New Eras

Posted on by sarahgrend

I LOVE Summer. I call myself Summer Sarah because I thrive the most in summer. I love the busyness of it, I love the longer days, the tan skin, the warmth of the sun, traveling, there is just a freedom of summer that I love.

Now that Fall is entering I am starting to love the slow down. The routine. The sounds of the crickets. The cooler mornings. The warm colors. New new wardrobe.

As Summer is slipping away, and Fall is stumbling upon us, it really makes me realize what I love about the new seasons. How Each season gives us a new chance to reset

Think about new goals.

Think about how we want to feel.

Think How we want to look.

Think about what we want to do.

Each season we can choose to enter a new era. I say era because of Taylor Swift. I was able to go to her concert this summer with my daughter and her friends. What a great experience! Even at 42, I loved every single moment of it. I love how Taylor’s Era Tour showed us how you grow and evolve. How you don’t have stay in one era, And each new season gives us the chance to do that.

So.

What are you waiting for?

How do you want to feel this fall?

How do you want to look?

What do you want to do!

What are your new goals.!?

The best thing about life. Is YOU get to choose. YOU get to choose how YOU feel, look, what YOU do and what YOUR goals are!

G O A L S

You can always start with how you want to feel when you walk into your home. Is it seeing warmer colors? Then Add some new throw pillows and fall stems. Is it the smell? Purchase a fall candle!

I love doing a fall refresh in our home! Little things can make a big difference.

How do you want to look? How I dress each day reflects on how I feel. I work from home, but I normally choose an outfit that I can go to a meeting in if need to. This way I am also motivated all day. Each season gives us a chance to enter in a new era!!

You can make a fall bucket list! Make sure you get all your favorite fall things on there! And something new!

What are you waiting for!

Sarah Grendahl

Designer Advice

Posted on by sarahgrend

These are all the things I consider when designing a new home!

Number 3 is what makes me inspired with a home! Lighting often gets overlooked. But it’s what can personalize your space and make it all come together.

Number 8 is what I feel sets us apart in the building industry . As a designer, I am able to imagine how a family will use their space and make sure it’s functional now the floor plan will work with furniture as well!

  1. Understand the purpose and function of the space: Before starting any design project, it’s important to have a clear understanding of how the space will be used. This will help inform your design decisions and ensure that the space is functional and meets the needs of the family.
  2. Create a cohesive color scheme: Choose a color palette that reflects the desired mood and atmosphere of the space. Consider the use of complementary colors, contrasting colors, or a monochromatic scheme to create visual interest and harmony.
  3. Pay attention to lighting: Lighting plays a crucial role in interior design. Consider both natural and artificial lighting sources to ensure that the space is well-lit and that the lighting enhances the overall ambiance. Incorporate a mix of task lighting, ambient lighting, and accent lighting to create layers of light.
  4. Consider the scale and proportion: Ensure that the furniture and decorative elements in the space are appropriately scaled to the size of the room. Avoid overcrowding or leaving large empty spaces. Aim for a balanced and harmonious arrangement that allows for comfortable movement and flow.
  5. Use texture and patterns: Incorporate different textures and patterns to add visual interest and depth to the space. Mix materials such as wood, metal, glass, and fabrics to create a layered and tactile environment.
  6. Create focal points: Designate a focal point in each room to draw attention and create a sense of visual interest. This could be a statement piece of furniture, an artwork, a fireplace, or a unique architectural feature.
  7. Pay attention to details: Small details can make a big difference in design. Consider the selection of decorative accessories, such as throw pillows, rugs, artwork, and plants, to add personality and style to the space.
  8. Consider the flow and layout: Ensure that the layout of the space promotes easy movement and functionality. Arrange furniture in a way that allows for clear pathways and facilitates conversation and interaction.
  9. Incorporate storage solutions: Effective storage is essential in maintaining a clean and organized space. Consider incorporating built-in storage options, such as shelves or cabinets, to keep clutter to a minimum.
  10. Personalize the space: Finally, don’t be afraid to inject your own personality and style into the design. Add personal touches, such as family photos, artwork, or heirlooms, to create a space that feels uniquely yours.

Star Lane Highlights

Posted on by sarahgrend

The Geoffrey Home

Posted on by sarahgrend

The Geoffrey Home, [ pronounced Jo-free ] has been quite the journey. I had so much fun designing this home! Its named after my dear friend Geoffrey. I always had her style in the back of my mind. I wanted to think outside the box, and being intentional about offering something that is different than what is currently on the market, but keeping it my signature style. The design style is classic, yet fun. It has a modern coastal style with clean lines, that is seen throughout the whole home.

I used a color pallet of granite blue, grey, white, and wood tones to bring the coastal style together. The granite gray blue cabinets are used in the island, media cabinets, bathroom vanities and lower level bar area. Seeing the blue/gray color throughout the home brings it all together. You will also see the wood tones throughout the home in cabinets, shelving and light fixtures. White shows up in the quartz, backsplash, shiplap, beams, and the millwork. It is important to keep seeing similar design features in several areas of the home to pull it all together.

I also used a blend of metals. This can get tricky, but by choosing a dominate metal, you can mix in 2-3 metals as accents, depending on the size of the room. In this house, black was the dominate finish. and gold was used as an accent in several places. Knowing this was a home designed for the masses, I used gold cabinet hardware in places that could easily be swapped out with black.

The fireplace wall in the main living area is finished with white painted shiplap, we repeated this in the lower level fireplace wall, along with the custom built range hood in the kitchen! Many people see shiplap as farmhouse style, but it is also seen in numerous coastal interior designs. I love how it can be versatile.

We recently had this home staged by Design That Sells. I love how they captured our design style by just viewing photos of the home! I would buy everything they put in this home!

This home was being built smack dab in the middle of the pandemic. No one knew what was coming. We seen a lot of product delays and price increases. It really taught us to accept, adapt, and move to plan B when needed. And when plan B doesn’t work, there is always a plan C. We even realized that plan C, was just always meant to be.

We have always been one to adapt well, you have to when you are in this business. We find it as being one of our best assets. Also, part of being a designer is to make plan C the best that it can be! We are a team that looks at the glass half full. We know building isn’t a perfect process, but in the end, you get a pretty awesome result.

Walking in the door and knowing someone is going to call this their home, is why I keep showing up, learning, adapting, and making the best out outcome of what is meant to be.

Rolling Hills Master Bathroom

Posted on by sarahgrend

I love starting a project designing on my computer program. It’s the easiest way to experiment with ideas! I want our Rolling Hills Master bathroom design to be exceptional, and offer something that you don’t see in other homes.

The safe way would to do white cabinets. I love white cabinets in a bathroom. They are classic and clean. But if I want exceptional, I need a pop of color. Since I’m going with a coastal farmhouse theme, a shade of blue/green will be the fit perfect in the design. Going with black fixtures is timeless and brings in the farmhouse design aspect.

I’m also going to be using some shiplap in the house design. So bringing this feature into the master bathroom will tie the rooms together. This of course, is a conceptual view of how the bathroom will look, and the colors may vary a bit. But I think we are off to a good start! Stay tuned for the custom tiled shower design!! It’s going to be amazing!

Rolling Hills Progress

Posted on by sarahgrend

Our Rolling Hills house has made a lot of exciting progress the last couple weeks! We have a framed and sheeted house with windows, doors, and all the rough in for plumbing, HVAC and electrical is happening. Soon the fun interior choices begin!

Interior finish board

I’m staying very close to my original design board of this house. I’m very attached to it! I can’t wait to see it come to life.

I’ve put a lot of thought into the exterior of this house. I love and appreciate a classic look of a home. So I’ve kept that in mind while choosing the exterior materials and colors.

If this house speaks to you, please contact us! We’d love to show you around. We’ve had so many compliments regarding the floor plan and layout of this house. It’s perfect for a small family or a growing family!

My goal of this whole Design is to bring a family home. ❤️

Scenic Home Tour

Posted on by sarahgrend

The Fall Parade of Homes came and went and it was such a whirlwind of an experience. We met so many great people, and heard amazing feedback regarding the house. I felt like I was in awe a lot of the time.  I am so grateful for the experience.  This wasn’t our plan in the beginning, but I understand sometimes our plans don’t work out, and it will lead you to better paths.  I believe this is the case for this house.

Now that the home tour has ended I can give you a virtual home tour! In the next few posts I will share photos of this home we’ve been working so hard on.

Let’s start with the main living area! I love an open concept because I like to be social with my family. I think that’s the case for a lot of people. An open concept makes for an inviting atmosphere. It’s also a great place to entertain guests.

I chose to paint a cool toned paint on the walls, yet it feels warm! The paint color is Passive by Sherwin Williams, and the fireplace wall is Unusual Grey, also by Sherwin Williams.

We had so many positive comments on the paint color. I do not do builder beige or builder grey!! I spend a lot of time on paint colors, it drives my husband insane! But it pays off in the end. I got the perfect neutral shade of grey that tends to look blue or green or grey in the right shades of light. It was a win with all the Parade attendees.

The flooring was the next favorite! I use a high-grade Mannington laminate floor. It holds up so well to pets, kids, and traffic. It also has a 72 hour water lock, and you can’t beat the look of this floor!

I used a combination of furniture and accessories from my house, and found pieces online and in stores to stage the home.  This was my favorite part of everything.  It made the home come to life, and it actually made the rooms look bigger!  I love combining styles from different stores to use in a room.  That way your house will never look like a particular store when you walk in, and best of all it will feel like YOUR home.

Making a Statement

Posted on by sarahgrend

When deciding on a vanity style and color for this master bathroom I wanted to keep with the style of painted cabinets, but I also wanted it to be different from the kitchen.  My first instinct was to go with white.  White is pretty, it’s traditional in a master bathroom, and I love the crisp clean look it.  Then I was inspired by a black master bathroom vanity https://domino.com/modern-neutral-hollywood-home-tour.

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I knew that I wanted to make a statement in this bathroom.  Our windows are black in this house, the exterior brick is black, and this bathroom would be a good match. I went with https://www.cliqstudios.com/ again. We loved working with these cabinets for the kitchen, so it was an easy decision use them for the bathroom as well.

I was so scared, nervous,  excited to unbox these cabinets!  The black was exactly what I imaged it to be! It gave the bathroom a nice modern look, and it made the statement I was looking for.  I dressed up the cabinets with chrome hardware and faucets, and topped it with quartz countertops. I couldn’t be happier with the outcome!

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Using a ceramic marble tile in the shower I was able to compliment the quartz countertop, and the dark subway accent tile brings in the black.  I found the perfect marble mosaic hexagon tile to finish it all off.

Buyers aren’t walking into their typical master bathroom at this house.