Design Hints

Do you daydream about buying and restoring an antique home? As romantic as this notion may sound, lovers of old houses often follow a different path and build a new home that recalls yesteryear but incorporates elements needed for today’s lifestyle. Teri Klinker advocates this old house, new balancing act and says, "Period homes never go out of style." Reflecting on her own experience with designing and building a home with an eye on the past, Teri offers these helpful tips:

Linda and Trevor Meachen's mobile home proves that you don't need a lot of space or high ceilings to use signs to make a strong style statement. With a wide selection of fonts, colors and shapes, the possibilities are endless. "If I like what it says, I'll buy it," Linda explains of her penchant for phrases. She shares several ways to incorporate vintage and vintage-style signage into your own space.

Sometimes a winter welcome means forgoing the typical red-and-green holiday color scheme in favor of a woodsy and rustic palette. As Robyn Thomas decorated her 1850 farmhouse she shares with her husband, Keith, and their children, she aimed to replicate the unpretentious lifestyle of the original residents, and her approach to the holidays is no different. “I think about what the house looked like then,” she explains. Here are some of the ways she decks the halls—including this enclosed porch—with homespun cheer.

Screened porches are peaceful retreats that strike a balance between indoor and outdoor living spaces. Unlike an open deck or patio, a porch offers protection from sun exposure, rain showers and flying insects. Depending on where you live, porches can be enjoyed year-round or for multiple seasons. To maximize comfort and optimize charm, planning is needed to outfit your porch. Julie Tweedie and her family relax on their Blaine, Maine, porch from early spring to late fall, and she enjoys making it a cozy, inviting space in any season. Here are some of her decorating tips:

One of Amy Thomas’ signature decorating motifs includes incorporating both fresh and faux foliage in the design schemes that fill the rooms of her Marion, New York, home. “By simply adding wreaths, sprigs of eucalyptus, and other greenery, you can create a warmth within the room and a natural pop of color regardless of the season,” she says. Try out her ideas for incorporating a bit of nature’s bounty in your own home.

You’ve amassed a trove of china, porcelain, pottery and other dishware over the years, or perhaps inherited them from a generation or two of loved ones. How can you integrate these treasures into your decor? Pat Kennedy, who adores crocks, children’s feeding dishes and ironstone, helped round up some ideas for dazzling dish displays that she uses throughout her west-central Minnesota home.

“I love a bargain,” Darlene Sonnheim admits. “I think everyone does.” She and her husband, Steve, have seen many changes in the antiques world since they began collecting almost 40 years ago. Walking miles at a local flea market trolling for treasure is more difficult now than it used to be, Darlene observes, and she’s sad to report that a number of her favorite local antiques shops have closed. However, the internet has opened new doors and been the source of many of the treasures that fill the couple’s home in the town of Vernon, Wisconsin. “And it’s always open,” Darlene points out with a laugh. She offers the following tips for shopping and scoring online:

When the holiday season is all wrapped up, Vickie Rutherford doesn’t remove all the trimmings from her Wellington, Ohio, home. Instead, she looks for ways to extend the charm of some decorations well into the new year. “I leave up a lot of greens and mini lights after Christmas,” she says. “I love that it makes my home still feel warm.” Stretch the shelf life of Christmas decor another month or two by incorporating Vickie’s winter decorating ideas throughout your own spaces.

Nicki Leathers admits to displaying 62 Christmas trees of various shapes and sizes throughout her approximately 2,500-square-foot Sigourney, Iowa, home last year. “What is more Christmassy than a Christmas tree?” she asks. “We love them and feel like it gives the perfect Christmas touch to each room,” she says. “My mom also loves Christmas trees; growing up, we had at least one (or more) in each room of the house, so I just carried on that tradition with my own family.” She details five ideas for trimming multiple trees with ease.

Are you looking for inventive ways to display your collectibles? Do you wish to free up floor space throughout your home? Follow Jean Moyer’s lead and look to your walls, outfitting them with unique shelving alternatives in varied sizes as she has done in her Telford, Pennsylvania, home. Selecting timeworn finishes or mellowed patinas will highlight collections in a way that is compatible with many styles of country decor.