No one will argue that one of the most important days of any woman’s life is her wedding day. Little girls play dress-up, and teenagers pour over fashion magazines, looking at wedding dresses and imaging what it will be like when their wedding day finally arrives. As newly engaged women start to find out- discover, planning a wedding day is more stress than they ever anticipated. Dealing with family or wedding planners, working with a budget, looking after all the little details like wedding flowers and your wedding gown can start to take its toll. As many brides find out the hard way, all that stress can have a huge impact on their bodies and their skin. Tense muscles lead to headaches, excitement leads to lack of sleep and over all stress can cause breakouts on the face and bloating in the body. No bride wants to face any of this on her wedding day! There are many things you can do to help your body cope with stress of planning a wedding. If overbearing family members might be an issue- its best to get things out of the way earlier rather than later. It’s better to tell your mom that you want to buy your own wedding gown and not walk down the aisle in her grandmother’s antique wedding dress now instead of the last minute. As the wedding day gets closer people will get more and more sensitive and things may upset them more than usual. Try and stay ahead of the game and not just “hope” everything will work out.Pamper yourself. If possible try and get a professional massage the week of your wedding- what a great way to spend an afternoon with your mom or girlfriends. Take lots of relaxing bubble baths, using high quality bath products and lotions. Sprinkle a few drops of lavender oil in the bath- it will help relax you.Take a few practice runs. Try out that perfect nail polish or new makeup before your wedding day. If you are getting your nails done professionally go a couple of weeks before and try out the nail color you will be wearing on your wedding day. If doing yourself- have a friend over and try different colors and see how different nail polish wears. Try out the make-up you will be wearing. You would be surprised how many brides don’t think to try out their new eye shadow before hand- only to find out it makes their eyes puffy and red. A good choice for make-up is natural make-up; it is organic and with natural ingredients and much less risk of any kind of a reaction. Also- when it comes to mascara- water-proof mascara is a must! Even if you are not the sentimental type- you will be on your wedding day and no bride wants their mascara to run. A word of advice- do try for a more natural looking make-up- avoid frosted or glittering make-up for the ceremony. Take care of yourself. You have waited for this day most of your adult life. Nothing will be more important than enjoying the day with your family and friends who all love you and want the best for you. You owe it to yourself to make sure your body and mind are able to take in and enjoy the entire day. Stick to a regular bed time and get lots of sleep-or as much as you can. Not only will lack of sleep give you short temper- but it can cause headaches and bloating. You should always drink plenty of water- but the week or so leading up to your wedding make a special effort to drink water and hydrate yourself. This will help with bloating and swelling. Many brides have been shocked to that their wedding bands don’t fit or shoes are too tight.Plan for problems. The best way to avoid stress is to do your best to make sure you set yourself up for success. Money worries can be avoided if you have a realistic budget. Talk with your partner and come up with a realistic budget. There will be lots of expenses you may not anticipate - gratuities for the DJ, extra wedding party favors and corsages for all your fiancés cousins flying in from Italy.Planning a wedding is exciting AND fatiguing . By being proactive and taking care of yourself, you will help minimize the stress on your wedding day. With lower stress you and your groom will be able to enjoy your wedding day to its fullest, and cherish those memories forever.

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Posted by Linda- Home and Garden Ideas as Weddings: General Wedding Tips at 9:34 AM EDT

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Convert to and from centimeters, inches, kilometers, miles, feet and yards with easy online tool. DistDistance Converter Tool

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How to Restore Your Credit after a Bankruptcy By Anthony Kirlew

It is unfortunate that many bankruptcy attorneys do not give their clients more direction with regard to restoring themselves after their bankruptcy. There are some simple steps that anyone who files a bankruptcy needs to take in order to restore themselves financially.

Using these steps below, you can restore your credit and prepare yourself to become a home owner.

1. Get a copy of your credit report. Many times (most times) the credit accounts that are absolved with your bankruptcy are not removed from your credit report immediately.

2. Have derogatory credit items removed from your credit report. For the items charged off in your bankruptcy, you will need to send a copy (not the original) of your bankruptcy discharge papers to all 3 of the credit bureaus asking them to remove these inaccuracies.

3. Pay all of your bills on time. Bankruptcy is a means to financial recovery. It is intended to allow you to “start over” financially. After your bankruptcy, you need to make sure that all of your bills are paid on time. If you are having trouble with an upcoming bill, DO NOT IGNORE IT. This is where most people go wrong. Call your creditors before they call you and let them know what your challenges are. If you can’t get a reasonable rep on the line, ask for a supervisor, but again, do this as early as possible, not the day the bill is due or after it is late. If you are having trouble with your bills, you may need to solicit some help.

4. Have a strong documented rental history. This is pretty critical, as it is most likely the largest monthly expense that you have. Underwriters (the people that actually sign off on your loan’s approval) will look very hard at how you have paid your rent as they are going to replace it with a mortgage payment of equal or greater size. It is very important to be able to document your rent payment history very specifically. If you rent from an apartment community, then all the bank will have to do is request a Verification of Rent (a.k.a. VOR).

If you have a private landlord, then the BEST way to document this is with cancelled checks for the last 12 months rent. Banks can do VOR’s for private landlords, but rarely do because they feel that a landlord may have a relationship with the borrower and say what the bank wants to hear to help them get a loan.

If you pay with cash or money orders, please stop doing this immediately and start paying with checks. Simply put, this is hurting you because by filing a bankruptcy you have already shown some financial instability. Paying your rent with cash or money order shows further financial instability and will not give you the positive rent history that the underwriter is looking for to give them the confidence in approving your loan.

1. Apply for a secured credit card – A secured credit card allows you to make a deposit into an account to secure a credit card and then borrow against it to establish a new positive payment history. As time progresses, the bank may increase your credit line to an amount greater than your deposit, and then eventually return your deposit to you. (They will also often pay you interest on your deposit.)

2. Prepare “non traditional” trade references – These are accounts that you pay on such as cell phones, car insurance, and store accounts which can be used to document a positive payment history, but would not be traditionally reported to a credit bureau. Ideally, if you can provide 3 of these accounts with a 12-month payment history, this will help us in convincing the bank that you are a good credit risk. The best way to document this is with a letter from the company stating that you have had a positive payment history with them for the past 12 months. Alternatively, you can provide 12 months of cancelled checks showing 12 months of timely payments.

3. Resist the urge (or encouragement) to buy a car. Some may tell you that this is the best way to rebuild your credit. The problem is that your interest rate will be so high, that your payments will make your debt ratios higher than normal, making it harder to qualify for a mortgage. Do you remember the figure of 45-50% of your monthly income that the bank will allow you to use towards your debts? This will quickly be absorbed by a car payment. Only buy a car if a) you NEED (not want) a car, and b) you have the income to cover the car payment, any of your current debts, and your proposed new car payment. We have seen SEVERAL people that have cars rather than homes because they went out and bought a car that they could not sell and their debt ratios were too high to qualify for a mortgage. It would be a shame to have a nice car (that depreciates daily), as opposed to a more humble car along with a mortgage on a home that gives you a tax break, and increases in value over time.

I hope this is helpful and helps get you on your way to finding the home of your dreams.

Anthony Kirlew is an entrepreneur, author, and mortgage industry veteran and is the founder of Bankruptcy Home Loans. Over the past several years, he has helped countless individuals and families obtain mortgages even in the most desparate financial situtations.

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Posted by Linda- Home and Garden Ideas as Personal Finance: Bankruptcy at 7:47 PM EDT

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10 Sneaky Tricks of Cheap Web Hosting Companies: If you thought all those billions of web pages are hosted on expensive and full service web hosting companies, you need to cross check your information sources again. Of course, there are free or cheap web hosting companies that provide basic features good enough for simple html pages. You can take the example of some blog sites for these. But cheap (as cheap as $1.99 a month) web hosting service is different as they claim to provide more than the basic features which require huge infrastructures and funds to maintain and remain in the business. How do cheap web hosting companies attract business and what are their tricks?

Trick Number 1: The 24/7 toll-free number that a cheap web hosting company will advertise on their website. Most of these rarely work and those that do work seem to work only Monday to Friday. They are there mainly to create a false impression. What will you do on the weekend or after hours? You need a web hosting company that provides real support.

Trick Number 2: E-mail contacts given, which give you a very nicely worded (auto responder) response, requesting you to be patient while promising that an appropriate web hosting executive is handling your query. Don’t you want to talk to a real person at some point? Email messages could go on forever with no resolution in sight. Your time, in short supply, is valuable.

Trick Number 3: Unlimited emails in POP3 and SMTP which hardly give any value to a small webmaster but can have a big impact on your decision making. Cheap web hosting companies cannot provide good email service. Yet, you need good email service so that you can stay in contact with your customers. (better service=more customers=more sales)

Trick Number 4: Cheap web hosting companies often make promises of free downloads worth thousands of dollars. You can check this offer only after you subscribe to their service. You should be able to check out all aspects of an offer before making a commitment, thus saving you valuable time and money.

Trick Number 5: The lure of freebies like all platform database support, preinstalled server side scripts, site builders, templates and SSL & ecommerce tools. In actuality, if these products are provided by cheap web hosting companies, they are very limited. Why limit your business from the start? You need a web hosting company that will give you the tools you need to be successful right out of the gate!

Trick Number 6: Domain registrars and sister companies of cheap web hosting companies don’t allow editing DNS zone files and MX records. Registrars talk about “name server management” when they actually mean the exact opposite resulting in forced hosting with them. You should be able to choose the services that you want for your business. After all, who knows your business better than you? Locking yourself in with a cheap web hosting company forces you to do business their way. Don’t do it!

Trick Number 7: Artificially populating user forums is another way of promoting their cheap web hosting business. Cheap web hosting companies do this so you will think they have tons of satisfied users. Really, you should rely on referrals to check out a web hosting company’s services. This is the only real way to be sure you’ll get the service you deserve. Trick Number 8: Display of an unknown or little known award and trying to impress you that they provide award winning service. Do awards mean anything anymore these days? Better to rely on actual comments from real customers.

Trick Number 9: Offering free integration of shopping carts and payment gateways. Cheap web hosting companies do this because they know that for many online businesses having access to an online payment tool is a must. What you actually get is PayPal, which is well known, and is not their product at all. Why would you trust a web hosting company that would do this?

Trick Number 10: Free Marketing support. Of course they do it but what they market vigorously is their site where your name might be mentioned. Cheap web hosting companies will not do more than this. In fact, they cannot. Are you paying for marketing your business? Or theirs?

Being on the lookout for tricks such as these will keep you from falling into the trap of thinking that cheap web hosting is good. You can make a better choice for your business. You need a web hosting company that provides real, complete services that help improve your business. Do you want your business to be just a number?

Remember the old adage, “you get what you pay for”.

Greg Cesar knows web hosting! Find out how hundreds of webmasters benefit from Greg’s web hosting and internet marketing knowledge by visiting his Web Hosting website.

Greg Cesar is a successful Internet marketer, web designer and web hosting provider with over 10 years’ experience. He specializes in providing innovative web hosting and internet marketing services that help business owners make more money online. To improve your online business immediately and work with someone who understands what it takes to make real money online, visit: http://www.hostpartnerplus.com

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Posted by Linda- Home and Garden Ideas as Web Hosting- Business Web Hosting at 7:45 PM EDT

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On the surface, this does sound like a great mortgage deal. It’s what the lender isn’t telling you that make these loans and the mortgage lenders that tout them sleazy.

If you were to go out and finance your home with a traditional 30 year, fixed interest rate mortgage the average closing costs would run you between $2,000 and $3,000. This doesn’t include any points you may be required to pay at closing.

No closing costs mortgages are simply a way for the mortgage lender to disguise the fees they are charging you. Lenders do this by marking up the interest rate they are charging you by as much as 1 or 2 percent.

This markup on the interest rate is going to cost you significantly more than the $2,000-$3000 you would pay at closing on a traditional mortgage. If you stay with the mortgage for more than six years, this loan will cost you more than paying the closing costs up front.

In almost every situation it will save you money to pay the closing costs and shop for the most competitive interest rate. To learn more about common mistakes homeowners make when shopping for a mortgage sign up for a free mortgage guidebook.

To get your free mortgage guidebook visit RefiAdvisor.com using the link below.

Tucson Mortgage Refinance

Louie Latour has twenty years of experience in the mortgage industry as a mortgage broker. He is the owner of Mortgages Refinance Advisor, a mortgage help site devoted to saving homeowners money with a free guidebook Mortgage Refinance: What You Need to Know.

Sign up for your free guide today at: http://www.refiadvisor.com

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Posted by Linda- Home and Garden Ideas as Home Financing, Mortages: Mortage Companies and Mortgage Rates at 11:43 AM EDT

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If you are in the market for a mortgage there are steps you can take to improve the interest rate you qualify for. Here are the best tips for improving your credit score and your interest rate.

There are a number of factors that affect the interest rate you qualify for when shopping for a mortgage loan. Your credit is the factor you have the most control over. Before applying for a mortgage you need to go through your credit reports with a fine tooth comb and look for errors.

Credit reports contain a record of all your financial dealings with lenders. The reports contain records of your spending and borrowing habits and how you repay your debts. Mortgage lenders use this information to gauge how much of a risk you are for lending money to.

It is from these credit reports that your FICO credit score is derived. The FICO score is created by a company called Fair Issac Corporation; hence the FICO score. Mortgage lenders have lending guidelines in place based on an individual’s credit score. Your approval status and loan terms including interest rate will be largely decided by the state of your FICO credit score.

Your credit score is derived from a number of weighted factors. Here is a breakdown of the factors involved in creating your credit score.

35% is derived from your repayment history of on time payments

30% is derived from your debt-to-income ratio

15% is derived from the length of time you have used credit

10% is derived from the type of credit you use

10% is derived from the number of recent credit inquiries / recent activity

As you can see nearly all of these factors are directly under your control. Before you start applying for a mortgage you should take six months to concentrate on tuning up your credit. After you have gone through all three of your credit reports for errors, concentrate on paying down the balances on your credit cards and closing the accounts. This will improve your debt-to-income ratio and have a significant impact on your credit score. Make sure you are making all of your payments on time; you want to have at minimum six months worth of on-time payments on your credit history.

Ensuring you have good credit is the first step to qualifying for the best interest rate. Doing your homeowner and shopping for the best deal on your mortgage is the second step. To learn more about saving money on your mortgage loan, sign up for a free mortgage guidebook.

To get your free mortgage guidebook visit RefiAdvisor.com using the link below.

Tucson Mortgage Refinance

Louie Latour has twenty years of experience in the mortgage industry as a mortgage broker. He is the owner of Mortgages Refinance Advisor, a mortgage help site devoted to saving homeowners money with a free guidebook “Mortgage Refinance: What You Need to Know.”

Sign up for your free guide today at: http://www.refiadvisor.com

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Posted by Linda- Home and Garden Ideas as Mortages: Mortage Companies and Mortgage Rates at 11:42 AM EDT

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When interest rates fall, there are savings to be made. This is true for everyone, not just people currently looking for a new home or mortgage. This means that even if you have already bought your home or already committed to a mortgage, you can take real advantage of lower interest rates.

For many people this will not be necessary, as they will have a variable rate mortgage that goes down as interest rates fall and so you get to take advantage of lower interest rates as they come. However there are many situations in which re-mortgaging will be beneficial.

Step One

The first is for people who are tied into fixed rate mortgages at higher rates. Since their mortgage rate is fixed, they will not be getting any of the advantages of lower interest rates. This is an unenviable position and one of the best ways to get out of it is to re-mortgage on better terms. You will have to check if this is worthwhile however. If your existing mortgage has redemption penalties or an extended tie in, then getting out of the mortgage is likely to cost you a lot of money. You will also have to consider the arrangement or refinancing fees and add this to the cost of making the change. Only if, after calculating all of these extra charges, the lower rates are worth the expense of re-mortgaging, should you go through with the transaction.

There are also people on variable rate mortgages who can benefit from re-mortgaging. This is because even though their current mortgage will have reduced its interest rates in line with a lower Bank of England rate, there may be significantly cheaper mortgages on the market that they wish to switch to.

Redemption Costs

Just like many loans on the market if you wish to pay your mortgage off early then you may be liable to pay an early redemption penalty. Normally for a personal loan in the UK the average payment or charge is between one or two months interest payments. This charge should be taken into consideration when contemplating transferring your mortgage away from your current provider.

Your In Credit

Often, people re-mortgage because they find that their credit rating has improved dramatically since they took out their first mortgage. If you took out a mortgage five years ago, then it could well be the case that your income has increased, the value of your home has increased, and you may also have some savings now. All of these factors will allow you to apply for more exclusive mortgages that offer better rates. If this is the case for you, then looking into a re-mortgage that takes advantage of all these benefits is a very good idea. Don’t be afraid to take the best offers available to you on the mortgage market.

When interest rates fall, there are savings to be made. This is true for everyone, not just people currently looking for a new home or mortgage.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Joseph_Kenny

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Posted by Linda- Home and Garden Ideas as Mortages: Mortage Companies and Mortgage Rates at 11:39 AM EDT

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Mortgage Refinancing is something every homeowner experiences soon or later. Mortgage refinancing is simply trading your current mortgage in for a better one. The motivation for refinancing is to get a better interest rate, lower payments, better conditions, or cash equity out of your home.

Refinancing is not a smart move for everyone. There are expenses and fees you will have to pay when refinancing your mortgage. These fees and expenses are very similar to the ones you paid when you took out your first mortgage. These expenses include a survey, appraisals, underwriting, and attorney fees.

In order to benefit from refinancing your mortgage you need to find an interest rate that is at least 2% lower than the rate you are currently paying. There are circumstances where you could refinance for less than a 2% improvement; if you need to cash out equity in your home you could refinance for a higher amount.

Here are several reasons a savvy homeowner would refinance their mortgage.

1. Improve Your Interest Rate

2. Lower Your Monthly Payment

3. Refinance Your ARM to a Fixed Interest Rate

4. Shorten Your Term Length to Build Equity Faster

5. Cash Out Equity

There are many mistakes to be made when refinancing a mortgage. You will need to do your homework before refinancing in order to avoid these mistakes. To learn more sign up for a free mortgage guidebook.

To sign up for your free Mortgage guidebook visit RefiAdvisor.com using the links below.

Albuquerque Mortgage Refinance

Louie Latour has twenty years of experience in the mortgage industry as a mortgage broker. He is the owner of Mortgages Refinance Advisor, a mortgage help site devoted to saving homeowners money with a free guidebook Mortgage Refinance: What You Need to Know.

Sign up for your free guide today at: http://www.refiadvisor.com

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Posted by Linda- Home and Garden Ideas as Mortages: Mortage Companies and Mortgage Rates at 11:37 AM EDT

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The Pyrenean Sheepdog - Dog Breed Profile

Size: Medium - small

Height: 38 - 48 cm (15 - 19 inches)

Weight: 8 - 15 kg (18 - 33 lb)

Life Span: 13 years

Grooming: Medium

Exercise: Medium

Feeding: Undemanding

Temperament: Alert & wary

Country of Origin: France

AKC Group: Not registered

Other Names: Labrit, Berger des Pyrénées

Temperament:

The Pyrenean Sheepdog is intelligent, alert, vigilant and animated. Pyrenean Sheepdogs are loving with children and get along with other pets so long as they were socialized with them when young. These dogs tend to be cautious with strangers. Pyrenean Sheepdogs are intelligent, ready to work and keen to Read the rest of this entry »

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Posted by Linda- Home and Garden Ideas as Different Dog Breeds, Pets and Pet Care at 5:43 PM EDT

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As Winter gets underway, wild mice and rats enter houses more often to escape the cold and rats are also seen in increasing frequency in peoples gardens. However, while this can be a matter for concern, there are ways that you can humanely remove these uninvited visitors rather than calling the local exterminator. He will put down anti-coagulant poisons which cause a long slow death and a great deal of suffering to the mice and rats as well as the poison being potentially dangerous to you, your family and your pets.

How can I tell if I have rodents in my house?

House Mice will leave a cloying ‘acetamide’ smell; other mice leave little odour.

Gnawing : Rodents need to gnaw constantly to keep their teeth trim and they will gnaw on most things.

Tooth Marks : Larger marks made by Rats who can gnaw through soft metals such as aluminium or lead.

Droppings : a rats poo is 12mm long and often tapered at one end. A mouse poo is half the length and thinner.

Greasy Marks: Rats and House Mice leave dirty black smears along well travelled routes especially where the have to squeeze under objects.

You may also hear the scamper of little feet above your head as they scurry around your loft.

What Problems can they cause? Read the rest of this entry »

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Posted by Linda- Home and Garden Ideas as Pest Control, Pets and Pet Care at 1:00 PM EDT

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Granite is a decorative natural stone that is truly eye-catching, delivering a unique, classy look to any interior or exterior. Granite is as durable as it is beautiful, being one of the hardest substances on earth. Also, to the question of usage and longevity, with proper care, your granite tile project can last a lifetime, transforming a foyer, a kitchen, or even in an outdoor installation (provided you’ve chosen a non-slip, unpolished finish) into a key feature of a property. Granite tile flooring is, in many cases, the obvious choice for those interested in any kind of natural stone tile flooring or countertops material.

The origins of granite

Granite tile is often a feature in a residence or a commercial building, not only because it is visually impressive, but because of the auspiciousness of having a flooring material which literally took ages to create! Formed deep in the earth, granite is the end result of tremendous heat and pressure applied over thousands of years. Granite is an igneous rock that is described as “intrusive”. That is, granite is formed when liquid magma is forced between other layers of rock, where it eventually cools and forms a layer of its own. Here, it is fused with elements such as quartz, feldspar and mica among other trace elements. The cooling process is slow, the new layer of rock being shielded by the layers above and below where the molten magma had been forced. The mineral elements which have become suspended in the cooling magma define the crystalline appearance of this unique natural stone. Due to its harsh origins and the lengthy process that suspends so many stabilizing elements within it, granite is an incredibly hard surface. This is material you can trust for durability!

Granite at the Quarry

Once the raw granite has been removed from its bed, first stage in processing granite for the purposes of flooring or countertop slabs is cutting the larger chunks of granite into manageable blocks. These blocks of granite are then further cut to size for use as both slabs and tiles by means of wire saws which are treated with various kinds of durable abrasives, such as sand, aluminum oxide, and diamond. These saws are most commonly used with water as a coolant. Sometimes, high-pressure water jets are used to cut the granite in tandem with the more traditional wire saws. Once the cutting process has been completed, the granite undergoes three processes that make them recognizable as tile flooring or countertop slabs. They are polished on one side, calibrated and gauged. These latter two terms refer to the process of making the back of each tile or slab as even as possible, and the edges as square as possible respectively. Once completed, the granite tile or slab is ready to be shipped to site, ready for your installation.

Popular uses for granite tile for flooring and countertops

Granite tile, being a very versatile material, can be installed in a great many locations in a residential or commercial project. Some of the more popular uses of granite are halls and foyers. Because of their decorative appearance, the popularity of granite tile in these areas is far from surprising. Granite tile helps to create an ambience of professionalism, strength, and permanence when placed in the foyers and halls of an office building. In the home, a granite tile floor can make all the difference in creating a space that is characterized by a singular, refined beauty that complements the surrounding décor. Read the rest of this entry »

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Posted by Linda- Home and Garden Ideas as Do-It-Yourself Repairs, Flooring -Carpeting-Tile, Home Improvements at 12:49 PM EDT

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Vinyl Tile is still one of the best floor coverings to choose for kitchens and bathrooms. Ceramic tile is great, but the cost to have a professional install it can be prohibitive. The answer, vinyl tiles installed by you. You will save a lot of money you can use toward other home improvements you want to do.

Vinyl tile is also a great choice for other reasons. There are some beautiful choices of both style and color. There are so many different patterns and colors to choose from that you will want to take your time in choosing something that will enhance the beauty of your kitchen or bathroom.

In addition to that, vinyl tile is much better than linoleum for practical reasons. With a linoleum floor, one accident and the whole floor is ruined basically, because it is all one piece. When you buy vinyl tile, you buy extra squares. If an accident ruins one or two tiles, you replace them.

In this article I will help you learn how to install your own vinyl tile floor with confidence. I’m going to teach you the old school way of laying this beautiful floor covering. I call it old school, because I learned from tile layers that had been doing it for years before I started. Read the rest of this entry »

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Posted by Linda- Home and Garden Ideas as Do-It-Yourself Repairs, Flooring -Carpeting-Tile, Home Improvements at 12:47 PM EDT

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Vinyl Tile is still one of the best floor coverings to choose for kitchens and bathrooms. Ceramic tile is great, but the cost to have a professional install it can be prohibitive. The answer, vinyl tiles installed by you. You will save a lot of money you can use toward other home improvements you want to do.

Vinyl tile is also a great choice for other reasons. There are some beautiful choices of both style and color. There are so many different patterns and colors to choose from that you will want to take your time in choosing something that will enhance the beauty of your kitchen or bathroom.

In addition to that, vinyl tile is much better than linoleum for practical reasons. With a linoleum floor, one accident and the whole floor is ruined basically, because it is all one piece. When you buy vinyl tile, you buy extra squares. If an accident ruins one or two tiles, you replace them.

In this article I will help you learn how to install your own vinyl tile floor with confidence. I’m going to teach you the old school way of laying this beautiful floor covering. I call it old school, because I learned from tile layers that had been doing it for years before I started.

First, we need to start with the basics. I don’t know what is on the floor where you plan to put down vinyl tile, so I’m going to show you what our preparation goals are. We want a nice smooth surface to lay our vinyl tile on.

Some people will tile over existing tile. This can be okay, but it is not the preferred choice. To do this right, you need to remove whatever flooring is there now, until you are down to either a smooth cement or wooden surface.

If there are cracks and valleys or unleveled surfaces, they need to be filled and smoothed out before we can start laying your vinyl tile. On cement or wooden surfaces, you can use cement to fill in and smooth the surface. You can also install plywood over the existing floor to achieve the surface your vinyl tile needs. You caulk in all the joints after installing the plywood. You can use Durok as well.

The goal, as I said before, is to have a smooth surface before you begin to lay vinyl tile. Otherwise, your tile will crack wherever pressure is placed on the tile over existing rough areas.

Now, buying the vinyl tile you want is next. There is self-adhesive vinyl tile that is very inexpensive. However, remember you get what you pay for. The adhesive on these tiles is not of great quality and you will be replacing them often. They are usually very thin as well, so they are easily damaged.

The thicker the vinyl tile, the more expensive and durable it is. That is the rule of thumb. Choose vinyl tile that has about 1/8″ thickness or above and you will have a floor that will last a long time. So choose your style and color wisely. It will be with you awhile.

Now, the tools you will need are next. You will not need a tile cutter. That isn’t the old school method. Using a tile cutter is tedious and slow, and your edges will never be tight. You will need a good razor knife, a small butane torch, a trowel with teeth along one edge for applying the adhesive, some old rags, and some mineral spirits.

A lot of experts will tell you to always begin in the center of the room when laying any kind of tile. However with kitchens and bathrooms, this is not always or even often the best method. Starting at one wall and working toward your cabinets is much better, because most of your tiles that need to be cut will be under the edge of the cabinets and not seen.

Starting along one wall, trowel on your adhesive, making sure there are ridges by using the toothed edge of your trowel. Do not go too far away from the wall as you will be laying tile there and don’t want to have to reach while doing so.

Let the adhesive dry for about 15 minutes so it’s very sticky. Lay your first tile at the corner and continue to lay a row, making sure you keep your tiles aligned. As you get to the end of your row, do not worry about the area that is left over where a whole tile will not fit in. We will take care of that last. However, remove the adhesive from that area so it won’t dry before we get back to it.

The adhesive you applied should have gone just a little further out than the row of tile itself, so now you have a row, with a little adhesive area waiting for the next row.

Now start back at the beginning. Apply a little more than a row’s width of adhesive, let it dry, then lay another row of tile, again making sure you align the tiles with each other so your lines are straight..

Once you have done the entire floor except those areas where a whole tile would not fit in, let the floor dry until tomorrow. Do not allow anyone to walk on the floor. The adhesive takes time to dry.

Now, once the adhesive is dry, we are ready to do the cutting in portion of your vinyl tile job. You should be able to walk carefully on the tiles without moving them by now. If not, you may have used too much adhesive and will have to wait longer, until you are sure it is dry.

Now, let’s cut it in. Go to where your first row that ended with a little space left over. Apply some adhesive to that area, plus on the floor, along the wall where you are going to put in your cut pieces of vinyl tile. Let that dry, just as you did before for 15 minutes.

Now, take a full vinyl tile, matching it up with your tiles already on the floor at the bottom, lean it at an angle to the wall. Let me explain so you are sure to understand. You place the tile against the edge of the last tile in the row as if you were about to lay it down, but just let it lean against the wall at whatever angle it has to.

Now, you will need your razor knife and your small butane torch. Be careful with the little torch that you don’t burn anything, please. If you are not comfortable with handling a small torch, this method is not for you.

Place the fingers of one hand on the top of the tile along the wall with very slight downward pressure. Wave the flame of the torch back and forth across the center of the tile about where you would like it to bend. Don’t let the flame linger on the tile to melt it. Keep a distance so it only gets heated up.

As it gets hot, the pressure from your fingers will begin to push the vinyl tile downward, bending it into place. As soon as the tile is bent to the point where it is flat against the floor and the rest against the wall, set down your torch, pointing it carefully away from anything or anyone, and take your razor knife and cut along the bend right at the wall. It will cut like butter.

Now that tile fits perfectly to the contour of the wall. It also, because of the light pressure you applied as you pressed it down, has tightened up that entire row, so the vinyl tiles will not separate later. This is a floor that will last a long time and answers the problem of the tiles separating later.

Continue that same process for each row and everywhere the tiles need to be cut in. Then clean up. You are now an old school master at laying vinyl tile!

One last warning, as I said before, if you are not comfortable using flame, you should go ahead and use a tile cutter. It may not be as tight, but you can still do a good job with it without endangering yourself. This article was intended to pass on an old school method I learned and have used to lay many beautiful tile floors that lasted for years. I hope that by passing it onto you, the old way will not be lost.

About the Author D. David Dugan has a website, http://homeimprovement.divinfo.com to help homeowners find all the information they need about remodeling, home repair, building decks and carports, room additions, and more. He also actively participates in an article directory at http://www.articlemotron.com.

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Posted by Linda- Home and Garden Ideas as Do-It-Yourself Repairs, Flooring -Carpeting-Tile, General Home and Garden at 12:46 PM EDT

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I did try this one- it advertises itself as being a free software program to prepare Canadian taxes, and be able to file with netfile. StudioTax . It is free and you can efile- but it is quite rudimentary. I am very familiar Intuit’s Quicktax which has a wizard to walk you through step by step- fairly easy and pretty inituative. Snaptax, also by Intuit is for basic tax filings, if you have simple return (not self-employed) will take about 15 minutes from start to finish. I was able to do a friends taxes quickly and cost is 9.95- about have the more complicated Quicktax fee. As small-business owner I do prefer Quicktax. Canada’ Royal Bank does have offer for its clients- 25% off the 19.95 fee. Accessible through your online banking. Also- many people don’t know that if your net income is 20,000 or less than Quicktax is free to use and file.

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Posted by Linda- Home and Garden Ideas as Personal Finance: Income Tax at 12:23 PM EDT

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