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News: Apex Announces Its Holiday 2011-2012 PromotionWe know you want your home to look its best as the holiday season gets underway. Welcoming family and friends and sharing special times with them is one of the best parts about celebrating Christmas and Hanukkah and ringing in the New Year! If updating your hardwood floors is part of your home beautification plans over the next two months, we hope you’ll contact us and take advantage of our winter promotion.
All gift cards will be presented once the project is complete and payment has been received in full. For more details, contact us at 630-963-9322. Expert Advice: Local Interior Designer Offers Tips for Holiday Decorating – Take Your Home From Drab to Fab With These Five Simple Ideas!
Whether you’re hosting a formal dinner, casual party or small crowds of visitors during the festive weeks ahead, preparing your home for the holidays doesn’t need to be costly or stressful. Lake Zurich, Ill.-based interior designer Loren Reid Seaman, president and senior designer of Loren Reid Seaman & Associates, Inc., offers up these five helpful tips to revitalize your holiday décor. Tip One: Determine the “Scene” You Want to Create Before deciding what you want everyone to see as they walk through your doors, think about the type of overall look you want to achieve for the holiday season. Does your home lend itself to a more elegant Christmas look? Is your home more relaxed – does a casual design philosophy make more sense? Start with a theme that complements your home and its décor … and build from there. "One of the best pieces of advice I have is to incorporate votive candles into any room. Find a fragrance that you like and purchase new votives. They are great mood-setters. People always remember how they felt at a gathering, and the right ambiance can positively affect their mood," he said. Tip Two: Gather up Glass, Metal or Wood Bowls, Vases and Trays
Loren suggests looking at your inventory with a fresh perspective. “Take a look at what you have regarding your existing container collection and check out what’s inside these items. If you have tired-looking florals or potpourri that has lost its scent and purpose, donate it or let it go and clean house! Take those glass vases and clean them with gentle soap and water (or give it a quick dusting – whatever the situation calls for). A quick and easy fix-up is to replace them with new silk florals, live plants of the season, candles and holiday accents such as ribbons, ornaments, holly, ivy, mistletoe, artificial cranberries and pine cones. Loren completely understands that many homeowners are on a budget. “Go outside and find pine cones in your own yard or as you’re out and about. Prune some branches and put those in the vases. To add some sparkle and bling, you may want to go to your local hobby shop and purchase glitter, gold or silver spray paint and dress up the branches. Then, buy a pack of new, colorful holiday ball ornaments and put them in a bowl. As a designer, I like to vary heights as I accessorize. I might make tall vases and bowls of various heights and mix in ornaments with some natural elements. It makes them more interesting.” Tip Three: Assess Tabletops in Key Areas & Layer!
Accessorizing can bring your interior space from drab to fab. Loren always tells his friends and family to take a look at their tables: dining, coffee tables, end tables and consoles. He says the holidays are a great time to empty out what you’ve kept atop these tables and put them away for a few weeks. Try exploring different ways to utilize the tables within your home. Once that is done, you can think of these as new-found spaces to decorate. For coffee tables, Loren recommends a large centerpiece to create a focal point for the room. This can be a pre-arranged silk floral basket or a one-of-a-kind creation you put together yourself. Use one of those trays you found at the beginning of the season and place your vases and bowls on the tray and begin to dress them up. You can sprinkle items on the tray such as berry stems and pine cones or even display your favorite ornaments to give it that special holiday touch. This layering tip can continue to build from year to year. According to Loren, “If you don’t have a large budget, start small this year and simply add in pieces every year. Call an interior designer. We’ll work with what you have already and pick up additional items to supplement and round out your existing pieces.” Tip 4: Make Your Dining Room Dazzle
Chances are you will be using your formal dining room for some type of entertaining you’re planning in the weeks ahead. Consider replacing the dishes in your china cabinet with winter- and Christmas-themed collectibles. In other words, treat your china cabinet like a display curio instead and create your own unique winter scene. Loren also recommends color-coordinating your plates, napkins and silverware ahead of time. This way, when people stop by unexpectedly you’ll be ready. “If you pre-plan everything and have a dedicated spot for these necessary tabletop items, you will be less stressed when the doorbell rings by surprise,” he said. Depending on the drapery treatments in your dining room, you may be able to tie garland across the drapery rods. If that’s not feasible, add swag of garland around dining room artwork or over the mirror on the wall. Pop in small touches of holiday-themed items such as winterberry, poinsettia leaves, greenery, ribbons, bows or other accessories so guests get into the spirit as they taste the delicious fare you have prepared for them. Loren says it’s completely fine to mix fresh and silk flowers. Tip 5: Pretty Up Your Powder Room Pay attention to your powder room as guests will be freshening up in there regularly. “Homeowners need to discern when it’s time to retire the ragged-looking Santa towels that they’ve used for several years. Instead of purchasing more hand towels, consider buying disposable decorative guest napkins. If you don’t have a holiday napkin tray, you can be creative and put them in a bowl of your choice,” Loren said. In addition, select a few non-expensive items to round out the space such as a fun liquid soap dispenser, hand lotion dispenser and winter-scented bath spray. Votive candles and a bouquet of berries are also a great idea for the powder room. Happy decorating! To learn more about Loren and the interior design services offered by LRS Interiors, please visit http://www.lrsinteriors.com/ or call 847-550-6363. To schedule an appointment or to find out more about Apex Wood Floors’ products, please visit our Web site: www.apexwoodfloors.com or call 630-963-9322. Sincerely, John Lessick |
All jobs scheduled and completed between December 5, 2011 and January 25, 2012 over the amount of $1,500.00 will receive a prepaid gift card in the amount of $50.00, and jobs scheduled and completed before Jan. 25th over the amount of $4,500.00 will receive a $100.00 gift card. 
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About Apex Wood Floors Based in Downers Grove, IL, the award-winning team at Apex Wood Floors has been providing customized hardwood floors to clients in the Midwest and across America since 1982. Apex uses its own highly trained craftsmen to provide unparalleled excellence to flooring projects that include wide plank, handcrafted floors, exotic species, patterns and design work. The company custom fabricates its own handcrafted and distressed plank flooring in several finishes and styles spanning the interior design spectrum. Apex works with designers, architects and their clients to provide a floor that will satisfy even the most discriminating clients. Every project provides longevity of beauty and character to any setting as they continually mature. In addition to an extensive selection of premium domestic and exotic wood species, Apex offers three destination flooring styles: Renaissance wide plank, Designer patterns and inlays and Select premium and exotic hardwoods. Apex provides complete design and installation services, including the removal of existing flooring, disposal of waste, and layout and finishing of new wood floors. |
Apex Wood Floors | West-suburban Showroom: 1326 Ogden Avenue | Downers Grove, IL 60515
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