It makes sense to price shop for certain items like clothes and groceries, while trying to find the cheapest surgeon sounds odd because your health is too valuable for bargain shopping.

The health of your home is just as important as your personal well being, yet when it comes to home repairs and remodeling, price shopping is considered the norm. But bargain shopping for a contractor often leads to expensive and reoccurring problems that could have been avoided if price were not the main criteria for which contractor was chosen in the first place.

Do It Right The First Time

There is no value in continually paying to correct a problem. The benefit of paying upfront for quality is that you pay for it once. Correcting bad work requires double the time to equal and/or surpass the original price offered by the professional company who pride themselves on doing it right the first time. To see the consequences of not doing it right the first time, watch any episode of HGTV’s Holmes on Homes; host Mike Holmes is an experienced craftsman who demonstrates the benefits of using knowledgeable professionals for home repairs and remodeling.

A professional takes into consideration all the details of a job to come up with a fair price for expert work backed with a warranty and assurance of future support to you.  And the enduring value and service you want many times comes with a higher price tag; consider the price and quality difference between Macy’s and Walmart, and know that the same applies to the companies who work on your biggest investment – your home.

There Are No Short-Cuts

Knowledgeable and experienced tradespeople know exactly what it takes, and how long it will take, to do the job right. Anything less than that is a short cut, and a shortcut is making a conscious decision to not do the job correctly.

Before a home improvement project begins, there should be a contract with a written scope of work. The scope of work avoids shortcuts by detailing exactly what tasks, materials and labor will be performed for the price paid.  Professionals who take pride in their work and customer service rely on the scope of work so that expectations are met for both the homeowner and the contractor.

Accredited professionals include a written scope of work and contract as standard procedure. If a contractor you’re considering doesn’t offer this, ask for one; if they resist your request, consider this a red flag to choose another company.

If It’s Too Good To Be True, It Probably Is

A catchy sales pitch will not make up for dashed expectations and inferior work. To avoid falling for a false promise, ask questions until you’re satisfied with the answers. Professionals with the knowledge and experience love to talk about their work. They understand that your trust and comfort is part of a good working relationship, so are happy to fulfill any request that proves their expertise.

You Get What You Pay For

You deserve honest work for an honest price, but if that price is far lower than those being offered by other companies then chances are good you’ll get low quality. If you’ve checked a company’s credentials, received good answers to your questions, have a written contract and scope of work, and feel a sense of trust, then the cost of the project will most likely be worth every penny.

The care and value of your home is far too important to focus on finding the cheapest price. Investing in quality and doing things right the first time saves you time, money and valuable resources. Don’t judge a contractor solely on price – buy on proven knowledge and performance.

For a remodeling and repair company that meets the standards of knowledge and performance you can trust in, look to Mosby Building Arts. They have over 60 years of experience improving every aspect of homes in Metro St. Louis, and their team of home improvement professionals will help you make wise choices for your home. Call the Mosby office at 314.909.1800 or contact them here.

There is much talk about recouping the cost of remodeling projects, and it is true that certain improvements contribute more to resale value when it’s time to sell your home. For instance, kitchen and bathroom remodels historically recoup a considerable percentage of the cost, as do exterior improvements such as new siding and roofing.

What is often overlooked when sharing this important information is the less glamorous improvements that benefit you right now and in the future whether you plan to stay or sell your house. It’s the simple things that mean a lot, and peace of mind is eternally valuable.

There are key home improvement projects that should be done because you are staying in your home for the long term, and if a day eventually comes that you sell it, then they will automatically add overall value to the selling price of the house.

Get the basics right the first time by investing in:

● A Solid Foundation – a weak or compromised foundation eventually affects the entire house, creating a whole host of structural problems. Attend to any foundation problems as soon as they become apparent.

● A Dry Basement – wet basements breed mold which breeds health problems. A water proof basement is healthy, safe for storage, and can be refinished.

● A Solid Structure – when the “bones” of your house are strong, windows and doors open easily and its easier to make modifications like removing walls or adding additional doors and windows.

● A Reliable Roof System with Proper Ventilation & Insulation – when a roof system is done correctly it extends the life of the roofing material, reduces maintenance, helps the HVAC system work efficiently and promotes healthy indoor air quality.

● Efficient Heating, Cooling and Water Heater – vast improvements to HVAC and water heaters makes investing in these new systems a way to lower utility bills, increase comfort and indoor air quality, and help reduce our dependence on natural resources.

● Water and Moisture Management – water is the constant enemy of every house, so make sure you have proper yard drainage and that your roof, flashing, gutters and downspouts are moving water away from the interior of your home.

● Accessibility Improvements – people of all ages and abilities benefit from accessible design ideas like 3 foot wide entries, zero-clearance thresholds, no-slip flooring and task lighting.

Whether it is next year or 20 years from now, these projects are timeless because they are immune to trends or personal taste – it’s all about soundness, efficiency and comfort. These improvements create a reliable and valuable house for you and future buyers, as long as they are done right the first time.

Mosby Building Arts is known for award-winning remodeling projects that enhance the lives of Metro St. Louis homeowners, but they also know from over 60 years of experience that form follows function. When the bones and muscles of your home perform at peak capacity, everything atop it has long-lasting value. Make wise home improvements that are done right the first time by calling Mosby at 314.909.1800 or contact them here.

Listen to Scott Mosby talk about this topic.

Have you ever noticed those pieces of paper posted at a remodeling or construction job site? Those notices mean the work is being done legally, safely and properly with building permits. If they’re absent, a crucial step in the construction process has been overlooked.

There is a common misperception that permits are just another way for cities to make money, and that’s truly not the motivation. The intent is to insure uniform, good quality building practices that keep citizens safe and maintain property values.

Building permits provide you with several professionals trained to protect you from shoddy and unsafe work. Many of the building codes exist, because at some point, someone was killed or injured due to faulty construction. Each community has put in place minimum requirements to keep a house, all of its systems, and its occupants safe and upright.

When a project is planned properly, the permit process happens before construction starts, and tends not to affect completion timelines. Building permits help you avoid complications and protect your future.

When You Need a Permit

If you’re wondering if you need a permit, you probably do. While each municipality has completely different rules, a general rule of thumb is that permits are required for:

● Changing the footprint of a house
● Moving load-bearing walls
● Altering a roofline
● Creating new door or window openings
● Moving existing or installing new or upgraded plumbing and electricity
● Finishing a basement or attic
● Adding or reconfiguring a deck
● Replacing an HVAC system
● Adding proper water drainage to property

You generally won’t need a permit for:

● Installing new flooring
● Replacing doors or windows that don’t alter structure
● Changing countertops
● Replacing faucets
● Painting the interior or exterior (if not in a historical district)

Risks of Remodeling Without a Permit

Eliminating the building permit process creates the high probability of problems in the future. Along with endangering your family with, for example, a poorly built deck or illegal electrical wiring, it can potentially effect your pocketbook long after the project has been completed.

Many insurance companies will not cover damage caused by, or involved with, work that was done without a permit, and when pertinent, insurance adjusters will check city records to verify that a permit is on record. Plus, your insurance company needs to know about major improvements to maintain a sufficient replacement value of your home.

Illegal work can cause problems when trying to sell a house because it may not pass inspection. Some states require documentation of all permit remodeling on sales disclosure forms, or require full disclosure of non-permit work. The responsibility and expense of bringing a house up to code usually falls upon the seller. Also keep in mind that the re-sale value of your home is determined, in part, by improvements made to it over the years. If the County does not have record of substantial improvements, this can affect return on your investment with a lower sales price when selling your home.

Each municipality has its own rules in place for discovering non-permit work after the fact. Repercussions range from applying for a retro active permit (subjecting your house to damage caused by creating access to work for proper inspections), a fine for illegal work, to requiring you to remove illegal work and start over with permits. Doing work without permits has the potential to be far more expensive and problematic than having obtained building permits in the first place.

The Permit Process

If you want a return on your investment for any major remodeling done in your home, make sure it’s done with required building permits. Technically, it is a homeowner’s responsibility to obtain a permit, but professional contractors typically take care of the process for you. For instance, replacing a water heater in most of St. Louis County requires a permit, and a licensed plumbing contractor obtains that for you as a normal part of their installation process.

The Creve Coeur, MO building permit instructions are a good example of how deeply involved the process is, even for professional remodelers and builders. And each municipality has a unique set of requirements, so whether you do the project yourself or hire a professional, visiting your town’s website for their building permit information needs to be a top priority at the beginning of a project.

Building permits are crucial to a successful project, and all the details can also be overwhelming. Add to that, requirements constantly change. This is why Mosby Building Arts has created and maintains a database of building code requirements of every municipality in the St. Louis Metropolitan area.

During the design and drawing phase, Mosby planners and architects easily access current building requirements for your town so that the construction drawings are up to code at the time they apply for the permits. Mosby project managers use this database to create a schedule of which inspectors need to come out to the job site for each phase of construction.

To protect your family and your investment, always begin with the proper building permits, and if dealing with this detailed process is not for you, hire the organized and experienced professionals at Mosby Building Arts to take care of it for you. Call their office at 314.909.1800 or contact them here.

Painting is the one home improvement project we’ve all done at least once, and how smoothly it went is usually the dividing line between “never again!” and “oh, wow!”

Changing colors or refreshing old paint is the cheapest and quickest way to enliven the interior and exterior of your home. A new coat of paint is like a new start, and it is a low-risk project because if the color doesn’t quite work the way it was intended, you simply paint over it.

Whether you hire professional painters or do the job yourself, there are certain rules, tips and knowledge about house painting that insure highest quality for spectacular results.

Let’s Paint It!

Anything can be painted but should it be painted? Certain surfaces simply won’t hold a proper finish no matter how carefully it is prepped. Vinyl siding and laminates will not hold a flawless coat of paint for very long. Concrete porches and floors can be covered with paint specifically for such porous surfaces, but high traffic areas will need regular touch up. Aside from these exceptions, most everything else can be successfully transformed with a new coat of paint.

Colors & Finishes

Personal taste and what makes you feel good is the guiding principal for choosing paint colors, but there are some general guidelines that may help you narrow down the endless choices.

Light colors create the illusion of largeness, while dark colors appear to reduce. Cool colors work best with northern light while warm colors thrive in southern light. Along with the accepted neutral shades of white, beige and tan, add grey and green (which is Mother Nature’s neutral!) to the list; these shades are going to coordinate nicely with any other color by it.

The sheen of paint after its dry is known as the finish, and there are several choices. A flat finish is most forgiving of surface imperfections, but does not hold up well to scrubbing. If it’s a busy area that will inevitably need to be cleaned, opt for an eggshell finish, which is also good for disguising surface imperfections. The drama of semi-gloss or hi-gloss finish can be delightful, but it will show every imperfection, so use it for smaller areas that will benefit from this visual boost.

Paint Quality

Always use paint on the surface it is made for: exterior paint for the outside, interior paint for the inside, if it’s metal or wrought iron, use paint specifically formulated for those surfaces. Ignoring this rule will usually bring an unsatisfactory result.

Cheap paint will deliver a cheap result. Choose the highest quality paints for easier application, better coverage and longer-lasting results. A few more dollars spent at the start of the project will buy you several more years before its time to paint again.

Oil vs. Latex

The advantages of oil-based paint are less shrinkage, longer durability and easy cleaning. Disadvantages are the 24-hour drying period, color fading or turning yellowish with time, and it is considered a hazardous material. The advantages of latex paint are that it’s easy to apply and clean up, dries in 1-2 hours and holds its true color. Disadvantages include temperature sensitivity which causes shrinkage, does not block stains and requires more frequent reapplication.

The quality of non-toxic paints have come along way in the last several years, and are now a great choice for those with health and allergy concerns. Learn more about non-toxic paints at this link.

Preparation

Painting is 90% preparation and 10% application, and the prep is what makes all the difference. The surface should be cleaned with warm water and a mild detergent and rinsed. Plug all holes or chips with joint compound. If there’s large cracks on the surface, find and fix the cause before patching the crack, or it will simply happen again, marring your new paint job. Clear the area of anything that would get in the way, and cover adjoining surfaces to protect against spills and splatters.

Temperature is an important consideration. Climate controlled interiors can be painted all year long. Outside, the rule is above 40 degrees with low humidity and no threat of rain for 12-14 hours, and try to paint an area while it’s in the shade.

Primers

You need to use a basecoat primer if the existing finish is a dark color, faux-finished or has been repaired, which enables better coverage for the new layer. If you are applying a dark color, a tinted primer will reduce the number of coats needed. Oil-based primers are excellent for blocking stains, and latex paint can be applied over it, but latex paint must have a layer of primer between it and an oil surface.

It’s easy to test a previously painted surface to see if it’s oil-based. Clean a small patch of wall with dish soap and warm water, rinse and towel dry. Then rub a cotton ball or soft rag soaked in rubbing alcohol over the clean area. If the paint comes off, it’s latex. If the paint is undisturbed, it’s oil-based.

Order of Painting

When it comes to interior rooms, there is a correct order to follow. But first, be sure to use the best quality rollers and brushes you can afford because they make application so much easier and accurate. These tools differ for each type of paint and application (rolling, edging, etc.), so choose the appropriate tool for the job.

A room is painted from the top down, so begin on the ceiling, edging a 3″ wide strip where the ceiling meets the wall and use a roller to fill in the rest, painting with a criss-cross pattern for sufficient coverage. Next, paint a 3″ edge below the ceiling line, out from the corners of the room, around windows and doors, and along the top of baseboards. Then fill in the remainder using a roller brush. Always apply two coats for uniform coverage. Deeply saturated colors (like red, dark brown or purple) usually require 4-5 coats.

Lead Safe Practices

The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has recently enacted a lead safety rule to protect against the health dangers of lead-based paints. This applies mainly to professional contractors working on homes built before 1978. By law, remodeling contractors must discuss this program with you before starting work on your home, so if they don’t, let it serve as warning of their ethics and professionalism. Be safe and choose an EPA-certified firm.

If there’s to be any sanding or scraping of any painted surface area, door or window replacement, there are health concerns to consider for Do-It-Yourselfers, and procedures to be followed for contractors. Learn more about the requirements of the Lead Safe Program here, or call Mosby Building Arts at 314.909.1800, as they are trained and experienced in lead safe work practices.

A professional, long-lasting paint job is part of the process of most every Mosby Building Arts remodeling project, and Mosby has their own team of painters on staff, which assures consistent quality and beauty. If you’d rather turn a paint job over to the pros, call the Mosby office at 314.909.1800 or contact them here.

Take a drive through most any St. Louis County subdivision to see how important garages are. Overhead doors are raised displaying spaces packed with cars, lawn equipment, tools and overflowing storage. It is the favored hang-out for men. Its transitory position between indoors and out makes it a high traffic area.

The garage is a large and vital room in your home that deserves special attention to maximize organizational, recreational and functional potential. And make no mistake – it is a room in your home, one that gets used every day. Yet it’s commonly the room with the dreariest look and most wasted space. Luckily, there are plenty of solutions for enhancing your garage.

EXPANDING
Garages are getting bigger all the time. The standard 21′x 21′, 2-car garage does not adequately accommodate the larger size of our vehicles along with typical garage items like the lawnmower, gardening tools and a workbench.

Garages need to be a minimum of 22′ x 22′ to work with modern lifestyles, and the 3-car garage is the new standard. Even if there’s only 2 cars in your family, that extra bay can easily be converted into household storage or hobby workspace.

When it comes to more square footage, also think vertical. By adding a top layer to your existing garage, you get loft space that can become a playspace for kids, a home office or exercise studio.  Or by installing an auto elevator or car lift, you get the ability to stack vehicles atop one another, effectively doubling storage capacity.

ORGANIZING
Your garage can be just as precisely organized as the most breathtaking walk-in closet on HGTV. There’s an organization system to meet every need, featuring bins, pull-out drawers, shelving and custom cabinetry and closets. Walls can be turned into peg boards for hoisting yard tools, bikes and sporting equipment up off the floor so that it’s easier to navigate.  The same process used to design the ultimate kitchen (function, traffic flow, etc.) can also apply to the garage, with the same level of life enhancing results for the whole family.

UPGRADING
Unpainted drywall and unsealed concrete floors are the norm of garage interiors, which is a curious way to treat one of the most important spaces in a home. This is a room that all your neighbors see every time the overhead door goes up, and your frequent visitors most likely walk through the garage as well, so improving the look of this high traffic area with upgraded wall and floor finishes is a smart investment.

Plus, opting for finished walls and ceilings also provides an opportunity to add insulation to a large space that is too often overlooked when it comes to energy efficiency. Controlling the temperature in a garage makes it more useful all year long.

DETACHING
One issue with ever-expanding garages is that, from the street view, it can look as if the garage is overtaking the house! The re-emergence of the detached garage (like the ones in St. Louis City) is the solution for getting the size you need while maintaining the look and balance of your home, proper.  And building a new detached garage gives you a chance to add a second floor apartment that can serve as a home office or guest house.

The garage is no longer a utilitarian space to keep your car; it has become an important, frequently used part of daily life. When contemplating ways to improve the function and look of your garage, you should treat it as you would any remodeling project in your home. Begin with the designers and planners at Mosby Building Arts who will work with you to create a garage that meets all your wants and needs, and the Mosby carpenters will bring the project to life.

For a garage that lasts a lifetime and adds value to your home, explore Mosby Building Arts’ garage & driveway services.   Here’s an example of a Mosby garage project that inspired a total exterior makeover. Make the most of your garage by calling the Mosby office at 314.909.1800 or contact them here.

Aging tends to happen to us gradually, a gentle changing of perspective and priorities, but there are key moments that make it apparent we’ve aged: that one day it became difficult to read the ingredients on the soup can label, and realizing those treks up and down the stairs while doing laundry are a bit trying.

Changing eye sight can be corrected by a good optometrist, while the laundry problem is solved by a professional remodeler certified in accessible design, because the key to the laundry room is not the chore itself, but where it’s located.

In the older homes in the St. Louis metropolitan area, laundry areas are historically in the basement, which means walking the stairs multiple times to attend to the loads, and as we age that becomes a load on our knees.

Every time we go up and down the stairs with a basket of laundry it compromises our safety and our joints. It also becomes harder to hear the buzzers sound, so often our clothes sit too long in the washer or dryer. You can eliminate all these hassles by relocating the laundry room from the basement to the ground level.

This logical solution is what accessible design is all about: eliminating potential obstacles in your home by focusing on functionality and comfort.  Before you decide which location on the first floor would make the most sense for the new laundry room, contact a Certified Aging In-Place Specialist (CAPS) to assist in determining the best area for plumbing, efficiency and durability.

The goal of accessible design is to change standard features to make them more convenient for you to use. For instance, in the laundry room, the ultimate convenience is a front-loading washer and dryer mounted on a raised platform, which saves you from bending over.  If space is limited, the dryer can be mounted atop the washer, and this vertical treatment frees up more floor space.

Cabinets with a countertop at hip height makes folding clothes so much easier, and a laundry sink and ironing station can also work much better at a taller height.  All work stations in the room should be tailored to your present needs and future considerations.

A combination mud and laundry room (above) is a popular and convenient feature. By installing a ceramic tile floor to withstand moisture, and by increasing storage for jackets, shoes and personal affects, this area can quickly become the most used and highly functional place in your home.

The Mosby Building Arts accessible design project shown above brought the laundry room up from the basement into a new addition built on to the rear of the garage. One end is for laundry while the other end of the room serves as a mini-kitchen with a refrigerator, pantry, cabinets and countertop. The homeowner added a dining table, and it is now the place where she spends the most time because it connects to the garage and kitchen, has views to the backyard patio and gardens, and all the natural light makes it a pleasant place to take care of paperwork or read a book while doing her laundry.

Mosby’s Home Life Planning services will bring accessible living into the home you already love and keep it your home for a lifetime. And the Certified Aging In-Place Specialists at Mosby Building Arts elevate accessibility to the next level by emphasizing seamless style and design so that your home looks as great as it functions. To explore 50-Plus living options, call Mosby at 314.909.1800 or contact them here.

Lots of stuff requires a place to put it. This is why storage is a top-of-mind need in just about every household of every size.

With a little creative direction, there are many ways to increase storage space. Adding shelving systems, installing more cabinets and buying armoires or antique chifferobes are typical options. Along with these common solutions, let’s consider what other options might maximize storage potential.

Storage Under the Stairs

Put all that square footage under a set of stairs to use as a closet.  Just as important as the space to store belonging is ease of access. In the example above, Mosby designers created a unique set of folding doors that expose the entire contents under the basement stairs.

Wall of Bookcases

Floor-to-ceiling bookcases across an entire wall is the dream of many book lovers, as well as a smart way to get maximum storage while using up minimal living space.  In the example shown above, the desire for more book space was answered by Mosby designers with built-in bookcases lining three walls of a home office, customized shelving heights and cabinet doors to match the homeowners needs.

Customized Closet

A Christmas tree collection brings about very special storage needs for such large objects.  As part of a basement remodel, Mosby Building Arts planners configured space within an exercise room purposely designed to house trees.  Behind a pair of sliding doors is a spacious Tree Closet!
See more of the home with these 3 clever storage ideas.

Add Space in the Walls

Take advantage of the space between wall studs by adding recessed cabinets or niches.  For the master bathroom shown above, Mosby inserted a lighted niche with glass shelves into the marble wall, creating a stylish and useful space that keeps the clean lines intact.
See more photos of this master bathroom project.

Built-In Bench Seating

Built-in seating provides a place to sit without taking up valuable floor space, and it doubles as a wonderful place to store things out of sight.  With the family room addition shown above, there’s bench seating with storage on both sides of the fireplace. To the right are pull-out drawers, and to the left is a clever way to disguise a pop-up TV screen (as seen in the photo inset).
See more photos of this family room addition.

There are so many clever and useful ways to create more storage in every home, and we invite you to learn more about Mosby Building Arts space planning and remodeling here.  To explore your best organization solutions call the Mosby office at 314.909.1800 or contact them here.

This time of year is so festive because we decorate our homes with twinkling lights.  Inside and out, this warm glow lifts spirits and makes everything look special.  Have you noticed how empty a room feels once the holiday lights come down in January?   That’s because the extra lighting has disappeared, which highlights how important the proper lighting is for our spirits.

Every room needs multiple sources of light for the proper balance of productivity and mood.  A single, overhead light in a room is only the starting point for the layers of light needed to boost our productivity and mood.  An effective lighting master plan often includes the following types of lighting:

• Task Lighting Task lighting illuminates a specific task or work space for function and safety.  Applying makeup in the bathroom, cutting vegetables in the kitchen and woodworking in the garage require proper amounts of light aimed exactly where you need it most.  Recessed, lamp and pendant lighting are examples of efficient task lighting.

• Accent Lighting Illumination can be used to draw attention and set something apart from its surroundings is the intent of accent lighting.  It brightens perimeters, fills in backgrounds, and highlights special objects (such as art work or architectural details).  Other benefits of accent lighting is that it contributes to the overall illumination of a space, sets a mood or feel with the light, and can increase home security both indoors and outdoors.

• Convenience Lighting Safety and function are enhanced by convenience lighting when entering spaces, so we need to see clearly and immediately as we enter a space by flipping a switch.   Convenience lighting may be a ceiling-mounted light fixture, or lamps connected to a wall switch, even the light that automatically comes on when opening a garage or closet door.

• Energy Efficiency Lighting costs account for about 30% of our energy use and is a smart place to increase energy savings.  Dimmer switches and whole-house lighting control systems allow for more precise usage, energy conservation, extended lamp life and a welcoming feel.  Low-voltage bulbs such as compact fluorescents (CFLs) and light-emitting diodes (LEDs) provide high quality, warm light and last many times longer than incandescent bulbs for a fraction of conventional energy costs.

• Security Lighting Properly seeing our surroundings creates a sense of safety and security.  Outdoors at night we need sidewalks and entrances to be properly lit at all times for our safety.  Motion detectors can greet us and welcomes us home while also deterring vandals and burglars.  Indoors, lights on timers can create the illusion of someone being home at all times.  Adequate lighting throughout the home improves safety by illuminating hazards and prevents tripping and falling.

Good & Bad Lighting Design

All the effort we put into creating perfect spaces with carefully chosen paint colors, furniture and flooring can be instantly undermined by bad lighting, and brought alive with good lighting.  A room with harsh lighting or that’s too bright may be just as disconcerting as a room that’s too dark.  A  personalized and thorough lighting plan significantly contributes to a safe, comfortable, familiar and inviting space, and is a key component of a successful remodel.

Lighting design can become overwhelming for even a do-it-yourself veteran because of all the layers of light that need to be considered.  We recommend working with the design professionals at Mosby Building Arts, who are experienced in the science and intuition of well-placed lighting.  Together, we will map out a master plan that addresses all the exterior and interior lighting needs of your home, and assure that it reflects your taste and style.

To explore the possibilities of lighting design, call the Mosby office at 314.909.1800 or contact us here.

Floors make a huge impact on the look of your home.  They occupy as much square footage as your ceilings, and considering that floors are always in our peripheral vision, we must consider their importance in the overall design master plan.

Floors serve a vital function in your home, and it is crucial to think about how the floor will be used and then choose the right material for the task.  This is a classic example of form follows function.

The simplest way to consider the form and function of your home’s flooring is by thinking of each room as a separate area.  Consider what normally happens in each room, what surface will serve best and then choose the look of the surface you want.

Kitchen Flooring

It is safe to say that the kitchen is the most-used room in every home, so this floor needs to be very durable.  It also needs to be kind to our legs, knees and ankles because we spend most of our time standing in this space.  And a kitchen has many water-producing appliances, so moisture resistance is a top priority.

The most durable and water-resistant kitchen flooring is ceramic tile, but it can be unforgiving when you stand for long periods of time, and if you drop a dish, it’s a goner.

If you drop a dish on a wood floor, you have a better chance of it surviving the fall, and because it is a softer material it is easier on your legs.  But wood floors – whether natural or engineered wood – are vulnerable to water, so if, for instance, the dish washer were to leak, damage to the floor is almost unavoidable.

Vinyl flooring is impervious to moisture, is easy on your legs and has an unending variety of looks to choose from.  Because it is a soft material, it is prone to tearing and scarring, so when you pull out your refrigerator to clean under it, it can leave grooves in the surface.

The only absolute our Mosby designers adhere to is no carpeting in the kitchen.  Food and water naturally winds up on the kitchen floor, which makes carpeting in this room both high maintenance and less hygienic.

Bathroom Flooring

The bathroom is all about water, so waterproof is the most important consideration.  This is why ceramic tile and stone remain the most popular and enduring material for bathroom floors.  Other materials can be used, but just like in the kitchen, water and hygiene is the prime consideration, so choosing a material other than ceramic or stone can be very high maintenance.

For both your kitchen and bathrooms, tile floors can be water-resistant and warm if you also install radiant heating under the tile.

Entries, Laundry Room & Mud Room Flooring

Laundry and mud rooms are high utility, and need to accommodate moisture and dirt.  Hard surfaces like ceramic, stone or concrete work best for keeping these spaces clean.  The same thinking applies to entries, where visitors will be more likely to bring in the outside elements.

Bedroom Flooring

Warmth and comfort are top priority in bedrooms, and because they are typically not high traffic areas, this is a chance to splurge on more luxurious flooring.  Carpeting is a great choice, as is cork, which is a natural material with exceptional softness.

Family Room Flooring

The public spaces of our home are used and seen most frequently. Carpeting is a popular choice for its warmth, and good quality carpet is durable.  Choosing the style of carpet is based on how the room is used, what levels of maintenance you expect and your personal preference for look and feel.

Choosing from such a wide variety of colors and textures requires some extra analysis; light colors in a high-traffic family room will show dirt and traffic patterns, while dark colors will show lint, pet hair and most anything that lands on it.

Wood flooring is a good choice for warmth and lower maintenance, and adding area rugs to the room provides softness and introduces another layer of design options.

Basement Flooring

Your basement can be a moist area, so the choice of flooring is all about how it holds up to humidity and water.  The best choice is ceramic tile because it is impervious to moisture.  If you prefer a wood look, use an engineered wood (or vinyl flooring with a wood look) because it is better at adapting to moisture than natural wood.  Real wood floors will continually swell and contract with the changing humidity levels in your basement.

Carpeting can work in a basement if you choose only 100% synthetic materials with built-in mildew resistance.  Avoid natural carpet materials like wool and cotton, as they will wick up moisture and eventually hold a mildew smell.  Vinyl flooring is another option, but as it is installed directly over the concrete, it will show any imperfections in surface or level.

Decisions, Decisions…

As you may have gathered, there are many other things to consider besides how it looks when choosing flooring for your home.  How do you keep track of it all and make the best decision?

When it comes to making a choice about a surface that makes such a large impact on your home, we invite you to work with a Mosby Building Arts designer.  Our designers stay up-to-date on all the latest flooring trends and technologies. And after talking with you about how you live and what you desire, we will make an informed recommendation on which flooring best compliments your personal style while delivering lasting value.  To explore your flooring choices, call us at 314.909.1800 or contact us here.

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Trim samples in the Mosby Building Arts selection center.

There may come a time when your home is perfectly tailored to the way you live, but it just seems to lack pizazz or that certain something that would make it pop.  When you’re looking for some interior design excitement, consider small changes that make a major impact.

The look and feel of any room can be transformed with molding and trims, which give you a way to add depth and character to doorways, windows and walls for a comparatively smaller price and effort.

For instance, a dining room or family room will evoke old-world distinction with a coffered ceiling.  The coffered look (as seen in the top right picture above) happens by constructing and installing plywood boxes, which is a fairly basic carpentry process that achieves rich results.  See more of this project.

Fireplace surround styles change almost as quickly as fashion styles, so can just as easily become outdated.  You can keep the original firebox in place while completely changing the look of the surround, hearth and mantle.  As shown in the above photos, designers gave a dated fireplace a fresh, contemporary look with Woodharbor trims and moldings and a granite hearth.  See more of this project.

A perfect example of updating what you already have in place is the project shown above.  Granite around the firebox adds elegance while new wood trim and a substantial mantle add weight and drama.  To match the new look of the fireplace, new built-in bookcases were created to deliver a more substantial and contemporary look.  See more of both fireplaces in this home.

A key opportunity for changing the look and feel of your home is entryways.  As you can see from the above examples, when you outline the shapes of your entries with molding, each room takes on a more formal and classic look that adds subtle impact.  Adding molding also provides an opportunity for contrast; crisp, white molding next to a fresh wall color provides instant pop and makes your rooms more visually appealing.

Another idea for upgrading a room is to encircle the room with chair rail molding a third of the way up the wall from the floor.  This presents an opportunity for a split color scheme: one paint color or wallpaper above the railing and a different choice below.  Wainscoting or panel molding is also another option below the chair rail.  These simple additions add depth and perspective to a room.

Crown molding installs at the intersection of your walls and the ceiling. This is the secret weapon for adding big impact to a room.  An example of a kitchen designed for a historical city home is shown above.  The goal for this project was to mimic the look of the hefty original molding throughout the rest of the home, so several small pieces of molding were used to replicate the richness and depth seen elsewhere in the home.  See more of this project.

Installing picture railing is an efficient way to approximate the Victorian or Art & Crafts style in a contemporary home.  Depending on the height of your ceiling, picture rail is installed either directly under crown molding or several inches below it.

One large area to consider updating is the staircase.  It serves a crucial function in your home and has a large visual impact, which means the look of it deeply influences the feel of your home.  In the example shown above, design and installation of a new banister system and stair treads instantly changed the look of this home from casual to elegant.  See more of this project.

Think about how many doors you have in your home and how much they contribute to the look of each room.  Interior doors can enhance the design theme of the room it serves, and installing new doors is relatively easy and brings immediate design results.  The Woodharbor line of doors and interior trims create a fully coordinated design theme for your interior design projects.  See more of this project.

Interior flourishes are small changes that have major impact.  Mosby Building Arts is skilled at creating a design master plan and installing the details that create instant changes in your home.  Mosby designers will take you through our selections center and guide you through your choices and options.  To explore the possibilities, call our office at 314.909.1800 or contact us here.

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