Consumer News

• You Voted. She Painted. This Pro’s New Entry Is Leafy Green (6 photos)
  I recently asked Houzz readers to help me choose a new color for my home’s entryway and stairs. It was time to repaint and although I still liked the original bright blue-green color,...
• How to Get More Plants Free (18 photos)
  It’s amazing how quickly buying a few plants can add up to a fairly big monetary outlay. Fortunately, there are time- and gardener-honored ways of getting plants for little or no cost. You can get offsprings of your (or your friends’) plants for free, whether it’s by gathering seeds, getting divisions...
• 4 Ways to Set Up Your Home to Reduce Stress Right Now (8 photos)
  Unfortunately, COVID-19 is still a concern and many of us continue to spend a lot of time at home. Though parts of the country have opened up, unsettling reports of emerging hot spots and second waves continue. For some, working from home has become a permanent reality. Since our homes are no...
• Have Your Garden Fountain and Be Water Wise Too (7 photos)
  With their delicate movement and melodious splash, water features often become the focal point of a garden. And nothing brings a feeling of coolness and tranquility quite like a pond or fountain. But what about water consumption? In warm climates how you locate, design and maintain your fountain or shallow...
• Bathroom of the Week: Refined Remodel for a Family of 5 (8 photos)
  The driving force for the renovations in this San Francisco home was the family’s need to add a bathroom. There were 1½ baths, including a full bathroom shared by all five family members. The homeowners enlisted design-build firm building Lab to transform the dated full bath into a sophisticated...
• 4 Tips for Creating a Productive Study Space for Kids (9 photos)
  If you’re a parent of a school-age child, or school-age children, your home probably will need to accommodate some distance learning when the new school year starts. For some households, spring became a frantic last-minute scramble to adjust to sheltering and schooling at home. For fall, you might want...
• 15 Simple Organizing Tools and Where They Work Best (15 photos)
  The options for containing and sorting stuff are virtually endless. And while it’s important to remember that decluttering before organizing will save you unnecessary anguish, there comes...
• Your Guide to a Smooth-Running Construction Project (9 photos)
  Imagine walking into your newly built or remodeled home and seeing it exactly as you had imagined it at the start of construction: the windows are all in the right places, the flooring is the right color, and the kitchen cabinets are a perfect fit.Now allow me to pinch you on the arm, because...
• What Homeowners Are Changing About Their Homes (3 photos)
  If you’re spending more time at home these days, there’s a good chance you’re considering how to improve it indoors and out. If so, searches on Houzz show that you’re definitely not alone. Searches for swimming pool design and construction pros more than quadrupled (up 334%) on Houzz this...
• 9 Stylish Shade Solutions for Patios and Small Garden Areas (11 photos)
  In the heat of summer, having a source of shade somewhere in your garden makes it a more comfortable place for hanging out. While large pergolas and shade structures work well to cover more expansive outdoor spaces, they can feel out of scale in smaller gardens, courtyards and balconies. The following...