Coastal Farmhouse

Bedrooms Are the Most Revealing of Our Personalities

Posted on December 5, 2018
by kathleen

Bedrooms are the most revealing of our personalities. Here we lie down and shut our eyes, lower our defenses, and open ourselves to dreams, fantasies, and love. The intimacy of this room makes it a space that is highly charged emotionally. When we love, we…

Inspiration

Nora Murphy’s Country House Style: Making Your Home A Country House

Posted on December 2, 2018
by kathleen

Nora Murphy is a whirlwind of creativity who has turned her Connecticut country home into that contented sigh noise people make when they open their front door. She’s pretty inspiring. Not only has she created her own country-house style from her home, but she shares…

Interiors

There’s Nothing More Fun Than Choosing Fabrics

Posted on November 28, 2018
by kathleen

There's nothing more fun than choosing our fabrics, and very often that's the decision we want to make first. But fabric choices often confound us. There are so many of them, one more beautiful than the next. And these, of course, must also be coordinated…

Interiors

The Influence of Style on Proportion and Scale

Posted on November 26, 2018
by kathleen

Style is a key element of proportion and scale. You can juxtapose a small oak stool to a huge oak dining table; because they're both the same style, they are compatible. If all your furniture is wicker, you can combine large-and small-scale pieces in a…

Interiors

Why A Round Dining Table is a Great Choice

Posted on November 20, 2018
by kathleen

When clients begin to make dining room furniture choices, I invariably tell them to start with the table. I've always enjoyed dining at round tables at friends' houses. There's something so gracious about being in a circle. Conversation can be more general than when sitting…

Entertaining

How to Wash, Store and Use Your Formal Tablecloths and Napkins

Posted on November 16, 2018
by kathleen

A beautiful tablecloth sets the foundation for a Thanksgiving table to remember. Plus, it's the perfect way to showcase your design style. When it comes to a beautifully laid Thanksgiving table, always start with your table linens. Here are some simple tips and tricks for choosing and caring for…

Interiors

The Dining Room: The Least Understood and Appreciated Room

Posted on November 15, 2018
by kathleen

Next to the living room, the dining room is the least understood and appreciated room in the house. The pace and clutter of our long, tightly scheduled days draw us away from the full satisfaction we should derive from the important daily ritual of dining…

Interiors

All Good Rooms Have A Mission: Selecting Furnishings

Posted on October 22, 2018
by kathleen

As you begin to focus on interior design, remember that all good rooms have a mission. In the case of your living room, its purpose and intent is to provide maximum emotional and physical comfort for you and your guests. What fascinates me as a…

Interiors

Let the Light In: Window Treatments For Every Room

Posted on October 18, 2018
by kathleen

You probably will want your living room to have as much light and sunshine as possible. Study the quality of the natural light and judge how much your windows provide. What are your exposures? How many windows do you have, and how large are they?…

Interiors

Make Every Room A Living Room

Posted on October 16, 2018
by kathleen

Living rooms have always had a disproportionate amount of money spent on them because people tend to think they had to be "decorated." Yet no sooner was the (expensive) work completed than the living room ceased to be a room lived in; we'd glide through it…