There are quite a number of options to make your garage stand out. With the right style garage door, you will be amazed to see how your garage door turns your exterior so gorgeous and stunning. It’s like a beautiful backdrop for your outdoor home curb appeal.

How to Choose the Right Style Garage Door

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Take note of these ideas on choosing the right style garage door:

Consider formality when choosing your door

How about turning your garage into a formal entry hub? You can definitely do this by opting to choose a stained wood door material. Cut this material into Craftsman-style architecture. This is a simple design yet so elegant to look at. Match it with a stone foundation and muted paint colors. Then, finalize the design with a mounted copper lantern for superb formal garage entry appearance.

Take a look at these 30 garage door ideas on HGTV.

Consider adding a rustic touch to your garage

Bring a farmhouse feel in your garage by making some rustic changes in your garage door. Make sure that you have the trademark “X” or “V” design braces in your garage door. Color it with gray palette and do some imperfections to make it look farm tested. Place reclaimed wood siding to enhance its farm-look effect. Also, consider using different color paint stains and paint colors for your garage.

This idea is simple yet provides an attractive appearance at your garage door. You need to have a natural wood material for the door colors it with maple or anything that will enhance the wood grains. Of course, don’t forget the swing. You can have it swing manually or with the use of a remote.

These garage door ideas from Houzz can give you inspiration!

These are just some of the beautiful ways to style your garage. Make it your weekend project and be rewarded with an attractive home exterior, highlighted with your beautiful garage.

For more architectural ideas on Stagetecture, click here.

Happy DIY Saturday! Have you been thinking about painting your garage floor? Painting or staining your garage floor can hide unsightly cracks, patch up dings in your concrete and can help provide a surface that can be cleaned easier than bare concrete. Today’s DIY Saturday you will learn how to paint your garage floor with simple steps and watch a video on applying a decorative coating paint with flakes in your garage.

Image via: David Wakely

Video – How to Paint your Garage Floor

Link to Video –> How to Paint your Garage Floor

Simple Steps to Paint your Garage Floor

Painting your garage floor is a must. It provides extra beauty and safety. When you paint your garage floor, you will be able to highlight your lawn area and the driveway. This is one of the main reasons why you need to paint the garage floor regularly.

There are a number of colors that you can choose for your garage floor. But picking the right color isn’t the main task. It’s the painting process that will definitely take much of your time and effort. However, painting your garage floor is a do-it-yourself project. You can schedule it during weekends or holidays. To help you with the process, here’s how to paint a garage floor:

Don’t forget to use the right tools and equipment for this painting job. It will help you become more efficient and get the job done as desired.

Image via: Jay Brousseau

1. Ensure proper ventilation in the work area

This is the first thing that should be considered before anything else. It’s for your safety. Paint manufacturers are doing their best to ensure safety when inhaled. But it’s better safe than sorry. As a safety precaution, proper ventilation should be observed.

2. Clean and clear the floor area

You have to remove everything that blocks your way. It will allow you to move freely. Also, cleaning the concrete floor will ensure that the paint will stick directly to the concrete. You can spray water and let it dry before doing the next step.

3. Repair the cracks

Repairing cracks are crucial in the process. You have to conceal it and make sure that all cracks are covered. The crack will affect the outcome of your painting project if not properly repaired.

4. Etch the surface

Just like any other painting job, you have to etch the surface. This is to flatten the surface and will make your painting look smooth and silky. Etching the surface will also remove dirt and dust that will affect the paint outcome.

Image via: Elemental Design

5. Apply the Primer

Before you brush the first coat, apply the primer. It’s one of those steps that should not be skipped. Applying the primer on the surface is making sure that your paint will hold on for as long period of time.

6. Brush first coating and then the next

The first coat will at least cover the majority of the surface. The result of the first coat isn’t always enough to please your eyes. This is because part of the first coating will be absorbed by the concrete. Then, apply the next coat.

For more DIY ideas on Stagetecture, & Stagetecture’s YouTube Channel, click here.

Our garages often become the dumping ground for everything we can’t fit into the rest of our house. With its extra storage space, it’s enticing to pile everything into the garage — which can quickly become overwhelmed with a sea of stuff. When cluttered with boxes, bags and various unused items, your garage can pose a daunting clean-up task. Large items like unused boats and cars to boxes filled with Christmas ornaments need to be somehow disposed of or relocated. The time-consuming endeavor of uncluttering your garage doesn’t have to be exhausting, though — it can actually be a fun and satisfying process. By following these six steps, you can reclaim your clear and spacious garage.

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1. Be Aware of the Big Picture

When starting any home-improvement project, take care of the big things first and leave the details until later. While uncluttering your garage may not involve any new construction or carpentry, it certainly classifies as a home-improvement project. With this in mind, you’ll be faced with the biggest items cramping and cluttering your garage. For many people, this will include vehicles sitting idle or in need of repair. Cars and boats are common culprits here — they can often linger for years, taking up space. What can you do about it? Let’s use an old boat as an example. You can:

• List the boat for sale
• Find a friend to take the boat off your hands
• Find a new spot to store the boat while you repair it
• You can also donate boat to charity

Once you get rid of the biggest items in your garage, you will be one step closer to a fabulous new space.

2. Properly Prepare to Carry Out Clutter

Chances are you will underestimate the sheer volume of stuff you’ll want to dispose of or give away. Whatever you choose to do with your extra items, you’ll need a way to transport them. Your car may not be adequate — you’ll need to make too many trips. Borrow or rent an appropriately sized pick-up truck or moving van. With the right vehicle, you can take away your unwanted items in one trip.

3. Have Space to Spread It Out

As you remove items from your cluttered garage, you’ll need space to spread them out to take inventory. What is essential to keep? What do you want to throw away or donate? Create three designated spaces on your driveway or front lawn to organize items into these three categories. Prepare the space before you start the process or you’ll end up with another impenetrable pile of clutter.

4. Get Serious About Your Garage Organization Needs

This is, perhaps, the most essential part of uncluttering any space: Determine what is essential and what is not. A general rule of thumb when determining whether to keep or toss an item is to ask yourself whether or not you use it. If the answer is no, get rid of it. It’s quite simple, but we tend to hold on to things “for a rainy day” that never comes. You can also make a list of essential items you need in your garage. These can include important tools, emergency supplies and keepsakes. Once you determine your needs, you can identify other items as being in the category of “wants.” The key to a clutter-free space is to minimize the items in that respective category.

5. Go Vertical with Garage Storage

Garages have limited storage space that can be maximized by using the vertical plane. This means either investing in sturdy wall-shelving units or stackable crates. Both options use your garage’s side walls and provide ample storage space for most items. By investing in stable vertical storage units, you can know exactly how much space you’ll have and create a storage system in which everything has a place. With vertical shelving or stacking storage, it’s important to use labels. The combination of vertical storage and clear labeling will be a breath of fresh air every time you step into your organized garage.

6. Make Rules for Future Garage Use

It is said prevention is the best medicine, and this is true for your newly uncluttered garage as well. To prevent clutter from building up again, make a list of rules for what you will — and won’t — store in your garage. Post the rules somewhere visible and avoid your previous storage habits that led to the cluttered situation. Some rules may include the following:

• Only store items in labeled and organized spaces
• Do not store items you will never use
• Create a designated box in your garage for items you will donate monthly including, clothing and household goods

About the Author: Renatta Harper is an interior designer and professional organizer. She delights in helping families make the most of limited storage space.

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For more home organization ideas on Stagetecture, click here.

]]> https://stagetecture.com/guest-blogger-organizing-your-garage-this-summer/feed/ 0 51642 https://stagetecture.com/tips-to-better-organize-your-garage-this-spring/ https://stagetecture.com/tips-to-better-organize-your-garage-this-spring/#respond Thu, 04 Apr 2013 23:03:53 +0000 https://stagetecture.com/?p=45805 Entry #2266, April 4, 2013

One of the areas at home where you often find yourself challenged is organizing the garage.  This makes sense because the garage is often used as storage for tools and equipment for vehicles. More often than not, the garage space is just enough for a car and several repair tools on the wall areas.

The limited space allotted for the garage makes it prone to being cluttered. A few spontaneous dump of anything in the garage would block the driveway. This is why you have to make sure that everything is properly organized in the garage.

Image via: Leonard Unander Associates, Inc.

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Here are tips to better organize your garage this spring:

Keep, donate and throw away

You have to learn how to categorize everything in the garage. Assess every piece of items you have into keep, donate and throw. This should be fun and rewarding especially when you learn how to let go of excess items. Donating your excess garage items can provide you extra space and help other people who badly needed them.

Tag and Label

This is a preventive move to avoid future clutter. Oftentimes, when you find things that you cannot locate, several items are moved or misplaced from finding. This scenario will create unintentional mess. With proper tagging and labeling, you can easily locate any item without creating chaos.

Image via: Closet Envy, Inc.

Hang your items

Hanging your items can save you a lot of space below. It is also easier to see the items you need. To ensure safety, choose a stable hanger and make sure that the tools or equipment is secure. You can use your walls to install the hanger. This should keep you away from the inconvenience of finding your items in an enclosed storage.

Spend some time in organizing your garage this spring and enjoy the convenience. Your efforts will be rewarded with safe, functional and systematic garage.

For more garage ideas on Stagetecture, click here.

If you have a dad that spends a majority of his time tinkering around in his garage or man cave, your holiday shopping just became significantly easier.

Here are five great gifts for the garage-loving dad this holiday season.

Image via: schappacherwhite.com

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1. Speakers

If your dad works in garage on nights and weekends, there’s a good chance he would want to enjoy some music while working. Thankfully, there are plenty of options to buy this year.

Your first option are the Axiom Garage Speakers. These speakers are covered in a tough crosshatch metal (so they’ll fit in great with his tool box!) and offer a great sound. Of course, you’ll need an amplifier and speaker to put out a sound, but this is a great start.

Your next option is a bit more tech-savvy: Bluetooth speakers.

For $300, you can buy the Bose SoundLink, which allows him to stream music from his iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch — or any other smartphone that has Bluetooth. While the Bose SoundLink looks small, it packs a big sound, with boomy basses and crisp trebles.

2. Television

A TV seems like a logical choice for the dad who spends a lot of time in his garage, but don’t go out and buy the latest flatscreen.

Because the garage isn’t as insulated and protected as your home, you’re going to want to buy an all-weather LCD television. You don’t need a large screen, but they do make these weather-proof television up to 46-inches.

SunBrite TV is the LG and Samsung of all-weather televisions. And while these TVs are expensive (between $1,800 and $5,500) they are designed to withstand rain, dirt, insects, scratches and drastic temperature changes.

As mentioned, this is a big investment, but when dad is working on the weekends, he’ll be able to take in the big soccer game.

Image via: modenrgroupaz.com

3. A Portable Work Station

Because most garages are designed to store a car, lawn mower and tools, your dad doesn’t have a ton of space to work on various projects. That’s why a portable work station is a great gift idea.

There are plenty of great options for portable work stations, but some of my favorites are made by Black & Decker. The Black & Decker WM425 ($90) can hold up to 550 pounds and can adjust in height, allowing you to work on various woodworking projects and more.

When you’re done, simply fold up your workstation and store it away.

4. Personal Garage Car Lift

Most dads who are handy around their cars are likely to change their own oil. And while they might look manly rolling from under their car, covered in grease, it’s not the most comfortable activity.

That’s where this unique gift comes into play: Go out and buy a personal garage car lift.

These lifts can fit in most garages with a normal ceiling height. It raises the car (or truck!) to a height that makes oil changes and any undercarriage work significantly easier.

While this can be an expensive project, most auto lift companies offer some kind of financing deal.

If your dad is a gear head, this is guaranteed to be his favorite Christmas gift of all time.

Image via: pbelemental.com

5. New Lighting

This inexpensive and subtle gift can make a world’s difference when it comes to your garage. Why? Because most garages are fairly dark. For Christmas, brighten up your dad’s garage.

You can get creative with this project, but track lighting is a popular option that offers a modern light. You don’t want to stop there, though.

Dad works with tools and on cars, so you’ll want a portable spotlight on wheels that your dad can easily roll around while working on his various projects.

Brian Russo is an analyst for Rossdoor.com.au Melbourne Garage Doors.

For more holiday ideas or Man Cave ideas Stagetecture, click here

Talking about creative ideas for cheap garage flooring, the fact that the garage is where you pack your car does not mean it should look grungy, especially when it has to do with the flooring. Since the garage is also a part of your home, you can make it look good so that you will always look forward to, with much glee, to driving your car into your garage. Getting quality flooring for your garage is very expensive and even when you chose to go for the options that seem to be less-expensive, you might still find them to be far beyond your budget. Confused on what to do?

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You don’t have to be and this is where cheap garage flooring come in and becomes your best option, especially where every other option entails huge expenses if professional services are sought after and even when you choose to carry out a DIY project, they could require you being specialized in making use of certain tools. With the ideas listed below, you are surely going to save good money and more so, you don’t have to be a pro in the use of certain tools before you can carry them out.

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Bare Wood Flooring:

You can get this from old homes, especially those built in the 1950’s or earlier. All it takes is for you to raise that carpet or worn out linoleum and you have it right there, beautiful and good wood floor. Carefully remove all the staples and nails that were used in putting it in place. If the need be, you can do a little refinishing, only if you know how to and this includes smoothening rough areas caused by adhesives and paints, filling out holes and finally, adding one or two coatings of varnish. Your garage floor is set.

Rubber Flooring:

Among the many creative ideas for cheap garage flooring, this happens to be the cheapest of them all but works better if you plan on also using your garage as your workout room or playroom for the children. Because of the cushioning effect of the rubber, there is minimal possibilities of injuries should there be a fall by you as you work out on your bench or the kids as they play. However, since it is rubber, you should avoid oil leakages as much as possible since they can damage the flooring. Secondly, don’t introduce the flooring to extreme heat since it can melt.

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Roll-Out PVC Flooring:

The last but not the least on creative ideas for cheap garage flooring, this type of flooring, also known as mats is also cheap and has more advantages than rubber flooring. First, since they are not glued to the garage floor, you can easily pull them out and clean them should there be any spills or leakages. They also come in various colours and two main designs that inexpensively transform the overall look of your garage.

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Now you know you don’t have to spend a fortune before you can change the flooring of your garage. Go ahead and try any of these creative ideas for cheap garage flooring and you will be glad you did.

For more garage ideas on Stagetecture, click here.