October 6, 2010

Free Kitchen & Bath Remodeling Advice

Projects & Tips

The National Kitchen & Bath Association is offering free downloadable NKBA Kitchen and Bath Planners throughout the month of October, which it has designated Kitchen and Bath month. For anyone interested in enhancing the value of their homes by remodeling a kitchen or bath, the Planners guide homeowners through every step of the process with advice from NKBA professionals, who clarify the necessary decisions and offer in-depth industry knowledge. Key features of the Planners include: A step-by-step guide of the remodel from start to finish Guidelines of details and components to consider while planning Comprehensive design options to choose your personal … Read Post

September 30, 2010

Italian Ceramic Tile Trends Report

Inspiration, Products

The Cersaie show of ceramic tiles, which is going on now in Bologna, Italy, showcases the most beautiful tiles from more than 500 international companies—and many of them become available in the U.S. Danielle De Vita, the senior account executive from NovitaPR, which represents the Ceramic Tile of Italy association, offered to write up a trends roundup for us. A thorough and inspiring report it is. Here’s her summary:   Don’t you just love sneak previews, especially when they involve designer trends? Here’s a great one for you: Cersaie, the international exhibition of ceramic tile and bathroom furnishings, is a … Read Post

September 28, 2010

Fresh Autumn Flower Ideas (Plus Tips from a Pro on How to Make them Last)

Inspiration, Projects & Tips

Fresh flowers are great happiness inducers. They’re also one of the easiest ways to bring a seasonal change of scene to a room—especially if you’re entertaining. Now that the social season is kicking in, we talked to Michael Gaffney, a professional florist and founder of the American School of Flower Design, about fresh ideas for autumn floral arrangements. “You don’t have to use dried flowers or create an arrangement with the end-of-season harvest in autumn arrangements,” he says. “You can suggest fall, rather than interpret it literally, by using flowers with autumn colors, such as orange, red and yellow. You … Read Post

September 24, 2010

Instant Inspiration

Inspiration, Products

Earlier this week, Elle Décor’s new editor, Michael Boodro, hosted an event at the Century Furniture showroom in the New York Design Center to celebrate the site’s new LookBook, which is incredibly helpful for people who are in the midst of a remodel and want instant access to inspiration. The LookBook offers hundreds of photos of beautiful rooms organized by style or room type. It also includes source information on the designer and the issue in which the room originally appeared. In addition, a shoppable feature (powered by 1st Dibs, the online market place for antiques and mid-century furniture) provides … Read Post

September 23, 2010

Furniture with Soul

Products

Touring the aisles of the International Gift Show a couple of weeks ago, we came across the tiny booth of a new company called Bourgeoisie 3d that stopped us in our tracks. The beautiful furnishings it showcased were at once familiar and fresh. There was a kind of purity and perfection about the wooden chairs, tables and stools that drew us in and made me want to find out more. After chatting with the owners, John Bourgeois and his wife, Emily, who is the lead designer of the furnishings, we learned about Emily’s thoughtful and inspired approach to design, which … Read Post

September 21, 2010

Thrifty DIY Bath Renovation

Baths, Projects & Tips

One of our readers, Jen Murray, sent us a couple of photos and a brief description of one of her home improvements. Here’s an excerpt of her notes describing the thrifty DIY bathroom renovation by her husband, Erick, who retiled the dated shower and tub surround. I’m just going to take a moment and tell you that I found your blog through Facebook, I believe, on the site of Company C. I read your post about that wonderful pillow you made from Company C fabric. I enjoyed it so much—I had just ordered 2 yards of Maine Cottage fabric (the inexpensive … Read Post

September 16, 2010

The Role of the Kitchen in Modern Life

Kitchens

It’s interesting to reflect on how much the kitchen has changed over the past century—and how much it’s impacted how we live. A current exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art in New York called Counter Space: Design and the Modern Kitchen wonderfully examines the remarkable evolution of the kitchen since the late 19th century. It also illuminates how its continual redesign has shaped our notions of food, gender roles, consumerism and even political ideology—most notably in the famous “Kitchen Debate” between Richard Nixon and Nikita Krushchev in Moscow in 1959 at the height of the Cold War. “Kitchens were … Read Post

September 14, 2010

Eco-Friendly Paints in Beautiful Colors

Inspiration, Products

    Wow! What a difference a coat of paint makes! And if you choose to paint your walls with an eco-friendly paint, you can sit in your home office do your work while the painters do theirs. The best eco-friendly paints have no VOCs (the volatile organic compounds, or toxic vapors, that get released into the air as the paint dries). These paints definitely have that fresh paint smell that makes a house feel new, but not the overwhelming fumes that can bring tears to your eyes (and not in a good way). Among the eco-friendly paint options are … Read Post

August 31, 2010

Tips on Enhancing Your Life with Feng Shui

Projects & Tips

I’ve been gradually shifting gears with my career over the past few months, and my husband is considering doing the same, so it’s a good thing we’ve decided to renovate our kitchen. At least that’s true if you take the Chinese art of feng shui into account. You see, our kitchen is located in what’s known as the “career area” of our home and according to Katherine Lewis, an L.A.-based feng shui master I consulted a couple of weeks ago, making positive changes to this area will positively affect the career opportunities that come into our lives. Trained in several schools … Read Post

August 26, 2010

Tips from a Pro on the Psychology of Getting Organized

Projects & Tips

While I was working as the editor in chief of the Woman’s Day special interest magazines, the advice most often requested from our readers was information on getting organized. A couple of months ago, my fellow editors helped me record a conversation I had with Fran Harris, a life coach, former professional basketball player, and the host of a new HGTV show called Home Rules. The premise of her show is to get the participants to clear up their “inner house,” meaning their psychological and emotional issues, before they earn the right to embark on their “outer house,” or home … Read Post