Hardwood flooring has been trending in home design for the last few years and can even add value to your home.  We have decided to put together some information and a few tips we think you should know about the different styles and if hardwood is a material that fits your lifestyle.

• The Location: Consider where the hardwood is going to be installed inside your home.  The location may change the grade or type of wood you choose.
• Species: Common wood species are red oak, white, oak, maple, cherry, white ask, hickory, or pecan.  Each wood species has a specific grain and texture to it.
• Color: Each species will have several colors and finish choices for you to decide on.  We suggest picking a color of wood that best fits your lifestyle and coordinates well with furniture pieces you already have.  Darker wood is more formal compared to lighter wood.
• Finishes: There are many different finishes you can have on your floors.  Lower gloss levels are better suited for more active areas because dirt and scratches are harder to see versus higher gloss finishes.
• Width Terms: “Strips” are narrower board widths and work well in smaller areas to help make a room look larger.  “Planks” are wider board widths that work well in a larger space.
• Hardness Wood Rating: Wood is rated based on the Janka Hardness Test.  Basically, the higher the rating, the harder the wood is.

These items are a quick overview of some of the terms or questions you might have when it comes to purchasing your hardwood.  We hope these tips and information helps you in your decision-making.  For more information on hardwood, please visit our website.  If you would like to learn more about specific hardwood flooring topics, leave us a comment below and we’ll be sure to address them in a future post.

Teen girls can change their style as often as they change their outfits—and that can be a lot. Decorating a room that will keep our teenage daughters happy can be tricky but isn’t mission impossible. Getting input from the teen is important but you have input, too. After all, it is still your house.  Working together on decorating your teenage daughter’s room will make you both happy.

Keeping the major things neutral and timeless will help the room to grow and change as your teenager grows.  If you are investing in new furniture and flooring be sure to select pieces that can work for several different styles.  Wood floors will never go out of style and can be topped with area rugs that suit this year’s color scheme.  Wall color is a great way for your daughter to express herself. Paint is less expensive and can change as she continues to mature and grow up.

Forcing your modern loving daughter into a traditional room won’t work for either of you.  Start by having your daughter pull together images from blogs or magazines of rooms she likes. Create a dialog about what will be possible.  Set a budget and allow her to make some of the design decisions. Bedding and accessories are great for adding a certain style and look.  Keeping furniture to classic forms means you can have more fun in the fabrics and colors of the room.

There are so many choices when it comes to designing and laying floor tile.  So how do you determine what pattern and style is best for your space?  Is your space small, large, narrow or wide? These are all things to keep in mind when choosing a tile design.

Diagonal: Tiles are set at a 45% angle. This type of design makes a room look larger and longer. If you choose this design make sure you buy extra tiles (approx. 15% more) because of the angles and cuts more material is usually needed.

Straight lay: This is the most common way of laying tile and looks good in any room. This is an easier design needing less cuts and material.

Herringbone. This pattern is very stylish and adds an elegant visual texture to any floor and will make a short hallway look longer.  To spice up the bathroom use this pattern on the wall installing to “chair rail” level. Framing the pattern with brick size tiles going vertical is a great finishing touch

Modular: This design has three of more different size tiles to form a pattern. If using more than one type of tile be sure they all share the same thickness.

Brick:  Using a brick pattern with ceramic or the real deal, “brick”, is one of the easiest patterns to install and can be more economical.  This pattern looks great in a kitchen, use on the floors or as a backsplash.

For an added “pop” use a smaller accent tile such as a square or diamond. These can be placed randomly throughout your design. When choosing a grout color pick something that has the same tones as your tile. You may want to lean towards a darker color, which can be easier to keep clean. Most flooring retailers have displays in their show rooms so you can shop and compare!

Some homes speak to us by saying “hello” and welcoming us with open arms.  What characteristics do these homes have that makes us feel welcome, comforted, and happy?

Below are three simple changes you can do to bring out your personality in your own home to make it feel just right!

• Colors:  Paint your walls, install new carpet, add decorative pillows, or hang new curtains. A color scheme is very important and should flow throughout your home. If you are uncertain how to coordinate your colors, you could purchase a color wheel for guidance. This tool can be a very helpful resource.
• Finishes: Flooring can be the first and easiest fix to change any room or an entire house. New carpet, wood, or tile is a quick fix and you will literally get miles of enjoyment for years to come.
• Textures: Replacing tile on a fireplace can change the aesthetic of the whole room. For added texture use river rock or stone. Don’t be afraid to install tile and wood side by side on your floors; this looks great in the right space, as long as there is a “cut off” between the two rooms.

There is “no place like home” what are you waiting for?

Happy holidays! Cheers to you and your families!

When you think of winter or the holiday season, does peppermint pop into your mind? It’s an instant winter holiday reminder and will definitely get you in the spirit of this year’s festivities.

Here are few, simple ways you can incorporate it into your holiday celebrations:

• If you add the flavoring to your drinks or desserts, they’ll be sure to be a winter holiday classic.
• Use syrup flavor to infuse in your holiday cookies.
• Try to crush up peppermint candy canes and add them in cookies, brownies, or cakes.
• Sprinkling crushed up peppermint will help dress up your special treat.
• Add peppermint flavoring in your morning coffee or a cup of hot chocolate.   Putting a candy cane can be a great source for stirring and drink decoration, too.
• Create a candy cane wreath

Can you think of creative ways to use peppermint this year?  Feel free to comment and share with us!

Ready or not, the holidays are upon us.   Now that Thanksgiving has come and gone, it’s time to get ready for the rest of the upcoming holiday celebrations!  Whether you love decorating for the holidays or are more humbug than happy about holiday décor, keeping to your style will make your decorations fit in better with your home’s décor.

If you are a modern design lover or just like the crisp, clean lines of contemporary style, traditional holiday decorating may not work with your style.  Red and green everything, snowmen, and elves are traditional holiday designs that added to a modern, minimalist room just don’t fit.  This doesn’t mean you have to forgo holiday decorations all together. You just need to think outside the box a bit. Luckily, today’s designers of holiday decorations take into account all the different styles and tastes.  As well as traditional decorations, retailers offer everything from vintage and retro to woodland forest and handcrafted.

This living room is a beautiful example of a festive holiday décor that works with the room’s style and furniture.  Keeping color to a simple winter palette of white with pops of red works with the clean white color on the walls, wood floors and winter white area rug.  A white tree works much better than a traditional pine to keep the palette simple.  Instead of using red accents, you could go with silver accents for a more monochrome palette.

In a modern or contemporary space a few styles of holiday decorating would work. Rustic or forest would be a nice contrast to the clean lines of a contemporary style.  Vintage and retro are good choices for a modern home.

Be true to your decorating style and you’ll be sure to have a festive home that reflects your personality!

Throughout the design world, open space and open floor plans are being seen in both new home construction and home renovation.  Not only for loft living in converted buildings, open floor plans can also work for first floor living in a variety of home styles. Of course along with homes and lofts, condos and apartments are getting the open concept treatment as well.

If you have an older home and are doing a renovation, you may want to look into opening up walls to create more flow between your living room, dining room and kitchen.  Talk with a contractor about the possibility of tearing down walls or creating pass through between kitchen and dining room. A contractor will be able to tell you what walls are load bearing and what walls can be taken down without compromising your home’s structure.  Even load bearing walls can be removed but a beam will need to be added to bear the weight that the wall once did.

If you are moving walls or changing the flow of your floor plan, you may want to hire an architect to draw up plans. Your contractor may also be able to assist you with this step.

Once you open up the spaces, you’ll want to make sure you deal with the flooring and wall colors. Will you continue the same flooring throughout the space or use different flooring to delineate the functions of the room? Wall color can also be used to create more flow or highlight separate areas.

Trends in kitchen design keep us on our toes. Cherry cabinets with dark granite counter tops gave way to white cabinets with white stone counter tops, which gave way to lower cabinets with open shelves replacing upper cabinets. A new trend we’re seeing is a mix of cabinet colors between upper and lower cabinets.  Typically the upper cabinets are lighter and the lower cabinets are darker.  Let’s look at what this trend looks like in a contemporary kitchen.

Sleek, shiny white cabinets make up the upper cabinets in this contemporary kitchen. The glossy white cabinets are hung above a white tile backsplash. The white on white of the cabinets and tile helps open up this narrow galley style kitchen.

Below the white upper cabinets and tile back splash are lower cabinets done in a bold red.  The red cabinets have more of a similar glossy finish.  The red cabinets help the stainless steel stand out in the space better. Dark lower cabinets will also hide scuff marks and spills better than white cabinets.

If you’re nervous about such a bold color on the bottom, try a more neutral color like deep grey or brown.  While this kitchen uses white and red cabinets, the light and dark combination can work with other colors too. Cream and dark wood would be a lovely choice for a traditional kitchen.

Natural stone flooring is may be more of an investment but nothing can surpass the beauty and richness of its natural features.  Natural stone is durable and adds value to your home.  They’ll last as long, if not longer, than your house as love as they’re cared for properly.  To prolong the life and maintain the natural glow and beauty of natural stone, it deserves to be given utmost care and maintenance.

Care for Natural Stone Floors

• Sand, dust and dirt cause the most damage to stone floors, but there’s an easy fix! Use a dry dust mop or broom to sweep the floors frequently.  If you find vacuuming the floors easier, make sure it doesn’t have a beater bar.
• Application of stone sealant is also recommended to protect natural stones as it repels oil and water.
• Take preventative measures and place walk off mats at every entry of the home to help keep the dirt outside.  Area rugs can also help maintain the flooring.  Keep the mats and area rugs clean so they can keep as much dirt off of the floors as possible.
• Be sure to clean up spills immediately.  You can use a neutral pH detergent and warm water to clean up spills or for periodic cleaning.  After cleaning, make sure you really rinse the floor so you don’t leave excess soap that causes streaking.
• Finally, avoid any products that have abrasive cleaners or acids.

It’s always a good idea to know the porosity of the stone flooring because some tend to be more susceptible to staining than others.

Stone flooring is an investment and should be given care. By following some of the tips mentioned above, natural stone can be long lasting and serve its purpose to give your home a sparkling beauty.  The photo above was created by our Virtual Room Designer and you can have some fun by designing your own room!