Jessica Isaac

There's an upside to everything.

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.

Weekends are precious. Use them wisely.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.