Summer is here, along with warmer, drier weather! Home buyers will be looking for potential real estate purchases.
Even if you’re not selling, you want to think about how your home looks from the street, so you aren’t dragging down the neighborhood! Here are some tips.
Photo courtesy First Lamp via Houzz
What I love here is the stonework and manicured plantings with wood highlights on the ceiling, windows, and door. Make sure your approach to the entrance is uncluttered and has varied interest like this one.
Photo courtesy MarthaStewart.com
Here’s a tidy front door with a wood pattern that matches the neighbors’ place in an outdoor apartment approach. If you’re in an HOA or neighborhood association, make sure you’re keeping any required features. It can be the neighborhood as a whole that sells individual houses.
Photo courtesy HGTV
Look at this great pathway to the front door under a Craftsman roof! A memorable feature is repeating the wooden shingles on the mailbox. You need at least one standout feature that sets you apart from the competition.
Photo courtesy HGTV
This double-aspect entrance and garage looks great on a clean, unbroken driveway. Resurface your driveway if you need to.
Photo courtesy Chiayacat at iStockphoto
A white picket fence is the dream for many. Rails along the front porch echo the lines from the fence, giving the impression of an organized home that won’t need lots of repairs. Make sure you do any needed repairs before you put your home on the market.
Photo courtesy Flickr user Lynda Yvonne
This cottage twee arched gate fits this house perfectly and would really stand out from a standard entrance. The gate is the first thing buyers may see, the definition of curb appeal.
Casa Pedregosa garden photo courtesy Grace Designs Associates
Drought-resistant plantings offer easy upkeep to a prospective buyer. If your yard doesn’t hit the right note, hire a landscape architect. The investment will pay off when you sell your home quickly and at top dollar.
To transform your home into your dream destination, Kimball Starr can help! Contact her today for an in-person socially-distanced or remote meeting.
There’s a reason everyone dreams about living in California – the weather is great! Home design here isn’t just about interiors. Outdoor spaces can complement your interior rooms, too, and really add to your quality of life.
Below are my top tips for creating a beautiful and functional patio in Northern California:
Choose the right materials for your site climate and local environment. If you live in a hot area with direct sun like the desert or Napa, I suggest materials that stay cool, such as concrete or stone. If your neighborhood is cooler like in the mountains or forest, choose materials that will retain heat, such as brick or wood.
Kimball Starr Interior Design / Photo by Eric Rorer
Make it functional. Patios should be more than just a place to sit and relax. Consider adding a grill, a fire pit, or a water feature to your patio. When entertaining, you’ll need a space that’s big enough to accommodate your guests.
NorCal gets a lot of sunshine, so pick patio furniture that can withstand the elements. Look for tables and seating made from wicker, teak, or aluminum, and use solution-dyed fabrics such as Sunbrella that resist fading or mildew.
Design by Kimball Starr / Photo by Eric Rorer
Add some shade. If you don’t want to be baking in the sun all summer, ensure there’s shade. This could be a pergola, a patio umbrella, a few large trees, or a shade sail. Your guests will thank you!
Use drought-tolerant plants. Northern California is a Mediterranean climate, which means hot, dry summers. Drought-tolerant plants are a great way to save water and keep your patio looking lush and green all year long.
Design by Kimball Starr / Photo by Eric Rorer
Showcase your personality! Add some personal touches, such as plants and flowers, sculpture or artwork. Then ensure you have good lighting design to show off these features at night.
Make it a gathering place. Patios are the perfect place to entertain friends and family, so invite them while the time and weather are right.
Kimball Starr creates beautiful and functional patios in homes across the San Francisco Bay Area and Lake Tahoe. Contact her today for a socially-distanced or remote meeting!
I’m proud to share that we won a Houzz Award for Best of Design 2023!
Added to our other 9 Houzz awards from 2013 until 2022, that’s a lot of recognition for our interior designs and great customer service. I’m honored!
Design and Photo of Yelp user L.H.’s bedroom by Kimball Starr
Speaking of customer service, we also received yet another 5-star review on Yelp from a happy client! That makes 15 total since 2011, all 5-stars. I couldn’t be more pleased! Below is the full text:
“Each room belongs in a design magazine!” – what I hear from everyone who walks in!
I remodeled an entire condo and Kimball guided the design process. Her keen sense of design, professionalism and most important, patience, made it a pleasure to work with her during an otherwise stressful period. Bringing a vision of how I wanted my home to look, Kimball educated me on finishes, color combinations, textures, and overall design protocol.
For the kitchen and bathrooms, she meticulously drafted the plans for the contractors, ensuring our unique plans came to life, and consulted on furniture selection and placement.
Saying I love how the condo turned out would be an understatement. I highly recommend Kimball Starr!
– From client L.H., Yelp
Design and Photo of Yelp user L.H.’s bathroom by Kimball Starr
We also received 4th place in the Top 15 San Francisco Interior Design Blogs. So excited to be featured, and among such great talent! Truly grateful for my clients and colleagues that allow me to change lives one room at a time since 2005.
Kimball Starr designs for stylish homes throughout the San Francisco Bay Area and Lake Tahoe. Contact her today for a remote or socially-distant in-person consultation.
Here are ideas for your bathroom renovation from projects I’ve completed with happy clients around the San Francisco Bay Area and Lake Tahoe.
Design and photo by Kimball Starr
Porcelain planks made to look like wood are excellent for high-traffic areas because they’re easy to clean and won’t fade. Choose any color, pattern, or texture you want, like these royal blue porcelain floor tiles, above.
Design and photo by Kimball Starr
Vertical tiles feel modern, compared to the more traditional subway tiles, which are horizontal. Here again, the wood-look horizontal tiles are porcelain so you don’t have to worry about splashes.
Design and photo by Kimball Starr
Mismatched multi-patterned Moroccan floor tiles make a cool feature in this San Francisco kids’ bathroom.
Design and photo by Kimball Starr
Create large-scale patterns with tiles, like this blue star and beige field combination in a Bay Area home. I’ve repeated the blue tiles around the mirror and medicine cabinet for a finished look.
Design and photo by Kimball Starr
Curbless showers are trendy, and we made this one even more hip by mixing complementary colors and patterns on the walls and floor.
Design by Kimball Starr / Photos by Eric Rorer
Mixing finishes is a big trend right now! Here we used gloss and matte tiles together to create a sophisticated look. I can do this for you, too.
Kimball Starr designs stylish bathrooms throughout the San Francisco Bay Area and Lake Tahoe. Contact her today for a remote or socially-distant in-person consultation.
Continuing our tour of spectacular traditional front doors from December of last year, here are some great modern-style entrances from around the web.
Photo courtesy confettistyle.com
I adore the center knob hardware look, so crisp and clean, especially with bright orange.
Photo courtesy AmericaItaliana via Instagram
A custom glass pivot door looks inviting and impressive, simple and technical, all at once.
Photo courtesy AmericaItaliana via Instagram
This entrance has a lot going on but keeps it tidy by maintaining 90-degree angles and clean lines that gradually reduce down in prominence to the sidelights and front door handle detail.
Photo courtesy Balodemus Architects via Houzz
I enjoy the feeling you get from a mid-century modern design sensibility, here created with simple door numbers, warm wood cladding, clean lines, and a bright yellow door that says, “Welcome!”
If you would like a special front door design that continues on the interior, I’d be happy to consult with you remotely or socially-distanced in person! Contact me here.
