houzz interior design ideas

Archive for the "textiles" Category

4 Tips for Downsizing

If you or someone you know is thinking of moving to a smaller home or a retirement community, here are some tips that will help make your transition smoother. 1. Start a “TO DO” notebook Here you will list the tasks that need doing, as well as names of professionals whose services you may need […]

3 Ways to Transform Your Master Bedroom

Recently we had the good fortune to transform a client’s master bedroom from lackluster to luscious. There are many ways to do this, but my top three favorites are: 1. Personalize your furnishings. These clients are avid birdwatchers, and recently moved to a condo overlooking the Willamette River that teems with local waterfowl, raptors, and […]

Living in Your Living Room

This inviting seating area in the sunny bay window looks like it has always been here, but truth to tell, it just happened last week. That is, the completion of the room happened last week, but was actually year in the making. Let me back up to show you what the living room of this […]

Nothing Like a Party!

There’s nothing like a party to get things done around your house and garden.  When I was planning my son’s 40th birthday party in early May, I got busy making sure our deck was party-ready.  Deferred maintenance becomes really obvious when you start envisioning things from a guest’s point of view.  Here are four essentials for turning […]

INTERIOR DECORATING or INTERIOR DESIGN?

HAPPY NEW YEAR! Have you ever wondered what the difference is between interior design and interior decorating?  Using our home library as an example, I will illustrate the difference between these two essential concepts: interior design requires conceptualizing and outlining changes that require construction, whereas interior decorating refers to changes in color, furnishings, window treatments and accessories.  The photo […]

Realizing Dreams: Master Bedroom Makeover

A few months ago Helene Cogen moved from Miami, Florida, to Portland, Oregon, because her children and grandchildren live here.  She had owned a home here for years, but only used it in the summer, so it was furnished like a beach house–very casual, with lots of white wicker furniture.  With a permanent move, she wanted […]

The Doctors’ Decorating Dilemma

When I first met Drs. Lainie and Jon Yarris, both emergency room physicians, they had been raising their three children in this charming Craftsman home for eleven years.  When they weren’t working at their demanding jobs, they were doing activities with their children and with friends, who also have children.  Their dilemma was how to arrange the […]

Subterranean Transmogrification

One expects transformation with a remodel.  The results of this particular basement remodel are so dramatic that I’m calling it “transmogrification.”  The beautiful space below . . . used to look like this: Since I’m not an engineer or an architect, I called upon Wade Freitag at Craftsman Design and Renovation to help with the construction design for this […]

Beyond 50 Shades of Gray

Did you ever go shopping to find sheets or towels in your favorite colors and discover they don’t exist?   At the moment there are LOTS of gray items, as gray is really hot right now.  But try finding sage green or plum bedding or decorative pillows in a retail store.  It’s practically impossible! Since Emery […]

Room Service

  This year we changed up our master bedroom.  It went from earthy, Tuscan colors–sage, gold, and red–to spa blue with crisp white linens to echo the white trim, now more prominent than ever with the draperies removed.  Never mind that the bedroom in its previous incarnation had been published in a magazine in 2007 […]

houzz interior design ideas