We’re thankful for our clients, friends and family this holiday season!
We wish you a fun-filled day spent with the people you cherish!
We will be closed to spend time with loved ones.
Happy Thanksgiving!
Month: November 2019
Ready To Go Rustic?
Rustic and farmhouse interior design are still in, and it isn’t going anywhere any time soon! If you’re ready to hop on board this trend, try introducing some of our favorite ideas into a room in your home. Take a look below!
Exposed wood. Whether you implement this in a small way, such as a coffee table, headboard, or chair, or go big with your remodel and add wooden beams or create a plank accent wall, exposed wood is essential to a rustic-style room. Make sure to combine various wood grains, colors, and finishes to add more depth and texture.
Fur. Whether you opt for real or faux, fur can be a unique feature piece and can bring together the room. Try a cowhide, bear, or sheepskin rug or purchase a fur throw for a couch or chair.
Accent materials. Incorporate iron or stone accents in furniture and décor, such as bar stools, coffee tables, overhead lighting, chandeliers, fireplaces, mantels, shelving, candleholders, and more.
Warm lighting. To give the room a cozy, relaxing feel, lean towards warm, yellow lightbulbs instead of LEDs or pick out some unique Edison bulbs for exposed lamps and decorative overhead lighting.
Small details. The magic is in the small details. Paint wood panels white or gray and letter your favorite saying on top. Purchase wooden picture frames, farmhouse signs, terracotta pots, wood slices, and mason jars and arrange them around the room.
Bold patterns. Mismatched quilts, layered rag rugs, and check-print chairs or blankets are great additions to any rustic room.
Before You Fall In Love With A Home, Analyze The Little Things
It’s easy to be wowed by a house. You’re anxious to discover your dream home and accomplish a big goal. You can’t wait to cook in the brand new kitchen or relax in the spa-style tub. All that excitement can also make it easy to dismiss some minor issues that can become major annoyances down the road. Rather than letting your excitement get the best of you, take the time to analyze smaller details properly.
Don’t dismiss the location
Let’s say you find a perfect home that’s an extra 20 minutes each way from work. Those 40 total minutes don’t seem like a big deal at first glance, but consider that you’ll be dealing with that extra commute day after day, year after year for as long as you live in the house. Is that an inconvenience you’re willing to deal with? Make an educated decision—do a test run of the actual commute and see whether it’s tolerable, or would eventually drive you crazy.
Stressing location also means committing to a neighborhood. Does the potential neighborhood align with your priorities? Make sure you’re choosing a location that makes it easy to do the things you love most, whether that’s enjoying city nightlife or escaping to quiet home away from it all.
Working order
Shiny new appliances and an open-concept living space may be on your list of must-haves, but don’t let the aesthetics distract from the basics.
Are the basement and attic in good shape? Problems like mold and water damage can turn an otherwise perfect home into a nightmare, and a poorly insulated attic can cause your bills to skyrocket.
None of these issues should necessarily remove a home from consideration—you just have to be aware of the total package.
Easy Upgrades: Tackle These Projects In A Single Day
It’s easy to get stressed out just hearing the word “renovation.” You’re instantly thinking of having your home life disrupted by construction debris, cluttered rooms, and loud noises.
But you don’t have to spend a ton of money and brace yourself for months of inconvenience to upgrade your home. Here are a few projects that you can knock out in a single day, and they’ll greatly improve the look and enjoyment of your home.
Paint or replace an exterior door: If you know the correct dimensions and specifications for a replacement door, replacing an exterior door is a quick and easy job. That’s even more true if you’re repainting it. Preparation and a few coats of paint will only take a few hours.
Plant some low-maintenance trees: Young evergreen trees are relatively simple to plant, and after some heavy watering in the first few weeks, they’re very easy to maintain. They’ll add some color and texture to your landscaping, instantly improving curb appeal.
New light fixtures: Whether they’re on the interior or exterior of your home, something as subtle as light textures can have a dramatic effect. Swapping out traditional fixtures for something modern or industrial can completely transform a room.
New hardware: Drawer pulls and door knobs are easy to change out, and like light fixtures, they have a big impact. You’d be amazed how your kitchen or bathroom could look with new hardware.
Top Gardening Tips For Newbies
Feel like trying out your green thumb, but have no clue where to get started. Check out these five tips for newbie gardeners.
- Get to know your soil. To grow a bountiful garden, you must first start with the soil. Determining whether you have loam, clay, or sandy soil can help you select the best flowers, bushes, fruits, vegetables, and more to plant. Try a soil test kit to determine this.
- Play to the sun. Watch the way sunlight moves throughout your yard before choosing your garden plot. A vast majority of edible plants will need at least 6 hours of sun per day to grow properly.
- Determine your frost dates. Don’t kill your garden’s chances of thriving by accidentally planting too early or late in the season. Make sure you know the average spring and fall frost date for your area so you plant at just the right time.
- Keep a close eye on weeds. After all the time and effort you put into planting your garden, the last thing you need is for your plants to be suffocated by weeds. Read up on the common weeds in your area and the safest and best way to rid your garden of them. Make sure to keep a record of these for the years following so you don’t have to repeat your research.
- Water and feed diligently. Morning is the best time to water your garden to allow it to fully soak into the soil before it is evaporated by the sun. Each plant is different so make sure you pay attention so you don’t overwater.
Organize Your Closet Like A Champ
Do you desire a closet that looks like it’s straight out of a magazine? Then we have you covered! Follow the tips below to masterfully organize your closet and give yourself peace of mind.
Group like clothing items together. Group same-length dresses, long-sleeved shirts, blouses, pants, etc. together in your closet to both save space and create an esthetically-pleasing look. Add an extra bar. Need more hanging room? You can find additional closet bars in-store or online for under $20 and installation is fairly quick and easy. Then hang t-shirts, blouses, jackets, and more on the lower bar.
Keep things uniform. Although you may have to spend a little more upfront, purchasing matching hangers, organizers, and storage boxes will give your closet a cleaner look.
Invest in special hangers, dividers, and organizers. Purchase a few items to make closet organization a breeze, such as a space-saving pants organizer, shelf dividers to keep t-shirts, towels, or sweaters in place, or multi-shirt hangers that can fit up to 5 garments on one.
Try color-coding. Feeling magically inspired? Try organizing your closet by color. You can even place the colors in order of the rainbow to help make dressing easier and more fun.
Get creative with shoe storage. Shoes can take up a lot of room and keeping the pile neat and tidy can be difficult. Consider purchasing a shoe organizer that hangs on your closet door or install rails on the wall to hang high heels. You can also purchase cubby shelving or a shoe carousel to be placed on the closet floor.
Give Your Deck A Facelift
Hanging out with your family or hosting friends on your old, dingy deck is not very appealing. Lucky for you, refreshing it doesn’t have to be difficult or expensive. Try your hand at the makeover ideas below!
Restore your decking. Depending on the shape it’s in, sometimes all your deck needs is a little love. If it’s still fairly new, your deck might just need a deep cleaning and a new coat of sealant. There is a multitude of deck finishing and cleaning solutions on the market to choose from to achieve this. However, if its more worn down, the rejuvenation process may be a bit longer, including searching for larger repairs, tightening any hardware, giving it a good cleaning, applying a stain, sealant, and paint, and more.
Add lighting. Ambient lighting can completely transform your outside space into a relaxing, cozy oasis. Consider adding solar lights that don’t require a plugin or battery replacement. The lights turn on automatically when the sun sets, making your deck come alive. You can also consider paper lanterns, rope lights, mason jar lamps, or small twinkle lights, depending on the style and mood you’d like to set.
Build a privacy screen. Privacy screens come in all styles, shapes, and sizes. Consider purchasing and installing bamboo fencing or lattice panels for a quick and easy solution. Or, if you are feeling a little more adventurous, you can build a wooden frame and grow climbing plants or vines or stretch outdoor fabric in between. Whichever route you end up choosing, make sure you get the most out of your efforts by evaluating all lines sight before building.
Home Equity. Getting a home equity line of credit allows you to borrow money against the value of your home. You receive usually up to 80 percent of your home’s value, minus the amount of your loan.
Retirement Funds. Homeowners can consider pulling money from a 401K or IRA account, even though they aren’t specifically meant to cover a home renovation. This option might incur additional penalties or tax payments, but maybe worth it when making improvements that will benefit them financially in the long run.
Going Green Starts in the Kitchen
Living an environmentally-friendly lifestyle and helping to keep our planet clean isn’t as difficult as you may think. All it takes is a few small tweaks. To start, here are five great tips for going green in your kitchen!
Filter your water. Not only does this allow you to remove contaminants like lead, chloroform, chlorine, etc. from your drinking water at home, but you can save money and reduce waste by avoiding bottled water. Choose between a water-filtering pitcher or faucet-mounted option.
Reduce water usage. It’s a common misconception that running your dishwasher uses a lot of water, when in fact, it generally uses less than hand washing dishes. Just make sure to only run it when full and use the light wash and air dry settings. You can also purchase a low-flow aerator for your kitchen faucet to cut down on water usage.
Avoid unnecessary packaging. When grocery shopping, avoid single-serving products and produce packaged in styrofoam and shrink-wrap to reduce waste. At home, opt for reusable containers, such as jars and Tupperware, instead of foil, plastic wrap, and Ziploc bags.
Switch your cooking appliances out. Instead of using your full-size oven, consider using a toaster oven, microwave, or slow cooker instead. These appliances use between 30 to 50 percent less energy to heat.
Buy local. Shopping at locally-sourced stores or farmers markets does not only allow you to support your neighbors and community but is sustainable for the environment. The food you purchase does not have to travel far to get to you, helping to reduce carbon emissions.
Spice Up Your Kitchen With a Pop of Color
In the past few years, the biggest kitchen trends revolved around stainless steel appliances, bright white or light gray cupboards, granite countertops, and minimalist decor, maintaining a clean, sleek look. And although this style maintains its popularity among homeowners, color is creeping its way back to the forefront. But it is definitely not how you’d expect.
Introducing the rise of colored appliances. Consumers have been asking and kitchen appliance manufacturers have listened. Instead of your standard white, black, and stainless steel, these companies are now producing baby blue ovens, green vent hoods, pink standing mixers, teal grills, and more. Some of these companies have produced specific color lines while others are going above and beyond, offering the ability to match any color swatch or metal treatment you wish.
On top of these pops of color, according to BHG.com, consumer research indicated a 150 percent increase in interest in shades of metallic, including brass and copper, and a 364 percent increase in interest in gold cabinetry.
However, a brand new appliance may be outside your budget, especially if you are a new homeowner. Not to worry! There is always the infallible accent wall, counter base, or pantry door. This cost-effective, do-it-yourself option is an easy way to refresh the look of your kitchen. You can also consider bringing in bright-colored stools or chairs or introducing bold tiles into your backsplash.
How You Can Finance Your Home Renovation
Outdated kitchen. Overrun backyard. Unusable basement space. If you have a home renovation project on the mind, the first thing you have to consider is how you are going to finance it. Here are the most common options to make your dreams become a reality.
Cash. Paying in cash is the most straightforward financing option, just save until you have enough money to cover the expenses. This will help eliminate spending outside your budget; however, it can also extend your timeline.
Mortgage Refinance. If you’ve been making payments on your home for a few years and your interest rate is higher than current market rates, you may be eligible for a mortgage refinance, reducing your payments and freeing up some money.
Cash-Out Refinance. You can tap into your home equity and borrow up to 80 percent of your home’s value to pay off your current mortgage plus take out more cash to cover the renovations. This option is encouraged only when you’re making improvements that will increase the value of your home, as it can add a lot of interest and fees.
Home Equity. Getting a home equity line of credit allows you to borrow money against the value of your home. You receive usually up to 80 percent of your home’s value, minus the amount of your loan.
Retirement Funds. Homeowners can consider pulling money from a 401K or IRA account, even though they aren’t specifically meant to cover a home renovation. This option might incur additional penalties or tax payments, but may be worth it when making improvements that will benefit them financially in the long run.