Curiousa’s Wave II Collection Puts Delight in LightingBritish lighting company Curiousa is known for their artful glass and ceramic wall lamps and overhead lighting. The look combines delicate retro curves with modern brightness and a wide variety of unexpected colors. Their new collection of pendant lights called Wave II features all that plus a subtle science fiction vibe.
How to Make Your Tiny Bathroom Feel BiggerA tiny bathroom is better than no bathroom at all, but they can still be really tiny, particularly in apartments and in older homes where one was carved out of a larger room when plumbing became available. Expanding it is rarely an option, but there are decorating tricks to make it feel not quite so cramped. A lot of ideas. If you have a bathroom window, consider yourself lucky, and use that to open up your sense of space. Mirrors always make a room appear larger, and larger mirrors even more so. Creative covering will hide the fact that your supplies don't have their own cabinet. Or you might decide that you really don't have to have those supplies in the bathroom. By the way, do your fixtures really have to be a standard size? House Beautiful has 63 tips to give an illusion of space when there isn't any. You should be able to find at least a couple that will work for you. (Image credit: Jessica F.)
Use Epoxy Paint to Update a Bathroom Without a RemodelIf you happen to have a drab, outdated bathroom, the idea of a total remodel may give you a pain in the wallet. It's a small room, but it's important to those who use it. It's also filled with large, expensive fixtures that are neither cheap nor easy to replace. But if you are determined to make it a comfortable space for yourself, think about epoxy paint. This paint is not like what you would use for walls or trim or even art. It comes in various formulas for covering floors, tile, porcelain fixtures, and other uses. It requires that you follow directions exactly and have plenty of ventilation. But there are online forums where you can learn all the tips and tricks for using epoxy paint. ​Kara Lauren Kirchhoff used epoxy paint on two bathrooms in her home. She was able to smooth out the old imperfections, give the entire space new color, and make them her own. Read how she approached the project and see how both bathrooms turned out at Apartment Therapy.​
Lessons Learned About Home RenovationsThey say you learn from experience, but it's always easier to learn from someone else's experiences. Redditor DavidAg02 posted "Valuable lessons I have learned from recent $100k worth of home improvements..." He installed a new heating and air system, replaced 31 windows, and put a new metal roof on top. This involves dealing with a variety of contractors, vendors, and installers. He gave us three takeaways from his experience that will go far in helping you get through any type of renovations. Here's the shortest version:1. Talk to more than one contractor.2. Ask plenty of questions, and take nothing for granted. 3. Be nice to the people doing the actual work. But then other redditors contributed more tips and advice from their experiences, too. The end result is a treasure trove of stories and advice for anyone planning home repair and renovations that you might not get anywhere else. Read the entire post and discussionat reddit, or just the highlights at Digg. ​(Image credit: Porcinipal) 
"As Is" is Often a WarningWould you pay $399,900 for a one-bedroom, one-bathroom, 800-square-foot riverfront home in Juneau, Alaska? It looks pretty nice, and has a two-car garage. The interior looks quite modern, although it could use some color. But let's step around and see the rest of the house. Oh no.
Whatever Happened with Italy's €1 Homes? Some years ago, the idea of buying a home in Italy for €1 went viral on the internet. The program was started in 2017 because so many small towns in that country had more houses than people, and they needed new residents. If you've ever dreamed of living in a historic home near the Mediterranean where life is slow and the food is Italian, it sounded like a great idea. But if you read the small print, the offer came with the stipulation that you had to renovate the house to bring it up to code, which scared off a lot of prospective buyers, because the €1 houses were wrecks. But those who took the plunge found that the necessary renovations were much more affordable than they would be in the United States. Yeah, there's the question of leaving your job, but some buyers were retired, some had connections in Italy already, and some went there to start businesses. And these small towns saw lasting benefits. Renovations created many jobs, new entrepreneurs revitalized the towns, and people from all over the world settled in Italy. Some people who went to check out the program found other homes that weren't as cheap, but were in better shape and still a bargain. One man bought a four story house with two bathrooms for $15K that needed relatively few repairs. It's not for everyone (it helps if you speak Italian), but some people saw their dreams come true. -via Digg