Wood Flooring a Popular Trend Throughout House

Q. What type of wood flooring is popular and in what tone (dark, midtone, light)? I am looking to update my home.

A. Hardwood floors are a trend even for kitchen remodels. Lighter shades of wood are making a comeback — natural-colored woods such as ash, aspen, maple and elm.

Beyond shades of brown, the finished colors include whites, browns, blacks, grays and reds. The staining colors for unfinished flooring are endless, but resale should be a consideration. Attractive flooring is a top item a potential buyer is looking for, and wood flooring adds resale value.

Read Claudia’s entire article online on Times Herald Record

Help! We Never Use this Room

One of the most popular requests that motivates picking up the phone to schedule a consultation is “the room that no one uses.” That room is usually the living room.

Next month is my eighth anniversary in business. My very first decorating client was a couple who put a beautiful addition on their house that no one ever sat in. You could see the space from the kitchen, but guests never gravitated to it.

The problem was obvious to me. Although the new addition was beautiful, the seating area was to the right of the open space, tucked away near the fireplace. The open area was empty waiting for their future pool table. There was nothing to draw guests into the space.

My suggestion was to switch the seating area with the pool table spot. The seating area would be a welcoming draw for guests to sit and mingle. They made the switch and loved it.

Read Claudia’s entire article online on Times Herald Record 

The Not-so-Glamorous Side of Staging Homes

“You’re a stager. That must be so much fun!”

Fun? Not usually. Don’t get me wrong — I love what I do, but fun is not the appropriate descriptive. There is a lot of physical labor involved in staging, including transporting accessories and furniture: loading, unloading, staging.

It can get dirty when moving and rearranging furniture. It can also get very personal when it comes to addressing some difficult topics of problems in the home.

Read Claudia’s entire article online on Times Herald Record 

How to Reduce the Clutter in your home!

Spring is finally trying to spring and sometimes it feels like it has sprung. And then it doesn’t. So have my spring-cleaning efforts. Like the weather, I start and stop…sometimes within the same hour.

It is just so overwhelming. Somewhere between motivation and inspiration to purge is the stress of having to deal with all the stuff. Then there is the issue of what to do with all the unwanted stuff.

That’s a lot of stuff.

Read more

Fall Back in Love with Your Home!

Recently featured in the Town Of Montgomery Chamber of Commerce!

Claudia Jacobs of Claudia Jacobs Designs LLC presented “Fall Back in Love with Your Home” at the Hudson Valley Builders Association on Saturday April 6, 2013. The turnout for this event was amazing with a full house and additional seating needing to be pulled out. She spoke about simple changes you could make to your home that are extremely cost efficient such as changing the hardware on your cabinets, replacing your light fixtures, painting your cabinets, etc…

The event was very informative with professionals on hand to talk to you about low cost options they may be able to assist you with if you are not a DIY type of person. On hand were Lisa-Ann LaBue of Wells Fargo Bank, Scott Santarpia of Paul Davis Restoration & Remodeling, Michael R Berta, AIA Architecture & Planning and Janis Borguetta of Key Properties of the Hudson Valley LLC. All had amazing ideas and offered answers to the many questions that were asked.

Hat’s off to Claudia and congratulations on a very successful event. All who attended took a lot of good information away with them.info@claudiajacobsdesigns.com

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We’re on Houzz

We’re on Houzz!

Remodeling and Home Design

We’re on Houzz! Called the “Wikipedia of interior and exterior design” by CNN, Houzz has the largest database of home design ideas on the net, with over 1,500,000 high resolution photos. Browse photos by style, room and location and save them to your virtual ideabook — it’s the equivalent of clipping design magazines to a scrapbook — making ideas easier to search, save, and share. Experience Houzz.com as an iPad app and save your photos locally for offline access. Join the discussion and get the community to help with your design dilemmas. Find everything from products curated by our editorial team to top-rated local designers, architects, contractors and other home pros who can help you realize your ideas. The best part is, browsing your ideabook, they’ll get exactly what you’re trying to do.

What the Press has to say about Houzz:
• “A digital look book for interior-decorating ideas” – The Wall Street Journal.
• “It’s the Flickr of design idea sites” – The Washington Post. • “One of the most comprehensive collections of home design images on the iPad” – The Independent.
• “Could be the ultimate home decorating resource!” – Fox43 / WPMT-TV.
• “Quite an addictive site” – San Francisco Chronicle

Here is the link to my Claudia Jacobs Designs Houzz page: Click here.

Enjoy! But warning.. it IS addictive!

No Place Like Home

The one thing we can control is our own personal space. Working with clients from all walks of lives has been truly inspiring. Yes I inspire them but they also inspire me.

Whether you have the money or not, most people can’t or don’t want to spend money unnecessarily these days.

There is the single mother trying to create a comfortable home for her children, the young couple living in their first home with champagne taste but not having the money to splurge just yet and the widow who wants an elegant, comfortable home for less. There is the recently divorced dad trying to make his new situation comfortable for his children when they are with him and the couple wanting to update their home so they can enjoy it now and sell in the future.

Read Claudia’s entire article online at HudsonValleyInsider

Millspaugh Furniture and Claudia Jacobs Share ideas for Better Rest!

Local designer & award winning stager (Voted 2011 RESA Professional Stager of the Year) Claudia Jacobs shares some ideas for better rest!

The most important room of the house is often the most neglected. If you’re thinking it’s the kitchen, the heart of the home, you are close. The kitchen nourishes the home but the master bedroom serves the home. Think about how you feel after a night of restless sleep. It really can affect every aspect of our lives including our health.

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We have very busy, stressful lives. Your bedroom should be your safe haven, your escape from the rest of the world. By creating a comfortable space for sleep and relaxation, every night has the potential to be a chance for a well deserved respite from the day. Let’s face it, even a great day can be draining and what better way to recharge than with a good night’s sleep.
Here is a step by step plan to get started. This transformation may not happen overnight but the sooner you start, the sooner you will reap the rewards.

Stand by the entrance of your bedroom and really look at it. If you are pleased, great, if not, analyze the problem. This is what I do on a decorating consultation. It is difficult to be objective with your own space but try to view it as if it wasn’t your place. Consider these typical problem issues:

Clutter: Whether it’s on the floor, your walls or your furniture. Eliminate anything you don’t need or want in your space, including your closet.

Clean: Once you free up surface areas, clean your room from top to bottom. Dust and allergens are not good for sleeping. Consider new pillows and wash your bedspread.

Bed location: This is important and there are many theories about where the bed should be position. It’s best to be able to see the doorway while in bed.

Mattress: If you invest in anything in your home, invest in a good quality mattress. It can change your life.

Sheets: Splurge! Shop around and looks for a high thread count. Your body will be ever so grateful and you will be surprised the selection at various price points.

Style: This is your private space and should reflect your personality. If you live alone, this is easy. If you are a couple, figure out what you both like by discussing it. Go through catalogs and home magazines to see what appeals to both of you and compromise on something you both can live with and love. Once you decide the style, you will be inspired and focused to put it all together. It is interesting to see a very feminine bedroom and there is no sign a male even dwells in the house.

Bedding: Shop for a comforter set or bedspread. This is usually the most difficult item to find it will set the tone for your room. Again, there are many styles and prices to choose from.

Color: Find inspiration in your bedding for window treatments and paint. I love the effect of painting the wall behind the bed an accent color.

Change: Personal preference should change as you or your situation changes. My bedroom has evolved over the last ten years. I went from a very feminine shabby chic look with lots of lavender and cream to the exact opposite. Now it is a warm room of dark wood contemporary furniture surrounded by earth tones and a spicy cinnamon color with a dramatic accent wall.

Sweet dreams!

Before and After Home Staging

Before and After Home Staging

“After being on the market for 2 years, why isn’t my house selling?”

While on the phone sensing the frustration in her voice, I listened and knew before asking for the address to view the listing what the problem was. The online photos.

The sellers have a lovely home that is well maintained and immaculate. There is nothing ‘wrong’ with the home. The problem is that is there is a disconnection between who is living in the home now and who the target market is.

When this home was purchased about 25 years ago, it was to create a home to raise a family. The current owners are about to retire and relocate South. This home needs to be marketed to who they were 25 years ago.

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Kitchen Staging, Before and After, View 1
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Kitchen Staging Before and After, View 2
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Before and After Basement

WHAT I DID:
Staged it and took new listing photos. This did not need a major overhaul.

Edit a few items with in each room.
Rearrange the furniture in the basement.
Bring in 2 parsons chairs for the kitchen to replace the bulky existing chairs.
Car filled with decorative accessories to set the stage for new photos to appeal to the target market.
Take and edit new listing photos.

HOW MUCH DID IT COST?
2 hours on site
1 hour to edit photos & send to Realtor & homeowner
$300

The cost of staging is less than the first price reduction.

If you have a listless listing, call for staging help. Staging bridges the generation gap

Interior Design & Home Staging as a career!

Interior Design and Home Staging as a Career

Claudia Jacobs of Claudia Jacobs Designs visited students in Janice Marsiglio’s Interior Design class at Goshen High School to discuss her career as an interior designer.

In addition to interior design, Jacobs specializes in real estate staging where she rearranges living spaces to help a home sale. Her design philosophy includes utilizing and enhancing your existing space to meet your design needs. “Our own personal space is something we create so we can make it beautiful and make it feel good,” she told students.

Jacobs showed a presentation that included some of her favorite redesigns by other designers as well as herself. She discussed current design trends and how to liven up a room with easy tweaks and updates as well as higher end remodels.

Read article online on the Goshen Central School Districts website. Click here.