Trying to achieve designer look on average homeowner budget
Help! I have fallen in love with this room as an inspiration for my living room remodel. I am trying to figure out how to recreate it, but on a much smaller budget. The biggest issue I am having is the fabric for the drapes is about $170/yd! Any suggestions on fabrics that might get me the same feel and coloring that is $100 per yard or less???
Comments (23)
Mrs. S
6 years ago
My3dogs ME zone 5A
6 years agoRelated Discussions
24 year old Homeowner looking for Design Help
Comments (9)Based purely on aesthetics with a couple of my personal preferences tied in. 1. I would make the path wider, ideally around 5' (5' is roughly the width it takes for 2 people to walk comfortably side by side). I also like the functionality of wider paths for hauling in and out furniture etc. I like stamped concrete and brick. I would not recommend gravel or stepping stones since it messes with its primary function - safe travel. 2. I wouldn't plant anything on the lawn side of the path. And keep the first 1-2 feet on the house side with low growing plants, 6" to 18" tall. You do not want to have people having to "lean" away from plants growing near the path. 3. With regard to plantings and flower beds. Always make sure the soil slopes away from the house. Do not plant anything that will eventually cover up windows. I would say roughly 1' of clearance around the whole visual border of the window (or 1/3 of the window space around the edge). You need to maintain emergency access out of the house. I personally would recommend against thorny/sappy plants under windows unless you are very concerned about theft/crime. 4. I like to use flower bed borders. It helps keep the lawn out of flower beds, and makes things more tidy looking. I use 2 horizontal bricks with a vertical partially buried brick on the flower bed side. It gives you a nice edge that prevents plants from growing underneath and a good edge for mowing the lawn and for using an edging tool while keeping things relatively flat so you can mow all the way to the edge. You can also do concrete or plastic edging too, I just don't like the appearance as well. 5. It depends on if you like a more structured French style, a dense free-flowing English cottage style or Asian meandering soft and textured gardens. I tend to favor more color and free flowing, especially for low maintenance. With that in mind I would make the flower bed on the far side of the house with rounded meandering edges to add interest and make it less structured. 6. Plant things in odd numbers (1, 3, 5,7 etc). It helps make the garden space look more natural so we are less likely to want to create symmetry out of the garden, thus reducing maintenance. 5. I am guessing that your house is north facing based on the picture but not necessarily super shady. I would consider adding hostas, periwinkle, violets, astilbe closer to the house where it is shaded most of the day. Variegated (striped) varieties are often a good choice. As long as it isn't TOO dark, you can get most anything to grow in shade, it just won't bloom as well and will be more "leggy." 6. Perhaps along the far fence line place some low maintenance shrub roses, lilacs, lily, iris, and for a more wildflower feel Shasta and Fiesta Daisies, and Black-Eyed Susan. I personally find evergreen junipers very boring, so look for plants that you like and will grow in your climate. You will have a lot more options than you realize. 7. A tree out in the yard could be nice, can't really tell from the picture. But I would probably go with something fairly short. Make sure to follow the golden ratio, or essentially think in thirds. Keep spaces at 1 or 2 units away for every 3 units tall (or 3 units away with 1 unit tall etc). It is naturally pleasing and helps prevent you from planting something that is too tall and close to the house, in case of a toppled tree or something. 8. Always plan for the final size/result. It is okay to pick something fast growing or annual to fill in the gaps, just realize you will have to remove them once things "fill-in." 9. Landscaping/gardening tends to be a process where you end up identifying new needs/wants after a few years as you develop your personal tastes. Don't feel like you have to do the entire space at once....See MoreWhat do you think the average home owner cares about?
Comments (17)Bones -absolutely. Most of the stuff I did building my house you will never see. All steel frame construction, all 5/8" sheetrock, dedicated a/c system w/ returns in each bedroom - study - wives closet etc variable speed air handlers 17.5 seer trane compressors, radiant heat w/ boiler, oversized plumbing lines -- go ahead and flush all 5 toilets and take 4 showers at once (5 counting double heads in master), sprayed in foam insulation, radiant barrier in attic, 3 electrical subpanels -- wife's vanity has 8 outlets on 2 separate 20 amp circuits, i beams cutting span in half on several floors, solid conrete columns front and back etc, etc....maybe it's a guy thing...See MoreContractor over budget...looking for advice
Comments (36)To be fair, I think many people in the industry don't understand the difference between an estimate and a bid, largely because they are not simply headings on a piece of paper. The firmness of an offer will be based on the underlying elements of the offer and not whether you call it a bid or an estimate. An estimate based on a fully specified and detailed electrical plan will carry more weight than a bid based on a floor plan without any lighting detail. So really to know whether you have something that is an actionable firm offer you have to know the specifics of the underlying items. You really just have to use the reasonable person test to determine the difference between the two. Would a reasonable contractor given that information be able to produce a detailed estimate and would a reasonable person given that estimate rely on that estimate as firm? -------------- Just to be clear, my previous post was not an attempt to say that the OP received a bid on electrical, it was only to dispel the myth that a cost plus contract is necessarily a blank check for the contractor, it doesn't have to be. There are many well designed cost plus contracts that could be converted to a fixed cost contract once subcontractor selection has occurred without any additional costs. In the OP's situation, the problem wasn't whether or not this was an offer or a bid. The actionable problem would be the contractor's failure to communicate overages. A contractor in a cost plus contract has a affirmative duty to communicate cost variances to the client. You can't tell people everything is fine and you are on budget and then hit them with a $6,000 overage that you knew about when you told them everything was fine and on budget. I know that it makes for some uncomfortable confrontations, but that is the nature of these arrangements....See MoreAnybody bored, wanna design a small kitchen layout w/ avg budget?
Comments (6)You have posted what appears to be a blank slate for the most part. Are plumbing, gas, and electrical already in place? If so, it will be more cost-effective to keep those in the same places. You'll also save on cost by shopping for cabinetry first and looking at the standard or semi-custom offerings available from your favorite line. If you work your layout around standard or semi-custom cabinet offerings, then that eliminates your need to go with a full custom layout which can be more expensive. One of my personal best recommendations would be to look at workstation sink concepts from companies like Havens Metal, Julien, Kohler, Rachiele, The Galley, or Create Good Sinks. Those brands span a range of price levels, but the concept of a large workstation sink is a fairly recent one in kitchen design and can be a boon for small kitchens to help make the working space more efficient. I selected a Havens Metal apron-front sink in the Prestige finish for my re-design and am just as excited about it as with my new Wolf vent hood and Beleza soapstone counters. We are using a local custom cabinet maker for our small kitchen because our layout was extremely tight, we wanted custom raised countertops, and our layout was too specific to work with standard or semi-custom mass-produced brands. Harmoni, Shiloh, and Signature are good cabinet brands to look at for mid-range, semi-custom brands. If you have a ProSource in your area, they'll offer good pricing on a variety of other custom cabinet brands like Kemper and Omega. If your budget is generous, Jay Rambo is a little-known gem of a manufacturer that produces beautiful natural-wood finishes at reasonable prices. Kennebec specializes in quartersawn, inset cabinetry that is outstanding. Don't overlook IKEA cabinetry if you really want to slash the budget but still get some decent cabinets. Places like Scherr's and Semihandmade are door companies that cater to fitting IKEA boxes for a custom look....See More
Yayagal
6 years agobusymom03
6 years ago
aprilneverends
6 years agoMy3dogs ME zone 5A
6 years agolast modified: 6 years agoDo you know how many yards you need? Are you making them yourself (HUGE savings) or having them made? If you are having them made, will the maker allow you to supply your own fabric?
I always check FabricGuru.com when I want to make drapes. I just looked at a few there, which may be nothing that you like, but if you have some time to peruse their fabrics, you'll find a huge selection. Here are just a few -
Millcreek Witherfield Sussex $19.95 yd
Robert Allen Kavali Ogee in Persimmon $19.95
Cyrus Clark Bankura in Multi - $5.21 per yard (only 17 yards in stock)
Iman Home Medina Opal Printed Cotton Drapery Fabric With Sewn on Ribbon Embellishments $14.95 per yard
Latika Festival $14.95 Yard
This is at Fabric.com, Waverly Dressed Up Damask Poppy, on sale for $21.24 a yard, sale ends 10/10.
ETA - Suzani in Aquamarine by P Kaufmann on sale for $9.98 yd at Housefabric.com, original price $28.97 yd.
deeinohio
6 years agoaprilneverends
6 years agoyou can..
sign up on eBay search for the fabric..usually will give you similar results as well, and some people do sell a lot..might get lucky
you can try and do the same-sign up for search on textiles and fabric on Chairish for example. One needs to be patient of course
right now I see there these
https://www.chairish.com/product/555186/gpj-baker-drapery-panels-a-pair
=different feel same manufacturer..great price though. these are already curtains; but many peope just sell textiles of all kinds, remnants ot quite a lot of yardage. don't miss this site too
only 6 yards..
https://www.chairish.com/product/803188/lee-jofa-california-gp-j-baker-england-6-yards
but you get the idea. doesn't have to be the same. sign up and you'll get new results in your email daily
or you might want check Anthropologie for some of their ready made curtains(that can be further customised if so you wish) that are great quality and of similar theme..obviously the merchandise changes from time to time. I have very vibrant curtains from them myself which I love, mine are embroidered, these are not but they have several other floral/fauna embroidered ones currently, some with raving reviews
or you might want to look allover Calico Corners or fabric. com or look up fabric by a designer you like for something of different colorway but somewhat of a similar feel, or similar vibe, in short bearing some similarity for personally you..and it's usually a long search, which might though surprize you
palimpsest
6 years agoMaybe something from Robert Allen in the Madcap Cottage collections would suffice and be less expensive
http://www.robertallendesign.com/collections-madcap-cottage
Or Thibaut Baron is a large print with lots of white ground... It somes in a print and an embroidery
aprilneverends
6 years agonosoccermom
6 years agobusymom03
6 years agopalimpsest
6 years ago
PROAnglophilia
6 years agobusymom03
6 years agopalimpsest
6 years agolast modified: 6 years agobusymom03
6 years agomaree85
6 years ago- PRO
Anglophilia
6 years ago busymom03
6 years ago
palimpsest