Quick Halloween Decorations

Is your front porch lacking in the Halloween department? It’s easy to lose track of time to decorate for the holiday, but you don’t want your house looking unattractive to trick-or-treaters, right? After all, the more trick-or-treaters you have, the less candy you’ll be left with (oh, darn) when the night is over—so recruit the kids and try some of these fun Halloween decorating ideas from HGTV.

Cat Pumpkins

This one is super easy. Grab some medium sized pumpkins, black paint, a white Sharpie, craft foam and a hot glue gun. Paint the pumpkins black, cut out black ears, pink nose and white whiskers out of foam, and glue them on. Spooky.

Cookie Cutter Pumpkin Carving

It’s as easy as it sounds. Dump the tarp, various blades, and impossibly difficult stencils. After you gut the pumpkin, grab your favorite cookie cutters like ghosts, cats, stars and moons, and use a rubber mallet to make your way through the pumpkin. Done!

Pumpkin Totem

Head to the store and grab the following: 3 faux pumpkins of the same(ish) size, black craft ribbon, black and white acrylic paint, a paint brush, and a glue gun. Take your first pumpkin and set it on the ground. Take the middle pumpkin and cut a hole in the bottom and place it over the first pumpkin’s stem (we’re stacking here – following?). Do the same for the third and glue the pumpkins together. Next, grab that ribbon and paint and create fun faces.

Trash Bag Spider Webs

Chances are, no shopping is needed for this easy decoration if you have black plastic bags, scissors, and Scotch Tape on hand. Making these involves quite a bit of folding a cutting, so here is the full set of directions.

Do you have any other fun and easy ideas to share?

Fall Home Checklist

As much as we hate to admit it, the warm days have gone and fall is upon us. While the temperatures are still tolerable, now is the best time to prep your house for cooler days (rain, sleet, and – yes – snow). We know how quickly the weather can change, so get out there and use this maintenance checklist

Exterior List

Number one on the list should be a roof check. Grab some binoculars if you can’t see well enough from the ground and a trip up is out of the question.  While you’re out there, do a perimeter check of all siding. Look for cracks and holes and repair the damages you see (or hire a contractor to help you out).

If you have a chimney or fireplace, have them inspected and cleaned. The same goes for your gutters. Fallen leaves from trees can build up and cause major backups when the rain and snow (there’s that S word again!) comes.

They’re a pain to wind up and store, but you should really stow away your sprinklers and hoses. Make sure they’re not full of water first, and toss them in the garage until next year.

It’s important to take a look at your landscaping, too. Loose branches on trees can cause serious damage if they fall around (or on) your home, and piles of leaves can cause outside mold very quickly.

Interior List

Check for drafts around your home on the edges of windows and around doors. Can’t tell if there’s a draft? Grab a candle and run the flame around the window or door and if it flickers, there’s a good chance you need to replace a seal or repair caulking.

Hire an HVAC contractor to test your furnace for leaks and check heading efficiency. The last thing you need is for your furnace to need a tune-up when it gets really cold. It’s a good idea to run a CO2 check at the same time.

Invest in a programmable thermostat if you do not have one already. When you’re not home, set the temperature lower so you can save money on energy bills.

Stock up on batteries and replace all batteries in smoke detectors and CO2 devices and make sure they work properly.

Things To Do In Rochester This Fall

It’s starting to get a little brisk and rainy, but there’s still a ton to do for families in Rochester. Whether you’re just moving to the area or have been a resident for many years, we’ve compiled a list of our favorite fall activities to keep you busy this season.

Wayne County Apple Tasting Trail

Location: Apple Tasting Trail, Lyons, NY

When: October 1-31

Taste delicious, locally grown apples, and delicious cider.

Barnyard Adventure at Brown’s Berry Patch

Location: Brown’s Berry Patch, Waterport, NY

When: Now through November

Ride farm tractors, watch duck races, adventure through a rope maze.

ZOOBOO

Location: Seneca Park Zoo

When: 10 AM to 4 PM Saturdays and Sundays (Oct. 18, 19, 25, & 26)

Take the kids trick-or-treating and support orangutan conservation.

Holiday Hollow

Location: Just off exit 48 (Darien Lake Exit) off the 90

When: every weekend in October (http://holidayhollow.com/Holiday_Hollow/Show_Times_and_Prices.html)

Check out the haunted parlor, shop for pumpkins, and watch various plays.

Fall Sky Ride

Location: Bristol Mountain

When: 12 PM to 4PM Saturdays and Sundays in October (Oct. 18, 19, 25 & 26)

Ride the scenic Comet Express chairlift to the summit of Bristol Mountain.

And here’s a list of our favorite places to pick apples:

G&S Orchards – Walworth, NY

Lagoner Farms – Williamson, NY

Morgan’s Farm Market – Marion, NY

Countertop Materials

Choosing the right countertop material for your kitchen or bathroom is an important decision. After all, it’s where you clean up and prepare food, and also has an effect on your home’s value.

Photo Cred: interiordesignable.com

 

Granite. Granite countertops are among the most elegant materials available. They’re also among the most expensive. But if you are up for it, the natural stone has outstanding strength and other beautiful qualities. Granite is highly resistant to scratches and heat, making it an asset to cooking. One downside to granite is that it must be sealed because it is a porous stone and absorbs fluid. If not sealed, it can harbor bacteria. This only needs to be done every 10 to 15 years, however. Granite can run between $100 and $225 per square foot.

Quartz. Known as “engineered stone,” quartz countertops are made from about 90-93% quartz crystals, but are fabricated instead of cut from solid stone. Quartz countertops maintain all of the advantages of natural stone, such as durability, hardness, and beauty, in addition to overcoming stone’s natural weakness. They are not porous so they will not harbor bacteria, and come in a wider range of colors compared to granite. Less per square foot next to granite, quartz will run about $100 to $190 per square foot.

Laminate. Laminate countertops are among the most popular surfaces because of their affordability ($20 to $50 per square foot) and widest range of colors and patterns. Comprised of hard particleboard core and layers of plastic laminate bonded over top, laminate surfaces are tough and fairly durable.

Butcher Block. Rising in popularity in recent years are butcher block counter tops . They are excellent surfaces for food preparation and are often used in conjunction with other surfaces like granite and quarts. Many choose to surface an island with butcher block, while countertops under cabinets remain another material. Because of the wide variety of woods available, prices range anywhere from $30 to $200 per square foot.

It’s important to consider how much maintenance you’re willing to accommodate when selecting a countertop. Families with young children often opt for less expensive surfaces, while avid foodies require more elaborate options.

Saving for a Down Payment

Saving for a down payment takes major commitment. It can be difficult to find ways in your current budget to make cuts, but with a little bit of discipline and the support of your spouse and family, you can get it done. Here are ten tips we collected from our experts here at Faber Homes:

 

1. If it’s just you, or you and your spouse, consider moving in with family for a couple years.
2. Not a fan of living with your in-laws? Find a less expensive, one bedroom apartment. You’ll give up a bit of space, but smaller apartments are generally less expensive.
1. Are you living in the western-Rochester area? Consider building with Faber Homes and we’ll set you up with an updated apartment in Chili. We incentivize renters for each year they reside in our Blueberry Apartments with cash towards your brand new Faber Home.
3. Have a couple extra hours to spare during the evenings or weekends? Picking up a second job for a short period of time can really you help save cash quickly. Consider picking up a shift at Home Depot or Lowes, so when you’re ready to build, you can also enjoy an employee discount for furnishings!
4. Do you really need that extra outfit? Probably not. You also don’t need to eat out as often as you are now. Cutting back on these expenditures can really go a long way.
5. If you’re contributing to your 401K at work, consider scaling back a percent or two just while you’re saving. Instead, boost contributions to your IRA. The first-home exemption rule allows individuals to use up to $10,000 in IRA funds toward the purchase of a first home without incurring the 10 percent early withdrawal penalty.
6. Open a separate savings account. This will help you track your savings toward this one, specific goal.
7. Paying off debts is definitely a good thing, but if you can spare that extra monthly payment towards your balances, toss that money into your new savings account until you have enough for a down payment. Then go back to paying off those debts.
8. Inherited money and tax returns should go straight into savings accounts to earn interest. Keep those dollars out of sight so you aren’t tempted to use them!
9. Can you go without cable, Internet, or perhaps a smartphone that requires a data plan?
10. Don’t rule out going without a car for a year or two. It might seem drastic, but it will save you thousands. If you have two cars, consider making due with one.

These are our top ten tips for saving money for a down payment. Do you have any others to share that are working for you?

Henrietta Highlights

Considering moving to Henrietta? Home to every major retail store and restaurant you could possibly need, Henrietta is also home to fabulous schools, churches, community centers and more. If you build with Faber in our growing Berkshire Park development, here’s a quick list of some nearby amenities.

 

Shopping & Dining

Applebee’s

Ashley Furniture

Babies R Us

Bed Bath & Beyond

Best Buy

Buy Buy Baby

Carrabba’s Italian Grill

Chipotle

Christmas Tree Shops
Dairy Queen

DiBella’s

Dicks Sporting Goods

Famous Footwear

Golf Galaxy

Home Depot

Kohls

Lowes

MacGreggor’s

McDonalds

Mighty Taco

Olive Garden

Palmer’s Food Market

Peppermints

Petsmart

Red Lobster

Red Robin

Taco Bell

Target

Texas Roadhouse

Tops

Ulta Beauty

Wegmans

Wendy’s

Worship

Henrietta United Church of Christ

Good Sheperd Church

Calvary Community Church

Guardian Angels Church

Pinnacle Road Baptist Church

Ridgeland Community Church

Parks & Activities

Bally Total Fitness

Bounce Aerobics

Breese Park (in Berkshire Park!)

Curves

LA Fitness

Lookup Dog Park

King’s Bend Park

Planet Fitness

Tinker Nature Park

Veteran’s Memorial Park

Media Room Must Haves

It’s the room in your house for relaxing, dishing up some popcorn and watching movies. Some may call it a man cave, others: a family room. No matter what you call it, every home needs a comfy media room. So get ready to design… here are some tips to make your perfect media room.

 Photo Cred: homeit.com

For basement entertaining, consider light-colored flooring like laminate wood or vinyl. This will help brighten up the space void of natural light, and make the room look larger. For a more masculine look, paint the walls a dark blue, grey, green or even red.

A variety of seating options will allow you to move things around and constantly update your space. Couches for lounging, bean bag chairs for tossing around, and even high-top tables for cocktail parties or watching the football game.

Lighting is another important feature to consider. If you have low-hanging ceilings, consider building fluorescent lights into the paneling, or even track lighting for a more modern look. For taller ceilings, tray lighting can add a special ambiance.

If you’re going for a movie theatre-inspired room, opt for dark furniture, blackout lights, and red window treatments. While a 60-inch television is everyone’s wish, high definition projectors (onto a white wall) can be a better alternative. Toss a starry-night sky mural on the ceiling, a popcorn machine in the corner, and movie posters on the walls and you’re in business.

Don’t forget the kids. Without a designated play area in your home, toys and games tend to pile up everywhere, so square off a section for the kids and keep everything away and tidy so you can enjoy your media room space.