Like many of you, Gentle Readers, I have been tearing through The Gilded Age on HBOMax. Created by Julian Fellowes of Downton Abbey fame, it essentially IS Downton Abbey, just earlier and New-York-ier. Mr. Fellowes clearly embraces the “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” approach to show development, and I, for one, am not…
Read more »

What’s That Wallpaper? Classic, Elegant Farrow & Ball on Inventing Anna
For once, I am not behind on my TV watching! Inventing Anna just came out last week, evidently, and once I got past Julia Garner’s bizarro accent (I KNOW it’s intentional, teenage children!), I started enjoying it immensely. (That Shonda Rhimes. Such a superstar.) Plus you already know every single actor in it, which makes…
Read more »
How to update a vintage bathroom (when the tile is pristine!)
Please note, Gentle Readers, that I did not say renovate. Or even remodel. No, I said update. Renovating a bathroom (which, as you know, I have just survived) is a messy, inconvenient, time-consuming, and expensive undertaking. We’re not always up for it. Sometimes, a client has a bathroom or powder room that is outdated and…
Read more »
Photo shoot frenzy: conquering styling stress
It is a necessary evil, Gentle Readers. Photographing projects. As the designer Celerie Kemble says (I’m paraphrasing): if you don’t photograph a project, it’s as though it didn’t happen. Too true, too true. Reality in the form of time and budgetary limitations prevents me from photographing every single project, but I do try and capture…
Read more »
How to hold onto the holiday spirit through decorating
Happy New Year, Gentle Readers! I hope you had a wonderful holiday season. Bonus points if neither you nor anyone close to you got COVID. (If you’re in or around D.C., that’s a tall order right now.) We haven’t taken down our Christmas tree yet, and to be honest, I might just wait another week.…
Read more »