Home Edition Town&Gown 2016

Home Town&Gown’s

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Inside Mudrooms made over • DIY landscape projects Trendy nursery designs • Outdoor cooking • And more!

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Home Town&Gown’s

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6 Uncovering History Couple restores Linden Hall home to nineteenth-century character • by Tracey M. Dooms 13 Behind Old Walls

Former monastery presents renovation challenges • by Tracey M. Dooms

18 Real Estate Report Local market sees plenty of changes in 2016 • by Scot Chambers 20 Cleaning Up Mudrooms

Home design continues to evolve with a rear-entrance foyer on steroids • by Paul Foresman

24 Far More than Farm-to-Fork

Re Farm Café looks to become groundbreaking restaurant in sustainability • by Kate Gregory

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26 Small Changes Make Big Results

38 Fantastic Furnishings

30 Power Up When the Power Is Out

40 Spring Cleaning Is in the Air Six areas to repair, replace, and refresh • from Brandpoint

Some simple DIY projects can improve your landscape • from Metlzer Forest Products

Backup generators help keep your home running during outages • from Miller Electric

34 Start Them Off Trendy

Four nursery-design trends you’ll love now — and later • from Brandpoint

36 Ready to Rev Up

Five steps to get your mower ready for the season • from Brandpoint

Four simple, smart furniture-arrangement tips for decorating your first home • from Brandpoint

42 Go Time for Grilling

From hot trends to creative dishes, it’s the season to take the cooking outdoors

On the cover: Photo by Darren Weimert/ Inside the restored nineteenth-century Linden Hall home of Linda and Steve Weaver.

2016 Home • T&G - 3

Home Town&Gown’s

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Home Town&Gown’s

The kitchen of Steve and Linda Weaver’s Linden Hall home shows off features that date back to 1835 while incorporating modern convenience.

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Uncovering History Couple restores Linden Hall home to nineteenth-century character

By Tracey M. Dooms • Photos by Darren Andrew Weimert 2016 Home • T&G - 7

Today, the formal living room is bright with natural light and the ambiance of two fireplaces.

After the youngest of their three sons graduated high school, Linda and Steve Weaver decided to take early retirement — Steve from his corporate career and Linda from her volunteer career. They lived near Pittsburgh and wanted to move back to Linda’s hometown of State College. They The project involved removing dark, dated wallpaper from many considered downsizing to of the rooms. an easy-care townhouse.

Then they drove past a for-sale sign on Linden Hall Road above Cedar They called in Rick Stine, a contractor who Run Creek and decided to take a look. had done work for Linda’s parents, Joe and Betty Dating to 1835, the Federal-style home was Carroll, at their nearby Mount Nittany Winery, beautiful on the outside — a stately brick home where Steve is now business manager and Linda first occupied long ago by the Schall family. handles marketing.

Inside was another story.

“Overall, the house was in excellent shape “When you opened the door, the smell was for as old as it is,” Stine says. That was the so strong that most people would turn and walk deciding vote. The Weavers bought the home away,” Steve recalls. The basement had taken on in November 2013 and hired Stine as general water, outdated wallpaper was everywhere, and contractor for the renovations. the landscaping was overgrown. “Linda liked the The nineteenth-century house represented a property, and I said ‘No way,’ ” Steve says. major change for the Weavers, who had lived 8 - T&G • Home 2016

(Above) The summer kitchen’s massive fireplace was caving in. (Left) An Amish-built antique dry sink fits well with the style of the small building behind the house.

in an “ultracontemporary” home in Upper St. added later, the second one around the 1940s.

Today, the house features four bedrooms and Clair. Restoring and preserving the history of two and a half baths, plus living room, den, the Linden Hall house was important to the formal dining room, large kitchen, and seven couple. That meant peeling away layers of fireplaces (two of them in the living room). wallpaper, refinishing pine floors, and adding details, from doorknobs to chandeliers, in The front staircase rises from the entry foyer and includes the original bannister with keeping with the original time period. carved spindles and curved wood handrail; Despite Steve’s “no way” first impression of a second, narrower staircase leads from the the house, it was structurally sound, and the kitchen to the guest bedroom. wiring and plumbing had been updated over the years, so most of the needed renovations The only “major” change that the Weavers made in the layout of the house was to flip were on the surface.

“The fundamentals were here,” Linda the placement of the shower and toilet in one bathroom. This change facilitated a totally says. “It was all really just cosmetic, and we glass-enclosed shower with an angled door needed to see beyond that.”

Still, “cosmetic” changes took plenty of that lends a more open feeling to the room.

One upstairs bathroom floor also needed to time. Just removing the wallpaper took two weeks, Stine says. bethe leveled, since it sloped downward about Pate designed home’s custom iron stairway railings.

2 inches over the 6-foot length — not The original 1835 house is in the center of the building, and wings to either side were surprising for a home built in the 1800s, 2016 Home • T&G - 9

Stine says. In the master bathroom, out went the ’50s-style double vanity with blue countertop, and in came two pedestal sinks that Linda felt were more like what would have been installed when indoor plumbing was first added to the home.

A previous owner had already “tastefully” added closets — not usually featured in nineteenth-century American architecture — so the bedroom layout did not need to be revised, Linda notes. In the kitchen, the exposed ceiling beams and brick floor just needed to be refinished, although the Weavers moved the wood-burning stove from the side of the room into the fireplace.

Outside, the garage building had caved in, requiring new construction.

“Most of the surprises were in our favor,” says Linda. For example, the Weavers had thought they would need to install French drains in the basement, but it turned out that the standing water was caused by debris-filled gutters, and a simple gutter cleaning took care of the problem.

The carved handrail and banister on the front staircase are still the original, but the wallpaper is gone.

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During the renovations, the couple tried to keep the history of the home in mind.

For example, in rebuilding three of the fireplace hearths, they matched the flagstone used in the dining room. They restored all the original six-over-nine pane windows, although some panes had to be replaced.

The couple already owned some antique furniture used in their Pittsburgh home and added new pieces. Linda became a master of eBay and Etsy, searching for antique and reproduction door hardware, a chandelier, and other pieces to coordinate with the remaining originals. The mirrors in the front room came from the old Atherton Hall on Penn State’s University Park campus, adding personal significance, since Linda’s mother had lived there during her student days.

The Weavers brought in State College landscape architect Derek Kalp to design a plan for the central part of the 12-acre property.

“I’d admired that house and property for many years,” he says. “It was a treat to be

able to work on such a unique property.

They were really interested in bringing it back to its original character.”

Kalp designed a portico for the front entrance to conservatively highlight the doorway — more in keeping with the home’s architecture than the large terrace that had been added in the mid-twentieth century.

A primary focus outdoors is the backyard patio. The back of the house is L-shaped, so the two walls and a historic summer kitchen help to define a private courtyard that is hidden from the road but still has wonderful views and integrated plantings, Kalp says.

“We tried to create an outdoor living room that people feel comfortable in,” he says. “It was a matter of doing some things that felt historically appropriate but needing to balance that with the needs of a modern family and entertainment space.”

The summer kitchen behind the home is a favorite feature of the Weavers, although before the restoration, the building had leaned at an angle and the fireplace was caving in.

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– Steve & Linda Weaver

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point of the small building is a huge stone fireplace where cooking had taken place during warmer months, in the days before air conditioning.

The couple is moved into the house they have christened “Linden Vale,” but already are thinking about future projects, such as adding open-hearth cooking in the summer kitchen and figuring out what to do with the plank-floored, brick-walled open space at the top of the house, accessed by a staircase from the guest bedroom.

Always, however, their goal is to add function while preserving history — the “nuts and bolts” of the house, Linda says.

They see themselves as custodians of the property and feel fortunate to have been able to preserve it for current and future generations. T&G

Period pieces and natural sunlight fill the main entry of Linda Weaver’s home.

“I couldn’t even walk in there,” Linda says. “It was just a mess.”

At first, the couple thought they would have to rebuild the summer kitchen’s roof to use the small building for backyard entertaining, but an Amish contractor was able to salvage the frame and most of the weathered, whitewashed wood. A focal

Tracey M. Dooms is a freelance writer in State College and a special-projects editor for Town&Gown.

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Home Town&Gown’s

Behind Old Walls Former monastery presents renovation challenges

By Tracey M. Dooms • Photos by Darren Andrew Weimert

2016 Home • T&G - 13

Christopher Jones relaxes in the living room, which centers around the inglenook fireplace and original exposed ceiling beams.

While some may get lucky with a renovation of a historic home — no unpleasant surprises lurking behind walls — Christopher and Shannon Jones had the opposite experience with their 90-year-old Holmes-Foster house, learning partway through the project that they would need to replace all the wiring and most of the plumbing.

“We were surprised, but anytime you open up a house this old it’s to be expected,” Christopher says. “If you think a project like this is going to take three months, double it.”

“And double the budget,” Shannon adds.

Back in 1925, J.B. Heberling built the Tudor Revival house at 531 West Fairmount Avenue in State College for his daughter, Arwille, to live in with her friends while they were attending Penn State. For several decades, it essentially operated as a boarding house. In the 1960s, the Monastery of Saint Vincent Arch Abbey in Latrobe bought the house to serve as a State College home for Benedictine monks.

Early last year, the Joneses received a call from their real estate agent, who told them “some ridiculously huge house” was for sale. Christopher 14 - T&G • Home 2016

and Shannon had just added on to their Greentree home to create more space for their seven children (now ages 2 to 17), but they had had their eye on the three-story abbey for years (when the Suzanne Pohland Paterno Catholic Student Faith Center opened in 2012, they had hoped that the monks might move there and give up the Fairmount home, to no avail). The Joneses jumped at the chance to live within walking distance of downtown and Christopher’s office at Morgan Stanley and still be close to Welch Pool and State College Area High School.

“We bought it really quickly, on the fly,” Shannon says. “We thought it wouldn’t be that hard to renovate.”

Christopher agrees: “The house was dated, but it was maintained very well.”

The house was divided into apartment-style spaces, with common areas and kitchens on every floor. In addition to updating the wiring and plumbing, the Joneses (who acted as their own general contractor) removed many interior walls and doors, as well as several layers of flooring and carpeting. They also tore down the carpeting

(Clockwise, from bottom left) The front entry spiral staircase before and after renovations.

The renovated kitchen centers around a large island and features many updates and upgrades from the previous version.

that had been glued on some of the plaster walls, perhaps to muffle sounds for meditation by the monks. They removed enough building materials and furnishings to fill 12 dumpsters, much of the debris tossed out of second-floor windows.

“We realized spiral staircases are really pretty until you have to move things that are really heavy,” Christopher says.

Demolition took six weeks.

The original character of the home shines through in things such as the wood-paneled inglenook fireplace with pew-style built-in seating on either side and the exposed beams overhead, both in the front room. New hardwood floors were chosen to match the remaining old boards. The

wooden mail slots used by previous tenants still hang on the entryway wall, and the spiral staircase to the second floor features the original railing.

Where some second-floor interior doors were removed, archways were added in keeping with the 1920s style. Two side-by-side half baths with tiny corner sinks are a quirky reminder of the building’s boarding-house days. The windows are all original, although a few panes had to be replaced — a casualty of throwing debris during demolition.

The Joneses had the existing cast iron bathtubs reglazed, and they installed air conditioning throughout the house. In the kitchen, removal of a dividing wall opened the space into adjacent areas for more of a great-room feel. They added a large 2016 Home • T&G - 15

island, a cushioned window seat over the radiator, Carrara marble countertops, and new appliances.

The double-door refrigerator — sized for a family of nine — is actually two standard refrigerators placed side by side surrounded by trim, to give a single-unit appearance.

The couple’s master bedroom used to be a second-floor community living room and retains the wood-burning fireplace. They turned the adjoining dining room into what Christopher calls the “master closet to beat all master closets.”

Cabinets in the adjacent laundry room are the originals and are reproduced in the updated kitchen downstairs. The master bathroom represents the “biggest transformation,” according to Christopher, dominated by an oversized glass-walled shower.

The Joneses advise any homeowners serving as their own general contractor to get bids for every subcontracting job and to understand the scope of the work. For example, they invited about a dozen contractors to inspect the house and bid on the air-conditioning job before they found someone who could install it without placing big mechanical boxes outside.

“Make sure you check references,” Christopher says,

noting that he and his wife were pleased with all the people they had hired. “At the end of the day, you just have to feel comfortable with who’s doing the work.”

Being in charge of renovation meant that Shannon rode her bike to the site almost every day, and the kids helped with demolition and other nonskilled jobs.

The renovation budget for the West Fairmount house grew as the project progressed. Some cost increases were due to surprises along the way, such as needing to replace the wiring. The Joneses added other budget items themselves, such as floor heating in the bathrooms.

By early spring, the Jones family had partially moved into the renovated house, with its 10 bedrooms and eight baths. After all that work, though, they still weren’t sure if they would complete the move or stay in their Greentree house. With seven children, most of them old enough to have neighborhood friends and plenty of activities, reaching a final decision will take time.

Shannon says, “We’ll see how it goes.” T&G Tracey M. Dooms is a freelance writer in State College and a special-projects editor for Town&Gown.

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Home Town&Gown’s

Real Estate Report

Local market sees plenty of changes in 2016

By Scot Chambers

Real estate in Central Pennsylvania in 2016 is going to be different than what we have seen in the past few years, and in the first third of this year we have clear evidence of this. Residential listings throughout Centre County have been lower than usual. By comparison, the number of residential sales for 2016 are up. Those factors are clear indications that we are in a seller’s market, where demand exceeds the supply. These conditions will help to push home prices higher on average.

Lenders have become more willing to extend credit to qualified buyers, and interest rates continue to be at very low levels as the economy continues to stabilize. These factors will only increase the number of potential buyers in the marketplace, putting further pressure on sale prices.

These trends seem to be true not only in this area but also across much of the country. The properly priced and prepared property will sell quickly, as has been demonstrated in a reduction in the number of days on the market for a typical home in this area.

Another interesting component of the real estate market that is showing up in the Centre Region, as well as other areas in the country, is an increased demand for more efficient homes, often referred to as Green or High Performance Housing. As more people realize that such housing can reduce operating costs as well as improve the quality of life within the home and their community, the demand for both new 18 - T&G • Home 2016

Home sales in Centre County are off to a strong start in 2016.

construction and renovations of existing homes to incorporate new technologies and strategies has increased significantly.

Much of the demand for highperformance housing is being driven by the younger buyers in the marketplace. Many of the young professionals and families understand that such an approach will save them money in the long run, add value to their homes, and contribute to a better quality of life for them and their community.

In talking with contractors, builders, and designers, there is increased demand in the areas of more efficient HVAC systems, improved insulation, and the use of solar technologies. In new building as well as reconstruction there is an increasing interest in more open floor plans to improve air flow, maximize natural lighting, and use of passive solar design.

The real estate market in the Centre Region continues to reflect the high quality of life we enjoy in Central Pennsylvania.

2016 looks to be a very good year for selling, buying, and investing in real estate, with indications that values as well as interest rates will continue to increase over time.

The markets are changing quickly. Since

real estate is variable from one area to another, it is advisable to work with a local realtor and other professionals to provide you with accurate and current information so you can make the best decision to meet your needs and goals. T&G Scot Chambers is a long time resident of Central Pennsylvania and a realtor with Gambone Songer & Associates, with certifications in GREEN, ABR, and SRES. He specializes in residential, land, and recreational properties.

Regardless of what you are looking for, give me a call; homes, land or cabins, I’ve got it all.

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2016 Home • T&G - 19

Home Town&Gown’s

Fine Line Homes(2)

Cleaning Up Mudrooms

Home design continues to evolve with rear-entrance foyers on steroids

By Paul Foresman Research by Recon Analytics suggests that if your home has an attached garage, you go in and out of your home using the door between the home and the garage 92 percent of the time, rather than using the front entry door. Decades ago, the popularity of attached garages coupled with buyer preferences for main-floor laundry areas, as opposed to a basement laundry, ushered in the “laundry/mudroom” — a modest transition space between the garage and your living space, which conveniently doubled as the laundry room.

But do you really want to arrive home after a long day to be greeted by piles of laundry waiting to be folded, or worse yet, needing to be washed? That’ll make your blood pressure go up!

Research shows that homeowners use the door between their home and the garage 92 percent of the time, rather than the front entry door.

That laundry/mudroom has evolved into today’s welcoming rear foyer and receives at least as much design attention as the front entry foyer. It’s all about livability, including coat storage and perhaps a bench for removing shoes, with storage underneath.

Want to de-stress your mornings? Add lockers in the rear foyer for each of your children. That way, at 7:15 in the morning, you won’t hear, “Mom … Dad … have you 20 - T&G • Home 2016

Some rear foyers include a drop zone space that includes a place to put keys, laptops, and the mail, along with lockers where kids can put their books and backpacks.

seen my [gym clothes/science project/lunch money/backpack…]?” Everything’s in their locker, on the way out.

Then there’s the drop zone, one of today’s hottest amenities. Coming home after a long day, you need a place for your keys, the mail, and your tablet or laptop.

Same goes for your kiddos’ school books.

The drop zone is the most important thing for liberating your kitchen island and counters from clutter! Your laundry room can be located elsewhere.

Even the family dog is being accommodated in rear-foyer design. In households where pets rule, pet centers are being incorporated into rear-foyer designs, complete with storage for pet foods and supplies, built-in kennels, and even wash stations! That pet shower actually addresses many issues, from doubling as a wheelchair wash-off station to potting and gardening.

If you have small pets, consider raising the shower pan to counter height.

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A pet center can include a pet shower to clean your pets after they’ve been playing outside.

Pets get dirty and don’t ask permission before running through the house with muddy paws. And you probably don’t want to trek past the dirty laundry, being reminded of all that work every time you arrive home. Insist upon a rear foyer in your new home! T&G Paul Foresman is vice president for Design Basics, one of America’s largest residential design firms. Design Basics has partnered with Fine Line Homes as the exclusive Woman Centric builder in Central and Northeast Pennsylvania and Southern New York.

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Home Town&Gown’s

Far More than Farm-to-Fork

Re Farm Café looks to become groundbreaking restaurant in sustainability

By Kate Gregory RE Farm Café, a groundbreaking farm-to-fork restaurant and sustainable grange, will not only tempt the palates of its visitors with fresh, local, creative cuisine, but it also will offer insight into how we can embrace sustainable farming, cooking, and building practices in our own lives.

Owners Duke and Monica Gastiger have already incorporated sustainable practices into their daily operations at Spats Café, including responsible food sourcing and energy-reduction strategies. The Gastigers are actively seeking a location for this innovative community-building café.

As a way of measuring the new restaurant’s environmental footprint, RE Farm Café is seeking certification through a globally recognized building performance standard known as “The Living Building Challenge,” or LBC. RE Farm Café is poised to be the first restaurant internationally to meet the requirements of LBC. LBC conceptualizes buildings as dynamic systems, using the life cycle of a flower as an analogy. Seven building performance categories called “petals” are highlighted within the standard.

These petals are site, water, energy, health,

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A rendering of the RE Farm Café.

materials, equity, and beauty. Within each petal there are subcategories, or “imperatives,” that outline how certified buildings interact with their environments and the people who visit them. RE Farm Café will need to be net-zero water, netzero energy, and be composed of chemical-free, reclaimed, and locally sourced materials.

RE Farm Café will achieve net-zero requirements of LBC with a thermally robust building envelope, ultraefficient building systems, passive solar-design considerations, onsite solar renewable energy production, and onsite wetland wastewater treatment. The kitchen will contain highly efficient induction-cooking equipment that uses electromagnetic direct heat transfer.

RE Farm Café will be more than a farmto-fork restaurant. It will be a model for sustainability and inspiration for how we can all contribute to a more sustainable future. T&G For more information on RE Farm Café, visit refarmcafe.com.

Kate Gregory is an energy and sustainability analyst at Envinity Inc.

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Home Town&Gown’s

Small Changes Make Big Results

Some simple DIY projects can improve your landscape From Metzler Forest Products Let’s face it, we all want to fix up the interior of our house. Maybe it’s to impress our friends or just to be able to entertain without feeling like our house is a disaster or outdated. We spend hundreds of dollars on cleaning supplies, the latest vacuum cleaner, and countless hours cleaning and organizing the insides of our homes.

What about the outside?

Tackling outside projects can seem like a daunting task, but not all outside projects are hard. Small changes to the landscape around your home can change the appearance in a big way. Let’s start with some simple DIY weekend projects that can make your house stand out in your neighborhood without breaking your back or your budget.

It’s springtime, the first step is to survey the damage that winter has caused to your lawn, trees, shrubs, and flower beds. The most common damage that you will find in your lawn are stones and bare spots. These are usually caused by snowplows. Spend time picking up sticks and raking the stones out of your lawn. Fix the bare spots by adding a small amount of topsoil and sprinkling a coating of grass seed on top.

As a covering, add a light layer of straw or organic compost on top. These items can be bought in bulk or small bags from your local landscape center. The only tools that are needed are your common garden shovel and a yard rake. Another option is to feed your lawn with fertilizer. In order to maintain a healthy lawn, add fertilizer in the spring before a rain so it can be washed into the lawn.

26 - T&G • Home 2016

Clean landscaping lines and a fresh layer of bark mulch can do wonders for your landscape’s appearance. Using a garden shovel or edging machine (if available), follow the edges of your flower beds or driveway by cutting away a small amount of sod, creating a clean line of separation between your lawn and flower beds. Visit your local landscape center to pick a bark mulch that accents your house. The higher the bark content, the better the mulch. If you do not have a truck, most landscape centers sell bagged mulch or can deliver to your home. Just that small weekend project will make your house stand out and make it the talk of the neighborhood.

Another simple step to change the appearance of your landscape is to take out overgrown shrubs and add a few new small shrubs in their place. Over time, shrubs can be neglected and soon become overgrown and unmanageable. By removing overgrown shrubs, you will open up space to plant new, smaller shrubs. This makes a

Left, sprinkling grass seed can help take care of the bare spots in your lawn. Above, clean landscaping lines improve your home’s outside appearance.

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dramatic change to your landscape.

If you are unsure of what to plant, a great resource is your local landscape center. Landscape centers specialize in trees, shrubs, and other nursery stock. They are familiar with what types of plants are better for small areas and shady spots and what plants do better in dry or wet areas.

They can help guide you in your purchase and tell you how to care for your new landscape.

With these simple springtime DIY changes to the outside of your home, you will be able to sit back and enjoy entertaining your friends and family all summer long. T&G

Bark mulch helps accent your home’s appearance.

28 - T&G • Home 2016

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Home Town&Gown’s

Power Up When the Power Is Out

Backup generators help keep your home running during outages From Miller Electric Most people don’t worry about electricity until it’s suddenly gone. There are many reasons for getting a backup generator for your family home. One of which is having the peace of mind to power through an outage, keeping things such as the refrigerator and well and sump pumps operating without interruption.

Homeowners with home offices and those with health-related issues, such as keeping an oxygen tank running, can all benefit from having a backup generator, as well.

Depending on your family’s needs, there are manual and automatic generator systems. Manual generators are portable, gasoline fueled, and need to be manually operated to transfer electricity to your home. Portable generators let you take your electricity where you need it most, whether it’s a tailgate party or a construction site.

An automatic generator is stationary, runs on natural gas or propane, and sits outside, similar to a central airconditioning unit. Within seconds of an outage, your generator prepares to restore your home’s power. The automatic transfer switch sends generator power right to your home’s electrical panel, and it will continue until utility power returns.

Because it does this automatically, it will operate whether you’re home or away.

For more than 20 years, Generac is the market leader of the home backup generator and supplies 80 percent of residential air-cooled generator systems, offering a complete range of sizes and options. Engineered and manufactured in 30 - T&G • Home 2016

Having a backup generator can give homeowners peace of mind that they’ll have power even if there is an outage.

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the United States, it offers a 10-year parts and labor warranty.

Depending on the size and your power needs, the price for a backup generator can range between $4,000 and $9,000.

When you are in the market for a generator, here are a few questions to consider during a consultation: • What size is your electrical service?

• Who is your power company?

• Do you have natural gas or propane at your home?

• What is your primary heat source?

• How any rooms do you want the generator to power, or do you want your whole house?

• How many refrigerators/freezers/dryer/ range?

• Do you have a hot tub or other equipment that will require electricity?

T&G Miller Electric in Boalsburg provides free in-home estimates and consultations. Contact Miller Electric at (814) 466-5110 or visit millerelectricltd.com.

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Home Town&Gown’s

Start Them Off Trendy!

Four nursery-design trends you’ll love now — and later From Brandpoint When you’re decorating a nursery, it makes sense to design a room that pleases you as much as it will thrill your little one — after all, you’ll be spending as much time in the room as your baby, if not more!

You crave a room that you can love for its beauty and functionality, but you also want it to be trendy and fun. Here are four nursery-design trends that can help you create a room that fits your design tastes and will thrill your little one.

Whimsical woodlands

An earthy trend is bringing the great outdoors into nursery design. A woodland theme in a nursery is the perfect stepping stone to get imaginations spinning and curiosity for nature growing. There is a warmth and coziness that comes from nature-inspired decor. Think fuzzy animal mobiles, natural wooden accents, and a whimsical birch tree wall mural from Murals Your Way to create a space where you’re little one will feel calm and peaceful.

Birch not your thing? There are thousands of nursery-friendly options to choose from, or upload your own image to create a one-of-akind space for your one-of-a-kind bundle.

Pastels are back

Soft colors and baby’s nursery go together like peas and carrots, so it’s no surprise that pastels are back and better than ever! On the heels of Pantone’s announcement of not one, but two pastels, rose quartz and serenity, as colors of the year, this trend is legit. These shades add a slight twist on the traditional pink and blue: Rose quartz is a softer pink with a hint of peach, and serenity is a periwinkle blue with shades of lavender pushing through. Other popular pastels are lilac, lemon drop, and pale green.

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From whimsical woodlands to creative cribs, a nursery can serve its function and also look trendy.

Creative cribs

Traditional nursery furniture has long included a crib, changing table, and a rocking chair where parents can sit for those late-night feedings. Today, parents are thinking outside the crib when choosing furnishings for their baby’s room. Cribs can be a design statement instead of just a place where baby sleeps. From minimalist cribs with slender railings that evoke a graceful, modern air, to acrylic cribs that afford parents a completely unobstructed view of their little ones, parents are branching out from traditional wood-frame cribs. You also can find oval and round cribs, compact and portable bassinets that can go from baby’s room to fitting neatly next to adult beds, and cribs that convert into toddler beds when your baby becomes a child.

Gender-neutral nursery

He or she, what will it be? If you’re planning to be surprised by your baby’s gender, design a gender-neutral nursery that works for either a boy or a girl. Moving away from the standard yellow or green for “surprise” babies, start with a color palette using subtle tones, such as heather gray, beige, and rich charcoal.

To avoid “boring,” layer in lots of texture and organic materials such as natural wood furniture, linen curtains, fluffy pillows, and soft rugs. A plus with this trend is that you can pair this gender-neutral palette with accessories of any color, should you want to add in a pale pink or navy blue blanket after the baby’s arrival. T&G

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Home Town&Gown’s

Ready to Rev Up

Five steps to get your mower prepared for the season From Brandpoint After months of winter (even some snow in April!), warmer weather is finally here.

It’s time to head to the lake, spend time on the deck, or take your kids to the park. Yes, you’re ready for the season — but is your lawn mower?

One of the season’s most important tools has been hibernating through the winter, and it will need a helping hand to get ready. So before you fire it up for the first cuts of the season, make sure you follow these important mower-maintenance tips.

1. Replace any existing gas. Did you run your mower out of gas or add fuel stabilizer last fall? If you didn’t, stored fuel is likely to break down over the winter months and can go bad in as little as 30 days — making your mower hard or impossible to start in the spring. To protect your mower, make sure you fill it with fresh fuel from the gas station and make sure it doesn’t have too much ethanol, as most mowers can accept only up to a 10 percent ethanol blend (E10).

2. Monitor the oil levels. It’s a new season and your mower deserves new oil.

Check the engine’s existing oil level, you’ll likely find it’s low. If it is, add oil as appropriate. Operating a mower with too little oil can burn out your engine.

At the same time, however, you want to avoid overfilling the oil level. Consult your owner’s manual for the right oil type and amount for your engine. And as your changing the oil, this also is a great time to inspect and possibly replace your oil filter.

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3. Focus on the spark plug. Inspect the area around your mower’s spark plug to make sure no dirt or other debris will enter the cylinder once the plug is removed.

Once you’re satisfied the area is clean, use a socket wrench to remove the plug and inspect it for any damage or carbon deposits. These deposits will appear as a black coating. If the plug appears to be worn or has been used for several mowing seasons, replace it.

4. Clean the air filter. A mower’s air filter collects a significant amount of dirt, dust, and other debris over a typical cutting season, so it’s good to start the year with a clean one. Consult your owner’s manual to determine which filter is right for your mower and to learn how to make this simple replacement properly.

5. Adjust the blade. When performing your spring maintenance, this also is a good opportunity to inspect your mower’s blade. Look for cracks, nicks, bends, or any other signs of damage. If you find these, replace the blade. Also, if the edge is dull, the blade should be sharpened.

If you feel uncomfortable sharpening the blade yourself, take it to your local hardware store or small engine shop. For safety, always unplug the spark plug when inspecting the blade. T&G

Taking care of your lawn mower before mowing season begins can make all the difference in how your lawn looks.

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Home Town&Gown’s

Fantastic Furnishings

Four simple, smart furniturearrangement tips for decorating your first home From Brandpoint Buying your first home? Congratulations!

Now you get the pleasure of decorating and deciding where everything should go in your new residence. But arranging furniture to optimize room layout in a home can be very different from placing furniture in an apartment. You have a lot more to consider than just deciding where to put your sofa or which wall to nestle your bed against.

“Smart furniture placement can make a well-laid-out room even more appealing and functional,” says Susan Yoder, a designer for manufactured home builder Clayton Homes.

“Having so much space to work with can be intimidating, so it’s important to put some thought into how you’ll arrange things ahead of time.”

Yoder offers tips for optimizing room layout.

Plan the purpose of your room The design features of your room will heavily influence the arrangement of furnishings and artwork, but you also need to consider how you’ll be using the room. Will your living room be where the family gathers to watch TV and movies? A spot for family meetings and conversations with guests? Somewhere you’ll go to relax quietly with a good book? All those things or none of them?

Plan your room layout to accommodate the different uses to which you’ll put the room. One way to do this is to create zones for different purposes. For example, a sofa and some chairs might face the TV while a small table and wing chair in a corner could be perfect for quiet reading.

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Find your focal point Every room should have a focal point, that spot that automatically draws the eye as soon as you walk into the room. In a living room, this may be a fireplace, picture window, or a great view of the interior. The layout of furnishings in the room should flow toward the focal point without blocking it from your view when you enter the room.

If your room doesn’t have a focal point incorporated into the design, you can create one in a number of ways. Many people use a large TV as a focal point in living rooms (and that’s fine), but you also could paint one wall in an accent color, hang a large eye-catching piece of artwork, or use a striking piece of furniture.

Tailor for traffic flow Modern floor plans tend to be very open in the current market. Even in older homes, where rooms may be more separated from each other, living areas will typically have more than one doorway. It’s important to keep ease of movement in mind when you’re arranging your furniture.

Avoid blocking natural traffic patterns, such as the line from door to door or the space between areas such as kitchens and breakfast nooks.

Never obstruct a door or window by placing a piece of furniture in front of it — unless the piece is short enough that it doesn’t block the full window. Generally, straight lines facilitate movement, so imagine straight paths throughout your rooms and place furniture accordingly.

Keep scale in mind Finally, a word about scale — ensure the size of your furnishings matches the size of your room. A large sectional sofa or kingsized four-poster bed will overpower a small room and leave you little space to move around in. Likewise, too many pieces in a snug space will make the room feel even smaller and cluttered. Conversely, a large, open room can withstand the presence of some larger furnishings, whereas very small pieces will look lost in a big space.

“Decorating your new home is one of the great joys of home ownership,” Yoder says. “With a little thought and planning it’s possible to create a room layout that really works for your lifestyle and the room’s design.” T&G

Having the right-sized furniture in the right place can make the rooms of any home more appealing.

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Directions: Milroy Exit off Route 322, turn right at light, 1 mile on right, beside Honey Creek Inn. 2016 Home • T&G - 39

Home Town&Gown’s

Spring Cleaning Is in the Air

Six areas to repair, replace, and refresh From Brandpoint Spring is one of the most popular times of year to clean up your home inside and out, make renovations, and take steps to ensure it operates efficiently for the rest of the year. But after the long winter months, the list of projects can pile up. This year, focus on six key areas to repair, replace, and refresh around your house now — to avoid spending more time and money later.

1. Repair your roof and gutters.

Inspect the roof to check for loose or cracked shingles. Also, be sure to look at indoor ceilings for any signs of water leakage and get started on repairs before more damage occurs. Take a look at the gutters to see if there are areas in need of repair, as well, and tackle them now before there’s too much rain.

2. Repair and reseal your deck.

Remove debris and sweep the deck clean.

Fix broken or bent boards and pushed up nails. Choose a cleanser formulated for your deck surface — whether for wood or composite — and apply new coats of sealer and stain. A local home-improvement center can advise you on formulations for your particular needs.

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Having a home that’s been refreshed and repaired after spring cleaning can bring a smile to anyone’s face.

3. Replace your furnace. As you make home upgrades, this also is a good time to upgrade your furnace for greater home comfort and lower energy bills.

4. Replace windows and doors.

Older windows can let unwanted air and moisture into your home. Installing newer, more efficient models will not only save money on cooling in summer and heating in winter, but they also can bring the look of your home up to date. Replacing your front door in a great color and style also can add to your home’s efficiency and instantly add curb appeal.

5. Refresh with paint. There’s nothing like a new coat of paint to transform and update the look of a home. It’s also one of the easiest and most economical homeimprovement projects you can undertake.

Check out your local paint store for ideas and suggestions to help you visualize your home in fresh new colors.

6. Refresh your indoor air. The spring and fall months can trigger allergies, so consider adding an indoor air cleaner.

Lastly, renew your commitment to home maintenance by creating a yearly schedule of home projects. Mark your calendar with target dates to remind yourself to complete key tasks — including what to focus on for the next season, before the colder months arrive. T&G

After a harsh winter, it’s important to apply new coats of sealer and stain to a deck.

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Home Town&Gown’s

Go Time for Grilling

From hot trends to creative dishes, it’s the season to take the cooking outdoors Chris Combs has been a sales representative for Pennwood Home and Hearth for 15 years. During his 23 years of working in the grilling and hearth industry, he has competed in barbecue competitions and hosted grilling demonstrations.

As people are getting ready to fire up their grills for the first time this season, he took some time to discuss trends, common mistakes, and that perfect meal done on the grill.

T&G: Are there any recent trends to outdoor cooking that consumers should know about?

Combs: I would have to say one of the hottest items would be the pellet grills. Grilled food just tastes so good when done over wood, and the pellet grills give you the convenience of cooking with gas but they add the flavor of cooking with wood.

T&G: What should people who are looking to buy a new grill consider before making a purchase?

Combs: They would first want to decide on what type of fuel they want to cook with and their style of grilling. There are so many options today for the consumer — like lump charcoal, gas, pellet, or combo units of gas and charcoal. The budget and features that they are looking for would be next. The grills today are built for all different budgets and features. You can find ones that are designed to last two to four years and some that are built to last 10 to 20 years with many options.

T&G: For someone who is just beginning to get into outdoor grilling/cooking, what do you recommend in terms of types of foods they should try?

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Grilling can be as simple as hot dogs and hamburgers or something creative, such as baking and adding smoke flavor.

Combs: When someone is just starting to grill or when they purchase a new unit that they aren’t familiar with yet it is good to always start with some simple things. You want to get to know how the grill does with different temperatures. I would suggest foods like hot dogs, hamburgers, mushrooms, and zucchini or some other vegetables.

T&G: What are some creative things people can do if they want to try something different?

Combs: There are lots of different things you can do, but a few of them would be to try baking, vegetables, and adding some smoke flavor. The baking can be a lot of fun on the grill, but it will require using a baking stone, and not all grills do very well at that due to the design of the grill. I hear from a lot of people that they only grill the meats outside and the vegetables are always done inside. Vegetables take on a new flavor when done on the grill. There are many smoke boxes or smoking tubes designed to be used with gas grills to add a hint of smoke flavor to your grilled food.

T&G: What are some common mistakes people make when they do outdoor cooking?

Combs: I would have to say the top mistakes that I see when grilling is either undercooking or overcooking the food. The overcooking will give you a hard, dried out piece of meat that isn’t very tasteful. The concern is when you undercook the food you run the chance of making someone sick, along with having food that isn’t very tasteful. I would suggest the use of a good thermometer to make sure the meats you are grilling are cooked to the proper doneness.

T&G: If you had your perfect outdoor dinner, what would it be?

Combs: That is a tough question for me because I enjoy so many different things on the grill. I would have to say my favorite meal prepared completely on the grill would be to start with jumbo shrimp grilled on the Salt Rox. The main meal would be a baked sweet potato, grilled asparagus, a 1-inch thick rib eye seared on cast iron grates, followed by a peach cobbler baked on the grill for dessert. T&G

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Home Town&Gown’s

Recipe for Shrimp on the Rox

From Pennwood Home and Hearth Ingredients • 1 Salt Rox Blox: 8”x12” or 8”x8” • 3 pounds large shrimp, peeled and deveined • 1 cup butter • 1/3 cup olive oil • 1⁄4 cup orange juice • 6-8 cloves garlic, minced • 2 tbs. dry white wine • 2 tbs. fresh flat leaf parsley, chopped • 1 tbs. fresh basil, finely chopped • 1⁄4 tsp. salt • 1/8 tsp. black pepper • skewers

Cooking Directions: 1. Place shrimp in a large bowl.

2. Combine remaining ingredients in a separate bowl and mix well.

3. Pour half of the sauce onto shrimp. Toss to coat, cover, and place in refrigerator for 30-60 minutes.

4. Preheat Primo to 400 degrees with Salt Rox Blox in place. Heat reserved half of the sauce in a pan on low heat until warm.

5. Put shrimp onto skewers. Try to fit about 5 on each skewer.

6. Place shrimp on Salt Rox Blox and cook for 2-3 minutes per side. When shrimp no longer looks translucent, remove from heat.

7. Pour heated sauce over top, and serve. T&G

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