Big News For Bathrooms
By: Kristen Schwartz Big or small, bathroom design trends are just as important as trends for other rooms of the home. Homeowners are beginning to embrace the concept that the bathroom doesn’t need to be purely utilitarian but can (& should!) be aesthetically pleasing & functional. Many of the trends I’m seeing for 2024 extend […]
Accent Walls For The Win!
By Kristen Schwartz, Design Consultant I was asked recently if accents walls were going out of style. How could something that breathes new life into a room possibly go out of style? This one small, & usually very easy, change can anchor your design scheme, formalize your layout & add instant wow factor. You don’t […]
Create a Warm and Cozy Home with Paint
By Kristen Schwartz, Design Consultant What a difference paint can make! The wrong shade of the right color can turn a room from warm & welcoming to stark & cold; the color of your paint can have a tremendous impact on the overall ambience of your space. Let’s explore some Sherwin Williams colors guaranteed to […]
Perk Up Your Home – My Cheap Tricks
By Kristen Schwartz, Design Consultant Can you keep a secret? Not every home upgrade needs to involve spending big bucks on a remodel or even new furniture. **GASP** But aren’t you in the remodeling business?!? Yes, & I love what our company, Built by Design, does to transform the homes of our clients. However, not […]
DÉCOR TRENDS TO TRY IN 2023
By Kristen Schwartz, Design Consultant My clients will tell you that I tend to discourage them from doing anything too trendy when it comes to their remodeling projects. This is true, however only when it comes to aspects that will be costly or invasive to change when that trend screams “That’s so 2019!”, or whatever […]
Indoor Lighting Mistakes (And How To Fix Them)
Light fixtures are like jewelry: they’re the finishing touch that can make or break an outfit, or in this case your home. Many homeowners spend more time picking out paint colors, furniture & flooring than they do on lighting fixtures or light bulbs. But lighting affects how everything in your home, new or old, looks. […]
2021: The Year of the At Home Movie Theater Experience
Miss going to the movies? Even though some theaters have opened after shutting down amid the pandemic, audiences have been small & many big new films have been released through streaming services. Now more than ever, you can capture the cinema experience at home – without the overpriced popcorn or the need to wear a […]
Working & Learning from Home… Creating Dedicated or Shared Space in 2021
Ever since COVID-19 took over everyday life in March of 2020, the number of people working & learning at home has skyrocketed. In some households that meant trying to find space not only for mom & dad to work, but for the kids to “go” to school. Where to put everyone so that they weren’t […]
Lower-level Finish Trends For 2023
by Kristen Schwartz, Design Consultant I love this time of year, not only is it sweater weather but it’s when the major design players start releasing their picks for next year’s “Color of the Year”. Now this may not seem all that exciting to you, but after 3 years of “pandemic gray” on everything I […]
Home Remodeling – Reality vs “Reality TV”
By Kristen Schwartz, Design Consultant I’ll admit it. I love watching home remodeling shows on HGTV. They’re entertaining, offer great inspiration for our projects & most of the time make me groan out loud at what they portray as an actual homeowner experience. Come on! As much as I enjoy these shows, they’re giving homeowners […]