Tag Archives: Organizing

How to Say Goodbye to Your Old Home

Take photos of it. Before everything is swept up into moving boxes, take photos of your home. Document each room, so you can revisit it later. If you have children, snap pictures of them, too, enjoying the house as usual: drawing at the kitchen table, playing in the garden, chilling in front of the TV. You are aiming to capture an emotional record of your house, as well as images of its beautiful kitchen or big windows.

Blakes London

Snap it messy! Take pictures of your home on a typical day, when it’s not clean and tidy. This will provide a more meaningful record of your house and how you used it. You could arrange all these images in an album, with the address and the dates you lived there on the front. This will serve as a lovely record of your time there, but also as a realistic account. If you have mixed feelings about moving on, honest images of all the good and bad elements of your last place may help you feel more positive about your new home.

Studio M Interiors

Huettl Landscape Architecture

Leave your mark. Why not leave a little something of yourself behind before you move out? No, that does not mean a sink full of unwashed coffee mugs! Try something subtler. You could go for the classic time capsule, hidden in the attic. Or write a letter to the new owners, welcoming them to the house and explaining what you loved about it. You could even sign your name somewhere and date it, perhaps on the ceiling inside a cupboard or on the rafters in the attic.

Hold a goodbye party. Celebrate your home and the life it has given you with a goodbye party. It doesn’t matter if you’ve already started to pack — your guests can happily negotiate a few boxes. String up some lights, play some music and enjoy the house with the family and friends you’ve shared it with over the years.

Pavilion Broadway

Toast your home. Raise a glass to your home, perhaps during your goodbye party or simply with your family. Moving is stressful and busy, but it’s important to pause, look around and say, “Cheers!”

Born & Bred Studio

How to Settle Into Your New Home

Clean up. When you arrive in a new home, nothing looks, feels or even smells the same way, which can be unsettling. So start by cleaning surfaces, floors and inside cupboards with some familiar, fresh-scented products to help make the place feel like yours.

Rill Architects

Get fresh. Fling open the windows on the first day, too, to air out the rooms and freshen up the whole house. In the evening, light a few scented candles.

Inspired Design Ltd

Grab a few goodies. Piles of moving boxes and empty rooms do not help a house feel like a home, so treat yourself and your new place to a few goodies that will make it feel special. Arrange some fresh flowers, bought at the store on the way to the house or picked from the garden, or buy quality hand soap or a few new towels. When you are facing days of unpacking chaos, these little touches can really cheer you up.

Blakes London

Don’t forget the pets! Dogs and cats may also take a while to settle into a new home, so try to ease the transition for them, too. When you arrive at your new home, shut the cat in a single room for safety, with water, the litter tray and its bed. You can let your cat out at the end of the day to explore, but confine it to a few rooms so it doesn’t feel overwhelmed. Cats should be kept inside the house for a week or so to prevent them from trying to return to your old home.

Contemporary Exterior Contemporary Exterior

Do right by your dog. You should introduce your dog to the new house. Keep your dog on a leash and take it around the key rooms, one at a time, allowing it to sniff and explore, but under your supervision. You wouldn’t expect guests to run all over the house, upstairs and down, the moment they arrived, so don’t let your dog. Point out where its bed is and even keep upper floors out of bounds at first, so it doesn’t feel overwhelmed by its new territory.

B&Q

Personalize the place. Paint a wall, hang photos or buy some new blinds. Even if the rest of the redecorating will take months, a few small tweaks can really help you start to stamp your personality on your new home.

ALVAREZ-DIAZ & VILLALON

Melissa Miranda Interior Design

Host a housewarming. Sharing your new home with family and friends can help you bond with it, so host a party — no gifts required. You might like to invite new neighbors, too, as a good chance to get to know them, or simply keep it small and intimate.

Originally published on HOUZZ, by Joanna Simmons

Happy Houseplants, Happy People

“Plants can soften a room, as well as bring energy into a room. You can put them in just about any room in the house to liven things up.”

Denise Buck & Ed Johnson – DC Metro Realty Team

Walk into a home filled with happy houseplants, and you’re bound to feel instantly more relaxed. Living plants boost oxygen, clean the air and enhance any room they’re in with fresh, organic style.Of course, if you think you are not blessed with a green thumb, then keeping houseplants alive, let alone happy, can seem next to impossible. Read on for styling ideas, encouragement and easy-care tips for keeping houseplants to boost health and happiness.

A Darling Felicity Photography

Houseplants fill otherwise dead space with vibrant energy. In the practice of feng shui, plants are considered one of the most effective cures for areas in the home that need help. Boost any unused or awkwardly shaped space with a potted or hanging plant, and you’re sure to notice an immediate change. Always choose houseplants that are suited to the light levels in your space — ask staff at a local nursery if you are unsure what to pick.

Houseplants bring the kitchen to life. The kitchen makes a wonderful home for plants, from delicate vines twining down a shelf to a pot of culinary herbs ready to snip while cooking. Especially in an apartment where you cannot change the wall color or appliances, bringing in fresh plants is an easy and budget-friendly way to personalize your space.

Heather Banks

Growing tip: Keep houseplants in clusters. If you’ve had trouble keeping houseplants alive and healthy in the past, you might want to try keeping them in a group this time around. Not only will it be easier to remember to water them when they are conveniently located in one spot, but a group of plants also creates its own microclimate, which boosts humidity and helps prevent water loss.

Dulux Paint

Airy, open bookshelves like the ones shown here can make a stylish plant stand with plenty of room for a host of specimens. Don’t tuck potted plants into a bookcase with a back and sides, as the poor plants will not receive enough light.

Eclectic Dining Room Eclectic Dining Room

Why not dine in a jungle? Create a lush ambience in your dining room by filling the space with plants. For the most jungle-like effect, set a few large potted plants on the floor, place a cluster of smaller potted plants on a windowsill or credenza, and hang a pot or two from the ceiling.

Rikki Snyder

Melissa Miranda Interior Design

Project idea: Planted centerpiece. Tired of changing floral arrangements? Buy yourself some extra time and give the air in your home an oxygen boost at the same time with a living centerpiece instead. Wheatgrass, cat grass and herbs are good choices for the table, though just about any small potted plant will work. Be sure to use containers with saucers beneath them to protect your table from drips, and save the taller plants for elsewhere — just as with flowers, you want to be able to see the person sitting across from you.

Revive the conservatory of flowers. If you are lucky enough to have a sunroom (or any space with skylights and ample windows), consider it your solemn duty to fill it with as many beautiful living plants as you wish. Unlike most rooms in the house, in the sunroom you don’t need to stick with plants that require indirect light — so you can try your hand at something tropical, like a bird-of-paradise.

Lisa Sorgini

A Darling Felicity Photography

Sleep soundly with greenery around. Refresh the air in the bedroom with a potted plant or two for a more peaceful sleep and a healthier atmosphere. If your bedroom doesn’t get too much light, put your houseplant in the sunniest possible spot, and elevate it on a stool or plant stand to maximize the light that falls on its leaves.

Growing tip: Finicky plants love the bath. The humidity created by steam from the shower and bath makes the bathroom a haven for fussy houseplants, like maidenhair ferns. And since the bath is all hard surfaces, having a few living plants around is a wonderful way to soften the space.

Warp & Weft

Give macramé a chance. Popular in the 1970s and experiencing something of a revival, macramé has a new, brightly colored look and a modern boho vibe. Try hanging just one plant or suspend a cluster for a lush, jungle-like feel. Ferns and other plants with a tendency to drape do especially well in hanging planters.

Jennifer Young

Sarah Davison Interior Design

Start small. Even a single air plant on a bedside table can bring a welcome dose of optimism when it’s the first thing you see each morning. So if you’re not sure where to begin, start with one little plant, well tended and loved.

Ryland Peters & Small | CICO Books

Don’t be afraid to go big. Whatever ails your space, a great big houseplant can go a long way toward fixing it. A large potted plant (or small tree) can bring more personality to your home, make a small space feel bigger or fill a big, open room without costing a fortune.

The Kitchen Design Centre

Live, learn and let it go. The fact is, we all kill plants — some more often than others. Just because you’ve had bad luck in the past shouldn’t mean you must deny yourself the pleasure of enjoying living green plants in your home forever. Give it another go! Forgive yourself and move on. For the best chance of success in the future, shop for healthy plants from a reputable nursery, enlist the help of a knowledgable staffer to choose the right plants for your space, and embrace technology (set a reminder on your phone) to remind you when to water.

Originally published on HOUZZ, by Laura Gaskill

Clever Drawer Tactics for Kitchens

“Tired of cluttered drawers and cabinets in your kitchen? Want some clever ideas for storage? Here are a number of interesting solutions that you might want to consider.”

Denise Buck & Ed Johnson

Have your kitchen-drawer contents turned into alarming tangles of plastic and metal, cunningly hiding whatever you are hunting for? Are your knives nicked and blunt from being thrown into the fray? Coffee cups chipped? Can’t find the cinnamon or the lid of your favorite pan? All hardworking kitchens descend into disarray occasionally, but if chaos is your daily kitchen companion, it may be time to reassess your storage. Putting everything back where it belongs (and where it can be found again), and saving precious countertop and fridge space are a piece of cake with some basic drawer strategies. See how to maximize pullout convenience to keep your kitchen shipshape.

Keep cups at the ready. You’ll never regret a cup drawer — it’s so much easier than digging in an overhead cupboard. Make sure it is deep enough for your tallest mugs, about 7 or 8 inches, storing them upside down to protect their rims. Cups have a habit of multiplying, so estimate how many you really need and donate or store the rest for emergencies.

A side compartment for tea, coffee, spoons and sugar completes a tidy and convenient coffee station.

Divine Design+Build

Store glassware upside down on nonslip rubber drawer liners, sold in kitchen and cookware shops, to cushion rims and prevent sliding. Silky smooth soft-touch drawers are best for storing glassware, especially stemmed wineglasses, which may tip.

Trish Namm, Allied ASID – Kent Kitchen Works

Reunite saucepans with their lids. There are many ingenious cabinetry ideas for keeping pots and pans in close proximity to their lids, like a rear or side divider or a shallow internal drawer above the pots.

Tip: Pots and pans are usually standard sizes, and often a saucepan comes with a lid that will fit several other pans. Save space by not storing every lid — just a few that multitask.

A dedicated lid drawer with vertical storage slots is a space-savvy way to keep lids neat.

ShelfGenie National

Oh, for storage like this with plenty of room for pots and lids to cohabit. Two-tiered shallow drawers in a countertop-to-floor cupboard mean no stacking of pots.

Plastic containers often mysteriously become separated from their lids too. A couple of internal shelves make for a tidy solution. Instead of throwing containers of every shape and size into this drawer, save similar containers that fit into one another and stack them neatly in separate piles.

Signature Design & Cabinetry LLC

Stay sharp. Treat your knives like the fine instruments they are. Never put them loose in drawers with other equipment — that way lie cut fingers and scratched, blunt blades. Store them off the countertop in a shallow drawer fitted with knife cavities or a slotted wood block that fits horizontally into the drawer, to keep their sharp and undamaged edges for many years.

Tip: Out-of-sight knives can’t tempt little fingers.

Trish Namm, Allied ASID – Kent Kitchen Works

By sacrificing 6 to 8 inches of cupboard space, you could put a wood knife block fitted into a narrow pullout drawer near your prep area.

Inspired Remodeling & Tile by Peter Bales

Get onboard. Another use for a narrow space is a pullout chopping board and tray drawer. It can be integrated behind a door like the rest of the cabinetry but is a good spot to display decorative boards and trays.

An extra board, like this pullout one, is always handy to separate chopping jobs — nobody likes onion-flavored apples! Make sure it is at a comfortable working height and is firm enough to work on without its wobbling or tipping.

The Kitchen Design Centre

Don’t waste an inch of space — fit a removable chopping board over a shallow drawer.

Get a kick out of your drawers. Who thought of toe kick drawers? Give that person a medal. Depending on your cabinetry construction, drawers can be retrofitted in this forgotten space. Keep drawer pulls simple and flat to avoid accidentally kicking them.

kitchens by peter gill

How to Add Toe-Kick Drawers for More Storage

Toe kick drawers are handy for horizontal wine storage; infrequently used platters, trays and boards; table linens and tea towels; instruction books and paperwork; oversized cooking pans; a hidden supply of chocolate; pet bowls; and valuables.

Tip: Avoid storing good wine in the kitchen if you can help it. It’s probably the hottest room in the house. Toe kick spaces are a better, cooler option than something in the open kitchen area.

Kitchen Classics – Charles Heller

Give drawers air for food storage. Store some vegetables — for example, onions, garlic, uncut pumpkins and potatoes — in ventilated drawers to maintain their flavor and save fridge and bench space. Potatoes particularly hate the cold, as the starch converts to sugar, and the texture and taste suffer. Don’t refrigerate tomatoes, either — they taste better at room temperature. Lemons and oranges also give up more juice when not chilled. A low-level drawer with a mesh screen front is ideal for fruit and veg storage.

Degabriele Kitchens

Cane baskets in wooden frames on runners or brackets maintain air circulation around vegetables and are a rustic touch for a country-style kitchen.

Schrocks of Walnut Creek

The Kitchen Design Centre

“Egg of an hour, bread of a day, a wife of twenty years” … or something like that. Crusty artisan bread should be eaten as soon after baking as possible. Commercial sliced bread is best stored somewhere cool, but not cold, and sealed against any wandering pests. Bulky countertop bread bins take up prep space, and fridge storage can actually accelerate staleness, so consider a bread drawer with a cover and an insulating pad in the base.

Tip: Freeze sliced bread after two to three days for toasting, and crusty bread after one. There are many uses for less-than-fresh bread, like garlicky, olive oil–y panzanella salad; bread crumbs for gratin dishes; yummy eggy French toast; and berry-soaked summer puddings.

24 Hot Ideas for Stashing Spices

What a mouthwatering display — no more delving into the pantry. Do you love to make curries and spicy Asian and Moroccan food? This spice “library” does need space but saves plenty in the pantry. I like how it is at a convenient height and how the lids can be popped off when a pinch of this or that is needed.

Esther Hershcovich

Make a go-to multipurpose drawer close to your prep surface. Keep frequently used herbs and spices and, if you bake, items like a flour sifter alongside everyday implements like vegetable peelers, can openers and tongs in side compartments.

Tip: Store bandages and burn cream in your go-to drawer.

WoodWorks INC.

A drawer insert with holes cut to fit metal or plastic buckets (very cheap) will help you get a handle on cooking clutter.

Tip: Separate utensils by material — wood, plastic and metal — so you can grab something quickly.

Crystal Cabinets

Midwest Stone Source & Custom Cabinetry | Rockford

Soak up spills fast. Kitchen paper rolls need to be at the ready for quick action in case of spills and splashes. A clever little alcove in a drawer front puts a roll at your fingertips.

David Heide Design Studio

Simplify undersink space. Undersink drawers that fit around plumbing fixtures are often an awkward shape. They can quickly turn chaotic, chock-full of bits and pieces. Creepy-crawlies love the warmth and sometimes moisture of this area, so don’t cram stuff in. Which items do you actually use in the kitchen? Do you wear more than one pair of rubber gloves at a time? Could some items go in, say, the laundry area? Pare down items like gloves, brushes, cloths and detergent for day-to-day use and top up from a supply in another area as needed.

This is a practical arrangement for undersink storage. Narrow drawers on either side store cleaning products while rods multitask to hang paper rolls and tea towels.

Put rubbish in its place. We all recycle now, right? Double-bin drawers neatly separate recyclables and general waste.

Tip: This cabinet design allows the bins to be easily removed from the side; they don’t need to be lifted over a side rail.

Shenandoah Cabinetry

Take Your Recycling Station From Blah to ‘Ahhhh’

In a small household, full-height bins might be overkill and will waste space. If side-by-side bins or just one shorter bin can deal with your rubbish load, use the extra drawer depth for a bag holder. This will create space underneath for infrequently used items and room for a handy drawer above the kick space.

Cross Custom Homes

Wire your drawers. Do you need your technology while you cook, perhaps to look up recipes or cooking hints, make cooking notes, play music or make diary entries? A powered drawer can keep your electronics off the counter and away from cooking mess and moisture and can charge them at the same time

Originally Published on HOUZZ, by Janet Dunn

8 Twists on the Guest Room-Office Combo

“Most of us have a room that’s pulling double duty, and usually it’s the guest room. Getting balance is a bit tricky at times. But it can be done with a little extra planning.“

Denise Buck & Ed Johnson – DC Metro Realty Team

Unless you host overnight guests frequently — and have space to spare — it’s smart to make a guest room do double (or even triple) duty. Here are 8 examples of guest quarters that pack in space-saving features with style.

Ashley Bell Interiors

1. Triple-duty guest room, den and office. A den with a door that closes for privacy can make an ideal guest space — and, with some smart planning, can work as an office too. In the space shown here, a daybed plumped up with lots of cushions serves as a sofa for watching TV or as a bed for overnight guests. A pair of tall lamps flanking the computer helps the desk feel like part of the room.

Patrick Brian Jones PLLC

2. Modern daybed. If you’re looking for a sleeker version of the typical guest bed, consider a modern, low-profile daybed like the one seen here. During the day, the room functions as an efficient home office; at night, the desk chair can be wheeled away and the bed pulled out to create a cozy nest for guests.

Daybed: Case Study Day Bed, Modernica

Ample DESIGN

3. Platform storage bed. A custom platform bed like this one hides a lot of storage in the compartments below while offering a sleek, one-of-a-kind look. The sturdy base makes it well-suited to either a Japanese futon or a traditional mattress, no box spring required. A slender built-in desk along the opposite wall keeps the narrow room feeling serene and spacious.

ANNA CARIN Design

Richard Cole Architecture

4. Built-in daybed. This space-saving design can tuck in at the end of a small room, even in places a standard-size bed might not fit, leaving the rest of the room freed up for a desk. If you decide to have a daybed custom-built, do refer to standard bed sizing when making decisions about where the bed will go— if it’s too short, your guests will not be comfortable!

5. Over-the-bed cabinetry. To fit in more storage without skimping on having a real guest bed, consider installing wall-to-wall upper cabinets. Here, a slim desk provides ample workspace below the cabinets on one side; on the other, a comfy bed invites relaxation.

Kirkwood McCarthy

Michael Kelley Photography

6. Mezzanine guest loft. Mezzanine levels can be tricky to furnish, especially as a sleeping space where guests will want privacy. One smart solution is to install floor-to-ceiling drapes that can be pulled shut when the space is being used by guests and left open the rest of the time. Here, a settee bed takes up little space while providing a comfy place to sit or sleep, leaving the other wall free for a desk and chair.

7. Tailored daybed. A backless upholstered daybed like this one is a good choice for spaces where the bed must go in front of a window. Piled high with throw pillows, it looks like a sofa during the day but can easily be called into service for guests at night. A glass-top desk takes up little visual space, making it a smart piece for a compact home office.

Ample DESIGN

8. Folding bed. For maximizing space, you can’t beat a Murphy bed. But instead of the typical vertically folding design, you might consider one that folds out from the wall horizontally. The example shown here was customized with built-in shelves inside and a whiteboard covering the exterior.

Originally Published on HOUZZ, by Laura Gaskill

Re-Purposed Items as Coffee Tables

“Coffee tables can serve multiple purposes. They can anchor a room by providing a central point. They can provide surfaces for displaying special items. Why not make them a conversation piece as well.”

Denise Buck & Ed Johnson – DC Metro Realty Team

Tall or short, strong and bold, or with something special on top, your coffee table is something you should be proud to call your own. If you’re in the market for a new one, take a look at these surprising alternatives. Some offer versatility, others boast clever storage, and some even repurpose your old wares. If there’s one thing they all have in common, however, it’s their ability to draw attention and become the focal point of a room. Need a talking point? Start here.

KuDa Photography

Building blocks. Old pallets or crates are a fine alternative to the traditional coffee table and are incredibly versatile too. The ones here have simply been turned upside down — but you could screw yours together if you tend to move your furniture around a lot. You could also stack them or cut them down to size, or use one pallet and elevate it with small apple crates, for example. A coat of paint will transform the trusty courier once again.Tip: Consider where the pallet or crate came from and how it was used. You wouldn’t want to bring something into your home that has been contaminated with toxic chemicals or other icky stuff.

Holy Funk

See how you can create a variety of possibilities? This design provides storage space for your magazines, books and TV remotes, so you have no excuse to leave the top full of clutter.

Off the beaten track. Not only does this steamer-inspired traveling trunk add a spot of vintage charm to this masculine room; it also doubles as hideaway storage — ideal when you’re short on space. While you can buy these new, you’re sure to find something even more fill of character at a garage sale or thrift shop for a fraction of the price.Tip: When shopping, keep in mind the size of the trunk. It’s crucial that it sits at a comfortable height, similar to that of a typical coffee table, so you’re not forced to stretch to get to the chips (though that’s not necessarily bad for your waistline).

Mina Brinkey

Should you find yourself with a great find, but one that’s too short by coffee table standards, just add some legs. The owner of this vintage suitcase went the extra mile by covering the top with fabric from Ikea, which also protects the original surface from coffee and water marks.

Emily Campbell

Work your magic. This is not actually a floating Persian rug, but you wouldn’t be blamed for thinking so. This “flying carpet” coffee table rests on a plywood surface that can also be easily removed (should the owner rather lie on the rug).See the rest of the house (and the real magic behind the rug) here.

gosto design & lifestyle

Set in motion. A piece of glass can be transformed into a simple coffee table — just add some wheels as a base for nifty mobility.

Urban Wood Goods

Find an opening. Almost any flat surface can work as a coffee table top. Doors are particularly useful and can be painted and cut to size as well. This one has been kept in its original state — not even the handle has been removed — and has steel pipe legs attached.With so many doors available, deciding on the right one for your room will probably be the toughest part. If you find one painted in a lovely color, just apply a polyurethane for a durable, long-lasting, professional finish that’s in keeping with the original form.

Rustic Living Room Salvaged Door into Coffee Table

Josh Partee | Architectural Photographer

If you have an old door and windows, this creation shows what you can do.Tip: Make sure to stabilize the table by reinforcing the joints on the underside.

Rebekah Zaveloff | KitchenLab

Root and branch. For a really organic look that brings the outdoors in, consider cured and treated wood stumps. You might even get the wood for free.

Margeaux Interiors – Margaret Skinner

Turn it up. If, like me, you played the drums for a year or so and then gave them up, repurpose them into a collection of fun coffee tables. All it took here was a couple of glass tops for a great conversation piece. I’m already regretting selling my drum set.

Revive. Upcycling is a common theme among Houzzers. An old gear factory came up with the goods for this find, for which a piece of equipment is used as the base.

Shabby chic Living Room Traditional Living Room

Cart off. You might have noticed rustic or industrial factory carts popping up all over as coffee tables. People are flocking to these antique items and imitations. I was even able to find a business that specializes solely in refinishing factory carts, so the demand is clearly there.If you want to make an original one your own DIY project, besides sanding, staining and sealing it, you could also try customizing it — by replacing the nails and nuts, for instance, or adding a glass top.

Paul Rice Architecture

Anna Lattimore Interior Design

Here an old metal French cart got a new lease on life with the addition of a simple glass top.

Old school. How adorable is this coffee table setup? The antique kids’ chairs and table were bought separately, but combined they work twice as hard as an activity area for the little ones. A way to repurpose your kids’ tables and chairs (the ones sans cartoon characters — unless you’re into that sort of thing) when they grow out of them, perhaps? Having said that, even a household without kids could do with their charm and touch of whimsy.

Scheer & Co.

Take a seat. If you want a cheaper alternative to a coffee table, consider using a cluster of stools. Not only do they look perfectly at home as a makeshift coffee table, but they also provide extra seating when guests are over. Try mixing and matching a variety of stools (of the same height) for a more eclectic effect.Tip: In this case, heavier options will keep wobbling at bay.

Leslie Hayes Interiors

If you need a flat surface that doesn’t obscure the look of the stools, simply layer them with a glass top.

Marie Burgos Design

Pack it up. Storage boxes are an especially budget-friendly alternative to traditional coffee tables and are a great addition to small spaces. Fill them with essentials, top with a decorative vase and voilà, a nifty little coffee table. The bonus here is that you can easily move them around and update them without feeling guilty (because you certainly didn’t spend a fortune on them!).

Originally Published on Houzz, by Grace Chamia

Gap Under the Deck: Hide It or Use It!

“Knowing what to do ‘under’ your deck, can be a challenge. To do storage, or not to do storage.”

Denise Buck & Ed Johnson – DC Metro Realty Team

At last your ready to install the deck of your dreams. Before you begin construction, it’s important to consider how to address the underside of the deck and accompanying staircase. If the deck will extend from the second story, this can be quite a lot of potentially usable space. There will be less space to address if the deck will extend from the ground-level story, but the eye will still be drawn to that dark (often weedy) slit of earth.

So how do you maximize this awkward space? Whether you want to completely hide this area, create a semiprivate screen or turn it into storage, here are six ideas to help transform what’s often a landscape eyesore into a landscape feature.

ecodesign Pty Ltd

Kikuchi + Kankel Design Group

1. Soften the edges with plantings. If you don’t feel the need to completely obscure the deck’s underside, try surrounding it with plants. They will soften the deck’s edges and in the absence of railings will act as a natural barrier to keep people from stepping off into the surrounding bed.

Tip: Be sure to include some evergreens so there will be screening year-round. Agaves surround this Australian deck.

D-CRAIN Design and Construction

Depending on your home’s style, mixing boulders with plantings can work well for obscuring the underside of a deck as well.

Step Up Your Garden Game With Terraced Plantings

2. Terrace with planters. If you want to completely block the underside of the deck, one option is to build a planter around the deck’s perimeter. It is a great way to soften the deck’s edge with plantings and is an interesting alternative to railings.

Tip: It’s standard that a deck 30 inches or more above grade level must have a railing at least 36 inches tall. Be sure to check your local building codes.

Gardner/Fox Associates, Inc

Keith Willig Landscape Services, Inc.

3. Screen artistically. A screen can be a perfect solution if you want to obscure the underside of a deck or staircase while still allowing light to pass through. This is a good option if the space underneath the deck will be used for storage or as a separate entertaining space. A trellis for this purpose is both functional and economical.

Mark English Architects, AIA

Tip: A trellis surrounding a deck or staircase is a great place to grow vines or an espaliered tree. It helps break up the space and provides seasonal interest and color.

The underside of a staircase can be especially tricky. Try horizontal slats. This is definitely a modern look, but it’s a great way to turn an awkward space into a feature that ties in with the home’s architecture.

Eclectic Landscape Global Garden, San Carlos

Why not use this space to showcase your creative side? Laser-cut metal panels allow light to pass through in beautiful patterns while providing ample screening and privacy. These panels have a fabric backdrop and are backlit at night for drama.

Goodman Landscape Design

4. Build a solid wall to blend the deck with the house. If you want to completely hide the area under your deck, create a wall that extends from the base of the deck to the ground.

Tip: Use materials that match the style of your home. Here wood shingles on the side of the deck mimic the wood shingles on the home. Matching materials is a great way to create a cohesive look between your home and its surrounding landscape features.

Sam Crawford Architects

5. Extend steps the entire length of the deck. By extending the steps the length of the deck, you not only will successfully hide the underside of the deck, but you’ll also create an open, graceful transition from the deck to the garden beyond.

RDM Architecture

Tip: Create wide steps with a run of 1½ feet or more. By doing so, you’ll lessen the angle of descent, making them safer as well as creating an inviting place for casual seating.

PLATFORM design studio

Tate + Burns Architects LLC

6. Add storage. Creating ample storage around the home is a challenge for most of us, especially when it comes to our yards. Just like indoors, the underside of a deck or staircase is a perfect space to convert into storage; use it for items such as garden tools, empty pots and outdoor recreational equipment.

Tip: Even if your deck is only 2 or 3 feet off the ground, creating a hatch for access to the crawl space is a good idea if you have utilities or pipes that run under your deck.

Make sure the items stored under your deck are weatherproof. If not, place them in watertight bins, as rainwater and runoff from pots will seep through deck boards onto whatever is placed below.

Regardless of the size of the space under your deck and stairs, there’s a creative solution for every situation that will suit not only your needs but also the style of your home and garden.

Originally published on HOUZZ, by Courtney Olander

Pegboard Ideas for Your Whole House

“It’s amazing how useful pegboard can be all around the house, and it doesn’t have to be a dingy ‘board’ color.”

Denise Buck & Ed Johnson – DC Metro Realty Team

Pegboard is an old-fashioned material that today’s savvy homeowners are using in rooms throughout the house. I’ve spied items as disparate as kitchen utensils, baseball mitts, hammers, necklaces and even paintings and sock monkeys pegged to walls featured on Houzz. If you have an area that needs some organizational help and you’ve run out of shelf and closet space, check out these clever ways to make pegboad work hard for you.

Wyndhamdesign

Over the workbench. When my family was house-hunting years ago, my father kept saying, “But where am I going to put my [work]shop in this house?” My mother replied, “Danny, all you do in your ‘shop’ is hang your tools on a pegboard and open paint cans!” Which sent us all into fits of laughter, picturing the carefully hung tools that never seemed to leave his pegboard. But I digress. Pegboard’s classic spot is above a workbench, with all those myriad tools hung within easy reach.

Liv By Design Interiors

Valerie Wilcox: Photographer

In the kitchen. Julia Child famously appropriated the workbench staple for her kitchen, hanging copper pots and utensils on it. Today you can see her kitchen at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C.

More: Boost Your Kitchen Storage With Pegboard on a Wall

Bright Bold and Beautiful

In the study or drafting studio. Pegboard is a material that architects, interior designers and others have been using in their studios for a long time. It’s a great place to hang the compass, T-square and other drafting tools and art supplies. It also provides space for inspirational artwork.

In the art studio. Watercolor artist Laura Trevey uses this pegboard to display her work. Notice how she painted the pegboard a lovely pale blue and framed it with molding. Also worth noting is the easy solution of hanging unframed (perhaps even wet) artwork with binder clips.

The Home

In a child’s room. Art, utensils, supplies, even a stuffed monkey can be hung and moved around with ease on pegboard. Covering the entire wall gives the objects a cohesive look.

Safety note: Be sure to keep the objects out of the reach of tots who are able to pull themselves up to a standing position.

The Home

Mitchell Wall Architecture & Design

Here’s a closer look at the variety of things the pegboard holds in the nursery. With shelves like these, pegboard near a changing table could hold lots of supplies, such as baby powder and wipes.

A triptych of blue pegboards serves a similar function in an older child’s room.

Light: Ikea

Bickford And Company

In the craft or sewing room. If you make regular trips to fabric and craft stores such as Michaels and Jo-Ann, you’re probably in dire need of pegboard. Keep hoops, ribbon, pliers, thread, tape, scissors and other tools organized so you can find everything you need when you need it.

JALIN Design, LLC

At a gift wrap station. Long pegs can hold all of your ribbons, while standard ones will hold scissors and tape. Hanging baskets can corral gift tags and pens.

Clos-ette Too

In the dressing room. There’ll be no more tangled necklaces if they’re hanging from pegboard. There’s plenty of room for hats, scarves and headbands too. If you aren’t lucky enough to have a walk-in closet or dressing room, this idea can also work well on a bedroom wall.

ZeroEnergy Design

In the bathroom. I know whenever I need to reach for my hair dryer, I’m going to knock over every other object in the cabinet as I pull it out. A pegboard insert in this clever medicine cabinet has a special place for everything, keeping counters clear and cords untangled.

Wanda Ely Architect Inc.

In the playroom. Hang canisters from pegs to hold crayons, markers and safety scissors in the art area. This will provide a place for everything and help keep the area neater when it’s not in use. Pegboard also provides a spot to hang fresh artwork from binder clips, as previously seen.

Front Studio Architects

In the entryway. This New York City couple covered two walls and the ceiling in simple pegboard from Home Depot. In terms of function, they wanted a place to hang all their kids’ gear and their own bags and hats before the stuff made its way into the living spaces and cluttered things up. In terms of form, covering two walls and a ceiling gave the space a unified look.

Hunkydory Home

At the landing strip. If you’re not ready to cover a wall in pegboard, that’s OK. Even a small pegboard can hold keys, tickets, sunglasses and those other important items you need to grab as you go out the front door.

Joseph Sandy

In the garage. More expansive sheets of pegboard and heavy-duty pegs can hold large tools and keep floor space open for the car.

diamondLife

Michelle Fries, BeDe Design, LLC

If you think pegboard might look too old-fashioned for you, check out new options in steel. They’ll fit right in if the room is sleek and contemporary.

Pegboard: PegBoard X2 in stainless steel

Originally published on HOUZZ, by Becky Harris

Have More Fun Decorating Your Home

“In an effort to make our homes look nice, we sometimes forget how to have fun as adults. Take a few tips from these fun loving decorators.”

Denise Buck & Ed Johnson – DC Metro Realty Team

Building or renovating a house is serious business — as it should be. But once the important stuff is done, the bills are paid and the dust has settled, you can let the fun begin. It’s clear from Houzzers’ comments that you enjoy putting your personalities on show in your homes. Expressing ourselves through humor is one of the most enjoyable parts of personalizing our castles.

There is plenty of anecdotal evidence to suggest that physical, emotional and social blessings flow from looking at life in a lighthearted way. Today’s world is not always easy to come to grips with, but at least we can give one small patch of it a warm and happy glow. Our homes are not only about beautiful design; they are about us and about how we live. Here are some ways to enhance your lifestyle and your home through the best medicine of all.

Robson Rak Architects Pty Ltd

1. Start at the front gate. Let the gate to your paradise hint at what is in store beyond. An entrance that announces, “Fun within” is a great way to set an informal tone. Give it character with a quirky sculpture, wrought iron design or sign.

A giant fish as a welcomer says, “Sense of humor ahead.” Corrugated iron is a popular material for gate art — it is relatively cheap and develops rusty battered charm as it weathers. Can you see EE I EE I O Sid the Sheep, handmade from 44-gallon drums, as a guardian for your gate?

BARRETT STUDIO architects

2. Put a grin on your front door. Carry the easygoing vibe to your door. Thanks to the exciting and whimsical door hardware now on the market, visitors can be smiling by the time they step inside. I would be, after seeing this fabulous custom-designed handle.

3. Post funny house rules. Humor helps put people at ease. Sometimes there are things you’d like to remind visitors about, but you want to do it nicely. There’s nothing like making a joke to get the message across without offense.

Luci.D Interiors

Trend Alert: Sign, Sign, Everywhere a Sign

A lightbox moment gives good family advice — don’t be a complainer — with a humorous edge.

Inspired Interiors

4. Laugh while you lather. Remember that “soap is to the body what laughter is to the soul.” Enhance your aqua therapy with humor — it will add an extra dimension to the pleasures of the bathroom.

The blissed-out elephant on the shower curtain here (reflected in the mirror) is sure to cause bath-time giggles for water babies of all ages. Just looking at it makes me want to splash and sing.

Jennifer Kesteloot

5. Get a pet. Dogs are the natural clowns of the pet world. The humor they bring to a home is infectious and can diffuse arguments and distract us from stress. We feed them and keep them safe, and they reward us with laughter and joy.

This family has put a giant photo where it’s impossible to miss the gorgeous, funny face and beautiful brown eyes. Most print shops will make stretched canvas prints of your photos.

Michelle Hinckley

See how to make chalkboard board paint in your favorite color

6. Share humor with family. Shared humor strengthens relationships and encourages teamwork. As well as providing a place to organize household appointments and activities, a big chalkboard like this one gives all family members their say and can be a great source of running jokes.

Make a place where everyone is free to express his or her inner comedian, such as a giant pegboard or a wall, tabletop or kitchen cupboard door painted with chalkboard paint. Chalkboard paint isn’t just black anymore — it comes in all kinds of colors, and you can even make your own.

Rhonda Knoche Design

7. Put the “fun” in “functional.” Take a basic object — like a kitchen cabinet handle — and be a little funky with it. Look at the way ordinary things are designed to work and do something creative and different. Using this object daily will give you pleasure.

These custom-made copper cabinet handles add a frivolous touch to the kitchen — the arrow on the end is pointing out the wine refrigerator. I recently splurged on two bronze kitchen cabinet drawer knobs in the shape of brussels sprouts, which have caused much commenting and mirth.

Louise Lakier

Geek Lab: How to Build a Steampunk Cat Transit System

Every cat owner knows that cats rule, OK? So a boring old cat door is out of the question.

An original mind with a great sense of humor saw the potential in an old ship’s porthole and gave the family cat, Gobi, a witty way to go in and out. A friend of mine has adorned her cat door with a gorgeous over-the-top picture frame — fitting for her uppity cat.

Touch Interiors

8. Relax your office. Routine chores are more enjoyable in a lighthearted environment. A sterile cubicle is a depressing place in which to face the realities of life, like paying bills, dealing with correspondence or meeting deadlines. Introduce some humor to make it user friendlier, such as a funny screensaver or photos of friends and family enjoying themselves.

Martha O’Hara Interiors

Francis Amiand Photographe

9. Use designer humor. Humor in design can come from an injection of the unexpected. A seriously polished room often benefits from the inclusion of something not so serious, like this flamboyant feathered lampshade. It reminds me of a flirty fan dancer and offsets beautifully the refinement of this room.

Why is it that bottoms always make us laugh? This is derriere humor, Paris-style — c’est très drôle, oui? An impeccably sleek room can be intimidating, but not this one!

Jennifer Bishop Design

10. Cement friendships. Make memories with silly fun. Have a Dab-a-Deer party. Invite friends to bring a(faux) deer or another animal head and sequins, glitter, paint, ribbons, make-up, buttons, costume jewelry, colored paper, fabric scraps and other decorative paraphernalia. Provide hobby glue, paintbrushes, scissors, aprons … and wine. Then stand back! You’ll all come out of it with some very entertaining wall art and a feel-good memory.

Luci.D Interiors