The Laker/Lutz News

Serving Pasco since 1981/Serving Lutz since 1964

Dixie Belle

Simple Ways to Make Valentine’s Day Special

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Handmade gifts always seem to be bundled with extra love, knowing that someone put time and effort into making it.

For Valentine’s Day, Bella Home Market in Lutz is featuring handmade products by local sellers that you can’t find in the Valentine’s Day aisle at big box stores.

Toffee To Go is making a return after its popularity during Christmas time. The treats come packed in a box and bow, ready to be delivered to your special someone. Jade’s Soap Shop also will be making an appearance. The Dunedin-based business specializes in aesthetic soaps of all unique patterns with a blend of specialized scents. Tres Monkey Skin Care will feature its products at Bella Home, for men and women. This includes hygiene products, soap scrubs and bath creams, many of which would make a great gift basket also paired with Jade’s Soap Shop.

“It’s spectacular we can feature so many local sellers during the holidays,” said owner Lou Malerba. “These thoughtful gifts are perfect for anyone on Valentine’s Day that likes gifts with meaning.”

Throughout the year, Bella Home Market is known for its upscale décor and memorable merchandise. They’re the only elite retailer of the popular DIY paint, Dixie Belle, that is locally based. Nowhere else in Lutz can you find every line of Dixie Belle product. The store offers all-inclusive classes throughout the year that teaches the Dixie Belle painting techniques, and sends you home with a decor item you’ve created.

For online orders and Dixie Belle class signups, visit BellaHomeMarket.com.

Published January 26, 20222

Bella Home Market Makes Top 100 Retailer List

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Bella Home Market in Lutz has always been known for its unique gifts and home décor finds; however, this month the retailer is being recognized for its dedication to the Dixie Belle brand.

For three years now, Bella Home Market has been named a Top 100 Retailer for its sales of the popular mineral paint, Dixie Belle. The achievement is not limited to local retailers, but out of all 2,400 sellers worldwide.

The VOC (volatile organic compound)-free paint gets delivered to Bella Home Market straight from the factory in Port Richey. It has the ability to adhere to a variety of surfaces, and comes in many colors that are perfect for creative projects. From wood furniture refurbishment, to more complex undertakings such as painting glass and metal, Dixie Belle proves reliable.

As an elite retailer of Dixie Belle, Bella Home Market carries every product line Dixie Belle offers, including its silk line of paint, which is a primer, paint and sealer all in one.

Lou Malerba, owner of Bella Home Market, hosts classes in-store to help guests learn the technique for working with the paint properly. The class includes access to its entire selection of colors and all of the materials are included in the price. Veterans of the product may even pick up new creative revelations with tools that may not have been at their disposal before.

For online orders and Dixie Belle class signups, visit BellaHomeMarket.com.

Published December 29, 2021

Christmas is already ‘upon us’

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Most of us still have a couple of months to shop for the holidays. But for Bella Home Market in Lutz, it’s come down to a couple of weeks.

The locally owned, gift and home store features upscale décor and memorable merchandise, and is a premier retailer of Dixie Belle paints. Each visitor has the opportunity to find something unique that no one else will have. Christmas is practically here for Bella Home because of the new seasonal merchandise that’s made its way through the door, with plenty more on the way.

“I can’t even begin to describe all that we have coming in,” said owner Lou Malerba.

The store features locally crafted products that will now fit the holiday season. This includes delicacies that make great grab gifts like Toffees To-Go with its kitchen located in Tampa, complete with box and bow. If you prefer the handmade gift option, Bella Home offers three upcoming classes that will provide an evening of personalized instruction using the popular Dixie Belle paints. You end the night with your own seasonal décor item, but the skillset learned is the gift that keeps on giving.

For online catalog orders and class signups, visit BellaHomeMarket.com.

Published October 27, 2021

Home Sweet Home at Bella Home Market

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Between the stock and the staff, there’s really nothing a creative mind can’t accomplish when it comes to home decorating by shopping at Bella Home Market in Lutz.

This locally owned specialty boutique offers a selection of high-end home décor and gifts, in a range of styles with reasonable prices. The store also dedicates space for homemade goods from local creators, such as organic soaps and wall art.

“We keep our product unique,” said Lou Malerba, store owner. “You won’t visit someone’s house and say, ‘I have that same painting on my wall,’ because our gifts are individualized.”

Owner Lou Malerba

Malerba became owner of Bella Home Market two years ago, right before COVID-19. A frequent shopper, he furnished much of his own home with merchandise from the store. He’s grown to love the community whose commitment to shop locally has kept his doors open.

“I’m absolutely a people person, and at my store, customer service is number one,” said Malerba. “People know if they need a unique piece, they can find it at Bella Home Market.”

What continues to set Bella Home Market apart from other home décor stores is its variety of versatile craft paints by Dixie Belle. In fact, Bella Home Market ranks in the top 100 world retailers for the brand.

After premiering every paint color offered by Dixie Belle, Malerba’s success led him to becoming the only store in the Lutz area to be named an Elite retailer. And, as an Elite, Malerba can carry every product Dixie Belle offers. This includes its cherished, original product with stains, waxes and scents, to its newer Silk line, an all-in-one application that works as a primer, pigment and topcoat.

“We have so much fun with Dixie Belle, they are constantly bringing in new products, and folks love them. Plus, they love the paint’s bendability, affordability and best of all, it’s VOC-free,” said Malerba.

(VOCs, or Volatile Organic Compounds, are toxic, binding chemicals found in other paints that give off the signature “paint fume” smell. Exposure to these fumes over time can have dangerous health effects.)

Bella Home Market goes the extra mile to show customers there is really nothing you can’t do with these paints. While most crafters use them for painting furniture (beautiful examples can be found in the store), Malerba and artist Rebecca Buzzeo hold classes every month to showcase the adaptability and versatility of the paint. These classes of individualized, all-inclusive projects tend to fill up fast, especially around the holidays.

“You’ll come, and we’ll show you the process and technique of Dixie Belle. By the end, you’ve learned new painting skills and get to keep a seasonal décor item you created,” said Malerba.

Throughout the month of October, Bella Home is hosting a raffle auction with the lucky winner taking home a themed gift basket filled with great in-store finds. All proceeds from the raffle will go to Moffit Cancer Center to support Breast Cancer Awareness month.