Community Corner

Avon Businesses Big Part of Great Big Home & Garden Expo

Get inspired for home improvement and gardening at this huge show

February's a short month and spring will be here soon.

It's a great time to think about what projects you want to tackle in your home and yard this year. And , which opens Saturday at the I-X Center in Cleveland, provides tons of inspiration.

Avon businesses play a big role in the show.

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designed and built the Idea Home, featured in the video. The 2,400 square foot Craftsman-style ranch shows some key trends in home design and building. One of them, partner Andy Simons said, is that homes are shrinking.

Whether it's the economy, energy costs or just not wanting to take care of that much house, Simons said, he's seeing that homeowners are less inclined to want homes over 3,000 square feet.

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Single-story living, with the master suite separate from the other bedrooms and the option for an in-law suite that can accomodate aging parents or adult kids boomeranging back to the nest after college, is another trend featured in the Idea Home.

The open living/dining/kitchen area is the continuation of a trend that's been going on for a long time, Simons said. That's the space for families to come together, rather than have one parent in the kitchen cooking, the other in the living room, and the kids in the family room. Also, the open space is better for entertaining.

"You can have 20 people in here easily," Simons said.

Keep an eye out for organizing ideas that you can incorporate in your own home, such as a charging station for phones and other devices, an area off the garage for kids to put their stuff when they come in, and a built-in home bar.

Avon landscapers are featured in the Garden Showcase, where the theme this year is classic television shows. theme is The Yogi Bear Show. will create a landscape inspired by The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams. 

The show runs through Feb. 12.


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