Homestyle - Spring 2012

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Tangerine Tangocolor for 2012

Beauty of metal roofs

Get your pond ready

MIDLAND DAILY NEWSSPRING 2012

homestyle 3/25 1homestyle 3/25 1 3/13/12 1:33:40 PM3/13/12 1:33:40 PM

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Painting projects to update decor in one week

insideCountry meets contemporary decor | page 4

Planning your new kitchen | page 7

Tangerine Tango a hot color | page 8

Modern botanicals feel like spring | page 12

The beauty of a metal roof | page 18

Time to wake up the pond | page 22

(ARA) - Updating the decor in your home doesn’t have to be a long, labori-ous or expensive process. Instead, get a little instant gratifi cation by using paint to easily refresh areas and items through-out the house. With a little cash and a free weekend, you can makeover your house right now.

Furniture faceliftWhether it’s an old pair of chairs in the

attic or a desk that’s seen better days, it’s easy to breathe new life into pieces of for-gotten furniture with a fresh coat of paint. You can add interest and a pop of color to any room. A semi-gloss fi nish works best when painting furniture because it’s easy to clean and hides any imperfections.

How to:* Make sure the surface is clean, dull

and dry.* Prime with a stain blocking primer

to ensure the surface is properly sealed. This will help the paint go on evenly and uniformly.

* With a high-quality mini-roller, like those from Purdy, apply the paint of your choice to achieve the best fi nish. These tools are versatile, lightweight, and can quickly and easily deliver a perfect fi nish

with smooth rolling action.* For extra protection, brush on two

thin, even coats of water-based polyure-thane.

Door do-overChanging the color of an interior door

can make a big impact in any room. The key to getting this update right: color selection. Choose color similar to your walls for the door, because you don’t want the contrast to be jarring. Be sure to paint the frame too, so the door doesn’t seem to fl oat in space, and use a gloss or semi-gloss fi nish.

How to:* Remove door and hinges from the

wall.* Make sure the door is clean dull and

dry.* Prime bare, sanded woodwork; there’s

no need to prime previously painted surfaces if they’re in good condition. However, if you are going over an existing oil-based paint with a latex paint, follow the instructions on the paint can on how to prime.

* When applying paint or primer, work from the center of the door outwards in the following order: molding, inside

panels, rails, stiles* Once paint is completely dry, re-hang

door using existing hinges.

Step to itFor an unexpected update, paint an area

of the house that doesn’t usually receive a lot of love - your stair risers. They can get nicked and scuffed easily, so a fresh fi nish - and color - can really perk up the stair-case. If you’re unsure of which shade to choose, cut and paint cardboard pieces the same size of the risers and position them on the steps to get an idea of the effect.

How to:* Dust risers with a broom and cover

steps with masking paper; secure with painter’s tape.

* Apply latex primer to wooden risers or metal etching primer to metallic ones. Brush horizontally and let dry for at least two hours. Mini rollers are another tool to consider especially over metal.

* Apply gloss, latex paint with a clean brush or mini roller. Let fi rst coat dry two hours, then apply second coat.

* Wait a day for the paint to cure and then add a third coat for the most durable fi nish.

HomeStyle is produced by Midland Daily Newswww.ourmidland.com


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BY KIM COOK

For The Associated PressBrowse through old Country-ori-

ented shelter magazines and you’ll see a lot of what designers used to call “duck and basket” decor: calico-print-fi lled rooms, Colonial furnishings, walls stenciled with fl owers and ducks.

It was a homey, well-loved style.Now a new generation of home

decorators and stylemakers is updating the look. Country Living magazine fi lls pages with bright colors, crisp graphic prints, tag-sale side tables and smart mid-century sofas. There are still great baskets, but nowadays the duck’s more likely to be part of a hip new wall-paper.

Call it Modern Country or Farmhouse Chic — it’s sparer and

less cluttered than the old Country, but no less welcoming. It honors Country’s homespun roots without sending us too literally back to the past.

Well-worn, often utilitarian ele-ments from the farm house, barn and small-town store blend with contemporary furnishings and fi nishes, making it all look fresh and interesting.

Becky Cunningham, a home decorator near Shreveport, La., fell in love with vintage stuff during her fi rst visit to a fl ea market in Canton, Texas. That’s where she found an old cowboy’s bathtub that now holds extra blankets in her bedroom.

Country meetscontemporary decor

Above, placemats of weatherworn wood on woven vinyl are shown in a style described as modern country or farmhouse chic.

AP Photo | Chilewich Sultan LLC, Victor A Schrager.

At right, a headboard made from old wood from a barn is shown in a style described as modern country or farmhouse chic.

AP Photo | Becky CunninghamCONTINUED| PAGE 6


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A bathroom vanity and storage cabinet, made from made of a repurposed table and door is shown in a design by Kelley Motschenbacher. AP Photo | Kelley & Company

Home Design

Country meetscontemporary

The room’s transformation, which includes snowy white paint, a chande-lier and luxurious white bed linens, is chronicled on her blog, “Buckets and Burlap.” An unusual focal point is a gray, weather-beaten headboard.

“We used 100-year-old lumber taken from an old shack on my husband’s aunt’s farm,” says Cunningham.

Redoing a bathroom in Ojai, Calif., Kelley Davis-Motschenbacher used a timeworn pine table as a vanity, but dropped in a sleek modern washbowl and tap. She fronted a new closet with a scraped-up vintage door, embellish-ing it with a cast-iron bird knocker. Glossy white subway tiles and marble fl ooring blend with harvest baskets and vintage artwork to make a luxu-rious yet homey bathroom that was mostly sourced from garage sales, Home Depot and the Internet.

Rie Sterling of Apex, N.C., is another Modern Country blogger.

“One of the things I love about this style is how unpretentious it is,” she says. “Nothing’s too precious, which is ideal if you have children. It’s hard to mess up something that’s already chipped or faded.”

She adds: “There’s a certain restful-ness about it that appeals to so many, and it’s refreshingly attainable.”

Garage sales, fl ea markets and online sites are good sources for Country items, but you can also fi nd newly made pieces that evoke the vibe.

Dustin Glasscoe’s furniture studio, Vermont Farm Table, is fi lled with bar stools, benches, dining tables and bookcases made of reclaimed pine. The patina of the wood, coupled with Glasscoe’s craftsmanship, makes for furniture that’s warm and approach-able.

“We’re really celebrating the true character and qualities of the wood,” he says.

Urbanites may not have ready ac-cess to vintage goods, but the look’s easy to replicate with stuff from stores — Wisteria’s iron cabinet bins and World Market’s woven reed baskets make great storage; IKEA’s got fl at-wo-ven, striped cotton rugs; Pottery Barn has antique glass pickling jars, wooden dough bowls and grain-sack throw pillows.

Sandy Chilewich’s Faux Bois placemats have a digital image of a real wood plank printed on Plynyl.

Schoolhouse Electric recreates early 20th century light fi xtures and iron bedsteads.

Repurposing is the watch-word here: Put bath items in jars; magazines, towels or toys in tubs or wooden crates; and turn that great jam cupboard into a com-pact home offi ce. Add modern

touches like Lucite chairs, a tai-lored pendant fi xture, a lacquered Parsons table, or an accent wall painted in a bold hue.

If you’re looking for additional inspiration, check out Houzz.com. It’s a kind of home-design-centric Pinterest, where homeowners and professionals post photographs, articles and advice; you’ll fi nd great examples of Modern Coun-try style here, as well as design help.


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Planning your new kitchenFaucet has lots of infl uence in overall style

(ARA) — Whether you’re in it for the investment, or just to freshen up the space in your home where people spend the most time, a new kitchen look could be a fun, impactful improvement to your house. Some may start with a weekend proj-ect and a $40 can of paint, while others will jump into a $50,000-plus remodel. Either way, one thing is for sure - you can’t go wrong with a beautiful, highly functional kitchen.

A simple refreshIf time or budget con-

straints limit you to chang-ing just a few basic elements of the kitchen, focus on things that make the most impact. Even novice do-it-yourself homeowners can complete many of these items on their own:

■ Paint the walls. Paint-ing always tops the to-do list when a mini makeover is in order. It’s an affordable, high-impact way to change the decor of a kitchen. If you’re not changing out cab-inets or countertops, be sure to select a color that comple-ments those major elements.

■ Add new accessories. Switching out the small decor details in a kitchen can make the room feel entirely new. Maybe it’s replacing bar stools at the island, reup-holstering pillows or a bench cushion, or even hanging a few new pieces of art or pho-tos on the wall.

■ Change the faucet. Often underestimated, the kitchen faucet has a lot of infl uence in the overall style of the room. Choosing a more up-to-date pull-down or pull-out faucet not only improves the look of the room, but can add signifi cant convenience and functionality.

“Faucets in the kitchen are much more than what

they used to be,” says Kevin McJoynt of Danze, a manufacturer of decora-tive plumbing faucets and fi xtures. “They play an important role in setting the decor and focal points of any kitchen.”

A full remodelHomeowners throughout

the country are staying in their homes longer than they once did. Because of that, signifi cant remodeling proj-ects tend to rise to the top of

the priority list. If you’re in it for the long haul (or even to ensure you get that return on investment), a complete kitchen remodel could be for you.

When the entire room foot-print is your canvas, the pos-sibilities are exciting. While a contractor is recommended for most of these projects, make sure you’re involved in exploring the options that will help you use this space as wisely as possible (yet provide beautiful decor in

the process):■ Install display shelves.

This hot kitchen trend is an eye-catching alternative to hanging wall cabinets. Tak-ing down cabinets is a pretty simple task for two and hanging the shelves is even easier.

■ Evaluate the fl ow of the workspaces. Adding more water sources to your room could improve effi ciency and ease. Consider a simple, yet beautiful faucet on the island for prep, a pot fi ller by the stove to help while cooking, and a hard-working faucet at the main sink for clean-up.

■ Mix and match your sur-faces. Replacing countertops is one of the most notice-able changes to any kitchen venue. Quartz surfaces are a popular choice, provid-ing a unique combination of quality, hygiene and a look of natural stone. Selecting a lighter color surface for the perimeter and a darker, bolder color for the island is a great way to add another design element to the room.

“With today’s growing popularity in cooking and a rise in the number of at-home chefs, kitchen fl ow and workspace needs are critical aspects to consider when completely remodeling your kitchen,” adds McJoynt. “The sink and faucet choices for each of these areas can play a big role in the func-tionality and enjoyment of the space.”

Manufacturers such as Danze offer a wide range of faucet styles in various func-tional designs, according to McJoynt. So, whether you’re looking to enhance a tradi-tional decor, add sleekness to a contemporary profes-sional-grade room, or some-thing in between, leveraging faucets and other elements can help set the tone for the entire room.

Choosing a more up-to-date pull-down or pull-out faucet not only improves the look of the room, but can add signifi cant convenience and functionality. (ARA photos)


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Tangerinis this ye

Need a color boost? Fresh color rColor Institute include Tangerine TCabaret. Try adding a splash of theseand boost vitality and enthusiasm.

BY LORI QUALLS

[email protected] some spice to your home decor this year

with the spirited Tangerine Tango, a reddish orange that colorists say will provide a lift for drab sur-roundings.

Tangerine Tango is the 2012 color of the year named so by the Pantone Color Institute, which developed a standardized color system used by designers, manufacturers, printers and publishers.

“Sophisticated but at the same time dramatic and seductive, Tangerine Tango is an orange with a lot of depth to it,” said Leatrice Eiseman, executive director of the Pan-tone Color Institute. “Reminiscent of the radiant shadings of a sunset, Tangerine Tango marries the vivaciousness and adrenaline rush of red with the friendli-

ness and warmth of yellow, to form a high-visibility, magnetic hue that emanates heat and energy.”

Those words pack a lot of punch and promise for a color swatch.

Claudia TenBarge, of Stanley’s Furniture, 118 E. Hines St., agrees that color is important and orange is just one of many colors that can fl air and excite-ment to home decor.

Popular accent colors continue to be greens, blues, oranges and reds, which always is a classic, she said.

“You see a lot of accents in all different colors,” TenBarge said. “We do sell quite a bit of color. We always encourage people to accent with color if you want to get a few pieces in neutral.”

She suggests people who are afraid of color invest in a staple neutral piece for the room, and accent with colorful rugs, wall art and other pieces.

TenBarge and her father, the buyers for Stanley’s, were at The Las Vegas Furniture Market in January. She said the color trend is moving toward gray tones, replacing the popular brown.

Orange adds spiceto neutral

surroundings

A colorful chair and accent pillow in shades of oranges, browns and yellows add a On the cover, a lamp with a bright orange base would fi t into almost any decor. T


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ne Tangoyear’s hot color

r recommendations from the Pantone e Tango, Solar Power, Bellfl ower and ese vivid hues to help alter your mood

m.

BY KIM COOK

for The Associated PressWhy was Parrish blue the “in” color of the

1910s? What was with those 1950s pink bath-rooms? Remember the 1970s’ “Harvest Gold” kitchen appliances?

A new book, “Pantone: The 20th Century in Color” (Chronicle Books), looks at how color and cultural history affect each other, and fi nd their way into our homes.

Authors Leatrice Eiseman and Keith Recker are consultants for Pantone, the New Jersey-based company that developed a standardized color system used by designers, manufactur-ers, printers and publishers.

It’s an unusual lens on the last century: What was happening in society literally colored our lives, through upholstery, wall paint, rugs, and other textiles and accessories.

The authors begin with the 1900s and the Edwardian era, what they call “the last good time of the upper classes.” Coronations in several European countries were celebrated by craftsmen like Cartier, Faberge, Lalique and Tiffany with beautiful objects, whose colors — violet, emerald and gold — were embraced by the public.

The Arts & Crafts movement was the coun-terpoint to all that, with simpler patterns and more restrained yet complex colors: deep Brit-tany blue, antique white, leather and loden.

Artist Maxfi eld Parrish, known for fanciful magazine, book and advertising illustrations, popularized an intense cobalt hue. And when Les Ballets Russes debuted to rave reviews, it inspired a craze for Eastern pattern and color — deep turquoise, navy, claret and amber.

Picasso and the Cubists used charcoal, chocolate and pops of vermillion. But when fashion designer and Orientalist Paul Poiret started dressing women in shell pink and soft gray kimonos, that airier palette, anchored with black and metallics, became the hallmark of Art Nouveau decor.

After the turmoil of World War I, strong, comforting and familiar colors like cashew, cream, true blue and lichen were favorites for

Color reel: 20th century

paletteexplained

CONTINUED| PAGE 10

dd a brilliance of color to the neutral couch at Stanley’s Furniture in Midland.r. The lamp is available at Stanley’s Furniture. (Neil Blake | Midland Daily News)


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exterior and interior of homes.“The vibrancy of the colors

of 1920s fabrics surprised me — I was amazed at the intensity,” Eiseman said in an interview. During that decade of exuberance and experi-mentation, Art Deco featured black and white, the seduc-tive Jazz Age berry and grape hues, and the gold, henna and Nile blue that came in vogue after the discovery of King Tut’s tomb ignited a craze for Egypt.

During the Depression, fi lms offered escapist glam-our; French designers such as Chanel and Lanvin dressed the stars in luxurious fabrics, furs and jewels, so colors like pearl, ebony and copper were the rage.

But there was also the Parks and Recreation movement, spearheaded by President Roosevelt. Artists created posters, sculpture and other

works to help promote new parks and public buildings. It’s Eiseman’s favorite decade.

“Ultimately the careers of many impoverished artists, Rothko and Pollock among them, were literally nourished during that period,” she said.

The palette? Naturalistic tones like olive, amber and azure.

And then came plastic. With the invention of synthetic res-ins, wonderfully vivid shades of yellow, reddish orange, em-erald and purple were used in all sorts of household goods from radios to utensils.

The notion that color affects our moods and energy took off in the 1940s. Pittsburgh Paints put out “color dy-namic” brochures and ads espousing the uplifting effects of hues like apricot, meadow, vanilla and smoky rose.

When the war ended, people were ready to party,

and fi lled their lives with the upbeat colors of Frisbees and Hawaiian shirts: bright blue, lava and yellow.

These hues drifted into the early 1950s — think Fiesta ware, Revlon red lipstick, a turquoise Studebaker. The era brings to mind youthful opti-mism, and color refl ected that. Mamie Eisenhower’s favorite hue was pink; she fi lled rooms in the White House with the color, and soon homes across America followed suit.

But cute wasn’t the only dynamic in play. The sophisti-cated, organic hues of Eames’ midcentury design — mus-tard, eggplant, melon — also found an audience.

In the 1960s, psychedelic fuchsia, lime and taxi yellow, as well as pepper green, saf-fron and soft peach, refl ected both pop culture and the infl uence of The Beatles’ India trip.

“If the ‘60s were a party, the ‘70s were a therapy session,” write Eiseman and Recker. Earthy, contemplative colors refl ected a new interest in ecology and nature. That explains the Avocado Green stove and Harvest Gold fridge.

Prep style and Miami Vice made pink, green, khaki and aqua hot in the ‘80s. Yves Saint Laurent’s Moroccan-themed collection used saffron and violet. But the decade also fl irted with Japanese style, and its palette of gray, carmine and chartreuse. Artist Keith Haring’s spirited graffi ti art, in his three favorite colors — black, white and red — be-came a trend.

The ‘90s, to Eiseman and Recker, evoke grunge — mud-dy graphite, hazy purple, faded denim — as well as spa culture, blingy metallics a la Versace and Gucci, and Latin American colors.

20th century color palette explained


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SHADES OF A DECADE:A look back at 10 years of Pantone’s Color of the Year

From the Pantone newsletter Tones


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Modern botanicals

feel like

spring

BY KIM COOK

for The Associated PressIf you followed the spring fashion shows, you noticed fl oral motifs

blooming all over the place.Diane Von Furstenberg used feminine pastels. Peter Som used

digital fl orals in over-saturated, intense pigments. Timo Weiland created watery digital prints that fl oated down the catwalk.

And inspiration from the runway often fi nds its way into our rooms.

So it’s no surprise that in home decor this spring, botanicals are big. You’ll fi nd everything from restrained nature motifs to saucy florals, executed in painterly hues, photo prints and pop art graphics.

And while soft goods — bedding, pil-lows and so on — are where some of the best examples can be found, watch too for upholstered furniture, wallcoverings and tabletop items featuring botanical prints.

San Francisco interior designer Jennifer Bishop loves incorporating botanical patterns, and likes all the modern options.

“This isn’t like the past where a botanical garden exploded on your bedspread, drapery and wallpaper,” she laughs. “Used as accents, botanicals can become so striking.”

Bishop often uses a multicolored print as a launch point for a room’s palette. She’s a fan of needlework, mentioning Anthropolo-


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gie’s line of sewn lampshades.She also likes the work of Florida artist Mindy Lighthipe,

who makes watercolor, pencil, and pen and ink illustrations of unusual fl ora, such as exotic plants, insect-nibbled oak leaves and fl owering kale. Lighthipe sells on Etsy.com.

Shrewsbury, Mass., designers Mitali Seth and Lovisa Shergill showed several interesting botanical print pillows at the recent New York International Gift Fair, including an evocative tree

graphic.“Before going to design school,

my college major was botany, so nature always creeps into our col-lection,” says Shergill. The “Trees” pillow was inspired by a scene out-side their studio window. “The starkness of the branches against gray skies looked almost poetic,” Shergill says.

There’s a bolster in the line with a pretty oak leaf repeat, and several

other pieces with unusual stylized prints.Pottery Barn offers several feminine options in a spring

bedding collection that’s marked by restful patterns and calming hues. Cherry blossoms bloom on a set by British artist Rosamund James. The Ravenna line is an Art Nou-veau-inspired pattern, Giselle draws from an 18th century English print, and Alessandra was inspired by a 250-year-old, hand-blocked French textile.

A fl oral needlework lampshade is from Anthropologie, follow-ing the trend for botanical designs for the home. (AP photos)


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Metalthe beauty of a

Roof


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for the Daily NewsFor Walt and Susanne Kapke, putting

a metal roof on their Bay County home about seven years ago was a no-brainer.

The couple lives on Fraser Road, where high winds were tearing the roof off their house once or twice a year.

“It’s so windy out here,” Susanne Kapke said. “It looked terrible with our shingles falling off all the time and nails all over the place.”

A metal roof costs more up front — about two or three times as much as an asphalt roof — but will last for many years, with some of them able to with-stand wind gusts of up to 180 miles per hour.

The Kapkes have lived in their home for about 24 years and plan to stay there for many more. The high cost of the roof was scary, Kapke said, but not having to call in a contractor every few months has given her peace of mind, as well as having recouped some of the roof’s cost.

“To me it’s something that’s going to last a lifetime,” Kapke said.

And she’s right. Metal roofs are given

an average life expectancy of about 60 years by those who manufacture, sell and install them. But Walter Schuhm-acher, a contractor who has been roof-ing houses with metal for more than 15 years, says that a metal roof can last until the homeowner is in the ground. Schuhmacher installed the Kapkes’ roof.

“A properly installed metal roof has over 100 years of service,” said Schuh-macher, owner of Glenwood Builders in West Branch.

In days gone by metal roofs may have

had a stark or utilitarian look to them. Not so today. Sheets of stainless steel, aluminum, zinc and copper — the most expensive — are made to look like shin-gles, shakes, slate or clay tiles and come in a variety of colors.

“You’ve seen them before,” Schuhm-acher said. “You just didn’t realize they were metal.”

Kapke’s roof — a blue slate design —is a beauty that has inspired passersby to comment and at least one neighbor to also have a metal roof installed.

“His shingles kept blowing off,” she said. “He got tired of it.”

Today’s roofi ng metals are coated to prevent rusting, and are painted with products that resist fading and chalk-ing.

For those who are thinking about a metal roof, Schuhmacher has some good advice.

“Don’t hire an asphalt contractor to put a metal roof on your house,” Schuh-macher said. “They’re two different things.”

Schuhmacher, who has been in busi-ness for 30 years, began installing metal

Metal roof, an investment for a lifetime

A metal roof can outlive the homeowner, says one local contractor.


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roofs because he was tired of compet-ing with contractors who were using asphalt. He now caters to a niche mar-ket of people who he says know the value of a metal roof.

“It’s not just wealthy people,” he said. “It’s people who want to get a bang for their buck.”

Those who intend to sell their hous-es in a few years should probably not install a metal roof, Schuhmacher said. But for those who plan to raise a fam-ily and remain in the home for many years, a metal roof that will never have to be replaced is a great investment, he said.

In addition to being able to with-stand high winds, some metal roofs are hail and fi re resistant, with hom-eowners getting signifi cant discounts on insurance policies for qualifying roofs.

Moss, mold, mildew and algae will not attach to a metal roof. In the winter snow just slides off it, and in summer it refl ects the sun’s heat, keeping a home cooler and saving a homeowner money in energy costs.

And unlike asphalt shingles, metal can be recycled, making it an environ-mentally friendly product that won’t take up space in a landfi ll.

Above, not all metal roofs look the same. They can be made to look like shingles, shakes, slate or clay tiles and come in a variety of colors.

Previous page, Susanne Kapke and her husband Wayne of Bay City opted for a metalroof on their home.

Photos |Thomas Simonetti of the Midand Daily News


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Pros for metal roofi ng: Metal roofi ng is lightweight, from about 50 pounds per square for aluminum to 100-250 pounds per square

for steel. Life expectancy is about 60 years, though some have lasted well over 100 years. Warranties may last up to 50 years. Perform well in extreme weather, are wind resistant and fi reproof, with some insurance companies reducing

premiums up to 30 percent for home with metal roofs. Environmentally friendly, as they are both energy-effi cient and highly recyclable.

Cons for metal roofi ng: Expensive, costing two to three times more than asphalt. Extreme expansion and contraction can compromise their ability to remain watertight if not properly

installed.Corrugated metal roofs in the past became rusty in less than 10 years, giving them a bad name, though

today’s products are made with alloys and treated to resist heavy rain, sea spray and high heat. Some roofers may use low grade metals that are thinner, less expensive and meant for pole barns; they are

not durable enough for homes.


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Pros for asphalt shingles:Asphalt is a proven material that homebuyers are comfortable with and that builders trust . Economical, costing about $100-$200 per square.* Easy to work with, easy to install.Comes in several colors and styles that look like wood shakes or slate.Some come with 20- to 30-year warranties, are fi re resistant and energy effi cient.

Cons for asphalt shingles: Do not withstand severe weather such as hail and high winds; may be susceptible to moss, mildew and

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Pond guyTime for wake-up call


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G a b e P a q u e t o f Randi’s Green Thumb is the aquatic expert at the family owned business on Poseyville Road.


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And when they do wake up — when water temperatures reach 65 degrees — they will come alive with bacteria, algae, parasites and all the other things pond owners don’t like to think about.

But don’t rest, waiting for the water to heat up. Pond keepers can get busy when the water tempera-ture rises to about 50, said Gabe Paquet of Randi’s Green Thumb, 899 Poseyville Road in Midland.

Paquet knows his stuff. He has created a lovely pond in front of his family’s business on Poseyville Road. A waterfall built into an outside corner of the building splashes to a 12-foot stream that

carries water under a walkway to the main pond, an 11 by 14-foot basin that is full of Canadian buff fl agstone, fi eldstone, boulders, fi sh, plants and a large stone that once was part of a break wall at a dock in Mackinaw City.

The pond has been three years in the making, and Paquet still is working on it. He said it takes him three days to clean it every spring.

For pond owners who want to tackle the cleaning part themselves, Paquet has some advice.

First, remove by hand as much

Don’t be afraid to

clean your pond

Right, ice clings to the edge of the pond at Randi’s Green Thumb on Poseyville Road.

STORY LORI QUALLS | PHOTOS NEIL BLAKE

MIDLAND DAILY NEWS

Ponds in mid Michigan might wake up a little earlier than usual this year because of the mild winter.

CONTINUED| PAGE 24


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PAGE 24

debris (leaf litter, dead plant material, string algae, sticks) and muck (the stuff at the bottom of the pond) from the pond as possible, he said

Once this is done, he recommends changing out all of the pond’s water (or at least 20 percent.) Use the pump to remove the water, and lower the water level considerably before attempting to get any fi sh out.

Once the pond is emptied, power wash the cavity and anything inside of it and vacuum up the muck (fi sh waste, leaf decay) from the bottom. Sometimes this takes three or four washings and subsequent drainings to get everything clean.

This is the time to clean and check the fi lters and pumps and make sure everything is in working order. Water-fall and pump fi lters should be cleaned and rinsed well. During the pond sea-son, waterfall fi lters should be cleaned simply by hand removing whatever

is clogging them, whether it be dirt or debris, to keep as much benefi cial bac-teria intact.

The area around the pond should be cleaned so debris doesn’t drift back into the pond.

If city water is used to fi ll the pond, Paquet said a dechlorinator should be added for the safety of the fi sh.

And, he said, don’t be distressed when the pond becomes green shortly after cleaning it. It just needs time to balance itself. Without any benefi cial bacteria built up, algae can take over. Pond owners should notice a natural clearing of the pond within two weeks after a complete change of water, and about one week after a 20 percent change.

It is OK to have some algae, he said.“Algae is a natural part of a pond,”

Paquet said. “If you’re a pond owner, you will have scum and scuzz in your pond.”

If the water continues to be green, or look like spilt pea soup, a U-V fi l-ter (long-term solution) can help or a bacteria- or enzyme-based product (short-term fi x) can be used. Most products become most active when the water temperature is 65 degrees and higher. After algae is killed, it has to be removed from the pond or it will become food for a next algae bloom, Paquet said.

If the water is more cloudy because of dirt and debris, a clarifi er (barley or a coagulating product) might be in order.

“Water quality is more important than being completely debris-free,” Paquet said. “Being able to see to the bottom of the pond is my season-long goal.”

To test for water quality, he recom-mends using inexpensive test kits that check for salt, pH, ammonia and nitrate levels.

Fish and pots containing water lilies winter over in a pond at Randi’s Green Thumb. When the temperatures start climbing, the lilies will be prepared to sell.


25

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A creeping Jenny plant is dormant during the winter months at the pond at Randi’s Green Thumb. It will come alive once tempera-tures begin to climb.


26

PAGE 26

Q. What kind of drill would I need to go through a granite coun-tertop? I would like to put some dis-pensers for ketchup, duck sauce, and mustard, and have always wanted a nice setup for our parties.

A. Don’t forget the Chinese mustard and the Japanese wasa-bi, the green dragon’s fi re. I sug-gest you leave the granite alone, and put the condiment contain-

ers on the top, where spills can be easily cleaned. If you really want to drill holes, buy a bit specifically for masonry and stone. It will take a long time to do this, and you do not want to use an impact drill. If it takes too long, have a pro do it.

Q. I have a mauve Formica coun-tertop that I would like to cover without tearing out the top. Is there

any such material for painting For-mica laminated plastic?

A. Rust-Oleum has a paint kit for Formica and other plastics. Check it out.

Q. We have a concrete front porch and steps on our 1930 house. There are some cracks and holes that we’ve repaired repeatedly. Is it possible to lay stone such as granite over the concrete on the fl oor of the porch

and step treads?A. Yes, you can lay the granite

tiles or similar stone material such as bluestone on treads and porch floor. Install them with thin-set mortar. One important caveat: Make sure all risers are of equal height. Uneven risers are a definite hazard; uneven risers can cause falls going both up and down.

Q&A with Handyman Peter Hotton |The Boston Globe


27

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Q.I have wood wainscot paneling that is now stained. A painter said he wants to whitewash it. Should I do it?

A. Whitewash (remember Tom Sawyer’s fence?) is an old-fashioned solid white paint that doesn’t stand up well to the weather, but in Sawyer’s day was the only thing available. Don’t do it. What your painter meant was not whitewash, but ”pickling,” which is painting with thinned down paint, then rubbing some of it off, revealing the grain of the wood. Don’t do it; it will bring back memories of furniture in the ’50s and ’60s, best forgotten. Your best option is to leave it stained.

Q. I am replacing the fl ue liner in my chimney, but how do I handle the smoke stack from the heater into the chimney? Now there is mortar around the pipe going into the brick chimney, but it is breaking up considerably. What is best to use?

A. Regular mortar does not stand up to heat, so you can use furnace cement, which I think is related to fi re clay, both of which stand up to heat like good soldiers.

Q. My cast iron frying pan has a few col-ored stains on it. How can I get rid of them? Also, there’s a paper or plastic decal on the

bottom of the pan that won’t budge. A. Those stains are mostly rust, because

you neglected to dry the pan completely before putting it away. Scrub them with Brillo or an abrasive such as Ajax or Comet, rinse, and dry immediately. You can cure cast iron to resist rust by wiping with olive or vegetable oil and heating it on the stove for just a few seconds, before it starts to smoke. Let it cool, rub with a paper towel, and store for future use. To remove the decal, submerge in soap and water overnight, then scrape it off. Rinse and dry before storing.

Q. My house was remodeled six years ago, and now I notice the ceramic wall tiles along the fl oor in all three bathrooms are slowly falling off. Was it a bad job? Is my house twisting in the wind, popping them off? The tiles were put on drywall with mortar. Some of the tiles are glued to the wood of the kick plate of my vanities. Can I use an adhesive caulk to put them back, and do I have to take off the mortar left on the back of the tiles?

A. I don’t think the house shook or twisted enough to pop the tiles, but if too little mortar was used, it might happen. Also, vigorous washing along the wall

might have done it. No matter, here’s how to fi x the tiles: Scrape off the mortar with a cold chisel and light tapping with a ham-mer. Scrape off any grout from the edges of the tiles. Put the tiles back on with a thin-set mortar. They will hold very well. For the tiles on wood, use an adhesive caulk (Phenoseal and Polyseamseal are two good kinds). Be careful with the adhesive caulk. It tends to sag, and you have to hold it for several minutes for it to take. Then put grout in all the joints.

Q. I bought a house last year. This sum-mer I power-washed the outside of my house including the windows. When I went inside there was water inside the house even though the windows were closed and locked. Is there any way to reseal the windows?

A. Most windows, new and old, are not designed to withstand power washing, only regular rain and snow, not hurricane force winds. They don’t need resealing because they may not have been unsealed. Let them dry out. Install new weather-stripping if necessary and lay off the power washing. If the putty in old windows was knocked off, the windows should be reglazed.


28

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