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What will kitchens of the future look like?

By Kim Cook Associated Press Today’s home kitchen doesn’t look anything like it did a century ago. But for the most part, it doesn’t look a lot different than 50 years ago. Appliances are sleeker, materials are better, color palettes are broader. But the room is still the hard-working heart of the home. So what might the kitchen of the future be like? At the a past Kitchen and Bath Industry Show in Las Vegas and the Architectural Digest Design Show in New York, insiders got a peek at where we’re headed. First, that open-plan layout. Here to stay? Not necessarily, ...

Ask A Designer: Creating the perfect kitchen island

By Melissa Rayworth Associated Press Interior designer Abbe Fenimore knew that adding a kitchen island was one of the most important decisions she’d make in remodeling her 1940s-era home in Dallas. A well-designed kitchen island can offer storage space, a work surface, comfortable seating — even a cooktop or spare sink. But like so many aspects of kitchen design, it needs to be planned with extra care. An item this large and central isn’t something you’ll want to replace within just a few years. So Fenimore and her husband created a cardboard island in their kitchen with ...

Small touches create a great master bathroom

By Melissa Rayworth Associated Press It’s easy to design a gorgeous master bathroom if you have a huge budget. But with the right choices, says interior designer Gabriel Anderson, you can have an exceptional master bath without overspending. “Having huge expanses of marble is amazing and wonderful, but you don’t have to have that to have an amazing bathroom,” says Anderson, co-founder of the New York design firm Dean and Dahl. There are “little touches you can incorporate that really bring a master bath to life.” We’ve asked Anderson and two specialists in bath ...

Solutions and help for small-space living

By Kim Cook Associated Press Setting up home in a small apartment poses all sorts of challenges. First, there’s the floorplan: With small rooms come issues like storage, and where to put the bed. Then there’s the furniture: Will it fit up the stairs, and will you need a toolbox and an engineering degree to put it together? Retailers and design services have answers. Design-your-space websites can give you accurate floor plans and helpful decor suggestions. Cleverly designed furniture is scaled for smaller footprints, and might come to the door in easy-to-assemble formats, or ...

Right at home: Black walls make a quiet comeback

By Kim Cook Associated Press There was a time when black walls were mostly the purview of goth teens and indie movie theaters. But the color has been quietly cultivating a broader following among designers and homeowners who want a cozy, enveloping ambiance that’s still got theatrical flair. Bedrooms, libraries and bathrooms clad in inky or charcoal tones can be relaxing retreats. If you’ve got loads of windows, the color helps frame exterior views. And if the space is mostly walls, black creates a cocoon-like setting that can showcase a collection of objets d’art, vibrantly ...

Right at home: Look of hand-drawn art is hot in decor

By Kim Cook Associated Press Hand-crafted is popular these days, and many home decorators are looking for unique textiles and other furnishings that feature the look of hand-drawn art. Items like the eclectic, playful wallpapers of Brooklyn-based artist Aimee Wilder , who designed for brands like DwellStudio, Martha Stewart and Vans before starting her own studio. She’s expanded the line beyond wallpaper to include rugs, pillows, fabrics and poufs, and collaborates with prominent design brands on showroom design and installations. “I’ve been making graphic pieces since the ...