Sharing a space when everybody doesn’t like each other is no fun. It’s almost harder when the ones who are fighting have four legs and don’t speak. That’s every episode of Animal Planet’s new show, Cat vs. Dog, where cat whisperer Jackson Galaxy and dog trainer Zoe Sandor help a household with interspecies fur children become one big happy family—or at least attempt to.
Hear ye, hear ye: The Crown season 2 is now available on Netflix. While the world was caught up with royal engagement fever, you probably forgot that the period drama was returning for another ten episodes. Here’s what you need to remember from season 1 and what we can expect from season 2 (spoilers ahead, but not really because it’s based on true events, you know?).
The bathroom in Katie and Lance’s Park Slope home was not without its quirky charm. But it also had a few odd and even irritating features, like the pedestal sink placed between two tiled storage cabinets, the storage niche with ill-fitting saloon-style doors, and the icky, perma-dirty grout on the floor. When, suddenly, a giant water leak joined the list of less than desirable elements, the couple decided that their bathroom was due for a serious overhaul.
For design-aware individuals, plant buying isn’t a matter of picking up whatever potted plants the grocery store happens to have on display. No, we want that perfect snake plant that we already have the ideal stand for, or that fiddle leaf fig that we envision arching just so over the reading chair in the living room. Whether you’re shopping for interior plants, privacy hedges, or container gardens, you probably have something specific in your mind’s eye.
Anybody who says they enjoy flying just hasn’t flown enough. There aren’t enough audiobooks and podcasts in the world to make waiting at a crowded gate for a delayed flight with a 10-percent battery feel like a good time. But what does go a long way in making a miserable airport experience a, well… less miserable airport experience are modern amenities— everything from free wifi to creepily accurate wait time trackers.
Warm, earthy wood is such a beautiful material to have in your home…until it’s not. There are no rules about how much wood a home can handle, but you know it when you see it. When Carina Romano bought this cabin in the Catskills with two friends, Amanda Jaffe and Kate McCann, the location won them over, but the amount of ’80s-era wood-paneled walls was overwhelming.
We are pretty big on homes here at Apartment Therapy, and nothing makes us more excited than helping people create happy and beautiful spaces that support them and their goals. Around the holidays, it feels especially poignant so, when we recently heard of one young woman whose apartment needed a little care and kindness, we jumped at the chance to help. This holiday season, we worked with City Living NY, a non-profit which helps create homes for young people aging out of the foster care system.
There’s no doubt about it: Induction stove tops are convenient. They boil water faster than electric and gas stovetops, allow cooks to control heat quickly and precisely, AND they cool down almost immediately after cooking is done. But, before you replace your existing stovetop, there’s one downside you should consider. Regular stoves use thermal induction—either a gas flame or electric burner transfers heat to your pots and pans, which in turn warms up the food inside.
Nothing says “welcome home” like a smart exterior. Though if your curb appeal could use some punching up, there’s a relatively simple and effective way to change that, and it’s currently trending on Pinterest. Today, the Pinterest 100—the company’s 2018 trend report—was released, and we spied this tried and true trick for updating your home: a boldly hued front door.
As much as we love our homes, sometimes even rooms that are “done” can feel a little tired. Or maybe we’re feeling in a bit of a slump and could use the pick-me-up that an updated space could provide. As much as we wish we could plunk down the cash for that couch that’s been on our wish list or finally switch out the wall-to-wall carpet for hardwoods, there are room fixes that aren’t just budget friendly, but entirely free.
With Spring Cleaning for Your Mood, we’re helping you get your housekeeping done no matter what state of mind you’re in. For 20 weekdays in April, we’ll focus on cleaning a new area of your space, with three different ways to get it done—so it’s easy to stay on track even when you’re busy, tired, or away from home. Sign up with your email now and enjoy a better space by the end of the month.
The kitchen backsplash is often the accent of your kitchen, the design choice (whether your own or someone else’s) that gives your kitchen its personality and color scheme. Even if your backsplash is humble, it sets your kitchen’s tone. But backsplashes are not just for looks; they work hard, catching splatters, smoke, and dirt that we rarely notice. This weekend, we’re going to give this enduring and often-overlooked surface of your kitchen some care and attention.
We introduced our daughter to Home Alone this month, one of my all-time favorite Christmas movies. (Now we watch it almost every day, because that’s how things go with a five-year-old.
We don’t often see hallway/stairway renovations—especially ones as fun as this one. These dingy, mustard stairs — and the dark landing spot at the stairs’ base — are about to get the makeover of a lifetime… WOW! That is so incredibly fun and unique! Natalie Jacob of Arsenic Lace has turned a stairway from a functional necessity to a stunning part of her home.
Sure, attics are known as musty, dark places, but with some imagination, they can be beautiful, inspiring rooms. Depending on how steeply it’s sloped, there might be a lot of square footage hiding right under your roof. For a little inspiration, check out these examples of attics that were transformed into beautiful and useful spaces.
I’m old enough to remember when a black, grey, and silver bathroom with shimmering wallpaper was the very height of style, and while there’s still a lot to love in that look, it is a bit dated—especially when there’s a brown tile floor involved! Let’s see the makeover which involves plenty of tile and zero brown… WOW.
This bedroom makeover is a testament to how an extraordinary piece—in this case, a vintage brass bed—can appear rather ordinary until it is properly presented and lovingly accentuated. This redo centers the brass bed and a vintage rug, creating an elegant bedroom truly worth of the term boudoir . . . Stunning! The results definitely have a vintage flavor, without feeling musty or dusty.
While the frenzy around it has cooled slightly, we are still very much living in The Golden Age of Television, aka Peak TV. And while I look forward to telling my robot grandchildren that I lived through the years when they put The Good Place on air, there is a downside to living in such a content-rich time, and that is having to say goodbye to some of our favorite (and not so favorite) shows.
I think the best word to describe the “before” condition of this kitchen would be: ew. Discolored black and white floor tile, sad sagging laminate cabinets, perma-stained countertops, and a fluorescent light fixture like something out of a ’70s municipal building. Again, ew. And then there was the exposed exhaust hose sealed with duct tape. This kitchen was more than overdue for a change. Much better, yes?
Great Britain (and the rest of the world, for that matter) can’t wait to hear wedding bells for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. And as expected, the couple, who started dating back in July of 2016, have already set the wedding industry afire with predictions for what their royal celebration will include. But there are some details we know are already nailed down (including the just announced date!): His Royal Highness Prince Henry of Wales and Ms. Meghan Markle will marry on 19th May 2018.
With Spring Cleaning for Your Mood, we’re helping you get your housekeeping done no matter what state of mind you’re in. For 20 weekdays in April, we’ll focus on cleaning a new area of your space, with three different ways to get it done—so it’s easy to stay on track even when you’re busy, tired, or away from home. Sign up with your email now and enjoy a better space by the end of the month.
Netflix quietly handed us all another gift in the form of Christmas Inheritance, their latest original holiday movie, starring Eliza Taylor (The 100) and Jake Lacy (Carol, Obvious Child). If you were pleasantly surprised by last month’s so-bad-it’s-good A Christmas Prince, you might be able to get into the spirit of Inheritance. Taylor plays Ellen Langford, the daughter of a wealthy retail owner (What do they sell? Gifts. There’s no need to be any more specific than that).
Even if you know all about sorting lights and darks, how to wash and dry different fabric types, and you remember to use the mysterious but very useful permanent press setting, there’s still an easily overlooked laundry mistake that could ruin your clothes and, in rare instances, your washer. Here’s the quick task you need to add to your laundry routine: Make sure your zippers are zipped before you do laundry.
“When I decided I was ready to live on my own after years of living with roommates, I needed a place where I could continue to have dinner parties and space for guests to feel comfortable — but finding that at an affordable price point in San Franciso is challenging,” writes Chelsea Drenick.
People have tried to decipher what our dreams mean since the beginning of time, and now, researchers are taking a look at why we have them. A new study published last month takes a look at one particularly stressful dream pattern: the recurring nightmare. Occasional bad dreams are one thing, but recurring nightmares can signal something else, according to a study published in the journal Motivation and Emotion.
The Shape of Water—Guillermo del Toro’s latest film and nominated for seven Golden Globes—is a modern aquatic fairy tale, the story of a mute woman who falls for a fish-man. Set against the backdrop of the Cold War, the interiors provide a peek into the past, the past’s vision of the future, and insight into its memorable characters, who struggle daily with the injustice in being any kind of an Other.
Now is the time when year-end book lists abound, hardcovers are gifted at family holidays, and your favorite writer announces that they’ve got something in store for 2018. But even if it feels like there are too many books and never enough time, that could actually be a good thing. “Antilibraries”, those collections of books we own but never get to, can keep us intellectually curious and humble.
You’ve heard it before: kitchens and bathrooms sell houses. And while kitchens and baths are great neither is actually Joanna Gaines’ favorite room in a home to make over. So which room is it? The Fixer Upper star and queen of shabby-chic recently dished to Apartment Therapy that she much prefers designing nurseries.
When Kiersten bought her home, the kitchen had been recently renovation. It wasn’t exactly her taste, but it was….fine. She debated keeping it as is for awhile, and just making do, but then she started having some issues with the cabinets…. The kitchen looked fine, but only from a distance. In reality, the wooden cabinets had been painted white — without getting sanded or primed first — and the paint was peeling off in sections.
Since Amazon’s comedy hit “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” dropped at the end of last year, all anyone can talk about is the enviable costumes and the quick-witted writing. And now that the show scooped up two major Golden Globes on Sunday—best actress in a comedy series or musical and best TV series, comedy—the 8-episode first season, which is already renewed for a second, is sure to get plenty of new fans.
It pains me to say anything negative about a room containing so much gorgeous wood, so I’ll just say this: while this old kitchen had its charms, the new one is bold, spacious, and totally user-friendly. So different! This major undertaking was the vision—and partially the handiwork—of Lovebergs At Home. The wall-to-wall wood has been replaced with bright white upper cabinetry and dramatic black lower drawers, slate floor, quartz countertops, and island.
It doesn’t matter if you’re a maximalist or minimalist, traditional or contemporary: Everyone has a huge stack of bath towels in their home. At Apartment Therapy, we take shopping for towels very seriously. The right one, perfectly plush and absorbent, can transform your bathroom into an at-home spa. And, depending on the color or pattern, add some stylish flair to your space.
Australian firm Studio Wonder, which has completed quite a few luxury boutiques as well as private residences, knows a thing or two about understated elegance. So they were the perfect choice to bring this Victorian-era Australian home gracefully into a new century. Previously the home was a dense warren of rooms, so opening up the floor plan made sense for a modern lifestyle.
Imagine a year that trades the dreaded full camera roll for treasured photos that are aren’t trapped in the overflowing digital archives of your phone. Deciding to do something with your photos — right now, before you take too many in 2018 — will not only you give you a keepsake of your memories, but will also lead to some compelling and surprising consequences.
Lindsay and Tim’s New York apartment had a lot going for it: 9 foot ceilings, windows on three sides, a plum location on Central Park West, and a very spacious (for New York) footprint of 1,500 square feet. The layout, however, left a little bit to be desired. The main area was split between a living room and a rather unnecessarily large dining room, while the kitchen was completely separated from the living space.
When we’re busy making cookies, wrapping gifts, and brewing hot chocolate, we sometimes forget to look after the quietest living things under our care: our plants. But there’s no time like the present (ha) —when guests are around, and when the greenery inside looks even greener because of the barrenness outdoors — to give our plants some extra love and attention. Turn over a new leaf (another ha) in 2018 and become the plant parent you’ve always wanted to be.
I want to read more. I really do. But it’s easy to let myself off the hook, with all the responsibilities that come from having a gaggle of young children, a house to care for and work to do. But I also know that reading — good, solid, offline reading — adds a dimension to our lives that only books (or e-books) can offer. Let’s determine to find a way to make more time for them in the coming year.
Megan’s small powder room is tiny at only 4 by 4.5 feet deep. It’s located downstairs right off the kitchen and family room, so the bathroom gets used a lot. Before, the original builder-grade fixtures and the medium gray wall color made everything feel cramped and dated (hello 1990s!), so it was the first project they tackled after moving in.
When Diane first moved into her new house, she spent so much time and energy remodeling the rest of the home, that the master bedroom was a bit of an afterthought. At the time, she made it bearable by ripping up the wall-to-wall white carpet and purchasing a new bed. Still, even after all those changes, it just didn’t give off the moody, luxe feel she wanted. She eventually gave it the attention it truly deserved.
Considering a renovation? A recent article recommends that while you’re filling your home with dust, debris, dropcloths, construction noises, paint fumes, and skilled (and therefore expensive) workers, you might as well get everything done while you’re at it. How Remodeling More Than One Room Can Save Money by Jeb Breithaupt was published in the Shreveport Times, and it raised a few intriguing points. Let’s go through them one by one to see if they might apply to your project.
“Twas a long time ago, longer now than it seems, in a place that perhaps you’ve seen in your dreams,” opens the 1993 classic The Nightmare Before Christmas. Going opening night as a kid felt like a dream; seeing it at 10pm and getting the Kids’ Combo blurred reality’s edges in the best sugar high, up past my bedtime kind of way. For some people, Die Hard is their edgy holiday movie.
I think many of us have spaces like this one in our homes: crammed with secret stashes of stuff that, over time, get a little out of control. We often don’t even need most of the things in there, which makes it a colossal waste of square footage. This year, Robin and Ed not only cleaned out their 44″ x 43″ closet, but found a completely new use for the little room. Here’s a hint: it’s not storage any more.
When interior stylist Jaimy and her husband Marcel wanted a quieter place to live, they decided to move to her hometown…where they were able to buy her childhood home. To truly make it their own, the new home needed quite a few updates. One of the most striking transformations has been the attic. The idea was to let daughter Dalí have the master bedroom, so Marcel and Jaimy could inhabit the top floor. It sure is spacious enough, but a lot work needed to be done.
Bland rental kitchens and bathrooms are about as common as noisy upstairs neighbors, but at least you can make small temporary fixes to transform your space. Take some serious inspiration from these clever renters, who invested a little bit of time and very little money to make changes they could live with, then reverse when they moved out. This awkward bathroom — with a seashell-shaped sink — got a weekend facelift that only cost $350 (also lead image above).
After overindulging at a networking event in November (who thought it was a good idea to slip me those extra beer tickets?), I decided to swear off drinking until my birthday in January. It wasn’t until I posted my promise on Facebook that I realized I’d instated my ban in what is perhaps the booziest time of the year: the holiday season. Rather than deleting my post and giving up, I decided to go for it anyway.
Sheena and Jason’s vintage Airstream is a soothing, lovely, bohemian dream on wheels. They travel the States in it with their beautiful dog Riley. Now the interior is all-white, with natural textures and bold patterns, but it sure didn’t look that way when they bought it. “Our entire trailer was one giant DIY project. We bought Mavis in original 1975 condition.
A mudroom is a great luxury to have—a spot to corral hats, gloves, scarves, dog leashes, muddy shoes, boots, and other inherently messy items—but a pretty, even glam, yet still totally practical, mudroom?!? Dreams really can come true. Before we ooh and aah over the space now, let’s see what Leslie Price of Price Style + Design had to say about the unremarkable room before: When I entered my home through my garage, the space always felt unwelcoming and undefined.
Whether you’ve recently kickstarted a new workout plan for the New Year, you’re trying to exercise more, or you’re just trying to keep up with your current habits, one thing is certain: you cannot forget about recovery. In fact, physical therapist David Jou and co-owner of MOTIVNY, says that recovery is just as important as the exercise itself. A good way to get started is by being more aware of your body, your muscles, and how everything works together when you work out.
Okay, I admit it: I love watching ABC’s The Bachelor. Not only does it offer up a superior mix of fantasy, romance, and of course, drama, the beloved reality series takes place in an over-the-top mansion, that we have to say, looks pretty design-savvy from our seats.
I’m old enough to remember a time when sliding shower doors were considered very innovative, and the height of bathroom fashion. When my family moved to Houston, in 1994, our new house had one, and to me that was a very big deal. Fast-forward about 20 years and the shower door in my parents’ house just seems a little moldy and gross.
We often update our homes to make ourselves more comfortable or happy. We switch up paint, change out hardware and maybe even tear down a wall or two. But, when it comes to resale value, not all of those things are worth it. So, before you retile the bathroom or paint your kitchen cabinets, there’s one thing that you should consider doing first. It’s one of the only projects that will actually pay you more than what you put in. Each year Remodeling Magazine’s Cost vs.
Hello stranger! It’s time for another installment of Beauty Bucket List, a series in which we roll up our sleeves to do some hard and fast testing of cult beauty products, because just hearing about how great something is isn’t good enough for us.
Here’s a non-traditional hardwood floor that deserves a second look: wide planks. These beautifully crafted floors really evoke a sense of warmth and old-world charm, and make your room look larger, more open and less crowded. When the outside world feels complicated, unpredictable — and sometimes downright unsafe — creating a warm, authentic environment at home seems more important than ever. As trends go, this one has weight and longevity.
Ever heard that it takes 21 days to form a habit? Turns out, it may require longer than just three weeks for your New Year’s resolution to become second nature. New research shows that it takes 66 days on average to form a habit — busting the old 21-day myth.
Everyone seems to be talking about “kids these days” and their addiction to technology. Yet, where’s the accountability for adults? With many of us checking our phones up to 85 times a day, it feels like we could all use a bit of an intervention. So this is exactly what I decided to do. I vowed to give up my phone for a week with just three simple rules: 1. No cell phone or social media for a week in any way. 2. No cheating. 3. Seriously, no cheating.
Like many people, I fell down a Wikipedia rabbit hole while watching The Crown. So what’s a history nerd to do? Pull together a chronological watch list to help sort out the history of the monarchy in dramatic order, naturally. As a lover of costume dramas, I was well versed in period films and TV series depicting the British royal family long before Claire Foy and Matt Smith captivated the world with their performances as the young Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip in The Crown.
This rotting detached garage had been neglected since the 1950s, but its owners saw nothing but potential. With lots of learning and labor—and a little help from friends and family—they converted the old structure into a lovely rental studio. This little kitchen is so cute! It’s small, but it’s efficient, practical, and stylish.
This project is a great example of how a few dollars and a few minutes can make a dramatic change in your home—and your mood. As Anne described her situation, “Cooking and baking make me happy, but seeing my workspace sulking in the shadows was putting a damper on my spirit.” Let’s see her cheap, quick, renter-friendly, and reversible solution to the baking blues! So much better!
An extra kitchen? As tempting as it would be to trash it every year during the holidays, pay for a professional cleaning, and shut the door again until the next big event, an extra kitchen almost always seems like a total waste of space. In this renovation, the upstairs kitchen becomes a much-more-useful room! From baby blue kitchen to gloriously green bedroom!
Sage looked long and hard for the perfect piece for her entryway. It needed to fit the spot, and be deep and flexible enough to fit a variety of footwear. Most importantly, she didn’t want the visual mess of open shelving. Sage didn’t want to spend too much so she first went the IKEA route, and ruled out a classic “fauxdenza” (made from stock cabinets mounted on the wall), before finally hitting up Craigslist in a long and patient search for something to work with.
Amazon’s new original series darling, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, just took home two Golden Globes, and this weekend, you can watch the accoladed series for free – with our without an Amazon Prime membership. Per the retail and streaming giant, anyone can watch the series at no cost starting this Friday at 12:01 a.m. local time, right up until 11:59 p.m. local time Monday.
Many a renter has dreamt of a dishwasher while sticking their hands into soapy water, scrubbing a stubborn pot. And while there are many benefits of a portable dishwasher, some kitchens just don’t have the space. Earlier this week at CES, Heatworks announced Tetra, a compact, smart and energy efficient dishwasher here to offer some sweet dishwashing relief for the dishwasher-less among us.
This is an interesting project, as it was purchased and remodeled for the express purpose of being sold. Unlike many projects we see which intimately reflect the residents’ needs, habits, and tastes, this one was freed from such restrictions. As the homeowner described the process, “The house was an estate sale, and was extremely dated. It hadn’t been touched in many years, though it had a lot of potential.” That potential has now been unlocked!
You can recognize a ban.do product from a mile away—whether it’s an exercise mat emblazoned with words of motivation in a retro font or a cooler bag that looks like a giant watermelon slice. In other words, it’s all stuff that you didn’t know you needed in your life. What started with a few hair accessories in 2008 is now a multimillion-dollar lifestyle empire, and it’s all the work of founder Jen Gotch. Today, Jen leads ban.do as the chief creative officer.
Christine Platt is a writer and the Managing Director of The Antiracist Research and Policy Center at American University. And as you saw from her recent house tour, she also embraces many tenets of minimalism. But it’s not the empty, barely-own-anything minimalism you may be familiar with. It’s her own beautiful, bold, colorful brand that you can see on full display on her Instagram account, The Afro Minimalist.
The season of winter cheer is over, Groundhog Day is past us (Phil saw his shadow, by the way) and we’re left to stare down a few more weeks of cold and darkness with holiday bills still to pay down. But don’t let winter get you down without a fight. Here are some ways to combat the winter doldrums right in your own home. Most of the difficulties brought on by a severe form of winter blues, called seasonal affective disorder (SAD), stem from a lack of light.
The interior of a 16-year-old camper is as outdated as you might imagine. Even in the best of conditions, green carpet, over-sized (not trendy) floral patterns and some questionable wood veneer can leave a small space feeling even smaller. That’s what makes this stylish — and affordable! — RV remodel so great. It now looks good and feels much larger than just 188 square feet.
The show that just took home the Golden Globe for Best Drama TV Series doesn’t come back until April, but Hulu recently dropped a teaser trailer for season two of The Handmaid’s Tale. Here’s a breakdown of what might be to come for Offred and company in season two, based on a cruel, less-than-90-seconds of footage. As is to be expected, below are spoilers for season one.
Is your rental apartment lacking kitchen storage? Could you use a little extra work surface? If you need one, or both of these things, stand-alone kitchen islands and carts add instant style and multiple functions where there was previously nothing at all. Here are a handful of mostly movable options — from a budget-minded $99 to “good god almighty, who the hell can afford that?
