Decor & Accessories

How much money would you feel comfortable spending on something for your home…without consulting your partner first? After all, when you live together, you work together to decorate the space and manage the finances. We asked a handful of real couples to share any money limits they have when it comes to splurging on decor. See how you and your mate’s spending style stacks up, or get advice on how to set limits in your own partnership.

Navigating the world of registry etiquette is tough work. To put together The Registry Rule Book, we asked some industry experts to weigh in and answer some of the hardest questions engaged couples might have. Putting together a complete wedding registry is an exercise in moderation. No bride or groom wants to look greedy by registering at multiple stores.

Couples often feel pressure to have a “timeless” or “classic” wedding. Here’s the thing, though: there’s no such thing as a timeless wedding. Just like fashion and home décor, wedding trends come and go. So here’s my best advice: Forget about trying to be timeless and let yourself embrace the unique trends you love, infusing your wedding day with your own personal brand of magic. In 20 years, your wedding photos will look dated anyway.

Two years ago, I moved into a new apartment, and, upon reporting my change of address to USPS for mail forwarding services, the onslaught of store catalogs littering my mailbox began. I’ve since tried to cancel most of them to no avail (having the worst luck with a store I won’t name, but let’s just say it rhymes with Lottery Yarn, of which I now get two copies, rather than zero). There are two, however, that I receive with glee, one being West Elm (the other, Anthropologie).

Bride & Groom: Martina Kolobara and Shea Slater Wedding Date: May 21, 2016 Venue: Joslyn Art Museum in Omaha, Nebraska Number of guests: 250 They say that the best thing about having a big wedding is being surrounded by all the people (and things) you love. And in this Nebraska couple’s case, that includes a couple of pups and a whole museum full of modern art.

One of the most exciting (and most alarming) things about the internet is the speed with which information travels, and the speed with which ideas catch fire, achieve full saturation, and then become passé, often within a matter of weeks. Case in point: the strange phenomenon known as millennial pink. Perhaps you’ve never heard of it, or perhaps you’re already tired of it. I know I am. And yet, here I am.

Styling in home decor is – honestly – very subjective. What works for one person’s design aesthetic and lifestyle may not come even remotely close to what someone else might prefer. However, study a slew of shelter magazines, Instagram accounts and top-pinned images (some you’ve likely saved yourself), and you’ll start to see some similarities, which begin to unlock the secrets to fool-proof styling, no matter what the individual aesthetic.

Those who are constantly tinkering with their home decor will know that the poor, poor bedroom is often left for last. Hidden behind doors, it’s easy to put off giving this space the attention it needs, but I promise, it doesn’t take much to get it in tip-top, show-off-to-guests shape.

The entry in your home is a lot of things: it’s the first taste of sweet freedom when returning from a hard day’s work; it’s your landing zone for odds and ends like keys, mail and dog leashes; it’s where you do your “Did I remember everything?” check before heading out the door. Oh yeah, and the foyer is the only space that absolutely every guest sees of your abode, no matter how far you let them venture in.

Nothing is a bigger style bummer than dingy wall-to-wall carpeting. Don’t get me wrong—I love that cushy, soft feeling underfoot as much as the next girl. But when carpeting starts to look worse for wear, it becomes a bit of a design dilemma, especially if you’re in a rental and can’t just rip it up. First things first, spring for a professional carpet cleaning or ask your landlord for one.

You’d have to be living under a rock (pun very much intended!) to be unaware of how popular geodes, gems and crystals have become in interiors. If I had to say where it all started, I’d point the finger at agate, which started popping up on the reg about five years ago in slice and slab form as coasters, trivets and even tabletops.

Want to buy a home but having trouble saving up a 20% down payment? You could theoretically try bailing on your buddy’s upcoming bachelor party. Zillow recently crunched some numbers to find that attending a string of destination bachelor parties in your 20s and 30s can add up — to a full third of a down payment on a typical home. Bachelor party attendees reported spending an average of $738 apiece, according to survey data from wedding website The Knot.

While ready made curtains are perfectly wonderful out of the package, I have a few tricks up my sleeve to make them a little bit more special.

It’s officially October, which means it’s time to bust out the pumpkins, pull the skeletons out of your closets (literally, not figuratively, of course) and get festive. Whether you like to keep it simple with chic white pumpkins, prefer the glam goth look via black velvet and brass skulls, or display your classic jack-o-lanterns and not-so-scary bats with pride, we’ve got you covered with ideas no matter what your Halloween style.

Whether in-store or online, any fan of H&M Home will tell you it’s their one-stop shop for stylish and inexpensive home decor. However, what they won’t tell you is that figuring out what to buy when you’re overwhelmed with tons of options can be tricky, so it’s important to have an idea of what products you’re interested in ahead of shopping time.

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).

Window treatments are one of the most powerful decor tools. Some curtains serve physical functions like blocking light or providing privacy, but the magic of curtains lies in their visual strength. Curtains add softness to typically rectangular or square windows. They draw the eye upward, preventing rooms from feeling too bottom heavy. They can frame furniture arrangements for effect, or they can add balance and symmetry to an otherwise eclectic composition.

For plant lovers who’d rather leave watering routines to the horticultural pros, allow us to point you in the direction of Barcelona-based paper artist and set designer Raya Sader Bujana’s miniature paper plants. The little leafy replicas are so eye-catching you’ll instantly want to lean in for a closer look at the details. It’s hard to believe what Bujana can do with only paper as a medium.

Without lighting, our homes would pretty much be out of commission once the sun sets. So not only is lighting practical from a standpoint of needing to see and do things at home, but a strong lighting game can also take your house’s design from average to exceptional. That’s because people tend to notice the things that literally brighten up a space. Each fixture in your home then is an opportunity to make a decorative statement, so seize it.

As a child, I took decorating for Christmas far, far too seriously. Every year, I’d wrangle some twinkle lights out of the outdoor-designate bin in the garage to hang all throughout my bedroom. I made every red-and-green construction paper countdown chain you could imagine. I strong-armed my parents into buying a real tree every single year while I still lived at home when what they really wanted was a simple, mess-free artificial tree. And you know what I blame?

The soon-to-be royal won't be returning for Suits' eighth season--and we might miss her apartment the most.

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.

Have you seen Amazon’s series The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel? Of course you have. The Golden Globes loved it. The Critics’ Choice Awards loved it. It just took home eight Emmys including Best Comedy Series, and season two is coming before the end of 2018. We don’t just love it because of the acting and writing; the production design is breathtaking. Throughout the first episode, I simply repeated, “I want to go to there,” a la Liz Lemon. How can we go to there?

Resisting the urge to swipe and scroll the day away is a battle many of us face and inevitably lose. Fortunately, Vienna-based designer Klemens Schillinger has done his part in trying to help us loosen the grips on our smart phones with the invention of five “substitute phones.” We know – who knew there was such a thing?

I always leave Costco a bit traumatized by my receipts. When you’re spending $24 on paper towels alone, the bill adds up fast. But even though buying in bulk costs more upfront, it’s usually cheaper in the long run (that’s actually the whole point, of course). The question is: how much cheaper is it? Is it really worth it to have to stash all those big bottles and tubs just to save a few cents (not to mention the cost of membership)?

We all know spring is the season for growing: grass, flowers, trees…and to-do lists. After a winter of cocoon-like inertia, it’s time to get busy deep cleaning, organizing, fertilizing and mowing. So to get the ball rolling, we made a list of some of the most essential things you’ll need, then compared their prices at two mega-stores known for their bargains: Home Depot and Amazon. Here’s how they stacked up.

Target sells just about anything, from motor oil to mattress pads to milk. But of course Walmart sells a lot of the same stuff, too (plus some). Both of these stores aim to be your one-stop shop, whether you’re shopping in person or online, and this got us wondering: Are their prices as similar as their inventory? We compared prices at both stores, evaluating some of the most common household goods and personal care items to see which one will offer the biggest bargains.

Earlier this week, we published an article that shared six stylish solutions for those (kind of awful) vertical blinds you so often see in rental apartments. Of course, they are incredibly practical, and if you’re all about privacy and so-so about aesthetics, then keep on keepin’ on I suppose. But me? I can’t stand them. They look so… institutional and devoid of any personality.

Recently, my parents sold my childhood home and bought a grown-up condo. Gone is the lovely, comfortable suburban dwelling that housed countless birthday parties, homework cram sessions and dance recital practices. Their new home doesn’t have to be kid proof; it can just be cool. And no show’s design has been quite so cool as Mad Men (my dad loves mid-century furniture, so it’s fairly obvious inspiration). The set of Mad Men was notoriously well researched and designed.

From globally chic interiors that fill our Instagram feeds to flourishing lifestyle, travel and culture blogs, the free-flowing Bohemian style of living leads to some of the most intriguing spaces and design ideas around the world. The irresistible pull towards an unconventional life is manifested in our homes, where the pretension of perfect gives way to living with what you love.

When New Girl first premiered in 2011, I’m not going to lie, I kind of wanted to be Jess Day. Who wouldn’t live in a loft with three kooky-but-cute dudes and have a killer vintage wardrobe? Sure, her love life was kind of in shambles (at least, initially), but she had great hair and an awesome pad to match. Speaking of the latter, there are a lot of decorating lessons to be learned from the set of New Girl before it goes off the air. And it’s not too late, people!

On June 6, 1998, the world was introduced to Carrie Bradshaw and her sometimes fun, sometimes frustrating, but always fabulous life in New York City. Twenty years ago, Sex and the City debuted and we all fell in love with Carrie’s friends, her fashion, and yes—her apartment.

With the monster hit of Avengers Infinity War still going strong at the box office (topping $2 billion worldwide), I’d like to celebrate Tom Hiddleston in his role as…Jonathan Pine, The Night Manager! And by celebrate him, I mean focus solely on the Egyptian interiors of the Nefertiti Hotel in Cairo.

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.

Growing up, it never really felt like an official family party until my dad and uncle retired to the twin tan recliners in my grandparents’ living room after dinner, while my grandpa settled into his own rusty orange recliner on the opposite side of the room. Within minutes of sitting down and kicking up their feet, all three would be sound asleep. How they could sleep through the sounds of six shrieking children pretending to be wolves, I’ll never know. It must have been the chairs.

You can find definitions of Bohemian style decor online. They’re described as spaces filled with lots of plants, colors, patterns, rattan, and stuff. You can even take online quizzes to see if “Bohemian” style is for you. But while all of these adjectives are technically true, boho decor has always been a “I know it when I see it” sort of style for me.

It only took 14 years, but we finally have the superhero film we deserve. The hero being mid-century modern design. Picking up right where the first installment left off, the Parr family is on the forefront of the fight to make superheroes legal again. During that process, they are set up in a mid-century design lover’s dream house. And lucky for you, Zillow created a listing so you can really get a sense of the home’s super features.

By New York City standards, my bedroom is huge, which basically means it’s the size of a walk-in closet in the Midwest. But I’m a card-carrying member of the “fake it till you make it” club, and fortunately, it doesn’t take much to make a small sleep space look bigger. It’s all about fooling the eye and really is as simple as this: Don’t overcrowd your furniture, which should be appropriately-sized for your room in the first place.