There is hardly anything more pleasant that to sit quietly on the outdoor patio taking in the fresh air and sipping on a cold drink the end of a long and hard work day. Outdoor patios can be used essentially as extended usable living space in a home especially when the weather is dry and the sun is shining. If the patio is perched above a raging river or overlooking a mountain side, perched above a seascape or overlooking any other type of scenic view then spending time outdoors might be better to the indoor living space.

Many patios are built under an existing roof or the existing roof is extended for protection against the elements. Other freestanding patios are made concrete foundations resting in or on the ground with supporting posts to support the deck structure. Patios are typically built at ground level with a door leading from a room or rooms in the house to the outside patio. Often times a sliding glass door or double French doors will be used as the exit door from the house to the patio area offering a scenic view of nature or a landscaped backyard.

Building The Patio To Suit Your Needs

Depending on the layout and size of the house and the contour of the surrounding grounds, a patio should be made large enough to be useful and in my opinion the larger the better .. Some patios are made too small to be of any use although some homeowners do have restricted space to work with, in which case a small patio would be better than no patio.

Many times a patio is built to be a transition area between the home and some other outdoor recreation area such as swimming pool, or spa which provides a place for water to drip from bathing suits before they enter the home. Tracking water into the home can make mom angry at times. To avoid this outdoor patio mats can be useful to collect water, dirt and debris from the feet before entering the house to avoid damage to expensive flooring.

Whether the patio is constructed of decorative bricks over sand or is built up on foundations made with beloved concrete is really a matter of taste, but the materials and colors should fit into the overall landscape theme of the home. Normally a patio is built in the backyard for privacy but often time is built in the front for viewing activities in the neighborhood.

An outdoor patio can be useful for a number of reasons, such as barbecuing, entertaining family, friend and neighbors, providing a relaxing atmosphere when hosting outdoor parties or just relaxing after a hard days work.

Whatever you come up with your own outdoor patio ideas and build it yourself, or have someone build it for you remember the end result and how much you will enjoy it.

Whether you've just moved house, or are redecorating, your bedroom can not be forgotten about. It's your personal space where you spend time relaxing and it should reflect your personality.

Firstly, you need plan the color scheme of your room – the safest option is to go for a neutral offset and brighten it up with vivid, colorful bedroom accessories. Clean lines and neutral background tones juxtaposed with eclectic, bright accessories will liven up the neutral offset.

Ideally, you want a relaxing atmosphere in the evening and then an airy, light feeling when you rise in the morning. The best way to achieve these contrasting moods is by choosing appropriate lighting – you could use a dimmer switch to create a calm, dimly-lit ambiance in the evening and in the morning you can let the natural light see through your window by choosing lightly- colored curtains. For dark mornings, you could use a bedside lamp which creates the illusion of daylight.

As your bedroom is your place to relax, you'll want it to be clutter free and there before you'll need to think about the design of your room and storage space. Storage is key for creating space, make use of baskets, racks and dividers as they can be moved easily if need be. Also make use of the storage space underneath your bed, you can purchase plastic boxes to store items under your bed that you may not use too often. Fitted wardrobes hide storage hidden away and multifunctional furniture maximises space.

Try to choose furniture that's light and easy to manoeuvre and then you can move it around if you fancy a change. Place your furniture in corners and ensure you have enough room and space to move about freely. Try to avoid placing furniture in front of a window as it make the room look smaller and may block natural light from entering your room. If you are unsure where to place your furniture to create the most space, you can use special bedroom design software to plan your new bedroom and to ensure you are getting as much free space as possible.

Your bed will be the focal point of your room and will probably take up the most space, ensuring your bed is not too large for your room as it will leave you with little space for anything else. To make your bed look stylish, invest in original bed linen, and a striking headboard. Mix different fabrics on your bed, one type for headboard, one type for your linen and another for the cushions.

Whether you want a carpet or wooden flooring is your personal preference and each have their own benefits. Wooden flooring is easy to keep clean and can be livened up with stylish, textured rugs. On the other hand, carpet gives a homely feel and is soft on your fee. However, it does need to hoovered and can often be difficult to keep clean.

The cheapest street in Britain. On Wednesday I watched a documentary on Liverpool’s housing scheme – the opportunity to purchase a dilapidated house for a pound and do it up. That sounds like a fabulous idea for those struggling to get on the housing-ladder, and several families had accepted the offer and were eagerly renovating their properties.

However a few problems came to light. Because the area the houses were in was a run down district, there was a lot of crime, vandalizing and even shootings, which was frightening for the new residence. There were only a few sales amid rows of empty houses.

The council had apparently had 2500 enquiries for the properties, why couldn’t they move faster at getting more families in thus creating a thriving community of like-minded people working hard at renovating their homes. A higher occupancy would probably lower vandalism.

Another problem the new purchasers had, was their lack of the skill-set required to repair rooves, flooring and completely renovating a shell. The work obviously had to be completed to a high standard and the new purchasers were working to a small budget and doing as much of the work as possible; also sometimes their work was being destroyed by vandalism.

Some may say why was the council selling off housing stock? They had previously been planned to redevelop the area but funding ran out – but there were benefits to the scheme:

Selling the houses for renovation would bring in council tax.

Homes would be provided.

The area would be tidied up and improved with new residents taking pride in their properties.

An improved district, once everyone had moved in, less crime etc.

It seems to me with a few tweaks the scheme could produce a win-win solution. By selling say 50 houses a month in due course the revenue from council tax could be:

50 houses X £100 CT = £5000 per month. Which isn’t being provided whilst houses are empty!

If council tax was halved for the first 6 months whilst the houses were renovated and tuition/support offered from a team of vetted builders, also doing work at a subsidised rate, this would encourage more people to purchase, and the uptake would be faster. (The revenue raised could help provide the services).

A thriving community would quickly develop, reduced crime in the area, some housing deficit satisfied and revenue form council tax for the future.

As this is only the first episode it will be interesting to see how the project develops, and how the council deal with the arising problems. The program returns next week.