c e a s u r i d e m a n a – Page 9 – Home is where the love is and where the heart wants to dwell with ease.

Peek in on a Traditional Christmas — in a Summery Garden

Rebecca Wilson’s first job for a landscape architect was this Waikuku, New Zealand, backyard — her parents’ — which she’s watched grow over 30 years with pleasure and a bit of awe. “Plants have expired. Trees have dropped. But we have reacted to these happenings in the backyard and let its own personality grow over time, rather than making it over to some magazine attribute–worthy backyard,” she states. “I constantly tell people that there’s nothing flashy here, however I never tire of photographing it.”

The garden’s courtyard hosts Wilson’s family’s Christmas parties — outside events, since December is warm in New Zealand. “This garden reflects to me what landscape style is all about: creating beautiful spaces that individuals can really enjoy,” she states.

Garden at a Glance
Who cares for it : The Wilson family
Location: Waikuku, New Zealand

Earthwork Landscape Architects

Wisteria climbs across grape curtains across the fence behind the garden table, and the pergola. “We have to keep this fellow in check, as it entirely covers the pergola and wisteria,” Wilson says. “The autumn colors on it are magnificent, making up for its voracity.”

Earthwork Landscape Architects

Wilson’s daddy restored this entry gate, which had been created in the back of an old dray he found on the property 40 years ago. The gate contributes to the back of the courtyard, with a “crazy paving path,” Wilson says.

Earthwork Landscape Architects

The garden varies each time Wilson visits. “I no longer live here full time, so I love it more. I know just how much work goes into managing this type of backyard, but it’s a wonderful area to help keep your eyes open and know when to stop and allow it to do its thing,” she states.

This tiny route meanders through a casual mix of plantings toward a sculpture of a perched rooster, given to them by the neighbors, overlooking a farmyard and a chicken coop beyond.

Earthwork Landscape Architects

Here, Klaas that the rooster keeps watch over the holiday festivities.

A few years ago, the family lengthened the driveway to the house, bringing the elm trees at the farthest corner of the garden closer. This had a dramatic effect on the texture of this garden. “You now come off the open road and the Canterbury Plains, and suddenly you are hauled to this sheltered, leafy and peaceful location,” states Wilson.

Earthwork Landscape Architects

Moss growing in the cracks between the pavers provides the area visual interest and also an interesting geometric pattern. The moss is a seasonal phenomenon that retreats when the cracks dry out in the spring.

Earthwork Landscape Architects

An barn along one border of the backyard was once covered in ivy. When it expired, the wall evolved to this “sculptural masterpiece,” as WIlson calls it, which she hopes remains with her family for a few more years.

Earthwork Landscape Architects

Wilson underplanted that the grove of kowhai trees with native gossamer grass, which she states “contrasts with the solid, vertical forms and creates a soft branch between the driveway and the home.”

She describes her parents’ home as “pretty normal” — it is an L-shape concrete block with a low-pitched roof and aluminum windows. Her mom immediately painted it black and implanted ivy around the base. “Today it’s completely covered and is a rainwater requiring diligent shaving twice per year. It really looks very okay now, as it sort of disappears into the backyard,” she states.

Earthwork Landscape Architects

On Christmas Day that the entire family heads into the courtyard. The casual table is surrounded by mismatched chairs, in tune with the casual, easygoing vibe of summer — and also Christmas in New Zealand.

Wilson’s mum makes fruit mince pies with sweet short pastry. “They are certainly the very best I’ve ever had, and I’ve tried several. My mom also produces a lovely Christmas cake using a recipe from a great-great-grandmother,” she states.

Earthwork Landscape Architects

In the space sits a simple garden bench under a bamboo. Its lime colour matches the new growth. Tussock grasses provide a link to open paddocks past the fence. Wilson kept the stumps of removed trees for sculptural interest; she topped them with rocks from a local riverbed.

Earthwork Landscape Architects

Despite the warm weather, Wilson’s family celebrates a conventional English-style dinner, complete with turkey, Christmas ham and sexy plum pudding with brandy hard sauce. “It’s somewhat rich and admittedly, it is crazy food for the beginning of summer,” she states. “We also make special salads, frequently using kumara, our Maori sweet potato”

After toasting the holidays with sparkling wine or champagne, the Wilsons move on to local New Zealand wines: sauvignon blancs and varietals from just up the road in Waipara.

The landscape architect waxes philosophical when talking about allowing the pure beauty of her family’s backyard become a part of the larger vision for its own management. “The entire garden does not have to be wild. It is often reassuring to have controlled, manicured areas. But it [will be] a shame, I think, for the entire backyard to be kept tightly in check in any way times,” she states.

How To 50 Design-Loving Pets

Every week homeowners around the world open their doors to our leading photographers, who profile their creative homes. While we love glancing in their insides and hearing about their design choices, their pets are as much of a visual treat. Meet some of our favourite pugs, ponies and other animal friends who have made a stylish look within our My series.

Esther Hershcovich

Clara the parrot is free to fly around this arty, furniture-hack-filled home in Israel.

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Ashley Camper Photography

Charles the cat made the big move from Manhattan to Maui and seems to be adjusting to the laid-back Hawaiian lifestyle just nice.

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Theresa Fine

Ty that the Chihuahua sits at his place on a chesterfield couch, wearing a gentlemanly sweater.

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Rikki Snyder

English bulldog Tater Tot is serious about having fun in this lively, candy-colored flat in Manhattan. He’s sitting on a red chaise that anchors his owner’s library. Behind him the walls are adorned using a DIY wine cork project, a deconstructed Scooby-Doo lunchbox and also a poster from a 1984 series of Jonathan Borofsky’s job at the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

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Angela Flournoy

Finley the cat is perched ever on a few of his favourite spots in a colorful home in Dallas.

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Corynne Pless

Bailey that the Yorkie protects her owner’s beloved leather armchair. This home in Buford, Georgia, is decorated in a French country style with antique finds and tiny treasures.

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FISHER ARCHitecture

Mr. Martin feels right at home between design and art books. Anyone, book club?

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Corynne Pless

Luna the dog appears comfy in a corner nook in a West Asheville, North Carolina, home adorned with classic frames showing meaningful family keepsakes.

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Rikki Snyder

How could you resist a gentle tablecloth tug from this sweet kitty named Delilah? The mint-green seat was painted by her really creative proprietor, Kristin Nicholas.

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Lindsay von Hagel

Australian shepherds Oscar and Penny are begging for somebody to join them on this particular leather chaise. This is their owner’s creative space, housing a collection of inspirational items, books and a huge easel for painting. The Chevrolet truck tailgate is a snowball locate.

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Jason Snyder

Lakota, an Alaskan Malamute mix, is a happy camper before a wooden console showing travel mementos.

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Heather Banks

Mae the cat appears fairly happy in the master bedroom of this Austin, Texas, home. Behind her is a gallery wall of postcards by Yoshitomo Nara.

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Sarah Greenman

Rocky and Sara Garza’s goldendoodle, Samson, strikes a pose before a Native American portrait which Sara’s grandma painted.

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Mina Brinkey

Merlin that the fantastic Dane isn’t a stranger to classic style. He’s lounging in an old army cot on a patio in Tampa, Florida.

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Hilary Walker

Diego is thrilled to be lounging in a midcentury armchair and looks unimpressed from the grazing buffalo that appears on.

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Kimberley Bryan

This cat lolls from an Explanation walkway in Washington, absorbing its warmth. “I can’t even remember the cats’ names,” says homeowner Cari Horning. “It is just how it is. They are farm cats. Mousers. They do not come inside.”

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Rikki Snyder

Fourteen acres in upstate New York offer miniature horse Kokomo lots of space for drifting. He’s joined by a barn filled with different animals — six horses, four goats, five donkeys, nine cows, two barn cats, 1 house cat, two dogs, two parakeets, ducks and fish. Sometimes Kokomo’s owners will hitch on a little saddle so their granddaughter can ride him.

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Rikki Snyder

Pumpkin the pygmy goat has been the pet of New Yorkers Jen and Dick Lanne for Quite a While. Jen explains her as “a candy yet naughty monster that loves to get into everything!”

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Luci.D Interiors

Henry that the dachshund is prepared to take a ride down a slide to meet his owners on a family farm in Australia.

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Hoi Ning Wong

Inez, Friendly, Big Red, Struggles and Eden are just five hens which get to enjoy personalized nesting boxes and have loads of surfaces on which to ramble. The canvas sail over provides protection from the sun.

“My husband and I’ll head out and have a glass of wine in the coop from time to time,” says Michelle Pettigrew of Hillsborough, California. “We call it chicken therapy.”

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Luci.D Interiors

Australian border collie Sassy escapes the warmth on York stone paving in the shade of a veranda. This puppy is lucky to relish 70 acres of lush grazing property in the scenic town of Sutton Forest, halfway between Sydney and Canberra in Australia.

Luci.D Interiors

Sassy is joined by Andrew, the resident peacock, who strolls the 70-acre house in all his splendor.

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Sarah Natsumi Moore

Sherman that the beagle relaxes on his owner’s bed in Austin, Texas, under a 1920s framed picture that once hung in the home of this great-grandmother of among those owners.

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Esther Hershcovich

Sophia the kitty takes in each detail of her environment, such as an old magician’s tableturned–coffee table.

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Sarah Greenman

Munchie is a rescue dog and is pleased to share this screened-in porch, that doubles as a play area for a Dallas couple’s daughter, Goldie.

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Corynne Pless

Elvis, a dalmatian combination, appreciates the design and colour in this New Orleans Victorian.

Le Klein

Penny the cat listens in on household storytime taking place on a DIY banquette.

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Theresa Fine

This cat loves napping on a 19th-century bolt seat in a backyard loft-like space with vaulted ceilings and skylights.

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Shannon Malone

Lulu, a curly-haired dog, hangs out from the entrance area of her Santa Cruz, California, home. She is lying near a painting of Enid Brock’s great-grandmother.

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Margot Hartford Photography

Gypsy finds this built-in banquette a relaxing location where to view neighboring houseboats from the San Francisco Bay.

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Mary Prince Photography

Kasey that the Yorkshire terrier doesn’t appear to realize how lucky he is to run around in this Cape Cod, Massachusetts, beach house. Lean steel support beams encased in coffered ceiling moldings replaced the initial home’s much larger wooden beams.

Hilary Walker

Beagle–Boston terrier mix Lucy lounges on a sectional that divides open-plan living area. Behind Lucy hangs a “214” signal representing his owners’ wedding (Valentine’s Day) in addition to a Dallas area code.

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Mina Brinkey

Pugs Theo and Sydney mix right in with this couch and armchair on a lazy afternoon. Their guardian, Katie Gagnon, says, “All of my furniture is that the colour of my pugs, because they drop.”

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Hilary Walker

Aubrey and Kale Butcher’s curious beagle, Oliver, lounges on a neutral-colored sectional. Behind him are first built-in shelves with their backs painted to allow the couple’s collection of classic books and travel mementos stand out.

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Rikki Snyder

Judas the cat adds a minimalist silhouette to jewellery and fabric designer Caitlin Mociun’s eclectic flat in Brooklyn, New York. The flat was once a pub in the Brooklyn Navy Yard before it was gutted and converted to housing. High ceilings, painted brick, large windows and natural lighting mark the open and airy space.

Shannon Malone

Ginger that the Yorkie relaxes to a convertible sofa bed below a gallery of dog silhouettes.

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Shannon Malone

Eager to present for every picture, Burton blends in perfectly with all the white and beachy inside of this California home.

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Sarah Greenman

Thatcher leisurely strolls around his French country–style home in Dallas, which brims with flea market treasures, such as these dining room seats.

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Jason Snyder

Milo, a 13-year-old pug, poses unimpressed in front of a living room’s custom reclaimed-wood bookcases in a Pittsburgh home.

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Lucy Call

DIY design suits Earl, a Bichon-terrier combination, who’s maintained the sofa in a Salt Lake City home called a “sort of mutt.”

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Alex Amend Photography

Little dog, large space — Chihuahua Begonia is observed perched on her favorite couch in a San Francisco attic.

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Jeni Lee

Chocolate Lab Chico loves hanging out in this particular furniture retail shop attached to some family’s home in Australia.

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Candy the cat has lived in her Pittsburgh semicircular-shaped home since 1995 and has been embraced by Bob Moore and Scott Wise following the passing of Edith “Ditta” Lipkind, among the home’s original owners.

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Sarah Greenman

These Rhode Island Reds and Araucanas are hardy chickens that get to relish 7 sprawling acres in New Mansfield, Texas. They are also a huge help to their owners, Mary and Eddie Phillips. As the homeowners’ edible gardens evolved, hungry grasshoppers took a toll on plants. “We did not want to use chemicals,” Mary says, “so predatory birds seemed like the best idea. What could be greater than turning grasshoppers into eggs?”

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Theresa Fine

A household in Bennington, Vermont, shares their 100-acre house with numerous pets, such as their Great Pyrenees, Sophie, and their Newfoundland, Grace.

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Must-Know Modern Homes: The Robie House

The Frederick C. Robie House in Chicago’s Hyde Park neighborhood is Frequently considered the greatest example of Frank Lloyd Wright’s Prairie-style homes. From the first decade of the 20th century, Wright developed his own approach to architecture that responded to the Midwestern scene, freed in the prevailing Victorian architecture (a style he followed during the previous decade because his work evolved) and strove to get a democratic ideal. Formal traits of the Prairie style include, as he also wrote, “softly sloping roofs, low proportions, quiet sky lines, suppressed heavy-set chimneys and sheltering overhangs, low terraces and out-reaching walls sequestering private gardens”

Appreciation of the home was nearly instant, thanks in no small part to Wright himself, who picked up and left his clinic (and individual relationships) in Oak Park, just west of Chicago, and trekked to Europe to help assemble the famed Wasmuth Portfolio of his work. His passing helped cement the Robie House since the peak of the Prairie style, and if he returned a year later his architecture took a new course, less stylistically rooted in the previous century. Even though the Robie House appears traditional a century later (partly because of successors replicating Wright stylistically), its own striking cantilevers and horizontal lines, open plan and advanced mechanical systems looked forward to new paths of domesticity.

Robie House at a Glance
Year constructed: 1910
Architect: Frank Lloyd Wright
Location: Chicago
Seeing info: Guided and group tours available
Size: 9,000 square feet

Longer: 10 Must-Know Modern Homes

Frank Lloyd Wright’s customer, the engineer and bike maker Frederick C. Robie, was not yet 30 years old when he commissioned Wright to design him a home. Before he found Wright, other architects really responded to his listing of have-nots — wooden home, cramped spaces — with, “You want one of those damn Wright homes”

Along with having preferences away from the prevailing traditional designs, Robie was quoted as stating, “I wanted sunlight in my living room before I went into work, and that I wished to have the ability to look out and down the street to my neighbors without needing them invade my privacy” I am imagining Robie did not expect such a stunning and iconic style to direct from his fantasies.

The Robie House is located on the northeast corner of South Woodlawn Avenue and East 58th Street, on the edge of the University of Chicago campus. Across the street is that the college’s Graduate School of Business, however if the home has been completed, the view has been open into the Midway Plaisance Park one block to the south west.

Wright exploited the view, and Robie’s desire for sunlight and to look in his neighbors, through expansive glass walls facing south west. Within this straight-on perspective of the south elevation, the home’s three degrees could be grasped: Just below street level is the billiard room, playroom and garage (from frame to the right); the elevated first degree is where the dining and living rooms, kitchen and servants’ quarters are located; the smaller third floor with bedrooms covers the construction.

On the left side of the third floor is the chimney, among the most important components in Wright’s residential architecture, Prairie and later. As we’ll see, the hearth on the first two floors serves to split up the expansive open programs.

One way of ascertaining if a Prairie-style home is designed by Wright or someone else is to ask, “Where’s the front door?” If the solution is, ” Right there,” it’s designed by someone else, because Wright tended to conceal the entrances from passersby. This is even more pronounced in the Robie House, in which the entrance is located on the north side of the home, under the large overhanging western eave viewed here.

The south side and low brick wall maintain solitude along the long pavement, but Wright put the entrance on the north to take advantage of the cooling aspects of the roofing. Writer and critic Reyner Banham applauded that, stating, “It supplies a cool-air tank that operates so efficiently, even on still thundery times of high humidity”

Even with a straightforward view of the west facade, the entrance is difficult to determine (it’s to the left of the bowed windows beneath the roof). The brick wall is greater here than on the south side, providing a stronger sense of privacy and safety, even as the road to the entrance is a few feet off.

In these photos from Wright’s Wasmuth Portfolio, systems old and new are highlighted: the hearth (a view of the next floor, I think), and the perimeter lighting and wood grilles in the living room ceiling on the right. The latter is of particular interest, due to the way they work collectively and with the rest of the home (they accompany the rhythm of the chimney), and also the way their ornamentation deflects the mechanical creativity set up.

The integral lighting happened not only with all the globes but also above the timber grilles. They provided a dappled light in the edge of the space. However, the cavity above the grilles also functioned to help ventilate the space in the warm months and draw the humidity out in the both well-integrated radiators in the cold months.

So, is the measure in the ceiling just to accommodate the 2 forms of lighting and the venting? No. The main reason behind it is the steel beams that allow the big, open spaces and striking cantilevers. And herein lies one particular region where the Robie House is a trailblazing modern house. While the steel construction might be masked from the stepped ceiling and wood trim, it had been known to architects that watched Wright’s drawings. The home of steel, concrete and brick pointed forward to fresh means of residential construction.

Much has been written about the routines on the glass in Wright’s Prairie houses, largely the way they’re abstraction of grasses and plants located on prairie landscapes. That certainly comes from the bowed window on the west side of the living space, but so does the way the vertical thrust of these abstractions is balanced from the diagonals, as if the latter were stretched vertically, strengthening the prevailing geometries of the home (horizontal lines and low slopes).

This close-up of the globe light with square framework exemplifies how Wright straddled 19th-century notions of design (especially evident in all that wood trim around the light) and 20th-century moderniziation (hardwired lighting). Additionally, it is interesting to check in this fixture relative to some lamp from Greene & Greene’s Gamble House; Wright’s fixture looks rather primitive in comparison.

Even near 50 years after the home’s completion, House and Home magazine stated (in 1957), “The home introduced so many theories in planning and construction that its full influence cannot be measured accurately for many years to come. With this home, much of contemporary architecture as we know it now, might not exist”

Contrast this statement with Philip Johnson’s insult that Wright had been “the best architect of the 19th century” and his departing Wright from the 1932 International Style exhibition at MoMA. Wright’s modern architecture was not the same as what came to be called modernism in the decades after the Robie House.

House and Home‘s exalted praise of the Robie House arrived the year its owner, the Chicago Theological Seminary, threatened to demolish the home to make way for a dormitory. (Robie and his wife lived in the home for a limited while and then sold it to another family, who dwelt in the home and subsequently sold it to the seminary in 1926.) Wright, nearing 90, traveled to Chicago alongside multiple protesters to stop the demolition. Due to a range of factors, the building was saved and has since become an architectural masterpiece open to the public, courtesy of the University of Chicago and the Frank Lloyd Wright Preservation Trust, which restored the home in the 21st century.

References:
Banham, Reyner. Age of the Experts: A Personal View of Modern Architecture. Harper & Row. Banham, Reyner. The Architecture of the Well-tempered Environment. University of Chicago Press, 1969. Curtis, William J.R. Modern Architecture Since 1900. Prentice-Hall, third edition, 1996 (first published in 1982).The Frederick C. Robie HouseGill, Brendan. Many Masks: A Life of Frank Lloyd Wright. Da Capo, 1998. Larkin, David and Pfeiffer, Bruce Brooks, eds. Frank Lloyd Wright Masterworks. Rizzoli. Twombly, Robert, ed. Frank Lloyd Wright: Essential Texts. W.W. Norton, 2009.

More: 10 Must-Know Modern Homes

7 Renaissance Design Characteristics At Home Today

In many ways the contemporary Western world started across the 1400s in Florence, Italy, when medieval methods of thinking were pushed aside for major changes in art, architecture and interior design. Mainly affecting the strong and wealthy (such as the church clergy), the Renaissance took inspiration from the ancient Romans and Greeks. But instead than replicate them, artists and architects in this time utilized those historical styles to make new ideas in design.

What goes around comes around, and you can see from these examples how the Renaissance still affects design today.

David Howell Design

High ceilings. The city palazzos (palaces) of Renaissance Italy were normally three or more stories, together with the ground floor devoted to entrance, services, stables and storage. The first floor, the piano nobile, housed the main public rooms and bedrooms if space allowed — all with high ceilings. The ceilings have reduced the farther up the house you improved, together with the servants at the very top.

The tendency for large ceilings has continued for centuries. Today high ceilings still give the impression of prestige and grandeur.

Revealing Assets – Home Staging Services

Ceiling details. Renaissance ceilings were usually beamed or coffered and painted in rich colours. While the early Greeks and Romans used stone, wood coffers seen in the expansive Renaissance palazzos continue to be utilized in design today. They really add impact however are well installed on large ceilings and rooms using a grander scale.

JAUREGUI Architecture Interiors Construction

Ornate floors. Renaissance floors were brick, tile or marble and were patterned in checkerboard or more complicated geometric layouts, predominantly in earthy tones. With the introduction of underfloor heating (incidentally, a Roman invention), tiled floors have become a choice even in colder climates. Durable, easy to keep clean and currently available in a variety of colors and layouts, tile floors are enjoying a renaissance now.

LRIDesign

Patterned walls. Walls were normally smooth and neutral in colour. However, they were painted with patterns, which would now be translated to background. However, these paint techniques also have been used over the ages, affecting the introduction of stenciling.

Suzanne Bellehumeur

Mural fresco painting. Mural fresco painting adorned the walls of the more palatial Renaissance houses. Again, this highly decorative painting has influenced several elaborate wallpapers, while hand painting is earmarked for the experts.

Gne structure

Four-poster beds. The Renaissance saw the invention of the elaborate bed as we understand it. Hand-carved four-posters on elevated platforms needed a canopy for rich-colored curtains to keep out the cold. While mattress designs have evolved, a lot of us still can’t resist a four-poster, so the simple design was adapted for contemporary homes and shifting tastes.

Tara Seawright Interior Design

Silk. Silk was the favorite textile of the Renaissance, utilized in vivid colours for curtains and loose cushions for seats and chair seats. Furnishings were quite minimal at this time, but seats started to increase in variety as an alternate to stools and seats. Thank goodness the early designs have evolved in favor of relaxation!

12 Hints

It’s not clear at first. You may start off reading several blogs and adding a classic globe here or even a vignette of Polaroids there. Before you know it, your exposed brick walls are covered in classic artwork and antlers. Atmosphere plants and succulents line your windowsills. All the newest trends (and a few older ones) fill out the nooks and crannies in your home.

What are the indications in your house? Are you currently a home decor hipster?

Nina Montenegro

Nina Montenegro

Nina Montenegro

More: 12 Signs You Have Caught the DIY Bug

Go Ahead, Eat in the Front of the TV

When I was growing up, TV was taboo during family meals. The only exception was on nights when I had buddies over — my parents frequently would let us order dinner, pop into a movie and sprawl on a blanket while we chowed down and saw the series. I remember how much fun it had been to feel like we’re getting away with something that went against house rules.

Now, my husband and I follow the same pattern with our son, including the occasional pizza picnic around the carpeting. While I’d never advocate making a habit of eating with the TV on, it can be a pleasant treat to flex your criteria once every so often. But, there are much more sophisticated ways to recapture that childish thrill without having to crank stiff adult knees right into “crisscross applesauce” position.

Have a look at these homeowners have redefined eating in front of the tube. Which would you go for? Share your ideas in the Comments!

FORMA Design

Remember those old-school folding TV trays? Here’s the 21st-century take: A generous menu on top of an even more generous ottoman provides a spot for drinks and dishes so that they don’t slide or tip. On top of that, it’s easy to throw the whole tray away to the kitchen when it’s time to stretch out and grab the end of the movie.

Cristi Holcombe Interiors, LLC

Somewhere between a tray and a side table, this smart little bit slides under the sofa and above your lap. What a great way to maximize space in a small living space!

The Kitchen Studio of Glen Ellyn

Among the biggest drawbacks to eating around the TV is the fact that it can be hard to make eye contact with everyone else in the area. This breakfast nook provides a solution (for briefer lengths of TV viewing, at least): The telly is tucked into a wall cubby and is easy to see from any spot on the facing banquettes.

Coveted Home

Nesting tables work superbly for mealtime viewing. Because of their different heights, they’re ideal for taller or shorter family members, and they tuck away when the dishes are cleared.

Rockefeller Partners Architects

Now here is my notion of a flooring picnic: Low-slung armrests and rear cushions are prepared for serious loungers, who can hold a beverage in one hand and nosh out of a plate of nibbles nearby. If you can not tolerate a reclining posture on such a hard surface, no matter — only climb up to the sofa on the elevated platform. And off to the side? A bar with stools from which you have a crystal clear view of the screen.

B+g design inc..

A movie theater–style setup makes the dining table pub at the back of this media room feel like the best chair in the house. You might even set up a buffet here for Oscar or Super Bowl parties and invite guests.

Pure Bliss Creative Design

Place the parents around the sofa and the children on busy floor cushions. Having a coffee table in the middle on which to break glasses and plates, everyone can dine in comfort.

I adore this inventive alternative: four modular tables that can be pulled together into a single unit, then slid apart so that every member of the family can have a separate surface from which to eat.

Next, some products to Boost your dining-while-viewing encounter.

BoConcept

Occa Coffee Table – $1,095

With storage for remotes and other gear, also retractable trays that lift to a comfortable height for snacking, this table is tailor made for the occasional TV meal.

House 8810

Western TV Tray – $30

Maybe you’d prefer something a bit more classic. This Wild West–themed TV tray includes a retro charm that will go well in a cabin or eclectic area — or using a excellent spaghetti western.

YLiving.com

Royal VKB TV Dinner Tray – $41

Frustrated with plates skidding off your lap while you’re eating to a sofa or sofa? Slip this charger underneath to stabilize them.

Grandin Road

Metal Nesting Tables – $249

Scatter these colorful nesting tables around the area at showtime, then throw them back into place after the credits roll.

HAAN USA

AllPro Portable Hand Held Steam Cleaner – $59.95

However careful you’re, eventually you will knock over a glass of soda or drop hot skillet on the ground. Take good care of spills with this handy portable steamer, and it is going to be like they never occurred.

More:
How to Organize Your Room for TV and People, Too

Color Guide: How to Work With Chartreuse

It’s a vivid, electrical color. Happy, even. It’s the interior of a perfect avocado, a bed of Scotch moss or the stomach of a lovebird. Chartreuse is halfway between green and yellow — a yellowish green, a greenish yellow. However, the spectrum in this colour ranges from bright lime into mild sulphur.

In its lighter, softer form chartreuse makes a great wall shade for earthy, nature-inspired rooms. In its boldest, brightest form it is as eye catching as neon.

Chartreuse can be equally earthy and electrical. It looks wonderful with oranges, reds and blues, particularly turquoise and cobalt. Bright chartreuse is a perfect foil for charcoal grey (think lichen on stone) and in contemporary layout is frequently used as a pop against muted neutrals. It appears crisp and spring-y with bright white and vivid with purple.

It’s extremely popular in contemporary layout, but chartreuse can span the eras and does not need to be used sparingly. Go ahead and put it all over; it can take it. Do you want a baroque entryway with chartreuse walls and crystal chandeliers? Go for it.

As these pictures show, chartreuse might be daring — brassy, even — but it isn’t restricting. In reality, it’s an all round great decorating colour.

Rikki Snyder

Chartreuse about the Walls

A bright green chartreuse makes these built-ins shine (see how I didn’t say “pop”). It’s a traditional farmhouse on juice.

Watch more of this vibrant Residence

Feldman Architecture, Inc..

In a slick, contemporary entryway that a chartreuse door draws the eye.

Door colour: C2 paint in Al Green

Tour this upgraded Victorian in San Francisco

Capoferro Design Build Group

A dab of chartreuse divides the neutrals in this area but goes perfectly with the muted earth tones.

Chartreuse accent wall: Colored chalkboard paint from Hudson Paint

Vendome Press

Chartreuse onto a wall in a really traditional dining area. It’s not outrageous, but it isn’t stuffy, either. And see how beautiful it looks with all the blues and purples here?

Susan Teare, Professional Photographer

A lighter, more muted chartreuse works like a neutral but with much more pizazz. And the warm, light timber just glows alongside it.

Watch more of this renovated ranch house

Natasha Barrault Design

I adore this intricately patterned chartreuse wallpaper. It’s glamorous and elegant, and it makes a massive splash in this small area.

Background: Farrow and Ball

Shoshana Gosselin

A bright yellow chartreuse electrifies these adjoining rooms without much natural light. The greige on the dividing wall is the best warm neutral here.

LDa Architecture & Interiors

A very light yellow chartreuse fits in perfectly with this exact traditional living space and looks great with all the bright white trim.

NOA Architecture Planning Interiors

A chartreuse ceiling gives this contemporary living space a yellowish glow.

Texas Construction Company

A chartreuse flooring adds a mossy, outdoorsy sense to this impartial kitchen.

PLACE architect ltd..

Decorating With Chartreuse

This Togo sofa by Ligne Roset blends in so well with the browns, grays and whites within this area. It’s bright, but it is not jarring.

Chartreuse makes this a nice accent colour. And it is stunning with teal and white.

Amy Lau Design

Imagine this room with no chartreuse rug and chair. Just a little boring, right?

Cynthia Mason Interiors

Bam! Vibrant and contemporary in a crazy but traditional black, white and grey dining area. Nothing earthy here.

Green Panton Chairs: Vitra

Cynthia Lynn Photography

This chartreuse chaise is the best piece for a contemporary classic room such as this — both classic and unexpected.

Kimball Starr Interior Design

Chartreuse and purple. Lovely.

John Lum Architecture, Inc.. AIA

A bit of wow in a small, neutral bathroom.

Emily Johnston Larkin

More glamorous chartreuse wallpaper. It’s ’60s go-go meets Hollywood Regency.

HILIT

Hot magenta even loves chartreuse. Who’da thunk?

chadbourne + doss architects

A single chartreuse stool is a tiny ray of sun in this industrial kitchen. Modern but warm.

Dijeau Poage Construction

A modern icon in chartreuse paired with dove grey and bright white. Clean and fresh looking, such as spring.

Amoroso Design

A chartreuse tile backsplash in a crisp, white kitchen.

LLI Design

Chartreuse armchairs help heat up this traditional living area.

A chartreuse sofa with charcoal piping. This is worthy of getting an whole room designed around it.

The Outdoor Room, LLC

Chartreuse Outdoor

Most chartreuse outdoors comes from the landscape. This foliage seems to shine.

PixelFänger

Sempervivum with reddish tips.

Arterra Landscape Architects

All these plants that were chartreuse were especially chosen for their layout chops. They glow against the muted colors in this backyard.

Chicago Green Design Inc..

A yellow-chartreuse wall onto a rooftop terrace defines the space against the skyline.

Texas Construction Company

Just a dab of chartreuse across the windows in this upgraded contemporary cabin in Texas. I absolutely adore this daring exception into the grey and white rule.

This chartreuse outdoor wall looks wonderful with all the natural timber, and will help define the space so it becomes another room rather than just an open area.

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Chartreuse helping define design.

An unexpected bright chartreuse doorway on a brick building.

Door: Pantone’s Neon Yellow 389

Everyone will be able to find your house if you paint your front door such a colour.

This pool and hot tub are defined by a chartreuse outline within an otherwise neutral palette.

Clinton & Associates, PC Landscape Architects

Chartreuse looks amazing with almost all the colors of the outdoors.

Benjamin Moore

Lime Green 2026-10 Paint

Vibrant, bright yellowish green. Warning: This is not a neutral.

Benjamin Moore

Limeade CSP-865 Paint

Nevertheless bright but with much more yellow.

Sherwin-Williams

Nervy Hue SW6917 Paint

Vibrant, bright greenish yellow.

Benjamin Moore

Granny Smith CSP-860 Paint

Somewhat lighter but still a bright greenish yellow.

Benjamin Moore

Martini Olive CSP-890 Paint

A darker, grayer yellow-chartreuse.

Sherwin-Williams

Mélange Green SW6710 Paint

More leafy and elastic — going greener.

Serena & Lily Low-VOC Paint, Grass – $45

Less vibrant and more brilliant. This could almost be a neutral wall colour.

Sherwin-Williams

Parakeet SW6711 Paint

A mild avocado.

Benjamin Moore

Pale Avocado 2146-40 Paint

More golden but still a greenish golden. This would be a great wall colour for a traditional area with bright white trim.

Benjamin Moore

Wales Green 2028-50 Paint

A light chartreuse.

Colorhouse Paint

Colorhouse SPROUT .05

A littler yellower.

7 Stylish Requires on Tartan

Do not confuse tartan with plaid. “Plaid,” a common American expression, actually refers to a garment which originates from the Gaelic term for “blanket.” “Tartan” refers to the actual pattern and cloth. Although some debate continues on tartan’s origin and history, and how it was utilized as part of clan identification, now it has grown into among the most significant symbols of Scotland. The pattern has its roots with the Celtic people, who’ve worn it for centuries. A sign of rebellion in Scotland for a while, tartan grew in popularity throughout the 18th century, getting a powerful symbol of Scottish national pride.

Now the tartan pattern are available on an assortment of home decor items which can work with almost any home design. Take a peek at a few of these ideas about the best way best to incorporate tartan accents in your house and learn more about this historic pattern.

Designs by Gollum

Rich table settings. Typically woven wool, tartan consists of patterns of different-colored stripes of varying widths crossed at right angles against a solid background. Various colours, color combinations and widths of stripes produce an assortment of patterns. Tartan patterns are called setts, along with a period of cloth repeats the exact same pattern over and over again.

Whether you’re Scottish, you can display your favorite sett as a stylish tablecloth. Only throw a colored tartan blanket lightly over a desk and accessorize with masculine pewter tableware.

Mixed, matched and layered. Different Scottish districts historically often wore different tartans — partially because each region had its own tartan manufacturer with different styles and patterns. As these craftspeople relied upon local plants to the dyes, the tartans took about the colours of the plants offered in their region.

Do not be afraid to try a lot of different tartan colors together for a great layered look. These traditional, bold, mostly primary colors work nicely with one another. The navy walls, the mirror along with the red bed frame help pull this space together. For this appearance, consider extending your tartan layers directly down to the rug.

Niall Hastie Photography

Female and Light. A simple two-color woolen test dating back to the third century is the earliest instance of tartan found in Scotland. Most tartan products today use a combination of four colours — such as this pink, purple and green test.

Maintain this appearance feminine by using tartans in gentle lilacs, purples, pinks and greens. Mix them with rich, strong purples and warm woodwork for an elegant yet cozy texture.

Masculine and comfy. The battle over the origination of distinct clan tartans still remains today. Due to a government ban on tartan in the 18th century, many first tartan patterns were lost. But after the ban, an attempt to recover these patterns matched tartans to clans. From the mid-19th century, the association between different tartans and Scottish clans had become firmly established.

Now it is possible to layer all the various kinds of traditional tartans for a more modern spin on Scottish style. Add even more warmth by painting the walls a deep crimson, blue or green. Create a more traditional and masculine look by hanging hunting-inspired accessories, such as these wood-mounted animal horns, on the wall.

Adeeni Design Group

Grown up and complicated. Tartan-upholstered dining seats have a clearly grown-up feel. They can add a regal end to a casual farmhouse dining room, such as this one, elevating its overall appearance and feel. Tartan has taken its cool reputation for decades, because 18th-century high-society Scots took the banned cloth and made it fashionable.

Marie Meko, Allied ASID

Unusual tartan. Look for tartan in nonfabric software, too. Tartan wallpaper adds high impact in a little or unexpected location, like a bath or little bathroom. Because tartan can feel active, keep everything else pared down and simple, as with all the white towels and trimwork here.

Andrea May Hunter/Gatherer

Elegant tartan. Simple and neutral grey, white and black tartan can add an elegant touch to any area. These excellent tartan floor tiles add sophistication to this bath. It helps to comparison tartan’s masculine pattern with softer objects. This tartan works well against the more womanly crystal lights, glass-framed mirror and traditional dressing table.

Inform us Do you utilize tartan on your decoration? Please show us at Comments!

Guest Picks: The Inspired Office

A lot of men and women are taking work home with them nowadays, and having a great home office is essential. Inspiration may come from several outlets, but the first place to begin is your desk. The key question is, how do you make your office both efficient and inspirational?

While exploring ideas for my own home office, I accumulated images of my favourite spaces and recognized the very best ones had some special details in common: a desk with storage, a fantastic light, an ergonomic seat and excellent organizational tools.

Other important aspects include using a very clear design vision, picking objects that you love and that spark imagination and, paradoxically, understanding that a pop of colour is a fantastic thing! — Lauren from Fourth Floor Walk Up

Lexington Modern

Malibu High-Back Office Chair in Vinyl with Stitched Ribbing – $239

1 way to add interest to a workplace is to select a colorful chair. Say goodbye to the typical, black office upholstery, and say hello to posh furniture.

Anthropologie

Correspondence Desk – $1,298

This handsome and refined desk from Anthropologie includes all of the needed features of a fantastic desk: drawers to include clutter, shelves to hold the large office accessories plus also a large, ample space to distribute your work.

Circa Lighting

Lauren Table Lamp – $336

A beautiful and soothing shade, this table lamp in celadon green could be a great light fixture for the home office.

shop.freshly-picked. com

Leather Mouse Pad, Gold – $35

Chic mouse pads? Yesthey really do exist!

Jayson Home

Color Pencil and Brass Holder Set – $75

I purchased this colored pencil set for a unique event, and I have been lusting after it ever since. The holder inspires me to sketch out a gorgeous room rendering.

Williams-Sonoma Home

LaCourte Upright Desk – $3,450

This secretary-style desk is a slick white box on the outside, and it could be an appealing addition to almost any area. When opened, the contrasting rich wood tones are only as striking.

Museum of Useful Things

Pencil Dispenser – $18

This pen holder arouses nostalgic memories of the diner straw holders. A little playfulness can go a very long way when working difficult.

West Elm

Alphabet Letter Paperweights – $8

These Alphabet paperweights at a vintage font are the perfect desktop accessory.

Staples

Martha Stewart Home Office™ with Avery™ File Folders – $4.99

“Organization is the key to success,” is a phrase I’ve heard often over time. A great way to organize an office is through color coordinating, and such folders by Martha Stewart create beautiful colour stories.

Schoolhouse Electric

Topographic USA Wall Map – $40

I love the colours of the topographic map. It’s also a wise piece of artwork to add to your office for those days when you are day dreaming of traveling.

Ballard Designs

Macau Armchair with Casters – $279

The bamboo Chippendale-style seat is a traditional design loved by many. This replica seat by Ballard Designs with wheels is the perfect upgrade to a classic.

PLANTATION

Barton Task Lamp – $550

I’m totally in love with this task light. Together with the abundant brass base and chartruese green glass, it’s a lot of search for a background lamp.

HW Home

Shelby Desk – $1,680

To get a more modern look, this dining table has a unique shape and design with low-slung drawers that double as shelves for bigger objects.

Etsy

Chevron Monogram Dry Erase Memo Board by Studio Elle – $25

Note-taking is a significant facet to staying on top of projects, and doing this sustainably with this customizable, dry erase board is even better.

Levenger

Moleskine® Digital Folio for iPad – $89.95

Most of us love our modern-day apparatus that make both everyday and work life easier, but occasionally we still want to hand-write notes or workout ideas. This iPad case and notebook by Moleskine is an excellent layout!

Jamali Floral & Garden Supplies

Polished Brass Julep Cups – $6.99

Mint julep cups are preferred by many for drinking. But, repurposing them into pen and pencil holders brings a bit of class to your desktop computer, especially in the brass end.

Anthropologie

Scattered Corolla Rug, Oval – $298

To maintain hardwood floors free from wear and scratches, put a rug underneath your workspace. This oval carpet is a beautiful and colorful option.

Anthropologie

Paris Paper Tape – $18

Clear tape is a necessity in any home office, but using attractively printed tape at a Parisian theme makes the mundane more exciting.

DwellStudio

Golden Gate Lacquered Wood Tray – $98

Maintaining papers and miscellaneous materials organized is essential. This yellow and wood printed tray for the desktop is a superb tool for doing that.

Schoolhouse Electric

Schoolhouse Extension Cord, Green Cloth – $39

Sometimes there’s no possible way to hide the jumble of extension cords that live inside your office. A great solution is to buy these alluring strings and showcase your electrical systems instead.

Next: Create a Home Office on a Shoestring Budget

Decorate With Intention: Simplicity for the Sake of Life

Living simply at home does not have to mean giving up your Eames chairs, annual Ikea pilgrimage, or moving off-the-grid into a cabin in the woods. To the contrary, simple living means becoming clear about what you love so that your own time, energy and money are spent on that which matters to you. By clearing clutter, creating new customs and minding your priorities, you can simplify your own life no matter where you are. Read on for 10 ways to begin.

Alice Lane Home Collection

1. Get heated up. Take a little time to explore what you really want to gain from bettering your life at home. Envision, as vividly as possible, how your home and daily routines are different as soon as you have simplified.

Can it be a sense of space or cleanliness? Is it more time which you crave? Less frustration? Make a few notes in your journal about your own thoughts and feelings, along with any ideas sparked in this procedure.

Clutter-Clearing 101

Landing Design

2. Display cherished belongings (and get rid of the rest). Begin with a small step. Have you got a box of old photos that give you warm fuzzies every time you watch them? Select your favorites and have them framed. Start spending 10 minutes clearing clutter each Saturday morning, and earn a visit to Goodwill when you’ve got a complete box. Little by little, you can create a home that better reflects what’s important to you.

Madison Modern Home

3. Use the rule. Preventing clutter from entering your residence is equally as significant as getting rid of the surplus possessions you presently have. The $100 rule is straightforward: Whenever you’re considering making a purchase, first ask yourself whether you’d still purchase it if it cost $100. The idea is that no price, however small, should be taken for granted. The dollar amount you use does not really matter — it should only be a number that feels expensive to you. For me, $100 is a fantastic benchmark, but your number might be higher or lower.

Alice Lane Home Collection

4. Keep things visually straightforward. Opening a cabinet or closet filled with objects of several distinct colors, sizes and shapes often seems cluttered, even if the contents are well organized.

Matched sets of glassware and dishes generally look splendid lined up on a shelf, but not everything could (or should) come at a matched set. If that’s the case, look to containers to make that cohesive feel — boxes, baskets, trays and magazine files are superb and simple to label. Just remember, if it looks simple, it likely is.

Lovejoy Designs

5. Use easy-access storage containers. Don’t make things more difficult than they have to be! Open baskets and bins make it rather straightforward to remain organized and grab what you need quickly and efficiently. Save the boxes with lids for deep storage (cellar, attic, etc.) where keeping dust outside is more important in relation to availability.

CapeRace Cultural Adventures

6. Reconsider your space requirements. We are inclined to accumulate belongings to fill whatever area we live in, regardless of the size. Keep things simple by choosing to reside in a home that fits you: large enough that every member of the family feels comfortable, but not so large that whole rooms often go unused.

Regan Baker Design Inc..

7. Go digital — using several copies. Going paperless is a worthy goal, lessening our effect on the environment and reducing clutter at home at precisely the same time. Just be sure to back up stuff correctly — there is nothing simple about needing to locate replacements for lost information. Use an online “cloud” storage service, for example, but also back up having an external hard drive.

Alice Lane Home Collection

8. Create simple systems and stick together. Routines are key to simplicity at home. You don’t need to remind yourself to brush your teeth or your own hair every day, right? In case you’ve got an area of frustration at home (e.g. laundry or weeknight dinners), consider what might make things work more easily (do one load of laundry every day, prep veggies Sunday, etc.) and commit to following through to the next fourteen days. Following a month, you will have instilled a new habit.

9. Make a record of your favorite straightforward pleasures and indulge one every day. Too many times we try and push through to the weekend, like that’s the only time we must unwind. No longer! Start by making a list of little things and moments you like, and keep it in your pocket to refer to (and add to) often. The items on your list should be small and easily attainable or doable: a bouquet of flowers from the current market, a distinctive bar of soap, and a new publication, a stroll after work.

A+B KASHA Designs

10. Design your home around the way you live. If you have pets or children, select easy-care fabrics and finishes, and hardy rather than ultra-fragile decoration. If you like to cook, then take the time to arrange your cookware in an intelligent way. The purpose is to make things as easy on yourself as you can.

When your home is organized around your lifestyle rather than the other way round, you will spend less time battling your belongings, and also have more time for what’s really important to you: the people, pets and adventures you adore.

Inform us Just how do you simplified your life at home?