Since many of us are setting up homes or apartments I thought it would be fun to share some of our 'wow, this looks great' ideas as well as those 'Holy Moly Why did I do that' attempts.
-My 'Why On Earth Did I Do This' moment was the green color I chose for my condo's living room/dinning room. I wanted a light sage green w/white trim BUT I ended-up with Mint! While many people said they liked it 'Yuck' was all I ever said and thought. Lesson I learned: by 1 qt. a the colors you like and try them BEFORE you paint. Also, look at the dried color in the daytime and nighttime to make sure you really like the color.
My 'I really like this' was my recent bedroom painting. We used a suede effect paint and while it is subtle it really adds some nice texture to the room. It was A LOT of work, but worth it in the end. I also sponged painted a bathroom once and really loved the results.
Claud2001
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Re: decorating accomplishments and not-so-great ideas
Kelly - those are beautiful kitchens and baths! Great job!
I too, love the 'look' of stainless in a kitchen, but I don't love the fingerprints that get left behind by it. Not practical with a small child in the house.
Re: decorating accomplishments and not-so-great ideas
I'm so jealous...I don't do well decorating...but I really don't have a place to decorate either...
one day I will and I will post...
RichsBride
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Stef, We are not licensed to work in Brooklyn-we focus our business in Nassau & Suffolk counties. A few tips for finding someone with good integrity 1)Ask them for their workers comp certificate 2)Ask them for their commercial liability certificate 3)Ask them if they have a customer referral list 4)Ask to see before & after pictures of recent jobs 5)Only hire them if they provide a DETAILED contract of propossed work. 6)If they advertise very low prices-their quality will be low too.
If they answer no to #1 or 2 they do not have either one of those policies therefore you don't want them in your home. It costs a tremendous amout of money to keep a home improvement business running in New York and you want people that are serious about their business to work for you. Good Luck, if you have any questions just ask
Sonicstef
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Thanks for the tips!
Do you have anyone you can recommend that will work in Brooklyn?
michele31
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Re: decorating accomplishments and not-so-great ideas
Kelly, Any decorating book suggestions for us 'novices'? And have you ever worked with tin? I saw the tin roof on trading spaces and LOVE it, but am considering it for a backsplash. Any thoughts on the stuff?
RichsBride
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Re: decorating accomplishments and not-so-great ideas
Michele, I'm a huge lover of HGTV & there website for ideas. I buy about 15 magazines per month, all of the BHG special publications & kitchen & bath Mags are great for DIY projects. We did a kitchen with a stainless steel backsplash last year, I don't have a pic online. I think they sell 4x4 or 5x5 adhesive tin tiles now-I'll have to try to remember where I saw that. If you can find a product that will fit in your desired area w/o too many cuts I think it would workout well. The stainless backsplash is very hard to maintain but the homeowner(our best man) had to have it. Stef, I'm sorry but I don't know anyone in that area.
michele31
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Hard to maintain- don't tell me that. Why? I am buying lots of those magazines now.
Claud2001
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My guess would be b/c the tin will show every single water/grease speck and splatter, and fingerprints everywhere, just like with the stainless appliances. But, maybe Kelly can shed more light on that...
jennbaby
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Kelly you guiys are incredible!!! I will be in Nassau or Suffold & may seriously call you for help or hire!
RichsBride
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Re: decorating accomplishments and not-so-great ideas
The stainless is hard to maintain to do the way it shows water, fingerprints, scratches-it's a look but it's not for everyone. I'm not sure how the tin would respond to everyday cleaning products-it depends on the exact finish I would think. It does sound like a unique idea for a backsplash though!
Sonicstef
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Re: decorating accomplishments and not-so-great ideas
Since we are on the subject of backsplashes, I have a faux brick backsplash which I love despite not loving much about my old house. It adds a lot of warmth to the room in terms of color and requires no cleaning or maintence. We plan on redoing our kitchen over the next few years but we are going to redo the brick.
RichsBride
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I know the brick you're talking about Stef-people love it or hate it, I thinks its cool & adds to the personality of an older home. Tile backsplashes are a really easy DIY project & make any kitchen look 100 times better. Home depot sells great mosaic style tile kits & portrait style tile kits that are really easy to do & give a Wow effect. Here's a pic of a custom design we did last year
michele31
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Here are some tin tile photos:
I love tile, but just think tin might be interesting and a bit different. One of the TLC chat rooms had someone who said her's came out great. I am sure it isn't as easy to maintain as tile, but who that's okay.
RichsBride
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Those are really great Michele-I know I've seen copper colored tin tiles somewhere too. I think that tin will add great interest to your kitchen.
michele31
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I just FMd you Kelly. These people don't let you copy the graphics but I wonder if I can mix tin with tile, if the tin is too hard to maintain?
Re: decorating accomplishments and not-so-great ideas
Kelly, the work you and your husband do is amazing!!
I have been trying to convince DH to put up a backslpash in the kitchen for months now. But he doesn't want to bother It doesnt look bad now, I just think it would look so much better.
