These three combined every-day household 
ingredients are great for getting rid of weeds! Even if you love working in the yard, chances are, pulling weeds just gets in the way of all the fun. You’ve probably already got all of these ingredients handy in the kitchen, too.

 

All it takes is:

  • 1 gallon of white vinegar
  • 1 cup of table salt
  • 1 tbsp of liquid dish soap

 

NOTE: This solution is just as effective on grass as it is on weeds, so it’s best used in sidewalk cracks, landscape borders, and other areas where grass, flowers, and other plants won’t be affected.

 

TIP:  Spraying weeds when they are exposed to direct sunlight will kill them much faster!

 

Happy gardening!

---

Originally posted at: Lafayette Real Estate News

Cafe Vermilionville is a Lafayette gem.  The local restaurant offers a fine dining experience, serving aesthetically pleasing and delicious cuisine of Cajun and Creole influences in a beautifully decorated atmosphere.

Aside from being a popular eatery, the two-story landmark at 1304 Pinhook Road is quite a historical structure. When it was built, and by whom, no one can say; that information has been lost somewhere in the past.  But it’s what we do know about this building that makes it such an integral part of Lafayette’s history.

We do know that since it was built, it has served many purposes and has been owned by many big names in Lafayette.  It was the city’s first inn.  The earliest known records indicate that the inn was bought by Baptiste Broussard in 1812.  His son, Nicholas, sold the inn in 1853 for $90 to a Swiss merchant, whose son became prominent in Lafayette business and politics; in his lifetime, August Monnier served as a postmaster, clerk of court, city council member, and mayor of Lafayette.

During the Civil War, the inn served as a headquarters for federal soldiers.  Spent bullets and an old cannon ball have been found on the grounds, evidence of war-related incidents occurring in the area.

The present-day Oil Center and shopping village were developed under the instruction of Maurice Heymann, who bought the building and surrounding land from a retired doctor by the name of M. E. Girard, who had been living in the old inn as he ran a plantation.  Heymann planned to demolish the building but was persuaded to instead sell it.

Flash forward to today, and the old inn/headquarters/home is now a popular Lafayette restaurant under the name Cafe Vermilionville. Since its ambiguous conception, the building has undergone several renovations.  Despite adding onto the original structure, it is still obvious that it was built heavily with Anglo-American and French influences.  The building still contains original cypress doors, floors, and trimmings.

To accommodate a large, hungry crowd, a commercial kitchen, two bars, and a glass patio room have been added as well.  The beauty of the estate makes it a popular venue for special occasions such as receptions, luncheons, and parties.

As Lafayette has grown, Cafe Vermilionville has grown with it There’s quite a bit of history within the walls of that ancient structure, some of which is still unknown to us.  If you’d like your next dinner served with a slice of Lafayette history, Cafe Vermilionville is second to none.

---

Originaly posted at: Lafayette Real Estate News

It’s time to add a NEW festival to Louisiana’s ever-growing list:  The Experience Louisiana Festival!

The new festival has been in the works for over a year.  It was inspired by two former events–the Louisiana Folklife Festival and the Tri-Parish Fair–both of which evoked a sense of community in those who attended the events.

That sense of community is precisely what the Experience Louisiana will be all about.  In fact, the festival planning committee envisions the event as a “cultural networking” opportunity.  The Experience Louisiana Festival will be a gathering of people and cultures from all across Louisiana, a celebration of our state’s vast diversity as well as our similarities.

This event is all about experiencing Louisiana like you never have before.  Patrons can look forward to a dynamic and interactive experience, featuring the main elements of Louisiana culture: food, music, art, history, and lifestyle.  

One of the most interesting features of the Experience Louisiana is “Walk-Through Louisiana”, an area dedicated to a variety of entities and organizations to showcase their events, histories, opportunities, and attractions.  Festival goers will feel as though they were actually walking through Louisiana, meeting new people from across the state and learning a variety of new things about their home state.  

Aside from the educational aspect, there is plenty of fun to be had at the Experience Louisiana Festival.  Dance the night away to Louisiana’s most celebrated musicians.  View and purchase original artwork by native artists of all mediums.  Eat your weight in authentic, unparalleled southern soul food.  Take part in the classic car show.  Attend the LSUE Bengal Tigers exhibition baseball game.  All this and so much more is available to you at the Experience Louisiana Festival!

The very first annual Experience Louisiana Festival will be held next weekend, Saturday, October 17 and Sunday, October 18 at the LSU Eunice campus.  

Click here for a printable schedule of events!

---

Originally posted at: Lafayette Real Estate News

Rental homes can be the IDEAL investment in today’s market because they offer a much higher rate of return than alternatives without the volatility of ups and downs in the stock market.

 

IDEAL serves as an acronym to identify the advantages of rental properties:

 

• Income from the monthly rent contributes to paying the expenses and a return on the investment
• Depreciation is a non-cash deduction that contributes a tax shelter
• Equity grows monthly as the mortgage amortizes due to some of each payment being applied to the principal
• Appreciation is achieved as the value of the property goes up
• Leverage can increase the return on investment by using borrowed funds to control a larger asset

 

The combination of these characteristics working together makes rental real estate a very good investment for today’s economy and years to come. Increased rents, high rental demand, good values and low non-owner-occupied mortgage rates contribute to positive cash flows and very favorable rates of return.

 

Contact Elite Team for more information about rental opportunities in our local market.

---

Originally posted at: Lafayette Real Estate News

It seems that with every new iOS update, there comes the issue of quicker battery drainage.  It’s no exception for iOS 9, which has already received numerous reports about battery problems.  The reason is mainly due to certain features that are automatically turned on when you upgrade your iPhone.  Sometimes, saving your battery life can be as simple as turning off these features.  There are a couple more little tweaks that can make a significant impact on how long your phone battery will last.

Firstly, take a look at which of your apps use up the most battery life.  This can be checked by going to Settings > Battery, where you can see your entire list of apps and their respective battery usage.  You may have a few apps that take up a large chunk of your battery, in which case you may want to consider deleting them, or at least cutting back on how often you use them.

Turning off unnecessary features that are turned on after an update is one of the best ways to preserve your battery. For example, after each update, both Bluetooth ad AirDrop are automatically activated.  If you don’t actually use these features often enough to justify leaving them on, you’re wasting a lot of battery life.  Closing out apps after using them is also a great battery saver.  Trust me, you should get into the habit of closing out apps immediately after using them, lest you want both your battery life and phone speed to be compromised due to having 10+ apps open on your phone.

A huge culprit of draining battery life is Background App Refresh, which is responsible for refreshing your apps to search for new content even if the app is closed out.  Personally, I don’t see why anyone would want this feature for any apps other than perhaps GPS and mapping apps.  To turn off Background App Refresh for your apps, go to Settings > General > Background App Refresh.

One of my favorite features of iOS 9 is Low Power Mode, which conserves your battery by only using necessary functions while temporarily shutting off functions such as Background App Refresh, automatic downloads, and certain visual effects.  When your phone reaches 20% battery life and 10% battery life, a prompt appears on screen giving you the option to turn on Low Power Mode without leaving your current app.  Of course, the feature can be turned on at any time in Settings > Battery.  Just remember, this feature comes at the cost of slightly lower performance.

In addition, a few general changes in phone settings can have a positive effect on your battery life, regardless of what OS you’re running.  Dimming your screen is a method I’ve found to be the most helpful when trying to save my phone battery.  You’d be surprised by how much power the brightest screen setting will drain.  Do you really need your screen to be that bright?  I always have Auto-Brightness enabled on my phone; this feature automatically adjusts phone brightness based on how bright or dim your surroundings are.  Auto-Brightness can be turned on in Settings > Display & Brightness.

Another trick I always use is turning off my WiFi when I’m on the road or in a place where WiFi isn’t available. When the WiFi feature is turned on, your phone will constantly be searching for a network to connect to; you don’t need this feature when you know you won’t be connecting to a network.  This can save a lot of power that can be used elsewhere.

Of course, the best way to conserve your battery is to put your phone on Airplane Mode, or by turning it off altogether.  This is obviously the least ideal remedy, so I only resort to it when I desperately need to conserve my battery.  Driving is the best time to do this (because you shouldn’t be calling or texting while driving anyway!).

Combining all of these life-saving methods ensures a longer lasting battery.  But even if you’re using all of these methods, it’s still best to always have a charger on hand.  Keep one at your bedside, in your car, and at work, so it’ll always be there if you find your battery is running low.  Keep in mind, however, that constantly having your phone on a charger is bad for your battery in the long run.  In fact, you should always keep a balance between charged and not charged.  Letting your battery drain at a gradual pace and letting it fully recharge is beneficial for the longevity of your battery.  This is true for ALL electronic devices!

Aside from the battery life problems (which you now know how to fix), how are you enjoying iOS 9?  Let us know in the comments!

---

Originally posted at: Lafayette Real Estate News