Zero Waste Home: Tips Series 1

In an era where waste management is critical and seeks attention from all corners, here are few tips to make your home a free waste zone.
Before you start:

• Ensure yourself with a reusable water bottle, a couple grocery totes, a few cloth bags and reusable jars and bottles.
• Get your 5Rs right: 

1. Refuse what you do not need
2. Reduce what you do need
3. Reuse what you consume
4. Recycle what you cannot Refuse, Reduce or Reuse
5. Rot (Compost) the rest. 

Most of the waste at home is mainly comes from kitchen. To begin with the zero-waste home tips, here are few tips for a clean kitchen.

KITCHEN

1. Welcome alternatives to disposables.
2. Swap paper towels for reusable rags, swap sandwich baggies for kitchen towels or stainless containers, drop garbage liners all together.
3. Buy in bulk or at the counter, bring reusable bags, jars (wet items such as meat, deli, fish, cheese, oil, butter) and bottles (liquids: oil, soy sauce, shampoo, conditioner).
4. Shop the farmer's market: they'll take the egg carton and the berries baskets back for reuse. Your veggies will also most likely be free of plastic and stickers.
5. Use bulk liquid Castile soap as a dish/hand cleaner, baking soda as a scrubber with a compostable cleaning brush. Purchase dishwasher detergent in bulk.
6. Reinvent your leftovers before they go bad. Go thru your recipe binder/box and only keep the recipes that can be achieved with zero waste in mind.
7. Reuse single-side printed paper for grocery shopping and errands list, use your lettuce cleaning water to water plants. 

Tips courtesy: http://zerowastehome.blogspot.in/p/tips.html

Space Saving Furniture Ideas for your home.

Today many people in big cities like Chennai have more opportunities to have a small room rather than a big space. This limitation makes them have to be smart to choose the right furniture.

When it comes to buying furniture for home the main thing that comes to the mind is it should be of right material, color, shape and size. The search for perfect furniture is not an easy one especially when you are living in relatively small homes.

Space-saving furniture

Multifunctional furniture is what got the biggest interest nowadays because in addition to unique furniture designs, many functions are present only in one furniture. Furniture like this saves enough space to live comfortably. The main idea of all this furniture is the efficiency of space so you still have plenty of room to move freely. This practical furniture is not only highly functional but also looks very modern and stylish.

With an ever rising population, the demand for space is only going to increase with time and if there is one thing that many modern homes lack is space. In such situation space saving furniture comes to our help. Following are some of the tips to using money and space saving furniture which will be ideal for small space living. Always try to use furniture pieces that make your room look bigger. For example; instead of a bookcase if you use bookshelves it will make the room look bigger.

• Use dark floor against light colored walls and furniture. It can really make the place feel more spacious.
• Using a large mirror gives an illusion of more space.
• Use expandable dining table.
• On blue walls you can always use big arts and wall hangings to make the space look bigger.
• You can use a storage bed so that you don’t need to have a dresser.
• Always try to use striped floor this gives the room a bigger look.
• Storage furniture like an entryway bench will help to store your shoes as well as reusable bags in one place.
• Using light-colors on the countertops will also give a bigger look to the room.
• Furniture raised on legs will help to make the room look bigger as it gives a sense of light and space in the room. For example sofas and arm-chairs.
• Using furniture on wheel will also help to make the room look bigger as this furniture can be easily pushed out from the way when not in use.
• A shelves and storage that are tall but have a small footprint provide lots of space and help to look the room bigger.

Source: http://www.commonfloor.com/guide/space-saving-furniture-ideas-for-your-home-27906.html

Assured Rental returns in Vijay Shanthi Boulevard.

Go Green! Tips on eco-friendly living in apartments

This year let us go green by making Eco-friendly solutions. Let us adopt an eco-friendly lifestyle and reduce the carbon footprint. Here are some ideas.

Use paper bags instead of plastic ones:

Give a start to your green resolution for the year by opting for paper bags instead of plastic bags. Teach the same to your kids and family members. Stores within the apartment complex should also stop distributing plastic bags and instead use paper or cloth/jute bags.

Going green with vegetation:

Do not fret about the lack of space in your apartment for gardening, instead plant vegetables in containers or create a small patch within the garden. Grow your favorite vegetables in your home garden. A number of people can take up community gardening in an apartment and stick to the resolution for the year. Take initiative and plant trees in your apartment as well.

Trim down energy consumption:

Get hold of energy efficient appliances. Let natural air come indoors and use the thermostat and fan only when required. Get rid of the fluorescent lights/chandeliers and get LED (light-emitting diode) lights which are energy saving and long lasting. If you stay in a colder region, caulk your windows and doors and avoid cooling of your home, as increased cooling means increased thermostat power. Turn of the lights and other appliances when not in use. Opt for solar generated outdoor lights.

Efficient use of water:

Think of ways to reuse water in your apartment. Ask your apartment authorities to install a sewage treatment plant. Avoid running the fast flow of water in your kitchen and bathroom and instead install low-flow shower-heads, faucets and toilets. Install solar water heaters.

Avoid bottled water:

Start drinking filtered tap water instead of buying bottled water. Even if you prefer bottled water, ensure that the bottles are reusable/recyclable. Plastic bottles form a large amount of waste collected each day.
 

Recycle to the utmost:

Start collecting things in your apartment which can be recycled. Create awareness program  within the society and appoint people to collect the recyclable items. Think of ways to recycle, reuse and re-purpose objects in and around your apartment. For e.g. make use of the kitchen jars and kitchenware to plant trees and store waste. Do not forget to have a compost pit in your apartment.

Ride instead of driving:

Avoid driving to distances which can be reached on foot. Make it a point to cycle to your office at least on weekends. Make it a family resolution to drive less and carpool with your neighbours and friends.

Eco-friendly products and décor:

Dispose all the chemical based cleaning products and instead opt for eco-friendly cleansers. Contemporary concepts of eco-friendly furniture and decor are available in most of the outlets today. Get creative and make decorative out of used objects like jars, tins, etc.

Create an outdoor space:

Make efficient and minor usage of electricity by creating an interesting outdoor seating area. Start by installing a hammock and place few jute/cane seats and a table. This can be a grand recreational spot for you and your friends.

Efficient use of paper:

Save trees by making lesser usage of paper from magazines to books. Teach your children to value their books. Try and make your bill payments online which will help you save paper. Avoid buying too many magazines and books and instead lend the same books to your friends to read as well.

As the saying goes, every drop forms an ocean, so does every green living effort of yours save our planet.

Source: http://www.commonfloor.com/guide/top-10-environmentally-friendly-new-year-resolutions-22304.html

Vijay Shanthi launches luxury homes in Chennai.

Homes in Chennai is now becoming luxury statements. Vijay Shanthi Builders, one of the finest names in the real estate segment in Chennai presents, Vijay Shanthi Boulevard, a new range of premium apartments at Kandigai, on the Vandalur- Kelambakkam Road. Vijay Shanthi Boulevard is located at a well-connected location that easily connects to GST, Tambaram Camp Road, the OMR and the outer ring road that connects Oragadam. Vijay Shanthi Boulevard promises to be a close knit community living destination that’s in close proximity to the IT hub of Chennai. Boulevard offers a cluster of 321 truly amazing 3BHK homes in Chennai spread across 9 grounds with a covered car park for every apartment. The luxury homes at Vijay Shanthi Boulevard feature apartments measuring from 1170-1262 sq. ft. and row houses measuring from 2315-2380 sq. ft.

“The premium homes at Boulevard are well ventilated and feature top notch amenities and premium fittings. The homes at Boulevard feature vast copious amounts of lung space amidst green spaces that make it a true delight. Our efforts are to develop a community living between like-minded and like-status people. Boulevard is also located close to a range of advanced infrastructure facilities such as train services and hospitals.

In addition, Boulevard is superbly connected to the IT corridor and the outer ring road of Chennai. The creative expression ‘Happy Homes’ give our customers value for money, whilst providing the perfect living experience. Equipped with modern facilities to satisfy all the varied needs of owners, these are the best choices for the perfect homes in Chennai”, says Ms. Jayanthi, the Head of Marketing, Vijay Shanthi Builders.

Vijay Shanthi Boulevard is situated close to numerous educational Institutions like VIT Deemed University, Tagore Engineering College, Crescent Engineering College, Madras Christian College, SRM University, Delhi Public School and hospitals such as Chettinad and Hindu Mission. Boulevard is also close to multinational companies like Butterfly, Mahindra City, Ford, and Reynolds. Vijay Shanthi Boulevard is expected to be completed by December 2013.

For more details, please log on to: http://www.vijayshanthibuilders.com