Happy Fourth of July and Trivia

We hope everyone at The Courtyards has an amazing Fourth of July!  The answer to our trivia question is below.

Answer: 1777

Congress authorized using fireworks to help mark the first anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. The celebration, which took place in Philadelphia, also included bonfires and bells.

Did you get it right?

3 Decluttering Tips

Do you know about a local garage sale in the area?  It is time to declutter your apartment, and then you can take things to the sale. However, starting the decluttering process can be a challenge for anyone.  Apartment Therapy has some great tips on how to get started in this process.  They understand the challenge, and they want to make it as painless as possible. So, go ahead and get started, you will feel great after!

Where do you begin when it comes to cleaning out your home in preparation for finding stuff to sell at a garage sale? Well it turns out it's pretty similar to regularly decluttering your home; only after you've combed through drawers and closets, you'll be evaluating if there's anything you can make a little dough on.

This weekend, declutter, evaluate and set aside:

1. Declutter You're going to start looking for things to sell in a garage sale in the same way you would if you were aiming to declutter your house. This is about getting rid of the stuff you no longer need and seeing if you can make a bit of dough from it. Check out these posts on tips for decluttering, including methods for letting go of items that you might not need but are still attached to:

• How To Declutter Your Home
• Rethinking Your Space: How To Declutter and Edit a Room
• 5 Ways to Declutter: Conquer Clutter Before It Conquers You
• Breaking Up With Your Belongings: Decluttering Tips for the Sentimentalist
• 5 Questions: Deciding to Keep or Purge
• Decluttering Idea to Consider: Letting Go of Leftover Furniture

2. EvaluateNext you want to evaluate from your pile of recently decluttered items what the best sellers are going to be. Items like furniture, garden tools, power tools, household items (like dishes), sporting equipment, bicycles, and children's clothes, books and toys tend to do really well at garage sales.

Are these the only things you should try selling if you decide to hold a garage sale? Of course not! Doesn't hurt to try something else, right? But it will help in thinking about marketing and laying your garage sale out to know what your best sellers might be. While you're going through your stuff, also consider setting aside any items you might want to just give away for free — this is a common tactic to pulling in folks to your garage sale.

3. Set aside

Find a place in your home you can set aside your items for the sale. Those in tiny homes just might not be able to find a big enough place, but it you've got the room, distancing yourself from the items will help make it easier to see them go on sale day. And if you want to get ahead, organize your items by category so pricing is easier.

A few more things to think about:

Valuable, unwanted items should be sold somewhere else 
As someone pointed out in the comments of the last garage sale post, you aren't going to get a ton of what you paid for a piece at a garage sale, where folks are often looking for a deal. Valuable items you find around the house you no longer have a need for might be served better with online sales.

Check for recalls

Especially with children's toys, you might want to research the product online to see if it's been a part of any consumer safety recalls, so you don't end up selling unsafe products to anyone. 

What have you found to be some of the best sellers at garage and yard sales? What are you always on the hunt for when you shop for deals at garage sales? Share in the comments below!

Visit the Guide to the Perfect Summermain page for links to all of the posts published so far or sign up to have them delivered directly to you each weekend.

13 Fun DIY Party Decorations

Are you attending or planning a summer party?  Here are some great DIY decorations that you can incorporate into your theme.  These are all budget friendly and can be made in your home.  You can learn more at Apartment Therapy.

1. Burger balloons
There's just no way your barbecue can't look better with burger balloons. These cute DIY ones spotted on Studio DIY.

2. DIY Happy hour marquee
This is perfect for a chill cocktail social this summer (but also cool enough you might want to leave up all year). Spotted on A Beautiful Mess.

3. DIY eucalyptus chandelier
A gorgeous natural chandelier of eucalyptus will bring good looks and good smells to a Sunday brunch table. Seen on Inspired by This.

4. Marbelized and metallic placeholdersPerfect for setting the table at a Sunday brunch. Seen on tuts+.

5. Cool drink stirrers
These DIY drink stirrers made out of old jewelry will add detail to a chill cocktail social. Seen on A Side of Sweet.

6. A DIY Mini Pennant Banner In any colors you want to set the mood, make a few or make many to create a festive feel to your space, indoor or out.

7. DIY Ideas: 10 Party Lighting ProjectsMood lighting is perfect for sparking conversation. DIY some fun lights to hang and add instant creativity to a room or outdoor area.

8. DIY floor pillowsFunctional and fun? Perfect for a sci-fi outdoor movie night, yes, but also great for extra seating. Pair this project with fun, silly or colorful fabric and it becomes even more festive.

9. Photos as festive art 
Whether you make some oversized posters (maybe sci-fi movie posters?) or create a festive grouping of small photos that fit a party theme, photos can add a festive feel to a party.

10. Welcoming pineapple piñataSilly? A little. A blast? Definitely! Make a few for hanging in a backyard for a barbecue. Via Studio DIY.

11. DIY Paper flowersA beautiful brunch is made even more beautiful by flowers, but if you don't want to splurge on the real things, consider DIY paper flowers.

12. Party Decorations for (All) the AgesWill numbers play a theme for your summer gathering? DIY decorate accordingly.

13. Oversized Balloon with FringeNothing says party like a balloon! These DIY oversized ones with fringe are a bit more sophisticated and definitely fun. You can use any colors that fit your party's theme!

10 Creative Father's Day Gifts

Are you trying to find a unique way to wish your Father a Happy Father's Day?  We have found some unique and creative ideas for the Dad in your life.  These ideas are pretty easy to make, and it will be something he remembers for a long time.


The IBtimes has some great ideas that are inexpensive and from the heart.  Keep reading to learn more below!

On June 15, 2014 the world will celebrate Father's Day and it is an opportunity for you to let your dad know what he means to you and your family. A thoughtful token of love can make fathers feel way more loved than an expensive gift. Let him know how great he is with a gift that will show your efforts and tell him that he is cared for. Here are top 10 budget-friendly, DIY (Do-It-Yourself) Father's Day gift ideas.

1. Father's Day Greeting Card: One of the best ways to let your father know that you love him is making Do-It-Yourself Father's Day greeting card. Put the creative hat on and think of cool and unique idea to make card that will show your effort and bring a smile on his face. Also, pen a beautiful message for him inside. This gift will definitely fit in your budget.

2. A Book: If your father loves to read books then buy him the one he would love to read. Find out the genre he loves. If he is a traveller, buy him a book about the place he loves the most. If he is a geek, buy him a book about new cool technology. Or if he loves to cook, buy him a recipe book. For techie dads you can even purchase an e-book or an audio book. He is bound to treasure this gift forever.


3. A Toolkit: A basic toolkit makes for a perfect father's day gift idea. It is something that will always help him in difficult life situations.

4. Gadget Cases: Another Budget-Friendly Father's Day gift can be a gadget case. Buy a fancy case that will protect your dad's most valuable gadgets. He is simply going to love this thoughtful gift.

5. A Music CD: Mostly everyone loves music. Compile a CD of his favourite music that he can listen to on the run, in the gym or any other place. Your dad is going to cherish your efforts each time he plays it.

6. A Planner: Fathers often live a hectic lifestyle, with lots of chores to complete in a day. To make his life simpler and organized, buy him a planner where he can jot down all his appointments, things-to-do and plan his days in advance.

7. Surprise Him With his Favourite Meal: One of the best father's day DIY gift ideas is to surprise him with his favourite meal. Take your mother's help and cook everything that he relishes. A special supper will delight him.

8. Personalized Gifts: There are a variety of things available that one can personalize. Pick a white tee and just create something special. You can even gift him personalized magnets, mugs, playing cards and more.

9. A Photo Album: Collect the pictures of your family and create a photo album and present him as a father's day gift. These are the memories that he can store with him forever. One can also opt for digital photo album in USB drives or digital photo keychains. This is an affordable, DIY gift that he can keep with him all the time and look at anytime he feels lonely.

10. Gifts for Dads Who Like to Stay Fit: Even though you can't buy expensive gym equipments for your dads on Father's Day, you can substitute them with some essential items. One of the best yet budget-friendly Father's Day gifts is to buy him gym earphones, some cool towels, gym gloves, a sipper and more. These affordable father's day gifts will definitely make him feel loved and cared for.

Make Your Apartment a Home

Do you want to come back from a long day at work and feel like you are at home? The way you design and decorate your apartment can determine if it feels like an apartment or a home. We have some great tips below to help you feel more comfortable in your apartment.

What can affect this feeling in your home? If the furniture you have isn't comfortable, or randomly thrown together, it can make your apartment feel less inviting. The colors and decor can change how you feel when you enter your space. Follow these simple tips, courtesy of renters.apartments.com, to start feeling at home in your new home! 

Design for Use

The difference between a home and just another room is how much you really dwell in it. If you're ready to think of your apartment as a living space and not just where you crash at night, start designing your environments around their utility. Approach kitchen improvement projects around making it easier and more fun to cook and host company, tackle your bedroom as a pursuit of true coziness and relaxation, and think of your living room as a great leisure space just waiting to emerge from the blank canvas of the floor plan.

Color and Light

The cheapest, most functional way to establish a real decorative aesthetic is with careful color and lighting concepts. Look into whether your lease allows you to paint the walls. A fresh coat of the right color can really personalize a room. Even if you're not allowed to paint, you can start thinking of other kinds of decor along a color scheme that makes your home feel more intentional and personal. It's also a good idea to have plenty of lighting to open up each room and make the space feel more inviting.

Think Beyond the Now
Even if a given apartment is just a temporary arrangement, that doesn't mean everything in it has to be temporary as well. When you furnish and decorate your space, invest in items you'll want to see in your next home as well. By putting the effort and money into your belongings now, you'll feel literally and emotionally more invested in the space, plus you'll be less likely to have to start from the beginning the next time you move. Every chair, poster and candlestick can be the start of a continuous story, rather than just a lost chapter.

Add Some Life
Tending to your space or something within it is a great way to make your rental feel like home. When you're ready, bring a pet or some plants into the apartment so you'll have something you can help thrive in your environment. If you opt for something practical like a small garden of fresh herbs like mint and basil, you'll also have another reason to step into the kitchen and make your home a source of physical and spiritual nourishment. Apartment gardens are often as easy as a few potted plants on a windowsill, or even a small DIY project to install a floating shelf near a source of light.

Match the Mismatched

Especially when you're just starting out, it's pretty common to have a mishmash of furniture acquired more out of convenience than an eye for catalog perfection. Making a matching set just takes a little extra work, though. If you have wood, plastic or metal furniture, a fresh coat of paint can make them into companion pieces. Leather and fabric seating are good options for slip covers an upholstery, which will also increase the longevity of furniture that's either at risk of wear or is worn already. Taking on these small-scale DIY projects is not only a fulfilling and productive use of leisure time, it's also a great way to develop new skills that will serve you well when you're ready to take on larger home improvement projects in the future.

No matter how small your apartment or how short your stay, there are plenty of things you can do to improve and customize your space. A little effort and TLC will definitely make your rental feel like a home you're happy to call your own.

Five Places That You May Have Forgotten to Clean

Did you not get everything done that you needed to this weekend? You can start now to make your cleaning plan of attack for the week. Here are five places in your home that often get ignored while cleaning.  Make sure to include these places on your to-do list for the week. You can learn more at Apartment Therapy.

1. Interior and cabinet doors
Interior door dirt is a strange thing. You hardly notice it when your doors have grime around the handles and edges from hands opening and closing them, but it's noticeable to guests. Grab a duster, a bucket of warm water mixed with a tiny bit of dish soap and a soft rag. After testing to make sure what you're using doesn't damage the door's surface (especially if it's painted) gently wipe away the residue left behind by hands after removing any dust first. And don't forget about your kitchen and bathroom cabinet doors! I don't know about anyone else, but I always forget to tackle these, but when I do, I feel like I have a near-brand new kitchen and bathroom!

2. Light fixtures
We've written about this before. It doesn't take long, but cleaning out the poor dearly departed bug bodies in your overhead light fixtures will not only eliminate unsightly bug silhouettes but it will also allow a little bit more light to shine in (important for making smaller spaces seem more spacious).

3. Ceiling fans
Now's the time to clean your ceiling fans so they don't fling dust bunnies across the room when you turn them on when warmer weather comes. The best trick to cleaning these without getting yucky fan blade dust everywhere? Grab an old pillowcase, slip over a fan blade and dust into the pillow case, containing the offending dirt particles and keeping them falling to the ground (or your face).

4. Windows & blinds
I honestly never think to clean my windows. But man does it make a world of difference when I do. Remember, small spaces benefit from as much light as they possibly can get, and cleaning your windows will let more light in — more than you'd imagine! And dusty, dirty blinds are just unseemly and no match for a home you try to keep clean regularly. Luckily, folks with small spaces usually don't have as many windows to clean!

5. Baseboards
Yep, this was posted about last weekend. Did you tackle them then? If you did, you can totally skip this one because they're probably still pretty clean. If you still haven't tackled this often forgotten home chore, find your favorite tip in this post and then consider this chore! Again, smaller spaces means smaller square footage so you might not have too many baseboards to clean!

Memorial Day Cocktails

Memorial Day is a great weekend to cookout with friends and family.  However, you can get creative with what you have to drink with that burger or hot dog.  We have put together a list of some great cocktail recipes for your party this weekend.

We have simple cocktails, fruity concoctions, and holiday themed drinks.  The recipes and pictures of the drinks are below.  You can learn more here.


1. Tom Collins

Since this date is the unofficial kickoff to the summer season, you’ll want to start off on the right foot with a quintessential summer drink — the Tom Collins. Esquire explains that the Tom Collins first made an appearance in the late 1800s. Skip the drink mix and go for the more traditional route mixing your gin with sugar, lemon juice, and club soda.
Ingredients:
2 ounces London dry gin
1 teaspoon superfine sugar
1/2 ounce lemon juice
Club soda

Directions: Combine the ingredients in a Collins glass 3/4 full of cracked ice. Stir briefly, top with club soda or seltzer, garnish with lemon circle; serve.





2. Berry Lemonade

Bring out the patriotic colors in this non-alcoholic lemonade from Good Housekeeping. The recipe makes a punch that will serve 12, so this is great to have on hand for parties throughout the summer.
Ingredients:
8 cups cold water
2 cups sugar
3 cups (from 15 to 16 medium lemons) fresh lemon juice
3 strips (3 inches by 1 inch each) lemon peel
1 cup raspberries
1 cup blackberries
Ice cubes
Seltzer or club soda

Directions: Start by making the simple syrup. In 4-quart saucepan, heat 4 cups water with sugar and lemon peel to boiling over high heat, stirring occasionally. Cover saucepan and boil 3 minutes. Remove saucepan from heat.

Meanwhile, in food processor, pulse berries until puréed. Pour into medium-mesh sieve set over large bowl and press berry mixture with back of spoon to remove seeds; discard seeds.

Remove peel from syrup; stir syrup into berry puree with lemon juice and remaining 4 cups water. Makes 13 cups. Pour into large pitcher with tight fitting lid. Cover and refrigerate until cold, at least 3 hours or up to 2 days. Serve over ice. Add seltzer to taste; garnish with berries and lemon slices.





3. Cucumber Margarita

You’ll be cool as a cucumber come Memorial Day when you are sipping on Cosmopolitans‘s cucumber margarita. You can make the simple syrup as noted in the previous recipe, or follow these instructions from The Kitchn. Simple syrup can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for several weeks.
Ingredients:
3/4 cup 100 percent Agave Tequila
1 medium cucumber, peeled and sliced
6 ounces lime juice
2 ounces Triple Sec
2 ounces simple syrup
Garnish: cucumber slices and lime wedge

Directions: Make the simple syrup by combining sugar and water over heat, such as in the previous recipe, let cool. In a pint glass, muddle half of the sliced cucumbers with the tequila. Let it sit in the refrigerator for one hour. Strain the cucumber tequila and combine it with all ingredients in a pitcher. Stir and serve over ice. Garnish with cucumber slices and a lime wedge.





4. Limeade

Limeade is a fabulous option for when you want a break from the usual lemonades of summer and from alcohol. In this version from Simply Recipes, an extra dose of cool is provided from fresh mint.
Ingredients:
Grated zest of one lime (about 1 tablespoon)
1 cup lime juice (from about 4-6 limes)
3/4 cup to 1 cup granulated sugar
3 cups water
Several sprigs of fresh mint

Directions: In a small saucepan bring to a boil the sugar, one cup of water, and the lime zest. Once the sugar is dissolved (which it should be by the time the water boils), remove from heat and let cool for for a few minutes. The amount of sugar is a guideline, it depends on how sweet you like your limeade and how tart your particular limes are.

Place a strainer over a bowl or wide-mouthed serving container, and pour the sugar syrup through it, straining out the lime zest. Add the lime juice and 2 cups of water. Taste for sour/sweet balance. If too sweet, add a little more lime juice. Add several sprigs of fresh mint. Chill or serve immediately over ice.





5. Dark and Stormy

Hopefully you’ll only be drinking in the bad weather and not living it. The drink has Bermudian roots, but don’t let the non-patriotic origin keep you from sipping it on Memorial Day weekend. A Dark and Stormy is perfect for warm weather drinking, and Chow‘s recipe will have you making batch after batch for friends and family.
Ingredients:
Ice
2 ounces Gosling’s Black Seal rum
6 ounces ginger beer
1 lime wedge

Directions: Place several ice cubes in a tall glass and add the rum. Top with the ginger beer, add the lime wedge, and stir.





6. Strawberry Iced Tea

Give your iced tea a patriotic hue by making Taste of Home‘s strawberry iced tea, which makes about 5 cups. Adjust the drink’s sweetness to your taste by gradually adding sugar if you are unsure just how sweet it should be.
Ingredients:
1 pint fresh strawberries
4 cups brewed tea, chilled
1/3 to 1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup lemon juice
Ice cubes

Directions: Set aside five strawberries. Place the remaining strawberries in blender; cover and puree. Strain into pitcher. Stir in the tea, sugar, and lemon juice until sugar is dissolved. Chill. Serve in chilled glasses over ice. Garnish with reserved berries.





7. Red, White, and Blue Sangria

Keeping on point with the color of your drinks is this sangria from Recipe Girl. Again, it calls for simple syrup, which you can prepare ahead of time. Originally made for the Fourth of July, it added a little extra patriotic panache by using a star-shaped cutter to make starry pineapple chunks.
Ingredients:
2 bottles dry white wine (ex: Sauvignon Blanc)
1 cup triple sec
1/2 cup berry-flavored vodka
1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/2 cup simple syrup
1 cup blueberries
1 1/2 cups hulled and sliced strawberries
1 cup raspberries
1 1/2 cups pineapple chunks

Directions: Combine all ingredients in a large punch bowl or pitcher and stir well. Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours. Serve well-chilled with a good scoop of fruit floating in each drink, or serve over ice.





8. Red, White, and Blue Shot

Shots aren’t for everyone, but if you are so inclined you can tip one back, and keep your Memorial Day theme going with this layered shot from The FNDC. If you do opt for the blackberry or strawberry garnish, you’ll also have a chaser on hand.
Ingredients:
1 part grenadine
1 part peach schnapps
1 part blue curacao
Blackberry, strawberry (optional)

Directions: In a shot glass, fill the bottom third with grenadine. Next, pour peach schnapps over the back of a bar spoon to build the second layer. Layer the blue curacao in the same fashion to complete your Red White and Blue Shooter. Serve with a strawberry and blackberry as garnish if desired.