Chances are that when you think of February, Valentine’s Day is the first thing that comes to mind. It’s a nice image: hearts, flowers, chocolates, and romantic dinners. It wasn’t always that way. The Old English term for February was Solmonath – or “mud month!” The folks at Hallmark are eternally grateful that this particular moniker didn’t…
Read MorePlease consider joining us from March 19-22, 2015 at the Lansing Home & Garden Show! We will be at booth #1349. Click here for more details or read below – see you soon! The strongest Home & Garden show in the Mid-Michigan area fills the MSU Pavilion on the campus of Michigan State University. Incredible gardens,…
Read MoreEven those of us who don’t write out a list of New Year’s resolutions tend to look at January as a time of new beginnings and fresh opportunities. In fact, January takes its name from Janus. In ancient Rome, it was Janus who guarded the gate to the New Year. He was often depicted as…
Read MoreIn some households in the US, emptying the Christmas stockings is a bigger deal than opening the presents under the tree. Even though they’re smaller, stockings are often filled with lots of surprises—some of them quite valuable. Remodeling a home—instead of moving to a new one—is a bit like that. It may not be as…
Read MoreIn this video, a building science manager/trainer details the various parts of his “house,” how it can recreate leaks and the tests that can be done to diagnose those issues. See him put his model to work: http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid2385795654001?bckey=AQ~~,AAAAABgOguU~,hwHNFPPMul5cixO_RFhYO0Cmi2ePiJ7Q&bctid=390750504800105048001 See more Home Performance videos in this series here.
Read MoreBringing friends and family together for a big Thanksgiving dinner is a well-established American tradition. We look forward to it with great anticipation (and sometimes unrealistically high expectations!). There are times, however, when our homes just aren’t ideally situated to handle the extra people. It’s no wonder that so many homeowners have opted for…
Read MoreRegardless of whether you’re carving pumpkins—or turnips—chances are you’ll be doing it in the kitchen. Years ago that made sense because the kitchen was pretty much a working room—cut off from the rest of the house. If you were going to make a mess, you did it in the kitchen because that was a place…
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Experts predict that within the foreseeable future, the largest home improvements will be in kitchen renovations. Click here to see the episode of the Morning Blend for more details and to see our exciting- we are partnering with Pioneer Cabinetry! With over 25 years in business, Pioneer Cabinetry sets itself apart from other cabinet companies through experience, quality,…
Read MoreRemodeling projects seem to have some common high and low points for many owners. If you are a seasoned remodeling veteran, you may already know what to expect and may not need to read this letter. If you have not lived through a remodeling project before, however, you are probably approaching your project with some…
Read MoreThere are three components to all remodeling and our building projects: 1. Design 2. Function (or space planning) 3. Budget (what you are looking the invest in the project) Many times people are tempted to start with space planning, move quickly into design – only to find out that they must repeat those steps because…
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