Be a Good Neighbor: 7 Ways to Make the Most of the Coming Weekend
Share your tomato harvest, upgrade your grilling zone, tackle a big chore and then relax in a hammock
Take advantage of the slower pace of summer by crossing a long-neglected chore off your list (garage, I’m looking at you) or upgrading a fun feature (like your outdoor kitchen). And when those long summer evenings beckon, heed their call with dinner on the grill, a sway in a hammock (National Hammock Day is July 22) and a chat with neighbors on the porch as the sun dips below the fence.
2. Treat Your Bed to New Pillowcases
Does your bed have a case of the blahs? Instead of waiting until the next white sale to spring for a new set of sheets, replace just the pillowcases. Colorful cases or shams immediately upgrade the look of your bed at a fraction of the cost of all new sheets. If you want to add a new pillow, try a long lumbar pillow like the one seen here — it won’t clutter up the bed and can be helpful if you like to read there.
A Sophisticated Bedroom for a College Student Who Comes Home
Does your bed have a case of the blahs? Instead of waiting until the next white sale to spring for a new set of sheets, replace just the pillowcases. Colorful cases or shams immediately upgrade the look of your bed at a fraction of the cost of all new sheets. If you want to add a new pillow, try a long lumbar pillow like the one seen here — it won’t clutter up the bed and can be helpful if you like to read there.
A Sophisticated Bedroom for a College Student Who Comes Home
3. Make a Summer Laundry Strategy
Save on your energy bills and make life a little easier this summer by adopting one or more of these tips.
Save on your energy bills and make life a little easier this summer by adopting one or more of these tips.
- Wash with cold water. About 90 percent of the energy it takes to do a load of laundry is used to heat the water.
- Wait until you have a full load to run the machine.
- Hang sandy towels and suits outdoors to dry. Once dry, shake off the sand before bringing them into the house.
- If you can’t remember the last time you had your dryer vent serviced, make an appointment to get it done — clogged dryer vents waste energy and are a fire hazard.
- If you have the option, consider hang-drying clothes outside — on a sunny day, you might be amazed at how quickly they dry!
4. Upgrade Your Grilling Situation
Whether you have a simple charcoal grill on the patio or a full outdoor kitchen, consider the additions that would make using the space easier (or more fun). Update your grilling zone with an outdoor rug, new stools for guests to perch on while you cook, a set of colorful nonbreakable dishes or a counter for prepping food.
Ideas for Your Yard From the Most Popular New Outdoor Spaces | Find outdoor furniture
Whether you have a simple charcoal grill on the patio or a full outdoor kitchen, consider the additions that would make using the space easier (or more fun). Update your grilling zone with an outdoor rug, new stools for guests to perch on while you cook, a set of colorful nonbreakable dishes or a counter for prepping food.
Ideas for Your Yard From the Most Popular New Outdoor Spaces | Find outdoor furniture
5. Get Ready to Clean Out the Garage or Shed
If cleaning out the garage has been on your to-do list for ages, get yourself pumped up by imagining how great it will feel to finally cross that monster task off your list. Set a date on your calendar to tackle it, and get ready this weekend by ordering a dumpster (if needed), scheduling a pickup from a charitable organization and gathering supplies such as empty bags and boxes.
If you have time to do a bit more this weekend, start moving things into categories (sports equipment in one area, holiday decor in another and so on) to make it easier to sort and process later.
How to Do a Serious Garage Clean-Out
If cleaning out the garage has been on your to-do list for ages, get yourself pumped up by imagining how great it will feel to finally cross that monster task off your list. Set a date on your calendar to tackle it, and get ready this weekend by ordering a dumpster (if needed), scheduling a pickup from a charitable organization and gathering supplies such as empty bags and boxes.
If you have time to do a bit more this weekend, start moving things into categories (sports equipment in one area, holiday decor in another and so on) to make it easier to sort and process later.
How to Do a Serious Garage Clean-Out
6. Enchant Your Outdoor Space With Lanterns
Getting the lighting right is just as important outdoors as it is inside the house. To make those summer evenings when you linger on the patio all the more magical, hang a few battery- or solar-powered lanterns from trees or under the porch eaves. With string lights above and a hurricane lantern on the table, even the tiniest balcony can feel enchanting.
10 Ways to Set a Magical Scene With Lanterns
Getting the lighting right is just as important outdoors as it is inside the house. To make those summer evenings when you linger on the patio all the more magical, hang a few battery- or solar-powered lanterns from trees or under the porch eaves. With string lights above and a hurricane lantern on the table, even the tiniest balcony can feel enchanting.
10 Ways to Set a Magical Scene With Lanterns
7. Put Up a Hammock
With National Hammock Day coming up July 22, this is a good weekend to put up a hammock — or take the time to savor the one you’ve already got. When your hammock is ready to go, grab a pillow and a good book and put down the phone for some unplugged summer relaxation.
Your turn: What are you looking forward to this weekend? Let us know in the Comments.
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Pick the Right Hammock for Summer Lounging
Design Pop: 7 Home Lessons We Learned From Mister Rogers
Your Summer Laundry Strategy in 8 Easy Steps
With National Hammock Day coming up July 22, this is a good weekend to put up a hammock — or take the time to savor the one you’ve already got. When your hammock is ready to go, grab a pillow and a good book and put down the phone for some unplugged summer relaxation.
Your turn: What are you looking forward to this weekend? Let us know in the Comments.
More
Pick the Right Hammock for Summer Lounging
Design Pop: 7 Home Lessons We Learned From Mister Rogers
Your Summer Laundry Strategy in 8 Easy Steps
With the recent documentary about Mister Rogers, Won’t You Be My Neighbor?, bringing the gentle wisdom and human kindness of Fred Rogers into the limelight, why not make some time this weekend to cultivate your own good-neighborly qualities? A small gesture — like sharing extra tomatoes from your garden — can go a long way toward building meaningful relationships. Or simply grab yourself an iced tea and sit on the porch. When you see a neighbor passing by, whether you know them yet or not, smile and say hi.
Simple Pleasures: The Art of Being Neighborly