While seriousness has its place in decorating and design, I enjoy and appreciate a a bit of trompe l'œil surrealism as well. Faux concrete walls and take out inspired porcelain dishes are just the types of things that catches my eye. More

You can't just walk by a sofa like this. With the white frame and bright pink upholstery, it's like a piece of candy sitting in the middle of a room. Or human sized Barbie furniture… More

At first glance this looks like a prickly patch of cactus, but a closer look reveals it to be designer Maurizio Galante's cactus-printed collection for the Italian furniture line Cerruti Baleri. More

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The MiniWoouf Sofa. Also available as a smaller Synthe model, in black and turquoise.

Q: I just bought a secondhand sofa, (tight back, bench cushion), and wish to have it slipcovered. I want a white slipcover (love the versatility of being able to change decor with the seasons), but I have a yellow lab and I am worried about the practicality of white with a dog. I also want the cover to be as seam-free as possible, but I am having trouble finding wide width canvas. Can someone recommend a good website with reasonable prices on wide width goods? Also, do canvas slipcovers really take well to repeated washing? What is the best weight of canvas to buy for slipcovers? More

We're wrapping up our bedroom coverage this week and next week we'll start digging in on small space posts. As a bridge between the two subjects, we're looking at our favorite stores for essentials with creating a bedroom in a small space – daybeds, futons and sleeper sofas. Whether you're trying to carve a boudoir out of a studio or set up a guest room for the mother-in-law, check out these retailers for small space sleeping solutions. More