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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes-Advocate, 1985-03-20, Page 41When shopping for a mattress, close attention to details pays off as wise, long-term investment Making the right investment in a mat- sion. Before you fall head over heels for a gether to support your body weight. The tress will pay restful dividends in years of mattress, make sure you are investing in number of coils is only one indication of comfortable and healthful sleep. the right size and type. mattress quality. A mattress wears out from constant use. Size yourself up and you will know what Thicker coils with more turns provide If you have been sleeping on the same mat- is needed. If you sleep alone, stretch and greater firmness and support. Coils with tress for more than 10 years, better begin move around a lot, or need extra elbow less than six turns are usually found in thinking about making another invest- room, determine the amount of space for lower quality mattresses. merit. these and other activities. The insulation covering the springs pre - Your thinking will he influenced by the Standard widths range from 38 inches vents them from poking through the net - results of a simple examination. Remove (twin) to 76 inches (king) wide, with work of wire, fiber padding and netting. all bed clothes and look for any irregulari- lengths from 75 to 80 inches. Check cushioning ties in the surface. A couple buying a mattress should The thicker the cushioning the better the -knovtia double size measuring 53 inches mattress- Polyurethane, cotton felt or bat - wide offers about as muc room or eac person as a baby's crib. ioning tied to the rows of springs to keep Queen (60 inches wide) or king (up to them from moving horizontally. 80 inches wide) are the logical choice for a A mattress needs a box spring for sup - couple. The California king is 84 inches port to keep it from prematurely wearing wide. out. Foundations of box springs vary from In any case. sleep authorities recom- actual coils shaped like a figure -8, to metal mend mattresses that are six inches longer and wood bars and planks. than the height of the person sleeping on it. If the foundation is wood and foam, the Two types of mattresses are innerspring foam should be two inches thick or more and foam, available in most stores. for the proper support and wear. Innerspringits the most common mat- In foam mattresses high density poly - tress type. It is filled with a series of steel urethane is the dominant material- To en - coils fitted between layers of varying sure sustained support and longevity, the thickness of insulation, padding material foam contains plastic pellets for proper re - and a fabric cover known as ticking. saliency. Quality in innerspring mattresses is Better foam mattresses have a higher la - based on the thickness of the coil and the tex content, which is more expensive to number of rings or turns, plus how they produce, but its density is greater than are linked together and how they work to- conventional foam bedding. Page 6 T -A Home Improvement, March 20, 1985 Microwave oven advances... Streamlined cooking, enhanced food quality It wasn't too long ago that microwave overs were fairly simple and straightfor- ward in both operation and performance. Designed with mechanical (versus elec- tronic) controls, a consumer merely se- lected one of just a kw power levels, turned a rotary tinier, then pushed "start." Many of these original models are still in existence today and continue to serve families well, doing what they do best — defrosting and reheating foods and speed- wg up the cooking process. But as these units wear out, an increasing number of shoppers are replacing them with sleek - looking models that offer many new and fully automated features. if you've shopped lately for a new microwave oven, you know just how different they, are. According to the microwave specialists at KitchenAid, microwave ovens have ad- vanced considerably since the mid '70s with the advent of touch -control panels and the expanded use of electronic com- ponents. On -the -spot feedback is one of the most obvious changes in ovens. Lights, sounds and other devices are used to provide such information as the time of day, what stage a cycle is in, how much time remains in the cycle and the internal temperature of food. Smooth touch controls and numeric dis- plays have replaced the Targe protruding knobs and switches of early models, and make cleaning a lot easier. The number of power controls/settings has increased, allowing users to select the settings best suited to the foods being pre- Pared - One of the biggest boons to microwave cooking is the ability to cook foods to pre- selected internal temperatures using a tem- perature probe rather than cooking by time. From instant coffee and sauces to r" sseroles and meats, a probe provides re- markable accuracy and does away with over -cooked and dried -out foods. With electronic controls come memory and logic, and the ability to combine and recall different cooking functions. In ov- ens featuring 3 -stage memory, you can program a combination of cooking stages such as defrost, cook, and hold warm, without interruption. You save time and avoid the inconvenience of having to wait to start the next cooking cycle. • Delay start is a definite plus for those times when you want to come home to a piping hot dinner after a long day at the of- fice or a busy afternoon spent running er- rands. It's important, of course, to use care when selecting foods. They should be kept at room temperature only as long as it is considered safe. Times will vary accord - THERE'S NO NEED 'IO GO Wn HOUC the advantages of a microwave owe be- cause of limited cormter space. The fully -featured Kiktier.Aid Sa ieaba electric i- crowave/ogle oven installs as one unit for a coordinated and sleekly -styled cooing center. ing to the type of food and whether it is frozen or defrosted. You'll find that some of the more heav- ily featured ovens have built-in recipe files which can be recalled for automatic cook- ing of upwards of 40 kinds of foods. Oth- ers, including the new KitchenAid built-in microwave/single oven allow you to add 55 of your family's favorite foods to the oven's memory. New recipes can be added and others deleted with just a few simple steps. The size of an oven, expressed in cubic feet, has a direct bearing on the availability of these features. Compact ovens are typi- cally under I cubic foot and, with the ex- ception of the newer, over -the -range models, are not as fully featured. Yet they are ideal for singles or couples whose cooking habits are fairly simple or when kitchen' space is so limited that even a built-in unit is not possible. For a busier household with several children and staggered schedules, a larger, fully -featured model might be the best choice. They are available in both counter- top models and eye -level microwave com- binations. The latter configuration instals as one unit, and frees up additional counter space in a kitchen where a second conventional oven may no longer be needed. Adv ice to consumers Get the furniture facts! Buying furniture can be fun and person- ally rewarding. All you meed to do is be- come a furniture detective looking for as many facts as possible before nuking your purchase. You are making an investment in your lifestyle when you by furniture. Impulse or desperation can lead to an expensive mistake. As a furniture detective you want the facts to help you make an intelligent buy- ing decision. One of the best ways of com- piling these facts is evaluating your lifestyle and needs. Then visit reputable home furnishings stores and ask ques- tions. Your questions will be formed from simple facts in home research. Ask your- self how you live and how do those around you live. Some oldie important consider- ations are children, pets, degree of enter- taining, and how you view the collective lifestyle of the household. With children, age can determine the type of furniture you'll seek. What's the sense of becoming frustrated over formal furniture with a toddler running all over the place? Buy something more practical. Pets, regardless of how disciplined, can pose problems for furniture. If you entertain guests, your furniture needs are different from households pre- ferring less frequent social activities. How you entertain also has bearing on furni- ture. Your style, whether it's formal din- ing, buffet, intimate cocktail parties or big blowouts, should be considered. Do you live formally or casually? How do you use what you have now? Thinking about all these factors is nec- essary. Getting ready to buy furniture is really fun when you are prepared. For instance, if you wast a new sofa, the first thing you mind do is size up the area where it will be located. Take the proper nicawrements and keep a record of diem. Better yet, measure the dimensions of all the rooms in your home and roughly sketch your existing floor pian, or the ar- rangement of furniture, in a notebook. Bring them when you shop. Having these facts handy can be valu- able if you spot a special buy and are re- quited to make a quick decision. At least you are prepared. providing you haw die answers to the other considerations men- tioned earlier. How much money can you afford? If you need basic necessities, then buy them first. Make a pian of purchase for every room. listing the netvssities. Trusting you memory in a furniture store is dangerous. The ink% you though you recalled could actually dash with the fabric of the new sofa you are planning for your living room. So, bring a sample of the carpet, paint, wallpaper and otter fabric, to make sure you reduce the margin for error. Keep your notebook handy when you go into a furniture slow. When you work with a salesperson, ask him or her all the ques- tions you can and record his or her an- swers. Be open with the salesperson, noting you are fact-finding and need as- sistance. Compare prices, styles and selection. Most people can create their own com- fortable interiors without hiring a de- signer. Many stores will provide professional design assistance, usually without charge or at a nominal cost. Accessories for "quick change" artistry Picture a room that's totally beige ... or mood of a room more easily and inex- carpet, wall and sofas. Then imagine a tall pensively than any other category of fur - black urn standing in the corner and strik- nishing, and you can feel up-to-date ing ebony accents scattered about. without having made a major investment. Quick change! Start with your basics. Then, build and That same room is now abloom with ac- change with accessory accents. Actually cessories in romantic pastels. A peach that is the secret of the best dressed tone Vase sits on one table. Dramatically women, as well as professional designers. grouped on another is a bevy of bowls . The formula for accessory decorating is boasting silk pastel bouquets. easy. With just a little bit of imagination. you I. Determine your color choice or can visualize the very different sense of choices. each room, created by the presence of ac- 2. Decide whether you want striking cessories and the effect of their colorways. contrasts or a monochromatic feeling. The first and lasting impression of a 3. Then, let your personal taste guide room is most often its color. One tends to your choice. In addition to bringing a fresh recall an oasis of -calm after leaving a look into your rooms, let your accessories roomscape of neutral tones. A cheerful reflect your interests or personality. yellow room will be remembered as Be a "quick change artist" in your bathed in sunlight. home by taking advantage of the wonder - A few striking accessories or dramatic ful selection of decorative accessories groupings will transform the color scheme available to you in furniture stores. Lumps, bumps, peaks and valleys mean your mattress is wearing out and ready to give you more than headaches. How about edges? Are they firm or do they sag? Are the springs eternally detect- able to the feel'.' How confined are you in your sleeping space? Start preparing for a new bedding set if you have answered yes to most of these questions. Begin with a visit to a retailer whose selection is wide in variety and price. Price and quality are usually connected. The lower the price. the fewer years of comfort. But, remember, mattresses are one of the most heavily advertised and promoted items. Buy from experience. Lie down on sev- eral mattresses before making the deci- • Heats in Winter • Cools in Summer • Carrier Round Ones L.W. Kleinstiver Ltd. • Plumbing • Heating • Electric Dashwood 237-3661