How do I know if it is safe to dig into my backyard?

This article is provided by Jesse Hughes.

Digging in your backyard – is it safe?

Making the most of your outdoor space is often a good idea. You can build an extension to your property, a garden room or even just a workshop where you can go and spend some time away from the chaos that often comes with family life. It is not as simple as just starting to dig up the ground in your yard though. There are things that you need to think about before this happens. 

One of the most important things to consider is the safety aspect of digging in your outside space. If you do not think about this, you could be putting you and your family in danger. 

How do you know if digging in your yard is safe?

You may think that you know everything there is to know about your yard. It is easy to spot a tree or an old piece of fence that may present an obstacle to a building project. You can take these things into account and make sure that the structures you are planning are safely built around them. 

However, it is not as easy to deal with obstacles that may be hidden underground. You cannot see what is happening down there. As a result, there is a chance that you could hit a water pipe or a gas main. This could cause serious issues with your project and could also be dangerous. This is why you should have utility locating work carried out, to ensure that it is safe for you to continue as planned. 

What else do you need to think about?

It is not just safety that you need to think about when you are building on your property. There are other important factors that you need to take into account. 

Checking that you have any permission that is needed.

Depending on what type of structure you are building, you may require permission from the local council. You should always check to see if this is the case, before the digging starts. 

Making sure that you have a realistic budget in place.

There is no point in having the perfect workshop in your yard if all you do is worry about money because you have spent too much on its construction. You need to sit down and work out a realistic budget before the project starts. It is important to include a bit extra to the expected spend so that you can deal with any unexpected issues.

Hiring the right people for the job. 

If you want your building project to be successful, you need to make sure that you have the right people in place to do the work. It is worth taking time to hire a good contractor, so that you can be sure that you have made the right choice. 

You should never neglect the safety aspect when you are thinking of digging in your yard. Make sure that you know about any obstacles, above and below ground, so you can be safe and reduce the risk of unwanted costly surprises. 

5 Steps To A Successful Product Review Blog!

This post is provided by Clarissa Caouette.

A product review blog can be a great place to pursue your passions and get hands on experience with the kinds of products you love. There are dozens of product review sites out there. How do you get started in this lucrative field and make your product review blog successful? 

The first step, of course, it to start a website. You will need to choose a relevant and catchy domain name, find a web host and decide between shared and dedicated hosting, and design your website using a template or by hiring someone to design it for you.

Once you have your site set up, follow these five steps to build a successful product review blog.

Pick Your Niche

General product review sites are fine, but you will find it much easier to find an audience and build a following if you specialize. Even large review sites like CNET focus on software and computers. Consumer Reports may get away with generalization, but you probably would not reach that level at least when you are just starting out. 

Choose something that you are passionate about, but that there are enough new products released regularly that you can continue to blog about them for some time. Things like cell phones, Virtual Reality, apps, software, consumer electronics of all kinds, cars, and kitchen gadgets are all great examples.

Build An Audience

No one is going to give you or offer you discounted products to review unless you have an audience who is reading those reviews. This means you need to build an audience. How do you do that in the area of reviews? Here are some tips:

Write Reviews On Amazon And Other Sites: Review products like the ones you want to review on your blog on other sites and become a trusted reviewer. People who value your opinion will follow you.

Be Active On Social Media: Post your reviews on social media, and make it clear you are a reviewer. Companies will often come to you for reviews of products once they see what you do, and audiences will trust your opinions.

Do Not Forget Reddit And Tumblr: There are many product discussion forums on Tumblr and Reddit and being active there can get you a good reputation as a reviewer and someone whose opinion is unbiased and can be trusted. Facebook groups are another good place to get involved in a particular community. 

Hashtag It: Use the right hashtags to get your product reviews noticed when you share them. This will increase your following in various niche areas. 

The bigger following you have, the more successful your product review blog will be, especially if you have that audience before you even get started. 

Review The Things You Use

At first, it may take you a while to get companies to send you sample products to review, so review the ones you already use and intend to buy anyway. Be honest, but positive. No company wants a poor review, and if you are simply product bashing your blog probably would not go far. 

However, brands also like honest feedback about what they can improve and may even follow up with you if you have a great idea for a way their product could be better. 

Post these reviews on your blog and on other sites. Exposure will help with growth, and starting with what you have or need will provide a good foundation for reviews. 

Create Ad Revenue

One you have a certain amount of traffic, you can make good money from ad revenue. This usually means a couple of things. First, you must add code to your site that allows for native ads like Google and Amazon ads, along with others like Outbrain and more. These ads pay you whenever someone clicks on them. 

Affiliate links pay you whenever someone makes a purchase through them. These pay a higher percentage overall, but usually there are fewer conversions so less money overall than PPC ads. 

You can also sell ad space on your site to the manufacturers of the products you review or similar ones. Their products will be displayed where people who want to purchase them are browsing anyway. These can be a great way to make your blog successful. Just do not use too many and clutter your blog space. 

You can also look for a site sponsor. This is a brand that wants to be featured on your site regularly and in ads in various places on the site. A good site sponsor can provide consistent revenue for your site and increase traffic.

Add Sponsored Posts

Lastly, the brands and types of products you review will want to be seen on your site. One of the easiest ways to do this is for them to create blog posts that talk about their product, and then pay you to place them on your site. 

There is a word of caution here. You have built up trust with your readers, and you do not want them to feel like you sold out or are trying to sell them something deliberately. There are also legal obligations about revealing what posts on your site are sponsored, so be sure you are forthright about what you are doing. 

Still, sponsored posts can provide a steady stream of income to your product review site, making it both profitable and successful in helping people make the right choices about products they are investing in. 

A successful product review blog is not hard to create, but it will be work and take time before it becomes successful. Choose a niche, find an engaged audience, and then review away. Done properly, you will end up with a successful product review blog. 

Happy birthday to me!

Guess what? In the blink of an eye, I turned 38 years old today! Happy birthday to me!

During my 38 years on this earth, I have been through a lot of ups and downs, fortunately more happy moments than sad ones in these 15 years so I feel very blessed! I am also thankful that I am able to do what I love, have a loving family and remained healthy (even though I have gain some pounds throughout the years!). :)

To celebrate the special occasion, we went to Chicago two weeks ago. We ate a lot of delicious Asian food and desserts and also did some window shopping at Rejuvenation!

I have also received a Chloe bag (my dream bag!) from hubby a week ago, a bouquet of beautiful roses yesterday and a few lovely surprises this morning!

Getting older isn't so bad after all! I feel so blessed and grateful! 

This year, our family will be going through some big changes so my birthday wish this year is for everything to go smoothly! Wish me luck! 

Ideas To Renovate Your Dorm Room!

This post is provided by Richard Smith.

Your room is your domain when you are studying. With all the stress of essay due dates, socializing and revision that you are under at college, you need to make sure the space that you go home to every night is perfect. 

The Chinese people were on to something when they discovered the power of Feng Shui. It should be obvious that the room you surround yourself with will definitely have an effect on how you do in your studying. With that being said, you need to make sure that you have renovated your dorm room in a way that really supports your studying and helps you to excel to achieve the best you can. But, how can you renovate your room to meet these standards? Well we have a couple of tips, if you have the time and the money, try out some of these tips and see what difference it makes!

Skylight

More light equals a more open-minded viewpoint! How do you let more light into your dorm room? Well if you have a friend that is a bit of a handyman, get a skylight installed. A skylight is a large window that is placed in a room on a slanted ceiling. It allows light to enter the room, and this can result in a lot of lovely, natural light coming into the room! Think about it, sitting down in your dorm room to write a really important essay, or talk to your writing companion on Paperial and you have loads of amazing natural light bursting through your new skylight. It would definitely help you have a more positive, optimistic outlook on your studies and this would definitely help you to excel in your work!

Open plan

Do you have a dorm room that you are looking to renovate heavily? A big change in your surroundings can produce a big change in your studies and education. Well, one of the best things you can do to clear your living space is to actually set it out as an open floor plan. This means that you would not have any walls or doors between your rooms. You can move freely between your rooms with ease, and when you are sitting in your room, you will have a much more open and free mindset. Whether you have got to buy essay resources, or do an essay yourself! Walls and doors can invite an enclosed and introverted mentality. But an open floor plan can really serve to exile all the obstacles and tribulations from your mindset. This can result in a much better work ethic.

Renovating your dorm room can really be the secret weapon that results in much a much clearer head and much more determined work ethic. Studying is hard, but it is even harder when you live in a crowded dorm room that is dark and dull and full of walls and obstacles to overcome! But if you take into account some of these tips, you will improve your study time instantly!

Enhance Your Decor With Metal Wall Art!

This post is provided by Rosa Broughton.

Metal wall art has become so much in fashion these days. A bold piece of metal art when exhibited on the walls draws a lot of attention and creates a lasting impression on the viewer. This is because any metal wall art is created with some or the other form of metal which is molded or shaped in such a way that it looks beautiful on your walls. 

There is some made using iron, while others are made up of aluminium as well. Aluminium metal art looks exceptionally beautiful and artistic on walls. Only an art lover can know the essence of wall art and will buy this decorative accessory either for himself or for his loved one. Metal arts are ideal for gifting purpose especially on the occasion of newly opened office or a wedding party or in honor of a well-written free essay.

There are some metal arts such as fishes and trees or a painting drawn with the metal, and give a wonderful feel to the room. It requires lots of skills and creativity to cast and then shape a metal in desired form and then a final piece is ready which adds to the beauty of your home decor. The metal art available these days have been through the final finished coating process which helps them retain their color and shine for years to come. A lot of metal arts are designed carefully so that they do not rust nor does their color fade away. 

There are many interesting pieces of metal wall art that one can place in their patio or living room that will add a bit of richness to the room. The first thing that comes to our mind when someone mentions a metal wall art is they are bound to be abstract and in weird shapes or size.

One that we can not comprehend, but that is not true, the metal art are beautiful and as aesthetic as a painting can be. Such is the world of metal wall art which is today becoming a popular choice of career. Most of the artists involved in this form enjoy creating something breathtaking out of pieces of metal which would surprise an onlooker.