Whether you’re upsizing, downsizing or just seeking greener pastures, selling your home can be an emotional experience. Think back to the first time you saw your new place: It felt like a fresh start, a place where you could see yourself and your family growing together. Once you’ve grown, it’s your turn to give that feeling to someone else, all over again.
</p><p> This fall, Joanna Gaines is bringing her eponymous collection of furniture and accessories to American Signature Furniture. The inspiration for Magnolia Home by Joanna Gaines comes from Joanna’s love of Old World design that stands the test of time. The collection includes pieces for every room in a variety of fresh, unique design styles, but all unified by Joanna’s belief that “home is the most important place.
</p><p> This fall, Joanna Gaines is bringing her eponymous collection of furniture and accessories to Value City Furniture. The inspiration for Magnolia Home by Joanna Gaines comes from Joanna’s love of Old World design that stands the test of time. The collection includes pieces for every room in a variety of fresh, unique design styles, but all unified by Joanna’s belief that “home is the most important place.
Preparing your home for children is one of the most exciting, stressful, scary, amazing and joyful times in life. That’s a lot of emotions to pack into that small spare room you’re converting into a nursery or playroom, and they’re all perfectly normal. Just don’t forget to have fun. We came up with three Glidden® playroom palettes that play off these emotions. They’re bright, beautiful and (most importantly) kid-proof.
Prize: Dining table and four matching chairs, sleeper sofa/futon, bed frame and mattress, side table, coffee table Value: $1,500 From: DHP With the school year just around the corner, many bright-eyed undergraduates are about to get a crash course in living off-campus and on their own. (Lesson 1: Pizza boxes cannot double as coffee tables.) Moving from the dorm to the apartment complex can be scary — meal plan, we hardly knew ye! — but a few versatile essentials will go a long way.
There’s nothing like the rush of finding your first-love home — the one where you can be yourself, make your own rules, and pick your own paint colors. Or maybe you’re lucky enough to have found your forever home — the one where all those pinboards can finally go from inspiration to installation.
You know that pair of jeans you pack on every beach trip that are so well worn it’s like they were custom-made for your fit? Or that tissue-thin T-shirt that’s so soft it’s the only thing you can wear when you’re sunburned? What you want from your most comfortable clothes isn’t so different from what you want in a bed. For a room that feels so relaxed it’s like you’re on vacation 365 days a year, try these 5 tips.
Name: Aspen, Huskie/Collie Roommates: Ariel and Andrew Pietrobono Location: Park Slope, Brooklyn Size: 600 square feet Years lived together: 2 years Aspen has lived with siblings Ariel and Andrew ever since Andrew fell in love with the pup at a shelter. The three roommates’ Park Slope apartment is cheerful and warm, with plenty of features that Aspen loves — including a long fetch court/hallway — and some touches to keep his humans happy, too. (Hello, natural light!
Name: Mortimer (Morty), Australian Bulldog Roommate: Danielle Berger Location: Upper West Side, New York, by way of Sydney, Australia Size: 640 square feet Years lived together: Since he was a tiny chubby puppy. Now he’s a rotund 8-year-old! Morty might be Australian by birth, but he’s a New Yorker at heart. His subtly chic Upper West Side digs are the perfect match to his personality: clean, comfortable, and just a bit quirky.
Name: Pimm, Mutt and “Ladypup” Roommates: Stacie and Sean Location: Upper East Side, New York Apartment size: 500 square feet Years lived together: Just over a year It’s easy to see why Pimm loves her eclectic Yorkville duplex shared with her humans, Stacie and Sean, so much. With an open circular layout and no doors, she has the freedom to run around as she pleases. And she does. A lot.
What if furniture could be categorized by personality type? You know, so you could just swipe right when you came across a sexy leather chaise that matched your temperament. We looked at a few of our favorite pieces from American Signature Furniture to decide what their personality types would be — and whom they’re most compatible with. The Mentor Mentors are natural-born leaders and organizers who bring people together, value sociability, and champion education.
Value City FurnitureThe MentorThe DreamerThe EntertainerLIVES Get inspired! Visit Value City Furniture for inspiration, more tips and furniture options. This post is sponsored by Value City Furniture. Thank you for supporting the brands that make Apartment Therapy possible.
Hosting guests on Airbnb is a fun way to get more out of the home you’ve worked so hard on. If you’re ready to get started, bookmark this checklist of simple things you can do to make visitors feel more at home while they’re on the road. Each is simple, but put together they’ll make a big impact. Try them for your next Airbnb crew, and watch your reviews glow. 1.
Over the years, our House Tours have shown how people live comfortably when they truly love their homes. Many of these houses may have a human’s name on the lease or deed, but it’s the four-legged residents who call the shots. Taking our inspiration from realtor.com’s “Pets at Home” video — where we see real pets in real homes they love — we’ve looked back through House Tours history and awarded our pet superlatives!
Have you ever let your cousin crash at your place for a weekend? Housed a friend for a couple days after a breakup? Given your parents a place to stay for the holidays so they feel more at home? If so, you’re ready to be an Airbnb host. And when you become an Airbnb host, the benefits go beyond the cash. Learning to market your home and welcome travelers will get you some unexpected gains. (And yes, some expected extra cash.
Repainting cabinets can be a tricky, tedious task. You have to sand them and strip them. Then when you go to paint them, the application has to be consistent across the corners and ledges of their molding. Add to that the inevitable conclusion of two young kids with a bowl of spaghetti and the cleanup they imply. These were concerns for Daniela, a new mom in a new house. But then this was precisely why she wanted to refresh her kitchen: to create these new memories.
Kathy and Peter recently left their 9-to-5 jobs to start a new business: a production company. Their home will become their office, so it needs to be at once a calming, productive space and a lively place to raise their 2.5-year-old daughter. In renovating her new home office, Kathy has to consider that she’ll be spending a lot of time in a space that can’t trigger her asthma.
We ask a lot of the entryway: As a landing strip, it does the double duty of filtering what junk is better kept out of the house (stuff like mud and pocket doodads) while also keeping together everything you need to exit (like keys and umbrella). But that’s only half its job! The entryway is also tasked with making a home’s first and last impressions. That’s a lot to do in a little space! So how do you do it? If you have a large foyer, great!
With help from the folks at Miracle-Gro, we’ve been digging through the endless inspiration and ideas generated by Apartment Therapy’s Gardening School. Led by modern homesteader and wise instructor Linda Ly, each lesson is designed to give even the blackest thumbs the confidence to plan, prep and plant their own garden. But the biggest lesson has been that gardening isn’t really about the end result – it’s about the entire experience.
Prize FromBoulder Organic Coffee Value Coffee makes the world go ’round. At least our world. So what could be better than a year of freshly roasted organic coffee, ethically sourced from the best growers around the globe? Pretty much nothing. Your Mornings Deserve This. Enter To Win! Boulder Organic Coffee has been sourcing and roasting the world’s best coffee in Boulder, Colorado, since 1999.
Determining a personal style for any room is a balance of performance and aesthetics, but in a laboring room like the kitchen, the relationship becomes especially important. Mine is casually utilitarian: a playground for the (aspiring) baker in me and a workstation for my love of Sunday-evening meal prep. At the same time, I want my kitchen to be the part of my home where I feel most, well, at home. So, what kitchen style works for you?
Digging in the dirt is one of the simplest pleasures, so don’t clutter it up with a lot of stuff. The thoughtful design Barebones uses in their gardening (and camping and outdoors) equipment keeps the minimalist approach sacred with multi-purpose use and beautiful aesthetics. They’ve curated two kits for two type of gardeners. So which kit is right for your gardening style?
Have you ever stayed in one of those boutique hotels that had just the right vibe – a perfect balance of stylish and cozy, where you slept well every night and also kind of wanted to hang out there all day? One of our new goals is to make home feel that way, too. Especially the bedroom. After all, it’s the room in your home that is really all for you.
At Apartment Therapy, we feel strongly that your home should reflect your personality. And nowhere is that more crucial than in your bedroom. After all, it’s where you begin and end each day, it’s your most inner retreat from the outside world, and it’s where you can truly be you. Lately, we’ve been getting our design and decor inspiration from our travels – not only different cultures and experiences, but from the fabulous hotels and B&Bs we stay in along the way.
Oh, summer sunshine. You make us smile, you make us crave iced coffee … you make us sweat like pro athletes. It’s even true at home: Throwing back the curtains on a beautiful day makes for a lovely sun-drenched setting, but it can also seriously scorch your space (and your AC bill). Eventually, those cheerful rays might even fade the rugs and furniture in their path.
We know parents struggle selecting a nursery theme. Circus animals? Spaceships? Flowers? But what if the nursery’s theme was the reason for existing in the first place: the kids themselves? We thought on that for a while and came up with an idea we’re excited to share! Our inspiration came from “lifebooks,” the collections of photos and mementos parents create to tell the complete story of their adoptive children, but it will work well with all infants.
Getting your summer travel plans in order? Us, too. So, we checked in with the experts at Booking.com for their list of this year’s most popular destinations (culled from the top places their customers are visiting). Then, we surfed their listings for the most beautiful homes and apartments to rent for a weekend or a week. At the top of the list: U.S. beach towns, Asian cities alive with culture and European capitals steeped in history. And we had to throw in some modernism from Milan!
It’s spring! Time to vacuum your feather duster, alphabetize your spice rack, and de-scale that power-washer, right? Maybe not. We stopped by HomeSense to see what’s in store and realized that, in lieu of spring cleaning, a rapid spring refresh can be as little as 30 minutes away. Here’s how to do it. Pendants can pack a significant style punch. Consider a new pendant lamp to add ambient lighting to your space or swap out tabletop task lighting for a pendant.
Prize: A Custom Gallery Wall Total Value: $1000 From: Framebridge Have a few… or a hundred frame-worthy photos saved on your phone? Yeah, us too. From maps and vintage photographs to art prints and Instagrams, we’re all guilty of saving things that should already be hung on our walls. Framebridge is the simplest way to get great custom frames at a seriously reasonable price.
Hannah and George just moved in together, and when they were house-hunting, they knew they wanted outdoor space. They’ve found a home with an amazing, enclosed front patio, but they aren’t sure how best to decorate it. It’s a small space, and they want to be able to use it all the time – for everything from just hanging out to hosting full-on dinner parties.
Madilynn loves the home she’s created with her husband, Alan, and their baby, Cosette. But though she spends a lot of time there, working from home and hanging out with Cosette, she hasn’t been able to figure out how to integrate their balcony into their everyday lives. A small, oddly-shaped space, it’s hard to know how to furnish it in a way that works both for a toddler and her parents.
Marissa and Justin moved into their home two years ago, but never really figured out how to furnish their outdoor space. They use their deck and yard all the time, especially for entertaining, but Marissa doesn’t feel like the camping chairs and odds and ends laying around (um, there seems to be a puppet??) make for a particularly inviting space.
Prize: Winner’s choice of any queen size mattress from Signature Sleep & any queen size DHP bed frame Total Value: $1000 Can a good night’s sleep be affordable, too? Yes it can: you just have to learn what type of mattress is right for you. We took a look at Signature Sleep Mattresses, an extensive line of mattresses designed for every budget and every body, to find the most affordable mattress types for different types of sleepers. What’s your sleep style?
We love our hardwood floors — until the sunlight hits them and highlights all the dust we haven’t swept up. But just because hardwood doesn’t hide dirt does not mean it’s a high-maintenance diva. In fact, we partnered up with Bona®, one of the most trusted names in hardwood-floor maintenance, to find an easy routine that’ll leave your floors all shine and no grime. Dust to keep dirt from piling up.
Prize: Carmela Upholstered Bed in grey, tan or navy linen, complete bed frame along with a Signature Sleep mattress Total Value: $1000 From: DHP You might not know them by name, but DHP is the company behind some of the most stylish pieces you’ll find at Target, Overstock, Amazon, Walmart and Wayfair – some of our definite go-to sources for small space living. Their unique pieces consistently pack a serious style punch but are surprisingly affordable.
Thinking leather might be better? Keep in mind it’s not all created equal. The difference in quality between genuine, bonded, and flat-out fake leather is huge, and there are some easy tricks to spotting the good stuff. We looked at Value City Furniture’s new line of genuine leather furniture to learn what to look for. OK, duh. But the label is going to say more than just “real” or “fake!
Prize: $500 gift card Value: $500 From: FLOR Lots of brands like to call themselves game-changers, but FLOR literally changed the flooring game: It cut the standard carpet into squares! With FLOR, you buy as many — or as few — 19.7-inch squares as you need to create an area rug, cover a room or improvise a custom shape to suit your space.
When does your home become your dream home? How about when you hit that elusive balance of style and personality: Straddling the line between magazine-shoot-worthy and somebody-actually-lives-here is a kind of nirvana. Here are five must-haves that will help you get there.
This time of year, about half my mental energy is spent searching for gifts that match the people on my list. When I discovered Motorola’s Moto X Pure Edition designed by Jonathan Adler, I checked a few people off the list (myself, maybe, too?). Sporting the designer’s signature happy hues and graphic patterns, this smart (and sassy) phone brings high design to your most functional device.
Have you ever bought a sofa, accent chair or table that looked wonderful in the store (or on Pinterest) but lost its charm once you brought it home? If the color and style were right, the problem may have been that the piece of furniture simply wasn’t the right scale for the room.
As home gawkers here at Apartment Therapy, we’re pretty obsessed with the idea of staying in someone’s home and seeing how they live. Having stayed as guests recently in a few Airbnb homes across the country (hello, perfect cottage in Santa Barbara – miss you already!) we’ve come to recognize that becoming an Airbnb host may not seem as easy as being an Airbnb guest. If you’re like us, then you have some questions. What’s it like to be a host?
Prize: A luxury firm mattress set (any size) including foundation and frame. Value: $1400 From: Saatva ‘Tis the season to be thankful. Thankful for family, thankful for holiday twists on your fave drinks (hello spiced, mulled wine!) and thankful for a good night’s sleep. That’s right, I’m taking it there: a good mattress is one of many things to appreciate this holiday season. Enter to win a luxe firm mattress set!
Do you dream about having a bigger closet? Obviously. Well, did you know that there’s a seriously easy way to have an infinite closet? Meet your new best friend, MakeSpace – the storage service that picks up and redelivers your goodies with just a push of a button.
If the experts at Loloi Rugs have taught us anything, it’s that a beautiful rug can seriously elevate your space and create an instantly chic and inviting home. Their new Anastasia Collection is inspired by high-end silk rugs, but has a cool, contemporary sensibility, and is much, much more affordable (and word is, they feel amazing). To celebrate their new line, Loloi partnered with eight of our fave design bloggers. The design challenge?
We were recently challenged by Walmart to completely redesign a student’s studio apartment in Chicago’s Presidential Towers. Since we’re never one to say no to a design challenge, we jumped right in! We talk all the time about small budgets, small spaces and working within rental constraints (wall-to-wall carpet anyone?), so we agreed to give it the old college try. See how we took this bland studio to another level. Every rental comes with unique issues.
Picture it: you’re in your living room with your besties, piled on the sofa for a Friday night movie. You’ve got your sweets, you’ve got your treats, now all you need to do is settle in and watch the original “Ghostbusters” for the twenty millionth time. How exactly are you going to get comfy?
