Blog
New This Week: 8 Clever Kitchen Island Ideas (8 photos)
An island can do a lot for your kitchen. It can provide extra storage, countertop surface and seating. It can be the location of your main sink or cooktop. And it can help direct traffic flow too. To see a small sample of what’s possible, check out these eight island design ideas recently uploaded to...
Houzz Call: Share Your Favorite Summer Reading Spot (3 photos)
Summer can be a great time to catch up on reading. There’s just something about long days and warm weather that beckons one to stretch out and devour some light summer reads or perhaps revisit a classic. Do you have a favorite summer reading spot at home? Please share a photo of your literary hangout...
Kitchen of the Week: Stylish White Kitchen With Improved Storage (10 photos)
At first glance, there wasn’t anything really wrong with Michael and Megan Beaver’s kitchen. Maybe the light blue walls, beige ornamental cabinets and basic granite countertops looked a little out of date. But everything functioned fine, right? Not so much. “You would walk by that ornamental cabinetry,...
14 Design Tips to Know Before Remodeling Your Bathroom (15 photos)
Pop quiz: What’s the average amount of space required for a toilet? How much does a basic bathroom remodel cost? And how do you pick out the right vanity? If your answers to these questions are some combination of “What?” “Huh?” and “Um … ,” don’t worry. You’re not alone.
There’s so much that...
There’s so much that...
The 10 Most Popular Powder Rooms of Spring 2021 (10 photos)
This Trending Now story features the most-saved powder room photos uploaded to Houzz since April 1, 2021.
A powder room is a space where a home’s design can let loose a little. Bold wall treatments, creative tile patterns and standout fixtures work great in a pocket-size room. For...
A powder room is a space where a home’s design can let loose a little. Bold wall treatments, creative tile patterns and standout fixtures work great in a pocket-size room. For...
12 Edibles Perfect to Plant in Late Summer (13 photos)
A gardener’s work is never done. Even though August is the high point for the summer vegetable garden, with ripe tomatoes and peppers,...
Visit an Interior Designer’s Beautiful Beach House Retreat (8 photos)
Interior designer Karen Wolf spent her childhood visiting Long Beach Island, New Jersey, with her family. Now with kids of her own, she’s been keeping up the tradition. “It has a really soft...
Bathroom of the Week: Bright Spa Feel With an Airy Layout (10 photos)
Mike and Jessica Beckman of Ladera Ranch, California, enjoyed working with designer James Bailey three years ago when they updated the first floor of their 20-year-old, two-story Craftsman-style home. So when the couple were ready to ditch their upstairs bathroom’s dark enclosed shower, basic oak vanity...
The Forest Effect and 9 Other Global Furniture Trends (34 photos)
Product offerings in the first half of 2021 reflect not just an aesthetic twist on the past, but a lifestyle shift. Brands usually get ready for the spring editions of major fairs, like the Salone del Mobile in Milan, by taking a close look at both new trends and the needs of homeowners worldwide. That’s...
8 Ways to Create Zones in Your Landscape (8 photos)
An effective way to turn your yard into an interesting space for entertaining and relaxing is by creating a few different zones. Take a look at these eight ideas to see how you could break up your landscape with materials, plantings, screens and more.
The 10 Most Popular Laundry Rooms of Spring 2021 (10 photos)
This Trending Now story features the most-saved laundry room photos uploaded to Houzz since April 1, 2021.
7-Day Plan: Get a Spotless, Beautifully Organized Living Room (9 photos)
Our homes really can make us happy — especially when they are inviting. And now feels like a natural time to refresh and renew our surroundings. Of course, if you’re anything like me, wanting a cleaner,...
Before and After: 3 Backyards Gain Stylish Swimming Pools (9 photos)
Now that summer has arrived, are you thinking longingly about swimming pools? The possibility could be more readily available than you might think. Take a look at how these designers found ways to add a spot for swimming — or at least plunging — as part of the following three backyard transformations....
Your Summer Watering Guide for Happy and Healthy Plants (11 photos)
By midsummer, the heat is on. Depending on where you live, keeping your landscape looking good during the hottest months of the year can take some extra planning. In regions without summer rainfall, soils dry out and non-native garden plants often need more moisture. When and how you water garden beds...
Yard of the Week: Entry Garden With Leafy Screening Solutions (7 photos)
You might have to do a double take before believing this leafy, secluded and lingerworthy outdoor space really is a front yard. While it’s particularly large, as well as shielded by high brick walls on two sides, the space still has the usual functional requirements — a parking area and access to the...
Pro Tips for Choosing the Perfect Hallway Flooring (19 photos)
The hall is the epitome of a high-traffic area, yet it’s also the first glimpse most people have of your home, so the flooring needs to look good while handling the knocks. There are lots of options, and your decision will be guided by how much wear and tear it’s likely to receive, how much maintenance...
The Pros and Cons of 3 Popular Kitchen Layouts (11 photos)
If you’re remodeling your kitchen or designing a new one, your first order of business is choosing a layout. Do you want open or closed concept? Does the standard work triangle best suit your cooking style, or will work zones make food prep and cleanup more efficient for you? Do you want a design with...
New This Week: 6 Refreshing Bathrooms With Shower-Tub Combos (6 photos)
A shower-tub combination is a common space-saving design feature for a bathroom. It’s so common that some people mistakenly think of it as dated and boring. But the following designs show fresh ways to update a shower-tub combo for enduring style.
New Porch Doors Open Up Entertaining Possibilities (7 photos)
With their kids off at college, this couple were ready to expand the possibilities for entertaining in their 1920s bungalow in Greenville, South Carolina. With help from Transformation Renovations and Duo Design Studio, they converted a back bedroom into a barroom and opened it up to the existing screened-in...
How to Provide Shade in a Small Yard (7 photos)
In a compact yard, it can be tricky to provide sunny and shaded spots, but there are ways to do it. Take a look at these seven gorgeous examples to see how to create a cool-off zone in your own little outdoor space.
Kitchen of the Week: Bigger and Better With Light Gray Cabinets (11 photos)
Hunter green carpet. In the kitchen. That was probably enough of a reason for Brian and Stephanie Adams to launch a kitchen renovation in their newly purchased 1970s home in Omaha, Nebraska. The aging oak cabinets, laminate countertops and overall basic look just sealed the deal.
The Adamses...
The Adamses...
How Are Your Roses Doing? A Complete Summer Guide (8 photos)
Summer is a time for rose lovers to celebrate gardens filled with the beauty and fragrance of the world’s most popular flower. While roses add wonderful attributes to outdoor spaces, they require regular care and maintenance to flourish. Normal maintenance tasks include watering, fertilizing and pruning....
Renovation Activity Is at 6-Year High, New Houzz Barometer Shows (16 photos)
Following a strong start to 2021, residential construction and design professionals expressed overall confidence in home renovation...
10 Dos and Don’ts of Designing a Kitchen Island (12 photos)
When it comes to creating a new kitchen, an island is a must-have for many homeowners, but how can you ensure yours is both beautiful and functional? Here, four Australian kitchen design experts suggest 10 things to bear in mind to help you get this key element right.
...
...
How to Help Your Garden Survive a Heat Wave (8 photos)
We’ve all experienced it: blistering temperatures, above our typical summer averages, that have us flocking to the comfort of our homes. But what about the plants in our gardens? Unless they are in a pot and can be brought indoors, plants are stuck outside, bearing the brunt of the heat wave with no...
These Are the Spaces People Are Updating the Most (15 photos)
Many homeowners focused on home improvement projects in 2020 despite the pandemic. The median renovation spend per household increased last year to $15,000 from $13,000 in 2019, according to the 2021 U.S. Houzz & Home Study.
Outdoor projects received a lot of attention. Last year, 57% of homeowners...
Outdoor projects received a lot of attention. Last year, 57% of homeowners...
Bathroom of the Week: Unusual Vanity Stars in a Serene Room (10 photos)
This bathroom remodel began with a vanity with an unconventional finish — it’s wrapped in shagreen-embossed leather. “My client knew she wanted a gray-and-white palette, and she knew she wanted to use this vanity,” interior designer Leslie Williams says. Williams used the vanity as a jumping-off point...
Simple Pleasures: Plan a Rejuvenating Retreat at Home (10 photos)
When you hear the word “retreat,” what comes to mind — writing in a cabin by a lonesome lake, engaging in spiritual study or practicing yoga on the beach? How about doing a retreat in your own home? It may at first seem like an improbable idea (although that yoga-on-the-beach thing sounds pretty good),...
7-Day Plan: Get a Spotless, Beautifully Organized Bathroom (9 photos)
Wet towels and dirty clothes dumped on the floor, the sink littered with products, soap scum caked on every surface. In the daily rush, the bathroom often fares the worst (and that’s not even mentioning the really grubby stuff). But why spend a week focusing on this room, when it will simply get cluttered...
The 10 Most Popular Pools of Spring 2021 (10 photos)
This Trending Now story features the most-saved pool photos uploaded to Houzz since April 1, 2021.
Few things capture the joy of summer quite like a backyard swimming pool. You’ll find refreshing inspiration at a Phoenix property with stunning desert views, near a pristine lake in South...
Few things capture the joy of summer quite like a backyard swimming pool. You’ll find refreshing inspiration at a Phoenix property with stunning desert views, near a pristine lake in South...
Apr. 7, 2020
New Decorative Metal Accents for Tried-and-True Mouldings
Mouldings have been a Designs of Distinction ® product for decades. We offer mouldings in various sizes & styles – ranging from decorative Base Mouldings to Crown Mouldings, to Light Ready Light Rail Mouldings ® . We’ve introduced dozens of hardwood moulding insert designs – including inserts like Bijou, Infinity, and Baroque, and Classic Revival. […]
Read More
Apr. 2, 2020
Brass Gallery Rail – your guide to an inexpensive way to update your Kitchen & Bath
Our new Brass Gallery Rail components provide an inexpensive way to achieve a luxury look. Manufactured from solid polished brass, you are able to completely customize how you want your new Gallery Rail to look, and where you want to install it. Versatile Design & Style The Brass Gallery Rail can fit almost any design […]
Read More
Apr. 1, 2020
New Bun Feet!
We’ve been working hard at Designs of Distinction to bring more high-quality furniture components to the market. Cue, bun feet with pre-installed 5/16″-18 hanger bolts. As usual, our bun feet with hanger bolts will come unfinished & hand-sanded to perfection – ready to stain or paint right out of the box. Uses for Bun Feet […]
Read More
Mar. 25, 2019
Small Spaces: Unique Uses of Wood Brackets
When you live in a small urban apartment, like me, often times the apartment does not come with much overhead lighting, and if it does come with overhead lighting, it’s overbearing fluorescent light from the 70’s that provides no ambience or hygge.
Read More
Jul. 4, 2018
New Cut-to-Size Decorative Grille Program!
Take advantage of Designs of Distinction’s cut-to-size decorative grille program! No minimums and quick-ship! Our beautiful steel grilles are hand woven in 8 styles and available in 6 finishes. Builders, designers and manufacturers can now specify the exact opening size of their door panels and receive the pre-cut panels, ready to install
Read More