What Belongs on a Dressing Table, and What Should Go Elsewhere
“If it’s on the table, you use it every day. That’s the rule.” That’s what my cousin said, standing in my bedroom, looking at the little marble topped vanity I’d…
Gray Wardrobes: Which Walls and Colors Play Well With Them
I once had someone tell me, dead serious, in a lighting showroom of all places, that “gray furniture is what happens when a person gives up on having opinions.” Direct…
Pillows for a Cream Sofa That Add Interest Without Adding Stress
I used to tell people to keep pillows on a cream sofa strictly neutral. Cream, white, maybe a very apologetic beige, nothing that could stain, nothing that could clash, nothing…
Dark Brown Leather Couch: Coffee Tables, Pillows and Armchairs That Work
You’re standing in the delivery guy’s way while he waits for you to sign off on this dark brown leather couch that just got carried up three flights of stairs,…
Light Pink Walls Without the Nursery Look
My sister repainted her guest room in what the paint chip called “Blush Whisper” right before her father in law came to visit for two weeks, and by the time…
The Empty Space on Top of Your Wardrobe: Use It, Style It or Leave It
Picture it: I’m standing on a barstool that is one hundred percent not rated for standing on, holding a shoebox full of tangled Christmas lights, one foot already committed to…
Why a Tray Makes a Coffee Table Look Finished
“Just get a nice tray, it’ll pull the whole table together.” That’s what the woman two desks over told me when I mentioned my coffee table looked like a table…
Making a Black Leather Sofa Feel Like Home Instead of a Lobby
I used to think black leather sofas were a lost cause, decor wise. Not ugly, just cold, the kind of piece that looks like it belongs in a dentist’s waiting…
Above, Behind and Over: Dealing With the Wall Around a Headboard
“What to put above your headboard” and “what to put behind your headboard” get typed into Google as if they’re two different questions with two different answers. They’re not. They’re…
Gray Beds and the Nightstands That Suit Them
I was standing in the cereal aisle at Star Market on a Tuesday night, genuinely deliberating between two brands of granola I already know taste identical, when my phone buzzed…