Author Archives: FultonHomes

Should Auld Acquaintance…

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sparkler-677774_640We’re coming on another new year, and it’s time to let go of 2015. It may have been a particularly good year for you, or not. But we’re starting fresh in a few days, so now is the time to say goodbye and move on. If you’re not sure how to do that, here are a few suggestions.

Take a minute: It’s easy to get caught up in the whirlwind of our lives and never stop and take stock of where we are. The end of the year is a good time to pause and consider where our lives are, where we’ve been, and where we’re headed. Are you happy with the choices you made in 2015? Are there things you wish you had done differently? Things you said or left unsaid that you would change? This is your chance to take inventory of your life over the past year.

Let things go: Maybe someone said something hurtful or unkind. Or you’ve been holding a grudge for a slight or someone’s mean behavior. The end of the year is a good time for letting these things go. Not for their sake, but for yours. Let yourself look forward rather than backward. It’s hard to focus on the future if your energy is aimed at the past.

Finish things: Do you have some unfinished business hanging over your head? Now is a good time to stop procrastinating and get it done. Pay bills, write those thank-you notes, call your Aunt Joan, apologize to whoever. Get it done and approach 2016 that much lighter. You will feel so much better.

Post-Holiday Clean-Up Strategy

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christmas-1100723_640Once the holidays are over, it’s time to take down the decorations and return to everyday life. But somehow the things that were so much fun to put up are much less fun to take down. What can you do to make it more enjoyable and easier? Here are a few suggestions to make the process work better for you this year.

Get everyone involved: Do family members that were so eager to light up the house in early December suddenly disappear once the holidays are only a memory? Well, it’s time to change that. Make a list of responsibilities and ask everyone to take on one or more of them. Work shared gets done in much less time.

Build in rewards: Maybe it’s movie tickets, dinner out or something special that your whole family enjoys, but choose something special as a reward once the holiday decor is put away for another year.

Create a new tradition: You may have traditions built around your holiday decorating efforts. Now it’s time to create a tradition or two based on un-decorating. Could there be a particular type of music to listen to? Maybe a word game to play while you put things away? Or a contest to see who finishes first? Whatever it is, make it fun and in keeping with your family’s style of doing things.

Thank everyone: Be sure to show your appreciation for everyone’s help. While the effort should be a family affair, thank you goes a long way toward encouraging people to continue pitching in in future years when decorations need to come down again.

Use All Five Senses This Holiday Season

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tangerines-1087060_640Most of us are pretty good about decorating for the holidays. We may hang wreaths, put up lights, and maybe a tree. Candles always add ambiance, and there may be some heirloom decorations to pull out and share with family and friends.

But when you’re planning to make your home ready for the holidays, be sure to involve all five senses: sight, sound, taste, touch and smell. Sight is easy, but here are some suggestions for pulling in the other four.

Sound: Holiday carols always add a nice element to gatherings of family and friends. But consider focusing on specific musical finds. With today’s options, you might play blocks of theme holiday music, such as a retro hour with Bing Crosby or Elvis Presley. Or you could look for carols by a brass quintet. Different styles and moods keeps the music front-and-center.

Taste: Cookies are always a hit, but look for other traditional offerings. For example, spiced cider offers a warm inviting choice while also adding to another sense…

Smell: Cinnamon sticks, nutmeg, cloves, baked goods all say happy holidays. Stop at a florist or nursery and pick up some fresh pine boughs to add that sharp winter scent to your home.

Touch: This is a great time to add several hand-knitted throws to your sofa and easy chairs. Pull out a favorite teddy bear or two while you’re at it for guests to cuddle while chatting. Before you know it everyone is more comfy. Think about texture along with color when you plan your holiday decor.

By planning for your holidays with all five senses, you will create a mood in your home that people will remember well into the new year.

“Eating Out”

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outdoor-entertaining2wIt’s hard to imagine with the cold weather we’re encountering right now, but we are probably only weeks away from the perfect time to eat and entertain outside. Here are a few suggestions to make “eating out” easier and more fun.

Choose comfortable outdoor furniture: Today’s outdoor fabrics lend themselves to plush cushions and pillows in bright colors. These new manmade materials can tolerate sun, moisture and dust and many just hose clean. That means that your outdoor dining chairs can be just as comfortable as those you have inside. Take a look at the furniture in the photo above. It’s hard to believe but those cushions can handle the great outdoors.

Prepare for the dust: We live in the desert and you can anticipate needing to wipe the dust off tables and chairs before you use them. To make your life easier, scout out some plastic or canvas covers for your furniture. You still may have some housekeeping, but it will be greatly reduced.

Invest in some stackable, lightweight plastic dishes and glasses. Bringing food and supplies in and out from the kitchen is easier if you can carry more at one time. Plastic also allows you to enlist younger children to help without having to worry about mishaps. And if you have a pool in your backyard, plastic is much safer.

Carry food in and out on trays, or have people serve themselves in the kitchen and bus their own plates back. Schlepping food back and forth should not be the job of just one person. Make a plan that will work best for the group and get people to stick to it. That way everyone can have a good time.

Light and Bright Laundry Room

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light-and-bright-laundry-room-webWhen you’re choosing your cabinetry, remember that your choice will also be part of your laundry room. Selecting a light painted cabinet like this soft cream creates a light and bright laundry room that is a pleasure to work in.

Whether you are sorting and folding clothes or using the space for other activities, the bright feeling of painted cabinets makes the mood inviting. With this light neutral you can choose almost any color for your laundry room, from a soft blue or mint green to darker tones such as navy blue or even metallic gold or copper.

Consider adding a washer and dryer in rich red and adding red accessories to allow that color to pop throughout the room. You could also go with black, letting that contrast make the room’s décor more dramatic and exciting. The color choices are almost endless.

This laundry room provides plenty of built-in storage. What would you use these cabinets for in your home? If you sew, the shelves could hold your fabric stash and equipment. Crafters would benefit from places to fit tools and supplies. This space could also be gift-wrap central or an easy place to put any gifts you buy on sale until you need them.

For a closer look at this laundry room and others, why not visit the Peninsula models at the Oasis at Queen Creek community? We look forward to seeing you there.

Listelles add Personality to your Tile Choices

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listelle-in-Peninsula-model-at-Queen-Creek-webUsing a listelle that includes glass tile, like the one shown above in the kitchen backsplash, adds a touch of personality to any space.

Listelles, or pre-designed strips of stone or tile, provide an easy way to create a mosaic effect anywhere in your home. The listelle shown above combines the sparkle of glass tile with a soft matte finish cream and dark brown tile to create an interesting and contemporary look.

The Fulton Design Center showcases a broad selection of listelles to highlight your home in stone and tile. Styles range from modern glass pieces like this one to more traditional choices. With the variety of options, you can find just the right choice to fit your taste and style.

By using a listelle, a simple tile placement becomes interesting and unique. Listelles work well on kitchen backsplashes, in bathrooms or fireplace surrounds. Listelles are pre-designed and cut, making them easy to install and ensuring that they look perfect in your home.

Notice the strip of electric outlets running along the top of the kitchen backsplash at the top of the page. Selecting this option for your home allows you to have plenty of outlets without breaking up the lines of your backsplash. While you’re at it, take a look at the under-counter LED lighting to give you great task lighting for your kitchen.

To take a closer look at this, visit our Peninsula models at our Oasis at Queen Creek Community.

Wainscoting Warms up Guest Bathroom

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wainscoting-in-guest-bath-webGuest bathrooms are often the smallest rooms in a home, but that doesn’t mean that they can’t pack a powerful decorating punch. You can take advantage of more expensive flooring and tile choices because the smaller square footage keeps the cost down.

This guest bath takes full advantage of the small space to create an inviting look. Wainscoting makes a room feel cozier and just a bit old-fashioned. That mood is extended by the use of oil-rubbed bronze for the faucet and fixtures.

wainscoting-in-guest-bath2-webThe interesting choice of metallic tile for the border, shown in detail in the photo to the right,
carries the bronze finish further while adding an additional element of style and texture to the room.

Kohler’s old-style toilet and pedestal sink fit well with this bathroom with their retro styling and traditional lines.

Here’s what makes this bathroom really interesting. Although much of the mood captures an earlier time, other elements are more current. The art, for example, has a contemporary vibe, with clean-lined frames. Installing the wood flooring on a diagonal, which makes the room feel larger, is also a more modern approach.

Altogether, this transitional bathroom with its eclectic approach provides an appealing space that speaks well for the style and taste of the owner. You can see this bathroom in person when you visit this and other Fulton Home models at Peninsula at Queen Creek.

Inviting Space for Family to Gather

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inviting-space-for-family-to-gatherwWhen you’re choosing your next home, be sure to look at more than room size, the number of bedrooms and bathrooms, and the amount of storage. Take the time to think about how you and your family will really use the home.

Do some members of your family work from home or have demanding school requirements? Then be sure that you have planned for space that allows them to work or study quietly with minimal distractions. Do you and your spouse enjoy having a cup of coffee together in the morning to discuss the day’s plans or maybe a quiet conversation in the evening to relax before getting ready for bed? You may want to take the time to scope out where you can comfortably have that rendezvous.

And if your family values its together times around meals, this kitchen and dining area may be ideal for you. With island seating for quick short-order-cook breakfasts and a roomy table near the kitchen for full-scale family-style dining, this space is suited to whatever meal patterns your family finds comfortable.

Does everyone gather, working together to get dinner ready? There’s plenty of room and counter space for lots of helpers. Maybe some of the younger ones are up for after-school snacks. That island is the perfect place to munch while sharing highlights of the day with other family members.

There’s plenty of space, plenty of light and plenty of seating for everyday eating and larger holiday events. How about staging a buffet on that lovely island? Take a closer look at this kitchen, designed with socializing in mind, at Fulton Home’s Cooley Station community.

View from a Kitchen

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view-from-kitchenwIf you are someone who wants to eat healthfully, and your family to eat healthfully, unless you can afford a personal chef chances are you spend a lot of time in your kitchen. Whether you are one of those well-organized cooks who plan ahead and spend the weekend cooking and freezing meals for easy warming up during the week or if you’re inclined to throw together a salad at the end of a long day, your kitchen often becomes the place where you spend much of your family time.

So when you choose your next home, be sure to consider what you will be seeing when you spend time in your kitchen. First, is the kitchen itself appealing? Will the cabinets make you smile when you open them? Will the countertop you chose feel nice under your hands when you set out your ingredients? Do you like your faucet handle? Will your refrigerator and freezer be large enough to hold what you need it to? What extra features such as under-cabinet lighting would make your work go smoother?

Next, stand in that future kitchen and look out. How do you like the view? We think this view is pretty nice. You may see your kids doing homework at the dinner table or your spouse reading the paper, or even better helping with the dishes. You may be alone in your home and just find enjoying the view out your back doors, or appreciating how your furniture suits your new dining and family room.

When you’re choosing your next home, take a few minutes when walking through our models like this one at Cooley Station to savor the views from various locations, because they will be a big part of your life once you move into your new Fulton Home.

The Delight of Extra Storage

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extra-storage-webWhen you invest in a new home, one smart decision involves the choice to install additional built-in storage. Drawers and cabinet options such as this one can be used in so many ways; you will never regret any extra storage you give yourself.

This smart compact storage area can be used to store craft tools, for wrapping gifts, seasonal decorations, office or homework supplies, home maintenance essentials or anything you want. The biscuit-colored cabinetry is enhanced with a caramel glaze, creating an old-fashioned look that is easy-clean and inviting.

This could be space to store platters and bowls for special entertaining – those items that are too large for regular family gatherings. Or maybe it’s the perfect place for treasured table linens inherited from your mother or grandmother. Wrapped in acid-free tissue, they will be ready for special holiday use.

How would you use this storage space? For a closer look, visit our Peninsula models at our Oasis at Queen Creek Community.