I was able to hear Jennifer Bertrand, winner of HGTV’s Design Star Season 3, talk about color and how to use it in your home. She is a very dynamic lady and very easy to talk with. She was very helpful in giving me tips for how to improve my kitchen and living room 🙂
Jennifer spoke about how life is about perspective. That it’s not how much something costs, but how you use it. This is important to remember for those of us with very limited funds. We should start with the basics, and work up from there.
She recommends choosing a whole-house color palate, instead of randomly picking colors for each room. The colors should be related and should flow into each other. You should ask yourself how it feels as you walk through the space. Are there dramatic or subtle changes?
You should also think about where you want people to first look when they enter a room. This is where you should add a punch of color with artwork, accessories, pillows, and other items.
The most important thing to take away is this quote from Jennifer:“What’s trendy? … Who cares! It’s what you love!”
However you choose to decorate your house, make sure YOU are the one who loves it. YOU are the one that has to see it everyday!
I also had the opportunity to listen to Curb Appeal Host John Gidding. He was very friendly and welcomed everyone to ask a lot of questions. His session included before and after pictures of houses from his show. It was amazing to see all the transformation of the yards and houses. I wish they would come to the DC area so he could do my house!!! Even little changes made a world of difference. There was one that showed what a house looked like after having its gutters cleaned and the change was really impressive. Build-ups in guttering can really be unsightly but with services like Clean Pro Gutter Cleaning Memphis on hand to help, a blockage can be cleared; this also reduces the possibility of the blockage causing future water damage to the property.
John gave everyone some easy tips for quick fixes for their house. His number one rule is to NEVER have the sticker numbers on your mailbox or house. Invest in some inexpensive real numbers! He said that the mailbox is the first people see at your house and you don’t want them to get the wrong idea about your house. I went home and looked at my house. I am good, but all of my neighbors have those stickers!
Another tip is that even if you never use it – build it, and it will help your Curb Appeal. This is from the idea that you should put some thought into your yard decor. A well placed chair or bench can make your home look inviting, even if you don’t actually sit in the bench! (By the way, there were a lot of benches on display in the garden areas … they really do look good and inviting!)
If you have a small yard, a good way to add dimension is to have a flower bed with one a straight edge on one side and a curved edge on the other, instead of just having a square bed. This would be an easy fix if you already have the bed in your yard. You would just need to add a little bit more dirt and mulch to fill it out. To give your yard an instant makeover, add new mulch! This can easily brighten the look, especially in the winter.
Disney Katie reader, Kendall, wanted me to ask: “When is the best time to plant grass?” John laughed at this question and said: I always use sod, and you can plant it at any time. It is a lot faster and nicer to just plant sod than to grow grass from seed.
The Home & Garden Show is a great resource to get ideas for updating your home and yard. I certainly have a lot to think about and hope to get some projects done soon!
Adventures By Katie