Oh my gosh, today is a a Wonderful Day, because I see that this morning, Erica Wilson Nantucket has started to post segments from Erica Wilson’s 1971 television series “Erica”, originally produced by PBS. Erica Wilson was the “First Lady of Stitchery” in the 1960s and 1970s — The Needlecrafts Goddess. She published at least 16 books and starred in two television series. She died in December — please see my comprehensive online biography and guide to Erica Wilson’s life and work. I am stunned and ecstatic with amazement at the opportunity to view these videos — this is going to be the best thing ever! In this first video, the amazing Ms. Wilson shows us how to stitch an owl. She stitched an owl like this onto a rocking chair designed by her husband Vladimir Kagan. She says she named the owl “Belinda”. She also shows us a wall hanging / room divider that she made. She is very funny, she calls the fabric that she used for the wall hanging ‘dirty green’ or some such. I am rushing to get this story out — I will have to go back and watch and start writing down the “Erica-isms.” I also will be tracking down the back story on the posting of these videos. How many will we see???!!! I am so excited, I am using exclamation points, which I reserve only for the Most Important and Exciting News.

Erica Wilson Kits on ebay — abundant

click into ebay here

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This much-cited Remodeling Cost vs. Value research report is completed annually by Remodeling Magazine, and includes data gathered in collaboration with HomeTechPublishing, the National Association of Realtors and Realtor Magazine. It looks at 35 popular home remodeling projects, year after year, to assess the returns (read: losses) of each project upon resale. The magazine does a really nice job reporting the data and explaining the survey on their website – see it here for info on costs vs value for each project.. and there are regional reports, too. Ugh, I think that I am also reading that the gap between remodeling costs and value recovered on resale (loss) is the worst since the research was started in 2003.

One of the biggest pet peeves in my life, I’m serious,
is the way these findings are soft-pedaled every year

For example, Reuters covered this 2011 Cost. vs Value report, and here is one of their sentences:

Remodeling projects earn back 57 percent, on average.

True enough. So I cannot argue. But, this is definitely a “glass half full” way to state the findings.

Hey, let’s pretend they were talking about the U.S. stock market — say, the Dow Jones Industrial index — instead. Would we see this headline:

The Dow Jones Industrial Average earned back 57% last year.

Or this one:

The Dow Jones Industrial Average plummeted 43% last year (sending the world into another global Great Depression.)

I repeat, hitting thee over the head: ‘Earning back 57%’…means you just lost 43%. Every project, every situation is going to be different, but taking these numbers at face value, chances are, you are not improving your home’s value with remodeling projects if you count the money you put into the update. You are going to come out with le$$, not more $$.

In other parts of the Reuters article, the message was ‘more in your face’ about the gap. But to me, the story did not seem ‘alarmist.’ It was kind of… peppy. Ack! These numbers are dismal, shocking. Even in “bubble days,” the return was only 76%, that is: The loss was 24%. Am I missing something?

One of reasons this blog’s tagline is “Love the house you’re in” is that I *think* I have long understood that unnecessarily “updating” your home to reflect what is trendy today is not a particularly sound financial investment. In fact, what’s trendy today… will likely be ‘hideous’ in about 10 years. In the same vein, I also read somewhere that even getting the 50%-80% return/20%-50% loss indicated by these figures assumes near-immediate resale… that is, today’s updates begin to depreciate, immediately. So, contrary to a lot of what’s in the mainstream: We talk here about keeping your “outdated” vintage bathrooms and kitchens, if they are in good shape. And if renovations are required, I am an advocate in choosing styles that are harmonious with the original architecture of your home — in this way, your interiors will be “dated” to match the date of your house.

Spend money on your house? Of course! Americans love their homes, and are likely to continue to want to improve and update them. Moreover, a home can be one of the greatest life-investments you will ever make — in creating memories for yourself, family and friends… for providing a creative outlet… for building and being part of a community. So, you will want to make it “yours.” But, get back all the money you put into the modern new kitchen and then some? No no no! Read the report, and be thoughtful and realistic about the goals of your remodeling projects … unless money is just not an issue.

Data cited © 2011 Hanley Wood, LLC. Complete data from the Remodeling 2011–12 Cost vs. Value Report can be downloaded free at www.costvsvalue.com.

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“Redi-Screens™ may be used as doors, partitions, or room dividers, but it is their striking and luxurious look that sets them apart from anything else on the market,” says Christiane Erwin, President and CEO of Crestview Doors. “Crestview Doors recognizes the demand for home décor that is functional and classically beautiful. Redi Screens™ can separate spaces and create privacy while enhancing the overall visual aesthetic of the interior landscape.”

Crestview — which is well known for its doorlite kits — launched the new line today.  These pre-assembled decorative screens feature six modern patterns inspired by vintage textile designs.  They are made in Austin, Texas — carved into stain-grade maple and bound by hand into a maple frame.  Redi-Screens™ are available for purchase at Crestview’s website and start at $213.00 each.

Redi-Screens™ may be ordered online in any of three standard widths (24”, 28”, 32”) and two standard heights (80”, 96”). Each screen measures 1-3/8” deep and, if privacy is required, also can be ordered with a translucent resin backing that transmits light yet offers full privacy. Redi-Screens™ can be installed as sliding doors, pocket doors, articulating doors, room partitions, room dividers, hanging or mounted screens.

I also asked owner Christiane Erwin for more of the “back story” about how this product came about. She writes:

“Sure!  The story is kind of fun, actually.

There was a mid-century homes tour here in Austin in 2008, hosted by the Heritage Society, and they were hosting lectures on MCM architecture and interior design in conjunction with the tour.  David (my husband and co-owner of Crestview Doors) attended a lecture by Dwayne Johnson, executive director of the Galveston Historic Foundation, and was intrigued by a photo of sliding wood room dividers with a unique organic pattern.  (Later an antiques appraisal would suggest they were a Herman Miller design; we have never been able to verify this claim.)

Dwayne allowed David to digitize a version of the pattern hoping for an opportunity to reproduce it someday.  In fact, Dwayne hoped to have the screens reproduced for his own 1960’s-era home, but soon after we began to gather the materials for the project, Dwayne’s coastal home was destroyed by Hurricane Rita.

Here is the digitized version of Dwayne’s photo:

When customer Celeste Poston approached us about putting period-appropriate doors on her wet bar, we sent her a few mockups, and she chose this pattern.  Here is the before/after shot:

She loved them so much that she came back to us later to request additional doors for her media room.  Here are the photos:

Of course, we were floored by the results and so were our fans!  They told us that they needed screens like this too: to be used as hinged room dividers, sliding doors, or mounted space separators.  We decided to offer the option of a white resin backing for uses where privacy is a concern (we’re replacing our own bathroom and closet doors with the “Casbah” pattern, for example).

Standard sizes are available on the website, but you know how retro homes are – everything was custom created back then, so we offer custom sizes when “standard” just won’t do.  We can’t wait to see how people use them!

Christiane

Thank you, Christiane — and good luck with the new-product launch — I think this fills a real niche in our mid century marketplace today.

Disclosure: Crestview Doors is currently an advertiser. This story was not part of the deal, though. 

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