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The August 25th show was all about Empty Nesters and suggestions for what they can do with their extra space (and $$$$) once all the kids are gone. We listed the top five home improvements in the three areas where empty nesters seem to spend their money: Practical Improvements, Visionary Improvements, and Indulgent Improvements. We also have the top 10 places to move if you want to downsize rather than make improvements to your empty nest. We also have some fun suggestions for using books in new and unique ways now that Kindle and Nook are taking over. And our Trend Report was about Owls. Listen in and let us know what you are doing with your extra space!   You can tune into “Ask the Design Diva” live Saturday mornings from 8 to 9 on WAVO1150AM in Charlotte, or hear it live on our “Listen” page. You can also download podcasts of every show if you’ve missed any along the way. If you are looking for help decorating your home or office, or need a fun and entertaining speaker for your next event, contact The Design Diva through her company Sensibly Chic Designs for Life. The phone number is 704.608.9424.  

  House painter extraordinaire, John Fioravanti of Avanti Painting, was in studio for our August 18th show and he shared his 23 years of knowledge about interior and exterior painting. If you have any questions about paints and painting, this is the show to listen to!   John covers prepping and painting for both interior and exterior paint jobs paint finishes  stripping wallpaper painting over wallpaper (he doesn’t suggest it) painting ceilings We also answered a number of listener’s questions about painting that had been emailed in previous to the show. Do you have any other questions you’d like answered? Leave them in the comments section below or email them to AskTheDesignDiva@gmail.com.   You can tune into “Ask the Design Diva” live Saturday mornings from 8 to 9 on WAVO1150AM in Charlotte, or hear it live on our “Listen” page. You can also download podcasts of every show if you’ve missed any along the way. If you are looking for help decorating your home or office, or need a fun and entertaining speaker for your next event, contact The Design Diva through her company Sensibly Chic Designs for Life. The phone number is 704.608.9424.

The August 11 Ask the Design Diva show was a chance to get to all of the decorating questions and answers that have been submitted by our listeners that we had not been able to answer. We pack so much information into each show we don’t always get to every decorating question, so if you’ve been waiting for your answer, this show is for you!   We answered questions on the following: How to make your kitchen look better on the cheap What are good paint colors for an outdoorsy person What kind of metal to use in bathroom What color to paint kitchen With a Chef Theme Pet-friendly window treatments 2 story foyer window solutions How to keep your pictures from hanging crooked on the wall L-shaped sofa VS. sofa and loveseat What size area rug do I need How to decorate when husband likes modern and wife likes traitional What to do above off-center sofa How can I help my house sell faster If any of those questions sound interesting to you, click the pink arrow below to listen to the show!   You can tune into “Ask the Design Diva” live Saturday mornings from 8 to 9 on WAVO1150AM in Charlotte, or hear it live on our “Listen” page. You can also download podcasts of every show if you’ve missed any along the way. If you are looking for help decorating your home or office, or need a fun and entertaining speaker for your next event, contact The Design Diva through her company Sensibly Chic Designs for Life. The phone number is 704.608.9424.

The August 4, 2012 Ask the Design Diva was all about window treatments. Our trend report was about using more than one fabric in a single drapery panel. Michelle Minardi of Carolina Premier Window Film was in the studio sharing all the ways 3M Window Film can help reduce glare and energy usage in our homes. With the heat wave like it’s been, that is good advice to get! She also mentioned that there was an added benefit: window film will help keep your window treatments, furniture, and flooring from getting damaged by the sun. We also talked about embellishing store bought curtains to make them better fit your decor, a way to fool the eye with window treatments, and a basic primer of home-made, ready-made, semi-custom, and custom draperies so you will know all of the options available to you.   You can tune into “Ask the Design Diva” live Saturday mornings from 8 to 9 on WAVO1150AM in Charlotte, or hear it live on our “Listen” page. You can also download podcasts of every show if you’ve missed any along the way. If you are looking for help decorating your home or office, or need a fun and entertaining speaker for your next event, contact The Design Diva through her company Sensibly Chic Designs for Life. The phone number is 704.608.9424.

We welcomed Absolute Heating and Air Conditioning to the studio for our July 28th Show and they shared ways to save money on your air conditioning bill, and also the best way to maintain your air conditioner for long lasting dependability. They have really simplified taking care of your heating and air conditioning needs, I would definitely give them a call at 803-789-3064. Continuing our energy saving theme, I gave instructions for making “Draft Dodgers” to keep drafts from seeping in below your doors and examples of window treatments that will also help reduce the drain on your power bill. Oh, and do you have a sweet tooth? You can put your hot car to good use by baking chocolate chip cookies in it. Listen up and learn!   The Design Diva can be hired to help you with your home or office by contacting Sensibly Chic Designs for Life at 704.608.9424.

The Design Diva’s company, Sensibly Chic Designs for Life always says you don’t have to spend a million bucks to look like you did. The July 21, 2012 show gives ideas, tricks, and tips for getting the most out of your dollar when shopping flea markets and yard sales. Learn the Diva’s 10 favorite Flea Markets across the country, and ways to prepare for your trip.

Color was the topic of choice for the July 14, 2012 show. This one you need to follow along with the blog post as the podcast goes on, because you just aren’t going to understand the color pairing without the visual. Don’t fret, we’ve got plenty of pictures to help you along!   The Design Diva can be hired to help you with your home or office by contacting Sensibly Chic Designs for Life at 704.608.9424.  

With summer in full swing, our July 7, 2012 show turned its attention to decorating the outdoors. Listen and learn to divide and conquer your outdoor spaces and create separate rooms for different activities. We also share 10 home improvements you do not want to waste your money on!

In honor of Independence Day next week, we dedicated out June 30, 2012 show to sharing examples of traditional and non-traditional patriotic decor, along with information about the resurgence and importance of buying American made goods.  

We had so many questions in our inbox we devoted the entire show on June 23, 2012 to catching up on our backlog of emails. Some of the questions were about carpet, paint colors, painting paneling, kitchen cabinets, and floor planning. Listen and learn!  

In honor of Father’s Day, our June 16, 2012 show was full of fun information and the top trends to consider when creating your very own man cave.  

Our June 9, 2012 show was a thorough examination of all types of flooring options. Today we’ll learn the best and worst things about each type of flooring and what area of your home each type is best for.

Our June 2, 2012 show went over all you need to create a perfect Master Bedroom, an ingenious way to make a nightstand that will give you extra storage, and how you can create a healthy Master Bedroom environment.  

This show was all about the different kinds of lighting you need in your home: ambient, task, and accent lighting.

We get so many questions emailed in we don’t get a chance to answer them all, so today we are doing an “All-Question Show” and hopefully catching up on the backlog of questions piling up.