11ft wide family home

What do you do when you and the kids have outgrown your 11ft (3.3m) wide Brooklyn row house? What do you do when you love where you live and don't want to move further out to get that valuable space you need? Why you extend up and down but do it cleverly, making effective yet frugal use of the space. If the result is "a home that is not just larger, but livelier" then I guess you and the kids will love living in your special piece of Brooklyn. By Office of Architecture.

Click to read more ...

Timeless restraint

Interior designer Margaret Naeve Parker of M Naeve combines contemporary pieces with antiques found in her travels in Belgium, France and Scandinavia. Hers is a restrained approach with an emphasis on texture and a muted palette. What strikes me most is even with her love of beautiful, old pieces these rooms feel fresh and modern, timeless and sophisticated. 

Parisian modern in San Francisco

I love absolutely everything about this home in Noe Valley designed by Regan Baker. The bold, large photography art, the subtle moldings in the dining and living rooms (it just hit me that maybe this is what my dining room is missing!!), the midcentury furnishings, the brightness, bits of drama with colour, wallpaper or black walls. Yep, I'll take it all!! Photos: Suzanna Scott

Click to read more ...

The curse of orange knotty pine walls

Whenever I've been asked what to do with ugly orange-stained knotty pine walls or ceilings I have always had one answer ... paint them, paint it all! Sometimes you can't. You could be renting, you might not have the money or the time to invest in such a big job. Then I came across this log cabin styled by Susan Burns and it was an epiphany. The knotty pine walls and ceilings are the perfect foil for the white furniture and soft furnishings. OK the brick fireplace and some of the floors have been painted but the often overpowering orange wood has definitely been softened by what I'm calling the "white within". A pretty solution don't you think?

Click to read more ...

A modern lakeside cabin in Montana

Sitting lightly on its site this modern take on a log cabin just shows that "cabin" does not equate with roughing it. Simple, stylish and taking advantage of a stunning view. What more could you want? How about a boathouse studio as well? Northshore Cabin by Pearson Design Group.