Technology is such a huge part of our lives now that it’s difficult to imagine a day going by without using some sort of app, electronic gadget, or internet-based device. Nowhere is this more true than in the home. Technology is integral to interior design because it allows us to merge style and functionality. It also allows us to adapt the home to evolving lifestyles and enhance how we live and interact with our spaces.

The kitchen is so much more than just a place to cook. It's where families gather to share meals, friends congregate for drinks and snacks, and a place where you can relax with a cup of coffee or tea. And of course, it’s the one room in the house where you can exercise your culinary creativity. It stands to reason then that you want your kitchen to strike the perfect balance between style and functionality.

Have you ever walked into a room and instantly felt a sense of calmness and comfort? It’s that feeling of warmth that puts you at ease and makes you want to stay for a while. As an interior designer, one of my main goals is to take stark or bland spaces and transform them into warm, inviting areas that appeal to the senses. Whether you’re looking to create a soothing bedroom sanctuary or a cozy living room where the whole family can gather, there are a number of ways you can add warmth to any room.

What should you know about hiring an interior designer?

When it comes to creating a space that truly reflects your style and meets your needs, hiring an interior designer can make all the difference. While some may see it as an added expense, the value a designer brings to your project goes far beyond just making things look pretty. From maximizing space to enhancing functionality and aesthetics, an interior designer can help transform your vision into reality while saving you time, money, mistakes and headaches along the way.

Interior design isn't just about picking out paint colors and furniture. It's a multifaceted discipline that includes everything from spatial planning and layout to lighting, materials selection, and more.

Paint is a very powerful design tool. It can either overwhelm a space or add to the sense of openness and comfort. Once in a while, I work with clients who in the past made bold statements by choosing bright or strong colors for their walls. More often than not, this strategy backfires, as too much of a vivid color can constrict a space and detract from the architectural details and furniture. 

When it comes to paint, neutral tones have a magical ability to open up a room. It's like giving your space a breath of fresh air. Since most of the time paint is the largest material used in the space, you want it to enhance, not overpower your precious space. If you want to add aesthetic interest, textures like stone, wood, and fabric can add depth and nuance.

As we step into 2024, the buzz around interior design trends continues to grow. One trend that I’ve been seeing many of my clients become increasingly drawn to is fluidity in design. There’s something so alluring about fluid furniture that has soft curves and organic shapes. My prediction is that fluid furniture is going to be one of the top design trends for 2024.

When you think of the word fluid, what comes to mind? You might think of flexibility or smoothness. These concepts all apply to fluid furniture. Rather than being confined to a predictable, rigid form, fluid design pieces feature rounded corners, beautiful contours that draw the eye along a pleasing path, and surfaces that are soft to the touch and designed for comfort. 

The new year is a chance to start fresh with new goals and lifestyle habits. Most people make New Year’s resolutions focusing on personal aspects like health, career, or relationships. I also like to include my home in my goals for the year. After all, the home is an extension of you and your aspirations. Much like self-care, I like to think of the home as a work in progress that can always be improved upon.

If you’ve been putting off doing things around the home, there’s no better time than the new year to tackle those to-do list items. As with any New Year’s resolutions, it’s best to start with one attainable goal at a time. That way you won’t get overwhelmed. As you complete each task, you’ll feel a sense of accomplishment. Here are a few achievable, yet transformative New Year's resolutions for your home.

The holiday season is finally here and I couldn’t be more excited. There is nothing I love more than being with the whole family and sharing great meals, conversation, and laughter. And at the center of all of it is a cozy home where we can gather.

Holiday decorating is so much more than just putting up a Christmas tree and stringing up some lights. It’s about transforming an everyday living space into a joyful sanctuary that radiates peace, love, acceptance, and comfort. It’s about creating a space that makes us feel at home.

First, there are the visuals. Soft lighting creates a warm ambiance that can be very soothing. Touches of texture like bows or pine cones can add layers of depth. Pops of color like deep greens and crimson add richness and evoke those holiday feelings.

A well-known real estate company recently reached out to me and asked me what my favorite design trends for 2023 were. My first response was custom tile installations. A beautifully installed glass mosaic or custom tile piece can instantly boost the mood in a space and add a unique, personalized touch. This is something we’ve been seeing more of in the design world and I expect we’ll be seeing a lot more of it to come.

Custom tile work is about infusing your personal style into your living spaces in a way that off-the-shelf options can't match. It's about choosing the colors, patterns, and textures that speak to you and crafting them into something that's uniquely yours. Whether it’s a bright backsplash in the kitchen or colorful stained glass in the bathroom, custom tiles can add cheerfulness and vibrancy to any space.

Have you ever thought about what your home says about you? I believe every home has a story to tell and that narrative comes from your personal preferences, memories, and aspirations. My favorite part of interior design is helping my clients uncover their story.

I like to start all my client consultations with a Personal Style Survey. Don't let the formal name fool you – it's actually a fun, spontaneous process. Here's how it works: you flip through design magazines and tear out any image that catches your eye and evokes a positive emotion. Don't overthink it, just go with your gut. You don’t have to search for specific ideas or designs. It’s more about understanding what spaces naturally evoke happy and joyful feelings.

When it comes to interior design, the perception of space is key. It's not just about arranging a few pieces of furniture or choosing the right shade of paint. It’s about understanding the structure, functionality, and aesthetics of a home.

One of the main things my clients want is to create a sense of space in their homes. Sometimes this means moving a door, adding windows, or rethinking the flow of the entire home. Other times, a feeling of spaciousness can be achieved by making strategic design decisions that help visually expand an area.

Color in interior design is like the soundtrack to a film; it sets the mood, tells a story, and guides our feelings throughout. We've all felt it—a room painted in a soft lavender that invites relaxation or a vibrant kitchen that seems to hum with energy. These choices aren’t just about aesthetics. They tap into our emotions, creating spaces that can be both peaceful sanctuaries and centers of inspiration.

Colors do more than just please the eye.

There’s something about autumn that always tends to feel like a new beginning. It may be because it’s the start of the school year. That sense of anticipation is contagious, whether or not we have children, and whether they are still in the pencil-and-backpack stage or all grown up.

Even if those school years are long behind us, fall often brings a change to our rhythms. Depending on our personality, the cooler air and shortening days can be invigorating, inspiring new ideas, projects, and activities. Yet for another person it’s a signal to slow down, to turn inward to their home and their thoughts, to seek comfort and contemplation. This nesting instinct often sparks ideas for enhancing our living spaces so they better reflect where we are in our lives.

Choosing a new home is a big, big decision, one that brings up all kinds of emotions, anxieties, hopes, and dreams. That’s why I always recommend that my house-hunting clients take my Style Preferences Survey before starting their search.

Even when you know what you want, it can be tough to objectively evaluate a potential home, and see its flaws, as well as its possibilities. There are other distractions, too. The owner’s belongings and their energy inhabit the house, which can make it hard to visualize yourself there.

When Larisa McShane came to the United States from her native Russia in 1994, Diane Pinelli had long since left Broomall to make her mark in New York as creative director for a women’s sportswear company. Pinelli’s work often took her abroad, where she gathered ideas applicable to home decoration as well as clothing.

Meanwhile, McShane was building a resume so eclectic — combining architecture, engineering and interior design — that she has trouble describing herself in just a few words. “Interior designer” is as close as she can come.

“I found a needle in a haystack,” Pinelli said. “We were two creative people, and we bonded. We pretty much do the same thing, just in different mediums. I felt like I had a partner.”

These days, the kitchen is the heart of many of our homes. It’s where the whole family gathers in between the rush of daily life. It’s where you might enjoy a warm cup of tea with your partner on a quiet, chilly morning, bake cookies in the afternoon with the kids or whip up a casual dinner for friends.

When I help clients design a kitchen, I encourage them to discover the colors, textures, and styles that give them joy and then incorporate those into every aspect of the design: cabinets, counters, flooring, lighting and art.

Is your high school-age son sleeping in a dream bedroom decorated when he was eight? Then it’s time for a change! Your son is growing up and his room should reflect the person he is now.

When your boy was little, you made his choices for him: his meals, clothes, room décor. Now he’s a young man and discovering his own likes and dislikes. He’s learning to make his own decisions. This should include making decisions about his personal spaces.

Just because boys don’t seem as interested in interior design as girls doesn’t mean they don’t care what their bedroom looks like.

Hint: Don’t expect it to be like what you see on TV.

This is what working with an interior designer looks like on home renovation shows: There’s an initial meeting, then sketches, a few phone calls to smooth out glitches, and – ta da! The clients walk in their front door to a transformed home full of surprise upgrades. “It’s beyond anything we expected!” they say through tears of joy.

That’s not how a successful home renovation process really works. No matter the scale of your project, when it’s complete you should be thrilled, but you shouldn’t be surprised.

Our bedroom is often the only place where we can indeed be ourselves. It is where we power down our defense mechanisms and allow the subconscious mind to take over while we dream. But, unfortunately, it is also often the most neglected part of our homes. We spend most of our energy, time, and money decorating the features of our homes that serve others. Well, it’s time for a change. Here are five ways to invite romance into your bedroom.

Here are five ideas that will help you shake things up in the bedroom, jump-start your mood, and hopefully your love life! Even though we may not always like it, we thrive on change.

Choosing the best design professional for your project can be the difference between a successful home renovation and a disappointment. Read more and understand who is an interior designer vs. interior decorator – who is best for you.

Two professions in the world of home renovation are interior designer and interior decorator. While their names sound similar and there can be overlap in what they do, there are important differences. The education, training, certifications, and services they offer can be vastly different. Which professional is the best choice for your home design project?