Name: Erin & Rob
Location: Old City, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

The biggest challenge in our apartment was figuring out how to break up one very long room into discrete dining, working, and living areas. Since we both work in publishing, we also had to figure out storage for a lot of books. (Ikea bookcases to the rescue!)

Valcucine is a forward thinking Italian manufacturer of kitchens. This year in Milan, they launched Meccanica, a system that, aside from being very good-looking, is also eco-conscious thanks to its "dematerialization" (a concept of design that reduces the amount of material used).

Here it comes, the season everyone longs for during the darker, colder months of the year. Life at home slows down a bit and there isn't much to stress about during the generally lazy, hazy days, except for when the high temps really kick in. If your home doesn't have AC (or you are choosing to leave it off as much as possible) you can feel stuck, especially when it comes to getting a restful nights sleep.

Our sales team is hiring an account executive. We're looking for a triple threat to take on one of our key behind-the-scenes roles. If you're passionate about home design, have strong communication skills,
and have experience working in the online media world, we want to talk to you.

Tell us about your outdoor project and how you enjoy it: We use our backyard for lounging and playing and growing food. It's fenced in, which is great for our dog and little kids. Additionally, off to one side of the deck we have an herb and vegetable garden, and the kids love to help out. We want our outdoor space to be beautiful and functional. It will always be a work in progress.

As part of its Random Acts of Life Improvement plan, IKEA is giving out gazillions (ok, 35,000!) of its ubiquitous blue bags today in cities all across the country. It's happening just in time for folks to have it handy to tote around summertime goodies for Memorial Day weekend and beyond, such as picnic and beach outing necessities.