It's what happens between the "before" and the "after"
I admire the entrepreneurial spirit, and passion about one’s work, and courage. So when Steve Broujos, a painting contractor and educator in Wilmington, Del., asked if I’d like to see his new book, I thought: Why not? The title is not exactly dynamic: “The Homeowner’s Guide to Surface Preparation for Interior House Painting.” But I’ll tell…
Outside of Charlotte, N.C., Judy Hammill moved back to the farmhouse where she grew up and that her own father built. But the kitchen was dated and would not work as Judy settled into retirement and got older. She won a makeover from AARP and an aging-in-place specialist to make the kitchen accessible. The new…
How important is a fireplace and mantel? Take it from a man who tours hundreds of houses a year and whose sales depend on features that attract buyers: “Every room needs a centerpiece,” says David Kean, an interior designer and real estate agent with The John Aaroe Group, in Beverly Hills, Calif. According to Kean,…
Beginning today, Nov. 8, USGBC will begin the first public comment period for the next update to the LEED rating system, with first public comment expected to run through the end of 2010. The proposed update is a general technical update to the rating system content. The proposed updates will undergo at least two public…
Will you get your money back on that bathroom remodel when you sell your house? How about that new deck? How much will that increase the value of your house? For hard numbers on how much you’ll get back from your remodel, you can’t do better than the Cost vs. Value Report put out each…
How do you protect your kids from lead poisoning during a remodel? Here are tips for homeowners from the National Association of Home Builders: Professional remodelers who have achieved EPA Lead-Safe Certification are trained and prepared to work in pre-1978 homes for minimizing dust and potential lead paint exposures. These workers also have certified their firms…
Tired of all the ornate cemeteries in our world? Have a hard time seeing your modernist remains resting comfortable in one of them? For those deposed in Munich, a very modern alternative exists. See the photo gallery here. On the flip side, the burial grounds themselves are lush and natural, like meadows. So it’s not…
As the casket was carried out of the church, a group of New Orleans firefighters wearing dress blues snapped to attention and saluted, choking back tears. Gerry Crimmins, of the New York District Council of Carpenters Labor Technical College, signs a beam at Engine 38 fire house in New Orleans in August, 2009. The New…
Just for fun here at Kathy’s Remodeling Blog, we decided to check how many products have been recalled lately for dangerously high levels of lead. As you know, lead is very dangerous when inhaled or ingested and causes brain damage and learning disabilities in children. As if life wasn’t hard enough. In adults, it can…
This idea is so unique that we at Kathy’s Remodeling Blog can hardly stand it: You can have your own garden flowers imbedded into resin panels for use as kitchen or bathroom cabinet inserts. See some options here Can you imagine your favorite flowers, that you grew, immortalized in resin panels? You can use translucent…
More than 95% of consumer products marketed as “green,” including all toys surveyed, make misleading or inaccurate claims, says a report today. The number of products claiming to be green increased 73% since 2009, according to a survey by TerraChoice,an Ottawa-based marketing firm owned mostly by Underwriters Laboratory of Canada. The UL network does independent…