homedecoratingarticles.com
great design ideas for mobile, manufactured, and model homes
Is This a Manufactured Home?
Sep 19th
The days of being able to tell if a home is manufactured or a site built are quickly coming to a close. Today’s manufactured home can offer as many options as it’s site built competition if not more. Technology and manufacturers have come a long way in what we can offer consumers today anywhere in the country.
I just got back from Hobbs, NM working with an amazing retailer – Young’s Factory Built Homes. This isn’t your “old school” retail center – even though they have been in business since 1958 nothing at this retail center is aged or dated. You can tell be the photos that the homes are well presented and would make anyone a proud homeowner. They asked me to come in and add some design trends to their interiors and I’m hoping to share what we accomplished in the next few months.
Making your house feel like a home doesn’t have to cost a fortune – something as simple as adding color with colors in trendy colors and adding a few accessories can make all the difference. Pillows are another easy way to add warmth and softness to any interior – plus they are great to curl up with on a cold day!
If you have a chance stop by Young’s and experience in person the trends we have shown. Tell them The Lifestylist® sent you!
Thrift Store Decors
Sep 12th
Let’s face it – we are all worried about spending more than we need to now more than ever. Show homes are a great way to get exposure, but since they are open a limited amount of time we have to be sure that the investment pays off long term.
Partnership merchandising is always something that the Home Idea Factory has been very active in, and one of my favorite homes that I was able to work on was the Ronald McDonald Show House in Rochester, NY. The home was a partnership between @home Builders, The Ronald McDonald House and The Rochester HomeBuilders Association. All of the furniture, decor, and accessories used in the home were donated by the community to the Ronald McDonald House for their annual ABC Sale that is the major fundraiser for them. With myself in Dallas and the home and merchandise in Rochester, was it a challenge to be able to find the right items for the home? Absolutely, but that’s what made the home unique, and showed the over 25,000 visitors how they too could decorate their home with gently used items and have something they can be proud of.
It was a win for all parties involved – the builder saved money on his merchandising costs and didn’t have to worry about what to do with the model furnishings after the show (all was sold or auctioned off raising over $25,000 for Ronald McDonald House), Ronald McDonald House raised great awareness and funds, and consumers got excited about using what they had and attending the ABC sale.
To see what the home was all about we did a video of the home.
Vacations, Staycations, Daycations
Aug 6th
It’s hard to believe that the end of summer is quickly coming our way, but one of the biggest trends right now is taking your vacation money and investing it in a vacation home or creating your own oasis at home.
Traveling, especially flying right now are just not the fun end exciting experience it used to be. My daughter and grandbabies just flew in to visit on Delta. Not only did Delta lose their luggage that of course they had to pay a fee to check, but when we got it their new bag had the handle ripped off of it and it was soaked. Delta claimed not their problem after I was on hold for 1 hour and have to drive back up to teh airport. Can you tell how much I love the airlines right now? Customer service is a thing of the past.
Instead of putting your valuable vacation time in the hands of an airline, think about doing a “Staycation” or “Daycation”. Think of the improvements that you could have made to your own home that could be enjoyed for years to come instead of only enjoying for a few days. The cost for great items like outdoor heaters, spas, and even pools has dropped, and outdoor kitchens and fireplace components are available to consumers now as well as designers and builders.
Daycations are when you pack up the kids (or leave them at grandmas) and head to a local resort or destination for an overnight stay. The Gaylord Texan has had a calender full of fun events for families with their Summerfest program – fireworks, movies out by the pool, Jr. Chef Camp and room rates that make it a destination you can’t afford not to take advantage of. My nephew and grandaughter are going to be taking part in the Jr Chef Camp on Saturday with Chef Joanne Bondy -check back for all of the details on the great time they’ll be having. As a Lifestylist® it’s really exciting to see how companies are starting to take into consideration more of what our lifestyles and needs are. Maybe some day the airlines will figure this out as well.
Referrals are Priceless
Jul 23rd
Nothing can hurt or help more than words and they are something that’s truly priceless.
I was checking my LinkedIn page today and saw that a few people had given me recommendations including Sam Weidner Jr who was the VP of Patriot Homes and who had written the following:
“I have had the honor and the privilege to see a true artist at work. I hired Suzanne Felber to help Patriot Homes take a new, innovative, and aggressive role in helping redefine manufactured homes as people knew them. Without question she tackled that task with enthusiasm, and a creative vigor unlike anyone had seen in our industry at the time. Suzanne has a brilliant mind for knowing design trends and how to present her designs in a way that attracts buyers from all walks of life. With her help Patriot was able to win over 9 housing design awards including an award for best marketing campaign awarded by the NAHB. If you want your products to look the best the hire the best, Suzanne Felber.”
Service Category: Professional Lifestylist
Year first hired: 2002
Top Qualities: Great Results, Good Value, Creative
It’s one thing when you think that you have given a job your all, but when you receive something like this out of the blue it makes you want to go out and work that much harder, and give that client a big hug!
I’m honored to have worked with Sam and his company, and I’m looking forward to working with him even more in the future!
Greatness is Personal
Jun 15th
Today many of us gathered to say goodbye to a great man – Norman Brinker. Most people know of Norman as the mind who started and refined the trend of casual dining and the founder of Brinker International, but to me Norman will always be a horse lover, polo player and wonderful father first.
In my horse days I had a barn behind Norman’s equestrian center – Willowbend Polo Club. We would ride back and forth between barns and most of my horses came from owners at Willowbend that owned horses that were too much for them and wanted to unload them. Those were wonderful days and how fortunate we all were to be able to watch Norman streak across the polo field doing what he loved. Norman had an uncanny knack of knowing and remembering everyone’s names from the grooms to the owners and he treated everyone equally.
When I had two very young children I decided to work as a waitress at Steak and Ale – a concept that Brinker owned and was fairly new at that time. I helped open the Plano location and Norman spent an amazing amount of time with us learning what worked and what didn’t. He also wanted to make sure that we knew our jobs inside and out and we did a lot of wine tastings to learn about what we were serving. That was my first exposure to wine and it’s an experience that I still enjoy. His passion about the company made us passionate about what we were doing, and we took our jobs personally and wanted to make Norman proud of us.
Our lives continued to intertwine – my sister was married at Willowbend and went on to work at the corporate offices at Brinker International. Being a “Brinkerhead” she loved being a part of that culture and was always amazed when she would visit a Chili’s and Norman would be there often by himself just enjoying a burger. He always remembered my sister and made her feel special.
What Norman and many great self-made leaders understand is that to succeed it has to be personal. Your own integrity, how you treat people and love of what you do is not a small part of why these people have succeeded and why so many people people love and respect them in return. I wish I had taken a pen and notepad to the service because the wisdom and stories that were shared were incredible. Ross Perot and Mr. Brinker were good friends for many years and I can understand why – they are a lot alike, and both have a great, dry sense of humor that I love. Mr. Perot spoke and he was able to capture what made Norman so special. Even though he had been in a coma and had health issues from a polo incident and had other obstacles, nothing was going to keep Norman down and no matter what he did it was always with an amazing positive attitude and a love for life and everyone around him. Thanks to those special moments at Willowbend, Steak and Ale and our love of horses I have lifelong friends and memories for which I’ll always be grateful.
We’ll miss you Norman, but know that you are happily playing polo on the most heavenly fields any of us have ever dreamed of.
Counting the Days Until Savor Dallas
May 24th
I was looking thru some of my photographs the other day trying yet again to organize them and came across the amazing photos that Lisa Stewart Photography shot during the 5 years of Savor Dallas. It is such a fun event, and I swear I go into Savor withdrawal during the 51 weeks until the event.
Jim and Vicki White do such an amazing job orchestrating the event and bring some of the finest wine and spirit makers and restaurants to Dallas. The education that I get every year is amazing and it gives me a year’s worth of new wines and restaurants to try out until the next event. Plus the Savor Dallas website features tasting notes that are a tremendous resource that can be used year round.
The Whites also believe in giving back and supporting our community. HomeAid is a very special group that is very close to my heart – I’m involved in the chapter that is part of the Dallas Home Builders Association. HomeAid raises money and support to help build housing for abused children and families – it would be a dream if this type of housing wasn’t needed, but unfortunately it seems we can’t build housing fast enough to help this escalating part of our population. When I asked Jim if Savor Dallas could donate an auction item for our upcoming event he didn’t even hesitate but immediately offered whatever we needed. I know bidding is going to be fierce on this item, and if you would like to try and outbid the others on this item, please contact me and I’d be happy to add your bid.
Please also take a look at the Savor Dallas website and help me to thank Jim and Vicki for all that they do. And also be sure to mark the dates for Savor Dallas 2010 on your calendar – we’ll see you there!
Landscaping Good Enough to Eat
May 23rd
With grocery costs going thru the roof and concerns about the safety of the food that is available, this is the perfect time to think about incorporating edible plants into your landscaping.
I’ve had great luck with basil in my gardens, and when discussing with the lead gardener at Gaylord Texan what would be good choices for this years plantings she recommended going with plants that do well in my soil and light which amazingly enough are tomatoes, basil and mint. Even in my shady areas the mint seems to be happy as can be and is a welcome addition in my infamous Texas Tea and Mojitos.
Basil actually is beautiful when it blooms, and I’ve been known to give people bouquets of my blooming basil which are as fragrant as they are pretty.
My tomato plants get to be the size of a typical bush, and even the ones that don’t produce very good tomatoes contribute a great splash of green. Rosemary is another great addition that takes a while to get started, but gives green and scent all year long in my climate.
The Green Evolution
Apr 21st
So you say you want an evolution… well it looks like the Green Evolution is here, and here to stay. No matter what industry you are in, everyone seems to be getting on “The Green Train”. But what does this really mean to you, and the world you live in? Defining Green is not an easy task, and the definition seems to be changing every day and mean different things to different people. It can be as simple as putting your trash in the appropriate container or as complex as an off-grid solar home. The important thing is that you do something and incorporate a green lifestyle into the way you live today and in the future. I heard an excellent example this week at the Manufactured Housing Conference where we were blessed to have Mark LaLiberte as a speaker. He used the example of a green builder in Connecticut who was bragging about the great granite he was able to get inexpensively in China. Being that New Hampshire – the granite state – borders Connecticut Mark asked why he didn’t source the product there. Sometimes we have to look at issues besides price – think about all of the energy that was wasted getting the product from China as well as the jobs locally he might have saved – and those employees that might have become customers – and to me it puts a different spin on how we forgo value for price many times. I see the greening of America as being an evolution instead of a revolution because it’s not going to happen overnight, but if everyone starts asking the question about what their choices are going to mean for ours and our families quality of life in the future hopefully we can start turning things around. As a Lifestylist I feel like it’s my responsibility to do my part and make a difference. It’s exciting to see how many ways we can get involved and stand up for what we believe in. Here’s to the Evolution!
Vertical Living
Apr 9th
Next week is going to be a really fun week – I’m off to Las Vegas to speak at the Manufactured Housing Congress and at the meeting for the Las Vegas High Rise and Condo Association. It’s really beginning to feel like the housing market has hot bottom and people are starting to think about buying their dream home again.
The Vegas market is amazing, and I love visiting the new high-rise communities and learning more about vertical living. There are so many advantages, and I’m excited to see the latest and greatest. They are fascinated with my Lifestylist brand, and I’ll also be sharing with them what the heck a Lifestylist is and how we approach the design and marketing process.
Seeing Green
Mar 15th
One of my favorite activities that keeps me sane is gardening, and every year I can’t wait for the weather to start warming up so I can get my gardens in. With our crazy economy and the new quastions about where our foods are coming from and how they are grown, vegetable gardening is a great activity. I’ve gotten much better about growing the thinsg that I love or my friends ask for, and I’ve also learned what grows better where. I had soil brought in for my raised garden, and it has produced beautifully.
Tomatoes, cucumbers, basil and dill are my favorites, and I started a little too early this year – we got a frost after I planted my first few plants – but the last planting was timed perfectly and we got a week of rain shortly afterwards – something we hadn’t had yet this year.
I may live in the city, but by making the best use of all of the areas I have and buying plants that are designed for smaller areas my garden rivals many. I also love romantice, fragrant old-time flower gardens and my hollyhocks now come up every year with my sunflowers and daisies. They are just starting to green up – I’ll share photos when they start blooming.
The much needed rain also turned my yard into a sea of emerald green instead of the dreary brown that’s it’s been all winter – I think Spring may finally be here!