Realtor - May/June 2013

Hot Color Palettes
Vintage Moxie

Inspiration Textures Where

Honed Vitality
Inspiration DIY culture | Yoga and pilates | Artisan goods | etsy.com

Textures Imperfect and homemade items | Natural rock | Fungi

Where Larger spaces | Wallpaint | Flooring

High Voltage

Inspiration Textures Where

Midnight Mystery
Inspiration Steampunk | “Dark Shadows” | Menswear-inspired fabrics
Textures Tarnished metals | Burnt wood

Where Shutters | One accent wall | A single piece of furniture

2013 is a year of contrasts, according to Sherwin-Williams.
Each year, the coating and color company releases a color
forecast or “colormix.” SW’s most recent o;ering promises
abundant diversity. “We know that people gravitate to personal
preferences, but we are being shaped by the divergent energies
pulsing all around us,” says Jackie Jordan, director of color
marketing. “Colormix 2013 embraces these conflicts and shows
how colors are about a process of combination and creating
unexpected harmony.”
Becky Spak, director of color marketing and design servic-
es, is part of the team that dreamed up the four themes pres-
ent in this year’s colormix—Vintage Moxie, Honed Vitality,
High Voltage, and Midnight Mystery. Spak takes trend cues
from the fashion world, but she says the team of designers
brings multiple influences to the table, from pop culture to the
economy. “We draw inspiration from each other,” she says.

Home stagers in more conservative markets may want to steer clear of the wilder tones: “These are just a guide,” Spak says, “a source of inspiration.” Get acquainted with the influences behind each of the four palettes, and identify spots in a listing that could benefit from a splash of Moxie or Mystery.

More Online Two interior design features that buyers say are “very important” are a walk-in closet in the master bedroom ( 39 percent) and an en suite master bath ( 34 percent).

For more from NAR’s 2013 Profile of Buyer’s Home Feature Preferences, search for “Home Feature Preferences” at REALTOR.org.

For the 2013 Remodeling magazine

Cost vs. Value Report, go to CostvsValue.com.

24 REALTOR® MAY/JUNE 2013

Suite Interiors
Buyers emerging from a recession mind-set
are reclaiming the master suite. What’s new
in this home dreamscape?

The master suite has always been a sort of “private escape”
from the rest of the house, according to Jerry Gloss, senior
partner of KGA Studio Architects in Louisville, Colo. But that
doesn’t mean this intimate space can’t also be useful and
dynamic. When creating a master suite, it helps to remember
zoning, Gloss says. If one member of a couple gets up early,
he or she needs a vestibule to isolate noise and light from
the sleeping partner. This dream space can be constrained
by physical limitations. Gloss recommends having a tape
measure handy during showings. One wall must have at least
13 feet of space, or else “a king-size bed won’t fit—unless you
want to throw out a nightstand.”
Another old-fashioned resort touch making its way back
into master suites is the hearth. “Fireplaces are going away
from family rooms,” Pearlman says. “But we are putting
fireplaces into master suites.”
And if a cozy fire makes for a perfect evening antidote
to stress, an inspired master bath will sure enhance the
wake-up routine. Denver-based Possibilities for Design Inc.
founder Doris Pearlman says more luxurious designs are
creeping back into the bath area after a stretch of austerity.
She sees designers bringing in 1930s-style spa touches,
such as floating vanities and detached baths. “Master suites
are dream spaces,” she says. “There are so many neat
master suites that are inspired by hotels.”
And while marble surfaces will always be coveted, there
are ways to get around a high-cost bathroom. Pearlman
suggests a mosaic of colored tiles as an update for a tired
bath. “They’re great and inexpensive to use,” she says.

Remodeling magazine’s 2013 Cost vs. Value Report found costs recouped from bathroom remodels and additions increased by an average of 3. 2 percent over the past year. Funds used to improve and add onto mid-range bathrooms had a slightly better return than those spent on higher-end projects in the same categories. Also, money spent on master suite projects got a greater return year over year, increasing 4 percent for mid-range projects and 1. 6 percent for upscale ones.