Monthly Archives: January 2012

As January draws to an end, are you reflecting on all those resolutions you made a month ago?  How does it work when you your goals seem to conflict?  Specifically, what do you do when you’ve decided to get in shape AND spend more time at home or to spend less money?  We’ve put together [...]

As age-old rivalries go, dogs versus cats is paramount.  Like Superman and Lex, Caesar and Brutus, Dumbledore and Grindelwald (for some reason, no female rivalries come immediately to mind), cats and dogs duke it out on the symbolic stage every day, and they don’t even know it. So which furry friend should you choose to [...]

1.  Homemade Invitations start your party off on the right foot—personal, put-together, and fun. Using recycled paper, the unwritten-on half of old cards, or any other re-purposed materials will keep this part of your planning under budget. 2. Buy your decorations from a discount party store.  Actually, when arranged attractively, a couple dollar streamers can [...]

So many of us dream of living in a castle, sliding down banisters and hiding all our worldly possessions in endless closets.  In reality, most of us live in slightly smaller situations, and if a person’s home is their castle, we live in rather cluttered ones.  To that end, we’ve put together some smart, simple [...]

You can own the most magnificent apartment on the Upper East Side of Manhattan, but unless you sell it right, a prospective renter could just as easily rent the second most magnificent apartment on the Upper East Side, owned by your property manager nemesis, Dr. Strangerent. So how do you ensure that it’s your lease [...]

Although good credit comes in handy, it’s not the only factor that landlords use to decide whether or not to rent to you.  To understand how to beat a bad credit rap, you need to understand why landlords check credit in the first place:  they want to know if you will pay your rent in [...]

It’s January, and we’re going to milk this Resolution Month for all it’s worth.  If you’ve been meaning to become that eco-friendly person you both admire and make snarky jokes about, this is a great time to get started.  We’ve posted a number of times on simple green strategies for your apartment, so this time, [...]

I believe there’s a fear inherent in us that we will die alone in a pile of things we bought 50 years previously.  Or maybe that’s just me—and numerous characters from TV and film, not least Bridget Jones, who fears she’ll die “fat and alone, and be found three weeks later half-eaten by Alsatians.”  While [...]

You thought your midtown apartment was small?  We bet it’s feeling a whole lot smaller now that Junior has shot up another foot.   Space is limited, but creativity doesn’t have to be—no matter how small the room, there are ways to make it feel bigger and fit more.  Below, find some ideas for using every [...]

Our guest blogger Ron Leshnower introduced the idea of making some apartment-living resolutions for 2012! It’s been two weeks–do you need help figuring out some New Year’s Resolutions for your home?  We have plenty of ideas for how you can have a cleaner, prettier, safer home. Cut Costs This is a big one, so we [...]