January 13, 2020 Last week, as we looked back at our first six months of 2019, we talked about inspiration, love, archaeology, blended families, household stationery, and homegrown flowers. Let’s see where our journey through the year’s second half has led. In JULY, while on a business trip, I slept on a mattress that changed […]
January 6, 2010 In keeping with tradition, at the end of every year, I look back on columns I’ve written, the roads we’ve traveled on the way to better living, and pull out my favorite lessons, one from every month. Here’s the cream, the findings that, by my lights, rose to the top from the […]
December 30, 2019 He wants a real tree. She wants fake. She likes white lights. He wants colored. She wants her carved wood folk ornaments. He wants his laser cut metalwork. Why? “Because that’s what I’ve always done!” each cries. When two established adults decide to get married or move in together, blending belongings is […]
December 16, 2019 She hung in for eight years, the old fake fir, and brightened many houses. From my first Florida home in 2011, through several more reindeer stops, to a final chimney landing at the Happier Yellow House, the artificial Christmas tree lit up my homes for the holidays, year after year. Then, last […]
December 9, 2019 We go through the house opening doors to closed off rooms sniffing like police dogs. We are a short parade: my husband, myself and our pet sitter. We are conducting a highly scientific study. I have released eight holiday fragrances in isolated spaces, so they can’t blend. We are to go in, […]
December 2, 2019 Home blogger Bre Doucette had just propped the last mini pumpkin on her dining room table for her Thanksgiving-themed staging project, when a life-changing moment struck. “My husband called just as I was getting ready to shoot photos,” said the creator of the Rooms for Rent blog. “He asked what I was […]
November 25, 2019 Back when I was a live-in home stager, trading the perks of a permanent residence for reduced rent and flexibility, my job was to move into higher end houses that owners were struggling to sell, and give them a fresh look. When they sold, I moved to the next problem property. I […]
November 18, 2019 Shame on me. I have been writing this home column now for sixteen-plus years. Every. Single. Week. Over those years, I have written about some arguably pretty minor topics. Take, for instance, the color white, how to choose a yard boulder, and how to throw away a computer. Somehow, while dwelling on […]
November 11, 2019 For four days straight, men swarmed the house letting off a constant barrage of what sounded like machinegun fire. My husband, DC, and I hunkered down inside yelling at each other to be heard, like two 100-year-olds. The dogs longed to run away, but couldn’t brave the hailstorm of nails flying from […]
November 4, 2019 The dog broke my toe. My car got hit parked. The roof is leaking. The kids need money. And I am travel worn. In two weeks, I have been in eight airports, three time zones, and seen 4 a.m. on more clocks than I care to count. After a run like that, […]
