{friday finds: how to create the perfect home office}

Home offices are certainly popular. After all, working from home is convenient and efficient. But creating the right kind of workspace can be tricky. So, if you’re looking to carve out some office space at home — or improve what you’re already using — here are our tips to create the perfect home office.

Scribner Desk from Vanguard Furniture | Hirshfield’s Design Studio

• First, find the perfect location. Repurpose an unused room in your home, but make sure you are aware of what’s nearby. If you know you need peace and quiet to work, then the guest room next to the playroom may not be the best spot. Be aware of your working style and go from there.
• Don’t have an extra room? Try claiming the space under your stairs. A pretty chair, a work surface attached to the wall, and a cork board for pinning inspirational images are all you need to create a fun and functional home office.

{8 tips to get your home ready for winter}

Although it’s not as fun as holiday decorating, preparing your home for the upcoming winter months is crucial for saving money and keeping your home cozy and warm all season long. And no matter how mild our weather has been so far, you know the cold weather is coming. So, here are eight tips to get your home ready for winter.

• Rake your leaves before the snow hits. Although they look beautiful, if snow covers your leaves, it can inhibit spring regrowth.
• Take a lap around your home to look for any simple home repairs that need to be made before the temperature drops too low to mend them.
• Check your pipes to prevent any unwanted pipe bursts this chilly winter. Make sure that they are all properly insulated and ready for the temperature drop. Turning off your water to the outside water faucets is also an option.
• Make sure to reverse your ceiling fans! The tricky little switch on your fan will turn your fan clockwise and push warm air down into the room.
• Stock up on all of the winter necessities. The winter cold means ice and lots of snow, so make sure you have snow shovels, salt for your sidewalks, emergency kits for your home and your car, and also make sure to have ice scrapers for your car windows.
• Just like your car, your heating system needs occasional tune-ups. If you haven’t taken the time to make sure your heating system is in tip-top shape, do so. Many different companies offer free checkups, so take advantage of them. Did you know you can check out Home Energy Kits and Power Check Kits from your local library? Compliments of Excel Energy.

• Create a draft blocker for underneath drafty doors to save money on energy this winter. You can either buy one or make your own. You can even roll up an old towel and set it at the base of your door.
• Caulk or weather strip around areas where cold air may leak in. Anywhere where there are corners or different materials meet in order to prevent your energy bill from going up.

These are just a few simple steps that you can take in order to prepare yourself for the cold months ahead. So get to work, and have a safe and warm winter.

Since Frank and Elizabeth Hirshfield opened their first store in 1894, it has been our mission to do the best job possible meeting customer needs and solving customer problems. Hirshfield’s. People and products you can trust.

{home office inspiration}

What makes a good home office? More Minnesotans are asking this question as the Twin Cities has experienced the fifth-biggest rise among metro areas nationwide in the number of workers based at least partly at home, according to U.S. Census Bureau commuting surveys. Between 2000 and 2010, the number rose by almost 22,000 people, to about 82,500, according to estimates. If you are one of these thousands, turn your home into a work-friendly environment with these tips.

{new year’s resolution: get your home organized}

Raise your hand if you made a New Year’s resolution this year!

Making the resolution is the easy part, the hard part is actually following through! Have no fear, the team at Hirshfield’s is here to keep you accountable! All month long we’ll be bringing your tips and advice to help stick to your home improvement resolutions. We’ll be covering topics such as adding color to your space and picking the best “green” products for your home. We’ll kick off our New Year’s resolution month with our best tips for getting your home organized!

Clever Storage Solutions
Shelves and cabinets aren’t the only storage solutions. Invest in pieces that serve double-duty, such as ottomans and benches that open up to store blankets, pillows and other odds and ends. Have you ever considered using a toothbrush holder to store those rampant pens and pencils laying around your home office? Or decorative glass jars to store miscellaneous kitchen and bathroom clutter? Better Homes & Gardens offers these clever storage solutions and more!

Better Homes & Gardens

Label It

{creating a stress-free home}

Ok, so maybe we’re over-promising just a little with the title on this one. Creating a completely stress-free home is a pretty big task, but not necessarily an impossible one. With April being National Stress Awareness Month we thought now would be a good time to share some of our favorite tips for reducing stress at home.

Pick soothing paint colors
Surrounding yourself with calm and relaxing colors can have a soothing effect on your mind and can help aid in concentration. Pat Verlodt, president of Color Services & Associates, Inc., says the most common calming colors are blues and greens because they remind us of calming things in nature – the ocean, the sky, a quiet field.

In our previous post, Calming Colors, Pat shares that popular calm colors include aquas, turquoises and blue greens. And don’t be concerned with “rules” when it comes to using calm colors. You could use them in any room of the house or in your office. They can be used in rooms that face the south and west to cool them off and because they are flattering colors they can be used in baths and powder rooms as well.

Hirshfield’s Cyan Sky 0681

Organize your home – What NOT to do

{prepping your home’s interior and exterior}

March 20 marked the first official day of spring, and that means it’s time to start your spring cleaning! Now that the days are longer and the sun is shining abundantly, you’ll want your home’s exterior in great shape to show off your house. When the inevitable April showers arrive, focus on improving your home’s interior. These tips can help!

Old Man Winter spent a lot of time visiting this past season, and exterior finishes were ravaged by the harsh conditions. A fresh coat of paint can go a long way in rejuvenating a home battered by ice, wind, and snow time and again this winter.

Outside, use lush landscape to highlight your home’s best features, whether it’s a large lawn or bay windows. Greenery and bright blooms will add color and vibrancy to your lot, which will continue to flourish as spring turns into summer.

This Old House

Another way to boost curb appeal is through simple changes. Give your windows a good cleaning. Power wash decks and patios. Paint or replace your front door to give your home a whole new look.

 

Design Buzz

Inside, give each room in your house a thorough cleaning. Get rid of clutter and place items you no longer use in storage. Create shelving units or find furniture, baskets, or containers that can keep books, magazines, and remotes out of sight and free of dust.

Architects for Life

For a new, refreshed look in your home, rearrange the layout of your furniture or add slipcovers to give your space a makeover with new patterns, designs, and styles. You can also restore floors by waxing linoleum and steaming carpets.

Update your kitchen and bathroom by replacing hardware. Change knobs, handles, and fixtures with different sizes, shapes, or colors for a whole new look.

 

Kitchen Improved

Make your house the most beautiful on the block! What plans do you have to invigorate your home this season?

{resolutions for your home}

My favorite part of a new year is the blank slate that lies ahead. You can look at a brand new calendar and schedule vacations. You can promise yourself that this is the year you’ll take better care of yourself. Maybe you want to reconnect with family. But have you thought about making some resolutions for your home?

A top resolution for many people is to get organized!

Mail Station from Simple Effects

This can be as simple as setting up a mail station by the door or in the kitchen to corral all the paper you get each day. Or, it can be the decision to overhaul your closets.

Pinnacle Closets

Get rid of clothes that are damaged and give away pieces that don’t fit but are in great shape. A good organizing system that fits what you own is a great place to start – and we think our Pinnacle system is top notch. We talked about the flexibility of the closet system in this previous blog.

Maybe you have a space that seems dated or in need of a fresh start.

A new coat of paint or using wallpaper as an accent feature is an easy and affordable way to breathe new life and style to your home.

Eijffinger Belle Du Jour

Are you thinking of going green this year? Get an energy audit of your home and see where you can make your home more energy efficient. Many of our window treatments can really boost how energy efficient your home is thanks to new technology to keep hot air out in the summer and cold air from creeping in during the winter. You can also check out how much energy your appliances are using when they’re not on with a power meter from your energy company. In some states, including Minnesota and Wisconsin, you can simply check them out free from a library!

No matter what you decide to do – tackle one project at a time. You’ll feel like you’re getting more done and not have to deal with the chaos that comes with trying to work on multiple things at one time. What are your resolutions for 2011?

{freshen up your home}

This time of year we’re getting ready to settle in for the colder months in Minnesota. It’s a perfect time to fix up the yard and get the inside of your home in great shape.

If you’re looking to sell your home, it’s even more important to get things sparkling. Much of the advice given to people looking to sell can also help you love your home even more.

First: get rid of the clutter. Your home will feel bigger and brighter and the design you’ve created at home will really shine.

Second: this is a great time to look at the paint in your home. Give any walls that may have scratches or chips a fresh coat of paint. If you’re looking to sell you may want to go with more neutral shades of paint throughout your home.

Remember, neutral can be anything but boring. Earlier this month we talked about the top 15 paint colors and Hirshfield’s and they’re some amazing neutrals.

Third: make sure your home is spotless. You’ve taken the time to arrange the furniture, hang some amazing artwork and make spaces seem larger through the use of mirrors, and you don’t want grunge turning off a buyer.  This is a time to clean like you’ve never cleaned before! You really want to bring a shine to the surfaces in your home.

Don’t forget the outside of your home! Shutters and doors can really get a fresh, new look with a new coat of paint. Mark Masica from Hirshfield’s has some great advice in this post on painting your shutters. Also, clear away any dead plants or debris to keep your yard and landscaping looking well-cared for.

{getting organized: closets}

Fall has arrived and that means it’s time to start putting away those summer clothes and pulling out jackets, sweaters and warm layers. Fall also means it’s time to organize my closets.

Take a look at how you’re using the space you have right now. Do you spend more time trying to find things in your closet instead of having things nicely laid out?  I read that the average person wears just 20% of their clothes 80% of the time, mostly because the mess in their closets hides their options.

The task to revamp your closets can be daunting – especially if you’re not using your closet space as well as you could be. Just one hanging rod won’t do it in most homes. You may need several rods, some shelves and maybe even some drawers to keep things clean, in good condition and organized.

The new Closet Essentials systems from Pinnacle Closets at Hirshfield’s offer an incredible number of options to help you keep your closets out of chaos. You can design and install a system yourself.  Or, put your needs into the hands of Hirshfield’s experts for the planning and execution of your new closets.

Pinnacle Closets

Pinnacle Closets feature 14” deep shelving and ¾” materials to give you incredible quality, strength and durability.

Pinnacle Closet Colors

They also come in five designer finishes so you can really customize the look to your style and home.