My clients purchased a grand home on a spectacular waterfront setting, but the interior felt dark and drab. Our challenge was to turn the existing home into a high end Hampton-style residence without major construction. We choose to focus on color, contrast and texture, changing almost every surface in the home and reversing the contrast to make the home light and airy. We invested the construction expense on elements crucial to style and function. Removing a row of out of scale upper cabinetry in the kitchen and replacing it with 3 double hung windows expands the view to 180 degrees and floods the room with light. To create symmetry and balance in the kitchen, we moved the cooktop and centered the sink. The wine cellar entry opened awkwardly into the kitchen and there was no pantry, so we modified the wine cellar and moved the door for better flow, allowing for a large pantry. On the opposite end of the great room, we balanced the fireplace with cabinetry and tall wainscoting. The floors were stained dark espresso while all other trim and cabinetry went a bright white. It took 14 tries to get the perfect wall color – a pale beige/color reminiscent of sand. The blue and white furniture and details pull the entire space together and creates a sophisticated yet casual feel. Photos by Steve Armstrong www.cascadepromedia.com

Casey Fry
Inspiration for a shabby-chic style concrete floor bathroom remodel in Austin with a vessel sink, white cabinets and white walls

A traditional kitchen with touches of the farmhouse and Mediterranean styles. We used cool, light tones adding pops of color and warmth with natural wood.

High-gloss lilac adds unexpected color above, while a Dutch door and built-in dog beds keep the McKinleys' pets contained and comfortable in the laundry room. Photo by Erica George Dines for Southern Living

An open modern kitchen, dining area, and bright white living area in this Brooklyn apartment boasts floor to ceiling windows, a balcony patio, and grey stained oak flooring. Pops of yellow in a black and white color scheme add a sunny flair.

This Kitchen embodies the design of Florida homes in many ways. It's got a coastal vibe and a touch of indoor foliage to give it that tropical influence. The scene is very fun, the two different colors for the island and the kitchen make the scene. A nice white muted kitchen with a beautiful shell color marble counter tops, give it a beachy feel everyday. Photo credits: Matthew Horton

-The kitchen was isolated but was key to project’s success, as it is the central axis of the first level -The designers renovated the entire lower level to create a configuration that opened the kitchen to every room on lower level, except for the formal dining room -New double islands tripled the previous counter space and doubled previous storage -Six bar stools offer ample seating for casual family meals and entertaining -With a nod to the children, all upholstery in the Kitchen/ Breakfast Room are indoor/outdoor fabrics -Removing & shortening walls between kitchen/family room/informal dining allows views, a total house connection, plus the architectural changes in these adjoining rooms enhances the kitchen experience -Design aesthetic was to keep everything neutral with pops of color and accents of dark elements -Cream cabinetry contrasts with dark stain accents on the island, hood & ceiling beams -Back splash is over-scaled subway tile; pewter cabinetry hardware -Fantasy Brown granite counters have a "leather-ed" finish -The focal point and center of activity now stems from the kitchen – it’s truly the Heart of this Home. Galina Coada Photography

Inspiration for a transitional u-shaped light wood floor, beige floor and vaulted ceiling enclosed kitchen remodel in San Francisco with shaker cabinets, green cabinets, white backsplash, stainless steel appliances, an island and gray countertops

Custom design Craftsman style split bedroom ranch with bonus room build out over the garage sided with LP Smartside Diamond Kote color Smoky Ash. Welcoming covered porch with pillars and stained Shaker gable accents to match the wood tone long panel garage doors and front entry door. Roof in CertainTeed Landmark shingles in Driftwood color. (Ryan Hainey)

The soothing primary bath provides a respite from the homeowners' busy lives. The expansive vanity mirror highlights the room's tall ceilings, while the soft colors provide a relaxing atmosphere. Gold wall sconces, hardware and faucets are beautifully showcased against the rooms greige cabinetry. The shower is located in a separate bathroom alcove, allowing for privacy. The "his and her" shower boasts two shower heads, hand-held shower wands, a rain shower, a built-in quartz bench and two shower niches. A shower window allows natural light to flood the elegant space.

This home remodel is a celebration of curves and light. Starting from humble beginnings as a basic builder ranch style house, the design challenge was maximizing natural light throughout and providing the unique contemporary style the client’s craved. The Entry offers a spectacular first impression and sets the tone with a large skylight and an illuminated curved wall covered in a wavy pattern Porcelanosa tile. The chic entertaining kitchen was designed to celebrate a public lifestyle and plenty of entertaining. Celebrating height with a robust amount of interior architectural details, this dynamic kitchen still gives one that cozy feeling of home sweet home. The large “L” shaped island accommodates 7 for seating. Large pendants over the kitchen table and sink provide additional task lighting and whimsy. The Dekton “puzzle” countertop connection was designed to aid the transition between the two color countertops and is one of the homeowner’s favorite details. The built-in bistro table provides additional seating and flows easily into the Living Room. A curved wall in the Living Room showcases a contemporary linear fireplace and tv which is tucked away in a niche. Placing the fireplace and furniture arrangement at an angle allowed for more natural walkway areas that communicated with the exterior doors and the kitchen working areas. The dining room’s open plan is perfect for small groups and expands easily for larger events. Raising the ceiling created visual interest and bringing the pop of teal from the Kitchen cabinets ties the space together. A built-in buffet provides ample storage and display. The Sitting Room (also called the Piano room for its previous life as such) is adjacent to the Kitchen and allows for easy conversation between chef and guests. It captures the homeowner’s chic sense of style and joie de vivre.

This guest bedroom is a bold statement with its pink and navy color scheme. The patterned drapes set the place in line with a nice floral. The pink bed stools provide the perfect place to take a set alongside the curved front navy dresser. The unique abstract art above the bed gives the room a completed feel.

Another option and period color for this 1910 Classic Revival home.
Mid-sized traditional beige wood exterior home idea in New York with a hip roof

Trendy carpeted bedroom photo in Phoenix with red walls

This transitional-inspired remodel to this lovely Bonita Bay home consists of a completely transformed kitchen and bathrooms. The kitchen was redesigned for better functionality, better flow and is now more open to the adjacent rooms. The original kitchen design was very outdated, with natural wood color cabinets, corian countertops, white appliances, a very small island and peninsula, which closed off the kitchen with only one way in and out. The new kitchen features a massive island with seating for six, gorgeous quartz countertops, all new upgraded stainless steel appliances, magnificent white cabinets, including a glass front display cabinet and pantry. The two-toned cabinetry consists of white permitter cabinets, while the island boasts beautiful blue cabinetry. The blue cabinetry is also featured in the bathroom. The bathroom is quite special. Colorful wallpaper sets the tone with a wonderful decorative pattern. The blue cabinets contrasted with the white quartz counters, and gold finishes are truly lovely. New flooring was installed throughout.

Wes Tarca
Transitional formal living room photo in New York with white walls, a standard fireplace, a stone fireplace and a wall-mounted tv

The homeowners contacted Barbara Elza Hirsch to redesign three rooms. They were looking to create a New England Coastal inspired home with transitional, modern and Scandinavian influences. This Living Room was a blank slate room with lots of windows, vaulted ceiling with exposed wood beams, direct view and access to the backyard and pool. The floor was made of tumbled marble tile and the fireplace needed to be completely redesigned. This room was to be used as Living Room and a television was to be placed above the fireplace. Barbara came up with a fireplace mantel and surround design that was clean and streamlined and would blend well with the owners’ style. Black slate stone was used for the surround and the mantel is made of wood. The color scheme included pale blues, whites, greys and a light terra cotta color. Photography by Jared Kuzia

This ocean-front shingled Gambrel style house is home to a young family with little kids who lead an active, outdoor lifestyle. My goal was to create a bespoke, colorful and eclectic interior that looked sophisticated and fresh, but that was tough enough to withstand salt, sand and wet kids galore. The palette of coral and blue is an obvious choice, but we tried to translate it into a less expected, slightly updated way, hence the front door! Liberal use of indoor-outdoor fabrics created a seamless appearance while preserving the utility needed for this full time seaside residence. photo: Michael J Lee Photography

Bedroom - mid-sized country master dark wood floor and brown floor bedroom idea in San Francisco with pink walls