The Don Edam Group | Real Estate Professionals Serving Minneapolis, Edina, St. Paul and Surrounding Suburbs » Design

Upcoming Event: "At Home with Design"

Don — Wed, 01 Oct 2008 18:57:19 +0000

Gabberts presents a fresh array of smart, trend-right and practical seminars and events. From adding extra personality to small spaces to the intricacies of Persian Rugs, color schemes and the room of your dreams, they’ve got an exciting and informative lineup. Whatever your personal style, there’s sure to be a seminar or event to interest you.

For more information or to sign up on line, simply click the view schedule link. The free seminars last 45-60 minutes and are held in the store’s Community Education room, unless otherwise indicated. Also, they ask that you make a reservation so they know how many people to expect.

Upcoming Event

Reserve your spot for Gabberts‘ popular ten-hour design series, At Home with Design, with senior interior designer Connie Wersal-LaVelle, Allied Member ASID. Classes meet October 7, 9, 14, and 21 (day and night sessions available) and include identifying your personal style, the psychology of color, one-on-one design consultations with the instructor, and more. Reservations required. Call 952-928-3123. Galleria

NEWS FOR FUN: Does Your Bathroom Need a Makeover?

Don — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 21:51:10 +0000

DO YOU HAVE A BATHROOM THAT NEEDS A MAKEOVER?

The TV Show…
Edelman Productions is producing a new bathroom show, BATHTASTIC!, for the DIY network this Summer/Fall 2008 in Minneapolis. The show focuses on fun, fast, creative, affordable ways to makeover a bathroom—WITHOUT getting into a major remodel.

About Edelman Productions
Edelman Productions is a leading producer of programming for networks such as HGTV, Food Network, The History Channel, and the DIY Network. DIY is now seen in over 40 million homes.

They are looking for…
Energetic homeowners who are open to ‘out-of-the-box’ design ideas, live in the metro area (within 25 miles of downtown Minneapolis), and have a large bathroom in need of a makeover.

Benefits of Participating:

Free Professional Designer
Receive $2,000 towards your project
They offer a discounted licensed contractor
Companies may donate goods for your project in exchange for being featured on the television show

Requirements of Participating:

Your home must be located within 25 miles of downtown Minneapolis
Estimated financial contribution: $3,000 – $5,000
For the project, you must be available to appear on camera at least 7 half days during the course of 1-2 weeks

HOW TO APPLY:
Please e-mail bathcasting@edelmanmn.com an include:

A brief description of what you like/dislike about your bathroom
Photos of your bathroom & a photo of yourself
A daytime phone, e-mail address, City of Residence
An approximate budget

APPLY ASAP—SHOOTING HAS ALREADY STARTED!!

CONTACT: bathcasting@edelmanmn.com

Also see Facebook “Bathtastic” group and www.myspace.com/bathtastic for photos!

Upcoming Events: Home-Related Happenings Around the Twin Cities

Don — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 17:55:21 +0000

Here’s a quick look at few of the fabulous home-related happenings taking place around the Twin Cities in the upcoming weeks and months….

RAVE Awards

Celebrate Great Residential Design!

Wednesday, August 13
6:00-8:30p.m.
MacPhail Center for the Arts
501 South 2nd Street
Minneapolis, MN 55401

Join AIA Minnesota and Mpls.St.Paul Magazine on Wednesday, August 13 for a celebration of this year’s RAVE Awards!

The winners will be recognized at an event, sponsored by Marvin Windows and Poliform, at The MacPhail Center for the Arts in Minneapolis on Wednesday, August 13 from 6:00-8:30p.m. Program jurors, James Dayton, AIA, James Dayton Design, Kevin Flynn, AIA, LEED AP, EcoDEEP, Andrea Myklebust, sculptor and public artist and Shawn Gilliam, Homes Editor, Mpls.St.Paul Magazine will do a program and present the awards.

Join AIA Minnesota and Mpls.St.Paul Magazine on Wednesday, August 13 for a celebration of this year’s RAVE Awards!

Reservations are required. Price is $20.00 per person (register at http://www.aia-mn.org/rave/). Tickets are available at the door for $25.

The deadline to register is 5:00p.m. on Tuesday, August 12.

Homes by Architects Tour

September 20-21
Join the American Institute of Architects Minnesota as 29 architect-designed homes in the Twin Cities area open their doors for one weekend in September. The tour, created by AIA Minnesota, promises to be truly standalone, showcasing how an architect-designed home is the product of a different process. Experience the lifestyle of these homeowners and find out how they worked with an architect on their new or remodeled home. Learn how an architect can add value to the entire process from concept and design through construction and completion.

Tour homes are located in Burnsville, Chanhassen, Deephaven, Eden Prairie, Edina, Golden Valley, Greenwood, Lake City, Lindstrom, Prior Lake, Minneapolis, Minnetonka, Stillwater, St. Paul, and White Bear Lake. Learn more at www.homesbyarchitects.org.

18th Annual Fall Home & Garden Show

Minneapolis Convention Center Hall B & C
1301 Second Avenue South
Minneapolis, MN 55403
Phone: 612-335-6000

Maps / Directions / Parking

Show Dates & Hours
Friday, October 3
1 p.m. – 7 p.m.

Saturday: October 4
10 a.m. – 6 p.m.

Sunday: October 5
11 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Produced by Midwest Home magazine, you’ll have 3 days to discover the latest trends, techniques and designs from the premier experts in and around the Twin Cities. Look for many new and exciting show elements and the return of your favorites.

* Second Year Under Midwest Home Magazine Ownership
* The Finest Products for Living
* Thousands of Dollars in Home Remodeling Project Giveaways
* Luscious Garden Areas

For more information, visit www.homeremodelingshow.com.

Parade of Homes Free Consumer Seminars

Thinking of building a new home, or remodeling? Don’t miss these FREE consumer seminars, open to the public.

Professionals in the home-building industry will present information essential for anyone considering building a new home or remodeling.

The seminars are free, but require a reservation. Call BATC at 651/697-1954 or register below to reserve a space.

All seminars are held at the BATC office, 2960 Centre Pointe Drive, Roseville, MN 55113.

http://www.paradeofhomes.org/seminars/seminars.aspx

Painting Parties + Cocktail Concoctions = Renovation Redos

Don — Tue, 11 Dec 2007 22:05:11 +0000

As home equity lines draw thin and confidence in the housing market takes a dive, weary consumers are turning to an inexpensive option for home improvements — their friends (Wall Street Journal 10.1.07). And whether they’re crazy for DIY or lured over with the promise of booze, friends are finding themselves at remodeling parties and pitching in on projects like painting, drywalling and laying floors. One homeowner estimates she saved $3,500 in contractor fees by enlisting 10 neighbors for a “stripping” party.But what’s more dangerous than an amateur hammer-wielding friend? When they’re holding a cocktail in the other hand. And the producers of HGTV’s renovation-redo show Over Your Head say they’ve received numerous submissions from botched renovation parties.

So what does this mean for business?

Consumers are feeling empowered by successful DIY projects portrayed in the media, from TV shows to magazines to blogs. Many are thinking, “If that person can do it; so can I!”
Tight budgets and slow house sales might move some consumers back to the days of barn-raising. But it’s not just the experienced renovator who’s getting in on the, er, fun; many of these homeowners and their happy-to-help friends are amateurs who could use a little guidance in the form of classes, promotional material or online tutorials.
Contractors may also benefit from these parties; someone needs to fix the mistakes made by incompetent — or intoxicated — friends.

Note: Original story content expressed here was from an article published by Iconoculture

Living Walls: Vertical Gardens Venture Indoors

Don — Tue, 11 Dec 2007 21:22:27 +0000

Any florist or gardening company can place potted plants in an office, then dutifully drop by to water them when needed. But according to Springwise, it takes skilled artisans to create the indoor walls of greenery that are indoorlandscaping’s speciality. The German firm’s Grüne Wand (green wall) adds a welcome green element to sterile office environments and improves air quality while taking up less floor space than potted vegetation does.

Indoorlandscaping isn’t the only company creating green walls for public spaces. Green Fortune, launched by two Swedish entrepreneurs, has already amassed an impressive list of international clients, placing their Plantwalls in offices, stores, restaurants and even car dealerships. Likewise, French artist Patrick Blank’s meticulously sculpted Vertical Gardens have transformed ordinary walls in Paris and elsewhere into works of foliage art.

From LEED certification to green roofs, commercial buildings are being swept up in a big eco-wave. Which isn’t just good and necessary, but also creates a host of new business opportunities for entrepreneurs—whether creating their own eco-friendly concepts, or partnering with up-and-coming players like Green Fortune and indoorlandscaping. And how about making green indoor walls feasible and affordable for private homes?

Giving Green Idea: Eco Starter Kits for Christmas

Don — Mon, 10 Dec 2007 17:45:13 +0000

Most of us realize there are changes we should make in our lives and in our homes to become more environmentally friendly, but overcoming inertia and actually doing it can be another matter. Now, the folks at Springwise point us to a few different companies offer starter kits to help make those changes happen.

Greensender, which just launched in October, sells green gift boxes designed to help people start embracing simple green practices. Each Greensender box contains a reusable aluminium water bottle, a reusable organic cotton grocery bag, an energy-efficient compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulb and an organic cotton T-shirt—all selected for their easy integration into people’s everyday lives, Greensender says. Prices are $49.99 for the Big Greensender Box or $39.99 for a version without the T-shirt; individual items are available separately as well. Logo-emblazoned versions can also be purchased for corporate or event purposes, and New Jersey-based Greensender donates at least one percent of its sales to 1% For The Planet.

GoGreenGift, meanwhile, packs a reusable bag with a CFL bulb; a low-flow shower head; organic fruit leather, coffee and tea; assorted herbal body care products; and its GoGreen EcoGuide. The kits are available in original and deluxe versions for $45 and $63, respectively.

Virginia-based Green-kits, which launched earlier this year, offers a variety of eco kits including basic and deluxe starter kits along with packages focused on cleaning, the kitchen, and baby care. Prices begin at $10.

A full 87 percent of Americans are “seriously concerned” about the environment, according to the 2007 GfK Roper Green Gauge study, yet only 30 percent of the population is actively ‘green’. The remainder, and the rest of the over-developed world? Nothing short of a ripe opportunity!

Safety Solutions: The Latest Technology in Home Security

Don — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 17:43:45 +0000

It may not be the sexiest ambassador of new technology, but the home security industry has stealthily become one of the most important. Options for securing our residences are transcending clumsy lock and key scenarios with new solutions that would have sounded like fodder for sci-fi movies only a few years ago.

Keyless entry locks that recognize fingerprints, hand geometry and other biometric imprints are surfacing in retail stores. Security cameras that can be monitored remotely via a PC or mobile device are commonplace. And networked security systems are increasingly tying in with other whole-home systems such as audio/video and thermostat control. Home & Design Magazine points some of the safest bets in off-the-shelf home security innovation. Read On

Extreme Home Holiday Light Show

Don — Tue, 04 Dec 2007 18:36:44 +0000

I’m not really sure what else to say about this except, ’tis the season….

[vodpod id=ExternalVideo.443453&w=425&h=350&fv=] from vodpod.com posted with vodpod

Fantasy or Reality? Online Suite of Real Estate Games

Don — Mon, 03 Dec 2007 16:33:55 +0000

There’s nothing like compelling content to engage potential customers, and the folks at Springwise point us to Realius.com who is doing just that with its Fantasy Real Estate suite of online games.

The first of these, Price Me Now, was demonstrated at the TechCrunch40 Conference in September and crowned Most Creative Idea at the Web 2.0 Summit a month later. Now in beta, the game challenges players to guess the prices of actual homes for sale in their market by viewing the photos and property details provided by the Multiple Listing Service (MLS). Players earn points based on their performance against the Realius price, an aggregation of previous player estimates and the actual list price; in the near future, prizes will be awarded to the best pricers. The game is free to users, but real estate companies and professionals can purchase in-game placement as “coaches” who guide players and make their own professional guesses. Licensing fees, referrals and market reports are also part of Realius’s planned revenue model.

Chuck Teller, CEO of the California start-up, explains: “Realius captures the synergies between the enormous popular interest in casual gaming and Americans’ obsession with real estate. Our games engage consumers as they dream about, search for, buy, furnish, remodel and sell their homes in ways that are incredibly fun-but also instructive.”

Other games in the works at Realius include Fantasy Flip, which lets homeowners give their homes virtual makeovers and then solicit opinions on how much the changes would increase their value, and Major League Investor, which pits players against one another as they build fantasy property portfolios. The games currently focus on the company’s home base of the San Francisco Bay Area, but they’re a nice example of marketing through content – which could be particularly important for weathering tough business climates such as the one faced by real estate today.