Articles by Becky Harris

Interior designer Lourdes Gabriela’s children were skeptical when they first saw this low-ceilinged, early-1980s apartment she had her eye on. But she was ready for a big change after the last two of her four children had grown up and left their family home in North Miami Beach, Florida. “I wanted to…

“At a time when so many people are asking for open-concept modern interiors, it was really refreshing to work with a family who unabashedly wanted a very traditional and formal home,” interior designer Emily Griffin says. This formal interior may be elegant but it’s far from fusty. Mixing antiques and…

Whether their designs are surrounded by Lake Minnetonka’s mist, San Francisco’s fog, Toronto’s ice, L.A.’s glare, Denver’s snowdrifts or Atlanta’s steamy air, design pros seeking fresh neutral paints are looking to light gray. “Grays can be so transparent and versatile that they can pair with just about…

A few weeks ago I passed the cutest Little Free Library, which matched its owners’ bungalow, and it put a big smile on my face. It seemed like just yesterday I’d been hearing about Little Free Libraries for the first time. Just when I felt as though e-books were taking over, these great little…

In 1988, my family was house hunting for our impending move from Cincinnati to the South Shore of Boston. While walking through the barns and other Colonial-era outbuildings not found in our 1970s-era suburban Ohio cul-de-sac, my father would always declare, “I could put my shop out here.” A good…

Standing in a clearing on Crane Island in Lake Minnetonka, architect and interior designer David Heide had no idea what year it was. “Looking across the field of clover, clay tennis court and crumbling meeting house, there was not one visual cue to let me know that it was not 1910,” he says. “It was…

Interior designer Cynthia Soda knew the issues with this laundry room all too well because she grew up in this house. In addition to a seriously awkward layout, it had green tile counters with pink grout. When her parents were finally ready for a remodel, they gave her full freedom in the design. “My…

“The first time my family looked at this house, we breezed right through the first floor out to the backyard, which is a little slice of heaven,” interior designer Lauren Clement says. At the time of the tour, the interiors of the house were not so heavenly. The family room was darkened by paint, heavy…

Perched on the edge of a mountain ridge, this new contemporary home looks out over North Carolina’s Lake Fontana and the Blue Ridge and Great Smoky mountain ranges. The carefully crafted home creates as much energy as it takes in thanks to its tight envelope, thermal windows, small footprint, water…