By Cathy Hobbs From Tribune News Service Homes make a first impression on visitors within seconds of entering the space. The foyer, or point of entry, serves as a sneak peek of what’s to come. The initial message can be warm and welcoming, bold and bright, or functional and inviting. Regardless of the feeling you…

By Katie Laughridge From Tribune News Service In a day and age where most everything we purchase is mass-produced, there’s something magical about the beauty found in the slowness of handmade goods. Block printed textiles are lovely in part because of homespun nature of the craft. I fell in love with the art of block…

By Cathy Hobbs From Tribune News Service The summer is typically the time of year when we dress in lighter/brighter clothing to keep cool—so it’s also a good time to use softer, lighter colors within the home. In many situations, lighter colors give a space a crisp, fresh and clean feeling. Light colors can also…

By Katie Laughridge From Tribune News Service Nell Hill’s designer Anne and her family have lived in their Prairie Village, Kansas, home for almost four years. When the Epsteins purchased their nearly century-old home in the suburbs of Kansas, they knew it needed an update. Many big and little projects needed to get done. The…

By Cathy Hobbs From Tribune News Service With summer just around the corner, are you looking for ways to have your home look and feel different or refreshed? If the cost and prospect of an extensive renovation is undesirable, why not take on smaller projects that can give your home a new look on a…

By Cathy Hobbs From Tribune News Service Minimalism remains a strong design trend and preferred choice of many homeowners and apartment dwellers. For many, living with less creates calm and order. No longer are these environments considered sparse and sanitized, either—instead it can be a functional design choice. From foundations such as the Bauhaus style…

By Katie Laughridge From Tribune News Service Working with a designer is an exciting opportunity to take your design dreams to the next level. A designer’s role is to help you think outside the box and arrive at a design destination that you might not have otherwise traveled. A client-designer relationship is like a dance….

By Cathy Hobbs From Tribune News Service When it comes to entertaining, the host often dresses up a dining table to enhance food pairing or to create a decorative tablescape. But why not dress up your kitchen and even casual dining areas year-round? If you are looking to showcase decorative elements in your home in…

Copyright Kaitlyn Keegan From Hartford Courant Over the years, wallpaper has been all the rage. Step into a house renovated from the 1950s to early 1990s, there is probably a lot of wallpaper. Current generations remember the sticky, smelly glue that soaked into your sheetrock and ruined anything it touched. As we turned into the…

By Cathy Hobbs From Tribune News Service Step into nearly any hotel and you will easily notice that hospitality design is hip! No longer dull, drab, and sanitized, these days hoteliers are going out of their way to make a design statement, especially in their public spaces. The beauty is that many of these designer…