If you live in an area with a lot of outside noise, or if you make noise at home yourself, problems associated with that can often be helped with the purchase of sound blankets.
What are sound blankets? -- These are narrow quilted sheets that are filled with fiberglass. When placed against a wall or window, they block out incoming noise as well as prevent noise from inside your home leaking out.
They can be bought in various sizes and different thicknesses, thus giving you sound blankets for just about any type of situation.
Why you should use them -- If you are a singer or in a band and practice from home, having several sound blankets hung up around the room can prevent your neighbors from being disturbed with the noise.
This is particularly important if you play an instrument like the drums or an electric guitar, as the sound from that can be quite loud.
If you will be doing renovations at home that require knocking down walls, drilling, sawing or using any other piece of loud equipment, having several sound blankets hanging around the area where you are working is key.
This will often prevent complaints from neighbors, and even allow you to work later into the night than you would otherwise be able to do.
Sleeping with sound blankets -- Remember too, Sound Blankets block sound coming in as well as going out.
If you have trouble sleeping due to living in a noisy neighborhood, hanging just one sound blanket against the bedroom window can block much of the noise coming in and allow you to get a good night's sleep.