The Summit County Builders Association presented 33 awards in four categories. This year the homes were divided by square footage. They were judged on 34 criteria to determine the best in exterior design and elevation, kitchen, master suite, interior finishes, interior furnishings, landscaping and outdoor living space and builder concept and workmanship awards.

Breck Ironworks swept all the awards in the 1,200- to 3,500-square-foot category with a mixed-development project with unique features built into the home for the owner and his pets. Architect Michael Shult was recognized for Exterior Design and Elevation. Cornerstone Creations was acknowledged for the Best Kitchen. Danco Built, MK Development and Kenny Thaemert were involved in the Builder Concept & Workmanship award.

The next category 4,000- to 5,000-square-foot homes included residences built by Mountain Log Homes of Colorado, McCrerey Fine Homes and Greg Hess Contracting. The Best Interior Furnishings award was presented to Stephen Falke Interior Design in McCrerey Fine Homes. Greg Hess Contracting won Best Kitchen award given to Cutting Edge Woodworking; Best Master Suite award went to Greg Hess Contracting and More Space Place; and the Interior Finishes award also was given to Greg Hess Contracting.

Mountain Log Homes of Colorado and Brian Wray won awards for Exterior Design and Elevation for Mountain Log Homes. The Landscaping & Outdoor Living Space award was presented to Mountain Log Homes and 2 Vs Landscaping, Brian Wray & Tom Vitalone. Mountain Log Homes and Brian Wray took away the Builder Concept & Workmanship award. The Best Overall award in this category went to Greg Hess Contracting.

There were two homes in the 5,300- to 6,500-square-foot category Pinnacle Mountain Homes (67 Rounds Road) and Apex Mountain Homes. Pinnacle Mountain Homes received the Best Interior Finishes award and Best Landscaping & Outdoor Living Space award, which was presented to Mary Hart Design. Apex Mountain Homes won awards for Best Exterior Design & Elevation, Best Kitchen, Best Master Suite, Best Interior Furnishings, Best Builder & Workmanship and Best Overall in this category.

Pinnacle Mountain Home (19 Peak 8 Court) and Devigne Developing made up the 7,000- to 8,500-square-foot category. Devigne Developing received the Best Interior Furnishings award. Pinnacle Mountain Homes was given Best Exterior Design & Elevation, presented to BHH Partners; Best Kitchen award, presented to Cutting Edge Woodworking; Best Master Suite, Best Interior Finishes, and Best Landscaping & Outdoor Living Space awards, presented to Rocky Mountain Landscape; and Best Builder Concept & Workmanship award and Best Overall award.

As determined by High Country Conservation Center and presented by Summit County Builders Association, an energy award was presented to Mountain Log Homes of Colorado for its features in sustainability and energy efficiency. The log home was built to Energy Star specifications and registered a 54 on the HERS index.

The Summit Association of Realtors recognized Apex Mountain Homes with the Best Winery (Home for Women to Gather) award and Pinnacle Mountain Homes (19 Peak 8 Court) with Best Man Cave award. The Realtor Choice award was presented to Devigne Developing, as chosen by the members of Summit Association of Realtors.

Mountain Living Magazines Peak award was presented to McCrerey Fine Homes for its outstanding mountain design.

For more information call (970) 668-6013 or visit summitcountybuilders.org/paradeofhomes.

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(PRWEB) September 24, 2013

HomeThangs.com the Online Home Improvement Store has made their goal to deliver the right product to the consumer. With that in mind, shopping and home design tips, as well as special product selections are being introduced.

Maybe more than any other room in the home, the kitchen is one space that often winds up reflecting the personalities of the people that use it. Big, luxury kitchen remodels have become hugely popular in home design, and more often than not they come with a few custom touches whether its specialty kitchen cabinets or a custom counter top or backsplash. But one of the best ways to personalize any type of kitchen is with decorative lighting fixtures. HomeThangs.com has introduced a guide to using trendy lighting fixtures to establish a distinctive kitchen decor.

Farmhouse style kitchens are one of the most popular new trends right now, and with them, farmhouse style lighting has made a big comeback. Farmhouse lights come in several different forms, but some of the most distinctive are barn lights. These have metal shades that look a little like the tops of old fashioned milk cans, and are modeled after fixtures used on the working parts of farms around the turn of the century. These add a great, traditional vibe to the space, and come in a wide variety of metal finishes to easily coordinate with the rest of a kitchens decor.

Turn of the century industrial style lights in general have become quite popular for adding a slightly more urban vibe to a farmhouse style kitchen. Pulley lights and other lighting fixtures inspired by those used in turn of the century factories and warehouses are equal parts gritty and whimsical, with designs that seem positively fanciful, but are made of practical, sturdy materials. These offer a nice way to add a professional, industrial air to a more traditional kitchen, and make a nice counter point to the very modern commercial style kitchens that have become so popular in recent years.

Lantern lights are another very popular option right now, and not just in traditional farmhouse style kitchens. Lantern lights come in a wide variety of styles and variations, and many regionally and historically distinct designs are a perfect way to set the tone for a very specific type of kitchen decor. Traditional lantern lights will work with just about any turn of the century inspired style, but railroad style hurricane lantern lights, maritime lanterns, carriage lanterns, and so on can all help accentuate a homes history and architecture.

For a more modern look, keep an eye out for something simpler, sleeker, and more geometric. Most decorative lighting fixtures would look out of place in a very modern, minimalist kitchen, so focus on models that use simple, bold lines and obvious shapes. Bold, black lines set on a white background creates the most striking contemporary vibe, while straight lines and sharp angles pair well with a minimalist decor. For a more ornate modern decor, look for less traditional island lights that break out of the mold, like gyroscopic or mobile-like circular lighting fixtures, or other bold and unconventional designs.

Since kitchens have become a luxurious rather than a purely utilitarian part of the home and as floor plans have become more open and integrated even decorative chandeliers have become more popular in kitchen design. These can be placed over an in-kitchen dining table or kitchen island and add an undeniable touch of elegance and sophistication to the space.

For more ideas, read the full article here.

HomeThangs.com is not only a home improvement superstore, it also provides expert design tips and a comprehensive shopping guide, taking the ideas from professional interior designers, and offering tips to the consumers on how to pick the products to best suit their needs.

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ARA Homeowners renovate for two basic reasons: money and fun. Or, more precisely, they undertake home improvements to improve their home's resale value or their enjoyment of their house. The best home improvements, however, are ones that deliver on both objectives.

Americans will spend nearly $141 billion on remodeling in the first half of this year, according to Harvard's Joint Center for Housing Studies. If you'll be among the many homeowners opting to improve, rather than move, you may be wondering what renovations are likely to give you the best balance of enhanced resale value and immediate enjoyment.

Here are five home improvements - from budget-friendly to big budget - that provide noteworthy return on investment (ROI) in terms of increased value and improved enjoyment:

1. Skylights

You can lower your electric bill by installing skylights that will reduce dependency on artificial light and fill your home with natural light. You can obtain quality, energy-efficient, "No Leak Skylights" from Velux for around $800 per unit for a standard fixed skylight with flashing kit. You can find a local installer to provide a customized cost estimate at http://www.veluxusa.com. In terms of positive energy, the mental and physical health effects of exposure to natural light are well documented. They're also an effective privacy preserver for bathrooms where you might not want a wall window. Skylight and sun tunnels (skylights that use reflective tubes to bring sunlight into rooms without direct roof access) not only enhance the energy efficiency of your home, they just may make you feel better about living there.

2. Decks

Whether you go for wood or composite, adding a deck is a great way to boost resale value, expand your living space and up your enjoyment of your home environment. On average, homeowners who add a wood deck can expect to recoup more than 80 percent of its cost when it comes time to sell, according to Remodeling Magazine's 2009-2010 Cost vs. Value Report. Composite deck additions return about 71 percent at the time of resale.

3. Kitchens

It makes sense that the room where most families spend the bulk of their time would be a popular remodel - and one that pays off big in terms of value and comfort. Even a minor kitchen remodel - costing about $21,000 - will return about 78 percent of its value on resale, according to Remodeling Magazine. A major kitchen job, costing around $57,200, will recoup about $41,200, or 72 percent.

4. Baths

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Best home improvements for your renovation dollars

(MoneyWatch) Expecting to recoup most of the money you poured into home improvements when it comes time to sell? Think again.

In fact, some projects can actually reduce the value of your home. And you may be surprised by how innocuous these value-damaging, home improvement projects are. If you want to make smart upgrades to your home, keep in mind that even the projects that offer the best return on investment don't often fully recover the cost within a year of sale.

According to Remodeling Magazine's latest cost versus value survey, even the projects that offer the biggest bang for the buck -- installing a steel front door, adding a wooden deck and making minor kitchen remodels -- won't add more than 85 percent of the cost of doing the remodel to the value of the home if you sell within the first year of completing the work.

The lesson? Make such improvements for yourself or your family to enjoy. Above all, avoid the five following improvements, especially if you're hoping to sell soon. They simply won't add any value to your home, at least not enough to pay back the cost of the project itself.

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GreenStar is a residential building standards and certification program available in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio and Wisconsin. This program certifies homes via an objective, third-party verification system that assures consumers that their remodeling project meets the program requirements and is constructed as designed.

NARIs Green Certified Professional (GCP) certification prep program High-Performance Remodeling has incorporated GreenStar training, and GreenStar will now award points toward its project certifications for those who have earned a NARI GCP.

NARIs High-Performance Remodeling course and GCP certification provides remodelers the technical tools needed to build GreenStar certified projects, said Dan Taddei, NARI director of education and certification. The industry has been looking for a way to recognize projects such as additions or kitchen and bath remodels as being remodeled green GreenStar does it. GreenStar marks a new era for remodelers across the country, said Michael Anschel, GreenStars director of development. Now there is finally a comprehensive, robust, legitimate green remodeling tool that anyone can use. The debate over what constitutes green is over. Remodelers can certify everything from a bathroom, kitchen or even windows and siding replacement all the way to a whole home remodel and offer something unique and valuable to their clients.

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The uptick in the Fresno housing market is helping to revive another sector of the wounded industry home remodeling.

Building permits for home additions, alterations and repairs were up 28% in July compared with the same time a year ago, according to the city of Fresno building department. From February through July of this year, permits in Fresno are up 15% over the same period last year. Visalia reports a similar increase over the same period.

A combination of homeowner confidence in the economy and the desire to modernize, retrofit or customize is driving the number of remodeling jobs up to a level not seen in at least five years, contractors say.

The demand even has homebuilders like De Young Properties creating new companies to specialize in renovation work.

"I think we've seen the light and it's shining right now," said Ken Dye, chief executive officer and president of Nelson Dye Remodeling Specialists in Fresno. "We're hoping it doesn't fade."

Kitchen and bathroom remodels remain popular, followed by energy-saving upgrades such as replacing old heating and cooling equipment and solar panels. Then come the wants: custom closets, garage storage or home offices.

Dye, whose family has owned and operated the company for 57 years, is relieved to see business picking up. Like homebuilders, renovation companies saw business sliced in half during the recession. The road to recovery since then has been a tough one.

Between 2009 and 2011, the company only had about half the work it normally sees, Dye said. That changed in 2012 when the economy slowly started improving. This year, the work has more than doubled.

"We're doing much better this year," said Dye, whose company specializes in kitchen and bathroom remodels. "It seems like people are starting to spend money."

Custom Drywall Service in Fresno slipped into the dumps in 2008 when new homebuilding came to a standstill. Back then, 80% of the company's work was in new construction. The other 20% was in renovations.

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