September 2010 Newsletter


It’s a Great Room Renovation
Sometimes the word remodeling has the wrong perception with homeowners. I hear people talk about breaking down walls or rebuilding as a must for their remodeling job. Here’s reality… remodeling simply means to remake (look it up online at Webster’s). Here’s an Indianapolis remodeling project we recently completed where we remade a family room to refresh the dated look. No walls came down… nothing was rebuilt… we only refreshed—It’s A Great Room Renovation.

Click here to see the slideshow!

Sometimes refreshing a room simply means transforming the look via the walls. Steve Gray Renovations partners with locally owned and operated Blice Edwards on projects that involve faux finishes and mural work. Collectively the owners of this Indianapolis-based company have more than 50-years of mural, art and faux finish experience. Christopher Blice and Jon Edwards offer the following tips if you’re thinking about murals or finishes for your home or business.

Consider space and style. While custom murals allow us to be really creative, they’re not for every home or space. We typically recommend elaborate murals for formal spaces (living rooms) and decorative ideas for play spaces (children’s rooms, dens). Faux finishes have endless options and budgets. Think about what’s in the room and the style of the home. A contemporary home requires a different look than a Tuscan Italian villa feel.

Consider final effect. We often ask homeowners to write a list of adjectives to communicate how they want the final room to feel. If someone says warm and cozy a transitional faux finish starting with a dark color at floor level and grading cooler toward the ceiling works well. When someone says contemporary and sleek, whites, grays and blacks fit that style. We often create faux-finish-option boards for a homeowner to see in their room to make a final finish choice.

Consider budget. Yep. It’s true. Home renovations and updates come down to budget. The more you think ahead about how much you want to spend, the better the ideas and relationship. We’re all taught not to talk about money, but being honest from the start allows us to hit the mark by presenting affordable options and ideas.

Steve Gray Renovations is at the NAHB Remodeling Show in Baltimore this week.

Welcome our newest Steve Gray Renovations team member Cory Castillo, our new construction assistant. Cory is working with our subcontractors on job sites to ensure everything is moving smoothly. He’s also the guy on every job site that works hard to keep everything clean and orderly. We think he’s a great addition to our staff and hope you do, too.

Steve is blogging for Remodeling magazine, the top national publication in the industry. Every other week, Steve is sharing his insights on what makes a professional remodeler—professional. “Since we founded the company five years ago, our primary goal has been to bring professionalism to the remodeling industry. Being invited to share what we’ve learned along the way and hear from other remodelers in the industry is an honor,” says Steve. Check out the Gray Areas blog on the Remodeling website.

The Indianapolis Star published an article featuring Steve’s insights about how to decide whether to move or remodel.

We hope you found our newsletter helpful. Click here to view all of the previous editions. If you have any questions, please email us, we will be happy to assist and respond.

Thanks!
Steve Gray