Top 4 Reasons You Should Have Musical Instruments In Your Living Space

Not only does music add ambience to a home it also entertains and adds inspiration to any room. Music has the power to enhance the mood to create a pleasant atmosphere. When you walk into a room and hear music it automatically sets the tone. Adding music into your home’s decor doesn’t just stop with one fo your five senses it also acts as a visual stimulant. You’re able to add music as a visual aid to enhance and add value to your interior design. 

Photo by Pixabay from Pexels

You may still be wondering why music should be included in the living space in your home so have a look at the top reasons you should include music in your home below.

You Can Add In A Variety Of Sounds 

When thinking about music choices there certainly is a large range to choose from. From hard rock right through to softer classical styles there is always something that suits someone. People tend to have more of a preference for a certain style. Despite the fact these types of music can be played on similar instruments, they have the ability to create different moods. When it comes to having musical instruments in your home, you have the ability to mix styles and create an even bigger range of sounds. 

It Enables You To Embrace The Instruments

Sometimes, when people think of the power of music, they think of the creativeness of the musician. A huge part of what makes music such a beautiful thing is the instruments it’s coming from. Good sound comes from a good quality instrument so you should embrace that equipment. Don’t limit yourself to just the instrument, think about other tools you can use too such as the speakers and cords. Try placing a guitar with all it’s equipment on show to draw the attention of guests, you could even think about using vintage speakers as an extra added touch of interior design. 

You Can Make Your Home Feel Like A Musical Haven 

What’s cooler than a music studio? Having a music studio in your home that’s what! Studios are notorious for being ‘cool’ as they are the key to the backend of musical production. A studio is a haven for people who create music so why not include one in your home? Simply having musical instruments in your home will make your living room feel more like a mini studio where you can work on creating wonderful pieces of music. 

It’s The Best Way To Make A Statement 

If you think about all the top-class homes that you see in the movies, there is usually a grand piano as a focal point. From classy women singing next to the piano to a talented musician playing in a ballroom, they are used to stand out from the crowd. Adding a tasteful musical instrument such as used Steinway Pianos into your living room makes for a glamorous, luxurious and elegant statement piece. Put together with a statement mirror and a bold colour scheme this is sure to wow and visitors. 

These are just five of the reasons you should have musical instruments in the living space of your home. It’s important to a lot of people and impacts a lot of people’s lives. If it’s important to you, think about adding music in a non-traditional way to your home interior. It will look bang on trend and also make your house feel like a home 

Do you have any other reasons why you should include music as part of the interior of your home? Please share them in the comments section below!

My Holiday Gift Guide Kicks Off With A Wonderful Memorial For Lost Loved Ones

It's that time of year again! Holiday season is upon us and I am starting this year's edition of my Holiday Gift Guide with a service that is perfect for memorializing your loved ones who have passed on.

ForeverMissed.com offers a service unlike any I have seen before: a webpage builder that memorializes your loved one on the internet forever. Launched in 2008, founder Oleg Andelman was inspired by his desire to learn everything he could about his grandparents. He reached out to family members and was able to find out more, along with photographs he didn't know existed!  After compiling all of this knowledge, he decided to build a webpage that could tell his grandparents' story. He then realized that a website where his family and others could share and post memories of his grandparents was actually something he believed could be a great service for anyone on the internet! He began building Forever Missed to offer online memorial pages for anyone on the web! 

ForeverMissed.com has made it easy for anyone to make and share their memorial even if you have little experience in building a webpage. Customer service reps are available day and night should you need any help and to guide you through the building process. It's a wonderful way for families who may be separated by distance or time to learn and share about the lives of their loved one. It is especially helpful to those who may have been young when their family member passed on as they now have an entire webpage dedicated to any information they may need to learn more about their family members!

For this holiday season, I have a special discount. You can receive $20 off of their premium plan by clicking this link. With the premium package you get the ability to upload unlimited photos, a video gallery, background music, illustrated stories, full integration with Facebook and YouTube, access for more administrators to help build the webpage, and customized default notifications you can use to let your other family members know that new content has been uploaded and remind them of important dates. I hope you will check it out and let me know what you think in the comments below!

Who would you memorialize on ForeverMissed.com?

Click here for part two of my holiday gift guide!

Are You Sales Tax Compliant?

As I have written about before, e-commerce is evolving every day. When I first began shopping online, sales tax had not caught up with the frenzy of online shopping. It was the Wild West days of the internet and over the years as it picked up, sales tax on items became an issue that has resulted in states realizing just how much impact e-commerce has and now, sales tax compliance is of utmost importance.

In the landmark case of South Dakota v. Wayfair, the Supreme Court ruled on June 21, 2018 that an out of state seller can have economic presence in a state where they have no physical presence and can be held legally accountable for sales tax.The companies involved were Wayfair, Overstock, and New Egg. Essentially, these companies can establish a nexus, (an economic requirement that generates the qualification of collecting and remitting sales tax), just by economic activity. This decision allowed individual states to require that sales tax be collected through sales of products online.

Image source

The reason for this is because states began to recognize just how much income they were losing by not collecting sales tax, estimating that billions of dollars in tax revenue are lost each year. The US Census Bureau of the Department Of Commerce determined that in the second quarter of 2019 retail e-commerce sales reached 146.2 billion dollars which is a 4.2% increase from earlier in the year! This, of course, could generate billions in tax revenue for states as determined by the United States General Accountability Office. Budget deficits and revenue deficiency made states quickly require the collection and remittance of sales tax on e-commerce purchases.

Sales tax compliance is fairly simple. First, you will have to collect the data from all sources within your business, such as your marketing team, legal department, and operations depending on how large your company is. After you have amassed all of the data, you can then asses that data and reconcile it. You can then use this information to fill out your tax forms, and file your tax return. Your jurisdiction will now determine your filing frequency and the due date. Sales tax is normally due in the month of the taxable event. Typically, the due dates are the 15th, 20th, 25th, or at the very end of the month, although it varies by each jurisdiction. Creating a dedicated tax calendar is a recommendation that will help remind you of due dates, how much you owe for that month, what method you used for filing as well as the date filed, and  confirmation numbers for payments and filings. You can update it every month so you can go back and refer to it as needed. If you do receive any notices, make sure you respond promptly!  Most notices are sent because of errors so don't be alarmed if you do receive one. You should, however, follow it through until resolution. Once all of these actions are followed, you then repeat the process each month.

For more help and information, please visit TaxConnex.com. The website has a plethora of information and great tax software to get you started on sales tax compliance.

A Matter Of Pride

She's in the mirror again
using those words
familiar
as the spark blows
across your mind
igniting the fire
that began
it all

She's your reflection again
using all of the bits
you buried
or pretended you did
under layers of dullness
years of the nothing void you hid in
that accumulated into 
reruns of your mind that
the picture sitting 
on your mantle of pride 
now holds

the ghost
of fascination
constructed from the mold of you
that now suffers
because 
in the mirror 
all she sees is
you
running
away.

Run by Noah Stacey on ArtStation

Are You Ready For Black Friday?

I am so ready!

My favorite place to go for Black Friday deals is Best Buy. I have found the best deals I've ever gotten on electronics at Best Buy on a regular day, but on Black Friday I definitely found the best! I bought my first blender, television, computer, laptop, and our favorite games all on Black Friday! I tried Black Friday at a few other stores but the deals on electronics were much better at Best Buy. Even as our ecommerce shopping evolved into now having Cyber Monday as well, Best Buy still reigns supreme.

We're all winners on Black Friday.

Many years ago when my kids were still little and ecommerce hadn't evolved to where it is now, we decided to try the doorbuster deals at Best Buy. We really wanted to get a computer for the family room (so the kids would stay off of mine!) that the kids could play their games on or do homework. We all got up at 4 in the morning and drove out to Best Buy. The doors opened at 6 AM and we went in. It wasn't that crazy but it was definitely crowded. We ended up getting an amazing deal on our computer AND a brand new flat screen television! The next year, my husband and son went back to Best Buy on Black Friday and got great deals on laptops for all of us. I was forever sold on Black Friday at Best Buy at that moment!

Best Buy has announced their Black Friday deals, and I am so excited about the Chromecast Streaming Media Player! Now that a lot of commerce takes place online these days, you can order online as early as midnight on Thanksgiving day. Cyber Monday is my favorite for shopping as well. I love grabbing the deals online, it's like a sport almost at this point.  I definitely choose online Black Friday over sitting out in the cold, waiting for the doors to open Black Friday! I absolutely love that it's easier than ever to get all of the deals thanks to ecommerce.

I have my eye on a few other store's Black Friday sales announcements as well. I am definitely looking to splurge on my granddaughter. I have been learning about all of the new fun stuff there is for babies(which is crazy)! For electronics though, Best Buy is always my go to! What's yours?

Do you have a Black Friday story? Tell me in the comments below!