20 Ideabooks by Meg Padgett

A moment of cleaning motivation quickly turned to frustration and panic when I made a rookie mistake — as soon as I leaned an old window against my mudroom's old glass paneled door, I heard the heart-wrenching sound of broken glass. A broken glass pane?...

Tile — whether it's used as flooring, in the kitchen as a backsplash or for counters, or in the bathroom — has one great downfall: grout. Since grout is porous in nature, unsealed grout absorbs all kinds of stains, from mildew to coffee and everything...

Energy-efficient upgrades to your home can save you money in utility costs and help attract prospective buyers, too. Our century-old home has a laundry list of items that need attention. But for all the things that need to be updated, we lucked out in...

Paint may be the easiest way to update the look and feel of a room, but textiles come in a close second. Textiles add color, sophistication and texture to a room and can quickly change the style and feel with minimal effort. I've been on the...

Christmas stockings conjure thoughts of joy and cheer as soon as you see them, making them a great and easy addition to holiday decor. Tradition touts, "Hang your stockings by the chimney with care." But luckily, those without a fireplace or mantel...

Fix it, sand it, paint it — it seems like our work around the house is never done. And what do many of us have to show for all our time? A lot of leftover paint. So rather than purchasing new paint and adding to your never-ending supply for your...

A variety of lighting options in a room can take it from dull to lively — lighting makes a great finishing touch in a room redo. We have numerous lighting fixtures in our home — numerous so-called "boob lights," that is. I consider these builder's...

With any home purchase, there are plenty of positives and hopefully few negatives — and ours was no exception. Our home has great potential and good bones, but with those positives we also inherited many flaws, like banged-up walls, scratched laminate...

Homes, even beautifully designed ones, receive their fair share of abuse over the years. Unsightly holes from repair projects gone wrong, rough and tumble children or those pesky doorknobs can detract from the lovely home you've created. While seemingly...

My design style is traditional, blending contemporary and vintage pieces plus a few quirky accessories thrown in. This eclectic combination of design elements can create a stylish home with a fun, sophisticated vibe. While I'm always on the hunt for...

Chalkboard paint is popular thanks to its blend of sentiment, whimsy and practicality. Whether it's painted on walls, furniture or appliances, chalkboard paint has certainly come a long way from the basic green or slate gray boards used in schools. I...

Whether they're horizontal or vertical, stripes are one trend I hope won't go out of style any time soon. This versatile motif adds visual interest...

Whether I'm flipping through a magazine or watching the latest home show on TV, I'm always drawn to a house's trim. I love how the use of different architectural trim elements can completely...

Window planter boxes are a great way to add an architectural element and a boost of color to your home's exterior. There are a wide variety of styles out there; I chose to create a simple box style to reflect our 1900 cabin-style home and shed. We...

This garden arbor is simple to build and has a beautiful end result — the best of both worlds for a do-it-yourselfer. The base of this arbor consists of a basic structure that can be as simple or as ornate as desired, and the piece can be used in many...