Archive for: June 2008

Have you been dreaming and planning to buy a vacation home someday?  The current market is ripe for vacation homes, especially those home buyers who don’t need income from the sale of a home to make a move.

With home values falling in many markets, a great selection of vacation homes, townhomes and condows for sale are available. With interest rates lower than we’ve seen for years, this may be your window of opportunity to buy a second house or the vacation home of your dreams.

Looking for budget-friendly ideas for some do-it-yourself wall art projects?  Think paper!  Have you received a gift, wrapped in a paper so gorgeous that you painstakingly opened the present so you could save and reuse the gift wrap? Have you perused the wall of papers at your local craft or scrapbooking store lately?

Gorgeous, decorative papers in bright, bold colors, unique patterns and interesting textures are everywhere these days.   And they have great potential beyond their conventional uses..one that you may not have considered - ready-made, DIY wall decor for your home. 

Finding affordable art can be a challenge for many homeowners. As a design consultant and home staging professional, I have seen the inside of many homes.  Many homes for sale, at all price points, shared something in common  - walls nearly bare of expression. Why? Because many people share a common misperception about art.  They view art as a luxury, something they are saving up to buy…someday. 

One couple hired me to stage their home on the advice of their real estate agent.  They were skeptical that I could make much of an impact with the meager budget we had to work with. The lack of artwork and accessories did present a challenge.  But in the end, they were surprised at how great the living and dining rooms looked with the $40 we set aside for the “art” budget.