Don’t be shy! If you like bold colors, there are ways to pull them off beautifully. By Diane Franklin Hot pink in the bedroom, lime green in the dining room, orange in the kitchen—do these colors really work? Yes, they can! If you want to try some bold colors but aren’t sure how to pull [...]
Five Economical Kitchen Fixes
April 1, 2019Here’s how to update your kitchen on a limited budget. By Diane Franklin You’d love to redecorate your kitchen, but oh, that price tag! Backsplash tiles, new cabinets and granite countertops can cost way beyond your limited budget. Here are five ideas that will give your kitchen new life without breaking the bank. Paint or [...]
March Into Spring
March 12, 2019Follow these steps to make the exterior of your home look good as early in the season as possible. By Diane Franklin In March, we usher in springtime—a great time to head outdoors to assess your patio, deck, fence, siding, shutters and other outdoor surfaces. Here are steps to follow to make the exterior areas [...]
Old Colors Become New Again
March 12, 2019Colors that have come and gone are being reinvented for renewed homeowner appeal. By Diane Franklin Once upon a time, avocado green, harvest gold and dusty rose were the most popular hues in the land—and then they disappeared, banished to the Kingdom of Outdated Color Trends. Would they ever be seen again? The answer is [...]
Mix and Match Your Styles
March 12, 2019There’s a fine art to mixing different decorating styles in a single home. By Diane Franklin The first rule of “Decorating 101” is to pick your decorating style, but what if you like more than one? Can you be contemporary in the living room, Scandinavian modern in the kitchen and romantically traditional in the bedroom? [...]
No Windows? No Problem!
March 12, 2019Without any natural light, interior rooms can be a challenge to decorate—but it’s a challenge that these creative ideas will help you overcome. By Diane Franklin An interior bathroom, a basement rec room and an off-the-kitchen laundry room are among the areas in your home that may be noteworthy for what they are lacking—windows. The [...]
New Places to Go with Faux
March 12, 2019Faux finishes are popping up in all sorts of home spaces. By Tammy Adamson-McMullen You may have done it on a feature wall or on a small piece of furniture, but don’t stop there. There are so many other places where you can create a faux finish! Faux finishing is as popular as ever because [...]
Options in “Green” Floors
February 27, 2019Thinking of installing new floors? Consider our list of the best eco-friendly options. By Tammy Adamson-McMullen If you’re in the market for new floors and want your home to be “green” from top to bottom, you’re in luck: “Green” flooring options are plentiful in 2019! Flooring companies increasingly are using sustainable and recycled materials in [...]
Grasscloth Makes a Comeback
February 27, 2019Why a staple from the 1960s and ’70s—grasscloth wallcovering—is making a comeback. By Diane Franklin If your last encounter with grasscloth wallcovering was in the 1960s and ’70s, you’re in for a pleasant surprise. Grasscloth is back—and in many ways, it’s bigger and better than ever. Grasscloth is part of a natural trend in decorating [...]
Fixing Common Paint Problems
February 27, 2019Even the best DIY painters encounter problems. Here are some suggested solutions. By Diane Franklin If you are an experienced DIYer, you may feel pretty confident about tackling virtually any interior or exterior painting project—unless you encounter a problem. Problems can occur for any number of reasons, including poor surface prep, poor quality paint, cheap [...]