4 design trends to watch for at the 2014 Parade of Homes

4 design trends to watch for at the 2014 Parade of Homes

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The 2014 Salt Lake Parade of Homes begins this weekend and will feature the latest in home innovations, styles and decorating. As you tour the homes and anticipate your next dream home, there are few design trends to keep in mind.

Attention to detail

A home is a blank canvas until you add all of the trimmings. Adding enhancements such as baseboards, chair rails, crown moldings, door and window casing and panel molding transform a home into a piece of art. Paying close attention to the details that molding and trim can add to your home provides an added texture, dimension and focal points that make the home unique.

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Removing formality

For most new homebuyers an open floor plan will continue to reign supreme. Floor plans continue to eliminate traditional hallways and formal spaces and instead use rooms as ways to connect the various spaces in the home. Having rooms that flow into each other can make smaller rooms seem larger and provide more variety in the use and function of rooms. And don't forget about the added bonus of natural light that is available with an open concept home. Make wise decisions when it comes to the type of windows and doors used in the home to take advantage of the natural light and don't forget about the flow from the indoors to outdoors when you have an open concept home.

Evolution of laundry

Laundry is one of those necessary evils (we don't like it either) but it has to be done. Architects and designers are finding ways to evolve the laundry room into a functional space for much more than just washing or drying. Long gone are the dreary laundry rooms being placed in the basement or crammed into a small hallway closet—laundry rooms are now demanding a dedicated space. Laundry rooms are getting larger, storage is being improved, sometimes the mudroom and laundry room are combined, and don't forget about adding pops of color either from your choice of appliances. Color options range from the décor you choose to put in the space to a unique tile pattern for the floor or backsplash.

As you tour the Parade of Homes you may find yourself looking forward to your next load of laundry.

4 design trends to watch for at the 2014 Parade of Homes
Photo: Daybreak

Energy efficiency

Not all homebuyers consider themselves "green," but they are looking to save money on their utility bills. Along the Salt Lake Parade of Homes route you will find homes incorporating Energy Star-rated appliances, smart thermostats that connect with smartphones and the Internet as well as Energy-Star rated windows. But these products are just scratching the surface of energy-savings.

At the parade this year you'll see homes at Daybreak, the only community in Utah where every new home is built and independently tested according to the latest Energy Star Version 3.0 standard. This means that the homes are substantially more energy-efficient than other new homes.

Each new home receives a certified HERS score (kind of like a miles per gallon rating on a new car) that tells you just how efficient the home is compared to others. The homebuilders are implementing techniques into their building process to be environmentally sensitive as well as energy and resource efficient, which in turn, maximizes long-term energy savings. In fact, Daybreak has solar-powered homes that are near the light rail which make being energy-efficient and environmentally conscious easier than you think.

The Salt Lake Parade of Homes takes place August 1-16, 2014. Look for the items mentioned above incorporated into the five Daybreak homes participating, plus 25 model homes. Come out and be inspired during the 2014 Salt Lake Parade of Homes, you won't want to miss touring these homes.

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