With the arrival of spring in San Diego come longer days, more sunshine and a plethora of home improvement projects just waiting to get started. Whether you’re updating your home or your yard, San Diego LGBT Weekly checked up on some local businesses that have the knowledge, tools and resources to help. Even better, all of these retailers are LGBT-friendly!
Spring often signals the start of the building and remodeling season and San Diego’s hardware stores are ready to help. From repainting to updating kitchens and bathrooms, stores such as Hillcrest ACE Hardware and San Diego Hardware have the supplies needed to get the job done.
In the heart of Hillcrest, ACE Hardware has served the community for nearly 18 years and offers residents a local alternative to driving to the big box home improvement stores in Mission Valley.
“Customer service is our number one priority and we insist all customers and employees are treated equally,” said Kathy Gorman, buyer for ACE Hardware in Hillcrest. “We even treat the pets equally … and all pets are invited to accompany their owners into the store.”
Active in the community since its opening, ACE Hardware regularly donates to LGBT causes and has hired several people from Stepping Stone, a non-profit drug and alcohol recovery program targeted at LGBT individuals.
“We open early morning during the Pride parade to assist The Center and floats with any last minute emergencies and then close for the day so all employees can celebrate,” Gorman said.
Whether your spring home improvement needs include electrical, plumbing, gardening or painting, Hillcrest ACE Hardware has it all.
Gorman suggests checking out their selection of Mythic paint, which contains no toxic solvents or odors and helps to eliminate the negative health effects often associated with paint. The store is one of only three stores in San Diego to carry this painting alternative, according to Gorman.
Journey outside of Hillcrest and find one of the oldest hardware stores in San Diego. Founded in 1882, San Diego Hardware has catered to local’s home improvement needs for more than 120 years.
Although it began as an everyday hardware store serving downtown San Diego’s early residents, it has transitioned in recent years to specialize in decorative hardware and moved to a new location in Kearny Mesa in 2006.
Today, San Diego Hardware specializes in an assortment of cabinet, door and plumbing hardware for kitchens, bathrooms and more.
“The hardware industry is slow to change but for sure the products with more clean lines and contemporary products still rule the roost and typically in a brushed nickel finish,” San Diego Hardware co-owner Bill Haynsworth said.
Haynsworth expects a surge in cabinet and door hardware sales as the spring remodeling and construction season begins.
With more than four decades of experience working at San Diego Hardware, Haynsworth knows the ins and outs of the business. He began working in the store as a teenager and eventually bought it from his father, along with friend Rip Fleming.
At the suggestion of his ad agency, Haynsworth recently began advertising to the LGBT community.
“We’re really pleased with the response,” Haynsworth said. “We have many great customers from the LGBT community and welcome everybody with open arms.”
Spruce up the outdoors
Although San Diegans are lucky enough to live in a mild climate that allows for plenty of time outdoors year-round, the longer daylight hours of spring signal the start of many outside decorating projects. Whether you’re looking to create a colorful garden oasis or a peaceful patio setting, this is the perfect time to embark on an outdoor remodeling adventure.
Want to lay decorative flagstone to create unique walkways, build outdoor fireplaces with bricks or create stunning gardens with boulder accents? Visit Southwest Boulder. The Pacific Beach location, one of five in Southern California, offers an assortment of stones to suit your landscaping needs, ranging from tiny pebbles to large decorative boulders.
It’s also home to the best selection of flagstone in San Diego County, according to Jonathan Bechtol, who is in charge of marketing and IT at Southwest Boulder.
The store offers more than just the supplies; it also provides free workshops to the public on various landscaping trends.
“As far as smaller projects people are working on, designing terrariums for their homes is really big. We recently had a workshop on that very topic in Pacific Beach,” said Bechtol. “Also, designing with California native plants and exploring permaculture is really big right now.”
Southwest Boulder’s Fallbrook store will host a Habitat Restoration with California Natives April 13 at 10 a.m. The workshop will demonstrate ways to create a natural landscape using plants that are native to the area.
If the exterior of your home is in need of some extra love and maintenance this spring, Nurse Stucco can help. For more than 30 years, Nurse Stucco has served the San Diego area by providing new stucco finishes, stucco recoating and repair services.
While stucco walls have been around for centuries and were even used in Ancient Greece, modern technologies have allowed for new finishes, breathing new life into this old material. Stucco is available in an assortment of colors and is easy to maintain.
Nurse Stucco, owned by brothers Blaine and Darren Nurse, officially began in 2000 but is an offshoot of their father’s original stucco and plaster business. Both brothers began working in the stucco business for their father in 1981.
Based in Lakeside, Nurse Stucco works on homes throughout San Diego, Riverside and Imperial Counties.
Improve your interior
Perhaps instead of a drastic remodeling project, you simply want to freshen up the appearance of your home furnishings. Replacing an old sofa or even just upgrading with a new cover can do wonders for brightening and improving the visual quality of your home.
Metro Decor and Creative Futons, two San Diego-based furniture companies, offer an assortment of sofas, bedding and more to give your home a new look this spring.
For more than three decades, Metro Decor has provided quality furniture at affordable prices. Choose from a variety of stylish options or take advantage of Metro Decor’s custom-made sofas and special order your dream couch by choosing the fabric, color and more.
Check out the furniture options in Metro Decor’s main showroom, located just off Interstates 5 and 8.
Founded by Leslee Evans in 1987, Creative Futons, quickly outgrew its station at Koby’s Swap Meet and moved into its North Park store in 1990.
Seeking to create a higher quality futon that maintained its shape and comfort level, Evans started making her own mattresses. New mattress technology, such as memory foam, allows for more comfort and a better night’s sleep.
Located also in Hillcrest at 3734 Sixth Ave., Creative Futons offers more than just futon mattresses. Choose from a variety of futon frames and fun, festive color schemes, including island, southwest and contemporary.
So, dust off those cobwebs and get planning your spring home improvement project. With a little help from these LGBT-friendly businesses you’ll have your home shipshape in no time.
home improvement spotlight
How to choose the right window treatments
By Denise Teuffer, decormywindows.com
There are many things to consider when choosing your window treatments, such as privacy, style, light source, color, window shape energy efficiency, UV protection and safety.
Window treatments are classified in two categories: soft and hard window treatments.
Soft window treatments are draperies, Roman shades, valances and swags among other fabric treatments. If you prefer a more casual and relaxed look the more popular styles now are simple, classic styles with natural fabrics like linens, cotton and silks hung on simple black, pewter or wood poles, often with rings. There are different top header drape styles and the best known are the timeless classic French or pinch pleat. The other modern classic is the tailored pleat. These two styles are highly recommended for areas that will open and close frequently. Grommet top drapes are popular for a modern, sleek look used in interior and exterior draperies.
Hard window treatments are shutters, horizontal wood blinds, faux blinds, mini blinds, vertical blinds, roller shades, solar shades and woven wood shades. These styles of blinds are adjustable to accommodate the light’s diffusing properties. These products suit both modern and traditional décor with their variety of colors and textures, filling any room with style in an instant. Some, like the roller shades, are sleek, minimal and modern. Roller shades are available in solar, light filtering and blackout materials. Solar shades absorb heat and block UV rays while still preserving your view. Blackout shades provide total privacy plus give you the comfort of light blocking.
If you do not want to cover the whole window the more trendy and functional in performance is the layered look, mostly achieved with a roller shade or blind under draperies or side panels. These are draperies hung for decorative purposes only on each side of the window. Just make sure your side panels have enough fullness in them, or they will look skimpy. Side panels look best when they are floor length, or puddled.
The most important thing to remember when choosing your window treatment is that it should suit your needs and create the feel and style that you want in your home. If you are not confident in doing this yourself, get help! Find pictures of styles that appeal to you and show them to your decorator or window covering specialist. If you want draperies, make sure that any draperies you buy are well-made, from good quality fabric. If you can’t afford to do everything you want at once, start with the most functional layer (blinds, shades or sheers) and then add the next layer (draperies, valances, side panels) later.
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