Charlotte's Place
   Landscape & Interior Decor    Consultant
"a work in progress"
making home your favorite place to be
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Charlotte's Place is directed towards the DIY-ers' who may need someone to just get them started.                   If your vision has just stalled or you haven't had one yet, I can guide you
towards your destination. My goal is to help you realistically fulfill your dreams whether on a large    scale or in a tiny space too small to be thought relevant. 
               Paradise isn't marked in square footage; it's found where you choose to see it so whether 
Be it      Whet            walking in the front or back gate, or through the front door, let the place you would                     spend money to get to be found within the property lines of your own home.
OUTSIDE
Are you searching for a dream space without all the frustration;
a place where function and aesthetic meld taking you from where you are to where you wish to be?  See your vision transformed into a space where tranquility and serene blend.  If not quite ready or stuck mid-stream, sound and cost effective plans will take your project from a conceptualization to the place you thought you'd never get to. 
Fixating on a course towards a personalized outdoor room, I'll provide ideas and detailed plans depicting how to
utilize your space to its optimum potential and as an extension of your home.
With your preferential expectation of maintenance and functionality in mind, your wish for a respite to balance a demanding life can be realized. Remember not to overcapitalize in any renovation project, particularly if you're
planning to sell your home. You may have a grand space but might not be able to recover your costs when you sell.  Always work within your budget.  Be creative without spending too much!  















INSIDE
From choosing paint color to furniture rearrangement, you can revitalize and re-invent your home;
a renewed space with your own stamp on it. With new organizational skills, you can take back your house.
You live there day in and day out: the most important result is your comfort, regardless of current trends. If you're moving and need your house to show its best side, it would be my pleasure to "dress your home".  The intended buyer will envision themselves in it and help you sell quickly and for the best dollar.  By editing, redesigning and
repurposing your existing furnishings you can sell your home quickly and move on, or perhaps you'll rediscover
the place you you fell in love when you first bought and reclaim it. 
Selling, buying or realizing you want to stay right where you are, we can make whatever
changes you desire, one room at a time!   If moving isn't in your future but you're finding your decor a bit tired, perhaps it's time to make reinvent it. Remember, "there is no such thing as a space too small"!



"Design is not just what it looks and feels like. Design is how it works.”  Steve Jobs

These photographs were taken by Adam Gibb
for Gardens West Magazine in summer of
2007/published in summer 2008.
My garden has never been so beautiful!
In winter, it's still an inviting space.
There is always a beginning and it isn't always pretty.  Then there is a middle-point and the never-ending end!  Change is fun and finding new uses for existing art, furniture, accessories and redesigning your space without bringing in anything new is always an adventure.
It's also a great way to declutter.  Once moved, perhaps it shouldn't go back.



"Taking us from today (June, 09 and still no warm weather) back to November, the painting is almost finished. 
When you live in a small space, details like "where do we put the furniture" make painting a whole new adventure. 
We moved it either into the center of the room, or into the other (choice of 1) room until it was finished.  Despite
the inconvenience to our painter who came back to second coat and then waited while we put it all back, and to
ourselves who lived in tarped rooms and narrow isles for what seemed eons, it's all done except for the stuff
I delegated to me.  Due to unfortunately bad surgery on my knee in March, I have been walking
with a crutch and 1.5 legs and a ladder have proven to be more than even I can master.  Thrse small things
will have to wait.  On a brighter note, as I've done in the past, everything (woodwork and ceiling) were painted in 'Silkweed' (a very soft, warm gray from Rona) and it has
turned out to be one of the best color decisions I've ever made.
Painting under your artwork, photographs, mirrors, etc. is a great way to become accustomed
to your color choices and avoid making mistakes while not having to look at an unrelated giant color blotch for months on end.  No one sees it but you until you're utterely sure. 
Not only has our lovely cave become a wonderfully light and spacious home,
our new kitchen is a dream come true.  An on-going joke: "Boy, I wish we had the old one back" comes from Will
several times a day.  He still amazed we accomplished what we did with the budget I promised.  We are
one day away from it being completely finished (working up to a full days work for Andy
and the "me" part that isn't happening any day soon). 
Andy, our carpenter was extremely helpful, innovative, great to bounce cost saving ideas off
and he did a fantastic job. 
Of course, I changed my mind mid-stream, about 20 times (design on the fly), but each one of those changes added another unexpected dimension to the new space and much to our delight, saved us money.
We have a high-end modern look while still maintaining the kitchen's 1942 charm and quirks.
Because of the paint job, and an impending milestone birthday (Charlotte's 60), my gift to myself
was an edit.  Everything was off the walls, all nail holes were mudded over.  A cathartic "life edit" took place
allowing me to let go of stuff I was hanging on to for all the wrong reasons.  I was no longer
compelled to put it all back.  The empty spaces look perfect that way.
Many loved items were given or sold so others might love them too and many things didn't go very far at all.
Now in the home of a cherished friend, Dianne Domoratzki,
or with strangers with excellent taste, we all have a new look!
An 'annual' sale at Dianne's Grand Marais summer home will see the leftovers find appreciation elsewhere.
Our home, the garden, this website and my life are always continual 'works in progress'!
'It's just paint' is truly an understatement, but what the perfect color can do is make or break an interior design.
Take the time to choose once, because it's huge, tedious and not cheap anymore,
and somone saying it's as simple as a do-over isn't paying for it, you are! 
Our kitchen appears to have doubled in size and the dining room seems no smaller although the previous 24" wide
island has given way to a 6 drawered peninsula the size of a single bed.  It's not all illusion either - we have
massive amounts of storage and more floor space thanks to our amazing "Handy Andy"!! 
The flooring people (Ken's Carpets & Flooring on Marion St.) introduced us to a new product
but they've still to tie up some long awaited loose ends.
Otherwise, interior pics will be posted soon - from the beginning to the magic that is our home today. 
Budget restraints shouldn't deter you from renovations - you just need to do a lot more leg work and research before you embark on the job, ensuring it's finished before the budget is".
For Adult Ed classes & speaking & speaking engagements, see Contact page
The background is the color the living room wall- papered focal walls were - beautiful but dark.  The sample behind her head, is the color they and the rest of the house are now ... so you can imagine the light coming in and bouncing around the space.  It's wonderful particularly now when the days are longer even if the rain never stops.
"She" is still here.
  www.ohio-nature.com/ohio-wildflowers-list.html
check out this website: what a find!