Should You Stage Your Home to Sell?

The concept of staging your home to sell is not only catching on in a big way these days, but, it seems to be resulting in many success stories.

Home staging is designed to sell your home faster — and maybe even for more money! It is a way to get your home looking its best without all the stress and hassle of getting it together on your own.

Don’t have time to clear away treasured belongings, touch up the paint in the living room or even remove your children’s artwork from the refrigerator door? Staged Homes of Indy is one of several groups that can help you out!

Emily Brenner and Polly Reasner have been staging homes in and around Geist for a few years now and have seen some great results. For about $150 a room, they can do as much or as little as you like—mainly rearranging what you have and bringing in what you don’t have.

I recently stopped in on one of their “staged” homes on Courageous Drive in Feather Cove. The home had been on the market once before and didn’t sell. Owner Andrea Martin decided to take it off the market, then call Staged Homes of Indy. Now the home is back on the market in a “new light.”

Emily and Polly started their work at the front door. “Research shows potential buyers make up their minds about a home within the first 90 seconds of entering a home,” says Reasner. “Talk about the importance of making a good first impression!”

Inside, they rearranged the living room to take advantage of the lovely wooded view outside. The designing duo also removed some furniture from the sunroom to open up the space, and then added draperies and bedding to the master bedroom and color coordinated towels in the master bath. A little artwork was added to the dining room, and the kitchen was cleared except for a beautiful platter of artichokes for display.

Homeowner Martin says her teenage son at first had a little trouble living in the cleaned up surroundings, but, other than that, they love the home’s new look!

Realtor Connie Dellen says she has seen traffic increase significantly since the Martin home was staged. “People like to shop online these days, and if they like the pictures they see, then they will make the trip to see the home,” says Dellen.

In a market where homeowners are trying all kinds of things to sell their home, home staging can save you time and headaches for a price that may be worth it to you when you see the SOLD sign finally in your front yard!

HSE Senior Teaches ‘Artsy Fartsy’ Summer Camp

Wouldn’t any kid love going on a nature hike to gather supplies for print making? Or how about designing Fourth of July hats, flags and confetti poppers? With Independence Day approaching, it seems appropriate to mention a Hamilton Southeastern High School student who exemplifies a teen with a very independent, motivated and energetic personality.

Ellen Spurgeon has strived to make a difference in kids’ lives by volunteering her time as an art teacher for the Boys & Girls Club since last year where she started an art class called Artsy Fartsy.

“During the class, kids get to explore and discover their artistic intelligence and creativity, as well as have fun!” says Ellen, who never expected her time with the children to be so rewarding. “Being involved with this program, as well as other volunteer programs, inspired me to push Artsy Fartsy to the next level — summer camp!”

Ellen has taken numerous art classes, including sculpture, 3-D and drawing. You may recall her name from winning the 2005 Fishers Freedom Festival T-shirt Design Contest. She also has won other awards for her artwork.

Her Artsy Fartsy camp offered at the Boys & Girls Club runs from June 10th - August 7th. The classes are carefully designed for children ages 3 to 10. Some of the exciting projects planned for the kids are making colorful papier-mache’ piñatas, designing T-shirts with paint-filled squirt guns, designing artsy stationary, making bubble prints, and creating colorful mobiles made of tissue paper to resemble stained glass.

Hurry! Classes are filling up. If you would like to learn more about the camp and see the details, you may visit www.artsyfartsykids.org. To reserve a spot for your child for any of these exciting Artsy Fartsy classes, you may contact Ellen via email: ellen@artsyfartsykids.org or by calling 777-9701.

Kids Try Out New O’Pen BIC Sailboat at ISC Tour Stop

The Indianapolis Sailing Club in Geist was the proud host of the O’pen BIC Energized Sailing Tour Saturday, May 31st — the first stop on the Midwest tour. On display was the new O’Pen BIC sailboat, described as the latest, hottest boat to hit sailing — “a true dinghy that heels”!

They aren’t really made out of BIC pens, but BIC is behind the new concept. Known for making kayaks and other wind surfers, BIC is introducing the new O’Pen Bic boat to kids and teens who love to sail. Eight-year-old Jordan Brokowski of Geist didn’t miss the chance to check it out!

Jordan has been sailing at ISC since last year and proved to be experienced enough take the new boat out on his own for a test run while his mom, Carla, watched from the shore.

“I was a little worried at first…it was so windy,” says Carla. “But when the boat flipped in the wind, I knew this boat must be easier to handle because Jordan got it upright quickly — my husband I thought it may not have been that easy to do with a Sunfish!”

Jordan said he really enjoyed the ride. “It (the BIC boat) was a little slippery, and when it flips on you, it is hard to walk over … so you have to swim around to the other side and right it up,” he said.

The boat is plastic (instead of fiberglass), features kid-sized hand grips on the sides, and sports a clear sail—which is being credited for the fewer bumps and collisions during test runs at several East Coast Regattas.

The fast, planning hull of the O’Pen BIC is said to offer a dynamic sailing experience, but the boat is also designed to be easier to right after capsizing. It also is self-bailing, so kids don’t have to work so hard to get the water out after they’ve tipped over. Sure, they still get wet, but what kid really cares about that?

The O’Pen Bic Sailboat retails for about $3,000.

A big thanks goes out to the Indianapolis Sailing Club for providing an opportunity for aobut 25 kids to try something new, improve their sailing skills and enjoy a little early summer sailing on Geist in a hot new sailboat!

If you’d like to learn more about ISC or enroll your kids in this summer’s Sailing camps, you can stop by June 21st for the ISC Open House (11325 Fall Creek Road) for more information and to take a sail on one of their boats skippered by an experienced ISC sailor.

Free Bowling until August 23rd for Kids under 18

Select bowling centers — including Woodland Bowl on East 96th Street — are participating in the first ever “Kids Bowl Free” program. This program is designed to give back to the community and provide a safe, secure, and fun way to spend the summer.

Each child is able to bowl 2 free games a day, all summer long, courtesy of the participating bowling centers, along with the schools and organizations. There is no cost to particpate, and signing up is quick and easy.

Just complete an online registration form at www.kidsbowlfree.com, and your kids are on their way to bowling fun this summer.

The program is available at the following bowling centers:

• Woodland Bowl - 3421 E. 96th St. Indianapolis IN 46240
• Western Bowl - 6441 W. Washington St. Indianapolis IN 46241
• Southern Bowl - 1010 U.S. Highway 31 South Greenwood IN 46143
• Jubilee Bowl - 7420 N. Michigan Rd. Indianapolis IN 46268
• Expo Bowl - 5261 Elmwood Drive, Indianapolis, IN 46203

Two Free Games of bowling anytime lanes are available (Open to Close).
Starts Sunday, April 20, 2008 and ends Saturday, August 23, 2008. Not to be used with any other coupon offer. One coupon per person per day. Not
valid during Cosmic Bowling. Not to be used for field trips. Must be 18 years of age or younger. ID may be required. Reservations recommended but not required. Call (317)465-8484 to reserve your lanes.

Tornado Victims Need Your Help

Local Pastor Adrienne Holmes (featured in our May newsletter) is spearheading efforts to meet the needs of our Indianapolis neighbors who lost everything in last weekend’s tornado, which ripped apart an apartment complex at 38th and Mitthoefer. Admirals Bay Residents Phillip and Lorene Graves have volunteered to pick up donations from the Geist area and transport them to Bell’s Chapel Church.

The victims, many uninsured, are in desperate need of basic items including:

• diapers
• non-perishable food items (tuna packs, peanut butter, etc.)
• clothing (mens, womens and children’s)
• towels
• bedding
• furniture
• Wal-mart (or other store) gift cards

Items may be dropped off between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. at:
Bell’s Chapel church, 10002 East 42nd Street, Indianapolis (NE corner of 42 & Mitthoeffer),

or you may contact Lorene and Phillip Graves at 695-1058 to arrange pick up or drop off of donated items.

Following is an email sent by Lorene Graves, explaining what she witnessed as she dropped off some furniture to tornado victims:

One of my neighbors, Bishop Adrienne Holmes, heads a church just 5 miles from our house, which I visit to improve my perspective into how “close to the edge” so many Indy residents live. I visited her church today for a huge dose of perspective. Bell’s Chapel is less than 1/2 mile from the Apartment complex that was devastated during last Friday’s storm. Bishop Adrienne and her church are in overdrive, in their familiar role of supporting the neighborhood. Today when I dropped off a load of baby furniture, it was being claimed by a storm victim even before we even finished unloading our haul. I saw that Bishop Adrienne was barefoot and learned that she’d just given her shoes to another storm-victim.

The need is great for hundreds of mostly uninsured families, as they struggle to get back on their feet, or just survive.