Cabinet Colors That Suit Light Blue Walls
I own nineteen paint sample pots right now, lined up on my kitchen windowsill like a very sad science fair project, and every single one of them is trying to…
Cabinet Colors That Hold Their Own Against Light Gray Walls
I own fourteen paint sample pots right now. Fourteen. They’re lined up on top of the fridge because that’s the only surface in this house currently safe from small hands,…
Ideas for the Top of a Wardrobe: Baskets, Boxes and Plants
I was up on a step stool in my own bedroom on a Sunday morning, not doing anything productive, just finally dealing with the top of my wardrobe because my…
The Top Shelf of a Bookcase: Display Space, Not Reach Space
I own eleven objects whose entire job is to sit on top of a bookcase and be looked at. Eleven. I counted them last week while standing on a dining…
The Wall Above a Sideboard: Mirrors, Art and Shelves
My wife walked into the dining room, took one look at the wall above our sideboard, and just said, “Ben. What is happening up there.” Which was fair, because at…
The Bottom Shelf of a Bookcase: Heavy, Hidden or Handy
I bought a full set of Encyclopedia Britannica off a woman on Facebook Marketplace for forty dollars, which felt like a genuine triumph at the time. Twenty six volumes, 1987…
Lower Shelf of a Console Table: Baskets, Books and Beyond
I currently own eleven baskets whose entire job in life is to sit on the bottom shelf of my console table. Eleven. I counted them last week while my roommate…
Top of a Bookcase: What Sits Up There Without Looking Cluttered
My sister-in-law Renee stood in my living room, tilted her head at the bookcase, and said, “Did you just… give up up there?” She wasn’t wrong. At that point the…
Top of a Sideboard: A Simple Formula That Works
I once spent four hundred and ten dollars building what I can only describe as a shrine. Not to anything in particular. Just three white ceramic somethings, evenly spaced, on…
On Top of a Bed Frame: Ledges, Canopies and Storage Frames
I built a platform bed with an integrated ledge for my own bedroom about six years ago, back when I thought I knew everything about building things because I’d been…