Laura Gaskill, Houzz Contributor

Have the whole clan coming to stay during the holidays? If youre wondering where on earth to put everyone, these ideas can help. From chic sleeper sofas and daybeds to trundles, bunks, hide-a-beds and air mattresses, see which of these solutions can work for you.

An attractive sleeper sofa. There are some really lovely sleeper sofas on the market today. If you have a choice, place one in the den or family room rather than an open living area your guests will appreciate being able to shut the door.

Overnight guests coming? How to be a great host

Privacy tip: Use a screen. If your guests must sleep in the living room, especially if your living room does not have a door that shuts, its nice to offer a folding screen for privacy. Set up the bed for your guest in the evening and position the folding screen so he or she wont be disturbed if you walk by in the morning.

Slim sleeper sofa in the master bedroom. If you have a large master bedroom, adding a petite sleeper sofa instead of a chaise or an armchair can be a smart move. If you have a family with a child coming to visit, you can offer your bedroom to the guests and take the smaller guest bed yourself.

Find a new sleeper sofa to add to your space

Bunks behind a barn door. If you host big groups of overnight guests often, this can be a smart solution. Built-in bunks are tucked into a living room wall and disguised with sliding barn-style doors here.

Comfy sectional. Just any old couch will not do, but a generously sized, firm sectional with chaise sections can work as a sleeping spot for a guest or two especially kids.

Air mattress on the floor. Placing an air mattress in a smaller room, like the den or office, is best. This way your guests will have privacy, and you can get the bed set up ahead of time.

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Tips For Squeezing In More Guest Beds

Maybe this holiday season, you're looking for a way to spruce up your home, a little remodeling, or some new window treatments.

But there are some things you might now know about having new shutters installed.

Alan Clegg, owner of Wastach Shutter, talks shares some details about shutter installation.

Wasatch Shutter is locally owned and operated for 17 years.

Benefits of shutters: Transformation in room appearance Consider how much wall square footage is devoted to windows in a typical room and the impact of having that "piece of furniture" to dress it up! Insulation & In home comfort = decreased utility costs

Wasatch Shutters provide a free in home consultation by a design technician and make sure you are educated before you make this investment in your home.

Sub for Santa Campaign in December $25 of every shutter order sold in November will be donated to Sub for Santa families.

For more information visit wasatchshutter.com.

The rest is here:
Shutter company to help 'Sub for Santa' for the holidays

Replacing a kitchen countertop means two things: (1) You're about to add a fresh, new surface to your area, and (2) it's time to spend some money.

But the good news is that there are also a number of color, texture and material options available when choosing a new countertop, making it possible for even the most budget-conscious homeowner to obtain a new surface for his or her kitchen.

Laminate countertops are one of the most cost efficient countertop options. These countertops are available in a wide variety of colors, textures and patterns, ranging from options that look like marble to ones that mimic the look of stainless steel. The average laminate countertop will cost you $20 to $60 per square foot.

On the other end of the price spectrum are stone countertops, including granite and marble. The cost of a these countertop will, of course, depend on the size of the surface area. However, the average natural stone countertop will cost approximately $50 to $100 per square foot. In addition, the cost will depend not just on surface area, but also on how thick you want the slab to be.

Less costly options include ceramic tiles and recycled glass. Both materials are applied with a tile adhesive, but can be arranged in a mosaic design or other creative pattern.

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Kitchen Countertop Prices - Home Design, Decorating and ...

Before: This remodel transformed the existing space to create a comfortable gathering space,

Jeff Close, Renovation Design Group

Editor's note: Portions of this column were previously published on deseretnews.com and their blog at renovationdesigngroup.com.

As we enter the entertaining season, starting with Thanksgiving next week and moving into the party season of Christmas, New Year's and the Super Bowl, we are reflecting on the many gathering spaces we have helped create for our clients over the years.

The great room concept is a must-have for many clients these days. They want the space for different reasons and find it in different ways depending on their home layout and style. Here are four different examples of past clients with varying life circumstances and homes who all discovered gathering space.

Creatively reconfiguring space

Pat and Kathie Debenham had the classic problem of many grandparents in Utah: Their grown children were making family gatherings bigger by adding spouses and grandchildren by the year. They decided it was time for a gathering space expansion.

They had a small great room off the kitchen, but it could only seat a few people. Their budget wouldnt allow for an addition to expand the great room, so we reallocated the space in their existing floor plan by removing a pantry and remodeling the kitchen.

Losing the pantry was a hard decision, but they compromised by adding taller cabinets to add storage space back into the kitchen design. We also removed a small, rarely used half bathroom that sat between the laundry room and the great room. The renovation improved the gathering space dramatically without adding any square footage to the house.

Taking down walls; adding beams

Read more from the original source:
Renovation Solutions: Four examples of how to remodel for gathering spaces

Renovation nations rising again.

Wednesdays report on housing startssuggests a steady trend for construction. But new houses arent the only support to economic growth. Updating a bathroom or adding a deck also contributes.

The Bureau of Economic Analysis tracks home improvements as part of the residential investment sector of gross domestic product. (Single-family homes, the fast-growing apartment sector, dormitories and manufactured homes are also in the residential investment category.)

These are major improvements to your house, saysMichael Armah, a BEA economist. That includes major replacement projects, adding a room and rehabbing a kitchen. Painting a living room or installing a dimmer switch doesnt count.

Like other subsectors of home construction, spending on improvements took a hit in the recession. So far in this expansion, apartment-building has been the lead construction performer because of a consumer shift to renting rather than owning.

But remodeling spending has also climbed back, thanks to the usual upkeep and maintenance, as well as the decision of some homeowners to upgrade or expand their current residences rather than move.

Rising home values have also helped. In Home Depots earnings call Tuesday, the building-supply retailers chief executive Craig Menear said, As home value appreciation has happened, customers are certainly more willing to invest in their homes.

Inflation-adjusted spending on home improvements has slipped a bit in 2014, but in the third quarter it stood just 10% below the subsectors peak in 2005.

In contrast, investment in new single-family homes is still a large 62% off its high of the boom years.

Indeed, real spending on improvements is currently running about even with spending on single-family homes. During the housing boom, investment in new single-family housing outpaced home improvements by a ratio of more than 2.5:1.

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After Recession, Home-Remodeling Is on the Rise

New Orleans, La. (PRWEB) November 19, 2014

The Loews New Orleans Hotel today announced the completion of its $4 million guest room and restaurant renovation.

Following three months of remodeling, the 285-room hotel now boasts updated guest rooms and suites, refreshed corridors and a sleek, modern look in Caf Adelaide.

New Orleans has experienced an incredible surge in visitors these past few years, which means everyone in the city wants to put their best face forward, said Loris Menfi, general manager at the Loews New Orleans Hotel. At just 10 years old the hotel is in beautiful shape, but we wanted to give our guest rooms, corridors and restaurant, Caf Adelaide, a complete revamp to keep each space looking fresh and vibrant. She added, We are confident our guests will be as thrilled with the new look as we are.

Designed by local firm Lisambiance Interior Design, the new look layers historic New Orleans culture with modern lines in blue and gray tones reminiscent of the regions waterways. New carpeting patterns emulate the historic wrought iron seen throughout the city, while sofas, chairs and fabrics inspired by mens suiting provide a tailored appearance. New contemporary lamps and sconces throughout the guestrooms and bathrooms offer brighter lighting for late night work sessions, and new art depicts popular New Orleans scenes including riverboats, musical instruments and architecture.

For more information, visit the website at loewshotels.com/NewOrleansHotel.

Loews New Orleans Hotel Situated adjacent to New Orleans Arts District, the 285-room Loews New Orleans Hotel features sweeping views of the Mississippi River or New Orleans skyline. Honored as a AAA Four Diamond Hotel for 10 consecutive years, our personalized service and beautifully appointed guestrooms provide an unpretentious yet luxurious experience, while Caf Adelaide and the Swizzle Stick Bar (by the Commanders Palace Family of Restaurants) offers award-winning local cuisine in a relaxed setting, embodying the essence of the Crescent City.

Loews Hotels & Resorts Headquartered in New York City, Loews Hotels & Resorts owns and/or operates 22 hotels and resorts across the U.S. and Canada, including two newly acquired Midwest locations the Loews Minneapolis Hotel, situated in the heart of Minneapolis entertainment district, and the Loews Chicago OHare Hotel, less than two miles from OHare Airport in the emerging city of Rosemont, Ill. The new-build, 400-room Loews Chicago Hotel will debut downtown in February 2015. Located in major city centers and resort destinations from coast to coast, the Loews portfolio features one-of-a-kind properties that go beyond Four Diamond standards to delight guests with exciting, approachable and local travel experiences. For reservations or more information about Loews Hotels & Resorts, call 1-800-23-LOEWS or visit: http://www.loewshotels.com.

Like Loews Hotels & Resorts on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/LoewsHotels Follow Loews Hotels & Resorts on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/loews_hotels Watch Loews Hotels & Resorts on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/LoewsHotels Read our Wish You Were Here Blog at http://www.loewshotelsblog.com

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Excerpt from:
Loews New Orleans Hotel completes $4 million renovation

Two years ago, after UBS AG (UBSN) decided to shrink its investment bank, Andrea Orcel told employees they had an opportunity to create a firm based on a model that vanished in the late 1990s.

That was an era before investment banks such as Merrill Lynch & Co. and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) ramped up borrowing to inflate returns. Orcel, who was hired to co-lead the UBS securities unit in 2012 and became sole head four months later, said a business that made money purely by connecting buyers and sellers and providing advice could work again, according to a person who attended the meeting and asked not to be identified.

In trying to rewire UBSs securities unit into an old-school Wall Street firm, Orcel is making a virtue of necessity. Recent history left him and Chief Executive Officer Sergio Ermotti, 54, little choice but to work with lower leverage, fewer people and less capital. They have eliminated almost 5,000 jobs, cut assets by two-thirds, curtailed capital-hungry bond-trading businesses and imposed an approach that relies more on relationships than providing financing to win business.

What I would very much like to create is a real investment bank, the kind that there arent anymore, Orcel, a 51-year-old former Merrill Lynch dealmaker, said in an interview this month. Are we there yet? No, were not there.

There are successes: Return on equity rose to the highest among the worlds nine largest investment banks in the first half. Revenue at the underwriting and advisory unit in the first nine months was 2.5 billion Swiss francs ($2.6 billion), 21 percent higher than two years earlier, while the trading businesses boosted sales 13 percent to 3.9 billion francs.

Theres also more to do, such as stamping out the misconduct that forced Switzerlands largest bank to set aside $1.7 billion for legal matters in the third quarter. Last week it was ordered to pay almost $800 million for attempting to rig currency markets. UBS will have to replenish a talent pool depleted by years of turmoil, recapture market share in equities, boost revenue from mergers advice and underwriting and reinvent its fixed-income business, all while maintaining strict limits on capital and costs, current and former employees said.

UBS has been successful in shrinking the balance sheet and refocusing the business, said Guy de Blonay, who manages about $720 million, including UBS shares, at Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. in London. Now, the investment bank needs to resolve outstanding litigation, reduce costs, establish a track record of sustainable earnings across the cycle and avoid large losses, even in difficult times.

UBS, based in Zurich, lost 57 billion francs during the last financial crisis, forcing it into a state rescue and Swiss regulators to impose among the toughest banking requirements in the world. A $2.3 billion loss in 2011 from unauthorized trading fueled doubts about risk controls.

Sitting in a conference room at the investment banks Swiss headquarters in Opfikon, outside Zurich, Orcel said the business has faced hurricanes, not headwinds, over the past few years. Immaculately groomed, with silvering hair and dark lines under his eyes, he spoke about UBSs plans for more than an hour, scarcely pausing for breath.

Hell need all the energy he can muster to satisfy investors such as Knight Vinke Asset Management LLC, which urged UBSs board as recently as August to spin off the investment bank to reduce risk. David Trenchard, a vice chairman of New York-based Knight Vinke, declined to comment for this article.

Continue reading here:
Orcel Facing Hurricanes Remodeling UBS on Old Wall St

Yanic Simard, Houzz Contributor

For most designers, there are certain home decor pieces they return to time and time again. These elements instantly enhance any space, no matter what the style, and add personality, function or color (maybe all of the above). Regardless of the complexity of the space, these eight essentials give rooms the shot of style they need.

Tips on how to start a decorating project

1. Porter floor lamp. This classic lamp is the epitome of good transitional design a little bit of contemporary and a little bit of traditional.

By combining the elegant forms of a traditional lamp with the crispness of a minimalist metallic finish, the Porter creates a statement that can mix well with any style and add a sense of brightness even before you turn it on.

Use it: Behind your bedside tables, next to a sofa (paired or alone) or in an office.

2. Brno chair. Another modern classic that can suit any space, this cantilevered chair (seen here in the foreground) is great for bringing any space into the 21st century.

Use it: As a dining chair, an office chair, you name it. Consider using a pair as dining end chairs. Theyll serve double duty as extra guest seats.

3. Chinese garden stool. Speaking of seating extra guests, the Chinese garden stool is another designer go-to solution for all sorts of dilemmas. Its a stool, footrest and side table, and using one is an excellent way to add a pop of color and pattern or a touch of ceramic to round out a texture palette.

Plus, it moves outdoors with you as soon as the weather warms up truly a smart long-term style investment.

Originally posted here:
8 Must-Have Home Decor Pieces

By Sarah Rigg Special to Washtenaw Now

Briarwood Ford, 7070 E. Michigan Ave., in Pittsfield Township, recently completed a major remodeling and renovation.

The dealership was founded in 1986 in downtown Saline, later moving to its current location. The business is co-owned by Steve Whitener and Eddie Hall.

We started in late June and had about 30 people in portable office trailers from late June until about Oct. 24 or 25, Whitener said. Our target date was Thanksgiving, but we ended up back in about a month early. Everybody is back in the building now, and everybody is glad about that.

The renovation includes a bit of extra room, with the dealerships showroom being expanded 22 feet in length, Whitener said.

Weve been here 26 years and weve done some cosmetic work to keep it fresh, but its our first major remodel, he said. The front of the building, the showroom and offices are almost 100 percent new.

All the walls, carpet and furniture are new, and each employee has a new desk and storage areas.

We also updated the customer lounge, the restrooms all the customer touchpoints are 100 percent new, Whitener said. Its a great thing for the customers but also for employee morale. We have almost 80 employees here, and a lot of them have been here 15 or 20 years or more, and its nice for them to walk in and have a new desk and office space.

The main aim of the remodeling project was to update the look of the building, but some technology upgrades were also included.

Continue reading here:
Saline's Briarwood Ford completes remodeling, grand re-opening set

Remodels don t always have to be a complete overhaul. If you have furniture that is still in good shape, like this flamestitch chair, work the rest of your remodel around it. Changing the wall color is a good place to start. SUN/DEBBE DALEY

Deciding to redecorate a room can be a big deal, one that comes with at least a tinge of anxiety and perhaps an overwhelming feeling of not being able to pull it all together. You have to worry about what style is in for furnishings, how you should pull it all together and, as always, how much to spend.

To help ease the trepidation, consider first which pieces are going to cost the most. It could be the sofa and chairs or the area rug. How much do you really love the existing furniture? If it is in great shape, in a living room for example, and of good quality, but a bit dated, can you work around it and still pull off the new look? In most cases, the answer is yes.

Adding new items around the existing furniture is easy if you have fabric samples.

When it comes to window treatments, be willing to go out of your comfort zone. SUN/DEBBE DALEY

Once the walls are transformed, it may be easier to see the rest of the picture. Move on to the next major piece of the puzzle: the area rug. Again, to make the job easier, always bring along your upholstery and paint swatches.

As you add items to the room and get that boost of confidence that a job well done brings, that tinge of anxiety will subside.

If you're adding window treatments to the room, keep an open mind. Don't go with the most obvious patterns or solids that you think would work. Step out of your box. Try something new.

Accessories are the icing on the cake. End tables, a coffee table, lamps and artwork will complete the new room's look. Once that's done, all that remains is to create the entertaining and social schedule, sit back and enjoy the praises of your newly decorated room.

Debbe Daley, owner of Debbe Daley Designs and RAW Furnishings, is an interior designer with more than 25 years of experience. Follow her blog at blogs.lowellsun. com/daleydecor. She also blogs at debbedaleydesignsllc.blogspot.com.

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Rethink approach to remodeling