Quick and Dirty Tips

5 Interior Design Upgrades for 2021
10 Things Every First-Time Investor Should Know
Is Watermelon Seed Flour Good for You?
6 Ways to Personalize Your Dorm Room

5 Interior Design Upgrades for 2021

Posted: 01 Sep 2021 06:00 AM PDT

With the changing of every season comes subtle shifts in interior design sensibilities. However, with the gradual easing of COVID-19 restrictions, summer 2021 was set to see an explosion of creativity in home interiors that will make your home truly unique. If you are feeling ready for a change, take a look at the following 5 interior design upgrades that were a hit in summer 2021.

1. Natural elements

Although the COVID-19 pandemic spurred the desire to add more natural elements to a home's interior as a means of creating diversity in living spaces, there is something uniquely summer about bringing a little nature indoors. Whether it is something simple like adding a couple of plants to a corner of the living room or incorporating a full scale living wall to make nature a more intense element of your interior decor, homeowners scrambled to bring the outdoors in during summer 2021.

When creating a natural feel for your home's interior, there is no denying wood's power to make the look complete. Effective ways to employ wood are through accent beams in the ceiling, shelving in the kitchen and bathroom, and, of course, in flooring materials. When speaking of wood floors, if the classic, natural appearance of solid hardwood is a bit out of your price range, there are numerous faux hardwood flooring options, such as wood-look tile, luxury vinyl, and engineered hardwood, that mirror the solid hardwood appearance while maintaining its outstanding durability.

2. Less is less

There is no denying the classic, elegant appearance of a minimalist interior. White furniture; spacious, airy spaces; and sparsely adorned walls are unlikely to ever go away completely, as there is just something about the minimalist look that conveys a sense of "adulting."

However, minimalism is no longer the end-all, be-all for interior design schemes. Stuck at home for more than a year, some people began to go a bit stir crazy in their sparse surroundings, creating a trend toward busier interiors that gained a full head of steam heading into summer 2021.

While clutter and chaos may never be cool, people are pulling long-lost accessories out of the attic to add an element of visual intrigue to their home interiors. Collectibles traditionally reserved for the corners of bookcases are stylishly adorning surfaces throughout the house as people look to add dimension to their living spaces.

In addition, the increase in remote work conferences has caused homeowners to turn to accessories as a means of creating stylized backdrops that help them convey their unique personality.

3. Wallpaper galore

Wallpaper has long gotten a bad rap as being tacky, reserved...

Keep reading on Quick and Dirty Tips

10 Things Every First-Time Investor Should Know

Posted: 01 Sep 2021 12:10 AM PDT

If you're like most people, you know investing money is a smart idea. But if you haven't gotten started because you think investing is too complicated or risky, it's time to learn how to invest without taking too much risk.

This episode will cover why it's essential to start investing as soon as possible and the different types of investments to choose from. You'll learn how to create the best investment strategy based on your financial situation, age, and risk tolerance.

Let's get into the details of how to be a successful investor.

Tip #1: Saving and investing are not the same

Before diving into what to know about investing, it's important to clarify that saving and investing are not the same. Saving is putting money into safe, low-yield accounts such as a bank savings account, money market account, or certificate of deposit (CD), so you preserve it.

Saving is the right move when you have short-term goals, such as buying a car or taking a vacation within a year or two. It's also appropriate for your emergency fund because it keeps your money completely safe. You know your cash reserve will be there when you need it.

However, investing is the right strategy for longer-term goals that you want to achieve in at least three to five years. They might include buying a home, paying for a child's college, and, of course, retiring.

Investing requires some amount of risk, but without it, you aren't likely to earn enough growth to achieve significant financial goals, such as retiring.

With investing, you put money into financial instruments, such as stocks, bonds, or mutual funds, with the expectation of future growth. By using a buy-and-hold investing strategy, you increase potential returns over a long period. Investing isn't appropriate for short-term goals because market values can fluctuate wildly over a short period.

Investing requires some amount of risk, but without it, you aren't likely to earn enough growth to achieve significant financial goals, such as retiring. A good rule of thumb is to invest a minimum of 10% to 15% of your gross income for retirement every year.

Tip #2: Build financial safety nets before investing

While it's wise to begin investing as soon as possible, everyone's situation is different. First, clear up any dangerous debts, such as overdue taxes, child support, or...

Keep reading on Quick and Dirty Tips

Is Watermelon Seed Flour Good for You?

Posted: 31 Aug 2021 03:10 PM PDT

This topic was suggested by a long-time Nutrition Diva listener, Staci, who sent me a picture of something called watermelon seed flour. "Is this another hyped up thing or is it legit? Does it work like wheat flour?"

I have to admit that Staci's email was the first time I'd heard about watermelon seed flour. Come to think of it, with the advent of seedless watermelons (which surely ranks as one of the top accomplishments of the modern era), I can't remember the last time I even saw a watermelon seed. Apparently, all those seeds that are no longer clogging up our fruit salads have now been ground up and rebranded as a low-carb, grain-free flour alternative.

Is watermelon seed flour nutritious?

A quarter-cup of watermelon seed flour provides 15 grams of fat, 9 grams of protein, and just 3 grams of carbohydrate. The high fat content meants it's relatively high in calories, too. A quarter cup of watermelon seed flour has 180 calories, compared with 160 in almond flour, 130 in coconut flour, and 110 calories in whole wheat flour. The nutritional profile of watermelon seed flour is most similar to that of almond flour.

Click here for a nutritional comparison of grain- and gluten-free flours.

But what's not in watermelon seed flour appears to be just as important.

What's not in watermelon seed flour?

According to one of the leading purveyors of watermelon seed flour, it is not just grain- and gluten-free but also "Big 8 free." That means that it doesn't contain any of the eight foods responsible for 90% of all food allergy reactions. The "Big 8," as they are called, are (roughly in order, from most to least common): dairy, shellfish, fish, wheat, eggs, nuts, peanuts, and soy.

Contrary to some mistaken impressions, eating a food like wheat or soy does not increase your chances of developing an allergy to it.

Being free of common allergens might seem like a pretty big plus. And, indeed, many consumers interpret this sort of front-of-package labeling as an indication that foods that are free of these allergens are somehow more healthful or nutritious. But for the 95% of the population who do not have food allergies, there is no advantage to avoiding them. Contrary to some mistaken impressions, eating a food like wheat or soy does not increase your chances of developing an allergy to it.

The Big 8—Should You Avoid These Common Food Allergens?

Paleo pancakes (and other oxymorons)

Watermelon seed flour also seems to have been...

Keep reading on Quick and Dirty Tips

6 Ways to Personalize Your Dorm Room

Posted: 31 Aug 2021 07:00 AM PDT

A couple weeks ago, I saw a story online about two girls who did a ridiculous makeover on their dorm room. The before pictures of the room had the standard fixings of collegiate housing: block walls, industrial flooring, and boring furniture. The after images make the room almost unrecognizably glam.

Now I realize that most college students aren't going to invest the time and money to decorate their dorm rooms to this extent, but it doesn't hurt to use a few of their ideas. Talk with your roommate and see if they are on board, and start putting together ideas for how you can makeover your dorm room. If you all agree, you can start making a few small changes to a dorm room that will make it feel much less industrial and more like home.

Paint

This first idea is highly dependent on your school's rules. Some colleges allow the students to paint the dorm rooms, so long as they are painted back to the original color at the end of the year. If your school is one that allows dorm rooms to be painted, it is the biggest thing you can do to make your room feel like home. Many dorm rooms are painted a bright white, so being able to change the walls to pretty much any other color will give it personality.

By painting the walls a light neutral color, you can create a cozy atmosphere that will make the dorm room feel like a normal bedroom. If you want to add a pop of a brighter or darker color, pick a wall to make an accent wall for that color. The girls in the story painted their walls a tan-ish gold color which set the base for their glam décor. Whatever the vibe you want to create, painting the walls is a great way to start.

Add curtains

Most college dorm rooms come with standard window treatments, usually blinds. These are a great start for window coverings because they provide privacy and block out the early morning sun, but they don't offer much personality for the room. Curtains can do a lot to change the feel of a room, and if you are not allowed to paint your dorm, they can actually allow you to change the color of a wall without paint. All you need is a long curtain rod or track and a couple extra curtains.

By using longer curtains, 96" at least, and a long curtain rod, you can hang the curtains to almost completely cover a wall. Don't be afraid to do this even if the window in your dorm room is on the small side.

The large curtain can trick the eye in to thinking that the window is bigger, which can make your room feel more luxurious.

Cover the floor

College dorms are notorious for having unattractive industrial flooring. I can'...

Keep reading on Quick and Dirty Tips

Food And Recipe Fusion

Wednesday, September 1, 2021