September 29, 2011

Creative Ways to Stow Books

Projects & Tips

Before you part with a collection of favorite books, consider these creative ways to stow them offered by writer Megan Fulweiler. She and her husband began what she calls “a new chapter” in their life-long love affair with books: We’ve come to the conclusion our books are a lot like our relatives. There are those we love, those we like, and a good many we, well, tolerate. Still, we could no more sever relations with the last group than we can—it’s obvious—winnow down our books. Both the relatives and good-but-not-favorite reads are family. Someday we might have better communication—more time, more … Read Post

May 16, 2011

The Happy Home Project

Inspiration, Projects & Tips

A year ago yesterday, author Jean Nayar assigned herself an ambitious project that served as the starting point for this blog. She developed a Wish List of home improvements that she’d hoped to undertake over the course of a year. And, after applying the wisdom of experts across many disciplines and taking their ideas for a test drive in her own home, she also hoped to distill a list of key ingredients that contribute to the making of a happy home and write about them here. While some of her dreams were deferred due to substantial unexpected interference—see her post on her adventure in … Read Post

May 13, 2011

5 Easy Spring Spruce-ups for National Home Improvement Month

Inspiration, Interiors, Projects & Tips

Did you know that May is National Home Improvement Month? Consider these five easy ways to give your space a seasonal update without taking on a major overhaul.                         Slipcovers: If you’re tired of your living room and want to give it a summer feel, keep your vacation budget in tact by updating chairs with slipcovers. Sure Fit has hundreds of light and bright options to take your living and dining rooms through summer.                         New Bedding: The quickest … Read Post

March 22, 2011

Cleaning Silver, The Perfect Chore

Projects & Tips

Even though it doesn’t quite feel like it yet in New York (a layer of soggy snow is coming down as we write), it’s spring—the season for cleaning. And, if you’ve taken on a renovation project recently, then the lighter housekeeping duties one normally undertakes this time of year seem like a piece of cake by comparison. The one exception is cleaning silver, the only chore many of us truly dread. But author Megan Fulweiler has a totally different take on this impossible job. She actually enjoys it! She told us so in a post she sent us yesterday. How refreshing it … Read Post

March 16, 2011

Win a Collection of Great Home Cleaning Products

Projects & Tips

Thymes, a creative fragrance collaborative based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, recently launched a new line of cleaning products called Mandarin Coriander, just in time for the spring cleaning season. And if you’re willing to share your household cleaning secrets and tips on its site, you could take the new products for a test drive. The company is now running a contest inviting you to share your home care secrets—and if they’re chosen as the most liked on the site, you could win its entire Mandarin Coriander Collection (valued at $227 retail) in return. How do you make your home a welcoming place for … Read Post

March 10, 2011

How Feng Shui Can Transform Your Life

Projects & Tips

If you’re interested in feng shui and plan to renovate your kitchen try to find out where it falls within the bagwa to determine which area of your life will be affected by the changes you’ll make. If it’s in the career section, for example, chances are as you transform your kitchen your career will transform, too. It’s also interesting to note the differences in kitchen design as it’s done in different parts of the world. One particular feature of every Indian home in Bombay, for instance, is what’s known as a chajja, a kind of metal or cast concrete window awning. This is a … Read Post

March 1, 2011

Creative Curtain Idea

Projects & Tips

A talented photographer and designer, Jennifer Levy is known for her imaginative problem-solving ideas. Take this clean, crisp curtain idea she came up with to cover the glass door leading to the terrace of her Brooklyn brownstone, for example. By installing a curved track and floor-length cotton panel along the ceiling in front of the door and along the adjacent wall, she was able to completely cover the door to control light and add privacy when necessary. But when she wants access to the full view, the curved track allows the curtain to be swept fully away from the door without … Read Post

February 6, 2011

English Author Mary Gilliatt on English Style

Projects & Tips

Just before the holidays we had the good fortune to spend some time with our friend Mary Gilliatt, a talented English decorator and the author of more than 40 books on decorating and design. She told us a charming story about her second book called English Style in Interior Decoration, which was first published in the U.S. by Viking. She was walking along Park Avenue on the Upper East Side recently and saw her English Style book displayed on a table in an antiques shop. Knowing the book had been out of print for several years she went inside to ask the owners … Read Post

January 29, 2011

Eco-Friendly Cleaning Tips

Projects & Tips

We have no shortage of friends—both male and female—who are fanatics when it comes to keeping a clean house. One of them is New York real estate agent Pavan Uttam, who us a few of his household cleaning ideas: I am a self-proclaimed clean freak. My son’s au pair tells people that I am the most uptight man she has ever met when it comes to cleanliness. The woman who cleans my home, on the other hand, loves my cleaning habits and she tells me she has a cushy job. Here are my strategies to keeping three key areas of the house super … Read Post

January 24, 2011

Forcing Forsythia

Projects & Tips

Mid-winter blues starting to get to you? Our friend Megan Fulweiler just sent us another post with one of her techniques for beating them—forcing flowers. Here’s what she wrote: To combat winter blues, I long ago began a tradition. As soon as the holiday decorations are safely stored away, I grab my garden clippers and head outdoors. An armful of forsythia branches snipped from our bushes and plunked in a container of tepid water takes only about two weeks to open. Kept out of direct sunlight, the cheery yellow blossoms last for days. Still to prolong the delight of having spring flowers … Read Post