From My Desktop

Hello to all you faithful readers and visitors,

March is town meeting month here in Maine. Yes, there really are places where town meetings are still being held on a yearly basis. Usually during town meetings, we are up to our kneecaps in mud. This year however, we are still up to our necks in snow! We just received another 14 inches yesterday.

But still in all, things are looking up. The days are longer, the sun is higher and warmer, and even if everything is covered in snow, the promise of spring is in the air.

Daffodils and tulips are appearing in the local stores, hats and mittens are being left behind as we head out the door, and everyone's spirits are rising as we greet neighbors we see out and about who have barely left the warmth of the home this winter.

This is why I love living where four seasons run our lives. Life is never dull when there is something new or different to look forward to. May your life be one long list of upcoming events or new learning experiences. In this way, you will always be young at heart because you will never know what to expect around the next corner. This is what keeps people young and the world exciting.

May the next bend in the road bring you a great and exciting new experience.

Your Friendly Neighborhood (even if I am half way around the world!) Home Dec Lady,
Gloria

The Creative Workshop
What If?

Today we will play with an exercise I call, "What If?" As you're relaxing with your morning coffee or evening glass of wine, take a look around the room and think about something you would like to change.

If you are sitting in the den, do you think it is cramped and too small? What if you were to knock down a wall and make the living room more spacious? If you did this, would you re-decorate the entire room? How would a change like this effect your lifestyle? Do you love your privacy or would you prefer more entertaining room?

As you think "What If?", consider how every action would require an new action. What would this new action lead too? How far could you go in your imagination with this new change? What does this chain of thought tell you about yourself and your home?

For example, if you are in the kitchen, are you happy with the doors of your kitchen cabinets? What if you decide you would like to replace them with glass fronted doors. What changes would this make for you? Does the thought of open cabinets give you hives just thinking about having to keep everything neat and organized? Or perhaps you would you love to see sparkling glassware all lined up and dinnerware in fabulous colors stacked neatly in a great design pattern. Then what? Would you have to buy new dinnerware you would be proud to display? If you did that, would you buy to match existing colors or would you go totally wild and change the entire kitchen decorating scheme?

Remember, these are only creative exercises. You don't have to spend any money or make any physical changes. However, this type of thinking may lead you down a path you've never trod upon before. It may lead you to make changes that make a big difference in your comfort level. If you don't make any physical changes, you may be thinking, "What's the point? What difference does this all make?"

If you think these exercises aren't making a difference, think again. Every time you play with one of these creative games, you are making a difference in the way you process thoughts and in the way your mind works.

When you have a problem to solve in life, you will be more open to exploring various ways to solve it. When you want to make changes in your life, you will be able to find more options and think things through easier. When you want to make some physical changes, you can visualize these changes in your mind's eye. In short, you are able to live life more fully and creatively because you are training your brain in creative thinking!

Dare to Dream, Dare to Hope, Dare to Believe, Dare to Live!

Are You a Stay at Home Mom Looking to Make Extra Income?

If you are a stay at home Mom because your family is your first priority, but you would like to start building extra income, download this *free* work from home course here. Read what other mothers are doing to help supplement the family income.

After a long winter, everyone is dying for a taste of spring and the scent of fresh flowers. It only takes a few flowers to create an interesting accent. with the profusion of blooms available in local florist and grocery stores, one bouquet will be all you need to put flowers in every room. Try some of these ideas and you will find yourself checking out the floral department on a regular basis.

1. Fill a shallow bowl halfway with water. Cover the bottom with glass beads and float a layer of sequins on top. Float a few blooms on top. For added sparkle, attach a few sequins to the bloom petals.

2. Choose a simple saucer or shallow bowl and a squat clear drinking glass for this arrangement. Put about an inch of water in the glass. Set in on the saucer. Pour a small amount of water into the saucer. Cut of the heads of several blooms and float them in the saucer. Float a lighted tealight in the glass. Several of these scattered around make a great decoration for an evening on the patio.

3. Do you have a small narrow shelf that could use an accent piece? Choose a tall narrow glass for this arrangement. Choose some tall long stemmed flowers for this project. Place 2 or 3 stems in the glass and top off with water. Float imitation pearls or glass beads in the water. You can buy these cheaply at craft shops. Some of these beads will sink and some will float because of the bubble of air caught in the thread hole. You can use several of these aligned along the shelf using narrow glasses of varying heights.

4. You don't need expensive vases to show off fresh flowers. Simply recycle some shapely bottles you may already have in your kitchen. Oil, vinegar, wine or liquor all come in nicely shaped bottles. To create a matching set, clean and throughly dry some of your favorite bottles. Place one in a large cardboard box in a well ventilated area. Spray paint the bottle with an even coat of enamel paint to match your decor. Paint an uneven number of bottles in one color. An uneven number is always more interesting in an arrangement. When dry, put a blossom stem in each one and group the arrangement together for a stylish display.

5. Ikebana flower holders (Japanese flower arrangers) are a great way of arranging 3-4 flowers for display. If you are not familiar with this type of holder you can see images on the web. Here is one website where you can view and purchase ikebana holders.

6. Along this same line, there is an item called "Sticky Buds". These are vases with a flat back that can be attached to the wall. They will hold 2-3 stems of fresh or dried flowers. They can also be purchased with a hanger attached if you don't want to stick them on the wall. Here you can see an example of Sticky Buds. Stick them on your computer monitor, refrigerator, or your bathroom mirror. Anyplace that could use a splash of color or the scent of flowers is a great place to put these.

Due to the length of this newsletter, I have only included 6 tips this month.

About the Home Dec Lady:

If you enjoyed this newsletter, visit my website and learn to develop your creativity and create the home you dream of by using my **free** online home decorating workbook.

To find out why and how I am building a web business visit the Mysite/Myself page on my website. I am having fun and building a good income at the same time. If you would like to do the same, check out this page while you are visiting my online home

Take the time to visit this site if you can use an extra $500 to $1000 a month

Do you already own a website? Is it producing income for you? If you would like some hints to increase the income from your site download this *free* Affiliate Masters course. Read what other website owners are doing to increase their monthly income.

All products recommended on this site have been actively researched and used by me. I only recommend products and services I use myself, and hope you find some new and interesting ideas for developing and using your God given talents and creativity.

Your feedback is always welcome and appreciated! Feel free to email me and let me know of your comments and suggestions now while your thoughts are fresh in your mind.

Please feel free to pass on this issue to friends and associates --just keep the entire message intact and unaltered.

Published Monthly “Creative Home Decorating" is a newsletter geared to the individual who dreams of creating the perfect home atmosphere of peace, harmony, comfort and relaxation.

Designed to help the frustrated decorator and creatively challenged, this ezine will inspire you to jump in and take a chance on your inborn talents. By doing this you will grow from the inside out.

Sign up today and receive a *free* Ebook, “101 Romantic Ideas"

Legal Stuff: How did I get on this list? You subscribed to this newsletter through a double opt-in feature. I never add names to my list except by request. I hate *s*p*a*m* as much as you do. If you need to make changes in your subscription or wish to unsubscribe, click the link at the bottom of this newsletter. This only takes a minute, and by making these changes yourself, you can be sure the information I receive is correct.

I never rent, trade or sell my e-mail list to anyone for any reason whatsoever. You’ll never get an unsolicited email from a stranger by joining this list.

Gloria Daniels, Publisher
http://www.home-decorating-room-by-room.com