Soular Sisters in Hudson is having a Spring open house on Friday March 7th and Saturday March 8th from 9:00AM to 10:00PM  The boutique offers an ever changing inventory of trendy accessories and unique fashion at affordable prices. The website is fun too. Check it out.
If you are looking for some fun interior design inspiration for your circa 1960’s ranch-style home, you might want to check out the slide show at Apartment Therapy’s blog of Gregory’s Granada Hills 60’s Desert Home. Pay attention to the details… even the door handles and mass-market kitsch accessories are great! This is definitely a look that anyone can pull off by shopping vintage specialty stores mixed with IKEA. (Yes, my trained eyes spotted some IKEA goods in the pictures.)
This article came from real estate agent John Sizemore in Texas. Looks like his sellers ask him the same questions our clients here in Ohio ask most often! John says to his market, “I’m well aware that your home may be your largest investment and you need to sell it for top dollar.” That is why he and other real estate agents utilize a professional home stager. Read John’s 5 Questions and Answers most People Have about Staging a Home below:Â
“Home staging is very important in today’s market and well worth the investment. But still I have clients ask me, ‘Why should I stage my home- after all, I’m moving,’ so I put together this Frequently Asked Staging Questions blog. The 5 FAQs about staging:
Q1. Does staging pay off?
A1. Staged homes sell for an average of 6% more than non-staged homes. That means a $300,000 home could sell for $318,000 or $320,000 if it is staged properly.
Q2. Can’t people just visualize how my home would look with their furniture in it?
A2. No, most can’t; in fact research shows that only about 10% can look beyond the present furnishing and visualize the home’s features.
Q3. Is staging a large expense?
A3. Many homes can be staged for as little as $500. Compared to the payoff, it isn’t a major expense. (Staged Makeovers can redesign an entire average home for less $150)
Q4. Can’t I do it myself?
A4. Most people can’t; they are used to living in their own home and they don’t see the flaws. Plus they like the furnishings. Also, many sellers are unaware of the “model-home” trends that today’s buyer is looking for.
Q5. Won’t my house sell anyway?
A5. All homes will sell, the key is the price and the speed it will sell - staging make the home sell faster and for more.”
Thank you John for being a smart Realtor and for sharing these staging FAQ’s. For mroe frequently asked questions and answers, visit our FAQ page. To contact John, visit his blog at http://jsizemore.featuredblog.com
The Ohio Design Centre in Beachwood, Ohio is hosting a Spring Preview 2008 event on Thursday, March 6th from 9:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M. The Centre is home to 100,000 square feet of residential interior showrooms featuring over 400 product lines including luxury furniture, kitchen and bath, surface materials, flooring, wall coverings, fabrics, lighting, antiques, art, accessories and more.
Here is a schedule of the presentations at the event:
11:00 - Baker Knapp & Tubbs with Kim Garr introducing the Lexicon Collection, a sophisticated early 20th century inspired group.
Noon -Â Roth Collection with John Crosby featuring Glant’s Capri Collection inspired by the manufacturer’s Mediterranean homeland.
1:30 - Great Lakes Marble & Granite with Desiree Stimac of Oceana Glass presents superior roc glass products such as sinks and accessories.
2:00 - J Hall Design welcomes Jennifer Connolly of the Cleveland Green Building Coalition. Join her in discussing green residential design projects and learn how you can make your home more environmentally friendly.
3:00 - Monroe & Associates presents Antonette Smith of Ralph Lauren Home to introduce the luxurious Spring 2008 fabric and wallcoverings collection.
Throughout the day be sure to visit all of the showroom openhouses. Showrooms not to miss include Bello Design, Brunschwig & Fils, Classic Oriental Rugs, Donghia, Gregory Alfonso, R.W.Shea & Co., and Scalamandre.
The Ohio Design Centre tends to be for the trade only. If you are a homeowner looking for a residential interior designer and are interested in attending this event, please contact us by clicking here.
More household hints continued from yesterday’s Part 1:
Plastic Laminate Countertops - Use turtle wax to brighten plastic or buff with toothpaste.
Polishing Carved Furniture - To get into carved details use a soft toothbrush dipped in furniture polish.
Removing Paper from Wood - Dab vegetable oil onto sticker, rub off.
Removing Polish Build-up - Rub build up by rubbing with a wrung out cloth of a solution of equal parts vingar and water. Dry immediately.
Rust - Scrub rust spots with turpentine.
Scratches - Rub wood scratches with the grain with petroleum jelly or a wax stick or crayon that matches the wood.
Uneven Furniture Legs - Hot glue old buttons underneath the leg.
Upholstery - Shaving cream is a good way to remove everyday soil from upholstered furniture.
Vinyl Upholstery - Sprinkle baking soda or vinegar on a rough damp cloth. Then wash vinyl with mild dishwashing soap.
Water Rings - Polish white water rings on wood by dampening a soft cloth and adding a dab of toothpaste.
Wicker - To prevent wicker from drying out, splitting or cracking, apply lemon oil whenever it dries out.
You can grow a wee bit o’ luck by planting some Oxalis Regnellii, or lucky shamrock, of your own. $10 will get you 25 bulbs at www.easytogrowbulbs.com. All you have to do is plant the bulbs in a indoor container, place near a sunny window, and water sparingly. In about 8 weeks you should see pin-wheel shaped leaves with tiny white flowers…just in time for St. Patrick’s Day!
In fashion we always hear, “this color is the new black.” Now black is becoming the new wood. Think about the last time you looked through a Pottery Barn catalog. Black painted furniture can look so chic and upscale, or in another setting it looks so relaxed and traditional. Black is a great accent color. It provides contrast. It is the darkest of neutrals and works with everything.
The 23rd Annual Kitchen and Bath Business Market Forecaster revealed its expectations for the industry in this rough economy based on consumer expectations from the last quarter of 2007. Both kitchen and bath remodeling project spending are expected to drop 14% which amounts to over a $118 billion drop. Parallel to this decrease in spending is the decrease in jobs in the bath sector of the industry, which is predicted to decrease around 14%. The kitchen industry expects only a 1% gain in jobs. With the threat of recession, lowered housing starts, and the weak real estate market, it is no surprise that consumers are spending less on interior design and home remodeling. In home staging we often see how reluctant homeowners are to remodel bathrooms, but notice that they are more likely to remodel kitchens. Bathrooms are private spaces and get little attention when it comes to home improvement. Kitchens on the other hand have become showy social places and the key selling feature of homes.
Figures from K+BB January 2008 issue
According to the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID) and the International Federation of Interior Architects and Interior Designers (IFI) member, Rita Carson, FASID and a group of her peers at the IFI conference in New York, the core values needed to be a good interior designer are:
Joel Testa of Testa Companies in Ohio is the president of the Home Builder’s Association Serving Portage and Summit Counties and is a featured writer in the Akron Beacon Journal’s Home Hunter magazine. In the February 2nd issue he gives great advice on selling your home, “By expending a bit of effort before it goes on the market, you can ensure that your home presents well, stands out from the crowd and doesn’t turn off potential buyers so that you can sell quickly and at the best price.”
Here is a summary of his tips:
“Tone down personality” In this section he addresses clutter, bookshelves, collectibles, family pictures, and neutralizing colors.
“Don’t burden the buyer with repairs” Here he suggests all repairs be made before showing the home. In this competitive market, the home in the best move-in ready condition wins the sale.
“Maximize exposure” This last section refers to using a true professional: a Realtor who uses Multiple Listing Service, the newspaper, and online resources.
100% of his article is on key, possibly his best peice of advice is to “consider using a Realtor who can prove results and a staging expert who can give you many more tips and suggestions.”
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