Guide to Paint Sheens: Ooooh, Shiny!

I recently read this article written by Pat Curry....and found it to be super helpful in choosing a paint sheen. Honestly, when I buy paint I am just guessing on what to choose....crossing my fingers that I chose the right one.  I hope this article gives you a little guidance for your next trip to Home depot. Enjoy....

Guide to Paint Sheens

High gloss: The most durable and easiest to clean of all paint sheens, high-gloss paint is hard, ultra-shiny, and light-reflecting. Think appliance-paint tough. High gloss is a good choice for area that sticky fingers touch—cabinets, trim, and doors. High-gloss, however, is too much shine for interior walls. And like a Spandex dress, high gloss shows every bump and roll, so don’t skimp on prep work.

• Practical application: kitchens, door and window trim

• Durability: very high

Semi-gloss: Good for rooms where moisture, drips, and grease stains challenge walls. Also great for trim work that takes a lot of abuse.

• Practical application: kitchens, bathrooms, trim, chair rails

• Durability: high

Satin: Has a yummy luster that, despite the name, often is described as velvety. It’s easy to clean, making it excellent for high-traffic areas. Its biggest flaw is it reveals application flaws, such as roller or brush strokes. Touch-ups later can be tricky. 

• Practical application: family rooms, foyers, hallways, kid’s bedrooms

• Durability: high

Eggshell: Between satin and flat on the sheen (and durability) scale is eggshell, so named because it’s essentially a flat (no-shine) finish with little luster, like a chicken’s egg. Eggshell covers wall imperfections well and is a great finish for gathering spaces that don’t get a lot of bumps and scuffs.

• Practical application: dining rooms, living rooms, libraries

• Durability: medium

Flat or matte: A friend to walls that have something to hide, flat/matte soaks up, rather than reflects, light. It has the most pigment and will provide the most coverage, which translates to time and money savings. However, it’s tough to clean without taking paint off with the grime.

• Practical application: adult’s bedrooms and other interior rooms that won’t be roughed up by kids

• Durability: medium-low

More fun sheen facts

• Dark, richer paint colors have more colorant, which boosts sheen. If you don’t want a super-shiny wall, step down at least one level on the sheen scale. Ditto if you’re painting a large, sun-washed or imperfect wall.

• Adding sheen also adds price: Valspar Ultra Premium eggshell costs $32, satin $33, and semi-gloss $34.

Pat Curry is a Georgia-based freelance writer who has covered housing and real estate topics for more than a decade, most recently as a contributing editor to Professional Builder and Professional Remodeler magazines. Image: Pratt & Lambert

Love Your Small Home

So..I am always complaining that my house is too small and that I need a bigger home. But...the trend now is purchasing smaller homes because they are much more cost efficient in so many ways. Check out this article below that I recently read. So......NO MORE COMPLAINING THAT MY HOUSE IS TOO SMALL!  :)

 

Your Small Home: 5 Big Reasons to Love It

By: Terry Sheridan

There's plenty to love about small homes--they're easier to maintain, and the price tag is generally lower. Image: Ross Chapin Architects/www.rosschapin.com

A small home packs plenty of perks, and generally means a lower asking price. But entry price is only one factor—they’re easier on the pocketbook in a host of ways.
1. Lower property taxes. Your small home will be charged at a lower tax rate than its larger neighbors because the assessed value generally is lower.

2. Lower property insurance. The smaller the house, generally the lower the insurance cost, although it also matters where you live and how your small house is constructed. A brick house in wildfire-prone southern California is likely to cost less to insure than a similar-size house with wood siding.

3. You’ll save on heating and cooling. That’s regardless of how energy efficient the house is. In fact, one study indicates that a poorly insulated, 1,500 sq. ft. house is at least $200 cheaper per year to heat and cool than a well-insulated house twice that size. The U.S. Energy Information Administration says homes of 2,000 sq. ft. to 2,500 sq. ft. use an average 102.3 million BTUs of fuel yearly—13% less than homes that are 1,000 square feet larger.

4. Save on major replacements. When you need to replace a major house component or system, you’ll be glad you’re living in a smaller home. For example: According to the Cost vs. Value Report from Remodeling Magazine, the national average for vinyl replacement siding is about $9 per sq. ft.

For a modest-size house (1,500 sq. ft. of living space) with 1,740 sq. ft. of exterior wall space, that’s $15,660. For a 2,500-sq.-ft. house, you’ll pay up to $10,000 more!

5. Easier maintenance. You’ll spend less time cutting those smaller lawns, cleaning gutters, washing windows, and the umpteen other chores that home ownership involves. Figure 16 windows and sliding glass doors on a home of 2,000 square feet or less would take about 10 hours to clean, inside and out, twice a year. Double the house size, and that’s roughly 20 hours spent with a squeegee and rag.

The Hot New Neutral Has Home Owners Feeling a Little Gray

By Melissa Dittmann Tracey, REALTOR® Magazine

Add caption

So that reddish pink Honeysuckle hue may be stealing all of the glory as far as being the “color of the year,” but more home owners also are seeing gray.
Gray has become the hot new neutral, and a popular choice particularly in kitchens for backsplashes, countertops, flooring, and cabinetry, according to a recent article in Newsday by Kristin Taveira, “The Grays of Our Lives: Moody and Mod, It’s a Hot Color in the Kitchen.”
“The white kitchens never go out of style–you see them everywhere– but gray is the new white,” Jennifer Mabley of Mabley Handler Interior Design told Newsday. “Gray gives you dimension and depth, and helps to tie in the natural colors in the stone countertops. Sometimes, when you have a white kitchen and granite, there’s a disconnect. The gray helps tie in a natural color.”
Designers in the article note gray can:

• be easily adaptable and paired with any shade for a pop of color, such as yellow, for more drama, or you can use it to help soften another hue.
• enhance the look of stainless steel and granite.
• create a sense of permanence. It can ground a long space, whereas white may make it appear that it goes on forever.

Other color trends for paint in 2011:

Photo Credit: Paint Quality Institute

So if gray doesn’t seem like the smart choice for your space, there are plenty of other colors catching on this year.
Play the blues. If you’re not feeling gray, maybe a little blue? Blues–from denim dark to blue-gray–are gaining steam as popular choices for walls and even ceilings.

Photo Credit: Paint Quality Institute

Join the neutral craze. So gray is hardly the only neutral choice. Warm whites, tawny tans, barely-there coral and greens are proving to be popular shades in bedrooms, baths, and kitchens, according to the Paint Quality Institute’s 2011 Color Trends report. More home owners are reaching for a variety of casual neutral and pastel hues to create warm, inviting living spaces.

Metallic painted gold ceiling; Photo Credit: Paint Quality Institute

Give it some shimmer. Higher paint sheens and metallic finishes, such as gold–particularly in dining rooms, master bedrooms, and bathrooms–are also popular this year, according to the Paint Quality Institute. “More gloss means more reflectivity, which means more light,” according to its trend report. “Gloss can subtly create a brighter, more upbeat mood in a home, but at the same time, it adds style and pizzazz.”
So what are your favorite finds recently in paint colors for spicing up a home’s interior?

Where to Search For a Home

Check out these sites for searching for a home.....they will have the most up to date information on homes that are currently for sale. Let me know if you see something you like.....I'm loving this weather....and would love to show you a few homes over the weekend.

www.dillardgroup.com
www.realtor.com
www.openhouseok.com

The Life of A Crazy Realtor

Ok...yes...my life as a Realtor is a little crazy sometimes..but I would say "Good Crazy"...if there is such a thing. I absolutely love my career in Real Estate because it allows me to be a mom, wife and have a career all at the same time. But, I have to admit that sometimes I do feel a little stretched at times. But...it is totally worth it. I have a huge support team in my mom and husband and support staff at the Dillard Group.

So..what does a life of  a realtor..mom..and wife look like? Well..let me just tell ya......

get up at 6:45 after hitting the snooze button 5 times...get my oldest son ready for school...have sweet breakfast time with him before drop off... drop him off at school only 1 or 2 minutes late ( So sorry Mrs. P)...run back home....have a little cuddle time with my youngest before I drop him off at Mother's Day Out or if  I have a slow day in real estate my youngest will stay home with me... head to the office....check my e-mail...read a few blogs I follow...paperwork ( I ABSOLUTELY HATE PAPERWORK)...follow-up on phone calls....review each one of my listings and follow up with each seller....schedule Open Houses and Broker's Opens....follow-up with my client list...Title Companies...Home Inspectors..other Realtors that I am working a transaction with...and put out "Real Estate Fires" (there is always some kind of challenge in each transaction.....trust me)....check my watch and realize I have 32 minutes and 48 seconds before I need to head out to pick up my boys....check off as many items on my to do list as possible in the next 32 minutes....now I am off to pick up my youngest...and then we are off to pick up my oldest....Snack time....maybe a play date....or some time at the park....bike ride or if we are totally worn out we will cuddle on the couch and watch a movie together....hmmm....it's close to dinner time and time for my Super Tall Mr. Fix-It/ Accountant hubby to be home....Monday is either pizza night or Qdoba night ($$$ dollar tacos $$$)...on other nights we might grill out and have family night sitting outside watching the kids play....while my wonderful husband cleans the kitchen I will sneak off for a little exercise....come home...work on homework with my oldest..read books...bath time...sweet time with Jesus and sleep time....I am no longer staying up till 3 am doing random stuff around the house....I am trying to go to bed when the kids go to sleep....a SUPER huge challenge for me...but I am doing it....but I might get up at 1 am to work on my blog ;)....so..that is a little bit about my crazy and wonderful life as a Realtor....oh...and somewhere in there we might bake some yummy cupcakes...as you can see from  my pic below....they are not very "Martha Stewarty"....but "T" was happy to take them to his friends at school...

New Noble Listing 3 1/2 Acres $175K

So....I just listed this great house in Noble on 3. 54 acres. It is located at 441 S 48th Street. If you take highway 9 East to 48th, take 48th South and go down a few miles it will be on the East side of the street...you will see my Dillard Group Real Estate Sign.

• 3.54 acres
• 3 Bedrooms
• 3 Baths
• Built in 1982
• 2 Living Spaces
• 1923 Square Feet
• Cute built in eating area in the dining room area...plus enough room to put a formal dining room table
• Fenced in concrete swimming pool
• Vaulted Ceilings in Living room and Dining Area
• 2 Living Spaces
• 2 Car garage
• $175,000

I hope you are enjoying your Spring Break. I know my little family has been enjoying every single moment of sleeping in...going to bed late...ice cream..shopping....movies..History Museum....face painting...a play date with triplets that included a play date for me..visiting with a childhood friend whom I have not seen in 20 years...so much fun. Good Night my sweet friends...I pray that Sunday will be a relaxing day for you and your family.

1169 Robinhood Lane....Norman Listing.....near OU!!

Check out my new listing in Sherwood Forest. It is in walking distance to OU. It has 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, vaulted ceilings, large open kitchen and dining room. With a little TLC.....this house could be adorable. The seller will be replacing the garage door within the next couple of weeks. Square footage is 1551 and only $139,000. I will be having an Open House this Sunday between 2 and 4pm. Come check it out!

This New Adventure

Soooo...I am extremely excited about starting this new adventure in the world of blogging. I was originally introduced to reading blogs a few years ago through this blog www.hollibphotography.com and within the last six months I have been obsessed with reading interior design blogs. My favorite is http://www.honeywerehome.blogspot.com/ .

I have been thinking about the things that I want to share with you...wondering about what you would like to see here. So...here is a little sneak peak of what I have planned for us........


highlights of client's homes.....funky...traditional...and classical styles........new Norman listings.......my Super Tall Mr. Fix-It Husband.....stories about my boys....home projects...mom stuff....spiritual inspiration.......life struggles....my sometimes-wacky real estate adventures....tips on saving  money....books I am reading.....craft projects....and many many things Real Estate related.


At the end of this week, I will be highlighting a former client's house. We looked for almost an entire year for a house that fit his lifestyle. We found this amazing house near campus. I can't wait for you to see it. I hope you are having a wonderful Monday. 

Around "MyHouseLove"

So..if you were to walk through my house..you might see this.....

My oldest son "J" playing dress up with this wacky wig I found in a thrift store in Colorado!

A craft project with items around the house!

Brother Time!

Ok...so I have a secret.....a Super Hero lives in our house! My youngest son "T".

Spring Time: The Best Time to Put Your House on the Market

It's March....which in the real estate world...translates to "The BEST TIME TO PUT YOUR HOUSE ON THE MARKET." If you are considering selling your home...don't miss this HOT time in real estate. I guess the warmer weather...flowers....etc..gets us thinking about houses. As for me....I am obsessed and I am always thinking of houses. ;) Here are a few things to think about when putting your house on the market...

Curb Appeal..oh yes.....I cannot tell you how important it is to get the outside of your home ready. Think BRIGHT COLORS! You want the couple driving down the street to put on the brakes when they see your home. Plant bright colored flowers, add cute pots, and a cute bench. I will be posting in more detail about Curb Appeal this week....!

Minimize..that's right...get all that clutter out of your home. It's completely fine to stash it in the garage or in closets..but do not leave it hanging around the house. Honestly, the houses that show the best are the ones that look like nobody lives in the house. Think Simple!

Price it Right...you want to make sure that your house is priced at the correct market value. Review the comps with your Realtor and put your house at a reasonable asking price. One of the top reasons a house stays on the market for an extended amount of time is that it is priced too high.

Clean..Clean..and Clean Some More...I know as a mom how hard it is to keep our houses clean and tidy. But..it is so important to have your house clean at all times so when you get that call from you realtor that a couple wants to see it in 15 minutes you are not running around stressing or even decline the showing because you are embarrassed with your messy house.  A website that I really like about house cleaning is www.flylady.com. Just think..when you get into your new home...you won't have to keep it as clean.

Budget....before you put your house on the market...make sure that you can really afford that new house. I encourage you to pray about this new adventure and make sure that it is the right adventure for you to take at this time.

Good Luck....let me know if you have any questions!