look at when determining if you are qualified enough for a home loan. Be sure to make your student loan debt payments on time to avoid dragging down your credit score. Set a reminder on your phone or calendar to submit your payment even before the due date. 

  • Increase your income: Increasing your income will help lower your DTI ratio and look better when lenders view your income history. Look for a new side hustle or two to bring additional income in, or ask for extra hours at your current job. 

If you aren’t too sure if post-graduation is the best time to invest in a new home, you can always start by renting a home first to get your feet wet in the homeowner’s pond. This can also be a good time to pay off as much student loan debt you can, and then start searching for your ideal home in your price range!

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