This is another just for fun topic that is similar but different from Your Favorite Home Purchase. In that blog, we were talking about smaller items – flowers, candles, pillows and the like – that you purchased for your home. Now we’re talking about the big kahuna – furniture, appliances, electronics, works of art, rugs – substantial items that add presence to your home. And these items may have been purchased, given as gifts or acquired some other way.

So back to the question at hand – what is your favorite household big-time item? Is it a sofa, armchair, flat-screened television, dishwasher drawer, lighting fixture or piece of art? And is it your favorite item in your house simply because you love the look or the way it adds to your home? Or does it have family significance or sentimentality? Or does it just make your life easier? And is your favorite household big-time item the most expensive purchase in your home – and therefore you love it in an extra special way? Or is it the opposite – something that you received as a gift or that was a real bargain?

When I ask myself this question, I vacillate between two things….  One is my “pair of men” andirons (one “man” is pictured here) that my father gave me from his Nantucket, MA home (my dream house as some of you may remember). These men are so unique and full of character; I love their proud stances and their one arm akimbo (remember learning that expression when you were growing up?).  Every time we have a fire in the winter, I smile when I look at them. They are so fun and serious at the same time.

The second is a gold, antique mirror (pictured here), also from my Dad’s Nantucket house, which now sits above my living room mantle. My Dad can’t be reached for comment at this time, so I don’t know all of the history of this item. (Honestly, he might not know either.) But I can tell you that this mirror has seen quite a bit of history in its long life; it has the markings of age in its gilded wood pieces, some of which are broken off, and in its mirror, which has that antiqued, somewhat worn reflective look.  The bottom line, though, is that it is gorgeous and adds tremendous presence to my living room. You can’t walk into this room and not take notice….

But at the end of the day, I think my “pair of men” really win the prize. I just love their stances and the uniqueness and flair that they add to my home, not to mention that they came from my Dad’s home in Nantucket and are therefore quite special to me…. What are your thoughts about your own big-time home items? Which one or several are your favorites? And why are they your favorites? I can’t wait to hear….

For more information about the real estate market in Weston, Wellesley, Wayland and the surrounding towns or if you are considering selling your home, please contact me, Lisa Curlett (781-267-2844 or www.homesalesbylisa.com), to answer any questions or for a complimentary home appraisal.

I am thrilled to announce that JAR Home – “Your destination for Elegant Home Furnishings” - in Weston Center is open for business. The owners of the business, Justine and Amanda Richards (hence the JAR), know Weston well.  In fact, they grew up in Weston and went to local schools – Justine graduated from Dana Hall in Wellesley and Amanda graduated from Weston High School.  They have worked in the interior design field for over a decade, both in Massachusetts and California, and now they are back in Weston with their fabulous business.

Located at 391 Boston Post Road formerly the site of Dragon Books, JAR Home is both a home shoppe and an interior design studio in which the Richards sisters “strive to provide a venue for customers to improve one section of a room or several rooms at a time. Our goal is to have an accessible local source where you can come in, relax, find inspiration and enjoy the JAR Home environment by browsing through fabrics, examining beautiful artwork and lighting options or simply playing with varied pillow and table linen combinations. We continuously work with our vendors to customize pieces with specific dimensions and finishes to help you achieve the desired ‘look’ for your home.” In addition to the many outstanding antique as well as unusual vintage pieces, the store features other lines and products including:

• Christopher Spitzmiller Lamps (beautiful ceramic forms with incredible detailing such as bases dipped in 23k gold)
• William Yeoward Crystal
• Jennifer Clayson Pillows (Jen is a well-known Weston resident who hand-paints each linen pillow cover with striking designs)
• Lance Wovens Leather Pillows
• The Hickory Chair Furniture Co.
• Visual Comfort Lighting

There are fantastic finds at a variety of price points at JAR Home. Items range from $45 for an Antique Chinese Ginger Jar from the late 1800’s, $95-$150 for Jennifer Clayson pillows and $200-$300 for Belgian Linen Woven pillows to $360-$600 for Visual Comfort Lamps, $1940-$2640 for Christopher Spitzmiller Lamps and $1100-$3550 for Hickory Upholstered Club Chairs. The store hours are generally Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. and Saturday from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. so stop in, browse, shop, ask for a consultation and simply just enjoy!

For more information or with questions, please email Justine and Amanda at justine@jarhome.com and amanda@jarhome.com or call them at 781-899-3911. And for more information about the real estate market in Weston, Wellesley, Wayland and the surrounding towns or if you are considering selling your home, please contact me, Lisa Williams (781-267-2844 or www.homesalesbylisa.com), to answer any questions or for a complimentary home appraisal.

This is one of my just-for-fun topics…. I’m curious to hear about your favorite home purchase. And by that I’m not talking about a major purchase like a sofa, coffee table or flat-screen television. I am referring to a smaller item like a flower arrangement, wreath for the door, seasonal decoration, coffee table book, decorative pillow, candle or air diffuser. Something that doesn’t cost an arm and a leg but has a wonderfully positive effect. So back to the question…. What is your favorite home purchase? Is it something that brightens a room or adds a certain color or look that complements the furniture? Or is it something that makes your house smell yummy?  Or is it something else entirely?

For me, I vacillate between two favorite home purchases (which coincidentally can also come in handy when selling your home).  The first is a beautiful flower arrangement – and Winston Flowers is my preference though as we all know their floral displays can be a bit on the costly side.  Thankfully there are many other local vendors which also create gorgeous flower arrangements. When I have fresh flowers in my house, I smile when I look at them – not to mention the added benefit of their fabulous aroma. The only problem with the fresh flowers that may or may not happen in your household is that my three cats love to gnaw on them. And so sometimes the beauty of a flower arrangement is short-lived in my house unfortunately.

The other thing I love to purchase for my home is a delicious-smelling candle. I love to light a candle and have the smell fill the room so that every time I walk into it or am close to it, I get that whiff of gardenias, pine cones, figs – whatever scent it happens to be. I also like to have candles burning when I am entertaining as they create such a nice ambiance. Candles can be soothing and relaxing too, and I love having something that adds that effect to my home. Similar to my cats with the flowers, however, every time I light a candle and the kids are around, they love nothing more than to blow it right out. So sometimes I am foiled with the effect of the yummy-smelling candle as well.

What are your thoughts on this subject? What home purchase is your favorite, making you smile, feel good and love your house that much more? I can’t wait to hear….

This is another one with a hat’s off to The Nate Berkus Show.  Speaking of which, what am I going to do when his show goes off the air in May? Such a bummer. Anyway, I digress…. So yesterday morning I was racing to get ready and turned on Nate so I could see what he was discussing. Sure enough he was talking about a home’s entryway, and he was sharing some tips about how to optimize its look and appeal. As I pondered these tips, I realized that they can also come in very handy when it comes to selling your home. Two great reasons to share these tips with you – to make your home look better now and to help when you are selling your home. But I’m jumping ahead. Before we get to the tips, there are three basic things to keep in mind when it comes to the entryway.

First, the entryway is your visitor’s first impression of your house so you want to make it a visually appealing space that creates a great first impression. Remember that saying, “You have only one chance to make a first impression?” Well, this is your chance to make that fabulous initial impact as well as give a preview of your personality and design preferences. Second, not only is the entryway your visitor’s first point of entry into your house, it’s also your first point of entry into your house. Therefore it has a tendency to get filled with clutter – keys, coins, mail, coats, hats, papers and more. And so optimizing the look of the space involves de-cluttering and making the area look neat. Third, the entry space is usually small so it helps to do things that will make it look bigger.

So without further ado, here are 5 tips to optimize the look of your entryway:

1. Paint your entryway a bold color – Nate says this is the place to do it (he adds that the powder room is the other place to go bold). It’s a small space, and so it won’t take a lot of time or money to paint it a bold color. It also conveys a sense of who you are and what you like – think first impression.

2. Add a console table – Not only is a console table the perfect place to put and organize your clutter – keys, coins, mail and such – when you come into the house, this piece of furniture also adds personality and warmth to the space.

3. Display a patterned rug/runner on the floor – Because it’s a limited space, you only need a runner or small rug. And the pattern will hide dirt as well as wear and tear, which is crucial for the entryway since this is where people consistently enter and exit the house. Furthermore, a patterned rug adds another touch of your style to the space.

4. Feature vintage hooks – Vintage hooks are often inexpensive, come in all shapes and sizes and convey another sense of your style. In addition, they are perfect for hanging coats, sweaters and hats and therefore make the space look less cluttered and more organized.

5. Hang a mirror – A mirror will make the entryway look bigger, which is vital with a small space. And there are so many kinds and styles of mirrors these days that you can choose one that will complement your design preferences. Nate also adds that a mirror makes it easy to take a last peek at yourself as you walk out the door.

What are your thoughts? Does your entryway already feature some of these tips? Mine does, but the bold color is still beyond me at this point. Would you use some of these tips in an effort to optimize your entryway space and/or when it comes to selling your home? I can’t wait to hear….

The day before yesterday, I was working away while the Nate Berkus Show was on in the background, and I heard that real estate guru Barbara Corcoran was going to be doing a segment on the show.  This was similar to what had happened four months ago inspiring my post, 5 Home Staging Tips to Sell Your Home.  But this time, Barbara was going “Dumpster Diving for Dining Rooms.”

Interestingly, Barbara said that dining rooms are one of the most important rooms (after the kitchen) in the house when it comes to re-sale.  I found it interesting because there are many homes these days in which dining rooms are converted to other rooms or they are incorporated into the kitchen.  In fact, I just went to see a $3 million dollar house that does not have a formal dining room.  It had been converted to additional family room space, and apparently they use their eat-in-area as their dining area (and it really was a pretty spectacular eat-in-area). But I agree with Barbara. When it comes to re-sale, buyers tend to want the traditional rooms, the dining room and living room in particular, to be part of the floor plan.  Even though the way we “live” in our houses today usually means we don’t frequently use these traditional rooms, they are important for re-sale as buyers tend to discount properties without these spaces.

Now on to the “Dumpster Diving” and some tips on how to maximize the look and size of your dining room. Barbara found the following dining room components on her diving expedition in New Jersey - a round table, four dining room chairs, a credenza and a chandelier.  To see how Nate was able to transform these pieces of furniture and accessories into a fabulous, glamorous dining room, click Dumpster Diving for Dining Rooms.  Barbara and Nate also gave us a few, helpful tips when it comes to enhancing your dining room and making this crucial room sparkle, and just as importantly, look bigger:

• Feature a round dining room table- according to Barbara, everyone judges the size of the dining room based on the size of the dining room table.  A circular dining room table makes the room look bigger and generally fits better within the room, which is what you want when selling your home.  Buyers like rooms that look spacious and aren’t cluttered with oversized pieces of furniture that don’t fit.
• Use chairs with lower backs – another tip from Barbara.  She asserts that chairs with high backs make the dining room look shorter, a.k.a. less big.
• Include an area rug – Barbara mentions that an area rug grounds the room, making it look larger and fancy (though I must say the “fancy” really depends on the rug).  And for just this reason, she prefers an area rug to wall-to-wall carpeting or bare flooring.
• Provide an alternative lighting source – this has more to do with enhancing the lighting and therefore the look of the room.  Nate attests that having a chandelier and matching table lamps on a credenza, for example, allows more flexibility with the lightening and therefore more ability to influence the mood and look that you are trying to create.

What are your thoughts?  Is the dining room an important room in your household?  Or have you converted it to additional family room space or absorbed it to make your kitchen bigger and more open?  I can’t wait to hear….