Jessica Isaac

Jess is an interior and architectural photographer based in Los Angeles. While she has the honor of peeking inside designer homes on a regular basis, she loves real homes designed by real people most of all.
Why Popcorn Ceilings Are Actually Pretty Great
There's an upside to everything.
Aug 21, 2023
35 Genius Small Bathroom Storage Ideas
The possibilities are endless when it comes to sprucing up your space.
Oct 2, 2022
3 Simple Under Bed Storage Ideas That Will Help You Get the Most Out of Your Space
There's extra space right under your nose.
Jun 24, 2022
10 Things You'll Find In Every '90s Movie Dream House
Dream Week
It's no wonder the bar for the modern dream home is set so high.
Oct 23, 2020
Design-Friendly Litter Boxes for Every Style
Do you want your beloved cat to be able to retreat to her sacred place of solitude without being shunned to the dark corners of your least-tread rooms? Are you also looking to break the stank, not the bank? These budget-friendly feline facilities are less of an eyesore and more of a chic cat pad (catchelor pad?) that will give your little buddy prime real estate in your home. I must preface this by saying I am not a cat owner myself.
Jul 17, 2020
An Easy 5-Minute Upgrade for Lazy Home Improvers (and Renters)
Good design is in the details—no matter how small. Today we’re here to shine the light (pun intended) on those white plastic light switch plates that are so commonplace, they’re often overlooked as permanent fixtures. No matter what your style, we promise there’s a wall plate that complements your home design better than the existing smudge-prone standard. All you need is a screwdriver and a few bucks, so start swapping.
Jul 17, 2020
Here’s How ‘The Baby-Sitters Club’ Characters Would Decorate If They Lived In Studio Apartments
Which character most represents your style?
Jul 14, 2020
A Rental's Clever IKEA Hacks and Decor Are How You Distract from Beige Carpeting
There are SO many good storage and IKEA hack ideas in this rental apartment!
Apr 27, 2020
The Best & Worst Rooms from the Original Trading Spaces
The good, the bad and the (very) ugly.
Mar 4, 2020
This 560-Square-Foot Studio Apartment Is Full of Gorgeous Renter-Friendly Ideas
Nearly everything in Miki's modern, colorful, maximal studio apartment is either second hand, Target, or IKEA.
Feb 4, 2020
Here’s What Would Happen If Harry Potter Characters Lived in Tiny Houses
Here's what it would look like if Harry, Ron, Hermione, Draco, Luna, and Neville traded their dorm rooms for their very own tiny houses.
Jan 23, 2020
5 Classic Design Rules to Absolutely Never Break
We're all about breaking the rules for the sake of putting your own touch on a space, but these five design credos are non-negotiable.
Dec 17, 2019
9 One-Hour Ways To Boost Your Living Room This Weekend
Weekends are precious. Use them wisely.
Nov 19, 2019
Actress Riki Lindhome’s LA Loft Has Style, Stripes, and a Swing!
It's fun, colorful, and has a lot of quirky elements, such as a soundproof massage chair room, an indoor swing, a forest bathroom and a mannequin that holds purses and keys.
Nov 19, 2019
8 Things You’ll Find In Every Horror Film House
In honor of Halloween, we’ve dissected the classics to reveal 8 common horror movie home tropes to make you start sleeping with the night light on.
Oct 24, 2019
Wallpaper, Bold Colors, and Animal Motifs Invigorate This Small But Stylish Los Angeles Rental
Interior designer Isabel Muller of Harte Designs has made it her mission this year to fall in love with her own home.
Oct 1, 2019
Say Goodbye to Dated Track Lighting With This Easy & Clever DIY
There’s no denying that lighting is a vitally important aspect of any space, yet it’s often the most overlooked. Once you flip the switch to illuminate your interior, it’s easy to get distracted by all the other things that need tending to, and lighting falls by the wayside. When visiting Lauren and Danny’s Mount Washington home, we were reminded that, whether you rent or own, you can take control of your own lighting situation.
May 4, 2019
When Getting Older Is the Best Thing That Will Ever Happen To You
It may only be matter of time until wall-to-wall Tuscan faux plaster makes a comeback (Olive Gardens everywhere rejoice). Until then, we prefer these easy, natural-looking antiquing methods to give new furniture an aged look that doesn’t feel dated. Speed up the “Aging” Process: Sturdy materials like wood and brass look great with age (we think humans do too). Get creative by envisioning your furniture’s past lives and layering a variety of finishing techniques.
May 3, 2019
This Paint Finish Is Your Secret To a Stylish, Sexy Home
Since the dawn of time, humans have been attracted to shiny things. Adding a coat of high gloss to everyday items and surfaces will bump up the sophistication factor of your home while hypnotizing your guests into a lacquer-induced love spell. Vintage Furniture (above): The unrecognizable before/after of this vintage dining table by designer Emily Henderson is a great reminder of the transformative powers of lacquer, and a reminder that lacquer doesn’t have to be high sheen.
May 3, 2019
Before & After: A Dilapidated Kitchen Restored to Rental Heaven
While Joanna Harrison has done a stellar job decorating her family’s small Silver Lake cottage, she’s lucky the preservation-savvy developers at bettershelter got their hands on the decaying structure before their demolition-hungry competitors. The company restored the historic home before renting it to the Harrison trio, making Joanna’s renovation process more about adding functional style and less about, um, not dying.
May 3, 2019
So You Want to Dress Like a Gilmore Girl: A Get-the-Look Guide by Character
Unless you’ve been living under the floorboards with Lane Kim’s CD collection, you’re probably aware that the Gilmore Girls is coming back in November (!!!). In an attempt to prepare you for your dress-code-enforced viewing party, we’ve dissected each character’s iconic wardrobe so you can be the best fast-talking, tack-sharp Stars Hollowian you can be.
May 3, 2019
Recharge Your Work Week: 5 Twists to Your Familiar Wardrobe Staples
Routines can be great. They keep you from oversleeping, keep you clean, and help you look totally badass when you and your friends bust out Thriller at Halloween parties. But if your work routine is leaving you feeling less than motivated at the office, upgrading some of your go-to wardrobe pieces may be just what you need to recharge those 9-to-5 vibes (that and an office-wide flashmob of Single Ladies at lunch). This comfy work shoe is a must-have.
May 3, 2019
The Most Memorable Trading Spaces Makeovers
Remember when “Trading Spaces” shone a light on your budding love for interior design? If you’re like me, you found your teenage self confused by your strong desire to stay home on the weekends and peep TLC’s most riveting home design programming. From Doug’s jungle room to the Jessica Biel episode, we’ve unearthed some of Trading Spaces’ most memorable makeovers, that you probably (some for the best) forgot about.
May 3, 2019
Clothes Call: What Were People Wearing the Decade You Were Born?
Strong fashion trends are hard to recognize when you’re in the midst of them. However, give them a decade or two, and what once was funky fresh is now just…funky. Fortunately for mom jeans, what’s old is new, and everything comes back around. We’ve chronicled the typical outfit decade by decade from the 1950s to the early 2000s, so you can spot the least attractive style to model your 2017 wardrobe after. A simpler time, indeed.
May 3, 2019
So, You Want to Live Like a Gilmore Girl: A Get-the-Look Guide by Home
Before KonMari was a household word, the town of Stars Hollow was busy hoarding coffee mugs, antique china, and novelty egg timers. Today we peel back the layers of framed photos, cozy quilts, and valances-on-drapes-on-sheers to dissect the iconic interiors of your favorite Gilmore Girls interior sets: Lorelei and Rory’s house, Richard and Emily’s mansion, The Dragonfly Inn, Luke’s Diner, and Luke’s apartment. First, we have the home of our favorite Lorelais.
May 3, 2019
7 New Workwear Staples that Will Make You Excited to Go to Work (Maybe?)
Whether you’re back to work after a much needed vacation or your “much needed vacation” is simply shopping on your lunch break, these modern takes on classic workwear staples will motivate you to conquer your work week with confidence. Relaxed-fit is queen of 2016 and we’re not mad about it. These loose cropped trousers look polished and professional while allowing movement for the on-the-go gal. (Image via What Vero Wears) Left to right: Cropped Trousers at Zara, $99.
May 3, 2019
Take Notes: 10 Real Life Examples of Great Bed Styling
Do the impeccably-styled beds in home decor showrooms and magazines make you want to give up on ever making your own bed again, conceding that no real person could ever achieve such perfection on a regular basis? Not only am I asking for a friend, but I have pertinent eye candy, direct from our very own house tours, that prove otherwise. Here are 10 times that real life home owners made their actual beds like bosses.
May 3, 2019
One Room, Many Windows? Pro Tips for Choosing Window Treatments
While having “too many” windows may sound like a good problem to have (hello, vitamin D), treating multiple windows in one space is often a task best left to the professionals. With so many variables involved, it’s hard to know what treatments will look good together until the installation is complete (aka once it’s too late).
May 3, 2019
8 Shows to Watch Before the New Year to Renew Your Home Mojo
Is your Netflix queue in a slump that rivals that of your decor creativity? If you love killing two birds with one stone, here are seven streaming TV shows with gorgeous interiors that will fill up your binge list with inspiring decor content so you can get to “researching”. From mid-century modern to contemporary beach house, these TV sets span the style spectrum and give you plenty of material to draw from the next time you get the itch to redecorate.
May 3, 2019
Here’s How We Think the Designers on Trading Spaces Have Evolved
If you’ve watched any of the old episodes of Trading Spaces lately, you know that every room has one thing in common: it’s painfully dated. With very little information out there about what our favorite home DIYers have been designing these days, we looked to old episodes for clues as to what’s in store for the new season. Here are our predictions for what we have to look forward to (or be scared of) from Hildi, Doug, Genevieve, Vern, Frank and Laurie.
May 3, 2019
How Dinosaurs are Responsible for Bobby Berk’s Success on Queer Eye
If you watched Season One of Netflix’s Queer Eye, chances are you benefitted from the Fab Five’s heartwarming antics as much as the men being made over— or, “heroes”—as home design expert Bobby Berk lovingly referred to them as during our recent chat. In season one, Berk and his castmates delivered viscerally-satisfying transformations that tugged at our heartstrings and basically gave us all a restored hope in humankind.
May 3, 2019
Before and After: This Tiny Bland Entryway Gets a Functional Facelift
When Lindi of Love Create Celebrate set out to redo her entryway, she knew she wanted an accent wall. After deciding against wallpaper and painted geometric shapes, she ultimately landed on wood as her medium (one-inch MDF strips, to be exact). With a few power tools and a helpful hubby, she materialized her vision in just one afternoon and the results are impressive. Lindi sketched out several different designs before this one stuck.
May 3, 2019
Before and After: This $60 Lane Cedar Chest Makeover Is Remarkable
When Nicole Goodreau and her fiancé spotted this mid-century Lane cedar chest at their local Goodwill for $30, they knew they had to have it. While the existing army green color and retro knobs didn’t fit their home’s modern aesthetic, they were confident that, with a little elbow grease, they could transform it into the perfect storage piece for their petite city apartment.
May 3, 2019
9 Clever Ways to Upgrade Your Laundry Room for Cheap
Unless you are an alien who is fascinated by the fact that humans secrete unsavory odors and deposit them onto their clothing, you probably don’t enjoy doing laundry. If you need motivation to get through all those whites and darks, we’ve got nine very affordable ways to spruce up your laundry room and make it an inspiring place you actually want to be in. Laundry rooms rival doctors offices in terms of sterility.
May 3, 2019
Before and After: This Little Outdoor Patio is a Magical Wonderland
We first got a glimpse into the colorful world of Troy Solomon (a.k.a. ABearNamedTroy) and Ian Mofford when we toured their whimsical West Hollywood apartment last year. Since then, the couple has transformed their drab second story patio into an equally magical wonderland laced with astroturf and pops of pink. The result is a satisfying transformation that begs the question: Why can’t we all be outside drinking piña coladas from disco balls right now?
May 3, 2019
6 Things You’ll Find In Every Rom-Com Apartment
There’s no denying it. We all watch romantic comedies for one reason and one reason alone—escapism. Sure, maybe you and your S.O. actually did have a meet-cute, or perhaps you really do have a best friend whose only purpose in life seems to be helping you find yourself.
May 3, 2019