westchester county decorator: How to Shop for a Mattress - 12/27/13 03:04 PM
If you're in the market for a new mattress, first, acknowledge the very act of buying a mattress is uncomfortable. You're laying down, in front of a stranger....who wants to sell you something.  Trying to relax, while your brain is hissing 'pay attention, so you don't overspend'.
Not a primer on coil counts or the like; it's just after 25+ years in busy retail furniture, The Refreshed Home has seen some very simple and practical ways to make the process easier, while upping the odds of you making your own best choice.
Mattresses degrade a teeny tiny bit, every night, you just don't notice it, attributing sleeplessness or your aching back … (9 comments)

westchester county decorator: FAQs: Why are White Walls "The Kiss of Death"? - 11/23/13 10:34 AM
Time for anther installment of FAQs, the series that features snappy answers to your Home Staging, and Decorating questions.
Whether you're trying to sell your Westchester County property, or looking to snazz it up for the holidays, you need to believe me when I say White Walls are the Kiss of Death. And the Decorator off-whites are not much better.
There are three principles to remember here: First, the eye is immediately, intrinsically drawn to color, and light. There is no conscious thought, it just happens. Second, walls are the largest surface area in any room. No matter what, they just are. … (8 comments)

westchester county decorator: Staging FAQs: Why Can't You Just Give Me a Price? - 09/12/13 03:06 PM
Welcome back to FAQs-where YES, I can just give you...ANSWERS!
"Why can't you just give me a price?" seems like a simple enough question...reinforced by my recent experimentation with an online referral service. Well sure, if there was an accepted quantifiable standard for a beautifully decorated home, or a successfully staged property. But success, and happiness is in the eye of the beholder>>> fluid at best, and THAT is where, and why most people get stuck.
If Interior Decorating and Home Staging were a tangible product-like a gallon of milk, or a set of tires, it'd be easy to research, compare … (4 comments)

westchester county decorator: Coloring Your World: The Paradox of BLUE - 07/29/13 10:22 AM

Color surrounds us. It drives, soothes, influences, intrigues and inspires us. It also intimidates the heck out of us when presented in the form of a paint fan, or a wall of fabric swatches. Coloring Your World is a series that works its way around the color wheel, looking at the history and psychology of color. Continuing with the primary colors, let's talk about BLUE.
Percentages vary, but ask someone what their favorite color is, and chances are good they will say blue. In fact, Google 'most popular color in the world' and (uncharacteristically) you will get the same, succinct … (19 comments)

westchester county decorator: Decorating for the Stars: Happy Birthday, CAPRICORN! - 01/11/13 04:00 AM
Decorating for the Stars: Happy Birthday, CAPRICORN!
Those born between December 21 and January 20 are a robust bunch. Represented by a goat, it's a pretty apt characterization....and I mean that in a good way.
Capricorns are often quite accomplished in their chosen field, but you'd probably only know that if you googled them, or someone else filled you in.
Anything loud, obvious or flashy, PDAs, or other shows of emotion embarrass the typical goat. Instead, they are low-key, and tend to stay in the background and observe (think Humphrey Bogart, Cary Grant, Capricorns both). Focused, practical, and determined, but … (5 comments)

westchester county decorator: Buying Upholstery Is A Lot Like Buying Underwear (Part Two) - 12/16/12 12:38 PM
Buying Upholstery Is A Lot like Buying Underwear (Part Two)
There are a lot of little choices to make when it comes to choosing both upholstery and underwear, most not covered by either HGTV or Victoria's Secret... so here are a few other tips on what to consider in evaluating fit and feel for the former.
If you're good on proportions and pitch let's move onto the arms:
If you'll be reading, working on the laptop, or crossword puzzles in your new upholstery-bring said products to the store. Spend a few minutes using them... are your elbows and shoulders both relaxed and … (23 comments)

westchester county decorator: Buying Upholstery Is A Lot Like Buying Underwear (Part One) - 12/14/12 01:21 AM
Buying Upholstery Is A Lot Like Buying Underwear (Part One)
There are three ways to look at buying upholstery: How it's made, and how it looks get the most press, but let's discuss the third-how it fits.
Which is why buying upholstery is a lot like buying underwear: Simply-seriously-you spend a lot of time in it, and it needs to provide the right amount of function, intimate comfort and support to your unique body.
I will leave you to your own decisions on the former, but whether re-working, or replacing -helping clients have fun while making their own best decisions is … (4 comments)

westchester county decorator: Decorating for the Stars: Happy Birthday LIBRA! - 10/07/12 03:08 PM

Decorating for the Stars: Happy Birthday, LIBRA!!
 
Even if you are not a believer, it's always fun to check and see what the stars are SUPPOSED to hold for you. Each month we take a fun look at what makes each of our boats float, home decor-wise. This month, we wish a Happy Birthday to LIBRA!
From the ancient Greek, Libra was a unit of weight (around 12 oz), why the sign of Libra to be represented by a set of scales.
The assumption might be that those born under that sign are operate in an even-keeled, steady and balanced … (6 comments)

westchester county decorator: FAQs: "When Can I See Your Portfolio?" - 08/25/12 05:17 AM

FAQs: "When Can I See Your Portfolio?"
Faithful readers know this series is about snappy answers to questions everyone asks, or thinks about asking.
Today's post is an epic departure, for two reasons. First-this question hasn't actually come up before the other day, AND I didn't have an answer handy that I liked when it did.
But it is a VERY good question. So have given it some thought, and here goes:
Website-check! B&A pics-check! References from jobs of all different sizes and types-check! But I do not have a physical or formal portfolio.
I do ponder this on my … (2 comments)

westchester county decorator: Choosing to Be Happy - 08/11/12 01:50 PM
In the 80s and 90s, there was little talk of how someone "felt" when they were buying things and doing stuff to their house.
Everything was about the visual. People spoke, and thought in singular, visionary words: stunning, gorgeous, elegant.
Then feelings entered the picture again....tentatively, at first. Words like warm, inviting and cozy were big, as were simple and peaceful.
Life changed for most of us in 2001, and our homes became our base. They were our refuge, our buffer. They kept gritty reality at a distance, while we yearned for the impossible, to be safe and sane in … (6 comments)

westchester county decorator: FAQs: What is the Difference Between Decorating, and Home Staging? - 07/27/12 01:13 PM
Welcome back to FAQs, where maybe a minutes' worth of reading gets your most often-asked questions answered.
Easy to see why this one comes up a lot, there are a lot of commonalities:
Arenas-aesthetic concerns, personal tastes and values Skill set- creativity and visualization Concerns-spending money, subjective solutions What they do not share-indeed, where they could not be more opposite- are their goals, and results.
Decorating makes a space work better for the people in it. It could include purchases or re-purposing, space planning, finishes or colors; the status or the function.
It is personal. Clients make choices that will make … (2 comments)

westchester county decorator: Decorating FAQs: Do You Make Money on What We Buy, or Who We Hire? - 07/07/12 01:00 PM
FAQs is a series that gives quick and simple answers to the questions I hear the most often (click here to read others)
Love this question. In my years of retail, lack of transparency in the cost structure of working with a private Decorator was the #1 complaint I heard from my clients. In creating my own business, having a simple compensation structure was a must.
There is nothing inherently wrong, or even remotely suspect about being paid by sales commissions or bonuses, but knowing they were paying a Decorators's markup, in addition to a presumably fair rate rubbed a lot … (3 comments)

westchester county decorator: Sofas for Dummies (NOT): Shopping with The Refreshed Home - 07/02/12 02:23 AM
(Fill in the noun) for Dummies has been one of the most successful franchises in publishing history. Since the inaugural DOS for Dummies launched in 1991, there are over 250 million of the the trademark yellow and black softcover books in print 1800+ titles, in 30 languages.
The self-deprecating title almost kept the first one out of bookstores, but that was its genius: take a complex, confusing, intimidating, anxiety-provoking topic; distill it into layman terms, add some yuks and cute drawings, and you've got a read that is helpful, effective and entertaining.
Like it's look-alike and predecessor Cliff's Notes (seriously, named … (8 comments)