the cityhammer blog

The New York Times wrote a piece this week about how homeowners, unable to run up credit or uncomfortable with beginning large scale renovations, are instead tackling the smaller projects that help them maintain their homes.

Here at cityhammer, we've heard just about the same type of story anecdotally, from both users of the site and from remodeling companies in the New York area.

From the New York Times:

In prerecession days, home improvement projects were usually grand, expensive overhauls of kitchens and bathrooms.

In this economy, home improvement projects consist of painting the walls and replacing the jiggly toilet handle.

It's nice that Wall Street seems to be turning around, but Main Street is still very much concerned about when the jobs may come back and this caution is manifesting itself in the types of home improvement projects that homeowners are choosing to initiate.

Another facet of this trend is the urge to do-it-yourself, as Home Depot and Lowes stock up their hardware and paint departments for those who want to save money by handling handyman tasks and painting projects on their own.

Lowe’s has added more staff to popular do-it-yourself departments, like paint and hardware. Home Depot also beefed up its paint department, adding new products like an all-in-one paint and primer, and a Rust-Oleum paint variety that promises to cover more surface area for the money.

Home improvement companies, however, are also offering specials, so before you bite off a project that may be more than you chew, be sure to visit cityhammer.com and consult a few of New York's top remodeling pro's.

Sources:

Home Improvement Chains Adjust (NYT)

Labels: Hiring a NY Handyman, Home Improvement New York, Painting NYC, Remodeling NY

First up, get a load of the Chelsea, NYC office space of design team William Cummings and Bernt Heiberg in the most recent issue of New York Spaces. The pair decorate with clean lines and a flair for history. For more great pics of home and office, click here: (NY Spaces)

Here's the minimalist New York loft apartment of Melissa O'Rorke, seen on Remodelista. Speaking of Remodelista, their beta site is currently in preview, click here for the loft pics: (Remodelista)

How do you make an apartment feel less "dark and heavy"? The question comes in from Apartment Therapy, but is something that all New Yorkers can relate to as well (or most). For some answers, click here: (Apartment Therapy)

For NY Designers who can help you, visit New York's #1 Remodeling Directory, cityhammer.com:

Labels: Design Apartment NYC, Interior Decor NYC, NY Interior Design

There's a lot of information out there to digest when embarking on a baby proofing project in New York. For that reason, today we bring you a quick primer on the subject. Enjoy these baby proofing and child proofing tips and please let us know if there are aspects of this subject that we have not covered.



Parents have the obligation to make the environment as safe and happy for baby as possible. Baby proofing is not a simple thing but you must do it before the baby can roll over or crawl. You can hire professional baby proofing people but it is also possible to do it yourself with a little ingenuity and by looking at the safety section of baby care stores. The internet is also another place to look for baby proofing items. Start by getting down ground level and seeing what the baby sees.

Around the House Safety

All rooms in a house should be safe enough for baby to play in. If you can’t child proof a room, enclose it with a child safety gate so baby can’t get in. Use doorknob covers to keep a room that has a door out of reach of baby’s hands. Remove all of the rubber stoppers off of the doorstops because they can be taken off and choked on. Place padding around tables and other sharp furniture so baby doesn’t hit its head on the corners of them. Purchase a playpen to put baby in when you can’t watch him at all times. Secure exterior doors by putting a doorknob cover on the inside of the door.

Stairs

Child safety gates belong at the top and bottom of all stairs in your house. Use hardware-mounted chairs because pressure safety gates are insufficient to protect baby. The slats should be no further apart than about three inches so baby cannot get his head stuck in them.

Cords/Outlets

Babies can easily put wet fingers and metallic objects in the holes of outlets so keep them covered with switch plates with sliders on them or use large plastic plugs to block the outlet holes. Tape down all electrical cords that might strangle baby.

Nursery Safety

Keep the crib far from cords on blinds, lamps or curtains. Keep the crib free of blankets, pillows or stuffed animals that can carry a suffocation risk. Keep all heavy and/or tall furniture bolted to the wall so that it cannot be pulled down on baby. Keep baby lotions, medications or ointments out of the reach of baby.

Window Safety

Toddlers, especially, can open up windows so you should put in protective devices that keep windows from opening more than four inches in height. Screens do not protect toddlers from falling out so you cannot count on them. Get rid of any blind cords or curtain cords that can easily strangle a child.

Kitchen Safety

Babies often play when you’re cooking. You need to put latches on all drawers and cabinet covers so that the baby cannot get into these items. Keep cleaning products, toxic chemicals and pesticides up and out of the way. Use a refrigerator safety latch so baby cannot get into the refrigerator and use stove knob covers so baby cannot turn on the stove or oven.

Bathroom

Use a special toilet lock so that baby cannot drown in the toilet water. In the tub, use non-slip runners so nobody slips in the bathtub when it is wet.

Labels: Baby Proofing, New York baby Proofing, NYC Baby Proofers