The Shop Cop - Jennifer Litwin

When kids head back to school, a home’s carpeting can serve as a memory of summer fun. And, tough summer stains can be really tough to remove. “Shop Cop” and home furnishings expert Jennifer Litwin offers these tips:

• What kind of carpeting is the most difficult to clean? Olefin is an oil-based product which picks up stains quickly. North Shore Carpet Cleaning in Arlington Heights, Illinois (847-724-3638) recommends avoiding this type.
• If you get a stain, what should you do until the carpet cleaning service arrives? Pick up the excess, then blot with a damp, light-colored towel. Try using a 1/2 teaspoon of liquid dishwashing detergent with a damp towel to blot and remove the detergent.
• How many times per year should you clean your carpeting professionally? Not usually more than every 12-18 months, unless you get a bad stain.
• Can cleaning your carpeting “too often” ruin the carpeting? Cleaning a carpet more than twice a year can stretch out the fabric. However, stains must be removed quickly or the dirt will go to the bottom of the carpeting and be harder to remove later.
• Which are the hardest stains to remove? Anything with dyes, like popsicles, coffee and wine. Continue reading »

As featured in Quick & Simple

No longer just “Dad’s” chair, recliners continue to sell in staggering numbers in the U.S. Still the #1 selling furniture item, contemporary recliners now have more style choices and functions than ever before, making shopping more complicated. “Shop Cop” and author of Best Furniture Buying Tips Ever!, Jennifer Litwin helps evaluate today’s recliners.

CONSTRUCTION: KEEP IT SIMPLE

Today’s chairs have many bells & whistles. The more moving parts, the more likely the chair is to break. Typically, better constructed pieces have fewer mechanisms and no fabric break in the middle section. Exposed metal legs should be avoided, and the open/close mechanism should be easy to operate.

CONSIDER THE SITTER WHEN CHOOSING FABRIC

Keep in mind who will be using the chair most often. Since these chairs are often for lounging adults, look for sturdy fabrics that hide stains and are better on wear and tear. Wools, sturdier leathers and tightly-woven materials will generally last longer than the finer grades of leather or synthetics, like micro fiber.

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Shopping online for furniture has become a huge business. Over $1 billion has been spent on online furnishings in the past 12 months. But consumer feedback has been mixed. Here are some things you should know before shopping online:

1. Many stores don’t allow you to return the item to the store, itself, because they may not sell the product at the store. You have to send returns to a return center. Many of the big box retailers require that you send your purchases back to this return center. This makes it difficult to exchange an item or get your money back.
2. Some furniture web sites send furniture in hundreds of pieces. Ask how many pieces will come in the box. Also ask if you can see a diagram describing how to assemble the piece. Online furniture can be very inexpensive if you have to basically construct the whole piece, yourself.
3. Comparison shopping online is difficult, because like with mattress companies, different stores use the same vendors but call the pieces different names. Continue reading »

As featured in LA Daily News

According to The Freedonia Group, the $5 billion outdoor furniture and grill industry will continue to grow 5.4% annually through 2008. An obvious indicator that Americans are “living to the outdoors” more than ever.

Home furnishings expert and author Jennifer Litwin explains that the “outdoor room”’s popularity among homeowners is driving patio furniture and grill sales. “Today’s outdoor living area reflects the homeowner’s indoor style,” Litwin explains. “The days when the patio is filled with flimsy plastic furniture and umbrellas that blow away in the wind are gone.”

Litwin explains that this year’s trends for outdoor furniture and accessories are: weather sustainability, plush seating, elegant flooring and an entertainment area that provides proper electricity, gas and water for the space.

Some of Litwin’s favorites are:

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As featured in The Cincinatti Enquirer
As we enter the summer months and think about entertaining outside we are faced with furniture and fabrics that look dirty, rusty and faded. Spending money on outdoor furniture and fabric is not always a priority because we know that natural fading, discoloring and breakage will occur as the furniture sits outside.

“Shop Cop” and consumer reporter, Jennifer Litwin, has some tips for your outdoor furniture:

1. Chairs with sling fabric: Sling fabric, like all outdoor fabric, becomes faded, torn and dirty over time. Every few years we think about replacing the entire chair or having it reupholstered. Since chair styles don’t change that often it doesn’t pay to throw out the old chair that you love and replace it with a new chair. You can replace the sling yourself for $60-75 per chair. A new sling chair usually costs more than $150, including the fabric. You can select your own fabric from hundreds of swatches, order a sample to be sent to your home for free, give a company measurements and they can make the replacement piece for you, and send you the simple hardware for you to put the sling on, yourself, in just minutes. I would explain how to take measurements and apply the fabric, yourself. Here is an example: very standard outdoor seat.
2. Chairs with straps: We all remember the chairs we had 30 years ago, with the straps. Surprisingly, the styles haven’t changed much in lawn furniture. So instead of throwing out the old chairs and replacing them today for hundreds of dollars (usually at least $200 apiece), you can buy your own straps for $2-5 each, and put new straps back on your existing frame. I recently put straps on, gave my deck a new, brighter, colorful look in just minutes (I can demonstrate), with the right set of basic tools, and the right measurement of the strap. For under $100 I had new chairs, and put it together quickly. Very easy and attractive. Again, I would explain how to take measurements and apply the straps, yourself. Also give info on where to get the parts.
3. Taking care of your outdoor fabric: Avoid using bleach on your fabrics. Avoid dipping them into the pool-will cause fabrics to fade and dry out. Use simple products like Fantastic, 408, or even mild dish soap. Continue reading »

As featured in Forbes and Yahoo Finance.

With the summer months approaching, many homeowners are thinking about entertaining and dining outside. But, what can be done about dirty, rusty and faded outdoor furniture?

“Shop Cop” Jennifer Litwin, author of “Furniture Hot Spots” and “Best Furniture Buying Tips Ever!” has these tips for sprucing up your outdoor furniture:

1. Don’t buy new! You can replace chair fabric yourself. Since chair styles don’t change that often, it doesn’t pay to throw out the old chair that you love. You can replace the sling yourself for $60-75 per chair. A new sling chair usually costs more than $150, including the fabric. If you give provide measurements, the manufacturer can make the replacement piece for you and send you the simple hardware for you to put the sling on yourself.
2. New life for old strap chairs: Surprisingly, styles haven’t changed much. Instead of throwing out old strap chairs and replacing them for hundreds of dollars (usually at least $200 a piece), you can buy your own straps for $2 – 5 each, and put new straps back on your existing frame For under $100, you can have new chairs, and put it together quickly.
3. Treat outdoor fabric gently: Avoid using bleach on your fabrics and DON’T dip them into the pool. This will cause fabrics to fade and dry out. For clean up, use simple products like Fantastic, 409, or even mild dish soap.
4. Remove rust from iron: Iron furniture often gets dirty and rusty. To clean, simply use a good car wax and buff with a soft cloth.
5. Best new products to avoid rusting and fading: Coated plastic and titanium are popular new outdoor materials and don’t rust or blow away in the wind. Treated paints and foam products can be kept out year round, and can be used on tables and chairs. Heavier aluminums function like iron but don’t rust as quickly.
6. Replacing fabric cushions: Notice I said “replacing” here. Usually, you can’t match the colors because the fabric colors fade over time, and color palettes change. Your best bet is to replace all the fabric on your outdoor pieces.
7. Great website for more help: Chaircarepatio.com.

TIPS FOR BUYING THE MOST IMPORTANT PIECE IN YOUR HOME

Couch potato jokes aside, the sofa is the piece of furniture that takes the most abuse — and gets the most use — in a typical American home. And, with most couch prices ranging from $500 to $10,000 it is important that consumers compare apples to apples when couch shopping.

A sofa is the anchor piece and one of the most important furniture purchases because you use it everyday. However, “buying one doesn’t have to be intimidating or expensive,” explains Jennifer Litwin, author of Furniture Hot Spots and Best Furniture Buying Tips Ever! (Random House).

Litwin, a Sotheby’s-trained furniture aficionado, Consumers Digest reporter and frequent TV contributor, spent a year “undercover” visiting more than 500 furniture stores nationwide, reviewing stores of all kinds and determining the most important questions consumers need answered when making home furnishings purchases. She found that most furniture salespeople know very little about the products they sell, which creates confusion for shoppers.

Litwin shares her tips for finding a well-made, affordable sofa:

• Hot glue is good. Avoid couches with exposed staples and legs that are screwed on. Screwed-on legs become weaker over time and are more likely to break. Pull out cushions to examine the craftsmanship of a piece. Fabric and wood legs should be secured with hot glue.
• Kiln-dried wood. Ask about the frame materials. The frame should be kiln-dried wood which give the sofa strength, durability and allows for some “give”. Look for solid lumber stock such as oak or alder.
• Road-tested fabric. Check to see if the fabric has been tested. Fabric that has been “rubbed” 10,000 or more times on a machine will determine the likelihood that the fabric will pill and fade. Tightly-woven fabric is best. Lift up cushions again to see if fabric goes all the way down to the base of the sofa, not part way, which is an indicator of low-quality.
• Spring fling. Never buy a couch without sitting on it and bouncing. When you stand up, the sofa should rise with you and not stay, seen by peeking beneath the piece.
• Depressed. Eight-way, hand-tied springs are the best and can been seen by peeking beneath the piece.

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According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, hundreds of everyday items found in the home will be recalled just this year alone. How do you know if any of these products are in your home? What do you do if you do own a product that has been recalled? What popular products have been recalled in the past year?

These are important questions that “Shop Cop” and consumer reporter Jennifer Litwin is helping consumers answer to insure that their homes are as safe as possible. She offers these tips:

• Before making a major household purchase, check out the Consumer Product Safety Commission website to be sure that this item has not been recalled.
• If you find that you do own a product on the recall list, contact the manufacturer immediately and have your product identification number handy when calling.
• Register for all product warranties immediately. This is also how a manufacturer can get in touch with you if the product is recalled.
• For major ticket purchases or more expensive children’s toys, look up the name of the manufacturer before buying the item.

Following are some popular products that have been recalled recently, along with suggestions:

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America’s ‘Shop Cop’, popular author (“Furniture Hot Spots” and “Best Furniture Buying Tips Ever!”) and frequent TV contributor Jennifer Litwin recommends donating gently used furniture to save money on income taxes. The following ideas can be applied to tax returns:

WRITING OFF FURNITURE DONATIONS

If, in the past year, in the process of moving, clearing out the clutter or trading up, you donated any furniture to a charity organization, you are entitled to write off the value of the furniture. Always make sure you have a copy of the receipt and when declaring it.

FURNITURE BANK

Some regional furniture stores are rewarding donors by offering a discount of up to 10% on new purchases if you donate your old furniture to the “Furniture Bank”, a national depository that takes furniture from anyone in over 30 cities and gives it to those in need. The Furniture Bank will pick up the goods and remove them at no charge. You assign your own value to the goods based on age of piece, wear and tear and demand. This is a win-win, because you are saving money on taxes and on your new furniture purchases. The Furniture Bank works with organizations like The American Red Cross, United Way and U.S. Department of Social Services.

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Retailers: Nordstrom, Costco, Bloomingdale’s, Best Buy, Macy’s, Menard’s, Target, Walmart, Toys R Us, Circuit City, American Express, Bed Bath & Beyond

TRENDS

1. Restocking Fees
2. Gift Card Time Limit: and Retail Store Gift Card vs. Bank Card
3. Return Time Limit shortened (electronics/appliances)
4. Online vs. In-Store Gift Cards/Returns

• Restocking fees: Subjective: What stores charge the customer to return goods…a booming trend in the retail industry. Between 5-25%. Charged on electronics, appliances and other popularly returned items during the holiday season. * No opened boxes, everything intact, not used. Target, Circuit City, Best Buy: 15% Crate & Barrel and Furniture Retailers: Depends Costco: Best ~ for electronics. Most of the electronics stores are extending returns for the holidays until mid-January.
• Gift card time limits ($18 b): Until a few months ago large retailers were trying to shorten the time limit of the gift card. Cards lose value over time…it was a balance sheet decision. Beginning in the Spring of ’06 several states began to incorporate a policy which has made it impossible for retailers to shorten the limit of gift cards less than 2 years. (Bloomingdale’s-2 years) Most retailers have no time limits. Transferring gift cards to cash…a thing of the past (Exception: Menards)
• Retail cards: No fee charged to process the card and no fee charged monthly for unused balances Continue reading »