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Have a remodeling resolution?
Read More: Have a remodeling resolution?By Ann Robinson and Annie Vernon If remodeling your home this spring is on your New Year’s resolution list, there are a few things you should know. We hate to dash your hopes for a quick remodel, but it isn’t realistic to think you can see an architect in January and build by April —…
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Affordable snowmelt solutions
Read More: Affordable snowmelt solutionsBy Ann Robinson and Annie Vernon Snowmelt systems are designed to take the sting out of Utah winters. Last week we discussed a permanent system to keep snow and ice off your driveway. The system, which can be expensive, features electric cables or hot water pipes running under your driveway. Today we’ll discuss some other…
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Driveway Heaters: Tired of shoveling driveway?
Read More: Driveway Heaters: Tired of shoveling driveway?By Ann Robinson and Annie Vernon Did you ever hear your dad say, “Shut that door! Are you trying to heat the whole outdoors?” Well, today a whole industry has sprung up with just that goal in mind. Several factors contribute to the rise of outdoor heating technology: First, we are living outside more these…
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Fireplace remodels add charm
Read More: Fireplace remodels add charmBy Ann Robinson and Annie Vernon We hang stockings from it, roast chestnuts in it, and cuddle in front of it. With so many reasons bringing us to the fireplace, we thought we would discuss options to remodel yours. Fireplaces are the heart of a home and the focal point of a room. People tend…
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How to carve out a better kitchen
Read More: How to carve out a better kitchenBy Ann Robinson and Annie Vernon Thanksgiving wins as the holiday with the most time spent in the kitchen. The celebration centers on a wonderful, home-cooked meal. How did your kitchen handle the four extra cooks, the turkey, rolls, mashed potatoes and yams? It isn’t realistic to design a home to handle a once-a-year event…
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Green Design & Building: Remodeling offers plenty of ways to go green
Read More: Green Design & Building: Remodeling offers plenty of ways to go greenBy Ann Robinson and Annie Vernon Global warming, green building, energy efficient. These buzzwords have people thinking green. And the green-building movement, which has picked up speed over the past 10 years, is at your doorstep in the form of your next remodeling project. Actually, your first “green” decision was to remodel instead of tear…
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Great rooms are great places for gatherings
Read More: Great rooms are great places for gatheringsBy Ann Robinson and Annie Vernon Fall is the kickoff season of gathering. Just think of all the times you gather your friends and family together this time of year — college football in front of the big screen, Thanksgiving dinner, the neighborhood Christmas party held at your house, pot roast and potatoes on a…
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Go downstairs for extra space
Read More: Go downstairs for extra spaceBy Ann Robinson and Annie Vernon One of our clients came to us wanting to keep her Sugar House bungalow looking like a bungalow, but with twice the livable space. Without destroying the classic style or eating into her flower gardens, we designed a major renovation by excavating the basement. The floor of the unfinished…
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Go for luxury in shower
Read More: Go for luxury in showerBy Ann Robinson and Annie Vernon The day of the shower has arrived. What used to be the most purely functional space in a home is now the center of attention in modern bathroom design. Shower designs are more elaborate than anything we could have imagined just a few years ago. It used to be…
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Remodel, move both have costs
Read More: Remodel, move both have costsBy Ann Robinson and Annie Vernon Chances are you aren’t living in your dream home just yet. But don’t worry — you’re in the majority. Usually, a home is missing that extra bedroom or perfect kitchen, bathroom or master suite. Maybe it is lacking the space for your growing family or a large area to…
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More space lurking in basement
Read More: More space lurking in basementBy Ann Robinson and Annie Vernon Many clients who come to us for help with renovations are craving more space. The good news is that most Utah homes already have potentially livable space lurking in the basement. Finishing your basement is a less-expensive and less-invasive alternative to a home addition, and it does not eat…
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Mudrooms make sense
Read More: Mudrooms make senseBy Ann Robinson and Annie Vernon It is more than just the calendar that marks the beginning of fall. The trail of coats, books, backpacks and dirty footprints across the floor gives it away. The kids have barely been back to school a month, but if you are already tired of cleaning up the messy…
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Elevator can keep home livable
Read More: Elevator can keep home livableBy Ann Robinson and Annie Vernon As baby boomers age, most have plans to keep living in the homes they have now. And as baby boomers prepare for the future, there has been a rise in the demand for home designs and renovations that are more accessible. One of the most requested designs lately is…
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Detailed planning keeps remodeling on track
Read More: Detailed planning keeps remodeling on trackBy Ann Robinson and Annie Vernon Most clients come to us ready to remodel, but rarely do they come with the project planned. Two years ago, we met a couple who were ready to start the redesign process on their rambling ranch. The major overhaul was divided into three phases implementing six independent projects over…
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Safeguard home with seismic upgrades
Read More: Safeguard home with seismic upgradesBy Ann Robinson and Annie Vernon Remember there is no practical way to completely “earthquake-proof” your house. But engineers have developed some extreme and expensive methods to equip a building to ride out an earthquake. One of these techniques, which was actually used on the Utah State Capitol building and the LDS Tabernacle in Salt…
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Understand the dangers of home’s structure
Read More: Understand the dangers of home’s structureBy Ann Robinson and Annie Vernon If an earthquake hits, damage to public structures and infrastructure will be beyond the control of the average citizen, but you do have some control over your individual circumstances in relation to your own home. In our continuing series, we are discussing steps you can take to increase the…
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Protect yourself with seismic safety
Read More: Protect yourself with seismic safetyBy Ann Robinson and Annie Vernon Northern Utahns know California is not the only earthquake country in the western United States. Even though we are not confronted with catastrophic earthquakes every day here in the Wasatch Front, we know the risk is there. According to the Utah Guide for the Seismic Improvement of Unreinforced Masonry…
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Rearranging interior may be best
Read More: Rearranging interior may be bestBy Ann Robinson and Annie Vernon When you are talking home renovation sometimes bigger isn’t better. Sometimes the biggest impacts are the small projects that rearrange existing space. Often times, clients think they have to have a new addition but reconfiguring interior walls and even plumbing may be more economical than doing new construction. A…
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Create stunning views inside home
Read More: Create stunning views inside homeBy Ann Robinson and Annie Vernon Most of us have been in homes with fantastic views. We remember homes with majestic panoramas of beautiful mountains or breathtaking vistas with city lights twinkling in the distance. Of course, these views usually come with a hefty price tag. Here, a window is reflected in a mirror left…
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Lofts are on the rise in downtown S.L.
Read More: Lofts are on the rise in downtown S.L.By Ann Robinson and Annie Vernon The dynamics of downtown Salt Lake are really changing these days. Everyone seems to be moving to the heart of the city. Well really, we are just following the trend set decades ago by New Yorkers that recently has spread across the country. One urban living style, new to…
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Extra storage makes life easier
Read More: Extra storage makes life easierBy Ann Robinson and Annie Vernon There is an old adage that says “A place for everything, and everything in its place.” But what if everything doesn’t have a place in your home? Then you need better storage or less stuff (or a little of both). Take advantage of hanging space by adding pegboard storage…
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Modernism brought radical new look
Read More: Modernism brought radical new lookBy Ann Robinson and Annie Vernon We need to spend one more week on house styles because we cannot ignore the modernist movement. The very concept of “modern” houses gives some people indigestion. Some feel that this design approach results in cold, impersonal boxes, and they certainly don’t want them in their neighborhood. While homes…
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Spain, Italy influence Eclectic homes
Read More: Spain, Italy influence Eclectic homesBy Ann Robinson and Annie Vernon We are continuing our discussion of the Eclectic movement in residential design. The influence of European design is readily seen in many American homes. Today we will see how architecture from Spain and Italy has shaped the homes in our neighborhoods or even the one in which you live.…
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Eclectic style came after Victorian
Read More: Eclectic style came after VictorianBy Ann Robinson and Annie Vernon In our continuing discussion of residential architectural styles, today we will look at the Eclectic movement. Spanning from the late 19th century through about 1940, this was the phase that followed the Victorian period. While the Victorians took inspiration from former classical architectural styles, they did so with great…
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Victorian homes charming, popular
Read More: Victorian homes charming, popularBy Ann Robinson and Annie Vernon Queen Victoria reigned over England from 1837 to 1901. Besides political influences, Queen Victoria’s reign influenced literature, clothing, furniture and, yes, architecture. Even today, more than a hundred years later, you still see homes new and old that are most definitely Victorian. The Victorian-style home began to appear in…
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Tradition marks colonial home
Read More: Tradition marks colonial homeBy Ann Robinson and Annie Vernon A year or so ago, we spotlighted several home types: the craftsman bungalow, the Tudor, the Cape Cod, and the California ranch. Of course there are more than just four styles, so we thought we would again spend a few weeks featuring a few more types, beginning with the…
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Master plan can ease remodel
Read More: Master plan can ease remodelBy Ann Robinson and Annie Vernon When you ask Donna Bates about their own efforts to remodel their 1940s-built home, she likens it to a 1980s craze: a Rubik’s Cube. “It’s like that Rubik’s Cube puzzle. We’d work on one part of the house and it would mess up another part we’d already worked on,”…
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Buying a home? Do homework
Read More: Buying a home? Do homeworkBy Ann Robinson and Annie Vernon Not many things are more exciting or more terrifying than buying a new house. It’s a big decision that requires lots of forethought and even lots of afterthought to make sure you ultimately get the right home for you and your family. So this week we offer some tips…
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Get porch ready for summer
Read More: Get porch ready for summerBy Ann Robinson and Annie Vernon It’s spring and our thoughts turn to outdoor living. We long for the days soon to come where we can sit on our back porch and relax outside. And our mouths are already watering for the first barbecue of the season. With the spring weather come opportunities to focus…
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Color is a huge design element
Read More: Color is a huge design elementBy Ann Robinson and Annie Vernon Have you ever walked into a room and thought, “Wow, the colors in this room are perfect!” Or maybe you’ve thought, “Wow, the colors in this room are awful!” Color is a huge design element for any space, and the colors you choose can make or break a room.…
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New materials liven up a home
Read More: New materials liven up a homeBy Ann Robinson and Annie Vernon If you’re working on or thinking about a remodel, you’ll find there is no end to the choices of materials you can use to finish off your project. Here are some new options for wall finishes and tiles that we find particularly interesting because of their versatility and style…
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Remodel to add gathering space
Read More: Remodel to add gathering spaceBy Ann Robinson and Annie Vernon Pat and Kathie Debenham had a problem we see again and again in our business: not enough gathering space. And just like so many others, their gathering centered around the kitchen. So this week we want to introduce you to the Debenhams and their renovation because we know it’s…
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Rain gutters whisk water away
Read More: Rain gutters whisk water awayBy Ann Robinson and Annie Vernon Last week we may have made you nervous with a discussion about mold. Of course, one of the biggest causes of mold — and many other woes — is too much water around your home. So keeping water well away from your house is one of the most important…
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Keep house dry to avoid mold
Read More: Keep house dry to avoid moldBy Ann Robinson and Annie Vernon If you didn’t have any sleepless nights after we talked about lead paint, let’s see if a discussion of mold will do the trick! We have all heard horror stories about mold taking over homes and wreaking havoc. But in our dry climate, we don’t typically fret too much…
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Find best contractor for the job
Read More: Find best contractor for the jobBy Ann Robinson and Annie Vernon Spring is just around the corner, and we all know that in spring a young man’s (or woman’s) fancy turns to thoughts of … remodeling. Some remodeling you can do yourself, but some projects will require the help of professionals. Here are some tips to finding the best man…
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Banish lead paint from home
Read More: Banish lead paint from homeBy Ann Robinson and Annie Vernon You’ve all heard about the dangers of lead paint, but what do you do if you discover lead paint in your home? It’s a very serious problem that will take time, effort and money to solve. But it’s not an impossible problem. You can successfully free your old home…
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Craftsman Bungalow House re-Design: Home remodeling results in new old home
Read More: Craftsman Bungalow House re-Design: Home remodeling results in new old homeBy Ann Robinson and Annie Vernon We’ve decided to periodically highlight homeowners and their projects to give you a better feel for real-world remodeling experiences. We realize you will never really know what it’s like until you’ve experienced it yourself, but it’s wise to gather as much information as possible because knowledge is power when…
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Tubular skylights are bright idea
Read More: Tubular skylights are bright ideaBy Ann Robinson and Annie Vernon A skylight is pretty simply defined: a hole in the roof that lets in light. The “light” part is great; the “hole in the roof” part is not so great. You might have heard (or experienced) horror stories of leaking, dripping, cracked skylights that add nothing but trouble to…
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Types of smoke detectors, fire alarms: Pros and Cons
Read More: Types of smoke detectors, fire alarms: Pros and ConsBy Ann Robinson and Annie Vernon Fire is the third leading cause of accidental death in the United States, and four out of five people who die in a fire die in a home. Fortunately, we have access to devices designed to give early warnings of a fire and other hazards. Whether remodeling or not,…
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Engineered wood offers ease, style
Read More: Engineered wood offers ease, styleBy Ann Robinson and Annie Vernon Who doesn’t love the look of a charming New England cape home, replete with natural wood clapboard or shingle siding and plenty of well-detailed wood trim? You can just imagine a cozy family nestled inside, as charming and quaint as their home. These New England transplant homes can be…