Designer Report from
the International Builders Show
Article by Ashley Jennings

We went, we saw, we elbowed through the education sessions and the show floor. Now, we're back from the International Builder’s Show and we want to share some design highlights: specifically, the products we believe will make the biggest impact on your interiors! Now that we’re transitioning out of the economic recession, it’s our job to prepare you for a successful recovery. Consider these fantastic new interior products for your model homes, clubhouses and sales centers. We’re impressed with them… and your home buyers will be too!

Fabulous Floors

Modular carpets! What better way to address the heavy wear and tear in your sales center and clubhouse spaces? Not only is is practical, but it’s a highly hip and hot new design trend that will impress your potential buyers. This product by Lees is called “Sixth Sense,” and it features a collection of five patterns with organic undertones perfect for urban settings. The best part – if one carpet tile gets assaulted by a glass of red wine or maybe even candle wax at a community or open house, just pull it up and replace it with a new one. Badda bing, Badda Boom!

Go “green” with tile – but not literally! We are not necessarily recommending green-colored tile, but we do like the idea of appealing to today’s savvy home buyers who have linked up with the clean and “Green” consumer market. Crossville tile is manufactured in Tennessee. Use this textured product for flooring in large expanses of field tile, or smaller metallic micromesh tiles for a dramatic and decorative application like on a kitchen backsplash or bathroom tile listello. This new product with a subtle metallic shine is available in five colors, in residential and commercial interior spaces only.

Revolution Mills in Tampa, Florida, is selling a great new product with unique appeal to eco-conscious buyers. Their newest line of wood flooring is manufactured with a process called up-cycling. Rather than recycling old, reclaimed wood into new flooring, the up-cycling process takes the extra 40% of trees that has until now been unusable. That 40% would-be-trashed wood from harvested trees is processed and cut into smaller, less than 1” width bands of wood. Finally, they are assembled into the more common 4” – 6” wide planks. Just look at the beautiful effect! And here’s a bonus of these floors – because the wood has been smoked, rather than stained, it holds a consistent color throughout for a consistent look over time.

Regardless of the wood flooring that you install, it is clear that buyers want hard surface floors that have an eco-friendly oil finish rather than a sealer with VOC toxins. Also, be health-conscious in the installation as well, using low- or no-VOC adhesives or even better – float the planks in an interlocking pattern.

Kitchen Flare

This is one of our favorites! GE Appliance SmartDispense Dishwasher offers its users convenience and elegance, all at once! We’re all on-the-go, especially families who are juggling work, school, kids and more, so take advantage of that by appealing to your buyers’ desire for convenience-focused appliances. The SmartDispense Dishwasher answers the prayers for practical convenience in the midst of busy lives. Just pour an entire 45-ounce bottle of liquid dishwasher detergent into the door’s soap reservoir and it will automatically dispense the perfect amount of soap for each load you run. When the “tank” is running low and close to empty, just refuel when the low-detergent light signals about every 2 months. This appliance is available in stainless steel finish, white, black or with a custom panel.

Don’t miss the details! Elkay's new Statement sink program offers a unique stainless-steel kitchen sink product with an etched pattern on the back wall or around the perimeter of the basin. Choose between 12 patterns that are available to be applied to a variety of the company’s under-mount models. Or, if their designs don’t suit you, get creative yourself and order a custom design. The design patterns are smooth to the touch, and are visible because of their reaction to the light sources in the room that make them stand out from the standard finish of the sink. Stand back, plain old sinks, this one has style!

Let There Be Light

Did you know that due to the natural aging of the eyes, older adults require three times more lighting than a younger person? It’s true! And the truth is that regardless of the age of your target market, incorporating the right types of lighting is very important – especially in the kitchen! For general overhead lighting in a long and narrow kitchen, use two separate fixtures for overall illumination. In addition to the overheads, create a multifunctional and dramatic environment with localized lighting (also called task lighting) for the different work centers. Richelieu has recently released this new dimmable LED lighting line that is shown here with an under-cabinet mount that angles at 20 degrees onto the countertop surfaces. With a life length up to 50,000 operating hours, low energy consumption and a cool surface for no burn risk, this lighting application would truly dazzle your buyers!

Go Get ‘Em!

Although the economy has not recovered fully, the NAHB reports just released at last month’s International Builders Show are showing that we have hit the bottom of the decline (thankfully!). What are you doing to get ahead and position your new home community for the 2010 recovery? Be sure to include today’s latest materials as you build new homes, or refresh your existing interiors. It will pay off!

 

 Model Home Merchandising
Clubhouse & Sales Centers