With its clean white walls, sleek furnishings and bright punches of cobalt, lime and turquoise, this lower level pool room is more Miami than Missouri but it makes an ideal mini beach house for the Town and Country homeowners. Located under one of the home’s three-car garages in the featured suburban home on page 34, this bonus pool room is a summer hot spot.

We hear the words “pure” and “natural” so often, particularly in reference to food and drink, that we tend to dismiss those terms too readily when, in fact, they can be exactly the right adjectives to use.

Oftentimes a total room renovation is completely out of the question in terms of time and budget. An easy way to take a traditional dining room and make it more contemporary is to switch the fabric on your dining chairs. A modern, updated fabric can change the look of a room.

The Great Cover Up
Schumacher #174822
Crazy Ikat flamestitch look.  A very modern looking fabric to change the feel of the chair.

Inspired by a host of design genres, from arts and crafts to modern industrial, the contemporary kitchen presents virtually unlimited opportunities to express your individuality.  Although trends change rapidly, cabinetry remains the foundation of today’s well-designed kitchen.

With its exposed brick wall, sculptural rug, sleek drapes and tonal palette of soothing grays and taupes, this dining room in a Central West End loft strikes a warm, modern vibe. But when Joni Spear of Joni Spear Interior Design first saw her client’s space, it was a bit plain Jane. “It was pleasant, but it looked almost like a model home—it lacked pizzazz,” she explains.

Irish Island Escape
By Christine Soucy. Photography courtesy of Gordon and Mary Gregg