Design Advice

This lively breakfast room addition by Atlanta architect Norman Askins and interior designer/author James Farmer fits nicely in a 19th-century house.

Gardens can get a bad rap in late summer—with wilting flowers and fewer blooms than in spring—but interior designer and author James Farmer added architecture and heat-tolerant plants so that his backyard excels even in August.

Maybe it’s their good-natured sibling rivalry, or the diplomatic way they disarm sensitive homeowners (Sorry, but your “eggs with legs” collection is not a charming selling point). But HGTV stars Drew and Jonathan Scott are, as The Daily Beast once put it, “reality television’s crack cocaine.”

Interior designer Tanya Lacourse filled this home office with all of the homeowner's favorite things.

Karla Aberdavis and her family pine for the ’50s and ’60s, when they believe good design was at its peak. Their style, a retro mashup that’s part practicality and part kitschy glam, touches every aspect of their lives, from furniture and clothes to music and kitchenware in their 1964 Stone Mountain ranch. For more of their throwback lifestyle, visit Karla’s Instagram, @mintkarla, where she has more than 200,000 followers.

Inspired by cabanas at beach hotels, Angela Blehm designed this custom shelter for her family’s Gainesville pool.

In a perfect world, a bedroom is a sanctuary, a quiet and calming place to relax and rest. In reality, it’s become a harried, multipurpose space where we stream TV shows, catch up on work emails, and scroll through social media. Reclaim your sleep space with these tips from local interior designers.

When it’s 90 degrees in Atlanta, IT professional and writer Blake Donley can escape to his basement listening room with a cool beverage and 3,000—give or take—of his favorite LPs.

“There are two kinds of design books available,” says Yip. “There are those with lots of information, but they’re hard to digest. And then there are vanity tomes, which are beautiful and relaxing to peruse, but not helpful. I wanted to write a book that is balanced. It had to be functional and aesthetically pleasing.”

This spring, designer Melanie Turner released her first book, Inviting Interiors. We chatted with her about a color that appears in much of her work.