by Michele Weaver | Jul 21, 2017 | HER Home
Many construction materials are made with formaldehyde, which off-gasses for several weeks to several months, contributing to that “new home smell” which, unfortunately, is quite unhealthy. Sherwin-Williams™ Enhanced Harmony® interior paint has “Odor Eliminating” and “Formaldehyde Reducing” technologies to help reduce the levels of formaldehyde and other volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in the air from potential sources such as insulation, carpet, cabinetry, fabrics, and other building materials according to the manufacturer. Unlike most paints, Harmony paint itself is a zero-VOC formula and contains anti-microbial agents to resist mold and mildew from building up on the paint’s surface.
To learn more, visit: www.sherwin-williams.com
by Michele Weaver | Jul 12, 2017 | Great Design
Heritage Homes has emerged as the Fargo, North Dakota, area’s leading home builder through a relentless focus on the customer. Everything – from the home plans to the products and processes – has been thoughtfully designed based on keen insight and customer feedback to deliver remarkable new homes and customer experiences.
Putting the customer first, coupled with a love for construction, led company owner and President Tyrone Leslie to envision a new kind of homebuilding company. But he knew he couldn’t do it alone. According to Leslie, this could only work in a team environment where customer satisfaction is a core value held by all,
“With the magnitude of the purchase, a brand-new home, we’re honored by the trust customers place in us. Our team is not about personal agendas. Our team is passionate about what they do and they enjoy collaborating. As soon as you want to collaborate, communication improves and good things come from great communication.”
Great communication is at the center of Heritage Homes’ customer journey. Heritage Homes knows you can’t have a great home without having had a great homebuilding experience. Following visits to the company’s website, their journey typically begins in one of Heritage Homes’ furnished model homes, where visitors can come to appreciate amenities they just won’t see in other new homes. They are greeted by one of Heritage Homes’ New Home Specialists who take great pride in educating prospective home buyers, so that the buyers are empowered to make the best decisions. “We listen. Our New Home Specialists know what can and can’t be done, which is a tremendous benefit for our customers,” Steve Larson, Sales Manager for Heritage Homes
The Journey continues in the design process, where customers are delighted to realize Heritage Homes will modify its home plans, customizing them for how each buyer wants the home to “live.” Then, with plans in hand, buyers proceed to Heritage Homes’ Design Center, where Project Coordinator Nicole Schaffer works with them on product selections for their home. “The Design Center is a revolving door of innovation,” Schaffer said. “And it is very hands-on. My role is to educate our customers; what they should know regarding product choices when building a home. Customers also tell me they really appreciate my assistance in helping them make selections that are complementary and go well together. In addition, as their Project Coordinator, I’m their go-to point of contact throughout the building process.” Knowing that ambiguity is no one’s friend, customers can contact Nicole any time with any questions they have regarding their new home.
Read the full feature story of Heritage Homes here.
by Michele Weaver | Jun 28, 2017 | Great Design, HER Home
Form and function. Beautiful and practical. Great home design has to have both.
The bathroom in an owner’s suite has always been a “hot button” for home buyers. Hence, bath design receives lots of attention. Designers often start with creating the first impression–what you see when you first walk into the bathroom. We’ve been wowed by some visually stunning master baths only to discover practical considerations, such as convenient towel storage, were obviously afterthoughts. Many people like to dry off in the warm shower area rather than walk across the bathroom, wet and shivering, just to get their hands on a towel!
Nothing in the home is as personal to us as the master bathroom. So the design of this space is often modified from an original layout to one based on individual preferences. Here are the most common changes, and reasons for those modifications:
- The original owner’s bath layout presents a large, doorless walk-in shower, compartmented toilet, and separate vanities.
- Alternate bathroom layout #1 shows a single vanity with two sinks and adds another storage closet.
- Alternate bathroom layout #2 utilizes the same single vanity with two sinks but shows a traditional bathtub in lieu of the extra closet.
- People looking for a pampering bathing experience would likely opt for alternate layout #3 with its deluxe bathtub, large dual-sink vanity, semi-private toilet, and more generous walk-in closet.
Bathroom design, like your wardrobe, should be tailored for a perfect “fit”!
For more on bathroom design, click here.
by Michele Weaver | May 25, 2017 | HER Home
Natural light is an important design element. Not only does it make us feel good, natural light also provides many health benefits such as increased vitamin D production and improved calcium absorption, lowers blood pressure, improves concentration, and reduces irritability and headaches. You can increase the number and size of windows in your home, but think about how great it feels to bask in the sun coming from above!
Skylights are a great addition to your home as they not only bring in natural light, but they also serve as a design element. Forget the old “bubble” style – today’s skylights are both functional and stylish, and are available with several options.
One such new feature is from VELUX®, the world’s largest manufacturer of skylights. VELUX raised the bar with Solar Powered “Fresh Air” Skylights. Rather than having to hire an electrician to run power to the roof, the skylight’s solar panel uses daylight to recharge its concealed battery that opens and closes the skylight (the practical side of ushering in fresh air and exhausting warm air trapped near the ceiling). It can also power an optional skylight shade.
Design Basics’ HER HOME™ publication teamed up with VELUX to showcase some of the possibilities for brightening your home. View this digital plan book with approximately 40 home plans with skylights incorporated into the design. This edition also features information on why natural light is so important, not only to your home design, but to you and your family!
HER HOME™ VELUX® Edition
Learn more about VELUX® skylights: www.veluxusa.com
by Michele Weaver | May 16, 2017 | Great Design
The year was 1972. Don McLean’s “American Pie” topped the Billboard charts, “The Godfather” made big-screen history, Billie Jean King won her seventh Wimbledon Tennis championship, and George Parmer founded Fine Line Homes in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. In the 45 years since, American Pie still enjoys significant airplay, The Godfather remains one of the top-rated movies of all time, Billie Jean King’s impact on gender equality in professional sports can still be felt, and thousands of Pennsylvania and New York families come home to a house built by Fine Line Homes.
Such enduring legacies are neither accidental nor “good fortune.” Fine Line Homes has not merely survived, but thrived, for multiple generations in part because home building is a process, which Fine Line Homes has honed to near perfection. Then there are standards, such as name-brand building products. Yet it may be the company’s cornerstones of quality and integrity that laid the foundation for success, according to Mark Bittner, the company’s Director of Sales and Marketing.
“Under Mr. Parmer’s leadership, Fine Line Homes has grown to now serve all of Central and Northeast Pennsylvania as well as Southern New York,” said Bittner, continuing, “The company, and the homes we build, have evolved, but our ‘customer-first’ commitment is unwavering.”
Recently, Fine Line Homes’ customers Barbara and Jim Scheifley were interviewed in the Williamsport Sun-Gazette regarding their new home. Jim was quoted as saying, “They [Fine Line Homes] are very honest with you and there were no hidden prices.” And, “Their standard construction options are what other builders offer as extras.” Even the article headline, “On Budget and On Time,” attests to the company’s focus on the customer.
Each of Fine Line Homes’ regional offices (Harrisburg, Lewisburg, State College, Hazleton, and Sayre) has a different model home built for prospective home buyers to tour. There, they’ll meet with one of Fine Line Homes’ Housing Consultants who will help them through the home design, product selections, and purchase processes. Bittner practically brags on the Housing Consultants, “The majority have been with Fine Line Homes for more than 10 years. They know the homes, they know the products, they know the process. They know what can and can’t be done. Their knowledge is a tremendous value for our customers.”
Better Decisions
Bittner says “Our home designs have evolved, based on customer feedback and input from Design Basics through their Woman-Centric Matters!® research into women’s preferences in the home. Our plans are more open and inviting, with larger kitchens and pantries, places to work from home, and more spacious bathrooms as well as enviable owner’s suites. Yet square footages have remained fairly constant over the past decade.” How? Most of today’s Fine Line Homes’ buyers favor one eating area as opposed to the formal dining room plus separate breakfast area layout, so the space formerly devoted to formal dining can be re-allocated. Similarly, a high majority of the company’s customers are choosing an oversized shower and dual sinks, but no bathtub in the owner’s bathroom.
Read the full feature story about Fine Line Homes by clicking here.
