Did you ever think to utilize the space under your stairs? An Australian company came with the great idea of the staircase drawers. As you can see in the photo below, the staircase could be transformed in a real storage organizer. No more messy desks or fully storage boxes! Now you can store in style with under-the-staircase solution.

Unfortunately, the producing company - Unicraft Joinery - does not have a website. However you can contact them at the phone ((03) 5572 5441) or at their offices in Australia (7-11 Ballarat Rd Hamilton VIC 3300). The staircase storage solution was presented in Vogue Living Australia’s Autumn/Winter 2007.

[via Inhabitat]

Recently I was present at one of my neighbors as he was redecorating his bathroom. As I stood there and chatted with the man, a guy was working on the tiles. I happened to know that he changed his fixtures and almost all of the bathroom, except for the tub. So, the guy laying down the tiles was cutting them to fit around the toilet. I asked my neighbor why didn’t he have the tiles put down BEFORE the fixtures? He said he hadn’t thought of it because it was natural for him first to call the electrician, then the plumber and last, the painters ant tilers. So I told him how unprofessional it will look if he cuts the tiles around the toilet and sink. Not to mention that now, if he wants to change to a smaller size one, he will get a gap. If he wants a larger…it won’t fit. It would have been much easier to do the tiling first, and then install the fixture, and cut the gap just for the pipes. Well, I agree with the tub, it is not so often changed and it would be a larger waste of tile to put under the tub or an eventual shower. So the lesson here is, first the tub or shower, then the tiles and finally the fixtures.

Bought an old house and you need extra space? Or do you live in an old house and just want to do something with the attic that you usually use for storing junk? Check this out:

1. Access. Do I have to say it or did you already guess? STAIRS is the magic word, unless you want an elevator. But it’s not so simple as it seems. First of all, depending on the shape of your roof, you have to find a place for them. Usually, because of the roof slope, the only option is the center. This means that you take up some space from a room of your house. Choose wisely. Another option would be an outside access. I saw this once, on top of a garage (separate from the house). It was a great place for the kids. And they wouldn’t have to enter the house with their messy feet. It can be like a tree-house for the kids.

2. Make sure your ceiling joist support the weight that’s about to be applied on them. Not all homes come with resistant joists, as a matter of fact, most of them are made to support no more than an extra layer of insulation. No problem, you can change those, but it will probably cost you a little.

3. Use something light for the floor, whatever you like, only make it light. See no.2 for reason.

4. You can’t leave those sharp angles in the roof ending, so I suggest filling them up with a wall, it will look better. Also, it will provide good shelter for plumbing and electrical stuff. You can add an extra layer or insulation as well. Speaking of which, insulation is a must in the attic. Starting from the ceiling/floor and on the roof too. It can get pretty cold in the winter and hot-hot-HOT in the summer.

The decorating is up to your style, tastes and let’s not forget, the space provided. I advice consulting an engineer, though, because messing around with the attic can get you waking up to your kid falling on your head one night. This wouldn’t be a problem, but he’s bringing the bed too.

Ever wondered how would your ceiling look like with tiles on it? If yes, but never had the guts to try, read through, because here are some tips. Oh… in case you didn’t presume yet, I’m talking of sticker tiles, of course, the ones you put on your kitchen floor. First of all, there are a few differences between the floor and the ceiling. The first would be gravity. While the stickers are oriented in different directions, gravity doesn’t change it’s direction, so on your ceiling, tiles will tend to fall instead of being firmly pressed to the surface by both gravity and the weight of furniture and people. So you need heavy “sticky-power”. A good way to improve the stickiness of the glue on the tiles is by heating them up. I suggest sun-power, but go ahead and be creative, those of you living in Alaska.

The other obstacle is paint. You have paint on you ceiling, don’t you? You don’t have to get rid of it, don’t worry. Only be sure that you have good insulation, no water dripping or other humidity coming through the ceiling and no paint bulges. If there are any, repair, or get off… When this is done and the ceiling is prepared, start sticking! As a tip, just like in floor tiling, start it from the largest open space, which in case of the ceiling is the center, so that you get an even and straight tiling. Move towards the walls so that any errors are less visible there.