Home Show Fills Albany Capital Venue

Home Expo returns chock-full of inspiration — and not only to prospective buyers strolling the 2 floors with starry lights above, but milling with hundreds of people from the local Albany area and farther away.

If you are a homeowner who likes to stay up-to-date with the latest creative trends, or you have a remodel project in mind, our Home Expo has events you do not want to miss.

When your looking to renovate or remodel your home,  the decisions can be daunting. Let our home and design experts help you. Come out and meet and see live designs and products at our 39th Annual Home Expo.

We look forward to seeing you!

 

Sweetly,

Michele Conti

Posted by TU-Michele Home Design

39th Annual Times Union Home Expo

 

 

39th Annual Times Union Home Expo

Albany Capital Center
55 Eagle Street
Albany, NY 12207

Live in a home you love…

 

Bring your visions, floor plans, questions…and your family!!

At the Times Union Home Expo, our goal is to inspire, motivate and educate you for your next home improvement project. Whether it is a minor project or major renovation we invite you to come meet industry experts who can help guide and inspire you.  Our show will feature approximately 100 home improvement professionals in an informal interactive environment, unlike any other Home Show you may have attended. You will find something of valuable no matter what stage of renovating you are in, alongside family-friendly activities, raffles and giveaways.

 

Why attend our Home Expo?

Our Home Show is designed for homeowners in all stages of remodeling. By remodeling we mean anything from landscaping, full home renovation and decorating.

If you have ever been involved in any home renovation project, you know the process can become overwhelming. By attending the Times Union Home Expo you can meet multiple vendors in one day, learn about new products to enhance your home, get expert advice, and most importantly get excited about your project!

I look forward to seeing you there!!

 

Stay tuned for more Adventures in Styleland…

 

Sweetly,

Michele Conti

Designs by Michele

Posted by TU-Michele Furniture and Design Home Design landscape design

Home Expo 2019 Is Right Around the Corner

Looking to spruce up your home or complete some last-minute lingering projects? Attend the upcoming Home Expo and meet area experts in home design and renovation, discover the latest developments in green home products and snag cutting-edge creative ideas. The shows showcase hundreds of products and services for your home and garden and include entertaining workshops and much more.

To take advantage of all that downtown Albany, NY has to offer, the 2019 Times Union Home Expo will be hosted exclusively at the new Albany Capital Center Friday, February 8th through Sunday, February 10th.

When your looking to  renovate or remodel your home,  the decisions can be daunting. Let our home and design experts help you. Come out and meet and see live designs and product at the Times Union Home Expo. If you are looking for inspiration, we invite you to talk with our specialists. These professionals will teach you design tips and introduce you to quality products and manufacturers. If you are planning to redesign, remodel, or reinvent any of these household areas, our home show is the place to be:

  • Home exteriors
  • Kitchens
  • Landscapes
  • Windows
  • Pools
  • Bathrooms

These professionals will teach you design tips and introduce you to quality products and manufacturers. If you have any questions, I’ll be on site to help! Visit me Designs By Michele at booth 323. See you there!

Posted by TU-Michele Furniture and Design Home Design

Organizational Tips For Your Home, Declutter For 2019

What’s the secret to keeping a clean and clutter-free home? Well, the secret is there isn’t one! It’s being intentional every day. Cleaning up messes before they get out of hand, following through with routines, and putting a few simple systems into place will definitely help.

Start your day with a routine:

About 20 minutes is all it takes to really get the ball rolling. I make my bed, start a load of laundry, unload and reload the dishwasher, wipe down the bathroom counters after I finish get ready, and then do a quick pick up of our living space because we live in our home! Dogs, cats two girls and my wonderful husband.

Just like your morning routine is the perfect way to start your day, your evening routine will help you set yourself up for success the next day.

Only do the absolute necessary things. These include cleaning up the dinner dishes and setting the dishwasher to run overnight, finishing the load of laundry I started by drying, folding, and putting it ALL away, completing a quick pick up of your home, and making a short to-do list for the next day.

I’ve found that if I do nothing else throughout the except completing my morning and evening routines, my home stays clean and clutter-free.

Have a Cleaning Routine:

Instead of having a specific day each week to clean the entire house or having specific chores assigned to different days of the week, do something completely different. Have a list of 5 tasks to complete throughout the week. As you have time, check a task off  your list. Some weeks this means getting everything done in one day. Other weeks you may sporadically clean the house throughout the week. But that’s okay. It’s all getting done eventually and your home stays cleaner because of it.

The tasks to try to complete each week include dusting (you can actually do this every other week), vacuuming, mopping the floors, scrubbing the bathrooms, and changing the sheets on all the beds.

One other thing that has made cleaning a home much easier is simply de-cluttering. When you have less to clean and less to clean around, this task takes much less time. Removing the furniture and decor  or chatchka you didn’t really need or love makes such a difference. So dusting that took an hour is now a 10 minute chore.

Meal Prep!

You might be wondering how meal planning can help you home stay clean and clutter-free. But hear me out! If you are consistently meal planning, then you should always know whats for dinner each night. So instead of feeling frazzled and crazy trying to get something on the table, you will know exactly what to prepare.

Sometimes we don’t realize how stress and anxiety affects us until we step back and make changes. If you are putting all of your energy into trying to scrap together a meal at 6pm at night, you will be less likely to clean up the dishes or finish that evening routine.

Here’s hoping this will help you stay organized and stress free in 2019!  See you shortly at the Times Union Home Expo!

Stay tuned for more Adventures in Styleland…

Sweetly,

Michele Conti

 

Posted by TU-Michele Furniture and Design Home Design

Asphalt Offers Driveway Durability

The majority of commercial and residential driveways are finished with either asphalt or concrete. Both are cost-effective, but asphalt comes with more benefits. If you’re paving a new driveway or refinishing and existing one you’re probably wondering about the relative benefits of asphalt over concrete. L.Browe Asphalt Services is ready to answer your questions.

An asphalt driveway can usually be laid in one or two days, depending on the size of the project. Concrete, on the other hand, typically takes twice as long to lay and even longer to set. Depending on the season, asphalt driveways can be ready for use in as little as two days after completion, whereas concrete can take up to a week to cure.

Unlike concrete, asphalt is not subject to surface flaking caused by poor installation, incorrect preparations of the mixture or the application of salts to melt ice and snow. Known as ‘spalling,’ this surface flaking is an ongoing problem with many concrete driveways, especially those that were hastily installed. Given its flexibility, asphalt is also considerably less likely than pavement to crack over time.

If your asphalt driveway does start to show some lineal cracking, you can repair these easily and inexpensively. The crack sealant products you need are widely available through home improvement retailers. They don’t cost very much and can easily be applied on your own, even if you have absolutely no previous paving expertise.

In addition, regular preventative maintenance, like crack filling and seal-coating, can extend the lifespan of your asphalt driveway to 20 years or more. Concrete is more difficult to maintain, because it cannot be heated and repaired with the same ease as asphalt pavement.

Need help maintaining your asphalt? Give L. Browe a call 518 479-1400 Janeen Browe will be happy to get you started with a free estimate!

 

Stay tuned for more Adventures in Styleland…

 

Sweetly,

Michele Conti

 

Posted by TU-Michele Furniture and Design Home Design landscape design OUTDOOR Uncategorized

The Perfect Deck

Many years ago, I lived in a home that had a simple deck attached to the back of the house. My husband and I spent countless hours relaxing, cooking, laughing and sharing stories with friends in our outdoor living room. It was an ideal combination of comfort and convenience, with the fresh air and sounds of our backyard. Without a deck, we would have spent considerably less time outside and might have missed out on some lovely afternoons and evenings with friends.

 

Here in Albany NY,  we have many spring, summer and fall days that invite us outside. Decks and patios are outdoor living rooms, kitchens, and playrooms. They are places where we can gather with loved ones. Whether stone, wood or composite decks or patio’s they are so much more than square expanses with no character.

In addition to their versatile sense of style, covered portico’s also have flexibility as to where they are used in an outdoor space’s design. Ground floor or elevated locations, homeowners can even choose to make use of the area beneath an elevated porch by building a secluded grotto or an outdoor kitchen.

Fireplaces and ceiling fans, are must-have features and part of so many back porch designs because they are both stylish and useful. Both of these features evoke a sense of luxury ambiance in whatever space they are included. More than just looking gorgeous, these accessories have a job to do. Fireplaces keep you warm in the winter and ceiling fans help you stay cool in the summer, meaning both extend how much use you’ll get from your outdoor space.

Stop at any of our builders and re-modeler’s booth’s at the Home Expo and start planning your outdoor space!

 

Stay Tuned for more Adventures in Styleland…

 

Sweetly,

Michele Conti

Posted by TU-Michele Furniture and Design Home Design Uncategorized

The Value of the BBB

For more than 75 years, Better Business Bureaus have kept tabs on the trustworthiness of businesses and charities. Consumers consult BBB reliability reports, now completely online, a whopping 54 million times a year. And nearly a million American and Canadian consumers file complaints through their local BBB annually to get help when things didn’t go quite right in a goods or services transactions.

For example, suppose you go down to the local hom­e and garden store to buy a new lawnmower and the salesman talks you into a four wheel drive riding mower with a money-back guarantee.

When the blade falls off a month later, you take the faulty mower back and ask for a refund. The salesman says you must have heard him wrong. The store doesn’t offer money-back guarantees. “Maybe you should get a new hearing aid,” he jokes. Should you call the Better Business Bureau (BBB) YES! When asked whom they would contact if they had a problem with a major purchase, 40 percent of Americans said the Better Business Bureau.

Another service the BBB offers is research; Before you hire a company for that big project, don’t forget to do your research at BBB.org!

For over 100 years, people have turned to Better Business Bureau for unbiased information about businesses. Businesses use their BBB Accreditation as a way to show customers that they are trustworthy businesses.

For over 100 years, Better Business Bureau has helped people find businesses and charities they can trust. There are thousands of free and subscription websites that offer a range of information, but BBB is the one place you can find it all. We offer consumers Business Reviews, Customer Reviews, Request a Quote service, and dispute resolution, to name a few. Visit us at bbb.org for more information!

Stop in at The Time Union Home Expo and visit their booth, we’ll see you there!

 

Sweetly,
Michele Conti

Posted by TU-Michele Uncategorized

Inspiring Color In Your Home

Color sets the mood for a home’s interior and conveys how you want the space to feel. You have only one chance to make a first impression. So it’s important that the entry to your house is welcoming to guests, reflects your personal style and makes you feel happy and comfortable as soon as you walk through the door. This space sets the tone for the rest of your home. What ever your style let it reflect who you are.

In most apartments, the entry space is small, but that doesn’t mean you can’t make a big statement. This home is bold and chic right from the entryway. A Jackson Pollack-like wall-covering, plush stools, a statement mirror and a geometric rug welcome guests and let them know they are entering a stylish home.

 

If you need help a good painter  CertaPro Painters will be at the Home Expo, stop at booth 145. Talk to Terri or Anna and let them help inspire you with a fresh coat of paint in your home!

 

Stay tuned for more Adventures in Styleland…

Sweetly,

Michele Conti

Posted by TU-Michele Uncategorized

Relaxing’s Easy With Electrolux

 

When you purchase a new vacuum, you make an investment in the health of your home. It’s a great thing when you find a product that you love, and an even better thing when you find something that makes your life easier and better in so many different ways.

We are an active family who is pretty busy. We spend a lot of time both outdoors and at home, and we love our family time. Whether we are just enjoying an evening unwinding together, or entertaining friends, our residence needs to be a place of relaxation and peace. Finding cleaning products that fit seamlessly into our lives is essential, and Electrolux does that.

Our home is simple and organized in general, and lately it’s even been clean. Thanks to some great new Electrolux vacuums that make the chore of cleaning easier, and even a bit fun. Spending time at home is more wonderful than ever and I am never embarrassed to invite guests over at the last minute.

 

We have a family of four, two lovely girls, my husband and myself. In addition, we also have fur babies,  two cats ( Samson and Delilah) and two pups ( Cappuccino and Ricky).   In our home pet hair is a constant battle. We use the Electrolux ProSwivel vacuum, because it really gets dirt from deep in the fibers of our rugs and removes dander and hair. I don’t want to be embarrassed by roving dust bunnies or tangles carpet fibers that look like we never clean, or hesitate to invite anyone over with images of tumbleweeds in the back of my mind. Electrolux gives me peace of mind and extra family time.

Electrolux vacuums have attachments that are actually useful, with self-cleaning brushes and a removable cup to toss dirt that are both easy to remove and reinsert. Time-saving and expedient- just what a busy family with lots of fun stuff going on needs.

Stop by Electrolux Vacuums, they are located in booth 322 and let them help you keep your home safe and clean.

Stay Tuned for more Adventures in Styleland…

Sweetly,

Michele Conti

Posted by TU-Michele Furniture and Design Home Design

2019 Design Trends

Design trends for 2019 start with Colors; Pantone’s pick is Living Coral, but homeowners are choosing darker and moodier colors, such as navy and forest green, in the new year. 2019 is taking a more mindful, lifestyle-based approach to the development of new shades. While nature is a common inspiration for home décor, in 2019 we will see a shift from over-sized botanicals to the woodlands, with mushroom grays and fern-inspired colors. Mushrooms will also continue to be a key shape in the home. Their earthy color–gray blended with warm brown–gives off an old world, naturalist feel.

 

Kitchen Trends; Home design professionals expect to see more full-height backs-plashes that seamlessly stretch from the counter to the ceiling. Behind floating shelves and range hoods, for a clean and cohesive look. This dramatic statement can create the illusion of additional surface area.

Destination Tubs:

Bubble bath fans, rejoice. As bathrooms shift from private, utilitarian spaces to open, spa-like environments, homeowners are focused on the accoutrements, including free-standing tubs.

A resurgence of unpainted wooden vanities in 2018, will only be amplified in 2019, with a turn toward reclaimed and light wood. Visible grain and knots can add texture and visual interest to a space and work well in crisp, clean white bathrooms.

 

Stay Tuned for more Adventures in Styleland…

 

Michele Conti

Designs by Michele Conti

Posted by TU-Michele Home Design