Women WorkHealth & Nutrition

Chemical Free Beauty Tips

Chemical Free Beauty Tips

Almost anyone can look more beautiful with the addition of make-up. The only trouble is that by applying cosmetics, you are putting many different types of chemicals into your body and some of them are carcinogenic – linked to causing cancer.  It is far safer and healthier to choose ways to improve your looks that don’t include the use of such substances, but rather, use natural products Here are some tips to do just that and some of them are laughably easy.

  • Soak your nails in olive oil for 5 minutes to add shine. Nail polish and remover are two products that are heavily laden with chemicals that are bad for you.
  • For an easy face mask that is free of chemicals and also antibacterial, warm some raw honey between your fingers and spread it over your face. Leave for 10 minutes before rinsing off with warm water. Tip: Raw honey is not the same as honey you eat.

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Women WorkProperty

6 Benefits of Professional Commercial Property Maintenance

When you have a commercial property it is essential to have it kept in spick and span order to ensure it gets rented out quickly and so pays for itself. No business owner wants to conduct his business premises that are unkempt or need a good coat of paint to brighten them up. The best way to ensure property maintenance is done on a regular basis is to hire a handyman.

Here are several benefits of doing so.

  • You don’t have to try and do it all yourself when you are busy doing what you were trained for. Using your skills to increase your business is a no-brainer. If you have to spend time in other areas it will take away from the growth of your business. You wouldn’t hire an accountant to do receptionist duties, so you shouldn’t do maintenance jobs when trying to run a business. A big benefit of hiring maintenance help is that you can spend more time on growing your business.

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Women WorkHealth & Nutrition

Why Eating Disorders Are a Mental Health Issue

Eating Disorders

There are several types of eating disorders; anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa and binge eating disorder. You might think that they are a physical problem, since they cause a sufferer to look so thin, but in reality they are a mental health issue. This is because it is the sufferer’s mind or mental state that causes the perception that their body image is ugly and they are too fat, when they are not.

They then obey the mental urge to get rid of the food they just ate, or to exercise to the point of exhaustion so the calories burn off. Or in the case of binge eating without vomiting, they go on a session of binge eating and gain even more weight. Then the vicious cycle of guilt and eating goes on and on.

They cannot stop it or control it because of the changes to their brain that occur due to the mental aspect of the disease. They become totally preoccupied with thinking about their weight and shape of their body. One of the problems with eating disorders is that they don’t have a single cause that can be identified and removed. There are many varying causes, but just because a person experiences them doesn’t mean to say they will get the disease. So it also depends on a person’s personality as to whether they get the disorder.

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Women WorkBusiness

How to Market Your Business

Market Your Business

There are many ways in which to market your business. Much depends on what kind of business it is. For instance, if you have an online business you run from home, you will need a website to showcase all your goods, or to describe your services if that’s what you offer.

A bricks and mortar business may also have a website in order to help with branding, to showcase goods or services and to get the word out about its existence. However, the fact that it can be seen from the street as people walk past is also a good advertisement. It is essential that your store or business facade is attractive and eye-catching and tells people exactly what you offer.

You can also have brochures to drop in letterboxes and ads in the local paper or one that goes further afield, such as a national paper or magazine. For instance, if you offered accommodation such as B&B, you could advertise in a magazine that was available nationally.

Word of mouth is one of the best ways to advertise, so giving quality service and interacting with customers in a friendly and helpful way is a wonderful way to advertise that will cost you nothing.

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Women WorkFamily

Different Types of Abuse in Relationships

Emotional abuse

When we think of abuse, many people only think of physical violence. Every time we watch the news there seems to be physical abuse being perpetrated against women, often by someone they thought they could trust. While it is horrifying to hear the story and see the kinds of injuries and even death that has been suffered, there are other types of abuse that never make the headlines.

Verbal abuse

We have all had a good row with our partners or other loved ones that has served to clear the air about whatever was bothering us. That’s not to say there isn’t a better way to deal with it, but this is not what verbal abuse is. Verbal abuse is the constant putting down of someone by telling them how stupid or ugly they are. This can be done without even raising the voice but it is no less devastating for that.

Verbal abuse includes calling someone names because of who they are, or the beliefs they hold.

While it may not harm the body, it certainly causes damage to a person’s self esteem, to the point where she may not even be able to function normally. Losing your self confidence means that you will never try to do any of the things that make life normal and even happy. Losing your self esteem is even worse, because you think everything is all your fault.

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Women WorkBusiness

How to Get Finance for Your Business Start-Up

Business Start-Up

Once you decide to make the break and start up your own business, you are likely to need finance.  This can be for buying stock or equipment, for insurance and for fitting out your premises. Or if you set up at home, for building outside access to the designated room. This will save your customers having to access your business through your home, something that is not very professional.

So where can you get this finance? Much depends on how much you need. Here are several options.

  • Get a loan from the bank. Make sure you negotiate terms you can afford.
  • Apply for an angel investor. These are people who risk their own money for a good cause. They may also want to have some say in how you run the business.
  • Get a loan from family. This should be set up legally and you should pay interest on the loan, even if it is very low interest.
  • If you don’t need much, you may be happy to put it on your credit card. Not a good idea due to the high interest rates.

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Women WorkLegal

How Estate Planning can Help Your Family

Estate Planning

Estate planning is more than just making a Will; it is making decisions about the distribution of your assets, including superannuation, after you have died, so that your family will be cared for and so that the amount of tax and other costs is minimised. While no one wants to think about dying, it is an unavoidable part of life and if you prepare for it ahead of time your family will have much less stress to contend with.

In addition, your wishes about the distribution of your assets will be carried out, with your beneficiaries getting what you determine they should have. If you die intestate – without a will – this is unlikely to happen. In fact, with the complexities of families these days there could be a great deal of argument between all the family members, each wanting to get a share, or perhaps more than their fair share.

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Women WorkHealth & Nutrition

How Keeping Fit Makes You Healthier

Keeping Fit

Keeping fit is an important part of your overall health and the only way to do this is to have a reasonable amount of exercise.  When you move around it not only tones your muscles and ligaments to prevent them from becoming weak and unable to support your body properly, it also removes toxins and waste through perspiration. Plus, it increases the amount of ‘feel good’ endorphin’s in your brain so it is good for your mental/emotional health as well.

While it is difficult to fit in an exercise regime when you lead a busy life, in many cases very little exercise is needed, depending on the lifestyle you lead. If you play a sport, go hiking or dancing or even take your toddlers to the park on a regular basis, that all counts as exercise. If you have a job such as house or window cleaning that has you moving around, that too, is exercise.

According to many experts, walking is the best exercise because it makes every part of your body move and it does not jar your joints and wear them out. Brisk walking elevates your heart rate and so is  a gentle cardio workout. It is easy to do and you don’t need to pay a fortune for a gym membership or a professional trainer.

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Women WorkFamily

Importance of Respect in a Relationship

Respect in a Relationship

Very often women consider love to be the most important part of relationships. While love is certainly important, respect is even more so. In fact, without respect from your partner there can be no real love. Respect is what will cause him to give you the space to make important decisions and support you in them, instead of putting you down or ignoring your wishes in areas that are important to you, but may not be as important to him.

Some people consider love to be respect but the two are not the same. You can have respect for someone you don’t even like all that much if they do something that you can see is difficult for them. That said, you can love someone but not respect them. You may love your father who is a drunkard, but you cannot respect him because of his behaviour.

Some people – especially men – consider love to be what happens in the bedroom. That is only a small part of real love. Real love will care for a person even if they cannot have sex with them. Real love will remain steadfast through difficult times – and old age. But if there is no respect, the road will be a rocky one. The relationship may not even survive.

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Women WorkProperty

Real Estate Advice for the Buyer

Real Estate Advice

Buying a home is never more fraught with the possibility of emotional entanglement than when the buyer is a woman. Studies have shown that 70% more women than men tend to get caught up and ‘fall in love’ with a home whether it is within their budget or not. And sometime even when it is not suitable for that they want. Sometimes, a piece of real estate just speaks to you – rather like those big eyes of an adorable pound puppy.

The trouble is, that can cause trouble. A home costs a great deal more than a puppy. Having to sell it again will cost you in terms of time and finances – and probably a great deal of stress. And when you buy through impulse, you risk getting a home that in a few months you realise is driving you mad in one way or another. Maybe you hate traipsing up and down the stairs when you come home tired from work. Or perhaps that separate garage is just downright inconvenient, especially on a rainy night.

So if you are looking for a home, it is a good idea to make a list of all the things you absolutely need in your home – and another one that details only what you would like, but can do without. For instance, a Jacuzzi is not a necessity like having enough bedrooms to house the family is.

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Women WorkHealth & Nutrition

Are You Eating Well?

Eating Well

Most people would consider the benefit of eating well easy to point out; that of better health. Yet it is not that simple. You can eat healthy food but still be obese and that is certainly not healthy. So eating well is not only about what you eat but how much. Even then it can be about what suits your digestive system and even your lifestyle.

For instance, people who lead a very busy life may eat too quickly in an attempt to get more done. This can prevent good digestion so that all those healthy vitamins consumed are not being properly used. So to eat well, you must –

  • Choose a diet that is both nutritious and suitable for you. This should include plenty of fresh vegetables and fruit, some meat and a small amount of other things that we love but are not really ‘good’ for us. This may surprise you, but the social/emotional benefits are important too. If you deny yourself something you really love you won’t be a happy person. Having that coffee and snack with friends can more than make up for the sugar/caffeine intake if it provides you with a healthy social life. That said, a fruit snack that you truly enjoy would be even better. Think moderation in all things.

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Women WorkHealth & Nutrition

Tips to Get Strong Healthy Hair

Strong Healthy Hair

Every women – and these days, many men – pursue healthy hair in a way that was once thought to be only for film stars. Healthy hair looks good and that is why we like it, but many people don’t realise that hair remains healthy not so much because of what we put on it but what we feed it from the inside.

If you deny your body the right nutrients, such as through poor eating habits or months of dieting, your hair will suffer because your body will use all the nutrients available to nourish your vital organs rather than your hair. The trouble is that fixing the problem of unhealthy hair often takes a lot longer than it does for healthy hair to become unhealthy. But some TLC can always improve the look and feel of your hair until it becomes healthy from the inside out.

Other conditions that affect the health of your hair are: –

  • Chronic illness
  • Severe emotional shock – this can actually make your hair fall out months after the event.
  • Undiagnosed food intolerances or allergies
  • Hormone imbalance
  • Decrease in gut function where the body cannot absorb the nutrition it gets
  • Stress
  • Poor hair care such as swimming a lot and not replacing lost oils and moisture

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Women WorkHealth & Nutrition

Why Health Checks are Essential for Every Woman

Health Checks are Essential for Every Woman

Even though many men are so laid back when it comes to seeing the doctor, so that they often die of some disease they didn’t know was raging through their body, it is actually women who can be at risk of getting more health problems. This is because since they are the ones to bear children, women have more organs that can become diseased.

No man can get cancer of the uterus or have an ectopic pregnancy, after all. But whether this is true or not, all women should have regular health checks for one other important reason. They do tend to keep ignoring signs and symptoms because they are so busy with their families and think it is just tiredness.

Women work longer hours

How many women come home from work, throw the shopping on the table and start to prepare tea, do the laundry and clean the house, all while overseeing the children’s homework and refereeing their quarrels? And how many men come home from work, sit on the lounge and doze off while watching television and waiting for dinner? Or maybe they play computer games instead. So women actually work much longer hours than most men, even if their work is not always as physically demanding.

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Women WorkEducation & Employment

What To Do About Discrimination in the Workplace

Discrimination in the Workplace

Have you been discriminated against in your work place? First, let’s see what discrimination looks like.

  • Interference in doing your job
  • Making changes to your job in a way that is disadvantageous to you
  • Treatment that is different from everyone else
  • Refusal to employ you
  • Unfair dismissal
  • Being given different pay or conditions to others who are doing the same job.

So you can see that discrimination is not the same as harassment. It is basically when you are treated unfairly because of what you stand for or who you are. It could simply be because you are a female that you are subjected to different treatment, refused work that you are well qualified for, or paid less than your male counterparts.

The reality is that the two often go together because when you are treated differently the form it can take may be verbal or emotional abuse and sometimes even sexual harassment.

Any kind of discrimination in the workplace is illegal and there are laws to protect everyone from it, not just women. So whether it is your gender, race, physical attributes, religious or political belief or activity, sexual orientation, age, parental status or several other reasons that has caused it, there is no need to suffer in silence.

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Women WorkFamily

When is Family Counselling Necessary?

Family Counselling

These days there are many issues that can affect the family detrimentally, issues that our grandparents most likely never thought of, let alone had to cope with. Situations can get out of control and cause a wide and permanent rift in the family if not dealt with in a way that teaches each family member not only how to cope, but where other members may be coming from.

What are some of these issues?

  • Blended families trying to get used to each other’s personalities, or where one or more children resent the new ‘parent’. Counselling can help both children and parents to make the transition into new living arrangements easier to adjust to.
  • Drug addiction or other behaviours that are dangerous to family members. Counselling can help parents learn how to identify the problem and deal with it in the most appropriate way.
  • Divorce or separation can be totally stressful to the children, who grieve at the loss of a parent and the lifestyle they had. The parent who has custody may want to take the children for counselling if they show behavioural problems or seem depressed.
  • In cases of certain mental health problems, parent and children need to learn ways to control behaviour. This can stem from the child being mentally disabled or having a disease that affects them mentally, such as autism.
  • Poor parenting skills that makes children angry or feel neglected. Counselling can help parents improve their skills and help children control their anger or show it in less destructive ways.

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Women WorkHealth & Nutrition

Why Cooking Workshops are Brilliant

Cooking Workshops

Many years ago almost every girl took basic cooking lessons in high school, then the curriculum changed and other subjects were available. Cooking was no longer the basic stuff of everyday nutrition with meat-and-potatoes meals. If you took the course you would learn to cook exotic meals from overseas. Many girls chose other courses, which meant that more than one generation of women didn’t really learn how to cook.

Meanwhile, lifestyles and tastes changed and nowadays a ‘meal’ is often something bought in from a fast food place and eaten in front of the television. In fact, some homes don’t even have a dining table. All they have is a row of barstools in the kitchen from which to eat a hasty breakfast and other meals are eaten at work or a restaurant. So anyone who wants to learn to cook is hard put to find out how.

Of course, there are numerous cooking shows on TV, but they don’t really show all the hard work and time that goes into making the marvellous dish that looks so enticing. They don’t mention it may not look so perfect when attempted by a beginner. Besides, it is difficult to remember every step when you start to follow what was shown – and the show is now over, so you have to guess. Guessing is not so good for the taste of the dish.

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Women WorkEducation & Employment

Mature Age Education Options for Women

Mature Age Education Options for Women

Most women agree that education opens more doors to a career that is satisfying and well-paid than anything else. To train for any career you need to go through high school and then do further training. But these days not everyone has to complete their year 12 certificate. If they have aptitude for certain other skills such as mechanics, they can go to TAFE and do an apprenticeship while they are still as school. This gives them a good In while they are still young enough to get by on an apprentice’s wages – for instance, they usually still live at home and they are not married.

However, many young people so hate school that they don’t do as well as they could and so their score is not high enough for university entrance. But once they get past all the hassle of being a teenager, they often settle down in a job they don’t like and start to wish they had done more while they were at school.

Some teenagers take a long time to come to this stage of their life. In fact, there are many middle age women that have raised their families and now desire to get back into the workplace, but don’t have the experience or the qualifications. What can these people do to get a better life?

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Women WorkHealth & Nutrition

What Makes a Recipe Easy?

What Makes a Recipe Easy?

A recipe that is complicated is something that most people try to avoid, especially if they don’t like cooking, or are time poor.  And people who have never learned to cook but just picked it up over time often find that they don’t like all the fuss and bother of finding those extra ingredients in the supermarket, not to mention paying for them at the checkout. Whatever reason you may have for looking up easy recipes, first you have to decide what exactly it is that makes a recipe easy?

Method counts

It is not always the number of ingredients, but also the method that can make a recipe difficult to make. If you have to cook or one or two out of several ingredients separately, this is going to add more time and effort to make the thing, whatever it is. Or if you have to stir some part of it on the stove very slowly so that it does something – or doesn’t do it – such as turning brown, then this too, adds to the aggravation factor.

Common ingredients = no shopping needed

So if you can find a recipe with fewer ingredients all of which you are sure to have in the pantry – so no special shopping trip needed; and if the method of cooking is just basically mix it all up and put it in the pan, then you’ll be a very happy cook. If that is you, here is a recipe for a cake you may be interested in. It has only four ingredients that can all be tossed into a dish, mixed up and then transferred to the cake pan.

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Women WorkLegal

What are Restraining Orders?

restraining-orders

Many women seem to get tangled up in an abusive relationship. Often they are vulnerable in some way and are the victim of a predator or a con man who can put on a good, caring act to start with. These men are simply using their partners, who may be better off financially than they are, or able to offer a place for them to move into.

Whatever the reason for the abuse, a restraining order is a legal document that prevents an abuser from coming close enough to continue the abuse after the relationship ends.  At least, that is the theory. In reality, the abuser can break the conditions and still cause harm to the victim. The only real benefit is that he can then be prosecuted.

Two different types

There are two different types of restraining order; a violence restraining order (vro) and a misconduct restraining order (mro). If you are afraid of violence against your person, then the former order is the one to apply for. If you are only concerned about misconduct that does not include personal violence, apply for a misconduct restraining order. In some states, the former may be called an Apprehended Violence Order, or AVO.

In both cases the penalty for disobeying the orders can be a fine or gaol time.

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Women WorkLegal

The Legal Process of Surrogacy

Legal Process of Surrogacy

There are two types of surrogacy available for women who cannot have children for whatever reason. Laws about surrogacy vary in different states so consult your family lawyer to find out what’s legal in your state. Surrogacy brings hope to those couples who want a child that belongs to at least one of them genetically instead of adopting one, but cannot have one in the natural way. There are two types of surrogacy.

  • The first and traditional way is when your spouse’s sperm is implanted into the surrogate mother using her own egg. This makes the surrogate the baby’s biological mother, even though she is carrying the child for another person.
  • The second is when your own egg is fertilised by your spouse out of the uterus and implanted into the surrogate. This is referred to as a gestational surrogacy and the woman who carries the child has no genetic ties to it, since her egg was not used. She is called the birth mother.

The legalities of both are somewhat confusing in Australia, mainly because the law differs from state to state. And as technology changes the law changes too. However, generally speaking the gestational surrogacy is the easiest path to navigate legally, since both parents are genetically tied to the child while the birth mother is not.

Even so, it is a good idea for those who take either route to ensure they can become parents to seek the help of an experienced surrogacy lawyer to write up a legal contract – an agreement about who the parents are genetically and who will claim the child as their own when it is born.

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Women WorkBusiness

4 Good Reasons for Starting a Business

Starting a Business

While statistically it seems that it is mostly males who start up their own business, this doesn’t have to preclude an woman from doing so. In fact, women may have more reasons to start up their own business and often, more skills. For instance, few men would want to be a beauty consultant, create beautiful nails or apply make-up for a living, but if you have those skills you can easily branch out on your own.

Setting up your own business is not that hard when you put your mind to it. It does not need to be a national retail store. You can start off small and you may even be happy to stay that way, so long as you are making a living.  Here are 4 good reasons for starting your own business.

  • You have marketable skills, but there is no one in town to hire you. This means that you have found a niche in the market that will likely make you successful if you start up your own business. That said, marketable is the keyword. If you know how to make wagon wheels starting up such a business is not likely to bring in many customers. But if you know how to make other women look fabulous or feel wonderful, then go for it.

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Women WorkFamily

8 Signs that Indicate Couple Counselling is Needed

Couple Counselling

Sometimes problems in relationships sneak up slowly and we become so used to them that we don’t even recognise them as a problem that needs dealing with. Other times we may be so busy with parenting or work responsibilities that we just don’t have the energy to deal with a problem. Or it may be that one partner or spouse is a very giving person who always makes excuses for her partner’s behaviour, whatever it may be.

Then one day you realise that the problem has escalated out of control, or that you simply are not interested in living with your spouse anymore. The trouble is that divorce can cause as many problems as it solves, especially when there are children. If you stop for a few moments and assess your relationship, you may realise that it is time for couple counselling. Here are 8 pointers to help you make that decision.

  • When you are not talking, talk is always negative or you are afraid to talk. Communications is often an issue in relationships and if it continues the relationship cannot help but break down. A counsellor can help you find ways of communicating that don’t lead to arguments or one spouse feeling let down.
  • When you begin to think of your partner as an adversary. Marriage should be a partnership, not a continual struggle to get what you want as against what he wants. If your spouse becomes an antagonist you cannot have a good relationship.

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Women WorkBusiness

Starting a Business

starting-a-business

Many women opt to start their own business, rather than paying the extra cost of purchasing one that is a going concern. They may have special skills and training that mean they can set up as a sole trader to save on the costs of employing staff. Many women who have training as accountant, hairdresser, beauty consultant, or in some other field can even set up in their home to save costs until they get an established clientele.

The need for registration

If you decide to go this route, there are several steps to take that make your business a legal entity and one is registration.  This can be done easily enough online and all you have to do is answer some questions on an online form. Once the registration goes through you are given an Australian Business Number (ABN) that you can then use on all your brochures and advertising, not to mention invoices. This ensures a professional look and feel for your business. It is also a legal requirement, needed for your tax returns.

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Women WorkFamily, Legal

How to Help Your Child Cope with the Divorce

Help Your Child Cope with the Divorce

Divorce is often full of bitter recriminations and finding fault. While this is difficult for both parents to go through, it is even harder for children, especially if they hear you fighting over them. They think they have done something wrong and are the cause of the divorce. Then they have to cope with feelings of guilt as well as the anxiety and despair of their parents divorcing.

It is essential to help your child cope with divorce if they are to come out of it relatively unscathed. Sometimes it takes years for a child to get over their parent’s divorce and if they are young at the time they will suffer a great deal throughout their life unless you take charge of the situation to help them. Here are some tips to help your help your child cope.

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Women WorkProperty

Staging a Home To Sell

Staging a Home To Sell

When you want your high ticket home to sell quickly and for a really good price, many real estate agents would tell you that staging is the way to do it. What is staging? It is when you move out and refurnish the house in a way that is really modern and attractive. Or rather, you hire someone else to do it, since not every homeowner has the necessary decorating skills to do it right.

This will cost you quite a bit, but you can add the cost to the sale price of the home and are likely to get it, because the home now looks stunning. Of course, if it needed painting or other repairs, that should be done first. The furniture and other things that have been used to add that unique selling point to the home are not sold with the home. They have done their job of making the sale, so are removed by the decorator when the settlement is done.

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