Dear Maria, We have those dreaded honey oak cabinets in our kitchen. We are not interested at this point in changing or painting them. I just want to choose a laminate countertop and a backsplash and a wall colour that will look reasonably good together. I prefer lighter colours for the counter and backsplash. Could you give me any suggestions? … Continue reading
I know this is not a complete absolute truth because it won't apply to the high end market but I do a lot of design and colour consulting in brand new homes and the homeowner is usually saying things like, "The builder only gave us two options, so we chose the lesser of the two evils". Barbara Barry's Classic White… Continue reading
This not-to-be-missed post about what kind of house to shop for and what constitutes 'good bones' in an exterior or interior has been percolating in my head for months. I could not figure out the best way to articulate it, until today. Sadly, I did not write this post. Joni from Cote de Texas did instead. However, it is so… Continue reading
The other day my mom reminded me of an old Finnish proverb that goes like this: When a job is done right, no one asks how long it took, everyone simply says "It's beautiful". A client recently called me in a panic, her subway tile backsplash was being installed and the advice she had received on the layout was clearly… Continue reading
I received this great question from Tamara recently: source 'I love your blog and have learned so much about undertones and choosing colors. We've all noticed the plethora of painted wood furniture lately. At first I thought it was just a trend and that dark wood will be back, but I'm not sure anymore. What do you think? I have… Continue reading
'A Happy Wife is a Happy Life.' How many times have you heard that expression? Let's be really clear about something, when it comes to creating a home, wives are usually the ones who are the most upset or annoyed about the out-dated or unattractive areas. I know this because 95% of the time, it's the wife who has hired… Continue reading
Recently Joni from Cote de Texas wrote this totally inspired post, Convincing Your Husband to Decorate Your Way. It's a must read for every woman who gets grief from their husband over wanting to paint old furniture (or dated cabinets for that matter) in addition to just decorating your way. Fundamentally, when it comes to home decor, women (in general) simply care… Continue reading
One day a designer sent me a link to a bunch of high end furniture that a couple was selling because they were re-decorating. She asked if I was working with anyone that would be interested in the list of furniture. source 'Almost new leather sectional' Retail price: $35,000; selling for the bargain price of $10,000. And it's Rust. Or… Continue reading
When I posted about which colour scheme I was considering (yellow and raspberry) for my living room, I received a comment from a reader saying she could not imagine talking her husband into a pink and yellow family room and asked how to balance that. When I helped Penelope Trunk with her colours a few months ago and we chose… Continue reading
My sister called me the other day to have a chat. She informed me she was comfortably ensconced in her husband's black (and lumpy I might add) recliner. She has 2 very small children so she is fine with comfortable instead of fashionable at the current moment. She will pick up the battle to relegate the lumpy recliner to the… Continue reading
