I FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
(Los Angeles – June 2011) South Bay remodeler Custom Design & Construction has been honored for the 15th time in 10 years with a Chrysalis Award. This prestigious award is a national award judged by the American Institute of Building Design and by the editors from Better Homes & Gardens and Southern Living Magazines. The winning project was selected from over 400 entries. The entries were judged on overall design, the creative use of space and materials, and the degree to which the project enhanced the original structure.
Custom Design & Construction was the winner in the Basement Remodel category for the entire Western Region of the U.S. Designed by Arielle Chesler, the Hermosa Beach basement was transformed by knocking out an outdated, unused mechanical room and creating an entertainment center complete with a fireplace and wet bar. The homeowner, Soledad Austin and Marshall Silberberg say it went from a useless, worthless area to a beautifully functional family room. He added, “The people who have been to this house before and come now are amazed and in awe by the beauty and quality of construction. We are now going to have them come back for the master suite and bathroom. We started on the journey down in this family area and we are basically having CD&C redo the entire inside of this house. It has been a wonderful process and a relationship that has benefited us. I can’t say enough to endorse the quality of their work, the professionalism, and they are just really nice people that do a really nice job.”
Custom Design & Construction has won numerous national recognitions, including such prestigious awards as twice named Chrysalis Remodeler of the Year, three-time winner of California Remodeler of the Year, eight-time Qualified remodeler Top 500 recipient, and Chrysalis Project of the Year, Kitchen of the Year, Bathroom of the Year.
Custom Design & Construction is celebrating 25 years in business and is opening a Home Design Center in El Segundo later this summer. View the winning basement on Facebook or YouTube or visit www.remodelwithus.com.
Angie talks about the best and worse remodeling choices and when and how to hire a remodeler. Watch the clip:http://youtu.be/5-MfvHAy-ws
More than 100 designers who are members of the National Kitchen & Bath Association, and have designed kitchens or bathrooms during the last three months of 2010, participated in an NKBA survey to reveal design trends in the marketplace for 2011. The results of this survey suggest there will be some changes in the direction that kitchen and bath styles will take this year. Presented here are the 11 kitchen and bathroom trends that are poised to take hold in 2011. These are overall trends across the United States and Canada; they won’t necessarily appear in all geographic areas.
Shake It Up
The Shaker style began a rise in popularity in 2009 and gained momentum in 2010. By the end of the year, Shaker has supplanted Contemporary as the second most popular style used by NKBA member designers. While Traditional remains the most popular style, having been used by 76% of designers surveyed over that last three months of 2010, that's a slight drop from the previous year. Meanwhile, the percent of respondents who designed contemporary kitchens fell to 48%, while Shaker rose to 55%. Cottage was the only other style to garner at least 20% of the market, as it registered at 21%.
Shown above are shaker style cabinets from O'Neil Cabinets.
Photo credit: Courtesy of O'Neil Cabinets
Maple Cabinetry
As 2010 began, cherry was specified by more NKBA member designers for use in kitchen cabinetry that any other wood. NKBA research showed that 78% of designers used cherry in the past three months of the year, compared to just 64% for maple. This year, however, those numbers are nearly reversed, as cherry has fallen to 71%, while maple has risen to 76%. The only other type of wood to be used by at least 20% of designers surveyed over the last three months of 2010 was Alder, which came in at 28%, but that represents a sharp decline from the previous year, when Alder was used by 39% of surveyed NKBA designers.
Shown above, the maple kitchen in KraftMaid's Modern Farmhouse style features the new Garrison raised panel door style in two new painted finishes - mushroom and sage.
Photo credit: Courtesy of KraftMaid Cabinetry
Dark Finishes
Dark natural finishes overtook medium natural, glazed, and white painted finishes to become the most specified type of finish toward the end of 2010. While medium natural fell from being used by 53% to 48% of designers, glazed from 53% to 42%, and white painted from 49% to 47%, dark natural finishes rose from 42 to 51%. Light natural and colored painted finishes remained fairly common, as each rose slightly from the previous year: 24% to 25% for light natural and 24% to 29% for colored paints. Distressed finishes dropped significantly from a year ago, when they were used by 16% of designers, to just 5%.
Shown above, this kitchen features cabinets in Sonoma Maple, Midnight with Bristol Maple, Pebble. Wellborn's extensive line of door styles includes stains and paints in dark finishes.
Photo credit: Wellborn Cabinet, Inc.
By Geoff Williams
Planning a Patio: Think Beyond the Concrete Slab
Whether you're dreaming of a modest retreat where you can connect with nature or an elaborate space built for serious outdoor entertaining, there's a patio to fit your home, lifestyle and budget. Patios can be built in nearly any shape, size, color or pattern you can imagine. Plus, new options in outdoor furniture, kitchens and other amenities can make a home's outdoor spaces as inviting as its interior. Before you start pouring concrete or laying pavers, learn the basics of a well-built patio, then discover the latest trends in flooring, lighting, furniture and more.
Photo courtesy of Metro GreenScape.
Building a Solid Patio Base
The base is arguably the most important component of a patio. Patios may not be prone to danger the way a deck can be – if a patio falls apart, the process is gradual and injury is unlikely – but if the base isn't installed carefully, a patio may not last a year.
The base may be constructed of sand and gravel or of concrete, which is obviously more durable. (Plan to use half a bag of pre-mixed concrete for every square foot.) Either way, you're going to have to do some digging. Experts generally say that the base should be anywhere from 6 to 8 inches deep.
Even with a relatively easy patio installation, there are many details to consider. For instance, Dave Garcia, owner of San Francisco-based Paver Pro, says the sand in your base should be sharp-angled sand because the grains interlock with each other better than slippery rounded sand.
Patio Flooring: Trends in Concrete Patios
Although choices seem endless, concrete is the most common and surprisingly versatile patio flooring option. Poured concrete can be shaped into just about any pattern and color. It can be swirled and scored, tinted a subtle or bold color like red and blue, shaped into patterns or even formed into stone-like shapes. Even an unassuming cement slab can be dressed up with a stain, Dave says.
Patio Flooring: The Perks of Paver Stones
Interlocking stones have been gaining a fan base in recent years. They are four times stronger than concrete, earthquake resistant, according to proponents like Dave, and easy to remove and replace should something go wrong underneath the patio. "If you have a pipe that bursts underneath, you could pull the stones out, fix the pipe and then place everything back the way it was," he says. "It won't look patched. With regular concrete, you'll never match it."
Dave says many of his customers like permeable pavers, which are made of porous materials. When it rains, water drains through the pavers and is filtered of oil and pollutants before it runs through the soil and reaches groundwater.
Patio Edging Options
All patios should have edging, a barrier that keeps weeds and overgrown grass at bay and protects the edges of the flooring. Edging can be made of bricks, gravel, cement blocks or stones. A patio can also be edged with flower beds, a defining barrier that adds a splash of color.
Concrete edging and color-stamped edging, which is concrete with texture and color, are currently in vogue, according to Jon Brennhofer, owner of Minneapolis-based Outdoor Spaces Design & Build Company. "It's really, really popular here as opposed to your typical old black and rubber edging," says Jon. "It allows you to keep a clean look, and to build up to whatever landscaping you're going to do around the patio, whether it's mulch or rock or grass. Plus, there's the ability to actually keep it clean – and the durability. It adds a lot to the look of a patio."
Photo courtesy of Paver Pro.
Patio Waterproofing Tips
Think small. That is, think one and a half inches. When your patio meets the back door, Dave recommends you make sure your patio is an inch and a half below the bottom of the door. When it rains or there's water on the patio, you'll be glad that water is not sliding into your house whenever you open the door.
That's another reason surfaces like porous permeable pavers are popular, says Jon. "The water drains right through." But if you opt for concrete flooring, you'll want to use a solvent-based acrylic sealer, which prevents water from gradually penetrating into your patio.
Patio Covers: Create an Outdoor Room
Most people think of a patio as a strictly outdoor space, perhaps with an umbrella table set up for shade. But you can always add extra protection from the elements with a retractable awning or canopy (typical cost range: a couple to several hundred dollars). Go all out by adding a patio sunroom (typical cost range: several thousand dollars to the bounds of your limitless imagination).
"The transitions we've seen over the last several years have been phenomenal," raves Jon. "Everybody's trying to move as much of the indoors as they can outside. We're seeing everything from outdoor kitchens to bars to Beer Meisters and fireplaces. There's nothing that's ended up outside that we don't have inside. Some people spend tens of hundreds to thousands of dollars on furniture for their patio."
Photo courtesy of Metro GreenScape.
Patio Lights: Provide Security and Atmosphere
The right combination of lights will make your patio safe and inviting. Bright standard-voltage lights can ward off possible intruders at night, while low-voltage lights provide a soft glow for entertaining, plus they're easier on your electric bill. Investing in energy efficient bulbs is another great way to cut down on lighting costs in the long run.
When choosing lights for your patio, think about purpose. Path lights can safely lead the way from a patio to a driveway, uplights can highlight landscape focal points or architectural features and specialty lights, such as rope lights, torches and lanterns, can add ambiance.
According to Jon, your imagination and budget are the only limits on your outdoor lighting options. "You can spend anywhere from $15 to $215 a light fixture. We're finding that a lot of types of light we use indoors, we're using outdoors. It's no longer the black plastic, but the copper lantern with stained glass that's hanging on a shepherd's hook."
Photo courtesy of Metro GreenScape.
All the Extras: Patio Furniture, Fireplaces and More
Depending on your budget and space, your options are virtually endless when it comes to outfitting your patio. You may consider a patio fireplace, a water fountain or an outdoor kitchen. Seat walls are currently a functional and artistic trend in patios.
Look for furniture with cushions that resist moisture and mildew (they're out there). A lot of chairs, sofas and tables these days have non-rusting aluminum frames that resemble wood and wicker but are much more weather-friendly. Outdoor furniture is also resembling indoor furniture more and more, according to Michael Valles, CEO of Interior Illusions, a Southern California-based retail, interior design and staging company. Lee Industries is one company that specializes in making outdoor furniture as comfortable as its indoor counterparts.
"No hand woven rattan or polypropylene chairs here," says Michael, who sells Lee Industries products in his showrooms. "They feel like chenille, velvet or linen."
While an actual chenille sofa would become moldy and rot if kept outside, this high-end outdoor furniture can withstand the elements. But it also comes with a hefty price tag: Michael says that some of their dining room chairs can cost as much as $1,500 per chair.
Photo courtesy of Metro GreenScape.
Discover more tips...full article
Here's a fun way to cool down your fireplace during the dog days of summer. It's as simple as a mirror and a few of your favorite vases.
Designer Karen McAloon says add color above the mantel by replacing ordinary artwork with fabric-covered canvas. A few staples around the back edges hold the material in place, making it picture perfect.
Designer Karen McAloon says to lighten things up by swapping out your regular lamp for a colorful and inexpensive fixture.
Using terra-cotta pots in your kitchen to hold fruit and utensils is a great way to bring the outdoors in.
A ribbon curtain keeps the summer bugs out and adds stripes of color.
Transform a simple shower curtain by adding Velcro tabs so you can change your decor with a flick of the wrist. Coordinate a few guest towels and you've got good clean fun.
Hang a few oilcloth pockets on the wall to add both a punch of color and a place to store those summer sundries.
"Summerize" your sofa or day bed by tucking sheets over the upholstery. They'll offer protection against sticky hands and provide a hip look. Playful fabrics and sunny hues on the pillows add a great splash of color. For a great summer look from the floor up, consider trading warm and cozy winter coverings for a lightweight woven mat or rug.
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