Winnipeg Realtor and Real Estate Blog

No one like to look out a window that you just cleaned and see nothing but water spots all over it. Or even when using house hold cleaners like Windex this can leave water streaks. Here are just a few simple ways to reduce this problem so you don’t have to re wipe them down.

Use vinegar and water. Use an old spray bottle and mix a half and half solution of vinegar and water. Spray onto your window, if you have a few spots that are pretty bad then spray the solution on the spot a few times. Wet or soak a rough cleaning towel with the solution and scrub the windows, after you will want to let the vinegar and water solution sit and works its magic 5-10 minutes should be long enough depending on how bad your water spots are (you can be the judge of that) Then re spray the window with you solution and use a rough dry towel to wipe off.

Toothpaste. Toothpaste is so great when trying to remove tough stains. Make a paste with water and the toothpaste don’t use to much water as you don’t want to dilute it too much. Rub the past onto the spots and let sit for about 5 minutes. Then take a towel, brush or sponge and scrub the spot, then use water to wash the paste off your windows. Last step is to take your everyday glass cleaner that you use and wash normally but be sure to dry the window fully or else you will risk having those spots re appear!

Baking Soda & Vinegar. In an open container mix equal parts vinegar and baking soda, this solution with bubble and you can either wait till the bubbling has stopped to apply to your windows or you can apply while it’s bubbling this won’t affect how it works in any way. Apply to the spot with a towel, cloth or sponge personally I like using an old tooth brush for all 3 of these methods the bristles on the tooth brush help scrub the areas better. Let sit for about 5 minutes and wash away with water. Final step just like using the toothpaste method is to use any traditional glass cleaner and dry completely.

I hope these 3 easy and simple methods and solutions will help you look through a clean and shiny window spot free! 

It is almost impossible to keep your flooring totally free from marks, scuffs or scratches! Kids, pets, furniture and shoes are just a few examples of ways scratches can be caused. Flooring is one of the most important features and looks in our homes, and unfortunately can be a costly thing to replace if it gets to out of hand. So if you do have a busy house hold and have a few scratches that you can’t bare to look at anymore try a few of these steps to minimize the look of the scratch or scuff.

Wood or Laminate – This is for large deeper scratches or scuffs the ones you really want to get rid of! First clean the area with a soft cloth and white vinegar and let fully dry. You will need to buy some wood filler from your local hardwood store, after you have left to dry use the wood filler and fill in the scratch and smooth out with a putty knife and let dry. You will need to go and also buy some wood stain closely matching the color of wood or laminate flooring that you are repairing. Apply the stain to the area that you have filled and let dry. Last step is to seal it so apple a small thin layer of lacquer.

Vinyl – When repairing this type of flooring you will want to make sure that the room is very well vented and maybe even consider opening a window. First you will want to clean the area with lacquer thinner, use a cloth and wipe the area down let dry. Remember to wear rubber gloves when handling lacquer thinner as it’s quite strong, maybe even wear a mask for extra protection. Next step is to place masking tape around the area and apply a small layer of liquid seam sealer to the scratch or scuffed spot and let dry. Remove masking tape and it’s all finished!

Ceramic or Porcelain Tile – This process is for smaller scratches in your tile or porcelain flooring. First clean the area with hot water and white vinegar and let fully dry. With a new cloth rub in a small amount of toothpaste until the scratch is completely filled, don’t use gel toothpaste. Then you will want to sand the area once it has dried until you have a smooth even surface. To seal it spray or paint a thin layer of urethane to coat and seal it.

I hope these simple easy steps save you a little bit of a headache when starring at the scratches on your flooring. 

You usually don’t need to remove your blinds or take them down to clean them unless there are some really tough stains on them. There really is no right or wrong way to shine up your blinds but here are a few steps that I like to use when it comes time to do your cleaning.

One quick note, this method works great with wood blinds, plastic or aluminum but if you have fabric blinds or curtains you will have to take those down and either hand wash them your in sink or throw them in the washing machine.

First you will want to use a duster, microfiber cloth or vacuum to dust off your blinds first. If you don’t do this step then when you go to clean you will just be spreading a lot of the dust around and not really getting rid of it. If you have vertical blinds clean/dust from top to bottom, if you have horizontal blinds wash/dust from left to right.

Next you will want to fill a bucket with warm water you don’t need hot and add 2-3 drops of liquid dish soap. I always clean with a microfiber cloth I find that it works best to wipe away dirt and really give a deep clean but you can use whatever you like. Then using the left to right method or top to bottom method wipe gently. When you are finished you can let them air dry or dry them with a towel, I like to dry mine quickly after wiping them off just so that no dust sticks!

There you have it, super simple, fast and efficient! And unless you have fabric curtains/blinds you don’t need to take anything down which is way more of a hassle! 

Every year things seem to go out of style or a new trend comes alone, this can either be the way we cut our hair the kind of accessories that we wear, shoes, clothes you name it, it will change. Some of you may not know this but even the way we decorate our homes change from year to year, I know this can be expensive if you are wanting to keep your home up to the new looks but if you are just looking for some new ideas or ways to copy a new look at an inexpensive price well here are a few of those trends to look for this year! 

Green colors seem to be the new trend of this year in your home, this can range from green throw pillow on your couch or even a nice green blanket. Something you can also add is a green painting of any sorts now this doesn’t have to be a specific color of green you can go from a nice dark forest green to even a bright lime green. You could also add something as simple as a few green glass vases to your coffee table or shelving unit.

A lot of new fashion trends whether it be what you wear or put in your home stem from the runway. So another fashionable look for your home this year is anything with a tropical print. This can be again a throw pillow or if you’re looking to repaint you could always do an accent wall of a nice tropical wall paper. Or anything that you have in your home that has fabric added to it, your bedding is something easy that you can incorporate a tropical print in, even a throw rug.

Grey colors were a huge trend in 2016 but it seems to be something that will stick throughout 2017 as well. You will see a lot of greys and whites this year or a darker tone of grey. This color is great to put up on a wall as it compliments a lot of other colors for example a darker colored couch (black or brown). It also goes with a lot of bright colors as well so if you have accents in tones like red or yellow grey would be a perfect fit.

Bronze this year will be a winner, it is a huge trendy hit. This one is easy to decorate with as you can get a tone of accent decors in bronze. This is something that you can even do in a less expensive way, you can go to your local thrift store and find loads of metal like objects or statues in the bronze tone. Places like Homesense and Winners also carry a lot of home accents in this color. You can get a metal type picture to put up on your wall that really warms up any space. This color also goes really well with any type of grey color, so if you are really looking to change up a room paint the walls in a grey tone and add a bronze metal type wall ornament.

I hope these trends will help you spice up your home this year and create something refreshing and up to date.