Beckert Dining Room Before

 In this dining room, the clients had hired someone else to do the blinds, stationary panels and board mounted Empire valance, and didn’t continue working with her because they were disappointed by how “ordinary” the window treatment looked once it was installed.  I can see why my predecessor went with a board mounted treatment; the window was in a weird little recessed niche, so there wasn’t room to do a swag valance on a pole set with finials (which is what the client mistakenly thought that she was ordering).  What’s more, there were little can lights inside the niche, so you couldn’t mount the treatment on the wall outside and above the niche or there would be light shining through from the back side of the valance.  Mounting the valance inside the niche, as the other designer chose to do, required dropping it down well below those can lights, which looked kind of weird and underwhelming.  

Beckert Dining Room After

 
 The clients brought me in to design window treatments for their living room and kitchen treatments, specifically requesting decorative hardware and more drama for these rooms.  I suggested adding some decorative hardware to jazz up the board mounted treatment in the dining room as a low-cost alternative to expensive rework or scrapping it altogether.  The clients were having trouble visualizing how these finials were going to look sticking up at the top of the swag valance, so I did a quick mock up in my design software and assured them that it was going to look like “I meant to do that.”  I ordered the finials with wood screws and my installer was able to add them to the dining room valance on-site without even taking it down on the same day that he installed my treatments in the other rooms.  The size of those finials was perfect – it looks like the valance was installed at that height deliberately to accommodate the height of the finials, and it seems as though the can lights were installed specifically to illuminate the decorative hardware.  The clients got a more formal and unique design for just a couple of hundred dollars’ worth of hardware – and I like the way it turned out so much that I plan to use finials that way “on purpose” for future projects!

Contributed by Rebecca Deming Rumpf of Custom Interiors By Rebecca.

 Judith Carol Ellis was at the Victoria And Albert Museum in London recently and was kind enough to bring back some ideas and images in hopes of providing some creative inspiration. It is flattering that one of our clients would think of us while on vacation, but to actually go to the trouble to put together ideas and photos for us is just a beautiful gesture. Thanks Judith!

My 30^th High School Reunion was this weekend, and I traveled to Ohio to see all my friends from long ago.   I was impressed with how accomplished they have all become, and how they have blossomed in their skills.   The drive up and back seemed longer than the actual reunion, as it was 12 hours each way.   Along the way, I came across the most unusual sculpture I’d ever seen.  Ohio is known for its coal mining and steelworkers, and that particular area has also taken an economic hit.  But there is still a lot of pride.   Take a look at the quality of craftsmanship in this architectural feature found along the side of the road, in front of the Steelworker’s Union House in Niles, OH. 

I imagine someone building it onsite, with scrap metal as it came along,  fellow workers checking it out as they came and went from their jobs/meetings.  It has weathered well outdoors, and is still inspiring others as they pass by.   

Helser Brothers Hardware is the same….built on site, compiled by skilled artisans, and a piece of art in the making.    Just ask them can they make (fill in your questions about hardware here)….and the answer is usually yes.   They are a united team that can make all your draperies look even better.   Call for a custom quote now!

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Contributed by Cheryl Draa of Cheryl Draa Designs.

Jane Maxwell of Maxwell House of Design just finished a project using customized hardware from our “French Pole” line and was kind enough to share her experience……

If you are a designer, you know, that every once in a while, a homeowner is going to give you a challenging window to dress.  Of course, a difficult window is never an auxiliary window, or one that hides in the back, no, it’s pretty much guaranteed that it will be a focal point in the room.  This happened with me recently.  The client’s dining room had a traditional three-window bay that had fourth window around the corner on the next wall.  In order for the treatments to make sense, the fourth window had to be included in the bay.  In addition to needing a custom bend to the rods, I knew that traditional finials weren’t going to work because the symmetry would be off.  Thankfully, I had learned about Helser Brother’s French Poles in March at a WCAA vendor event with Jackie Von Tobel in Charlotte, NC.   Jackie spoke glowingly about them from stage and during the break, I headed for the Helser Brother’s table where Anita Boetsma was able to show me the product and fill me on the details. 

Now anytime you use a new product, you hold your breath just a little until they are installed.  I had just a couple of concerns; would we miss having finials?  Would my installer be able to figure out the installation?  Would the product look as good up as I was hoping it would?  Well, the product came in looking better than I had remembered, my installer had no issues whatsoever installing, and, the finish on this gorgeous product completely complimented the design.  Needless to say, I breathed a big sigh of relief, took pictures and decided to share the adventure. 

On side-note, I like the clean look of this product so much, that I am now using them for all of my transitional and modern design jobs.

There is an intrinsic value to being able to relax and trust that a vendor is going to deliver.  Anytime that we, as designers, can eliminate some of the stress that accompanies our job, it’s a great thing. Helser Brother’s, as a company, delivers beautiful products that do what they are supposed to do, with great customer service to boot.  That’s why they are now my standard go-to source for drapery hardware.

Jane Ann Maxwell is a professional interior designer based in the Charlotte, NC metro area with some 20 years of interior design experience.  

She is a Professional Member of the Association of Interior Design Professionals (AIDP) and is the current President of the AIDP Charlotte Chapter…. (read entire bio)

Contributed by Cheryl Draa of Cheryl Draa Designs.

Everybody wants to be a hero. And today we are feeling pretty good. When HB Client Tammi Le Nair of L’Interieur Le Nair in Ephrata, PA had to figure a way to comply with restrictions in a historical brick building, she came to us. Tammi needed to install an arched treatment 2 feet above a window on the brick, without touching the brick! Using her sketches and dimensions, Anita Boetsma, Mark Helser and Tammi designed a bracket that allowed her to install using the same holes as the blinds supplied by the building management, on the wood window frame. When they were done, the brackets allowed Tammi to “float” the rod above the window along the top of the arched brick.   Pivoting saddles gave her the ability to match the curve of the rod wherever she needed to. And since the bedroom treatment was straight, she was able to move the saddle straight up and down. We’ve been excited about this project from the beginning and now that we see the gorgeous treatments Tammi designed and created, we are amazed.

“I am working with Anita at Helser Bros. because they were the first ones that came to my mind to make something like this.”, Tammi

“I just got my hardware from Helser Bros and boy do they ROCK! My arch rods are gorgeous, I am squealing with delight! Like a kid in a candy store, even better…WooHoo!”, Tammi

“Check out the brackets Helser Brothers did for me. Aren’t they great?”, Tammi

Creating Fabulous Outdoor Spaces from the Ground Up with Anita Boetsma, Director of Client Relations, Helser Brothers, Inc.

Thursday July 8, 2010 11:00 AM CDT / 12:00 PM EDT

Attractive outdoor living spaces are increasingly popular. Learn how to design a perfect outdoor space for any client’s style. This webinar will cover everything from lighting to great ideas for special features. Plus, learn to specify and fabricate spectacular outdoor areas using today’s fabulous fabrics and trims. Outdoor curtains, shades, sails, pillows and cushions will be covered. Construction techniques and tips for longevity in the outdoor environment will be included. Class will cover everything from specifications, filler and fabric choices to hardware options. Don’t miss this.