Kristal Kraft ~Denver Real Estate~720-279-4599

Homeowners sometimes get so involved with keeping the interior of the home nice and neat, they often forget the exterior!

In the winter months most people enter and exit their own homes via the garage door, thus never giving a second thought to shoveling the walk.

Many communities will send out a painful reminder in the form of a summons. Not shoveling the sidewalk can actually be a crime!

When working with my clients as a buyer's agent, I tend to expect to walk thru some snow. It's not what we prefer to do nor do I want to risk my client's "life and limb" by traversing on an icy walk!

Of course we do what we must, but doing so doesn't put the buyer in the best frame of mind.

The best solution is for the owner to be prepared to remove the snow and ice. Keep a snow shovel and ice remover (salt) handy.

If the house is vacant, arrange for an energetic teenager in the area to stop by to keep the walk clean.

Doing so will provide the best first impression of the home, which is what we all strive for when selling a home.

Homeowners become a master at the first impression and your home will sell quicker. And that as Martha would say "is a good thing!"

Photo Credit: Nothing special here just a quick shot from the trusty ole iPhone!

The Ninth Annual Lone Tree Photographic Art Show and Sale presented by the Lone Tree Arts Commission and the Lone Tree Photography Club. This juried exhibition runs from April 16 to May 8, 2011 from 8:00 am to 8:00 pm at the Lone Tree Golf Club and Hotel, 9808 Sunningdale Boulevard, Lone Tree, Colorado.

Venusian Garden, Bruce Norman 2011 Honorable Mention Special Effects Color

Lone Tree Photographic Art Show & Sale Call for Entry Photographers are encouraged to submit up to three images by Friday, March 4, 2011 at 5:00 p.m. Entry is open to the general public. Entries cannot have appeared in a previous Lone Tree Photography Show. Entries may be submitted online or mailed on a CD with a completed prospectus to 9220 Kimmer Drive, Suite 100, Lone Tree, CO, 80124. Please visit www.cityoflonetree.com/photoshow for more details, online forms and frequently asked questions. Categories

• Color: Single photo taken as a color image with minor adjustments to the original.
• Monochrome: Single photo taken as or converted to a monochrome image with minor adjustments to the original.
• Special Effects Color: Single or group of color photo(s) significantly adjusted for obvious special effects.
• Special Effects Monochrome: Single or group of monochrome photo(s) significantly adjusted for obvious special effects.

Prizes Cash awards are estimated at $4,000. New in 2011, Best in Show winner will receive 30 days of gallery space for up to 10 images at the Lone Tree Golf Club and Hotel once the Photo Show commences. Exploring the Light 2011 Lone Tree Photographic Art Show & Sale book for purchase. With permission by artists, accepted images will be printed in an online book with photographer and image information. The book will be printed and mailed with each order. Juror Jeff Johnson has been a professional photographer for over 33 years. He earned the PPA Degrees of Master of Photography, Photographic Craftsman and Certified Professional Photographer. Jeff was also honored with three Fellowship Degrees from the Professional Photographers of Colorado. Visit Jeff’s fine art web sites at soulimagesgallery.com, soulroadtrips.com and jjportraitart.com. Deadlines

• March 4 Entries Due
• March 18 Acceptance notification
• April 14 Images Delivered (3:00am-6:00pm)
• April 16-May 8 Show Dates
• April 16 Opening Reception (4:00pm-6:00pm)
• May 8 Close of Show
• May 9 Images picked up by artists and buyers (3:00pm-6:00pm)

Real Cowboy, Tony Bruguiere 2011 Honorable Mention Color

In Denver the holidays don't end when we turn the calendar to a New Year!  In fact the fun is just beginning because every January the world comes to Denver to see the National Western Stock Show, one of the largest of it's kind in the world!

The fun begins with the traditional Parade now 17th Street.  Now this isn't any ordinary parade, it's a true Rodeo Parade complete with beautiful Rodeo Queens, horses, wagons, old-fashioned tractors and my favorite, Texan Longhorns.

They all march down 17th Street with the tall urban buildings behind them, looking very majestic and most of all patriotic.

People line the streets, most taking off for lunch hours, some hang out of office windows, but all take time to watch the parade!

Lucky for all this year as we were blessed with a balmy warm day, making viewing a parade that much more fun!

The National Western Stock Show will continue thru January 23rd.  The show offers many opportunities to see cowboys and cowgirls in action.  I particularly enjoy walking around the grounds just looking at the variety of animals, prize stock animals that come to Denver to show off.  So you know they are special!  You can see cattle of all kinds, horses, sheep, pigs, llima's even Yaks!

The Stockshow is good clean fun for the family.  I encourage you to take some time and visit this year.  If you can, be sure to have a steak at the show in celebration of being at the top of the food chain. Trust me, it will be good!

 

It's the time of year when we light up the city with festive holiday lights. If you are like me and tend to find out about things, the day AFTER they occur you will appreciate this list!

Christmas Lighting Events 2010

Denver City and County Building

The building will be lit every night starting Friday, December 3rd and will remain on until the end of the Stock Show in late January. Note: Photographers nights will occur every Sunday through December. The lights will be on from 5:45 to 10:45 each night. On Photographers nights the street lights in Civic Center park will be turned off to accommodate photography of the building.

Blossoms of Light

The Blossoms of Light occurs at the Denver Botanic Gardens on York St. They will be turned on December 3rd and run through January 2nd from 5:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. There is an admission fee of $9.50 for adults, $7.50 for seniors (+65) and kids.

Trail of Lights at Chatfield

The Trail of Lights is part of the Denver Botanic Gardens. The hours are fees are the same as the Blossoms of Light (see above).

Wild Lights at the Denver Zoo

The Wild Lights run form December 10 - January 2nd. hours from 5:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. There is an admission charge for Wild Lights, $8.00 for adults, $6.00 for seniors (+65) and kids. They have two new features this year that only happen from the 17th to 21st. Ice Carving from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. and Fire Dance from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

Living Lights (New this year!)

Living Lights is a new display this year and is inside the Butterfly Pavilion. These lights are on for only a sthort time, the advantage is that it is indoors. These lights run from December 11th to the 19th, 5:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., adults are $10.00 and senior (+65) and kids are $8.00.

Hudson Holiday

Hudson Holiday lights are at the Hudson Garde3ns on South Sante Fe Drive in Littleton and are in conjunction with MOA (Museum of Outdoor Arts) in Englewood. Last year was their first year for holiday lights. They won awards last year for creative use of lights and promise to have a better display this year. The lights are on from 5:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. The dates are Fridays and Saturdays from November 19th to December 12th, then nightly from December 17th to January 2, prices are Adults, $9.00, Seniors (+60) $8.000, Kids 4-12 $6.00.

Main Street Littleton

Main Street in Downtown Littleton is a wonder of lights running the full length of Main Street. the lights are on every night from dark to ? I'm not sure they turn them off at night. They usually run on the same schedule as the Denver City and County Building for dates.

A popular trend I've been witnessing for quite a long time now are buyers who are requesting to be located near an organic grocery store.

I discovered this trend a few years ago when I listed a home that was in close proximity to a much applauded new Whole Foods store on Hampden.  As how sometimes things happen when marketing a property, I just mentioned the distance to the new Whole Foods store.  By surprise I began to have home buying prospects call to discuss my listing.  They all referred to the grocery store!

More recently when consulting with buyers, one of their requests becomes, I want to be close to Whole Foods!  I quietly smile knowing that in the metro Denver area, we can offer many choices, not just Whole Foods, but Sprouts and Sunflower Market too!

Just to prove a point, I created a Google Map and placed all the health grocery stores I could find on it.  So if you are a fan of natural grocery stores and looking to move to metro Denver, you can see how lucky we are to have many locations to choose from!

 

View Whole Foods, Sunflower Market, Sprouts in a larger map