bayweekly.com

American Property Consultants

Something’s not quite right at home, and you’d like to know what.

That’s where American Property Consultants comes in.

“We’re your independent agent. We work for you,” says president and chief inspector Dennis DiBello.

In the way of problems — what’s wrong and what can be done to make it right — DiBello says he’s seen it all in 30-plus years in engineering, inspecting, testing and diagnosing residential, commercial and industrial properties.

After Hurricane Katrina, his consultants inspected the homes of over 2000 victims in under 30 days. Their problem was getting on the road to recovery after a natural disaster.

High utility bills are today’s version of Katrina, in terms of stress. DiBello specializes in energy audits, which can be the first step in saving money and staying more comfortable in both heat and cold.

In 1996, American Property Consultants was one of Maryland’s first Home Energy Rating System raters. In 2006, American Property Consultants was one of a few small businesses recognized by EPA for completing more than 50 Energy Star Home ratings in a single year.

Disaster and energy use are big problems, but there are plenty more. American Property Consultants also inspects homes and buildings for real-estate transactions, capital reserves and housing compliance.

When you suspect something’s not quite right, you don’t have to figure out the problem. American Property Consultants will find it for you.

www.hudpass.com • 7am-4pm M–F • 800-272-7134

American Roof-Brite

Eight tiny reindeer making a yearly landing on your roof should be the least of your worries when it comes to damage. Algae, fungus and other biological agents make daily visits to the top of your house. As the biological invaders converge to eat organic matter from your roof, the creatures turn black, as part of UV resistance. Before you try to blast the black stains away, consider: Most power washers will damage existing roofing or wash off both shingles and fungi.

Enlist the expert cleaners at American Roof-Brite to wash away the teaming masses of fungi without blasting a hole in the top of your house.

“American Roof-Brite can restore the original color to virtually any type of roofing material: slate, shingles, tile and cedar shake,” says owner Tim Severson.

American Roof-Brite uses high-volume, low-pressure stain-removing equipment to dissolve algae, fugus and stains.

“Trying to remove roof stains with high-pressure washing will damage the shingles, reducing their life expectancy,” says Severson. “The algae and fungus continues to grow under and around the granules and the stains come right back.”

Beyond eradicating unwanted roof-dwellers, an American Roof-Brite cleaning can increase the longevity and enhance the appearance of your roof. Severson explains that early treatments with Roof-Brite’s stain blockers can add years to the life of your roof at “a fraction of replacement cost.”

What’s running off your roof won’t damage your lawn, as American Roof-Brite uses only eco-friendly and biodegradable chemicals in its stain-block formula.

“Some pressure washing companies use a chlorine bleach, which can temporarily remove stains but is also very harmful to the environment,” says Severson.

The last benefit of a Roof-Brite cleaning: You get to remain on the ground.

“American Roof-Brite never turns down a roof cleaning, not even the steepest roofs,” says Severson. “We once had to rent a lift to get to a roof, because it was so steep we couldn’t use a ladder. But once we were finished, it looked like a brand new roof.” Let experts teeter on the edge as they clean and save on hospital expenses.

Not to worry do it yourselfers. If you’ve already used a power washer to blast away stains — and shingles — from your roof, call American Roof-Brite’s sister company, Exterior Concepts, for a firm, fungi-free patch.

www.arb-roof.com • 126 Mayo Rd., Edgewater • Call for cleaning or consultation: 301-261-4134

Annapolis Builder / Kinnahan Contracting Inc.

Michael Kinnahan rises to the challenge.

So if your dream home needs a builder, he may be the man for the job.

See for yourself at http://www.annapolisprairiestyle.com.

A decade or so ago, Kinnahan built that $3.5 million home. It was his second project for a young couple who had been well satisfied with the first home he built for them, a nice waterfront home on pilings with a lighthouse look.

Now they wanted something special: A custom design based on Frank Lloyd Wright’s style. Amenities included period reproduction fireplace; a water feature from a fountain, through a causeway under a bridge, down a waterfall into the swimming pool; and a basement 12 feet deep with a 50 seat movie theater, including snack bar and nouveau art designs.

Whatever your dream — from custom home to additions and remodeling — Kinnahan will build it. With one of the best carpentry crews around, the cream of the crop in workmanship and fair prices. And because the Annapolis Builder team works as construction managers, the best does not need to cost any more.

Annapolis Builder will also help you start your home green revolution with solar hot water heating.

www.annapolisbuilder.com • [email protected] • 6am-6pm M-Sa • office 410-798-5487; cell 410-320-5928

Annapolis Design District

www.annapolisdesigndistrict.com

Chinquapin Round Road • Annapolis

We all know that it takes a village. The scarcer villages become, the more blithely the phrase trips off our lips. Sounds like we know what we’re missing.

In Annapolis, a dozen businesses have bonded together to make the village we’re seeking. They’ve given it a name: The Annapolis Design District. And they did it all on their own, because they understood the value they were creating.

You’ll find the Annapolis Design District along, and off, Chinquapin Round Road, from Forest Drive to West Street. In it, you’ll find everything you need to create the home of your dreams — from construction to kitchen to fine finishing touches.

That’s one of the things we miss about villages: the concentration of the shops and services we need in a single location. It made our shopping easy, gave us somewhere to go, a destination, and people we knew and relied on. Villages gave us connections, so that what we didn’t know, we’d find out, so we always knew where to go next.

Today we might call that smart shopping.

Today we know that concentration is a key element of our state’s best future, and its Smart Growth goals. We value concentration not only because it makes our lives easier … but also because it helps us live up to our values. We save open spaces. We contribute to the vitality of our commercial districts. We use less gas. We take a bit of the load off our troubled planet.

Sounds like smart business, doesn’t it? In another way, as well: District business get the benefit of each other’s support, and you find yourself linked in a network whose strength depends on its reliability.

These are businesses worth getting to know.

The Appliance Source is the place to furnish your kitchen and laundry with appliances, from the expected to the extraordinary, like steam ovens and built-in coffeemakers. “We have over 300 appliances in stock, and carry from over 30 brands, from builder to top quality,” says owner Linda Rohleder.

www.theappliancesource.com • 1823 George Ave. • 8:30am-5pm M-F; 9am-1pm Sa • 410-267-7110

Bandicoot Trading Company — Currie and Dana Mebane specialize in satisfying the home-furnishing tastes of most demanding customers: professional interior designers. But they welcome your visit, on your own or in search of a designer. Their showroom features the top lines, and they focus on American furniture makers and unusual objects — hence their name.

www.bandicoottrading.com • 1816 Margaret Ave. • 10am-5pm M-F • 410-990-4705

Beers Hardwood Floors — To his library of fine hardwoods from around the world, owner Larry Beers has added sustainable woods including bamboo, pine recovered from shipwrecks and recycled tobacco barn siding. Finishes are environmentally friendly, emitting no VOCs. Installers are skilled craftsmen who work for Beers and are trained by him; see their artistry in his showroom and online.

www.beershardwoodfloors.com • 1829 George Ave. • 8:30am-5pm M-F; 10am-2pm Sa • 410-280-3994

Design Right Kitchens does more than its name promises: Not only creative kitchens but also baths and any home area that needs cabinetry (think home theaters, for example) are planned and executed by Jim Costible’s team.

www.designrightkitchens.com • 218 Chinquapin Round Rd. • 9am-5pm M-F • 410-263-8611

Echoes and Accents is a high-end show room of all the furnishings a house needs to become a home. You can shop there affordably as well as extensively because most goods are seeking new owners after consignment. Sister owners Barbara Price and Leah Deane report owners so taken by displays at Echoes and accents that they’ve tried to rebuy their own goods.

www.annapolisfurniturestore.com • 224 Chinquapin Round Rd. • 10am-5pm Tu-Sa, Noon-5pm Su • 410-280-8800

Fresh Start Interiors adds light and life to your home: high-end soft treatments for windows — from blinds and shapes to drapes —beds and upholstry. Theresa Hollinger’s success — and your satisfaction in living in your home — starts with color, so she comes to you to select the perfect palette.

www.freshstartinteriors.com • 202 Legion Ave., Suite 3 • By appointment • 410-267-6161

In Home Stone enriches your home with nature’s masterpieces: fine stone and granite for work surfaces and beauty. Charlie Koppels cut costs by importing, and his staff of artisans assures your satisfaction with precision templating, cutting and installation.

www.inhomestone.com • 1800 Virginia Ave. • 8:30am-5:30pm M-F, 9am-2pm Sa • 410-626-2025

Kitchen Encounters — “We know that the kitchen is the center of your home,” says Annapolitan Mark White, whose family has kept you well centered since 1981. In new construction or remodeling, you drive the design, working with designers who illustrate possibilities — space, cabinetry, light, furnishings — that you match to your lifestyle and desired result.

www.kitchenencounters.biz • 202 Legion Ave. • By appointment • 410-263-4900

Modern Carpet One — Everything you need to make each floor in your home right for its purpose, comforting to your feet and beautiful to your eye — all at the price that suits your budget. Choices include from carpeting, ceramic tile, hardwood, laminate and area rugs, with many options friendly to the environment.

www.moderncarpetoneannapolis.com • 1901 West. St. • 10am-7pm M-Th, 10am-6pm F-Sa, Noon-5pm Su • 443-569-8099

River Crest Design-Build — The designer-builders of River Crest manage your home makeover — from individual problems through remodeling or restoration — so that there will be no surprises except how happy you are. “Because we do all the organization up front — with all the decisions charted on a timeline, 98 percent of our work is completed on time,” say owner Joe Duvel.

www.rivercrest.com • 202 Legion Ave.; Suite 4 • 8am-4:30pm M-F • 410-626-1241

Solas Window Tint — Tim Johnson makes it his business to fill your home, auto or boat with warm light with window films in over 70 shades to afford you solar and UV protection, energy efficiency and security.

www.solastint.com • 1932 Lincoln Dr. • 9am-7pm M-Sa • 410-280-2088

Walter Works Hardware — Walt Neese and Bernard Cooper, formerly of Baltimore, want you to have everything you need to keep home life functioning smoothly. They have every knob, hinge and brace you need, and each one is a work of art, so that quality is complete to the finishing touches.

www.walterworkshardware.com • 420 Chinquapin Round Rd. • 9am-5pm M-F; Noon-4pm Sa • 410-263-9711

Barnett & Sons HVAC

Barnett & Sons is a family business. On the one hand, that means that three generations carry out the business of servicing, repairing and replacing heating and air conditioning equipment in homes and businesses in Anne Arundel, Calvert, Charles, Prince George’s and St. Mary’s counties — and beyond.

On the other hand, it means Barnett & Sons’ customers can expect to be treated like family: With the utmost respect, consideration and honesty.

“We do our best to keep our customers for years to come,” says owner Paul Barnett, speaking from 37 years experience.

That commitment may mean the Barnetts don’t see their own families much in the busy season. On the other hand, it means your heating and cooling needs get their full attention — and your emergencies their 24-hour attention.

[email protected] • home.comcast.net/~barnettandsonsheatingandac
3017 Walnut Lane, Waldorf • 8am-4:30pm M-F plus 24-hour emergency service • 301-843-7730 • 866-973-7730

Bay Breeze Heating and Cooling Inc.

We’re Marylanders at Bay Weekly. So we know that in spite of conventional beliefs, spring weather can mean anything from a sweltering 90-degree day to late-season sleet. So take a tip from the Scouts and be prepared by scheduling Bay Breeze Heating and Cooling to service or replace your systems.

Selling high quality Trane systems and replacing or repairing existing systems, Bay Breeze promises that Our dedication is your peace of mind. The Bay Breeze team of expert contractors can fix an existing problem, build new duct systems and install the latest in temperature controls.

In these times of rising energy costs and awareness, you can be a good Earth citizen and save money by investing in a Temperature Zoning system that lets you to only heat or cool rooms that are occupied.

To protect your investment, purchase a maintenance plan that extends your warranty.

Bay Breeze goes beyond temperature in its quest to provide you with air-quality control. Speak to an installer about air cleaners, humidifiers, carbon monoxide monitors and UV air treatment systems — which zap mold spores and airborne bacteria before they can recirculate in your home.

Providing peace of mind and clean, temperate air is just part of Bay Breeze’s service strategy. Visit Bay Breeze’s website for online assistance from ordering parts to previewing equipment to scheduling service.

www.baybreezehvac.com • 3350 Patuxent River Rd., Davidsonville • 8am-5pm M-F • 410-798-6933

Belair Engineering

Heat waves should only exist outside of your home. Trust the experienced staff at Belair Engineering to keep your home temperate no matter the outdoor climate.

Woman-owned and managed, Belair Engineering has kept Anne Arundel and Prince George’s County temperature controlled for 47 years. Owner Debbie Risher is the first female president of the Air Conditioning Contractors of America, National Capital Chapter. Her business earned the Prince George’s County Small Business of the Year award. Community recognition like that means you can expect extraordinary service from Belair Engineering.

Belair goes beyond keeping you cool. Company services extend to installing gas fireplaces, gas furnaces, humidifiers, air cleaners, cooling heat pumps and home emergency standby backup generators.

Moving from temperature to toilets, Belair Engineering has branched into plumbing, becoming a reliable source for commodes, hot water heaters, garbage disposals and kitchen and bathroom fixture installation.

A highly trained staff is available whenever you need them: Belair’s emergency number keeps you connected when your AC is not.

To figure out which system won’t freeze your finances, stop in the Upper Marlboro showroom for demonstrations and a free installation estimate. Savings continue online, where Belair provides discount coupons on seasonal services.

www.belaireng.com • 15881 Commerce Ct., Upper Marlboro • 7:30am-4:30pm M-F; 7:30am-3pm Sa • 301-249-0300

Chesapeake Concierge, Ltd.

Things are getting out of control.

There’s so much to do you don’t know where to start. So the chores pile up, and you’re feeling worse about it, afraid you’re going to become one of those people you read about.

Call Chesapeake Concierge, quick, to stop the cycle before you really do have something to worry about.

“My greatest challenge and satisfactions, says Tara Puliatti, “is helping working families bring order to their hectic lives. I start with a home makeover, then implement an organization system.”

Cleaning is often the first step, using organic products that are natural yet effective and safe for the elderly, persons with high allergies, infants and children, premature babies and pets.

Chesapeake Concierge can help you organize your life as well, cleaning out as well as up. After decluttering, the concierge will take away the junk.

“We’re a full service company ready to accommodate specific requests,” says Puliatti. “We handle offices as well as homes. And we’re especially glad to help the elderly and persons with disabilities and physical challenges.”

www.chesapeakeconcierge.net • [email protected] • 3809 17 St., Chesapeake Beach • 240-888-2493

Chesapeake Spas Inc.

Turn your boring backyard into an oasis with the help of Chesapeake Spas. The family-oriented business sells everything you need — except fences to keep your clamoring neighbors out.

“We have a great proven product and we stand behind it,” says owner Harry Early of Chesapeake Spas’ line of portable spas that warm up winter or offer a respite from summer heat. Each spa’s jet set is movable, meaning that you can customize your water massage.

Another approach to relaxation: Sweat off the stress from your day with a Chesapeake Spa’s installed sauna.

To show off your new spa or make the best of the summer months, Chesapeake Spa sells all the amenities for comfortable outdoor living. Find a range of outdoor steps, hammocks, lawn furniture, playground equipment and outdoor candles.

Serving Anne Arundel, Calvert, St. Mary’s, Charles, Queen Anne and southern Prince George’s counties for 19 years, Chesapeake Spas has two show rooms stocked with spas and accessories. Don’t depend on looks: Bring your swimwear and take a test soak.

Chesapeake Spas keeps you relaxed outside of the spa with comprehensive customer service. The spa team will help you perfect your spa location with deck construction or enhancement, find the proper pH balance with water testing and analysis and keep your spa bubbling.

Soaking in a spa doesn’t have to drain your wallet. Chesapeake Spas sells reconditioned spas with full service history and anti-leak estimates.

www.chesapeakespas.com
• 2806 Solomons Island Rd., Edgewater • 9am-6pm M-F; 9am-5pm Sa • 410-798-5674 • 800-974-TUBS
• 360 Ritchie Hwy., Severna Park • 10am-6pm M-F; 10am-4pm Sa • 410-384-9750 • 800-931-TUBS

Ciminelli’s Landscaping Services Inc.

If your yard is the next step to paradise, landscape contractor Matt Ciminelli doesn’t mind taking it all the way.

But when the going gets tough, Ciminelli gets excited. Steep slopes, construction barrens, marshy wetlands, untamed jungles: He loves them all. In his dreams, he’s landscaping the surface of the moon.

“We had a customer in Annapolis with a severely deteriorating slope on the waterfront with crumbling retaining walls, no access to the water and a steep slope that made working conditions extremely difficult,” Ciminelli recalls with satisfaction.

Worse than the raw landscape was the regulatory landscape.

“The permit process was long. Getting the project approved required many meetings with the county,” Ciminelli says.

So he’s proud as can be of the result: several tiers of beautiful Pennsylvania fieldstone walls, stone steps, a fountain, even an old shed faced with stone.

Just as each situation is different, so is each solution. Rising to the inspiration of each new challenge with fresh creativity is what’s kept Ciminelli and his customers happy for 18 years.

What might he do for you?

He won’t know until you call. But he promises it will be beautiful, functional and cost effective. And he’ll supervise the project from start to finish.

Ciminelli’s Landscaping Services specializes in hardscape problem solving and construction, landscape renovation and environmentally friendly landscaping and maintenance — as well as getting the permits you need.

Ciminelli has also pledged to work with the West/Rhode Riverkeeper and Bay Gardener to keep Chesapeake yards Growing Green, so he’s your environmentally friendly choice.

www.ciminellis.com • [email protected] • 9am-5pm M-F • 410-741-9683 • 301-627-5052

Complete Home Solutions

We think of our homes as our castles. But have you dared dream that your home could look like a castle? Perhaps not fitted out with a moat, a drawbridge and turrets — but perfectly designed for its place, time and people?

Go ahead and dream. Then call on Complete Home Solutions to make your dream come true. Right here in Chesapeake Country, Rob Burgee’s Complete Home Solutions offers you award-winning expertise for remodeling your home inside and out.

“From start to finish, from small projects to large projects, Complete Home Solutions is committed to all your remodeling needs,” says Burgee.

Practicing the creed small enough to listen, big enough to deliver, Complete Home Solutions has risen to prominence with careful construction on demanding sites. A recent restoration of a Chesapeake Beach cottage won Complete Home Solutions and architect James Ritter a Capital Contractor of the Year award.

“The house is located within the critical area of Chesapeake Bay, so the building and landscaping could not be altered,” says Burgee. Complete Home Solutions found eco-friendly ways to transform a 1952 cottage with a rotten roof, no workable plumbing and masonry decay into an empty-nesters’ retreat. As well as extraordinary architecture, the homeowners now enjoy the modern comforts of new plumbing, heating and cooling systems and terraced landscaping — which also limits runoff and helps preserve Bay health.

No mater what your castle requires, Complete Home Solutions is committed to turning it from dream to home.

“Our goal is to establish lasting relationships with our customers by exceeding their expectations,” says Burgee.

www.chomesolutions.com • 235 Bay Front Rd., Lothian • 8am-4:30pm M-F • 410-286-5564

Cottage Chicks

Cottage Chicks can’t change your life. But they can help you change the look and feel of your life with shabby chic furniture and quaint and clever wares for you and your home.

The Chicks, Norma Courtois and Linda DeLuca, specialize in finding and cheering up vintage hardwood furniture to give your home that coveted lived-in-loving look. So everything is one of a kind. If they haven’t yet found your heart’s desire, they’ll add it to their wish list.Novelty is part of what makes their shop — an original in business since November — a pleasure to visit; good smells are another part; creative imagining is a third.

Among collectibles from the 1940s, ‘50s and up are kitchen goods and linens; wall objects, garden decor, vases and pots. Newer items include books, cards, candles and jewelry by local artists.

They’re avid shoppers, visiting estate sales and auctions as well as buying from individuals. “If you have such stuff to sell,” call us, DeLuca says.

The Cottage Chicks promise reasonable prices and personal services. “If you can’t get it during store hours, we will see you by appointment,” says Courtois.

The Cottage Chicks are sold on green. They not only give old objects new life but also wrap your treasures in recycled tissue and bags.

www.cottagechicksdeale.com • 5954 Deale-Churchton Rd., Deale • 10am-4pm W-Su • 443-607-6228

Dr. Glass

What does it take to be a master window washer? Super-strong arms and speed?

Bill Mitchell of Mitchell Enterprises, aka Dr. Glass, has the answer. “You can’t be afraid of heights. You have to pay attention to detail, and you have to be aware that you are in someone else’s home,” Mitchell says.

Mitchell and his team know that the washing of windows is not all sparkle and shine. From sunrooms to showrooms, skylights to storefronts, they put in the labor to give you perfect clarity.

“Your windows will sparkle,” says Mitchell.

Whether you want spring-clean windows, a one-time construction clean up or weekly window cleaning to show your business in a good light, Dr. Glass promises satisfaction. If it’s not right, he’ll make it right. If your world is not bright, neither is Dr. Glass’. With 30 years’ experience, Dr. Glass has satisfied more than 2000 commercial and residential customers.

Dr. Glass also cleans your mirrors, ceiling fans and more — including gutters. When you choose Dr. Glass, you won’t have to deal with the headache of those hard-to-reach spots because he’s just the prescription you have been looking for.

www.windowcleaningnow.com • [email protected] • 802 Betsy Court, Annapolis • 7am-8pm M-Sa • 410-626-0782

Exterior Concepts Inc.

April showers can bring more than May flowers. They can also alert you to the fact that your roof has a better irrigation system than your lawn. That’s problem one.

Problem two: How to prevent your house from earning wetlands protection status without sacrificing your landscaping.

Exterior Concepts is the roofer to call to solve both problems.

Exterior Concepts roofers know how to fortify your roof without turning up your turf.

“We replaced the roof on a home owned by an owner of a landscaping company,” says owner Tim Severson. “We had to build a plywood roof over all his flowers and bushes before we could start the project. We completed the roof project without harming any of his landscaping.”

Preserving petunias is only part of Exterior Concepts’ full range of services. The company’s team is experts in replacing and repairing roofs, siding, soffit, trim and gutters.

For a new view, Exterior Concepts also replaces or installs windows.

Whether it’s a patch, a complete roof replacement or new windows, consistency and quality are the goals of Exterior Concepts.

The locally owned business has sent workers to scale homes and patch holes in the Baltimore/Washington metro area for 15 years. The teams treat each home individually, working closely with you from concept to completion.

“We want to make sure that your home looks the way you think it should,” says Severson. “It can be a scary thing to rip the roof off a home when you aren’t sure how it will look. We do whatever it takes to meet the customer’s expectation.”

Part of meeting that expectation is promising to fix anything that goes wrong.

“We have a fully equipped service department, enabling us to respond to customers’ requests to find troubling roof leaks and other minor inconveniences,” Severson says.

The company’s goal is personalized service. Severson wants you to know what the men crawling on your roof are doing. “All too frequently in our trade, personal service is scarce after the contract is signed — and non-existent after final payment,” Severson says. In his mind, that’s not only poor service, it’s bad business. “We try not to leave the job until the customer is satisfied.”

Exterior Concepts counts on your satisfaction to enhance their business. The landscaper with the unblemished bushes? “He continues to recommend Exterior Concepts to all his clients,” Severson says.

www.exteriorconcepts.net • 126 Mayo Rd., Edgewater • Call for consultation or appointment: 410-956-0376

Exterior Image Inc. ~ Trent Hill Farm & Nursery

It’s easy to recognize a great landscape when you see one. Great landscapes are also easy to envy, because they so often belong to somebody else.

What’s hard is knowing how to create one.

Hard for you and me. But not for Mark Childs.

“Great landscapes are created when creativity meets form and function,” says Childs, who is president of Exterior Image Inc. — where great landscapes are created — and Trent Hill Farm & Nursery, where the raw materials await you.

Visit and walk through gardens to visualize your project and tag plants that are grown in Maryland soils for your home or business.

“We design and construct all facets of the outdoors,” says Childs, “taking into consideration your ideas, the condition of the property and the architectural features of the residence.”

Getting from where you are to the landscape you long for takes training, expertise and imagination. The Exterior Image design staff of professional includes a registered landscape architect and a designer. Each is among the best in the area and brings over 12 years experience to your job.

After your landscape is complete, Exterior Image crews will maintain it to keep up its value — and your enjoyment.

“The quality of our designs, products and installation will exceed your expectations,” Childs promises.

www.exteriorimage.com • www.trenthillnursery.com • email [email protected] • [email protected]
24 Nutwell Rd., Lothian • 7:30am–5pm M-F • 410-956-1344

Galesville Crossing Antiques

The old is new again! And Galesville Crossing is a new destination for things antique and vintage.

The Crossing is small, but it’s full of old and new home décor. Half the fun is discovering; the other half, imagining the many ways you can recycle old items to suit new tastes. Owner Sheree Harvey has gathered an intriguing collection of vintage clothes, hats and fabrics; old tools and toys; pictures and books; bottles, candles, cards and wrapping paper.

If you find what you want — but not quite what you need — tell Harvey. She loves visiting with customers and learning what sort of things you’re seeking. So shop for old things, and make a new friend.

815 Main St., Galesville • 10am-4pm F-Sa; 12pm-4pm Su • 410-867-3434

Good Deale Gardener

The hot summer sun beating down on you, while you suffer through the backbreaking labor of upholding your home garden …

Not your idea of a relaxing summer day?

Now imagine having a lush, beautiful garden to enjoy rather than uphold. That’s when Good Deale Gardener comes out to brighten the day.

“I want people to enjoy their yards and to be able to harvest fresh cut flowers, herbs and vegetables all summer long,” says Natalie Robert, the Good Deale Gardener.

Robert and her team make it their job to help you reacquaint yourself with nature. They do installation and maintenance of both flower and vegetable gardens, plus general yard care, cleanup and small-lawn mowing.

For the Good Deale Gardener, “no job is too small. Cottage gardening is the thing right now.”

“I don’t use harmful chemicals so I’m kid- and pet-friendly,” says Robert. “You can eat a tomato right off the vine.”

By helping you grow your own food, the Good Deale Gardener also helps you to reduce your carbon footprint.

The hot, summer days will be a breeze you can enjoy in good conscience with the help of Good Deale Gardener.

www.goodealegardener.com • email [email protected] • Deale • M-Sa • 443-454-0444

Greenstreet Gardens

If your name is Greenstreet, your garden center gets bonus points.

But Ray and Stacy Greenstreet are not resting on those laurels.

In less than a decade, they’ve transformed a commercial rooting nursery into a regional destination. Now garden-minded people come from miles around for more than the healthiest, best priced bedding plants — from ageratum to zinnia — including the cool-spring favorite, pansies.

Millions of plant cuttings and seeds grow in their four-acres of greenhouses, brightening not only your garden but also hotels, malls and amusement parks. Many more are cultivated on their 55-acre farm, many in their Sandy’s Digs program dedicated to plants best suited for our region.

People come for the garden life style as well as their favorite plants, tropicals, trees and shrubs. Greenstreet’s new garden center, built in 2005, is stocked for work and play. You’ll find nature-themed goods for home and garden use and décor; irresistible kids’ stuff and pet products — as well as tools and soil amendments. Advice abounds, too, from answers to questions to free workshops and lectures that entertain while educating.

The Greenstreets nourish good communities as well as green gardens.

Greenstreet Gardens employs local people, sells the work of local artists and contributes to many community activities, from landscaping the Deale traffic circle to hosting fall burger-burns that stave off hunger while you’re shopping and funding the projects of the Lothian Ruritans.

www.greenstreetgardens.com • 391 West Bay Front Rd., Lothian • 8:30am-5pm daily • 410-867-9500

Handyman Matters

Repairs and renovations aren’t for everyone. If friends have fallen through your do-it-yourself deck, it may be time to call a professional —before your friends call a lawyer. Handyman Matters will help you cross small jobs off your to-do list — as well as taking on major construction and fixing your repairs.

A staff of experienced craftsmen — all lead craftsmen have over 20 years experience — are up to any job from home repair to remodeling. The expert workers of Handyman Matters boast experience in over 1,162 types of home repair and remodeling.

If you can’t distinguish between a roofing nail and a thumbtack, don’t worry: Handyman Matters has compiled a guide to take you through the basics of remodeling. Their Consumer Guide contains 21 questions that will educate you and ensure your projects get done on time and on budget. To get a copy of the guide, call Handyman Matters or visit their website.

Handyman Matters guarantees you two important intangibles: security and peace of mind. No need to fear letting a stranger with a hammer into your house. Before hiring a contractor, Handyman Matters completes comprehensive background checks. During construction, the company has a policy of presenting daily status reports, giving you an exact idea of the work done in your home.

Your daily life won’t need repairs while these handymen work: Each contractor keeps disruptions to a minimum and their workspace clean.

Treating customers as individuals matters to Handyman Matters. Each handyman is assigned one job — meaning that he won’t be daydreaming about remodeling some one else’s kitchen while he’s supposed to focus on fixing your toilet.

www.handymanmatters.com • 410-867-3838

Homestead Gardens

About the time the Garden of Eden closed to humankind, Homestead Gardens came to Chesapeake Country. At least that’s the way it feels to the legions whose ideal of gardening perfection has been formed at Homestead.

What makes up this conveniently located Eden? First, the array of plants. From tiny ground cover to towering trees, all the plants God named seem to be growing at Homestead. And so many cultivars and specimens of each, that you have to be very picky indeed not to find the one with your name written on it.

Second, the artistry of their arrangement into sample gardens. At Homestead, you find not only plants but living suggestions on how to use them, in season and company, to make thematic, unified places of beauty to satisfy your senses and restore your spirits.

Third, the agreeable alliance of amenities to garden living. Beyond plant life, Homestead shows you how furniture and decorative pieces — from table and bar ware to bunnies galore this time of year — can help you bring your outside life in, and your inside life out.

Fourth, you not only see but learn at Homestead. The garden is well staffed with knowledgeable people who’ll answer your questions on what works where. Workshops to improve your gardening and decorating skills are scheduled many weekends as well as at seasonal festivals.

Yet for all its scope, Homestead Gardens is a local business. Owners Don and wife Laura Riddle are Annapolitans, deeply committed to their larger Chesapeake Community. This spring, they host Lothian Ruritan burger-burns.

Local, too, is the vast majority of the tens of thousands of plants on display there. Homestead Growers, three miles west on Governors Bridge Road, raises some 150,000 perennials, 85,000 trees and shrubs, and 30,000 poinsettias every year. Local roots mean the plants you buy at Homestead are adapted to life in our region. That’s only the first element of the local advantage. On a wider scale, it keeps Chesapeake Country green and growing. On a still wider scale, it means Homestead shoppers are soldiers in the war on global warming, saving fuel and reducing greenhouse gases.

www.homesteadgardens.com • 743 West Central Ave., Davidsonville
9am-7pm M-F; 8am-7pm Sa; 9am-6pm Su • 410-798-5000

Lawn Doctor

If spring has sprung but your lawn resembles a mud bath more than a patch of green, it’s time to call the doctor. The Lawn Doctor of Annapolis has been nursing sick blades into lush lawns for 25 years.

The Lawn Doctor’s prescription for keeping your lawn healthy won’t make the Bay ill because his treatments are Bay friendly. Doctor in chief Tim Zang got his credentials from the Maryland Urban Nutrient Management and Maryland Turfgrass Council, where he is co-director. Zang specializes in environmental health.

“At this point in the business, our greatest challenge is to utilize and develop greener programs for our customers for the future of lawn care and Chesapeake Bay,” says Zang. Organic treatments for your lawn include core aeration, seeding soil enrichment programs, mole repellents and soil testing. Now he’s developing an environmentally friendly shrub and tree program.

The doctor covers horticultural health problems from quick fixes to long-term care. You can get a consultation on brown patches or a complete resodding.

Lawn Doctors hires locals to provide the healing touch.

“Our people usually live in the neighborhoods that they service,” says Zang. “They take special pride in the fact that they see their customers often.”

Call Lawn Doctor for a consultation on improving your lawn’s health and limiting runoff to keep your local waterways clean.

www.lawndoctor.com • 192 Mayo Rd., Edgewater • 8am-5pm M-F; by appointment Sa • 410-956-8300

Lower Marlboro Nursery

You’ve won the two-year battle to eradicate invasive phragmites. Now what are you going to grow to hold the ground you’ve painstakingly liberated?

That’s one of the questions Mary-Stuart Sierra helps solve for gardeners who hope to return the earth within their reach to species evolved there. The list is as diverse as the places such gardeners hold dear. The solutions, most hand-grown at Lower Marlboro Nursery, range from wild columbine to purple and golden asters, scarlet and blue lobelias.

Lower Marlboro Nursery is one of very few places specializing in plants native to this region. Unlike most imported exotics, native plants support the local ecology, provide food and shelter for wildlife and help protect the Bay.

The nursery provides not only a range of beautiful, hard-to-find plants but also information and inspiration. Browse the online catalogue, and shop by mail.

Or make a spring pilgrimage to Lower Marlboro Nursery open houses

• Earth Day Weekend: 10am–5pm F April 24 & Sa April 25; 11am–4pm Su April 26

• Mother’s Day: 11am–4pm Su May 10

• May Madness: 10am–5pm Sa May 16 & 11am–4pm Su May 17

www.lowermarlboronursery.com • Dunkirk • By appointment, call for directions: 301-812-0808

Millwood Furniture

Sometimes a chair isn’t just a chair. Instead of choosing an anonymous assembly line-born piece of furniture, browse Millwood Furniture, where pieces are inspired by history and shaped with by human touch and traditional techniques. The Amish don’t shop at IKEA; each piece of Millwood Furniture is a handcrafted piece of history waiting for display in your home.

Millwood Furniture is crafted in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, from cherry, oak and choice-cut pine, according to the traditions of the Amish and Mennonite communities.

Each piece gets the individual attention that makes it sturdy, comfortable and beautiful.

The Millwood staff knows the traditions and can answer your questions and fill you in on history. To further your understand of the crafting process, visit www.millwoodfurniture.com, where finger joining, dovetailing and steam bending practices are de-mystified. To add more handmade touches to your home, browse Millwood’s selection of handmade quilts and crafts.

If you can’t find what you want, ask for it. Out-of-stock pieces can be special ordered, or the skilled carpenters of Millwood will craft a customized piece to order.

Solid hardwood furniture doesn’t mean a backache. Take advantage of the delivery service and you won’t have to haul your furniture home.

The family-run Millwood Furniture shares space in Annapolis’ Amish Market, where you’ll find farm-raised and home-made foods and home-crafted products to add comfort and custom to your home.

www.millwoodfurniture.com • 2458 Solomon’s Island Rd., Annapolis
9am-6pm Th; 9am-6pm F; 8:30am-3pm Sa • 410-897-1986

The North Beach Loop

Bay Ave. to Seventh St. to Chesapeake Ave. to Second St.

You’ve spruced up your nest and planted your garden. Now it’s time for tweaking. Take a walk around the North Beach Loop to find local goods and services to enhance both house and inhabitants.

Start your journey on Bay Avenue, where you can bring spirit and structure into your home. Stock up for good times at Bay Wine & Spirits, where wines, liquors and craft furniture line the walls.

9100 Bay Ave. • 2-9pm M-Th; Noon-6pm F-Sa; Noon-5pm Su • 410-257-0067

Find sweet treats to fill candy bowls at Old Town Candy Company, where traditional confections tempt young and old.

9122 Bay Ave. • Noon-6pm F; 10am-6pm Sa; 11am-5pm Su • 410-286-7300

Dock at Lighthouse Market Place to take on nautical curios.

9124 Bay Ave. • 9:30am-7:30pm daily • 301-855-0707

Take time for yourself at At the Bay Healing Arts Center, where hands-on holistic services and gifts offer respite from home construction and gardening.

www.BayHealingArts.com • 9129 Bay Ave. • By appointment • 410-286-9110

Discover treasures from the past at Bay Avenue’s Three Shops in A Row: Chesapeake Antiques, Nice & Fleazy Antiques and Willetta’s Antiques.

Chesapeake Antiques: 11am-5pm F-Su • 410-257-3153

Nice & Fleazy Antiques: 10am-5pm Tu-Su • 410-257-3044

Willetta’s Antiques: 10am-5pm Th-Su • 301-855-3412

Break for fresh pastry and a steaming cup of coffee at Sweet Sue’s Bakeshop & Coffee Bar. Sue and her pastry team bake elaborate cakes plus sweets, soups, salads and sandwiches for eating in and taking home.

www.sweetsues-bakeshop.com • 7th & Bay Ave. • 7:30am-5pm Tu-Su • 410-286-8041

Adorn your home with quirky findings at Coffee, Tea & Whimsey, where art, furniture and beverages mingle with fanciful flare.

www.coffeeteaandwhimsey.com • 4109 7th St. • 10am-6pm daily • 410-286-0000

Stop for lunch or dinner at Bilvil – A Beaches Café, where fresh and from scratch are the rules for every meal.

www.Bilvil.com • 4114 7th St.|
5-9pm Tu; 11am-2pm & 5-9pm W-Th; 11am-2pm & 5-10pm F-Sa; 11am-8pm Su • 410-286-7214.

Drop anchor at SeaScapes’ new location for home accents, gifts and inspiration. Owner Lisa Payne is conscientious in binging you choices that are local and earth friendly, local art and many recycled choices.

www.seascapes.com • 4105 7th St. • 10am-5:30pm Tu-Sa; Noon-5pm Su • 410-286-2755

Strengthen your hearth at Kairos Counseling & Education Center, with self-help books and workshops to help you enhance your relationships.

www.kairoscentermd.com • 4041 7th St. • By appointment • 301-332-4568

Feel the thrill of the hunt — and find who knows what wonders — at Second Chance Consignments’ new location.

9116 Chesapeake Ave. • Noon-5pm W-Su • 410-257-5700

Explore an international selection of vintage objects at Antiques Brocante.

9106 Chesapeake Ave. • By appointment

Brighten your rooms with bursts of spring color with flowers from Richard’s Bayside Florist.

5th St. & Chesapeake Ave. •10am-6pm M-F; 10am-5pm Sa • 410-257-0207 • 301-855-7505

Warm up your home with collectibles from Sisters’ Corner, a gift, craft and food shop featuring handmade and one-of-a-kind wares.

8905 Chesapeake Ave. • 3-6pm W-F; 11am-6pm Sa; 11am-4pm Su •410-286-0074

End your shopping loop with services for the most important element of your home — you. Make an appointment for your own spring spruce up at The Palms Salon & Day Spa.

www.palmssalonanddayspa.com • 8837 Chesapeake Ave. • 10am-7pm Tu-F; 9am-3pm Sa • 410-286-8222

Parkemoor Home

Home envy. Most of us have suffered the ailment at one time or another as we flipped through glossy home decorating magazines, wishing our home could look so beautiful.

Alas, most of us figure I can dream rather than I can have that because we know those rooms were done by professionals, which most of us are not.

So consult a professional. Parkemoor HOME in Edgewater is up to the task — whether you’re ready to completely re-decorate or just want to spiff up one room.

“Every decorating job comes with unique challenges,” says owner Ty Christian. “The hardest part is trying to re-create the image in the client’s head in real life. It takes a lot of communication and trial and error with product, fabric and color selection.”

Of course Parkemoor HOME has a lot to select from.

“We’re dedicated to every aspect of home decoration,” says Christian. “We offer a wide range of custom and stock furniture, lamps and lighting fixtures, art and mirrors, floral and greenery arrangements, rugs and an ever-changing mix of home décor items.”

It doesn’t always take an extreme makeover to make a room special. Adding a distinctive item to a bookcase or introducing a splash of new color can breathe new life into an old space.

“Our motto is Create your own lifestyle,” says Christian. “We

stock items in ones and twos, and when they’re sold, we replace them with something different and fresh. We cater to the customer who wants their home to be unique and be reflective of their family’s lifestyle.”

Even the do-it-yourselfer designer will benefit from Parkemoor HOME’s expertise.

“We take the same approach with our retail clients as we do with our design clients,” say Christian. “We communicate with the same level of detail on the store sales floor as we do in the client’s home.”

While you’re dressing up your home, don’t forget those on your gift list.

“Parkemoor BABY is dedicated to fantastic gifts for the special arrival,” says Christian. “And our latest venture is Parkemoor PANTRY, dedicated to the heart of the home: the kitchen.”

There is always something new at Parkemoor Home — in first-hand knowledge of fresh trends and designs in home décor and in new products arriving daily.

“If you want to shop for unique and distinctive design,” says Christian, “then you need to be shopping at Parkemoor HOME, Parkemoor BABY and Parkemoor PANTRY.”

www.parkemoor.com • 127 Mitchells Chance Rd., Edgewater • 9am-6pm M-Sa; noon-5pm Su • 410-956-1701

Patuxent Nursery LLC

If your garden doesn’t automatically burst with colorful blooms on the first day of spring, join the club. The Patuxent Nursery Club helps you get the jump on spring discounts, newsletters, emails and support — all for free.

A landscaped farm off Bowie’s Rt. 301, Patuxent Nursery caught the eye of amateur gardeners and homeowners jealous of the low prices and quality plants landscape contractors found there.

Small wonder. “We decided from day one that we would be better priced with better quality than anyone around us,” says owner Bob Brashears. “We put the customer first, before anything else, and our customers recognize us for this.”

In 1998, the Patuxent Nursery Club opened, offering discounts and deals to all shoppers. Business has been blooming since.“Every day brings up new and different challenges and opportunities,” says Brashears.

Feeling overwhelmed by the challenges of spring?

Patuxent Nursery offers a planting service that will keep your hands clean as others dig deep in your garden. A team of professional planters is ideal if you purchase one of Patuxent’s specialty items — mature trees, which can weigh upwards of 600 pounds.

Want more? Consult with one of the nursery’s landscape contractors about creating an Eden in your backyard.

Patuxent Nursery sells trees, shrubs, groundcovers, annual flowers, perennials, roses, ornamental grasses, mulch, soils, stone yard, pottery and outdoor furniture.

www.patuxentnursery.com • 2410 North Crain Hwy., Bowie • 7am-7pm M-F; 8am-6pm Sa; 9am-5pm Su • 301-218-4769

Patuxent Roll-Off LLC

Remodeling your home, conducting a neighborhood cleanup, throwing out tons of junk? Patuxent Roll-Off LCC will roll on over with the right dumpsters for all your trashy needs.

“We like to go as far as it takes to provide excellent one-on-one customer service,” says sales manager Kim Hannon.

Patuxent Roll-Off competes with the nationwide giants of the trash industry, so they’ve got to be better. Customer service and competitive pricing, with a little patience thrown in, have given them the edge to flourish over the past 11 years.

Patuxent Roll-Off can properly dispose of every need you have. Dumpsters come sized to your job, and are priced by size and length of your need. Patuxent will deliver a small dumpster for a one-day festival, wedding or party — or a huge dumpster for as long as you need it.

Dumpsters hold from two to 30 cubic yards. The smallest is the right size to collect your office waste. The largest, at 22 feet long, eight feet wide and six feet high, is what you’re likely to need for construction and long renovations.

Patuxent Roll-Off sponsors — and supplies dumpsters for — all Special Olympics events, from the Blues Festival upcoming in May at Sandy Point State Park to January’s Polar Bear Plunge to the Blessing of the Bikes in Charles County. They also carried away the waste from the U.S. Naval Academy stadium and field renovation.

Once they even cleaned up after a murder scene — or so the unnerved dumpster pick-up driver thought. In fact, Moreland’s Country Store in Lothian, where the troubling pickup was made, had been the set where a murder mystery was filmed.

Clearly, no job is too big or too specialized for Patuxent Roll-Off.

www.patuxentcompanies.com • 2124 Priest Bridge Dr., Suite 18, Crofton • 7am-4pm M-Su • 410-793-0181

PG Awning

Escape the heat without retreating indoors this summer with the help of PG Awning. The company makes a business of providing Chesapeake Country ways to seek shade in style.

“We’re a local company that works with you to fit you in a project at a budget you can work with,” says owner Wayne Brechtel.

To turn the sun off with the push of a button, PG Awning will install a retractable awning. Prevent your patio from becoming a hotplate for humans by installing a custom cover for the hottest months. If your dreams of the outdoors include a deck, PG Awning’s skilled contractors can customize a spot for you to seek the sun.

Transform your existing porch into a screened-in sanctuary with a minimum of construction using PG Awning’s Eze Breeze 4-Track windows. The windows can be customized so you can use your porch year-round with double-paned glass or keep the room airy with single-pane three-season glass. Before you budget, send in your porch measurements for a complimentary guess-timate.

PG Awning has expanded to satisfy more of your backyard needs. View a wide variety of fences to help keep your pets in or your neighbors out. Spiff up the sides of your home while keeping heating and cooling costs down with new insulated siding.

Meet with PG Awning representatives at local events, look for the awning van to roll by — or call for a personal appointment.

www.pgawning.com • 1041 Dorsey Rd., Glen Burnie • Call for appointment: 9am-5pm M-Sa • 410-768-8300

Sara Hourihan-Taylor, Realtor®, Century 21/H.T. Brown

Just ask Mrs. Osprey. Unless you’ve got the right home, you can’t settle in for spring and all it brings. That’s where Sara Hourihan-Taylor can help. She brings 26 years of experience to solving housing problems in Chesapeake Country. Buying, selling or leasing, she builds a relationship based on listening to help you get what you want. But as we’ve now learned only too well, expectations must survive real-world tests. Taylor brings the expertise you need, and she’s able to explain how the market works in ways you can understand. “I work with you each step of the way,” Taylor promises.

www.Homesdatabase.com/SaraTaylor • 5801 Deale-Churchton Rd., Deale • 410-867-1610 • 410-320-0924

Shore Living

The clean fresh look of a cottage by the shore: Make that the goal of your spring cleaning, and you’ll have all the motivation you need to evict the heavy stuffy trappings of winter from every corner of your home.

After the heavy work, the next step is Shore LIVING, where mother-daughter team Eleanor and Elissa Shifflett help you infuse the coastal lifestyle into your home with beach-inspired furniture and accessories.

www.shorelivinginc.com • 2969 Plaza Dr., Dunkirk • 10am-8pm M-Sa; 11am-4pm Su • 443-964-8837

Sneade’s Ace Hardware

A good hardware store is like a museum — one that crosses science and industry with contemporary art — and has a big gift shop.

There’s plenty to enlighten and entertain you, regardless of need. Good ideas abound, sparking your invention, so that you soon think of new things to do and ways to do them. There’s a tool for every project; if you can’t find it on the shelf, you can order it.

You don’t get those advantages shopping on the web, where you’ve got to know what you’re looking for. Neither do you get easy access to good advice, nor easy returns.

At Sneade’s Ace Hardware, you get all that — plus the ability to shop online, if you live too far away to enjoy shopping in person, at stores in Owings and Lusby.

So Sneade’s combines the best of both worlds. If you know what you want and Sneade’s doesn’t have it (the electric lawn mower you’ve researched, for example), Sneade’s will order it often at a better price than online merchants — plus saving you the shipping cost. If your new mower’s not up to the job, they’ll return it, saving you more trouble — and more shipping.