Blog

Basements are not terribly common in California homes. Subterranean in this state makes us a little squeamish (earthquakes and all) and, of course, why build ‘rec’ rooms and extra space downstairs away from the natural light when we have twelve month access to the outdoors? ...

You just got off the phone with your Mom. She’s coming to see you at Thanksgiving…and staying until New Years. You put aside the scary thoughts about the duration of her visit and think about all the house projects you’ve been meaning to tackle. Can...

A Backdoor Oasis Lightens A Family’s Physical and Emotional Load At one of our kick-off meetings with a client years ago, I asked a simple question, “Where do you enter your house?” Her response reminded me just how complicated that answer could be. “From the...

Patience and tolerance aren’t the only things being tested right now. Cooped up with our families and their daily habits has shined a bright, blazing light on our homes and how they are either supporting all our needs or falling way short of supporting any. ...

We are “making decisions, while driving through a fog, with imperfect information and everyone in the backseat is yelling at us.” – Thomas Friedman, opinion columnist We had just hired a full-time designer who we adore and were scouting more office space (same great location)...

You know you’ve missed the point of this season when “believe in the magic of christmas” just becomes one more thing to add to the “to-do” list. We self-impose these lofty expectations, grand-standing gestures and traditions wrapped in bows of perfection. It exhausts more than...

In August, Julie and I traveled to Providence RI to attend a design conference. It’s one of our favorite trips of the year, reuniting us with designer friends and mentors, all great talents and inspirations in the design world. We always walk away from that...

Springing forward (pun intended), I am done with the moodiness of Winter gloom and all my unsustainable New Year’s Resolutions. I want to roll up my sleeves and dive into Spring’s warm weather and cleansing mantra one room at a time. Marie Kondo, bring on...

I have a love/hate relationship with trends. Ask anyone in our office. You might hear “Oooh, taboo topic. Courtney hates trends!” Not true. I don’t hate trends! Ok, there might be a few I don’t love, but not all trends are made equal. The frustration...

My NYC apartment was my first grown-up space. The furnishings were minimal and often DIY, but it was clean, quiet and mine. Then, I got a dog. I traded in clean for half-chewed shoes and ransacked trash cans. Quiet got replaced by the crazy-lady-who-talks-to-her-dog and...