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….

So you’ve just closed on your new home, what do you do?  Paint?  Wallpaper? Or both?  As I mentioned in my post, Buyers and Their #1 and #2 New Home Projects, the re-covering of walls – through the use of paint or wallpaper – shows up quite frequently on a new home owner’s priority to-do list.  In fact, often times, it is the first thing home owners do when they move in.

When pondering this question, one thing that I have observed is that often people will paint and wallpaper, but there are some who elect only to paint.  And yet, I have never seen a 100% wallpapered house.  Have you?  Once again, I searched online to find data, but I couldn’t.  So what did I do?  I asked my trusted friends, clients and family members, and here’s what I found:

Paint – 50% of the people polled said they only painted.  In fact, there were a few responders who have painted and wallpapered in the past but now only paint.  And in the responses, I heard the following benefits to painting over wallpapering:

• Painting is less expensive.
• Painting is easy to clean, doesn’t hold odors and doesn’t discolor from the sun – thanks to M.A. for highlighting these positives.
• Painting is less of a commitment and easy to change if you decide you are in the mood for another color or look.
• Painting holds up better in bathrooms, which often steam up, and/or in drier climates.  Believe it or not, my friend, Susie in Colorado says, “Wallpaper doesn’t work as well here as it does in more humid climates” (like the Northeast where we live).
• Painting is just plain more simple.  I love what Karin says, “Wallpaper is too complicated.  I can barely get the kids’ room cleaned.”  I think we can all relate to that at times….

Wallpaper – none of the responders said they exclusively wallpapered.  Though this didn’t surprise me because as I mentioned above, in all of the hundreds of homes I have shown and toured throughout my real estate career, I don’t think I have ever seen one that was 100% wallpapered.

Paint and Wallpaper – The other half of the responders – myself included – painted and wallpapered.  And most of these people painted the majority of the rooms but used wallpaper in a few of the rooms.  The rooms that people seemed to wallpaper most were powder rooms, foyers, dining rooms and some bedrooms.  Several people mentioned using wallpaper as an accent in various rooms or to spice up and have fun with a laundry room or closet.  How creative and inspiring….

Before I leave you, I have to say that I love blogging on all of this.  Moreover, I love all of your ideas and thoughts – thank you to all of my responders – you are the best.  And now back to you….  What are your thoughts about painting vs. wallpapering?  What did you do when you moved into your new home? Did you paint only? Paint and wallpaper? Or just wallpaper?  I can’t wait to hear…..