2010 Spring Home Improvment

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A Touch of

Home Decorating Tips • New Looks for Spring • Adding Color • Flooring Options Window Treatments • Bedding and Accessories • Family Room Makeovers Kitchen & Bath Updates • Breathtaking Bedrooms • Interior Designers

A Special Supplement to Leader Publications • March 2010

Page 2 - Spring Home Improvement • March 18, 2010 • www. leaderpub.com

Create the room of your

teen’s

By SARAH CRABTREE Leader Publications

T

hink new! New colors, new furniture, new design … all key ideas for you to start creating a new room for a new season.

Spring is finally here, and one way to welcome it is to redecorate your bedroom.

For a teenager, you may be thinking that’s going to be too expensive and you don’t have that kind of money, but there are many ways you can do this and for a small price.

Just start with the basics. What are your teens likes and dislikes? What do they want to see in their bedroom and what’s in it already that they can still use or take out?

BEDROOMS, Page 6

Leader photo/SARAH CRABTREE

Shannon McKeel kicks back on her bed in her renovated room. She used bright colors and photos to express her style.

www.leaderpub.com • Spring Home Improvement • March 18, 2010 - Page 3

WOOD

Make a statement with exotics METRO SERVICES You've seen and walked on it in your neighbour's home, in exclusive boutiques and in your favourite restaurant. Exotic wood floors are emerging in decors across the country as savvy homeowners and decorators express their personal interior decorating tastes

you know?

temporary look, you should consider wood species that have a cleaner look with less texture and grain such as Maple, Birch, or Cherry. If you prefer a more rustic look, then White Ash or Oak would be best."

Another factor to consider is the type of furniture you select for the rooms. If it's wood furniture, it's important to ensure it doesn't clash with your new wood floor.

"You can either match the wood furniture to the floor or you can opt for a contrast which gives a very nice look," he added. Dark mahogany, oak or cherry furniture, for example, will show up much better on a light colored wood floor than it would on a dark wood floor.

There are also many different sizes of width

with more unique wood flooring options.

It is truly remarkable how many new colorations, wood species and widths of hardwood flooring are available to homeowners today.

EXOTICS, Page 5

and lengths of wood flooring available to consider.

Keep in mind smaller widths and shorter lengths will give off a busier look since there will be more variation, while wider widths and longer lengths tend to open up the look of a room.

Then there's the finish.

Solid hardwood floors come either unfinished or prefinished. "Prefinished wood flooring is a popular choice today because you avoid the labor, dust and fumes that come with finishing a floor," added Collin. He should know Mercier Wood Flooring has been the leader in factory-finish wood flooring since it introduced the concept 29 years ago.

Trends to watch North American hardwoods like red oak, maple and walnut are traditional

favorites, but more exotic woods are gaining popularity today. "Our South American wood species like Santos Mahogany and Brazilian Cherry are sought after by discerning homeowners for their rich tones, beautiful grains, and superior hardness," Collin added.

Another popular trend is toward engineered wood flooring, a veneer of hardwood in the species of your choice glued on top of three to seven thin sheets of wood. Solid wood will expand or contract with heat and moisture, whereas engineered wood flooring, because it's made of crossbanded layers of wood, offers more dimensional stability. It's ideal for kitchens and basements where moisture is a factor.

Metro Services photo

Wood flooring offers warmth, beauty and value to your home.

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Learn how to select the perfect floor

W

ood is one of the most beautiful floorings you can choose for your home. No other flooring offers the warmth, beauty and value of wood. There are not only countless colors available but there are also

many different species as well, each with their unique characteristics.

This is why choosing the right wood floor to meet your specific taste and decor needs can be a challenge. According to Michel Collin, Marketing Director of Mercier Wood Flooring, one of North America's leading hard-

wood flooring manufacturers, there are a few key factors to consider when choosing wood flooring.

First, you should consider the finished look you want to achieve for your decor. "It's always best to start with your floor when decorating," advised Collin. "If you want a modern or con-

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Page 4 - Spring Home Improvement • March 18, 2010 • www. leaderpub.com

•••• •••••••• •••

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www.leaderpub.com • Spring Home Improvement • March 18, 2010 - Page 5

EXOTICS: South American woods offer rich tones, superior hardness FROM PAGE 3 Besides the common North American hardwoods (oak, maple, hickory and ash), wood from species like bamboo, cork, beech, Santos mahogany, teak, walnut, and Brazilian cherry are rapidly becoming popular hardwood flooring choices.

These unique wood floors set the ambiance of a room, giving it a different look and old world-type elegance.

Leading wood flooring manufacturers, such as Mercier Wood Flooring, now feature a full line of exotic wood flooring options from sought after regions around the globe such as Brazil.

"Our exotic wood products use South American wood species selected for their rich tones, beautiful grains and superior hardness," explained Michel Collin, marketing director of Mercier Wood Flooring. "These unique products delight even the most demanding homeowners by adding an original touch of refinement and the exotic to their decor."

Mercier's line of exotic wood flooring also includes engineered options such as Brazilian Cherry and Santos Mahogany in 4.5-inch boards. Ideal for basements and condos, these floors can be floated or glued onto subfloors or concrete slabs.

"These two additions follow an increasing consumer demand for exotic engineered wood floors," added Collin.

"Perfect for wide open spaces and prestigious rooms, these two species are offered in their natural colour, revealing the warmth and richness of our Exotic species, naturally coloured in red tones."

Like other exotic species, these two will color mature after installation to red tone and display more contrasted boards. The color-maturation can take from between three months to one year according to the amount of light present in the room.

Metro Servicese photo

Exotic woods can add style to basements to condos, to wide open spaces to prestigious rooms.

Regardless of your choice, exotic wood flooring offers unmatched durability and unique, rich natural color for your decor.

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Page 6 - Spring Home Improvement • March 18, 2010 • www. leaderpub.com

BEDROOMS: Mirrors an inexpensive way to make space appear bigger FROM PAGE 2 Keep decorations and furniture that you like. You can buy new if you choose, but to save money it’s easier to keep than toss.

Also being a teenager, your teen is going to want their room to have and look like whatever’s "in style" but you also have to take into consideration that your new room may be permanent.

So you want to design it in a way that gives you kid room to grow. Meaning your teens needs to ask themselves "Is this what I want my room to look like in a few years?"

According to interior designer Richard Samuels of South Bend the easiest way to go about redecorating is to break it down into steps.

Step 1:

Start with the floor and the walls. Pick out your paint colors. Choose something that both you and your teen can agree on.

One big thing to remember when doing this, is don’t pick colors that clash with eachother.

When redecorating her room, 18-year-old Shannon McKeel of Niles said picking out the colors were the best part because the rest of your room is based around the colors you choose.

"I wanted to make my room

bright and colorful so I had to pick things that were in the same color family," McKeel said. "My mom and I decided on hot pink, orange and yellow for the walls. All warm colors."

Once you’ve got your colors picked think about carpet or rugs for the floor. You want to again keep in mind the color of the walls when choosing carpet.

You want the room to blend with each other. If you have windows in you room, you need to think about blinds. What kind and what color would go best with what you have in your room? You want the room to look neat not "sloppy." The last thing for the walls is to pick out bulletin boards or picture boards. Every teen loves to hang up posters and such so the putting up some boards on the walls would be a good idea.

Step 2:

Now that you have the walls and floor done, you need to think about the bed and the rest of the furniture in the room. If you are keeping your furniture instead of buying new then there are many things you can do to spice it up to look new.

Repaint your desk to match the new colors you painted on the walls.

"I had a desk in my room that I wanted to keep," McKeel

Leader photo/SARAH CRABTREE

Shannon McKeel and her mom painted the desk to save money.

They bought the lanterns at Pottery Barn. said. "So my mom and I repainted it to match the room.

We used all the colors that were on the walls and even added a few new ones, like green. It went well with the rest of the room and didn’t clash."

Next you need to look for new bed-

spreads and sheets. Again keep in mind your color scheme that you picked for the room.

Step 3:

The final thing to do is mini decorations. Since you have all of the major stuff done in the

room, the last part is to spice it up. You can do this by adding lights. Lights come in all different colors. The light in your room sets the appeal. Another thing you can do is to put mirrors up. Mirrors are a inexpensive and attractive detail to put in a bedroom. They reflect light and make your bedroom appear to be bigger.

You can also get little wall hangings from local stores to spice up your room.

You may be thinking buying all that stuff is going to be so expensive and you can’t afford it. The good news is you can.

All the stuff needed to complete the three steps above can be bought for very low prices at places like Wal-Mart and Target, which have good prices for paint and lighting. Also places like Bed Bath & Beyond offer great deals on new bedding. If you go online to Pottery Barn you can find cheap deals for room decorations and lighting.

Your local hardware store would also be a good place to go for paint.

As you can see, redecorating you room doesn’t have to be expensive. Many people have done it and it barely cost them anything. You just have to know where to go to get the stuff you need.

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www.leaderpub.com • Spring Home Improvement March 18, 2010 - Page 7

Fix-up tips for apartment dwellers METRO SERVICES Homeowners often see spring as a time to tackle improvement projects they've been planning throughout the winter. But spring isn't only a time homeowners can improve their living space. There's also a host of things apartment dwellers can do to give their place some new life.

Before doing anything, apartment dwellers should consult their lease or even call their landlord. Just like a homeowner must obey zoning laws before adding on, an apartment dweller should be certain any changes he or she plans to make are within their rights.

After determining what can and can't be done, apartment dwellers can begin to address some things around their apartment that might give the room a new feel.

• Give window treatments some personality. Apartment complexes often want the entire complex to appear the same. That can make altering the window treatments somewhat difficult.

However, renters can double up on window treatments by hanging neutral blinds that can be viewed from outdoors while giving some personality to the windows on the inside with bold draperies and blinds.

• Consider new wallpaper.

Oftentimes, landlords forbid removing wallpaper. However, wallpaper borders might be right up a renter's alley so long as the landlord allows. There are self-adhesive, removable varieties, that make it easy to change any design scheme on a whim, or remove the border before moving out of the apartment.

• Re-paint the apartment. Landlords prefer neutral tones because they tend to make it easier to rent and maintain an apartment. However, some landlords are perfectly fine with tenants repainting the walls so long as the walls are returned to their original colors when the tenants move out.

If the landlord does not allow the walls to be re-painted, it's still possible to add some life to an otherwise bland wall. Accessories and wall hangings can make a room appear more lively.

Oversized artwork that's bold and colorful can give a room more life, as can more boldly colored couches, chairs or additional furnishings. Also consider colored light bulbs or shades to create lighting that casts a hue in the room.

• Fix the floors. If carpeting has become dirty or grimy, ask the landlord to replace the carpeting, either with new carpets or attractive wood floor-

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ing. If wood flooring is installed, it's easy for apartment dwellers to lay down some colorful throw rugs to give a room a new feel, and such an addition takes very little effort. Some don't want a per-

manent improvement like carpeting to be made, since it requires tacking or nailing into a subfloor.

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Page 8 - Spring Home Improvement • March 18, 2010 • www. leaderpub.com

APARTMENTS: Flowers add life to a room FROM PAGE 7 It's also possible to purchase carpeting kits that interlock and are not attached to the floor.

Working like puzzle pieces, these kits can even be removed and taken to your next residence. More permanent changes, such as changing kitchen tiles or other flooring alterations, should be discussed with the landlord before beginning.

• Bring some plants and flowers into the apartment. Few things can bring a room to life more than a colorful bouquet of flowers or a new plant.

What's more, there typically are not floral or plant restrictions on apartments, meaning all renters can utilize flowers and plants as they attempt to bring their place to life.

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Adding a colorful bouquet of flowers to a living room is one way to spruce up an apartment that any landlord would approve.

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www.leaderpub.com • Spring Home Improvement • March 18, 2010 - Page 9

Residential fire sprinkler system ignites heated debate METRO SERVICES Every 90 seconds, a home fire is reported in the United States. According to the National Fire Protection Association, eight out of 10 fire fatalities occur where we feel safest -- in our own homes. Many fires start at night and research shows young children and older adults are the majority of victims in home fires.

Would installing fire sprinklers save lives?

Is the added cost a necessary investment for homeowners?

Should it be mandated by law?

The nation's leading building code body, the International Code Council (ICC), thinks so. The ICC develops the codes used to construct residential and commercial buildings, including homes and schools.

Most U.S. cities, counties and states that adopt codes choose the international codes developed by the ICC. The ICC fire sprinkler mandate stipulates that all new residential homes, both one- and two-family dwellings, must include fire sprinklers starting Jan. 1, 2011.

A heated debate among builders, fire marshals and consumers has ignited in the wake of the ICC mandate.

Opinions run the gamut, depending on who you talk to: Fire officials welcome the mandate, while some builders say this is an unnecessary and costly precaution.

"Fire sprinklers save lives," says Stan Scofield, a fire inspector from Plymouth, Minn. "We have never seen a fatality in a home fire where a working fire sprinkler system was installed. Unfortunately, we see our fair share of tragedies in homes without one installed."

Critics argue that the cost of building a new home is already high, and that adding the expense of fire sprinklers may turn some homeowners away from the building process. "I am including a fire safety system in a home that we are currently building," Jim Moras, owner of Highmark Builders of Burnsville, Minn., says. "In this case, we are putting it in based on a request from the homeowner. But I think the industry

is balking at having a mandate that demands sprinklers in every new home built, potentially driving up the final house cost."

But some homeowners liken sprinklers to having their own personal "fire department" on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week for protection and peace of mind. A residential fire sprinkler system can contain a fire in less time than it would take the fire department to arrive on the scene. Yet, only about two percent of U.S. homes are equipped with fire sprinklers.

"Research makes a compelling argument to mandate fire safety systems in residential building codes," says Jayson Drake, senior product manager, Plumbing and Fire Safety, for Uponor North America. "And with an industry standard cost of approximately $1.61 per square foot, the investment for homeowners equals that of granite countertops and stainless steel appliances -- common upgrades by today's standard. But this upgrade saves lives."

Although the cost of installing a fire safety system seems to be a central issue, excluding a system based on a price tag may be a shortsighted decision.

According to the nonprofit Home Fire Sprinkler Coalition, fires cause more than $6 billion in direct property damage every year in U.S. homes. Much of this damage is caused by firefighters' hoses, which discharge 200 gallons of water per minute into a burning home.

Conversely, a fire sprinkler sprays 10 to 15 gallons per minute, minimizing overall property damage. And with only the sprinklers closest to the fire activating, 90 percent of fires are contained by the operation of just one or two sprinklers, causing only a fraction of the water damage of a fire department hose. With the ICC mandate in effect, the annual $6 billion property damage figure should decrease significantly over the next decade, according to Drake from Uponor.

Though these savings won't pay for the initial installation investment, some homeowners and real estate agents are starting to recognize that sprinklers may be a good long-term investment.

"As more and more homes include a fire sprinkler system, I believe it can increase the value of your

Cassopolis The Vigilant

Niles Daily Edwardsburg Star Argus

home and its resale value," according to Colleen Larson, a Minneapolis-based RE/MAX real estate agent. "New homes often set the trend for what consumers demand, and as we see more and more homes outfitted with sprinklers, they will become a muchdesired request by buyers."

Aside from cost, consumer demand, insurance rates, and water and property damage, the core reason for including a fire safety system is often an emotional one. The most precious belongings we have — our family, photo albums showcasing our lives and keepsakes from the past — are found in our homes. A house fire destroys irreplaceable mementos unique only to our lives. For many, this becomes the main reason to include a fire sprinkler system.

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Page 10 - Spring Home Improvement • March 18, 2010 • www. leaderpub.com

Casement windows a good fit for seniors METROSERVICES

Metro Servicese photo

Two-Lite Slider windows are easy for older people to operate without straining back or arm muscles. dows. With Awning windows, the sash is hinged on top and the window cranks out and upward. A pull-out Hopper window is easy to operate and the sash is hinged on the bottom of the window. A special panel insert, made to resemble acrylic block, is also available as a privacy feature on a

AARP Recommendations According to a checklist of home safety aspects available from the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP), ease of operation is tops on their list for window considerations for seniors. Another item to consider is the availability of sturdy, easy to operate locks to secure windows in the home.

"While locking systems are important, we're also seeing an increasing number of homeowners ordering windows featuring impact-resistant glass to enhance security in the home," says Burk.

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"These sturdy windows typically are used in coastal areas that are subject to severe weather.

However, the impactresistant nature of these windows also makes them appealing as a home safety enhancement."

Another consideration of window selection for seniors should be longterm maintenance and care. Burk stresses that vinyl-framed windows require only minimal cleaning. "With vinyl window frames you never need to worry about upkeep such as the scraping and repainting required with wood frames," says Burk.

"Vinyl windows resist rotting, decay, insect infestations, and provide years of effortless beauty in the home.

"Most seniors these days are very active.

They want to enjoy life and the rewards of retirement rather than worrying about maintaining their homes. Vinyl windows are the perfect, enduring, maintenancefree solution."

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Let's face it. As the body gets older, it can't easily perform the same day-to-day tasks that it could when it was younger. That includes opening, closing and caring for windows in the home.

"When you're in your 30s or 40s, opening a Double Hung window requires no special thought," says Christopher Burk, product manager with Simonton Windows.

"However, as you get older, your back and hands may feel the strain more of operating these 'lift-style' windows. By the time you're in your 50s, it makes sense to think about installing easy-to-operate windows in the home, such as Casement windows that require no lifting action."

Casement windows, which operate on a crankout system with a sidehinged sash that opens outward for ventilation (up to a full 90 degrees with most windows), can be used in all areas of the home. Casement windows are especially appealing when combined into large Bay or Bow window configurations because they allow a maximum amount of light and airflow into the home.

For those senior homeowners looking for a smaller crank-out window style option, Simonton offers both Awning and Hopper win-

Hopper window.

Finally, Burk recommends Slider windows.

"Slider windows glide effortlessly from side to side, so there's no strain on arms or back muscles to operate them," says Burk. "The Slider windows provide great views with either 2- or 3-lite configurations and allow for maximum ventilation in the home."

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www.leaderpub.com • Spring Home Improvement • March 18, 2010 - page 11

10 unique household locations for brick panels METRO SERVICES Looking for an accent wall that really "pops" in the home? Eager to highlight a dormer window with brick but lacking the structural support to hold up the weighty blocks? Lightweight brick panels are the answer.

"The restrictions and problems of installing heavy bricks vanish when using panelized products," says Scott Jeffreys, president of Performance Brick. "Made of

recycled gypsum and reinforced with high-density polymer materials, the environmentally friendly panels can easily be added to any area of the home."

The overlapping and interlocking panels of Performance Brick attach easily and quickly to wall substrates using the FastTrack system. This system eliminates the weight concerns associated with real brick and allows for placement in tight-fitting locations. Along with installing brick panels as exterior siding on the home, Jeffreys

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Pavers & Walkways

Serving Michiana over 95 years ...

918 Oliver Plow Ct. South Bend, IN 46601 Phone: (574) 234-2133 Fax: (574) 232-2695

www.rosebrick.com

recommends using the panels in unique applications, including: 1. To create an interior fireplace surround stretching up to the ceiling.

2. To feature dormers on a home's exterior.

3. To highlight areas above large windows and patio doors.

4. To create an accent wall under a kitchen counter area.

5. To enclose a screened-in porch or sunroom.

6. To transform an outdoor shed or workshop.

7. To skirt a front porch area.

8. To focus attention on a front porch or entryway.

9. To showcase the garage surround of the home.

10. To add dimension to a kitchen wall, pizza oven or country kitchen fireplace.

The brick panels are made to replicate the Old World look of handmade architectural brick.

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BARODA

NILES

1/2 Mile N. of Baroda on Stevensville/Baroda

1218 S. 11th Street (across from McDonald’s)

269-422-1753

269-683-7272