Category Archives: Fab finds

Biking for Fun and Exercise

I miss biking whenever I see friends on Facebook who enjoy cycling for recreation. It’s been decades since I learned to ride a bike, and it’s not even my own. When I was younger, I would go to the park with friends to rent bikes and spend hours enjoying the cool breeze.

As posted on the seller’s FB page.

Last week, my daughter and I purchased our first bikes. The bikes are surplus items from Japan.

The sturdy-looking bikes are foldable and can be taken comfortably to parks.

As posted on the seller’s FB page.

My daughter and I are determined to learn to use it (sadly, with 30 years of not riding a bike, I have to relearn to balance).

We are looking forward to more time for practice and eventually enjoy biking in the neighborhood.

Camping Coffee Pot Percolator

Hubby attends to his plants every day. 🌱 It’s his way of relaxing in the morning before going to work. He takes a coffee break in between replanting and propagating his current favorite plant. Never misses a cup, even in hot and humid weather. I think it’s his way of planning another creative project. 😎

By the way, I got this camping coffee pot percolator from Amazon as my advance Father’s Day gift to hubby. The best gift I got him so far, he said. 😍

What’s good about this coffee pot percolator is that you can bring it anywhere you go, whatever you do like camping, glamping, hiking, hunting, or hang out in the garden or backyard! 😊

#hubbylovesplants #coffeelover #coffeeinhotweather #coffeepotpercolator #campingcoffeepot #campingcoffeepotpercolator #fathersdaygiftideas

Side note: The table in the picture is a repurposed crib of our young adult children.

Save Space and Curb Appeal with a Free-Standing Hose Holder

When we mention a garden hose holder, no doubt you might be drawn to immediately imagine the classic plastic and metal wall-mount found in countless home improvement stores around the U.S. Many of these are mass-produced and manufactured quickly by the thousands across the country.

While those may certainly be convenient, many of them are the kind that either must be stationary or must be attached to the outside of your home. Let’s be honest, after all the hard work you do to maintain your lawn, gardens, the yard, and the exterior décor, planting a hose reel or holder outside probably doesn’t sound like a great idea.

Especially for those who rent or who are concerned with the curb appeal of their home, having a free-standing hose holder is a perfect solution for many of the issues that crop up with more questionably made hose holders.

What is curb appeal and why is it important?

Curb appeal is what gives homebuyers or renters their very first impression of a property before they even step inside. The aesthetics of a home’s exterior can often tell a person what they might expect to see on the inside even from the front door. At the very least, the exterior of your home can often determine whether buyers may even want to take a look inside.

And curb appeal isn’t simply for those wishing to sell or rent a home. Curb appeal can be a boon to an entire community of homeowners. Having a beautiful and well-maintained community is one of the best ways to attract new people to an HOA. Even if not part of a community or HOA, many homeowners take pride in their property, managing it well and beautifying it with gorgeous lawns, flowers, and trees.

Curb appeal is important because as the old saying goes, you never get a second chance to make a first impression. Curb appeal even has a direct effect on renters as well as residents’ morale, giving them the pride of ownership and increased property values.

What Curb Appeal and a Free-Standing Hose Holder Have in Common

All your yard, as well as siding, stucco, pathways, window treatments, anything on the exterior or visible on the exterior, contribute to a home’s curb appeal. This includes the lawn itself, any topiary, plants or potted plants, ornamental grasses, gardens, flowers, and more. Plants will need to be weeded and cared for by being watered.

Second, the asphalt on a homes or unit’s driveway, any cement paths should be clean and clear as well—which most likely means pressure washing.

For all aspects of curb appeal, you should highly consider a free-standing hose holder.

The Benefits of a Free-Standing Hose Holder

A free-standing hose holder provides a durable, reliable alternative to light-duty holders and plastic box-type holders. Additionally, a free-standing hose holder is smaller than a larger, more expensive wheeled model and much easier to carry or move, making it far more portable to and from storage or moving to get to another part of a lawn.

When it comes to your home’s exterior, whether it is an apartment, a home you are renting, a home you own, or one you are considering selling one day, you can completely avoid having to struggle with drilling potentially damaging holes into siding, brick, or stucco to attach a hose reel. There’s no need for such an attachment with a free-standing hose holder.

With a free-standing hose holder, there would be no unsightly exterior hose mounted, breaking the pleasant vista of the exterior. Not to mention, a portable garden hose reel means that a homeowner can neatly store the coils of his or her hoses, pick them up and completely store them hidden away in a garage or appropriate place. Thus, leaving the exterior décor and view of the home clear of clutter and any detracting visuals such as a loose coil of hoses or a garden hose reel should they desire.

There’s also the fact that, with the right free-standing hose holder, some of them are so thoughtfully designed as to be completely unobtrusive, meaning a homeowner or property owner could hide them easily within the natural ornamentation of a lawn, such as a bush or long decorative grasses.

Last, but never least, a free-standing garden hose reel saves space with its compact, well-engineered design as well. When you consider all the benefits and facts, you’ll no doubt see why a free-standing hose holder can save space and curb appeal and become a worthy investment for any home and property owner.