When you’re redesigning your garden one of the most attractive things you can do is to add a water feature. Whether this comprises of a garden pond, a flowing waterfall or a full on water garden, the finished product is always something that looks great and adds a degree of tranquillity to your home.

Of course, if you have pets or small children you may be hesitant to consider a water garden, or even a small garden pond, as someone can drown in the smallest amount of water. While water features are attractive, safety should always be your primary concern, so when you’re installing your water feature make sure you take safety into consideration.

You can get a variety of mesh products to cover your pond, meaning that if a small child or a pet were to fall in, they would be protected from the water. You could also put up a fence around the pond which prevents access to the water garden area of your garden, although a fence will always provide the temptation to climb for a child (or even a dog if there’s a pigeon on the other side).

As ever, the most important safety precaution you can make with a garden pond is to ensure your children are supervised and to teach them the dangers of water. This is the best method all round.

If you’re looking to redecorate a room in your house and put up some new wallpaper, you’re left with two immediate options. Firstly, you can hire a decorator and have the job done properly. It won’t be that expensive in the current climate as many professional decorators are keen to do work on the side and for reduced rates.

The second option is the cheaper option of doing it yourself. If you’ve never hung wallpaper before, there are a few important considerations. Firstly, no matter how new your house is, the chances of your walls being perfectly straight are very slim. Therefore, don’t start to hang your wallpaper in the corner of the room, as it will almost certainly be crooked because of where the two walls meet. Instead, hang your first sheet in the middle of the wall, using a plumb line to ensure that you hang the paper straight.

Also, don’t start the paper at the top of the wall, ensure you have a few centimetres surplus at the top and the bottom, which you can then cut off with a sharp knife. This will make sure that your paper sits plumb at the top of the wall, and on the skirting board. You need to do it this way because again, the ceiling is unlikely to be perfectly inline with the floor.