I have a five year old daughter at home.  And that means one thing: a mess.  There is stuff everywhere.  It’s as if she’s genetically designed to leave a wake of destruction behind her.  Clothes on the steps.  Crayons under the table.  Barbie’s on top of the TV (the sacrilege!)  It goes on and on.

At first we thought this would be a never ending battle.  It might even be the equivalent of Star Trek’s Kobayashi Maru (an unwinnable test.)  But then we bought a house.  Realizing a house was just a larger place for a mess to develop, we decided our very first DIY project would be to get her room organized and painted.

It was our (apparently foolish) belief that our daughter would want to play more in her room, and therefore bring less of the mess to the rest of the house.

While I think that was a good strategy, it hasn’t completely solved the problem.  And on some days, it hasn’t even made a dent.  The challenge we have is that our house is 101 years old, which means limited storage and play-space in that room.

That’s when I came across this house.

While it has many normal features for a house, there’s one feature that really stands out.  One of the bedrooms has a built-in playroom/fort/cave!

The moment I saw this, I realized it would be perfect for anyone with a young kid.  You could easily turn it into a fort, spaceship, castle, Barbie-ville, or whatever your kid is into.  Plus, this is something I always wanted as a kid.  I forever was planning (or building) tree forts.  I never dreamed I could have one in my own room.  It’s just too cool. 

Do you have a Neat Feature of your own?  Consider submitting it, and we may post it.

It’s hard to believe but 2010 is approaching a close.  And with all end of the year activities it’s time to start thinking about Fall and Winter (at least in the northern hemisphere!)  Yes.  That sounds depressing to me as well. 

Fortunately there are a few things you can do to help with the transition.  And while none of these are exactly “fun” they all help keep our homes maintained and our lives a little better.

1. Seal Air Gaps – Heating prices have been high for a long time now.  Perhaps they will never go lower.  Which means we need to get serious about sealing up all those loose air gaps around our windows, under our doors and along the floors.  A tube of $5 caulk goes a long way to reducing your energy bill.  Plus, doesn’t it feel good to make your house a bit more efficient?

2. Check House Exterior – If you’re in the hot, warm parts of the country, or experiencing a hot summer like we did here in Cincinnati, then you probably haven’t walked around your house recently.  Now that September is (theoretically) bringing cooler air, maybe it’s time to see what the foundation looks like.  Are there new cracks on the sidewalk?  Any shingles need replacing before winter?  Now’s the time to take that exterior house tour!

3. Fall Cleaning? – It used to be you needed to do “spring cleaning” because it was a good time to empty your house of all the dirty air, grime, and dust that built up over a few months of closed windows and burning fires.  But these days most of us run our AC units just as much as our heat.  That means it’s a good time to clean up your house.

Part of what we do around here at Neat Features is help you understand all the fun and neat parts of your own home.  But let’s face it – if your home is falling apart you’re not very likely to notice them!  So go pick a week this month and work on these three tasks.  And then sit back.  Relax.  And enjoy your home’s own neat features!

photo provided by flickr user dan4th

For those of us who travel regularly, this is a nice slideshow on how to pack clothes more efficiently.  I never believed rolling your clothes made THAT much of a difference…  But apparently you can fit 10 days of clothes into one carry-on.

I’m not sure what this has to do with being a Neat Feature; I was just blown away by it.

Do you have a Neat Feature of your own?  Consider submitting it, and we may post it.  Image provided by flickr user uggboy.

It’s hard to believe but the summer is coming to a close.  Kids are going back to school.  Colleges around the country are starting.  And swimming pools are starting to close.

I never had the luxury of having a swimming pool when I was growing up.  In fact, if I wanted to swim, I needed to walk uphill – both ways – just to go swimming (there was a valley between my house and the pool).  But as a kid I loved going swimming.  Especially on a hot summer day.

And while I still don’t have a swimming pool, I still have fond memories of those hot and care-free summer days.

I suppose that’s why whenever I go to a hotel I feel the need to check out their pool.  I’ve seen big pools, small pools, the-kind-where-I-don’t-want-to-get-in-the-water pools, pools on the roof, and pools with water slides.  But until I saw this pool, I’ve never seen a pool that hung out over the edge of a building!

It used to be that a swimming pool was just a rectangular hole dug in the ground.  But those days, my friends, are long gone!

This is definitely one hotel where I’d make time to swim in the pool!

Do you have a Neat Feature of your own?  Consider submitting it, and we may post it.

So things have been a bit slow around here (and the Spam Bots a bit over-active!).  But we’re back in the saddle.  The last month has been a personally busy month.  Mostly with work and life (as if there’s a lot more to it than work and life!)  With the life part specifically being the fact that I got married.

To celebrate, my bride and I went on a Caribbean cruise for our honeymoon.  While on the ship we had some amazing views.  Especially from our cabin.  (If you ever go on a cruise it’s totally worth the upgrade for a balcony room.)  We also had a great hotel in South Beach that overlooked the ocean.

Let me just say that all those pictures of blue seas just don’t do it justice.

This was our first trip to the Caribbean (and South Beach) and the waters were so blue that they seemed like fake colors.  Definitely not the same murky cold ocean waters I’m used to seeing!

So what does this all have to do with neat features?

Well up to this point, this blog has really focused on the neat features inside of a home.  Sometimes we’ve focused on the neat features on the outside.  But I’ve never really given much consideration to the view on the outside.

And that’s a little odd.  Because for the better part of a decade I lived in a city apartment.  Most city apartments have terrible views.  But I was lucky.  My apartment overlooked an area with plenty of trees and bushes.  In fact I even saw a few deer, which isn’t too bad for living in the heart of Cincinnati.  Even though I had been ready to move for a few years, it was that view that kept me in my apartment.  I knew I couldn’t find a view like that anywhere else.

Neat Features are more than just light bulbs, wall murals or fairy tale guest houses.  As we’ve said in the past it’s the things that make your place unique.  And sometimes that’s just the view.

So what neat features do you have around your house?  Maybe it’s a view or a favorite tree to sit under?  Maybe it’s where you had a club house in your back yard as a kid.  There’s lot’s of options, so share your favorite neat features in the comments.

The Simpsons have become an American Institution.  They’ve been on TV longer than an entire generation of school students have been alive (think about that for a minute!)  Phrases like “D’oh” have seeped into general conversation.  And we all know the famous hometown of the Simpsons, Springfield.

But for a time, you had a chance to live like the Simpsons.

In fact, you had a chance to live in a perfect replication of their house.  Pepsi teamed up with The Simpsons and KB Homes to create a contest back in 1998 to win The Simpsons home.  This wasn’t just a house that looked like the Simpsons home.  It was a house that was constructed right down to the smallest details, including crooked pictures.

Usually at Neat Features we look at some aspect of a house – something you can even add to your own home.  But this time I want to just marvel at creativity, innovation, or marketing genius.  Who knows.

All I can say though, is I am amazed by the detail in this house.  Although as much as I’ve liked the Simpsons over the years, I’m not sure I’d want to actually live like the Simpsons. 

(images from the great Simpsons site: The Simpsons Folder)

I’ve talked about this home before, in “Living in a Fairy Tale”, but I find myself coming back to it.  Perhaps it’s because it’s been incredibly hot outside and I like the nice cool, shade look of the guest house.  Or maybe it’s because I’ve been in a terrible creative slump and find the idea of working in a secluded wooded area inspiring and restful.  But whatever the reason, I find myself drawn to this guest house.

If you’ve been reading Neat Features for any length of time, you know that besides DIY projects I love office spaces.  My secret desire (which isn’t very secret because I keep writing about it) is to own a house with a separate guest home to work.  I would have the best of both worlds – the ability to write from home, but also the psychological separation of work and home.

Plus, seriously, how can you look at that guest house and not want to write the next Great American Novel? 

If you were living here, what would you use this guest house for?

Do you have a Neat Feature of your own?  Consider submitting it, and we may post it.

I’m a reasonably educated guy.  I have multiple degrees in psychology.  I’ve had a successful career.  I don’t believe in magic or fairies.  I don’t think there’s a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.  All of this holds true until I am confronted by one thing: the magic eraser.

I have no idea how this thing works.  Maybe it’s some kind of scientific process involving black holes and space time continuums.  Maybe Merlin made the first one for King Arthur.  Who knows!

Why am I talking about the Magic Eraser on Neat Features?  Because I’ve been in the midst of a month long move and this week has been dedicated to cleaning my old apartment (isn’t it ironic that when you leave an apartment it’s probably cleaner than when you lived in it?)

A lot of the cleaning involved the normal wear and tear on doors, floors and walls.  I wasn’t sure how I was going to clean all of that.  Especially when I realized my cleaning supplies consisted of my toothbrush, a bottle of soap scum remover and a few paper towels.  And I planned on using my toothbrush later. 

That’s when I saw I had bought a box of magic erasers years ago and never used them.  I reached into the box with a shrug, thinking, “what can it hurt?”  Within seconds no matter what the dirt or grime it was gone!  It even worked on the old stove burners that I had long ago given up on cleaning.  I mean if I had only known, I wouldn’t have spent hours soaking them in chemicals, water, and soap!

I am not easily impressed.  Especially when it comes to cleaning products.  But I am blown away by how well magic erasers work.

I don’t know how you do it Mr. Magic Eraser, but in my book you are a true Neat Feature!

One of the things I love about Neat Features is that for something to be a Neat Feature it doesn’t have to cost an arm and a leg.  It can actually be just a handful of dollars.  Take, for instance a few DIY projects that involve your walls.

1.  Cleverly Hiding Power Cords

2.  Covering Cracks with Details

Both of those projects only cost a few dollars and can make a world of difference in how people see your house.  Sure I wouldn’t exactly suggest those methods if you’re trying to sell your house, but if you live in an apartment?  Or if you don’t have time or money to do a full repair?  Then they become great solutions.

Neat Features aren’t’ any particular product.  It’s a mindset.

So what in your house do you consider a neat feature?

Do you have a Neat Feature of your own?  Consider submitting it, and we may post it.