Happy HeatWave...

Happy Summer & Happy 4th of July!!! 

Lots is happening here in Charlotte as I now enter Phase 2 of the new house, some fabulous publicity for me & Bante Design LLC as I was interviewed for HGTVRemodels.com on The Psychology of Color & actually enjoying life & researching for 2 new books...

First off...Phase 2 of the new house.  Phase 2 is the phase AFTER everything has been repaired/changed from the Home Inspection.  I encourage anyone who has moved, or thinking of moving, that the 1st thing you need to do is to review the Home Inspection & go through & fix what's listed.  Whether it's scraping/painting exterior trim (do asap to prevent any damage such as mold, insect, rot from starting or getting worse), to changing hvac filters to adding downspout extenders you'll help increase efficiency of HVAC or plumbing system and/or help reduce any further damage to foundation, exterior or interior of your home.

What had happened w/my current home at first started to be basic: change hvac filters, repair window screens, tighten cabinet hardware...many other "issues" came up: clogged ductwork, mold in the shower, bad caulking in kitchen/master bath...It seemed every time I worked on 1 issue, another 3 problems were unveiled.  Now, while created extra work, & the "used to be Phase 1 & is now Phase 2" painting, planting & fixture changing out...the house is more efficient as the HVAC system now runs cleanly (the filters hadn't been changed in over a YEAR!), ALL of the flooring on both floors had to be pulled up & changed, shower pan in the master bath had to be scrubbed down & then bleach used & then a re-caulking...You can actually breathe HEALTHY in the home now...Besides it now being updated.  I encourage all of you to read the previous blog on basic home maintenance: cleaning floor/walls, kitchen/bathroom sinks/back-splashes at least 1x a week, cleaning hvac filters...

Once you finish w/Phase1, then all you'll have to do is set your maintenance schedule to keep home functioning smoothly & efficiently.  Phase 2 is for you personalizing the space: paint, change out flooring/rugs, hardware on cabinets/drawers, faucets & lights.  On a newer home, you should really only have two phases...in older homes, or foreclosures/short-sales, you'll need a Phase 3.  My Phase 3 is all the exterior work (fence, planting larger trees/landscaping & patio) as well as working on the 2nd floor bonus room & new counter-tops for kitchen & both bathrooms.  ahhhhhhhhhh...tiring & a bit of a budget-buster, the house will soon be entirely updated with value-added to home's value.

Business-wise, I've had the pleasure of doing a lot of interviews on color & sustainable design on the national level.  The new site, HGTVRemodels.com is the latest venue for our portfolio to be listed & The Psychology of Color series.  Here are the 2 colors where I've been quoted in a side-bar for the colors PINK & GRAY.  Stay tuned for the links to the other interviews on sustainable design.  Lastly, here's an interview where I got to talk about my career path & design philosophy.

***Here's some GREAT Feng Shui articles for you to implement for summer entertaining & grilling!  Enjoy!***

Lastly, just some notes on what's upcoming...I'll start the CasaVerde radio show up again the end of July/August as things settled down even  more here.  I've also got the 2 outlines, query & pitches done for the new projects I've been working on...stay tuned for that!!  I'm VERY excited about the book that's based on The Clutter Counselor program, Organizing Your Inner Pack Rat...whooo hoooo

I also want to say a BIG THANK YOU for all the new readers & fantastic comments I've received regarding the blog/articles.  My goal is to offer common-sense advice that you can all apply to your space.  If you're interested in a topic that hasn't been discussed...let me know!  If you're interested in scheduling a consultation...let me know!!  Contact us here & we'll try & address ideas, concerns or comments in a timely manner.  We've got some fun new webinars, workshops & topics coming up...so stay with us.

To all...have a wonderful summer...a Happy & Safe 4th of July holiday...

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