Many homeowners who were looking to make a move before the recession have now decided to do some DIY rather than move into a new property. "Homeowners are choosing to carry out DIY rather than buy another house", according to one study. "At a time when the property market is slumping, people choosing t...

For a long time wallpaper was “in” and people covered every single inch of their house in the stuff. It has been known, on occasion, that some have even wallpapered their ceiling! One of the biggest problems withwallpaper is that it is very hard to remove; luckily there are some tips and tricks for getting ...

If you are painting and decorating you want to do it properly. There is little point lovingly choosing colours and designs for a house – and then doing the job in a lacklustre way. Ultimately, if a house is intended to tell people what kind of person you are missing out certain parts because they were hard to do ...

It’s something we all have to face eventually whether we are renting a property or living in our own – it is inevitable that the drain will become blocked. Rather than call a plumber most of us would like to do it ourselves and save the expense – but where should you start with a blocked drain. Whe...

If you have a broken tile amongst many in your bathroom or kitchen you may think it’s the end of the world. You need not worry of course. You can easily replace a tile with only a small amount of time and materials. You are more likely to have trouble finding a tile which is an exact match for you old ones than a...

A garden path is the way we control how our garden is viewed. It encourages anyone in the garden to follow certain routes and see the garden from predetermined points. They also offer a divide in the garden, allowing separating lines and contrasts between each side to be drawn. Garden paths come in many styles, and no...

Mus domesticusYou have Well, lucky, lucky you! No wonder Walt Disney chose this sweet, shy, moustache-twitching little furry fellow as his inspiration for Mickey Superstar. And we've all been

The yucca is a succulent, tree-like plant native to southern North America, Mexico and parts of the Caribbean - in other words, the hot bits! It thrives in drought and blossoms with creamy clusters

With summer coming, now is the time to get to work in your garden. A new wall can make all the difference, whether it is used to separate your property from your neighbours or as an internal feature.

A. This isn't the time to start clearing out debris or changing the water, that should be done in late autumn or early winter when things are dormant. But the pond is starting to come alive now

A. While we are dragging well behind many of our European counterparts (there are 60,000 homes in Holland that generate electricity by way of solar panels, for instance) solar heating is no longer

A. No, although it can certainly lay claim to being the most famous, probably in the world. The biggest is actually the Royal Horticultural Society's Hampton Court Flower show. It is held at the

A. The first bamboos came back to this country with the planthunters and merchants who opened up the Far East, particularly Japan and China. The early introduction commonly made their way on to

It may not feel like it, but when the clocks go forward this weekend it is officially British summer time. With spring just about sprung it might seem a bit premature to start thinking about those

A. Its exact role and direction in 2002 is the subject of much debate at the moment. However, basically its core functions are, as they describe it themselves, 'to preserve and protect the

A. Loads of reasons. For a start they are extremely easy to start and maintain and you don't need much room to grow one. Then there are the plants themselves, which often have attractive foliage and

A. Every week thousands of us either find some old wooden furniture in the attic or uncover something at a junk shop or sale, but the true character of the piece is disguised by an often tatty

A. There are plenty of very beautiful ground cover plants that have a place in the garden in their own right. However, as well as their decorative value they are also very useful, problem solving

A. There are a number of different reasons why we go round the garden lopping bits off here and there. There is the formative function, either to keep a plant within certain bounds or to encourage

There is plenty of advice on how to counter the damage those little winged beasties and bugs can do to our plants during the summer months, but what about those rather larger, furry or winged pests