Q: Apartment Therapy has posts about damping sound coming from external sources like street noise, but my concern is within an apartment I share with others. How can we reduce noise from an open space like the living room that is at the end of a long hallway that we all share? It's easy to watch TV in our rooms with closed doors without disturbing each other and no neighbors to speak of, but the living room is a different beast:

Q: Do you have recommendations for a good, not hideously ugly, outdoor swing for a 1-year-old that we can hang in our backyard? We have the perfect unused space under our deck (where we have hung hammocks in the past) and I think my son would love having his own swing this summer.

A couple of weeks ago, I shared with you a little inspiration board for my dream kitchen. Looking over my shoulder, my husband grimaced, reminding me of how my tastes have "softened" to the classic over time while he has remained a staunch modernist. So I invited him to make his own material board for his dream kitchen. After all, we are talking dreams here. No compromising. This is what he came up with.

Q: I just renovated my bathroom and added some built in cabinets next to and over the toilet. I'm wondering where to put a hand towel holder. Should I use a circle to the right of the mirror or use a bar under the cabinet above the toilet? If I use a circle to left, at what height?

Q: I moved in 6 months ago and have been settling in little by little. I have never had such big walls to deal with though! So my question is: what should I do with this wall? It seems to dwarf any piece of art, and I have ended up just leaving it blank because I can't think of a good solution.

Q: The lady and I are currently working on our living room and have been having the hardest time trying to find curtains that work with the room. We've searched all over the internet, gone to fabric stores--we just can't seem to figure it out. We're not the best at interior design, but we're trying.

Q: I have a cheap Ikea wardrobe that has a tall and deep top shelf area that I cannot figure out how to maximize. Right now it just has boxes with small clothes items, but it's awkwardly deep and I'm not using the height.

Q: I have a loft-style upstairs attic space with lots of light and soaring cathedral ceilings. Currently, it's a very large expanse of light wool carpet (sorry for the bad pic, none of the whole space was available) which has seen better days. As I also have tenants downstairs and wanted to be very sensitive to everyone's sense of privacy, it seems that hardwood floors are out of the question.

Q: I saw this coffee table in Elle Decor and can't find it anywhere ... I don't even know the designer's name. Please help!

Q: As a girl fresh out of college and moving into my new apartment, I inherited these 4 black chairs. They're made of iron with black leather seats. In the pressure of time and money, I bought a simple brown table that has hints of black in the varnish. Does anyone have any ideas on how I can renew these chairs?