Ambience Design Studio owner Ada Truesdell's space on Big Pine Key is a reflection of her personal style, what she calls contemporary coastal.
An interior designer with decades of experience in South Florida has opened a design studio in the Lower Keys. Ada Truesdell’s Ambience Design Studio is at 30375 Quail Roost Trail, Unit F, Big Pine Key.
Posted - Sunday, December 28, 2008 03:00 AM EST
Starring in the holiday dŽcor department is the home of Dean Townsend and Ken Jessen at 823 Johnson Lane. (Photo by SEAN KINNEY)
The holiday spirit will be on display during the first Key West house tour of the 49th annual season of tours sponsored by the Old Island Restoration Foundation. Homeowners will open their doors from 5 to 8 p.m. Friday, Dec. 26, and Saturday, Dec. 27, so the public can enjoy their tasteful renovations and festive holiday decorations.
Posted - Saturday, December 20, 2008 03:00 AM EST
The raw material goes in the opening at the top.
Keyswide environmental nonprofit Green Living & Energy Education has added an additional R to the traditional ones of Reduce, Reuse and Recycle. The fourth R stands for rot, or compost. By composting, people can reduce the amount of trash they send to the mainland. Better yet, composting creates one of the best fertilizers there is, for free.
Posted - Friday, November 28, 2008 09:30 AM EST
Old meets new in this project on Windsor Lane, an example of a project deemed a successful compromise by the then-preservation planner and the projectÕs architect. A home from the 1920s was combined with new construction. (Photo by MICHAEL HASKINS)
Fran and Bob Decker bought their home on Elizabeth and Southard streets in Key West because of the neighborhood’s historic appearance and the city’s Historic Architectural Review Committee’s commitment to keep that look from changing.
Posted - Sunday, October 12, 2008 04:00 AM EDT
A Middle Keys home staged to be more attractive to potential buyers. (Photo courtesy Wanda Brock, Coldwell Banker Schmitt)
You’ve listed your home for sale and now you wonder if a little (or a lot) of touching up is in order. What kinds of things can be done to make a house and property more attractive to a Keys buyer? Which home improvement projects yield the most bang for the buck? Is there a return on investment on fixing up costs?
Posted - Sunday, October 12, 2008 04:00 AM EDT
When times get tough, homeowners may be tempted to skimp on home maintenance to save a buck or two.
Posted - Sunday, October 12, 2008 04:00 AM EDT
Habitat for Humanity ReStore Manager Tom Greenwood says the china pieces in the case in front of him are collectibles.
Florida Keys homeowners, renters and do-it-yourself aficionados take note: if you’re in the market for affordable household furnishings, appliances or remodeling supplies, you need not drive to the mainland to score a bargain. Chances are good that your friendly neighborhood thrift shop, outlet, secondhand store or recycling group has just what you’re looking for, and at a price that won’t require you to seek a government bailout.
Posted - Sunday, October 12, 2008 04:00 AM EDT
Many Keys homes are on stilts, making it difficult for residents to get up and down stairs. One solution is a stair glider that moves a chair up and down an incline. (Photo by MICHAEL WELBER)
In August, Marathon resident Robert Giffen fell and broke his hip. For most people that would be a serious inconvenience. For Robert, who is elderly, it meant spending a considerable amount of time in a nursing home in the Upper Keys. Now his wife, Lois, who must travel the 40 miles to see him, needs to find a way to make it possible for her husband to live at home.
Posted - Sunday, October 12, 2008 04:00 AM EDT
Container gardening works just about anywhere, as this Boot Key Harbor boat slip shows.
When we bought our first Keys home – a condo that was part seasonal rental, part weekend getaway — gardening was out of the question. A few years later, our first Keys house came with a yard full of limestone cap rock and very little topsoil.
Posted - Monday, October 13, 2008 11:31 AM EDT
Winning fruit at the 2007 Tropical Fruit Fiesta.
The warm ocean currents surrounding the southern tip of Florida create a climate ideal for growing nutritious, delicious tropical fruits. Many of these fruits cannot be grown anywhere else in the continental United States.
Posted - Monday, October 13, 2008 11:31 AM EDT
