Home & Garden

The City of Santa Clarita’s 2010 Cowboy Festival is just months away and the fantastic performer lineup and extensive list of activities are already beginning to take shape. Next year’s festival promises yet another unforgettable event filled with authentic cowboy culture and true old west appeal, set against the picturesque backdrop of the Melody Ranch Motion Picture Studio.

Fescue and bluegrass lawns, Santa Clarita’s most popular front and back yards, benefit greatly when given attention in the winter.
First of all, check your water schedule.  When you do water, give the turf a good deep soaking, but start skipping days between watering. 

There is a number of criteria regarding the preparation of plans and engineering when pulling a permit for a swimming pool, width, length and depth of the pool, set-backs from property lines and structures, adjacent slopes, soil integrity, retaining walls near pool wall, footings from patio covers and weight surcharges for structures on or near the pool walls.
The first step in pulling a permit for a swimming pool is to prepare a plot plan to scale showing property lines, structures on the property and slopes.  The pool and any features, i.e., waterfalls, etc., are drawn in their location showing the necessary setbacks, normally five-feet to water from all property lines and the house or structures.

The forthcoming holidays can be a cheerful time filled with friends, family and holiday spirit or a time of un-welcomed stress on your time and finances thus dampening the real meaning of the holidays.  Here’s how to create a plan that is manageable and will fill your holidays with joy and laughter for you and your family.

New Site Features Information on 2010 City Council Election
The City of Santa Clarita recently launched VoteSantaClarita.com, a new website designed to keep community members informed about the 2010 Santa Clarita City Council elections, slated for April 13, 2010.  Visitors to the site can easily learn about the upcoming election, as well as a host of related topics.

Excerpt from A.Allbright’s November Color of the Month Blog:
Rebel AB234 – Mulled wines, fall leaves, the aroma of spices cooking and holiday gatherings with women wearing little black dresses in rich red dining rooms, November is a month of richness and warmth.

Everyone in the neighborhood is stringing up lights, putting out blow up Santa’s and adding giant ornaments in the trees in their front yard.  Do you really want to look like everyone on the block?  How about taking a little time to add seasonal decorations with plants for a change?  Outdoor plants add color, texture, and drama to your house and if you plan a little you will have less and less to do each year. 

Join us for a holiday boutique held on Saturday, December 5, from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. at the Valencia Library Community Room, sponsored by the Santa Clarita Artist Association and featuring all 10 guest speakers of the 60 Minutes with an Artist.  At the holiday boutique the speakers will be present and displaying their small art pieces to sell.

“Deck the halls with boughs of holly.”  Christmas carols inspire us to begin our preparations for this holiday season.  It is these preparations that envelope our families and loved ones with the spirit of the season.
Envisioning the faces of children when eyes light up at the sight of Christmas lights outlining our homes, and lawn decorations reminiscent of the elusive Santa and his eight tiny reindeer, we begin our plans.  Exterior decorations can range from the traditional wreaths, garlands, and luminaries to the garish 3-D lighted figures.

One of the most cost effective home repair or home improvement items is paint.  Adding a new color to a bedroom or repainting some wood trim around the home can add quick value to your home.  However, one of the questions we get asked often is regarding kitchen cabinets.  Homeowners want to know if they should repaint their cabinets, replace them completely or reface.  It is always less expensive to apply paint than replace, so let’s look at some of the reasons why you might consider repainting your kitchen cabinets and you decide what is best for you.

The College of the Canyons Foundation has received a donation of more than $13,000 from Western Filter, a division of Donaldson Company (NYSE:DCI), which when combined with matching funds from the Foundation for California Community Colleges (FCCC) will establish a permanent scholarship endowment for students pursuing careers in manufacturing technology at the college.

Although SCV Pools, Spas and Masonry, Inc. is primarily a swimming pool contractor, we also enjoy doing smaller masonry projects.  After all swimming pools are basically masonry, hand cut stone, tile and concrete, walls, etc.

When you come home at the end of the day, does your home rise up to meet you?  A home that embraces, inspires and nurtures can be yours.  It doesn’t matter where you are financially at this moment.  It all begins with your imagination!

Do you always wonder where to hang artwork in your home or apartment? Artwork is such a wonderful addition to your home décor and should be given the utmost consideration when putting the final touches on a room. These interior-decorating ideas will make the task of hanging artwork much easier.

Improving the external part of your home is the usual option done by a number of homeowners who are aiming to develop the quality of their properties.  In the very competitive world of real estate, it is essential to ensure that your home has the edge over the rest to survive the competition.  In the event of home improvement, you might have to deal on which is better to be used on your lawn, will it be grass or gravel.  You might be asking what are the advantages and disadvantages of each of these choices.  Well, go through this article and you will be able to validate which one is will suit your preference.

Cards Now Available for Purchase, Loading at Saugus Drug & Hallmark

Due to popular demand, the City of Santa Clarita has expanded the sales locations for the Transit Access Pass (TAP) cards.  Now, Saugus Drugs & Hallmark, located at 27641 Bouquet Canyon Road, will be open for Transit Access Pass purchase and reloading.

The City of Santa Clarita recently received the results of its SCV Food Pantry’s 2009 Summer Food Drive.  Through the event, sponsored by the City, nearly 2,000 pounds of food valued at more than $3,000 was collected at five city facilities, to be donated to the SCV Food Pantry.  The organization helps provide food to Santa Clarita community members in need.

The Santa Clarita Artist Association will hold its last 60 Minutes with an Artist on Sunday, November 22 at the Valencia Library Community Room from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. featuring guest speaker Scott Bruckner.  Scott will be our 10th guest speaker and his art lecture will conclude this program.  Sixty Minutes with an Artist started in February of this year and was a program created by Jaylene Armstrong to offer the public opportunities to have extended Art Education Learning in hearing how artists are inspired and create their paintings.