Design Hints

Winter is the perfect season to bestow your home with a fireplace. Nina and Larry Hurt, who live in Hazard, Kentucky, collaborated on their living room makeover, which features a striking accent wall where textiles and antique furniture flank a faux fireplace with an evolved-over-time effect. Here are their tips for making a masonry-free hearth:

When you live near one of Maine’s iconic forests, fresh-cut greenery is a prerequisite for seasonal decorating. Artificial branches can’t truly replicate the natural beauty of emerald green balsam fir, richly textured cedar and heavenly white pine. Daniel Higgins and his partner, Sean Weber, adorn every room in their Orrington, Maine, home with a live Christmas tree, wreaths, sprays, and garlands made with fresh greens, berries and pinecones, a technique exemplified in their living room. To keep real greenery looking its best for the entire season, Daniel recommends these simple steps, starting in late October:

Celebrate the close of summer and prepare to give thanks for nature’s bounty. Intermix French country with timeworn traditional that has a vintage vibe, as Trisha and Aaron Hiatt did in their dining room in Ocala, Florida. Entertain these ideas to help blend furnishings and accessories that encompass different styles.

Karen Skiver patiently peeled off old Victorian wallpaper until she had a blank slate for her more primitive decorating style in the Greenville, Ohio, house she and her husband, Neil, have renovated. Once that hard work was complete, she re-papered walls in prim colors and patterns throughout the house—including her mudroom. “Wallpaper covers a lot,” she says. “It can really dress up your home.” She offers the following key points to consider when deciding between wallpaper and paint:

Hay rakes, tractors, plows and wagons are among the antique farm equipment prized by collectors today. The designs are synonymous with American ingenuity, and their iconography recalls simpler times. Country homeowners can distinguish their properties with gardens that focus on agrarian implements purchased at auction or online. Alicia Hissom, who lives in New Martinsville, West Virginia, acquired her hay rake from a neighbor. She later discovered that the cherished relic originally belonged to her husband’s grandfather. Here are her tips for incorporating farm equipment into a flower bed:

Sue and E.J. Mirambell, who live in Covington, Louisiana, planned their new kitchen to be fully functional for today yet look period appropriate for the New England style they favor. Follow their tips to complete a similar project.

Joy Campbell, who lives in South Dartmouth, Massachusetts, isn’t one for pigeonholing her style or for following decorating rules. “I’ve never been one to go with the flow or follow what’s in,” she remarks. Instead, she believes her living room should reflect the people who live in it. She recommends the following tips for crafting a home filled with unexpected (and individualized) appeal:

Achieving a seamless connection between old and new living spaces can be challenging. When Uniontown, Pennsylvania, couple Toni and Jim Anthony built their master bedroom addition a few years ago, they let history be their muse. Take note of their style cues to create a relaxing retreat with an eye on the past.

Cindy Mack Taggart's favorite room is the heart of her Abilene, Kansas, home. When she started renovations, she was tempted to gut the space and start from scratch. "The appliances were not usable, and the layout of the kitchen did not flow well," she says. Ultimately, she opted to rework the floor plan. "I was able to put my unique country-style stamp on it so it would look like a working American country kitchen," she adds. Here's how you can create the kitchen of your dreams:

Kimberly Smith-Johnson, a Quakertown, Pennsylvania, resident and owner of a home decorating business, says, "I like to put a modern twist on country style. I like to mix primitive and country." Her dining room embodies this philosophy and features bold colors, traditional furniture and unique displays. To transform your dining room into a prim entertaining space, consider Kimberly’s five decorating tips: