Sunday, October 18, 2009
INSIDE SCOPE
HOUSE HUNTING?
Forget window shopping; find your dream home by going into every room of the house. Open Houses, Page 6
P. 2 • Recently recorded deeds P. 3 • The Nation’s Housing P. 4 • Using the MLS
Classified listings begin on Page 6
This section is produced by the advertising department of The Morning Call.
Designer Shoshana Gosselin advises using colorful throw pillows to create ‘a totally new sofa.’
homes
sc pe out
Photos by Sarah Evans.
EASY
AND
INEXPENSIVE FIXING UP YOUR HOME DOESN’T HAVE TO COST AN ARM AND A LEG. By Eloise DeHaan, Special to The Morning Call
T
rees turn gold and red in the fall. Maybe it’s time to make some changes inside, too. With autumn comes the urge to freshen up the interior of your house. Whether you’re a first-time homeowner looking to make your house your own, a seller planning ways to put your home in the best light, or you just want things to look good for the holidays, you can use these tips for inexpensive interior redecorating. The No. 1 do-it-yourself project is painting, says Karen Cobb, a spokeswoman for Lowe’s Cos. “This is great time of year to do it, before the
weather gets too bad,” she says. “You can spruce up in advance of your family coming for the holidays.” It takes about one gallon of paint to cover an average-sized room, plus a quart for the trim, says Bobby Lloyd, a zone manger for Lowe’s who spoke from the company’s Whitehall store. Prices range from $19 a gallon for the company’s Valspar 2000 contractor grade to $34 a gallon for Valspar Signature line. The higher priced paint has more colors available, and is thicker than the lower-priced line. Home Depot is selling Ralph Lauren Suede, a paint that adds “a bit of a texture, a richer, warmer look,” says Ashley Saeger, a Home Depot associate who’s in charge of the paint department in the Bethlehem store. “When you do the technique right you have lighter and darker areas. If the wall has flaws, it’s one of the nicer finishes to do.” Home Depot holds a class on interior painting at its stores every Saturday from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. Many manufacturers are making paints with little or no volatile organic compounds such as mineral spirits, naphtha, lacquers, thinners and alcohol. “We use Myphic Paint, they have a wonderful line,” says Linda Morrison, owner of Elle Morrison Interior Design of Center Valley. “It’s a little on the pricy side, but you don’t bring chemicals or toxins into the house.” And there’s an exterior paint job that’s important for people selling a home: “I always tell sellers the first thing the buyer sees is the front door, so throw a fresh coat of paint on it,” says Jeff Burnatowski, broker/ appraiser with ReMax Real Estate of Allentown. Other tips he has for sellers include clearing through clutter, putting fresh light bulbs in and washing the windows. And vacuum the returns for hot air registers. “They are dirty with fuzz and spiders. These are things that turn off buyers.” Here are some other tips for sprucing up. • Re-cover your sofa with a slipcover in a neutral color and add new colorful fluffy throw pillows. It will look like a totally new sofa, says Shoshana Gosselin, owner of Designs by Shoshana of Breinigsville. You can A fresh floral arrangement in any room is a pleasant addition.
What to do with the
furniture?
Furniture is the elephant in the room. Try taming it with some different angles. You can rearrange furniture to create a new flow or conversation area, says Shoshana Gosselin, owner of Designs by Shoshana. Don’t stand furniture up against the wall. Try floating pieces. You can also put pieces to new use.
Installing new hardware on cabinets and changing the chairs are two easy ways to revamp your kitchen.
re-upholster an ottoman in a dazzling new fabric with a staple gun. And give new life to kitchen table chairs with new cushions. • Include large framed mirrors in a dimly lit or small room, Gosselin says. They are not as expensive as large framed art work and really open up a small space. Try a wall full of different sized and shaped mirrors in a dining room. The light from your chandelier will bounce off the mirrors. The Dollar Store sells small framed mirrors. • Add a pop of color and pattern with a pillow here and there, says Morrison.”You wouldn’t go out of the house without your earrings. Pillows are the jewelry for your furniture.” • “Add a fabulous floral arrangement in the entry way or on your kitchen table,” Morrison says. Clip some branches from a tree or cut dried hydrangeas and put them in a vase. Fill over-sized glass canisters with pine cones. • In the kitchen, change out the hardware on your cabinets. Try changing the chairs at your kitchen table. The contrasting look is very hot right now, Gosselin says. • Change the faucet to your sink. And if you have mismatched appliances, consider covering them. Appliance panels and trim kits are inexpensive and come in more than 200 different colors and designs including stainless steel, sports motif, and chalkboard, Gosselin says. • “Brighten the bathroom by using an off-white paint on the walls and adding lots of yummy color with towels, a bath mat and shower curtain,” Gosselin says. Change the cabinet knobs. Change out the light-
“Don’t have room in your new dining room for your buffet table? Use it as a dresser in a bedroom or a TV stand in the family room,” says Gosselin, who has been known to use bedside tables as end tables or accent tables in living rooms and family rooms. And if you can buy just one piece of
ing. And replace towel racks or bars with hooks. • Add a message on your door, says Jill Duffey Kearney, owner of Beautiful Healthy Homes of Lower Macungie Township. She advocates selecting a door decal from bhh.uppercaseliving. com and applying it to your door. “A simple “Welcome!” or a specific seasonal phrase will be a sophisticated and surprising design for visitors to your home,” she says. They are removable and leave no residue, so you can change your message with the seasons. • Kearney also says a plain, craft store wreath can be decorated with found items such as pinecones (spray them a color if you don’t like natural), dried hydrangea blooms, or sturdy fruit like lemons, limes, apples or oranges. Wire the fruit to the wreath to make sure it stays put. • For the holidays, decorating with ornaments is an affordable way to add a festive holiday look to your home, says Deb Schweiss, JCPenney trend director for home. “Our recommendation when it comes to decorating is to think creatively and make it your own.” She says. “We suggest nestling clusters of ornaments in garlands and wreaths.” You can select a variation of ornaments and arrange them at multiple levels in your favorite vases, apothecary jars or on a tiered pedestal. Group these arrangements on your dining or coffee table to dress up the room. Line an assortment of ornaments down the center of your dining table to create a runner or centerpiece.
furniture, an ottoman is a great choice, says Deb Schweiss, JCPenney trend director for home. “Ottomans are perfect for small or large spaces,” she says. Besides providing a place to kick your feet up, they allow you to add extra seating, table surfaces and storage to any room in your home.