Home Improvement

There’s art in cartography: Street grids, the curve of a shoreline and topographic details lend themselves to wall art, rugs and textiles.

Replacing the doors and covering the cabinets’ remaining exposed parts with a matching veneer can be done for about half the cost of buying new, said Kit Selzer, senior remodeling and projects editor at Better Homes and Gardens. The process is called refacing.

Start with the palette. “Saturated” is a word being used a lot; it means ripe plum hues, intense tangerines, rich indigos, verdant greens, zingy turquoises, hot reds and peppy yellows.

When we decorate our homes, we express ourselves through the furniture we buy and the colors we select. But perhaps no element of decorating says more about us than the personal photographs we display.

Other “faux” features to consider include ceiling decals that look like parts of elaborate chandeliers, cabinetry embellishments and painted wainscoting.

Ask William Carter about expanding your home and he’s going to be blunt: It will be expensive. It will be messy. And it will take time.

Moth-wing light fixtures? Thunderhead wallpaper? If you’re an armchair naturalist, you’ll love one of this year’s big home decor trends. The designs, translated into wall decor and furnishings, range from startling to serene.

Spring cleaning can feel overwhelming. But where to begin? Never fear: Three professional organizers are here to offer three projects you can do in an afternoon each.

Clutter, distractions, poor workflow — sometimes a kitchen’s layout can hinder the cooking process more than it helps. Decorating can create similar pitfalls. “We get too caught up in color palettes and soft fabrics, and we over-think it,” said Genevieve Gorder, co-host and judge of HGTV’s Design Star.

Landlords often want their white walls to stay white. Many won’t let you do even the most minor construction. Some even ask renters not to nail anything to the walls.