Saturday, June 19, 2010

At home - Designing a home to dwell, not sell

Finally, welcome news for housebound homeowners. If - thanks to a housing market that sank like the Titanic - you're underwater with your mortgage, hovering at sea level or have lost so much equity that moving this decade doesn't make financial sense (and is there anyone left?), here's a perk: We now have license to decorate the way we want.

Snakeskin wallpaper, here I come! Back in the day when the housing market was hotter than a Phoenix sidewalk in summer, many of us remodeled not with ourselves in mind, but for Potential Buyers, those nondescript people with taste more boring than a city council meeting. While our expressive sides tilted toward bold wall color, zebra print carpet and mermaid accent tiles, our conservative sides defaulted to neutral paint, beige carpet and vanilla counters - to be safe.


A home with too much personality, we were warned, wouldn't sell. However, now the pasty analysts who study things like the housing market and who probably attend city council meetings for fun have observed that while the market will likely be a long time returning, home improvement spending is on the rise. That's because people are designing to dwell, not sell.

And that, fellow home improvement lovers, is the silver lining glimmering inside the housing market sinkhole: "When you update to stay, you don't have to be safe. You can have a blast," says my friend Lisa LaPorta, designer and host of HGTV's "Designed to Sell and Bang for Your Buck.""When people were buying and moving, we stressed making your home a reflection of what everyone likes. Now, finally, we can embrace our homes, and have them reflect what we love."

This is fantastic news for people like me who've been doing what we liked all along.

However, before you run off and buy those antler light fixtures or paint an Elvis mural on your living room ceiling, note that neutral, safe decor choices are still recommended for sellers, people with lousy taste and hotels. As for the rest of us? All that matters is that we love it.

As long as we're going to get comfortable where we live, LaPorta offers these game rules for those designing to dwell rather than sell:

- Gun it with paint color. Don't be neutral. Trade Realtor beige for crimson or citron, or whatever color you've been yearning for.

- Feature your collections. "Before I would tell homeowners to put away their collections and pack up their flock of porcelain roosters," says LaPorta. "Now I say create an accent wall, or design a niche to feature collections."

- Go for concept decorating. Love the jungle, Paris or baseball? Design rooms around your passions, but know - and heed - the difference between theme and concept decorating. Theme decorating hits you over the head; you tire of it quickly. Concept decorating has longevity, and is more sophisticated.

For example, if you love English Colonial, don't cover furniture in monkey print fabric; choose an abstract tropical print. For a safari theme, cover walls in ostrich leather, not the more predictable giraffe-patterned paper. In a bedroom for a boy who loves baseball, instead of a headboard that looks like a baseball cap and bat-and-ball table lamps, paint a wood bed in his favorite team's colors; add a chair covered in leather that resembles a baseball mitt. "Concept decorating is about capturing the essence, not recreating the idea."

- Roll on the paper. In "Designed to Sell," LaPorta advises viewers to steer clear of wallpaper, because "it's like a tattoo." Now she says, "Tattoo your house." Again, avoid themes and play up concepts. Go for textural papers, geometrics and stripes. Bypass anything too literal - like French poodles and Eiffel towers.

- Get trendy. But limit trendy decor to easy-to-change accessories pillows, rugs and now even drapes. Custom drapes used to be a costly investment, but today many companies will sew affordable panels using fabric you furnish, which makes changing them easier. Keep your big ticket items (carpet, cabinets, counters) neutral to create a timeless foundation for pops of personality.

- Add punch outside. Curb appeal matters whether you're selling or dwelling; in either case stay true to your home's architecture, and be sensitive to your neighbors. Dwellers, however, can inject more personality. Paint the shutters yellow or the front door red. Bring in other whimsical pops of color with painted flower boxes, garden ornaments and statuary. (No, not plastic flamingos.)

- Get bang for your buck. Whether selling or staying, you will get the biggest return on your investments by doing these three improvements: Paint. People will think you got new furniture. Update hardware. New handles and knobs can revitalize a home like jewelry can revitalize an outfit.

Add moldings: Nothing says old house like old baseboards. Go oversize, up to 6 inches. New baseboards, crown moldings, window casings, fireplace mantels and ledges add rich, custom detail for relatively low cost. New miter saws designed for DIY home improvers make this project even more affordable if you tackle it yourself.


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