Patio Table: What Belongs on It Through the Seasons
I counted the other day, out of pure nosiness about my own habits, and I go out to that patio table roughly eleven times a day between April and October.…
The Water Change Habit Most People Skip
I own fourteen vases. Fourteen. I counted them properly last weekend, out loud, standing in my kitchen with a mug of coffee going cold, and got to fourteen and just…
The Vase Habit That Keeps Tulips Fresh
I bought a bunch of tulips from the guy who sets up outside the hardware store on Layton every March, back when Milwaukee is still gray sludge and everyone’s desperate…
Tall Glass Floor Vase Ideas
My sister Corrine walked into my den back in March, looked at the six foot glass vase in the corner with a single dried palm frond drooping out of it…
Nightstands for a Metal Bed Frame
My dad walked into my bedroom last spring, looked at the new bed frame I’d just leveled out, then looked at the nightstand I’d shoved next to it, and said…
Making a Black Side Table Work in Any Room
I was on the floor of my hallway last Saturday, cross legged on a drop cloth, going through a coffee can of drawer pulls I’ve been hoarding since a barn…
Footstool Colors for a Teal Sofa
Everyone told me a teal sofa was going to be the hardest piece of furniture I’d ever own to build a room around. My sister in law said it, my…
End Table Ideas That Earn Their Space
Okay so I actually timed this once, not on purpose, just because I was bored during a rewatch of a show I’ve seen four times, and in one hour I…
Headboards for a Room With Green Walls
I’ve typed “what color headboard goes with green walls” into a search bar four separate times in the last two years. Always at around eleven at night. Always right before…
Keeping a Bird Bath From Becoming a Mosquito Problem
My sister in law walked into my backyard in July, took one look at the bird bath on the patio, and said, “Ben, why does your yard smell like a…