Thursday, 16 August 2012

House Designs

House designs are powerful symbols that you can use to create a statement to the world on who you are. Buildings have a long lifespan and will continue communicating your statement to the world long after your departure. House designs are also a mark of self-actualization.


The initial step to realize your dream house plan is to contact an Architect. Explain to your architect how you want your house to look. You can search on the internet for similar house images and floor plans. This will inspire you to be able o explain to your architect exactly how you want to design your house.


You can also explain to your architect on what statement or symbol you may wish your house to communicate through design. At this stage, your budget will be important in that it will dictate the size of the house you will have. Mortgage finance is available from Housing Finance, KCB Savings and Loan, Barclays, Equity Bank, Standard Chartered, Stanbic or any other financial institution in Kenya.


The architect will incorporate the design and symbols into a form and will work out functionality from here.

Functionality involves how spaces relate to each other e.g. the kitchen should be near the dining room, the bedrooms should be located privately away from the living room, the construction of the structure should be structurally sound and in conformity to the Building Code and all laws governing construction of houses.

Through use of 3 dimensional graphic design software such as ArchiCAD, your architect should be able to present to you the house in 3 D graphic view for you to make your recommendations and changes. This process will continue till you are satisfied with the house design.


Your architect will print the house plan in A1 size format and make 4 copies of blueprint.

He will submit the drawings to the relevant local Authority in Kenya, in Nairobi, the City Council.
The Council will go through the drawings to confirm if it conforms to the Kenya Building Code and thus habitable.

Once approvals are granted, usually after a few weeks, you can now move on to the next stage: Construction.
In this stage, you can have your Quantity Surveyor come up with Bills of Quantities, i.e. a breakdown of all the materials and quantities to be used in the house and an estimated cost of construction per item. With this blank document[without the price component], you can invite several building contractors to quote for the construction of the house.with the help of your architect and quantity surveyor, you can select the best in terms of past experience on similar construction and pricing.


After the selection, you then get into contract with the contractor and your architect supervises the contractors work to ensure that he conforms to the design and the agreed quality and workmanship.
Construction contracts in Kenya are available at the Architectural Association Of Kenya offices, Professional center, Nairobi, Kenya.


Once the contractor is through with construction as per the drawings, you can then move in to your dream house and live comfortably ever after.

Wednesday, 15 August 2012

Tree houses

Tree houses are structures built amongst the branches or within the outer structure of a tree. They are normally raised above the ground and are made of wooden materials such as timber. They can be lived in as a permanent housing solution, or they can be used as a playhouse for younger children.

What are Tree Houses used for?

When you think of a tree house, you automatically think of a house, which is used by young mischievous children. However they are also seen as an environmentally friendly way of building housing in forestry areas. Because they are raised off the ground, it is not necessary to destroy plants and tress to build them. Therefore they can solve the problem of housing in an area where people might have lived in tents or built houses on top of wildlife areas. In some countries they live in tree houses, not just to save the environment but also to protect their homes, food and belongings from wild animals.

What are They Made of?

Wood is usually the main component used when building a tree house, however they may have metal framework.

Sometimes recycled materials are used, majority of the time, doors and windows are items that may have been claimed from junk yards or building site waste. This is a cost effective, eco-friendly way of building a tree house.

How popular are Tree Houses?

Tree Houses, have become more popular in recent years, countries such as the United States and even the UK have seen a rise in the use of tree houses for recreational purposes. Most people build tree houses for their children to use as a play house, or a hideaway. However some people also use tree houses as an alternative home office or extra room.

There has been a major surge in the popularity of tree houses, with there being so many different styles to choose from, it can be hard to pick. However, gone are the days when you just built your tree house for your son or daughter yourself. There are a few very good professional tree house building companies out there. Most of them offer some very competitive prices, as well as a wide range of styles to suit your needs. Tree houses are making a comeback, and they are not just for the goonies in the 1980's film by the same name. They are pretty much for everyone. With retro styling being considered "cool" tree houses are welcome additions to the list of all things retro.

Monday, 13 August 2012

Fulfilment House

Manage your online business more effectively using Fulfilment House

Tired of your business taking up too much of your time at the weekends? Do you find your evenings are spent packing and sorting the orders that have been processed during the day? Trying to juggle a full-time job with your part-time online retailing business? Use a Fulfilment House to ease the pressures and they'll Pick and Pack with pleasure and make sure that your goods are sent to the right customers. Order fulfilment is big business and a Fulfilment House will store your goods for you, pick select items when customers make purchases, pack them securely and ship them around the globe. It's simple. The Fulfilment House can streamline your business leaving you with more free time on your hands.

Put an end to your current Pick and Pack procedures and let the Fulfilment House take charge

Want to grow your online business? Use the services of the Fulfilment House. They can store all of your stock in their clean, dry and secure warehouse premises and Pick and Pack orders as they come in. Your customers won't be left waiting when the Fulfilment House is controlling your stock. Shipments will be sent out nice and prompt to meet customer demand. Think you'll be charged a premium for the service provided by the Fulfilment House? Don't worry. Customers can simply pay-as-they-go and the prices charged are extremely reasonable. Storage is simplified when you use the services of the Fulfilment House. Your goods are delivered to their warehouse ready to be distributed to your customers when the orders start flying in.

How does the Fulfilment House know when products have been purchased?

Their software is integrated with your shopping cart. People buy your goods online and the Fulfilment House knows about it instantly and can Pick and Pack their orders straight away. Are you running out of storage facilities at home at the moment? Tripping over boxes in your lounge, stumbling over goods in the kitchen and falling over products in the hall? Remove the need to store your goods at home and let the Fulfilment House store the goods on your behalf. Improve your levels of customer service by using a Fulfilment House and let the Pick and Pack professionals process your orders from now on.

Sunday, 12 August 2012

Haunted Houses

Almost every town in the United States, when it is more than a century old, features a house that a person claims can be a haunted house. These are the homes that, around Halloween, are used to scare people. Frequently the only thing creating the appearance of a haunted house is the location and the amount of repair or even disrepair as the case might be.


At Halloween night, many people try to fix up their houses to make them seem like haunted house. Some property owners are lucky enough to actually own one of those nearby haunted homes, making it easier for people to believe the decorations. It is probably an old house. The location is most likely back away from the street and in dark areas away from streetlights. There is probably large old timber around, contributing to the dark areas and creating things appear that much spookier.


During the Halloween party season, the local haunted residence may be one that can be rented for Halloween costume parties for all ages (although it possibly should be an older age group if the property is truly scary as individuals would not want to actually cause any traumatic encounters for the extremely young).

A number of the other features for a haunted house encounter can be chairs, doors, as well as stairs that creak. More mature houses often aren't at the same time insulated so any blowing wind outside could cause the spooky noises within and make lighting on stores swing and sway in any way of sea breezes.

Local cat stories in many cases are told in regards to the local haunted houses.

Probably the owner of the house heard the majority of all of the tales prior to buying that house, especially if it is a small town in which the owner grew up. When who owns the house is a local, it's easier to result in the Halloween encounter and have the Halloween costume party at that house. If it's in a small community, it is also easier to make the Halloween experience at the haunted residence really a community effort and knowledge. When it is the suburbs local haunted house, the particular homeowner doesn't have to set up numerous decorations associated with ghost and also goblins as well as witches to offer the wanted haunted house has an effect on.

Of course, the last reasons a residence may be considered haunted will be the local stories of unconventional or even weird happenings. Lighting appearing inside windows that shouldn't have lights; sounds across the higher hallways. Home appliances turned on whenever no one is in the house. All these are items that have likely to herald the ghost in the home.


Happy Halloween party! Whhhooooooooo!

Saturday, 11 August 2012

Lloret De Mar Holiday Villa: Villa Carla

Holiday Villa Carla is a special wooden holiday home that has a comfortable atmosphere to always make you feel at home. The villa gives you the ultimate holiday feeling that you expect to enjoy from your vacation. The Holiday Villa is situated in Los Pinares, a pleasant urbanization decorated throughout with pine trees. You would feel that you have reached the best place in the world to enjoy the summers there is nothing that can be compared to the experience of enjoying the shade of these pine trees.
The Holiday Villa entrance has a private parking to keep your car. Entrance to the home takes you directly to one of the two elegant living rooms, furnished and studded with all the facilities. And, you would surely love to enjoy your mornings at the balcony on the backside of the Holiday Villa. The living room is directly connected to a 1 by 2 bedroom and a stair takes you up to the second bedroom that has a double bed and a single bed. The same floor has another single bed bedroom. You can move to the ground floor through the stairs and arrive at the other living room that consists of the dining table. It is also attached to a big kitchen. A television is placed in this living area and the bathroom is attached to it.
That is not all. Move to the covered terrace that has a magnificent private pool lined around with comfortable sun beds and a beautiful and practical kitchen and barbeque. Due to its privacy, the Holiday Villa is ideal for families having children. The beach is 4 km from the villa. You can have a sea view at a little distance from the house. It can accommodate 6 or more people, so you can always take your extended family or a group of friends to enjoy the hot summers of Lloret de Mar.

Thursday, 9 August 2012

House Painter

Are you looking forward to paint your house? Then it is time that you look for a good house painter. You would find lots of painter, but is important for you to get the best professional house painter who would be able to give a new look to your house. It is very important that your house is washed and that too four sides of it.


As you know it is not possible to wash all the four sides in a single day if your house is too big but it can be done in a period of three to four days. Even you can go for painting of your house but it is best if you can go for a professional one who would be able to do all the work in just a few days without taking much of your time.


Using the right type of paint


When it comes to painting your house, then it is very important that you choose the right color. There are professional house painters who can give you advice on the type of colors that would suit your house.

But there are people who go for choosing odd colors that destroy the beauty of the house. The painters also go for using latex paint in the exterior of the house which helps in letting the moisture out of the house.

If you go for oil base then it can suffer from cracking as well as peeling. So, this is the main reason why it is very important to choose the right type of paint for your house. You should never go for using inferior paints and then losing all the hard labor. So, get the best paint with a good color and hire a professional painter and you would see your house sparkling.

Tuesday, 7 August 2012

Verdana Villas

Verdana Villas represent Infinite Sophistication. It is a world of living created to transcend every class. An opus inscribed in the finest facets of quality, unraveling overwhelming brilliance even as you make your way to the entrance. All 56 strata Villas Comprising 5-Bedroom Semi-Detached Villas and 2 units of 6-Bedroom Bungalow Villas come with private basement car parks where you can park your precious vehicles.  For a grander package, there is also a private swimming pool are crafted in grand fashion on a sprawling ground exceed 100,000 square feet to translate exclusivity as part of your life.


This proposed strata housing development has a freehold tenure and with an expected TOP on the year 2014.

Among the plenty facilities are Entrance & Sentry Post, Resort Pool with Free-Fall Infinity Edge, Wading Pool, Steam Bath, Gymnasium, Shower Room & Common Toilet, Poolside Garden Deck, Sunken Bamboo Grove with Water stream, Cascading Water Stream to Basement, Garden Path and Communal water features.

A creation preceding the highest standard, the bona fide essence of luxury is truly omnipresent in Verdana Villas.  A name that is synonymous with timeless panache that has gone beyond luxurious living. It's the presence in the highest living.


This exquisite habitat is set to thrive with the modernity of high society yet lush with familial belonging.

You will never again be behind the modern twists of facilities and things in life when you are in Verdana Villas.  Everyone who will see your place will envy your experience. Every bit of the 3-storey + roof garden luxurious living spells the lulling comfort of home assembled with communal facilities that include a resort pool with free-fall infinity edge where you can enjoy the waters any time of the day. A wading pool for your swimming getaway with friends is also available. Included in the extravagant scene are a poolside garden deck and a sunken bamboo grove with water stream for you to experience a touch of nature right there and then in your home. There is also a garden path where you can experience green life each time you pass by it, and a spacious gymnasium and steam bath for you to take off all the stresses of life.

Verdana Villas - a treasure close to your heart. This is where your wonderful journey begins.