Precious Rubies

By Tim Petree, BST Concierge for Whittington Creek Life, (N2 Publishing) January 2011 edition

R&R Custom Draperies hand crafts and installs window treatments by combining simple, elegant design with personal service. Product lines include draperies, shades, bedspreads, throws, pillows…and just about anything that requires custom sewing.

The company is actually a second-generation family business with a twist.

While Ruby Ramsey is the owner of R&R Custom Draperies, the R&R in the company name is not Ruby’s monogram. The R’s stand for two ladies named Ruby – the current owner and her grandmother who started the business decades ago.

Ruby Lee Ramsey began her apprenticeship in sewing custom draperies at the age of 16 in “Grandmother’s Real Life School of Drapery Design.” Nanny Ruby and Ruby Lee provided window treatments for homes and businesses all over upper East Tennessee and southeastern Kentucky.

Eventually, life dealt Ruby Ramsey a tough blow, and the sewing stopped.

“When Nanny Ruby passed away, I was lost and put all of the business’s supplies into storage,” the younger Ruby explains. “I spent several years trying to find myself, doing other things.”

After a hiatus and time to heal, Ruby decided to follow her heart and return to sewing. When former customers heard that Ruby was back in business, R&R Custom Draperies grew rapidly.

Projects are still sewn on the same machines Nanny Ruby used 40 years ago. It’s still a family operation. Ruby’s husband of 34 years, Darrell, and their two children help with various aspects of the business. Ruby holds dear the values her grandmother instilled in her.

“Each project I do is a reflection of her,” says Ramsey.

Customers who have installations from R&R Custom Draperies give Ruby an excellent rating in quality of work and eye for detail. Ruby prides herself in getting to know her client and making sure that her design matches the customer’s needs, style, and personality.

Avoiding the home office? There, there, now.

Do you have an office in your home for your business? Better yet, do you own a home-based business? Now, be honest: Do you DREAD going into that home office to work?

Many an entrepreneur's creativity and productivity have been stifled by their depressing surroundings. The good news is that if you spruce up your surroundings, you generally energize your professional output as well.

Start 2011 off right by making these "environmental tweaks" to your office now:

1. Get organized!

Purchase pretty baskets or canvas bins at your local discount store and organize your "stuff" that inevitably accumulates in the office. A friend of mine runs a marketing business out of her home (photo above) and has canvas boxes with lids for everything from software, office supplies and note cards to crafting projects and homework supplies for the kids. She uses larger canvas baskets for computer hardware, cords, cables and all the things she wants to hide from view but easily find when she needs them. So, what used to be overloaded and crowded bookshelves are now neat and easy to find "treasure boxes of supplies" (her term, not mine!).

2. Slap on a fresh coat of paint.

Google any decorating blog and at top of every low-cost-high-impact decorating to-do list will be "painting." Changing up the color of your walls can make your furniture, artwork and even mouldings look new and different. Before painting, make sure you wipe down the walls to get rid of what is likely years worth of build-up. But don't fret! Here's a handy little trick to try: Wet a Swiffer cloth, attach it to your Swiffer long-handled floor duster and run it up and down your walls. Voila! It's amazing (and the best tip I learned this year!).

3. Re-arrange your furniture.

You don't necessarily have to buy new furniture. Just try to "relocate" the furniture you have. Hate the thought of moving furniture again and again until you get it just right? Well, referring back to my little anal-retentive marketing friend, give this a try: Measure each wall in the room, (including the proper location & size of windows, doors and the like). Then, measure the length and depth of each piece of furniture. Using some graph paper, draw the room to scale (properly placing windows, doorways, etc.). Using the same scale and some construction paper, cut out pieces of furniture. Now play (it's like a grown-ups Barbie Dream House!). Try different placements within the room, taking into account ingress/egress, lighting, etc. You'll happen upon a layout you like and your helpers will be thrilled that they only have to move heavy items once! Oh, and another tip: Try to leave enough space between furniture pieces and walls for your vacuum to do its job.

4. Speaking of lighting...

Another small change that can make an enormous impact in a room is proper lighting. Ideally, you are in a space that gets some natural light, but with or without it, proper overhead, decorative and task lighting is essential to both productivity and mood. The lighting should be installed with attention to its adequacy at different times of the day and night. In addition to being kind to your eyes and helping your productivity, there is something to be said for the feeling of being bathed in the warm glow of light.

5. And MY favorite part: WINDOW TREATMENTS!

Even if everything else in your room is neutral, your window treatments are your chance to infuse your personality and style into your room. Whether through color, texture, layers, coordinated pillows and seat cushions and the like, this is where the drama, softness, creativity, fun, charm or other tone you are trying to create in the room is showcased. Ideally, you want to work with someone who has access to a variety of different fabrics and materials for you to experience, and who is not afraid to guide you in choosing the custom ingredients for your pièce de résistance!

Five steps. That's it! Now get busy and here's to a productive and creative 2011!

Cold weather doesn't mean there aren't happy campers!

Take it from "happy camper" Carla Cole-Peters:

One word I can use to describe my draperies..."WOW!" Ruby took my windows from "blah" to WOW in a matter of a few weeks.

She is such a delight to work with and she KNOWS her window treatments! I had no idea what to do in my two rooms. She took one look and she knew. Boy, did she ever!

She has completed my home and I have met a beautiful person - inside and out - in the process.

Thank you SO MUCH Ruby!

Thank YOU Carla *blush*

Let fashions inspire your decorating choices

Most people are tuned into the latest fashion trends, or at least to those in their own region. But did you know that home decorating trends typically reflect what is happening in the world of clothing fashion?

It can be about the economy

There is no doubt that we are experiencing difficult economic times. The good news is that there are lots of affordable options for decorating your windows and more. Perhaps fueled by the energy tax credit, an increase in the sale of new windows has translated into new and affordable window decorating options. Even custom treatments come with better choices of fabrics, hardware and other materials nowadays. So, you can still go the custom route to get exactly what you want AND be a smart shopper at the same time.

Speaking of custom..

While the custom route is becoming more flexible and affordable, it still says “luxurious!” Choosing custom window treatments might, in fact, be one of the easiest and most affordable ways to add the element of luxury to a room. Your treatments frame the room, hug the room, and set its tone. Go “luxurious” with your windows and you can cut bigger corners elsewhere in the room. The easiest way to convey that sense of luxury is with texture. Look at linen, silk, velvet and other textured fabrics to set a luxurious tone to your room.

Naturally bold

When most people visualize “earthy” in decorating, they think of earth-tones. While these neutral earth-toned colors can, indeed, add a natural feel to a room, so can natural fabrics and materials. Silk and linen work well in this category as well as adding luxury to a space. So do materials and fabrics made of wool, cotton, linen, hemp, ramie and jute. Leather is also an option worth considering. To add that natural feel to a space through other materials and furnishings in the room, consider bamboo, reed, and other natural, beautiful types of wood.

Finally, it’s all about BLACK

Well, sort of anyway. Whether it’s tones of black, gray or brown, the darker neutrals are the stars of the show in fashion and in home decorating. All are classic (aka, always in style) and as such, make great base colors to combine with “pops” of more “trendy” colors than can be frequently changed. For example, use your pops of oranges, lime greens and teal blues in your pillows, throws and other easily changeable accessories.

One other tip: Remember that while bold colors and patterns are the “trend du jour,” use them in ways that can be easily interchanged and evolve into something else in the future.

(Photo credit: Jatin Kampani)

Tiny windows need love, too!

Have you ever stayed in a really nice hotel room? The kind where you walk into the room and instantly notice an entire wall of beautiful, rich-looking draperies?

Instinctively, you walk over and throw open the curtains – expecting to take in a panoramic view of the city through your own, private wall of windows - only to find a teeny, tiny window instead?

If you have experienced this ritual, then you are familiar with the illusion. Better yet, you know that the illusion works!

The same technique can be used to create a wider, taller, more prominent window in your own home. It can even shift the focal point of a room to allow you to change your furniture layout in ways you had never previously imagined.

For example, a large, heavy dresser with a tall mirror on the wall opposite a tiny, nondescript window would look unbalanced. But create the illusion of a bigger, taller window and “voila!” You’ve brought instant balance to your room.

The illusion is created through creative hardware placement and layering. A decorative rod, complete with substantial finials, can be placed near the ceiling (or crown molding, if your room has it). The length of the rod can exceed the width of the window to the extent needed for balance.

From there, it’s just a matter of layering sheers, draperies, scarves, etc. The layering helps to create an elegant, rich look with visual interest. Special touches, such as fringe, beads and tie-backs add to the drama. Using a strong color or pattern at the top of the treatment draws the eye upward and creates the illusion of more height in the room.

Want to learn more? Email ruby.randrcustomdraperies@yahoo.com for a complimentary consultation. Your tiny window deserves it!

Bare windows? What to do, what to do?

Going from "bare" to "wow" doesn't have to be overwhelming. Whether you plan to dress your windows yourself or hire a professional to help you, use these basic steps to get help wrap your mind around the project:

1. First and foremost, consider function, function, and function! What purpose does the window dressing need to achieve? The primary purpose might be privacy (as in a bedroom or bathroom), darkening the room for sleeping, purely aesthetic in nature, or a mix of these or other functions. Defining the function of the new window dressing will automatically narrow your choices.
2. Next, what is the feel you want to create - or the theme you want to continue - in the room? Don't fall into the trap of feeling like your tastes must fit into a defined genre (i.e., traditional, contemporary, modern, etc.). Defining your own style will make the space more personal and comfortable to you. Keep in mind that while the window decor is important to setting the tone of a room, it is only a part of what will give a room its personality. Think about how you want the windows to work with the colors, furnishings, flooring, art, accessories and other fabrics in the room. Perhaps they need to be updated as well?
3. Now it's time to consider your budget. There is no use looking at fabrics and trimmings unless you have already defined your budget. Too many people have had their hearts broken after falling in love with their "must-have" fabrics, then realizing they'd need to triple or quadruple their budgets in order to introduce them into their homes. Whether working with your favorite fabric or home store, or you have hired a professional to make your window treatments for you, be sure to communicate your budget up-front.
4. Here's the fun part! Choose some sample fabrics, beads, tassels, rods, finials, the works! Place the pieces-parts in the room and live with them for a few days to really get a feel of what speaks to you. Don't be afraid to swap things out and try unusual combinations. Whether you believe it or not, you'll know it when you see it.
5. Next to the functionality, the installation of the treatments is perhaps the most important step. If you plan to do-it-yourself, make sure you have the proper ladders, tools, hardware and help. If you've hired out your project, most quality professionals will supervise the installation and stand by their work.

So there you have it!

• Function
• Atmosphere/Tone
• Budget
• Materials
• Installation

Use these guidelines as your checklist and - whether doing it yourself of working with a professional - you'll decrease your frustration and increase the likelihood of a finished product you'll love.

New home? New drapes!

New homes provide the perfect "blank canvas" for custom draperies and accessories. We were humbled by a recent testimonial we received from Rose Ann Caylor after helping to make her new home her own:

"I would highly recommend R & R Custom Draperies to anyone who wants high-quality work done in their home. I have a new house and needed draperies. I called R & R and they came to my home promptly. I really needed help choosing my designs and fabrics. They were great about giving me suggestions and helping me decide what I wanted. My draperies are beautiful and the quality is the best I have ever seen. I have not only found a great family-owned company, by I also made some wonderful friends!"

Thank you, Rose Ann, for the compliments and for emphasizing several key points about our business that really set us apart from the competition.

First, WE are in the business of designing and sewing custom draperies and accessories...and we know that YOU are not! We don't expect you to have all the answers. We consult with each client individually and on an ongoing basis to really pinpoint how they want their draperies to look, what function(s) they want them to serve, what will work with the design of the house, how to keep the project within a desired budget, etc. That's our job! The better we do in educating and involving our clients on the front-end, the happier they are with the end result.

Second, because we are small and local, we are meticulous! Each material choice, every cut and all of the stitches involved in fabricating a piece are painstakingly considered and executed. No detail is too small, and our elegant, quality end-products prove it.

Finally, one of the reasons we are able to take such a hands-on approach to our business is because we are family-owned. The craft of sewing is a family "gift" that has been - and continues to be - passed down through generations. Because our name is on the business, the business is our name! We take your satisfaction as seriously as we take our own reputation.

So, if you're in a new home and are ready to dress it up, contact us for your free consultation and estimate. Welcome to the neighborhood...we can't wait to meet you!