In the current climate of soaring energy bills, constant talk of recession and impending environmental disaster. How refreshing would it be to hear you can save money and the environment in one go. Well this could soon be a reality!

Sheila Kennedy a U.S. expert in solar cell technology working at MIT, is pioneering technology coined “Soft Power” that uses textiles and other flexible materials as solar panels to capture sunlight and convert to energy to use within our homes.

“The soft power approach says there are some incredibly sensual, compelling, beautiful spaces and products that we can be producing using these emerging energy-harvesting materials,” Kennedy said.

The materials themselves look and move like cloth but do the same job as a solar panel, the thin-film photovoltaic material can either be prepared in a chemistry lab or can be found in nature. Kennedy and her team have calculated solar curtains could provide as much as 70 percent of the average electricity used by a typical household each day.

This technology is still in development with no one yet manufacturing the material on a commercial level. However once this technology takes off it could really revolutionise the way we obtain our energy.

Resource: CNN International

Vibrant colours often extend from nature and objects surrounding us from lush grassy green fields with radiant flowers to pillar box red post boxes and jet black skies with glaring white stars. Colour is something that surrounds us on a daily basis and does influence our lives and moods, I hope I can explain how you can bring certain colours into to your home to compliment your own personality and lifestyle.

Lets take the 9 popular colour groups:

Red - this is the colour we pay most attention to and is associated with several emotions such as love, desire & passion. When using red colours in the decor of a home they should be used as accents or dramatically in rooms that are seldom lived in. If you are a passionate person then the bedroom would be ideal!!

Yellow - most of the emotions evoked by yellow can be classed as positive such as joy, happiness, optimism & hope. Because yellow is a warm colour it often gives the sense of cosiness and hospitality to a room, which is great for casual interiors such as a day room or conservatory.

Orange - being a combination of yellow and red, orange is a warm colour but not as vibrant as red and as calming as yellow. Orange is good for expressing energy and can emote enthusiasm and flamboyancy, by also stimulating conversation orange is a great colour for any living room.

White - often white is seen as a representation of purity, cleanliness and peace but when used in the home it can enhance, energise and beautifully contrast with any other colour. White is the most versatile of all colours being a combination of them all, because of it’s reflective nature it gives a room a fresh, clean and airy feeling.

Pink - like red, pink is associated with love and desire but loses the raw passion red can induce. Romance is never far from this colour and always delivers feel good emotions.

Purple - as purple dye was initially made from the mucous gland of a snail it was only available to the very rich, hence representing royalty and notability. Nowadays, purple is still an exotic and mysterious colour sometimes being thought of as gloomy. Make sure if using purple to keep the tones rich and vibrant.

Green - often being referred to as the most favoured colour, green brings a calming influence to a room with some people giving it healing powers. Being a colour which represents the environment, green it is very much a colour of the moment.

Blue - you can’t get much cooler than blue, which represents peace, tranquillity & calm. Cool colours are seen as dignified and conservative so are more suitable for formal rooms. Blue is also considered a business colour as it reflects reliability.

Black - along with red, black is a very powerful colour bringing out strong emotions such as power, sexuality, sophistication, elegance and wealth. Again like red black should not be used in a dramatic sense but just to accent other colours.

Just remember, paint is only the first step to deciding colour of a room. The next steps are layers of colour with accessories such as upholstery, fabrics, rugs, curtains, loose sofa covers, lighting and plants etc…

We are delighted to announce the launch of a completely new ecommerce site Plumbs Curtain Shop that will enable you to buy Made to Measure & Ready-Made Curtains at competitive prices while keeping with Plumbs’ tradition of using quality UK manufactured fabrics.

We have traditionally catered for the Made to Measure Curtain market but with the launch of the new site have begun offering Ready-made curtains at great prices. We now offer curtain fabric priced per metre for budding upholstery enthusiasts to produce your own unique curtains or to use on many other soft furnishing projects. Sensationally, prices start at just £1 a metre for fabric offering hundreds of fabric options.

Ready made curtains are always popular because they offer great value, with prices starting from just £35 a pair. From Deep red velvet to Cool cotton naturals or just something cheap to deflect the sun’s rays, plumbscurtainshop can answer all needs.

All our products are guaranteed for 12 months from the date of purchase. As with all our products the guarantee covers any fault occurring as a result of fair wear and tear or quality of materials and / or workmanship. If any product purchased under the terms of our guarantee fails to give you complete satisfaction we will offer you a full replacement. Even better is that plumbscurtainshop offer a no risk 30 day money back promise on everything.

Sarah Plumb, from the Plumb family said, “After 45 years we have become known for being a U.K. manufacturer with a reliable record for quality and good service. Cheap imports from across the globe mean low prices are available to anyone. However here at Plumbs we not only offer low prices but we can also offer quality as we make everything ourselves here at our factory in Lancashire. Plus you have the added advantage of a full money back guarantee”

The last couple of years has seen a great increase in curtain popularity not only for decorative and security reasons but increasingly as an energy saving measure. Curtains can really make a difference to insulating the home and preventing heat loss. Curtains work well in the Summer time too by helping to deflect the sun’s rays and keep the home cool.

So if you are looking for great value curtains and fabrics, take a look at www.plumbscurtainshop.co.uk today.

Most allergy sufferers dread spring as it is the time of year when allergies begin their torment, however many don’t realise that allergies in srping can be triggered by the poor quality of the air in their homes instead of the usual demon, pollen. It is very difficult to get away from pollen but it is very easy to clean out the bad air from your home.

There are a number of kits you can use to test your home for all types of allergy triggers, such as; molds, dust mites and pet dander etc. You may find that a specific type of trigger in your home is the reason for one of many allergies.

Below are some tips on how you help remove some of these triggers that can cause these allergies:

1. Use air purifiers in rooms where most of your time is spent. It is best to use a HEPA (high efficiency particulate arrest) system as they can remove up to 99.97% of microscopic air pollutants, there are many to chose from ranging from £25 to over £100, you can find some by searching “HEPA air purifiers” on Google.

2. Vacuum all carpets, flooring, furniture, curtains and anywhere dust can collect at least once a week. This will remove many pollen spores, dust and other allergens, again a HEPA vacuuum cleaner is best but any vacumm is better than none.

3. Using washable loose covers for you sofa, chairs and cushions is a great way to get rid of dust mite eggs that would otherwise build up in the fixed upholstery.

4. Shower and wash your hair every night before you go to bed. People often bring pollen and other seasonal allergens into their homes on their clothes and their hair. Use shower filters that remove chlorine and other chemicals too.

5. Keep pets off of your bed and out of your bedroom. Sorry, this is a small price to pay for allergy relief. Your bedroom should be a sanctuary from allergens. So tempt your pets to sleep elsewhere.

6. Wash all bedding in 140-degree hot water at least twice weekly to eliminate dust mites, pet allergens and pollen. Use dust mite covers for your mattresses, pillows and comforters to further protect yourself and your family from dust mites.

For more information of Asthma & Allegies please visit the below sites:

http://www.aafa.org/
http://www.sleepworkplay.com

I read a great article here about how using Feng Shui in your bedroom can give you a better nights sleep. I’ve got to say, I am very sceptical when it comes to anything like this but I found some of the tips to be mainly common sense. I have however tried a few and something must’ve worked because my wife and I had the best nights sleep ever.

So if you find it difficult falling or staying asleep, waking up in the morning feeling uneasy or irritated then you might as well give some of these tips a try as you have nothing to lose. I think the most obvious tip and the one to have the most effect is this one:

“Cover windows with curtains so that you can have a cocoon-like feeling at night, and they’ll keep the sunlight out in the morning. Being exposed to sunlight first thing in the morning is said to influence your serotonin levels and affect you for the rest of the day. Once you’re ready to wake up, you can easily pull the curtains open and flood your room with natural light.”

Happy Sleeping

We recently received a letter from a very kind gentleman who had made a mistake when placing his order for made-to-measure curtains for his bay window. This was because he did not take into account that each curtain is cut to half the width of the measurement we are given so the curtains will open in the middle. Unfortunately when placing his order he only gave us the width of one of the side windows. This resulted in the smaller curtains only being half the desired length.

Sometimes it can be quite confusing when measuring for difficult windows such as bay windows, which is why we offer a free measuring and fitting service. However the gentleman very kindly gave us the suggestion that we should up-date the measuring guide on our website or add a section to explain the measurements for these more difficult windows. We are doing exactly what he suggested and within the near future we will have a series of measuring guides, from the simple to more intricate window types.

In the mean-time if you need any help or advice on how to measure for curtains, please don’t hesitate to contact us. Alternatively you can request a home visit from one of our consultants who will measure and fit for free.