Traditional vs Modern...or is it Traditional and Modern? Carrara Marble Edition

Well...mom and I went to a tile shop recently to find tiles for the rehab house we have not yet acquired...and I kinda fell in love with carrara marble, as tiles, counters, and especially the basket weave.  After showing houses to my friends Cip and Jackie in search of their first home...we saw a bath with similar cheaper porcelain basket weave.  After seeing the carrara and chinchilla marble I have found my new favorite natural stone.  I am sorry to admit that the only reason I knew what chinchilla marble was, is because I watch Nip/Tuck...but I digress.  So back to the debate. While at the tile shop I saw a display similar to this: 

The sales lady and I got into a slight debate as to whether this was considered modern or classic...me being the one saying that it was both...her saying that it was only classic....little did she know.  So I decided that this will be the tile for the half bath...unless she can get me a great price; where as this will be the tile for the master bath as well.  After searching the amazing internet and google I found a picture that is pretty much exactly what I want do do with the half bath.

So is the mix between classic and modern really attainable?  I believe it is...and I think that carrara is where its AT!!  I will soon put up a post of a lot of my tile ideas and what I would like to do in the extra bath and master if I cannot afford to put the carrara in the master.  I think that if you want a timeless look with a modern twist...mix in that carrara....it has been around since the ancient Romans....they seemed to be pretty classy.

So in honor of this beautiful natural stone I have found quite a few pictures that show how timeless and modern it can be.  It is the perfect way to mix a little old world class with some modern clean lines. Also imagine that beautiful marble paired with a vanity like this (vanities are the furniture of the bathroom and will soon have its own post):

And now for more pictures...b/c its more fun to look at pictures than it is to read:

 

Soo...when remodeling your kitchen or bath...if budget allows...carrara is the timeless classic that should be considered, if not used.  Remember what sets you apart makes you sell...

Setting off your flip or home....

Ok...so...being a Real Estate agent...I get the pleasure of showing many homes, and hearing what wows buyers and what turns them off.  I want my new target market for my flips to be first time home buyers in their 20's (how will I know what they like?)...one thing that I know I like is tech stuff, modern design, and traditional homes....ok so some may think the other two don't really go together, but we will cover that another day.

So the tech part, being a PC user turned, into everything Mac person (although I still use a 5 year old Dell Inspiron laptop with broken speakers) I own an iPhone.  So every time the new app commercial comes out I have to stop speeding through the DVR, back it up, and watch.  The other day when I saw the app commercial with the Schlage Security Link app, controlling interior lights, I immediately researched and found out you had to pay a monthly subscription for it.....I was saddened....but then I saw another commercial not Mac related that had the same feature....I did more research and found a system that had no monthly fees and you can control the whole home (security system, HVAC, and ALL LIGHTS!!).

So this brings me to the reason for this post.  If you were deciding between two homes...around the same price, and one had the ability to control the home from your iPhone (or  iPod Touch which is included in the sale of the home) which would you choose....hopefully the tech home.  Now down to the price....almost all switches are dimmers, so not only can the light be turned on and off through your smartphone but you can control the brightness...ok price for an entire 1500 sqft home all dimmers, hvac control, and base station come to UNDER $1000!!  Other features are creating lighting scenes and controlling the temperature of your home, even has security camera capabilities (security camera add-on).

So, if you could sell your home a month or two sooner than expected you have actually paid for the system and a little bit extra based on a home worth $200,000...how? B/c that is two months less of interest you have to pay...and if you are stuck with the home even after installing, at least you have a cool new gadget to play with while you wait for it to sell!!

So moral for today....be different in a GOOD way to home buyers....it pays off in the end!