November 16, 2006
Furniture-Quality Stair Railings Add Drama
If you're building your own house or renovating an existing one, the location of the stairs can have a lot of influence on what you do with them. If the stairs lead up from the great room or a foyer at the front door, a lot of people are going to see them (assuming you have visitors come over from time to time), so the stairs are a great opportunity to make a grand first impression. Instead of choosing basic, bland railings and balusters, you could try furniture-quality wood or wrought iron with intricate designs integrated into each baluster.
Shown here is the Bergamo balusters and Grand newels (those are the center posts at the bottom of the stair case, for those who aren't up on the lingo) from Moulding Associates, Inc, a company that specializes in wooden door designs, stair parts, architectural accents, and decorative millwork items. They have quite a few pictures on their site if you're looking for ideas for your own stairs.
It's hard to beat the look of custom-installed stair railings, especially if your staircase is a focal point in your house, leading right up from the main entry or living room/great room. As you know if you've priced these things, custom railings, balustrades, and similar architectural features can be pretty expensive. I found a company that can give you the look of custom work at a more affordable price though.
I must say this is one of those now-I've-seen-everything products. The VacnSeal is a food preserver for central vacuum systems. It's not that food preservers are odd, and I've seen plenty of central vacs... it's just that I haven't ever associated one with the other. (What was I thinking?) 
The open floor plan is quite popular right now, where the kitchen, dining room, and living area all flow together without any walls separating them. Depending on your tastes, this may be a little too open. You don't necessarily want to wall up the rooms, but maybe a little partition or divider would be nice, so there's a degree of separation at least. If that sounds like you, then check out these textured glass partitions from Moondani Glass Design down in Australia. 
If your ceilings look a little flat to you, you can add warmth and texture with wood. In this picture from Architectural Systems, a mahogany wood pattern is used to cover up an ugly office ceiling. It certainly adds a lot of drama to an otherwise boring work space. You could do the same transformation with your living room or bedroom. (Something like this could even be used to cover up those old 1970s popcorn ceilings that are such a pain to scrape down.) I like the dark, rich mahogany, but any wood that suits you can be used. Some of the ones this company works with are pine, beech, ash, larch, oak, cherry, maple, and exotic sapelli.
With summer a memory and winter on its way, it's time to keep about ways to keep your home warm without wasting energy. That may mean adding additional insulation. If it's time to insulate your home, you may be interested in going with a green product that won't harm the environment and won't pose any health hazards to you and your family. U.S. GreenFiber's spray-in Cocoon insulation is made from cellulose, which doesn't contain formaldehyde, like some other kinds of insulation do. In additional to the cellulose, the product contains fire retardants and a stabilizing adhesive to prevent settling after you've installed it.
We've talked about 
Electric stoves are becoming increasingly popular because they're even more convenient than gas fireplaces (which require a gas hookup). With these babies, just plug it in and poof: ambiance (and heat). It can be hard to find an electric stove that fits in with your decor though, especially if you live in an old, restored home. Sold by the Victorian Fireplace Company, the Solo Electric Stove is a freestanding unit that's meant to fit into older homes. Though it's a modern appliance, it's designed to look like an old-style oil stove. The cast iron unit weights 88 pounds, is available in three colors (black, green, and burgundy), and costs $699.
