Keep It Safe This Halloween

(Image courtesy of liz west)

Tonight's the night! If you have little ones, we're sure that they've been excited for weeks to don their costumes and go trick or treating. Though there's alot of fun to be had on the spookiest night of the year, it's still important to be safe. These tips from apartmentguide.com will help you keep your little ghouls and princesses out of trouble. Keep reading to learn more. 

Pick the Right Costumes

The best outfits for your little creatures are ones that they enjoy, of course. But for safety’s sake, there are a a few things to consider when choosing your children’s Halloween costumes:
The outfit should be flame-resistant. If the costume is a popular classic, you can usually find review of it at online shopping sites like Amazon.
Make sure the outfit is short enough to prevent tripping and tight enough to avoid getting tangled.
Avoid masks that can make it difficult to see, breathe, or hear.
Make sure everyone, including chaperones, wears comfortable shoes.
Try to pick outfits that don’t include weapons because these can easily be misinterpreted at night. The only thing that should be in your trick-or-treaters hand is a candy bag and a light. Adding a prop in the other hand may make it difficult for him or her to juggle everything in tiny hands while holding onto you.

Meet the Residents

Before Halloween night, schedule a meeting among interested neighbors to find out who wants to entertain trick-or-treaters that night. By confining the evening’s festivities to your apartment complex, you’ll know everyone on the other side of the door.

In addition, you won’t have far to walk to hit several homes. Plan a route to the participating apartments that confines the kids to well-lit pedestrian pathways and avoids the parking lots and driveways. Set a start time and end time for all the trick or treating, preferably before the sun goes down.

Ask all the participating renters to leave their entry lights on and to put out a Halloween decoration, so the kids will know where to go that night–but warn against using candles or open flames, which can be dangerous. Recommend that they clear their outdoor entry areas so groups of kids can easily gather in front of their doors without hurting themselves or damaging property. Advise the adults to pass out only factory-wrapped candy or small toys.

Accompany the Kids

Even within the relative safety of the complex, a responsible adult should accompany the kids while trick-or-treating. If you have lots of children going, divide them into several groups, with each group headed up by two or three adult chaperones. Older kids may want to wander on their own, so make sure there is at least one fully-charged cell phone with them. They should also remain in a group the entire night.

Stagger group routes among the participating apartments to avoid inundating one place with too many people. As an added safety measure, make sure each kid and adult carries a flashlight, even if the complex is well-lit. There may be patches of dark that make it hard to see who is walking there.

Inspect the Goods

Tell your kids not to eat anything until you’ve had a chance to check it out. They may have gathered their bounty not only from the complex, but from school or from any business that might have been visited that day. Eliminate anything that is not in an original factory wrapper, such as baked goods, or in a wrapper that may have been tampered with. You’ll also want to watch how much candy your kids eat, or there may be some tummy aches in the morning.

Sponsor an After-Party

Ask your apartment property manager if you can throw a post-trick-or-treating partyeither in the community room or in an outdoor common area. Make the gathering a potluck and ask those who would have given home-cooked goods to trick-or-treaters to bring the edibles to the party instead. You can even have a costume parade and offer prizes to those wearing the most interesting costumes.

How To Be The Best Host You Can Be

(Image courtesy of Maegan Tintari)

We know that you don't want to hear it, but now that fall is solidly underway it won't be long until the holidays sneak up on us. With all the joy and get togethers that come with the holiday season, it's only natural that you'll have friends and family staying with you to celebrate.

Being a host is never easy - but that doesn't mean it needs to be stressful! Writer Maxwell Ryan from Apartment Therapy  shares 13 secrets to being the best host you can be, whether it's for the holidays or any time of year. Keep reading for the best tips to successfully host guests in your beautiful new San Diego apartment! 

The basic genius of this list is in the understanding that guests don't need or want to be pampered; it's that being a guest is, at its root, a deeply uncomfortable experience, and being a great host is about removing all of these discomforts so that your guest can relax and you can both enjoy sharing your home together. In addition, if you want to have frequent guests (or friends simply come to stay often) and not exhaust yourself, the more you can structure the experience the better off you all will be. Guests, like children, appreciate a clear orientation as well as a few good choices, as opposed a totally open situation.

And finally, there are really two kinds of guests in the world: those that have come to visit with you personally, and those that need a place to stay. While we may sometimes mix the two, it is this second category into which most guesting/hosting falls. It is helpful to remember this and pay attention to tip #4!

1. Eat or Wash: Upon arrival, always ask your guest whether they'd like to eat something or wash up first. This takes care of their most immediate needs, removes discomfort and gives them something to do right away.

2. Get Settled: Next, show them to their room and leave them to get settled and rejoin you after they wash up or need something to eat. Having a little alone time immediately after arrival is very comforting and useful.

3. Connect: After getting settled it's important to THEN sit down, share a drink, connect and go over the evening and days ahead. This is the true and proper time for greeting, and best done AFTER the first two steps. Do this too soon and you've got overload.

Take fifteen to thirty minutes to find out where your guest is coming from, what they're hoping to do during their stay and share with them what your plans are as well - even if they're your parents! This is not necessarily the time to launch into hours of conversation (unless you're both ready for that), but the time to get a good download, orient your guest and know exactly what the shape of the whole visit will look like.

4. Start With The End In Sight: Ironically, the most uncomfortable part of hosting/guesting is knowing the endpoint. Be sure to bring this up right away so that you are both comfortable about how long the visit will be and if your guest needs any help with his or her departure. Many guests worry about how to get back to the airport or train station right at their arrival, so it's good to bring this up now.

5. Be Consistent: If you always offer your guests the same treatment and the same orientation it's very comforting, and particularly welcome after a disorganized day of travel. I have friends in Chicago who always put me up in the same spare room and greet me in the same way, and I love it and feel like I know just what to expect.

6. Mi Casa Es Su Casa: The best feeling you can give your guest is truly that your home is their home, so make sure they know everything they need to know and don't need to trouble you too often. The next few tips speak to this.

7. Towel, Water, Bed, Bathroom: These are the basic needs of any weary guest. Make sure they have a towel on their bed, water by its side and a clear path to the bathroom you'd like them to use.

8. Kitchen Orientation: It's really nice to tell your guests to help themselves to whatever they need in your fridge, but also let them know how to take care of their dishes while you're at it. :)

9. Flowers: It's an extra touch, but placing fresh flowers in the room or by the bed where your guests are staying is super nice and spreads the message that you really honor your guest and their place in your home. It will also signal to them to join you in taking care of your home.

10. Allergies: These can be a real problem for some people, so - if you have pets - do let your guests know AHEAD OF TIME and give the room they're staying in an extra vacuum with the windows open. Extra care in cleaning can make a big difference, but bringing extra allergy medication may be necessary too.

11. Privacy & The Air Mattress: Even if you don't have an extra bed or bedroom, do what you can to give your guest a private space and a good air mattress (or sleeper sofa). I've slept on many floors with an air mattress in rooms with a little privacy from the main room and been totally happy, especially with really soft, comfy sheets!

12. Know Your Personal Goal: With every guest that comes into your home, be sure to know what you'd like to do with them personally before they leave and then schedule it with them. Visits can get rushed and busy, and it is super important to have a real quality connection with friends and/or family staying in your home. You'll both be really happy that you do.

13. Fold Them Into Your Life: With everything you do while you have guests, try to run your life as you always would and fold them into it. It's a great sign of trust that you can do this with them, and it will make both of your visits more enjoyable and more often to happen again soon if you feel like having guests enlarges your life instead of taking wind out of your sails.

Come On, Get Happy!

(Image courtesy of Jorge Sanmartín Maïssa)

The word home means differnt things to different people. For some of us, home is a refuge after a long day at work, for others it's a place where we spend time with loved ones and unwind. No matter where or what home means to you, the fact remains that we all want to feel a certain feeling when we get there.

Living in our San Diego apartments has their own particular benefits, but how great would it be to inject more joy into the time that you send in your luxurious home at Ariva? Writer Adrienne Breaux from Apartment Therapy offers us 8 fool-proof ways to get more happy in your home. What more could you ask for? Keep reading to learn how.

1. Give your home a good morning and good night
Don't roll out of bed onto a keyboard. Stop bringing your smart phone into bed to scroll Instagram until your eyelids get heavy. Set that alarm 10 minutes early to make tea or coffee and sit in your favorite spot in your home. You can use ten minutes after you wake up and before you go to bed any way you want (meditate, exist, water the plants), the point is don't just jump into your day's to-do list immediately. We know regular downtime helps us prepare and unwind from the day; use that time to intentionally make mentally and physically enjoying your home a daily pleasure.

2. Make and strengthen connections
Whether you live with a partner or a roommate, a home isn't just walls and furniture; it's the people you share your physical space with. While you continue to improve the beauty and function of your house, cultivate and strengthen the connections with the living elements of your home. It's telling them thank you when they take out the trash (even if it was their night). Having more patience when they leave their wet towel on the bathroom floor (again). It's sharing your gratitude and appreciation for their presence in your home. And don't forget your furry friends.

3. Don't let fear define how you use your space
If you're still one of those folks who doesn't invite people over because yourhome's not perfect, cut it out. Embrace how far your home's come, not how far it's got left to go. If you don't use your rooms to their fullest out of fear of spilling food on furniture or some other reason, stop that too.

4. Start a stay-at-home hobby
Occasional TV viewing is a fine way to spend an evening, but what if we decided to really have fun in our homes, rather than just mindlessly tune out? Picking up a new hobby that has you engaging in your home in a positive way could really impact it feeling more like a sanctuary than just a place you sleep and shower. If it's cooking, The Kitchn certainly has plenty of ideas. But maybe it's writing a letter to friends and using your desk for something other than take-home work. Perhaps it's using that chair in your bedroom usually draped in tomorrow's work clothes for catching up on your favorite novel. Don't just exist in your home — enjoy it.

5. Involve your home in annual traditions (or make up your own)
If you're one of the many whose home doesn't reflect the holidays or the seasons, consider reconsidering. Not transforming your home for every holiday isn't a crime, but you are losing out on the opportunity to involve your home in the annual celebrations of the calendar. It can make that "it's the end of the year already?!" feeling even stronger when you ignore the seasons. Bombarded by public displays of festivity when you go outside, it can make your home feel even less homey when you return. Not into the holidays? Make up your own things to celebrate, and incorporate things that you find cheerful — even if it's just twinkly lights and fresh flowers — in your home throughout the year.

6. Let nature in more
Plants, however small or impressive, are always a great choice. A view of a bird feeder or squirrels skittering through the trees works, too. Investing in good drapes, curtains, blinds or shades that operate well, so that you can close them for privacy but also open them wide to let natural light in (however much your home can get) are a must.

7. Commit to cleaning before you leave
Don't always put your home in the position of disappointing you when you walk through the door and face a mess. It's a tall order, especially when asked to commit to a few minutes each day to just sit and enjoy your home in the same post, but trust us when we say this is a great place to push yourself a little to improve.

8. Embrace imperfection (and remember you're not alone)
It's easier said than done, to not beat yourself up that your home isn't quite how you want it to look (and never seems to feel clean enough). It's easy to compare ourselves to impossibly perfect homes we spot on Instagram. As Brené Brown has said: “Imperfections are not inadequacies; they are reminders that we're all in this together.” We all fail at DIY projects, don't vacuum as often as we'd like and if we're honest, have more like junk closets and rooms than just junk drawers. While we all aim to improve our homes (through the January Cure, perhaps?), let's remember to be kind to ourselves about our homes this year (even when we leave the house a mess or spend an entire weekend watching Netflix).

How are you going to try and make more joy in your home this year? What are the authentic ways in which you enjoy your home?

Mix and Match

(Image courtesy of Paris Sharing)

Whether you're just moving in with a new roommate or looking to update your style the choice between downsizing and mixing and matching can be a tough one. When coordinating two very different styles, your organized and perfectly designed decor can quickly become a mess - so what to do? Writer Eleanor Busing from Apartment Therapy has the solution to your apartment decor woes. Keep reading to learn how to mix and match your apartment style with confidence. 

When it comes to furniture, a mix of styles and periods, colors and materials is usually par for the course. Unless you are starting from scratch and can afford to buy every last thing in your home at once, it's normal that your aesthetic will evolve, and at any given time may include inherited items, hand-me-downs, "ok for now" pieces and ones you simply change your mind on later. These days, aneclectic look is one that isn't just occasionally inevitable, but also desirable. The confident mixing of different styles is a skill, so how do you go about acquiring it? Here are a few quick tips for mixing styles with aplomb in your home.

Keep it Monochome

Or at the very least, in the same color family. When the eye isn't distracted by contrasting hues, it can easily blend pieces of varying ages and styles. In the dining room above, the farmhouse table, mid-century seating and industrial pendants look perfect together, because they're all in the same white/silver range.

Or... Use Colour to Tie it Together 

When carefully applied, color can also make pieces of different shapes or scales play nice. The dining chairs in the table above wouldn't seem so perfectly matched if it wasn't for the green seat cushions on the end chairs. The lighting, which is all in the same orange/copper family, further unifies the room.

Look for Common Details

Sometimes, the smallest of details are what makes a room work. In the corner above, the unifying story is of vertical lines and metallics. A fairly basic traditional armchair is paired with a Moroccan pouf and a modern, sculptural side table, which echo each other's lines and finish. The striped, sequined throw cushion is the icing on the cake.

Let One Item Take Charge

Conventional design wisdom is that everything in a space should have a "friend" in style, shape or colour, and this may be true for smaller items like side tables and floor lamps. But when we're talking about centrepieces like sofas, dining tables and chandeliers, feel free to go for a one-off, statement piece. The sculptural blue sofa above sings in an otherwise traditional and wood-centric living room, leaving no doubt as to who the boss is.

Do you do much mixing at home, with the style, age or materials of your furniture? What are your best tips for an eclectic interior that feels effortless?

High Tech Kitchen

(Image courtesy of Marco Derksen)

With mobile devices on the rise, we challenge you not to find a new tech device in every room of your home - including the kitchen.

With instant access to the internet wherever we go, shouldn't we be using this ability to explore in the kitchen? Writer Elizabeth Giorgi from apartmenttherapy.com  breaks down the top five best ways to use your mobile devices in the kitchen - do you have any favorites that aren't on this list?

1. On-Demand Recipe Conversion: Ever find an amazing new recipe from another country but realize it's in the metric system? Recipe Convert is your new best friend. The free app lets you import measurements and gives you the conversions.
2. Watch Your Favorite Cooking Web Show: There are an incredible number of awesome web shows dedicated to the kitchen. Kitchen Vignettes from PBS Digital is a particularly inspiring one to check out.
3. Display a Menu: With Google Drive's Presentations, you can create an awesome menu for your guests and display it with complete ingredient listings. This way, food allergens are out in the open.
4. Skype Cook with a Food Professional: Many personal chefs and specialty food bloggers are now offering professional lessons through video chat. You can even cook an entire recipe together from each of your kitchens!
5. Create a Kid Zone: One of the challenges of entertaining with kids is that they don't tend to have a zone of their own. Get the kids involved with games like Cooking Mama, which gamify cooking so in a few years they can help out!