Have You Heard About Houzz?

How can I describe Houzz? It's probably the largest home remodeling, furnishing, product inspiration board site on the Internet. It's also one of the easiest ways for people to get the design insight, project advice, product information and professional reviews they need to help turn ideas into reality. You can find everything, from a complete home remodeling project, right down to hundreds of styles of faucets for kitchen and bath.

I also like Houzz because it leads homeowners to quickly find a list of local home remodelers and provides them with the opportunity to see online samples of a home remodeler's work before even picking up the phone to chat with one or more contractors.  I encourage you to visit us here, at Houzz, and see some of our recent projects and thought-provoking ideas. Of course, if you see a project from another home remodeler that you particularly like, feel free to tell us about it, and we can always discuss doing something in the same or similar style.

Naturally, it's fun to browse, but when you're seriously thinking about a home remodeling project, Houzz is like a helpful assistant that guides you to the project you're looking for and gives you a variety of styles and ideas so that you can begin to get a clear picture of what your new dream kitchen, bathroom, family room or bedroom might look like -- even before you're ready to call a contractor.

And when you're ready to call a home remodeling contractor, Houzz classifies contractors by location, so  you can pinpoint one close to your home, and view online before and after photos of projects, such as the one's we've provided for you on Houzz.

After you've had time to navigate Houzz, I'd be interested to know your thoughts about the site. Did you find it helpful? What did you like most, or least, about it?

Let's keep in touch. Your comments are always appreciated!

                                                                                                                                                           

The best is yet to come,

Beth Orr

Incorporating Color Trends to Enhance your Home

Each year Pantone comes up with the Color of the Year. This year it's Emerald Green. But Pantone also offers a whole range of colors for your home. But I find that, in addition to color trends, there are always new design trends that people are curious about. As part of the Dover Design Team, clients often ask my opinion about these trends. The following are some of the most-asked questions:

Let's talk first about home remodeling trends in general. What's popular right now?

BETH: We always suggest a timeless theme when remodeling. You don't want your new kitchen or bath to quickly seem dated. Just as you wouldn't dress head-to-toe in the latest trends, the same holds true for home remodeling. For example, the Vessel Sink was quite popular a while back and now it seems dated to the early 2000s. You will never tire of timeless classics for your home. They're like a string of pearls on a black dress.

Can you give some examples of timeless themes that are popular right now?

BETH: In the bath black and white floor tiles often used in early to mid-century homes are very popular right now, and that has a timeless feel to it. Also white subway tiles on the walls in bathrooms and kitchens are very popular right now. And that will never look dated. Kitchen design remains classic with a Tuscan feel of warm, neutral colors or white cabinets with clean lines.

How can a homeowner maintain a timeless look but still use colors that are on-trend without looking dated?

BETH: Remember the avocado green phase in kitchen appliances in the 1960s? That's an example of taking a color trend to the extreme. Stay neutral and classic with the costly items and use contemporary colors as accents. There's a whole Pantone spectrum of colors that you can find here.

Then you can add splashes of on-trend colors with accessories. For example, you've incorporated a clean, livable black and white theme in your bathroom. Go wild with popular leopard print and bright emerald green towels and accessorize with jewel tone bath items. Next year, when there's a new color palette, your bathroom will remain classic but you can change up the accessories to inexpensively maintain an on-trend feel to your home.

We're always happy to answer questions about color and design trends. Feel free to contact me on this blog or at orrb@doverremodeling.com.

The best is yet to come,

Beth Orr

Where to Begin: Part 2 -- Taking One for the Team

In our first blog post I told about Dover's history and what to expect from future posts. With this post I'd like to tell you about our team.  

All of us at Dover realize that remodeling is a big undertaking. After all, you're considering adding on to the largest investment you own -- your home. So it's not surprising that most people search for a good partnership with a home remodeler.  

I would think you're also looking for a company that has proven itself; one that offers more than promises. You want a company with stability, longevity, and successful home remodeling accomplishments, despite the ups and downs of housing crises, economic downturns, and changing expectations of what remodeling means for today's homeowner.

Speaking of longevity, right now we have 20 people on our design and build team, some who have been with us for more than 25 years! Their design ideas and craftsmanship shine through the quality of work they've done over these many years. But don't just take our word for it, see what our clients have to say about our work.

As for stability and experience, our lead carpenters, Jim Bilancini and Bob Kurtz, have been with Dover for a combined 53 years, Shelley, one of our top designers, 13 years and Dan, our production manager 22 years.

                                                                                                                                                            

At Dover, our designers and craftsmen have traveled the road to remodeling many times, over many years. We would be delighted to share our experience with you.

The best is yet to come,

Jim Orr

WHERE TO BEGIN?

We all ask ourselves, "Where to begin?" when undertaking a new task. For readers of this blog, it might be, "Where do I begin to plan a remodeling project for my home?" For me, when I decided to write this blog I asked, "How do I begin to tell you about Dover Home Remodelers?"

So I decided to start at the beginning. My name is Jim Orr. My wife Eileen and I founded Dover Home Remodelers, Inc., in 1984 and moved into our showroom located in North Olmsted in 1991. We're a family-owned business -- born and bred in Ohio.

My intent is to offer tips that help you make the right decisions about remodeling your home. I'll bring in guest experts to answer questions, such as "Are there online resources I can use before choosing a home remodeler?"; "What should I expect during the redesign process?"; "How do I establish a budget?"  

This blog will also help you ask the tough questions from a contractor, such as: Does the contractor offer a written warranty on materials and workmanship; do they put in writing a start and completion date; do they return with a written quote and provide current insurance and proof of Worker's Compensation in a timely fashion? These, and many more questions should be asked of a contractor before hiring.

I believe we stand apart from other home remodelers when assisting clients, because we do more than sell services. We answer the tough questions. We deliver on our promises. And we have a dedicated team to design and build your dream, which I will tell you about in a future post.

We've won many national, regional and local awards, which you can check out at www.doverremodeling.com, but what we're most proud of is our outstanding accreditation from the Better Business Bureau (BBB). I always urge potential clients to check the profile of contractors at the BBB web site, the National Association of Remodelers and Angie's List, for an accurate assessment of a contractor's work.

Finally, for the past 29 years, I like to think our proudest accomplishments are the quality of our work and the integrity of our people. During good and challenging economic times the trust our clients have put in us and our work has sustained Dover as a proud, family-owned business.

The best is yet to come,

Jim Orr