Lauren Hufnagl

If you’re anything like me and have to navigate around your kids’ toys, over heaps of unfolded laundry, and through random piles of clutter when you enter your bedroom, chances are it’s not exactly the most romantic space in your home. And with Valentine’s day quickly approaching, perhaps one of the most thoughtful gifts you can give your spouse is an intimate sanctuary that says, “I want to focus on us.

Name: Parker James Location: Olivebridge, New York Room Size: 14′ x 14′ Parker’s nursery combines all of the things that I love — the warmth of wood, clean, bright white walls, and colorful artwork, accents, and accessories. I love that his mom, Dana, was able to fill the space with toys and artwork that are fun and interesting for a small, developing mind, yet the space still feels comfortable for the adults who inhabit it as well.

Name: Finn (12) Location: Sydney, Australia Room Size: 4m x 3m I’ve been talking a lot lately about creating kids’ spaces that make both the grown ups and the kids happy, and Finn’s room may be the perfect example of just such space. Mom Simone worked together with her twelve-year-old son to create a space that is reflective of his personality and interests.

Name: Jasper (7) Location: Sydney, Australia Room Size: 3m x 3.2m I always admire when a kid’s room is reflective of his interests, but still manages to be stylish. That’s one thing I’ve always struggled with reconciling — throwing Elsa and Anna all over the place and painting the room Barney purple just isn’t my idea of fun. Luckily I think my daughter and I have struck a good balance, and I bet the same can be said of Jasper and his mom, Simone.

I wasn’t sure if I was biting off more than I could chew when I decided to work on my kitchen again this year for the Style Cure. I mean, both my husband and I work full-time, we have preschooler and a toddler, and it’s that time of year when a lot of other things are happening: birthdays in the family, holiday preparation, and raking leaves, to name a few. But after talking about it ’til we were blue in the face, we decided to jump in head-first and see what happened.

Name: Noah (2) Location: Sydney, Australia Room Size: 3.8m x 2.6m With three sons ages 2-12, Simone of Honey & Fizz is an expert at putting together little boys’ rooms. All three of her boys’ rooms are full of graphic patterns, color, and most importantly, fun. Her youngest son, Noah, calls this fantastic space home. Although he has some of his brother’s hand-me-down pieces, one certainly can’t say that his space isn’t special or unique to him.

I don’t know about you, but when I think of a shared kids’ bedroom, my mind immediately goes to two twin beds side by side, or maybe bunk beds. (Or if you’re as unlucky as my sister and I were, a shared full bed. We often daydreamed about building a wall right down the middle of the bed!) If you let yourself start to think outside of the box, there are so many creative solutions to a shared kids’ situation. Here are a few of my favorites from our archives: Short on space?

So we’re all-in with the kitchen update, and I’m excited to say that I think we’re almost there! I didn’t know if it was going to be doable with two little ones underfoot, but thanks to a lot of help from both sets of grandparents in both the babysitting and manpower departments, I think we may just finish on time.

Welcome back to our kitchen update, phase ten gazillion. My husband is currently en route to pick up our butcher block counters, while I’m at home trying to decide on paint color choices for our lower cabinets. We love the two-tone look, so we’re not going with the same color (white) as the upper cabinets. Even though our appliances are white, we’re hoping a slightly deeper tone will add more visual interest and character to the space.

There won’t be much moving or rearranging happening in our kitchen this year. We’re updating on a tight budget, so we’re not replacing the cabinets or splurging on new appliances. We’ll be painting the lower cabinets (we painted the uppers white during last year’s Style Cure), switching out the dated laminate countertops for butcher block, adding a wood plank backsplash, and installing an inexpensive apron-front farmhouse style sink from good ol’ IKEA.

I’m fairly certain that I’m going to go ahead with my plan to finish the kitchen for this year’s Style Cure, but I’m still not guaranteeing anything! I have a bunch of “before” photos to share with you all, as if you’ll remember I “Style Cured” my kitchen last year. This year’s Style Cure will hopefully be phase three or four (I’ve lost count) of our kitchen update.

Name: George (1) Location: Los Angeles, California Room Size: 11′ x 12′ There’s really nothing more magical than childhood, so it seems quite fitting when I come across a child’s room that feels more like a wonderland than a simple spot to sleep. Maybe it’s the twinkle lights or perhaps it’s the unicorn, but there’s something about this sweet nursery that is just so dreamy. How would you describe the look and feel of this room?

Here we go again! Last year I decided to go all out and attempted to “cure” my kitchen. While it came a long way thanks to the Style Cure, we are now almost ready to begin phase two — we just installed wood floors and are planning to paint the lower cabinets and add butcher block countertops and a farmhouse sink.

When I was a kid, I had a huge keychain collection. Why on Earth I felt I needed so many keychains, or why I decided to start collecting them in the first place is absolutely beyond me, but nevertheless I loved that jingly ball of metal. I’m starting to find that my own daughter is beginning to gather collections of her own — shiny rocks, plastic princesses, and sticks, to name a few.

Name: Avery Location: Seattle, Washington Room Size: 9.5 x 13 I have a special place in my heart for nurseries with dark walls. When I was designing my first-born’s space, I was terrified to go dark, but my husband was really into the idea. After we did it, the space immediately felt so cozy and restful. So when I came across Avery’s nursery, I was head over heels.

Save money, save the Earth and entertain your kids simultaneously — sounds like winners all around to me! If there’s one thing I hear frequently from my four-year-old it’s that she doesn’t have anything to do, despite our toy cupboard, bookshelves, and craft basket all seem to be brimming with possibilities. But if I give her some recycling, scissors, and tape, she can entertain herself for an eternity.

Name: Vivian (2) Location: San Francisco, CA Room Size: 12’x14’ I immediately fell in love with Vivian’s nursery when I first came across it — I loved that the space looked like something I’d want for myself, but still felt colorful, happy, and fun enough to be equally perfect for a little one.

Name: Samantha Rose Location: Atlanta, Georgia Room Size: 13′ x 13′ I love when a nursery strikes that perfect balance between being sweet enough for a baby, but sophisticated enough for the grown ups in the family to feel right at home as well. Ryan and April managed to do just that when they created this lovely nursery for their baby girl, Samantha Rose.

In our neighborhood, it seems you can hear both the collective groans and cheers as the children in each home receive their teacher assignments for the upcoming school year. Whether or not your children snagged the teachers of their dreams, you can make heading back-to-school a positive experience. One way to build excitement for the upcoming school year is to create a special workspace just for them.

It’s the first weekend of our new home project series, and Apartment Therapy blogger Lauren is here to show you her final result on this weekend’s assignment: Filling a blank wall in your home. From Lauren: Yesterday I left you hanging before revealing the end result of my living room art wall – you know, the place where I wanted to cobble together all of the homeless artwork that I had been hoarding over the past year or so? Well, fear not, the wait is over.

It’s the first weekend of our new home project series, and Apartment Therapy blogger Lauren is here to show you her process on this weekend’s assignment: Filling a blank wall in your home! From Lauren: Some people might appreciate the fact that their small space doesn’t offer much wall space for art, but I’m not one of them. You see, I’m a bit of an art hoarder. A result, I’m sure, of being completely addicted to both Etsy and Pinterest.

Name: Baby G Location: Bologna, Italy Room Size: 4.5 x 3.5 meters I love coming across a nursery that incorporates all of my favorite elements—white and bright, yet colorful, a nice mix of both modern and vintage, and most importantly, something that is whimsical and playful enough for a child to enjoy. Alessandra of Almalu’s Place did just that when she created a nursery for her precious little bambino.

Name: Oscar (5) Location: Den Bosch, the Netherlands Room Size: 3.5 x 3.5 meters I’m not sure if it was the bright yellow bed, the wall of beautiful books, or the fabulous wallpaper, but it was love at first sight when I laid eyes on Oscar’s room. I’ve always been drawn to spaces that combine both vintage and modern pieces, and I absolutely adore both bright white spaces and those filled with bold colors. This room is the perfect union of all of those elements.