Home & Garden

Home & Garden

On Gardening: Sombrero coneflowers ablaze in dazzling colors

Something wonderful has happened in the world of purple coneflowers and that is science to the point it would probably even impress an astrophysicist. The science here, however, is with the selections, the breeding, crosses, and backcrosses, stuff that makes a rusty horticulturist like myself amazed and a little envious that I wasn't part of the project.
Home & Garden

Home & Garden

Ask Angie’s List: Should I add a mudroom to my house?

A mudroom is one of those household additions that delivers exactly what it promises, but it's more than just a spot to keep outside dirt and mud from getting into your home. Mudrooms were originally envisioned as a place for those in cold climates to shed their heavy winter gear. But given the right organization, you can create a convenient staging area for coats, backpacks and more. Consider these elements to combine form and function when designing your mudroom.

Home & Garden

Style at Home: Iceland melted my heart

To tell the truth, I wasn't super excited when Dan told me where he wanted us to travel on our next vacation: Iceland. Dan is the adventurer in our family, always game to zip off to a brand-new place and explore. Any country with the word "ice" in its name made me dubious.

Home & Garden

Design Recipes: The best colors for fun, festive rooms

Whether for a children's room, family room or a space you're looking to incorporate bold, vivid looks, a fun and festive color scheme can be a welcomed pick-me-up. Full, bright colors can make a statement and work well blended with neutral colors such as taupe, brown, black and gray.

Home & Garden

Tips for tackling the grossest parts of your home

Many of us spend our weekends chasing dirt and grime in our homes – vacuuming, mopping, scrubbing and washing. And no matter what we do, we're suspicious that we didn't and will never get it all. The truth is: We're right. Here's a look at some of the grossest parts of your home and what you can do to address them.

Home & Garden

Design Smarts: Remodelista’s Julie Carlson on changing it up

You can Pinterest, you can Instagram, you can even Houzz. But if you're looking for rock-solid renovation inspo online, you're going to want to check out the site that has the most tightly edited look on the internet – Remodelista. The pared down, sometimes minimal aesthetic manages to stay true to its look, yet always timeless and even on trend. Blame it on founder Julie Carlson, who now has the original site and sister sites Gardenista and The Organized Home to her credit, in addition to design and garden books. Carlson's staying power secret? Her instinct for curated classic designs, unimpeachable quality and a healthy dose of practical advice. Here's what she had to say about renovation, limited space, and that pile of papers on your desk.

Home & Garden

Alessandra Branca on the classics, the curiosity and the choices that hone her style edge

Ask Chicago's chicest designer what keeps the rooms she creates looking of-the-moment, and she'll tell you: "What I care about," says Alessandra Branca, "is comfort in a home. I am not worried about what is trendy. I design for my clients and nothing else." Sounds strictly sensible. Yet she's been known to pair racy steel stools with flamboyant red walls. And there's the Branca puzzle: Is she the glossy Ferragamo driving moc of interior design, or the stone-cold statement Prada heel? Answer: Both. Branca continues to build on – and blow up – her aesthetic. Which explains her new collection for Schumacher, including a classic floral so saturated it skews surreal. Keeping her style fresh, she says, is simply a matter of playing gorgeous favorites against a constant flow of new inspiration – and making absolutely everything personal. Here's how:

Home & Garden

On Gardening: Sun Parasol mandevillas celebrate fifteen years of stunning tropical flower color

Fifteen years ago, the Sun Parasol mandevilla made its debut in the country and those of us who were present knew this tropical climber was here to stay. What we didn't know was that this series giving a tropical magic to the garden would one day feature 21 varieties. We could not have imagined a red and white striped selection, like Stars and Stripes, a soft orange like the Sun Parasol Apricot or a Giant Red Emperor with the ability to climb 10 to 15 feet and produce flowers 3 to 5-inches wide.

Home & Garden

Style at Home: Mix wood furniture for an evolved look

Upholstered furniture, like sofas and chairs, bring a lot of razzle-dazzle to our rooms, with their endless options to infuse our spaces with beautiful patterns and colors. But it's their quieter siblings that provide the backbone to our interior spaces. Wood furniture may not always be as fun as upholstered pieces, but it plays a gigantic role in the design of our rooms.

Home & Garden

Nate Berkus' 8 greatest tips for effortless home style

Nate Berkus' life has been a little bit chaotic – mostly in a good way – for the past few years. He married fellow designer and television personality Jeremiah Brent, relocated from New York to Los Angeles, started up a new television show with Brent (TLC's "Nate and Jeremiah By Design), and the couple welcomed two children, Poppy and Oskar (born this spring.) "I absolutely wanted all of this," he says. "It's all elective, and I love every minute of it. I really do, but I am tired."

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