How to Decorate

By Ballard DesignsBusiness Arts Design

Ranking
6th
on Design
Favorites
330
Followers
Typical duration
60 min
per episode

Based on Podcast App listening data

How to Decorate episodes

November 12, 2020Ep. 169: Nashville Week: Rachel Halvorson
We are on Day 4 of Nashville Week! This episode we are thrilled to be joined by another Nashville-based designer, Rachel Halvorson, of Rachel Halvorson Designs. Rachel found big success at a young age gracing the cover of Garden & Gun and she’s also been featured in LUX, Traditional Home, Southern Living and Better Homes & Gardens. Her work is incredibly varied; from farmhouse to contemporary to mid-century modern (MCM). We talk about how her approach is unique across every project, yet she manages to keep a clean style. We also talk about her go-to elements, her love of lighting, and the highly controversial “bookcase bathtub” that we mentioned in our last episode with Stephanie Sabbe.
What You’ll Hear on This Episode:
Rachel found herself on the cover of Garden & Gun for her custom-designed porch swings.
How Rachel makes a farmhouse, a very popular Nashville look, feel more authentic and elegant.
Don’t rush the process! Designing your home is a journey. Rachel shares her approach to designing her own space.
The highly controversial “bookcase bathtub” picture from out last episode with Stephanie Sabbe‘s was actually Rachel’s. How she came up with it and why she got hate mail on it.
One of the most fascinating parts of design for Rachel is interpreting what people love and how they want to live, then incorporating that into her design. She likes people to think of their home as a time capsule.
Bookshelves are a particular challenge for Rachel mostly because other people ask her to pick out their books!
Are people actually reading books anymore or just decorating with them?
“Tammywood” was an MCM project Rachel did for two members of the Little Big band. It was every bit as eclectic as her client; a kind of Hollywood glamour meets Bohemian.
More than ever with people being at home, they want their homes to reflect them and their style.
Rachel’s go-to elements are anything that has patina or is aged to give a house a sense of history. In terms of window treatments, she goes for lightweight to bring the outside in.
Rachel likes to use texture, rather than additional pieces, to add layers and a statement to a room.
Rachel is a fan of mismatching and adding in small vintage pieces to give a space character and make it feel “lived in”.
Beds are the hardest part of her job; while room-planning and lighting are the easiest.
Rachel uses things like sconces and lamps to create soft, flattering lighting; partially inspired by her grandmother.

Mentioned In This Episode:
Rachel Halvorson Designs
Rachel Halvorson on Instagram

Decorating Dilemma
Hi Sarah,
This is a very cute room! The first thing Rachel always does in a project is paint and lighting. We would pull the dark blue color from that rug (and push that rug under your sofa a bit!) and paint around the fireplace and even the built-ins in a semi-gloss. We would even consider painting the shutters that same color…even the trim! There is a lot of attention on the TV, so we would suggest buying a Samsung Frame. Then when it’s off, it acts as a piece of art. For the bookshelves? Go get more books! Old leather books from a used bookstore could be really nice. If there is an outlet by the bookshelves, little lamps on either side would be a great addition. How about those teeny lamps you already have on your acrylic table? Then add one single larger lamp on that table. Maybe add some floor lamps and some sconces on the panel wall. You do need more furniture. You could fit two chairs; stay away from matching chairs but two in a neutral fabric would be nice. Toss some throw pillows with maybe the same dark blue and/ or the red brick. A small chair by the fireplace would be very cozy and help round out the room. Another side table on the side of that sofa will also work. For window coverings definitely go for some lightweight or sheer curtains. If that’s a working fireplace, put some wood in it and use it. If not, some pretty birchwood or fireballs for a nice ambience.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
54 min
November 11, 2020Ep. 168: Nashville Week: Julie Couch
This episode comes to you from Day 3 of Nashville Week! Our guest is Nashville-based interior designer and nonprofit art gallery owner Julie Couch. Her work has been featured in Country Living, Southern Home, domino and she was named one of Traditional Home’s Rising Stars. She was also on DIY Network’s Nashville Flipped. This busy lady sits down with us to talk about her many projects, her love of performance fabrics and textiles, staying accessible and how to jazz up the popular all-white look.
What You’ll Hear on This Episode:
Julie’s doesn’t have a particular style, but she likes to pull her client’s requests through her own filter. She particularly likes performance fabrics.
Julie likes the motto, “If you feel like you have to impress somebody at your house, then you don’t need to invite them over.” And that design is evident in designing her own home.
Having kids in the house doesn’t mean you can’t have nice things; Julie didn’t alter her home much when her daughter was born. Life is short—make your home beautiful! Even on a budget.
Julie wants to take the intimidation out of the building and design process, so she is very transparent.
What the best plan and biggest challenges are for all-white rooms; and how to make them unique.
All about the spiral slide one of Julie’s clients wanted in her kids’ playroom.
One thing Julie is seeing is clients being adventurous with their bathrooms, laundry and mud rooms.
How to layer in textiles to make the light and white rooms feel more cozy.
With more people at home, they are decorating and designing their spaces.
Julie believes designing your home should be accessible; she has a blog with free advice and encourages people to think of design as an ongoing process.
With so many clients finding Julie through social media, she has really embraced it as a tool.
Why one of Julie’s biggest dislikes are rugs that are too small.
More about Julie’s nonprofit art gallery, G Grace Gallery, that benefits chronically ill children.
Julie’s tips on how to start and display an art collection.
How Julie is able to bring back an old-fashioned classic, café panels, and make it feel modern.

Mentioned In This Episode:
Julie Couch Interiors
Julie Couch on Instagram
Julie Couch on Facebook
G Grace Gallery
Decorating Dilemma
Hi Lee,
This room is adorable! We agree that the wallpaper would be so pretty and we would put it on every surface you can; walls, ceilings, everywhere. We would use a fun print but in a lighter color. For the window, a Roman shade mounted all the way up where it meets the ceiling will define the window but add a softness. Over in the niche, a little desk or vanity table would be really nice with a shaded sconce above it. Wired sconces on the angled ceiling would be great, as well. We love this room and can’t wait to see what you do with it!

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
1 hr
November 10, 2020Ep. 167: Nashville Week: Stephanie Sabbe
Today’s episode comes to you from Nashville Week! We sit down with Stephanie Sabbe of Sabbe Interior Design. She started her career working in commercial and restaurant spaces and has transitioned to residential clients in her hometown of Nashville. We talk with Stephanie about how cozy her spaces make us feel, her love of traditional artwork, her favorite color palette and developing a flow to a room that feels personalized yet elevated!
What You’ll Hear on This Episode:
Stephanie specializes in cozy and comforting spaces. She approaches design from a livable way and often works with families.
How Stephanie pairs her unique curation of traditional artwork with fresh colors and clean lines to create a more modern look.
Stephanie tries to evoke motion as you move throughout a house; she wants a flow but for each room to feel like it’s a different space.
If there is a space in your house you aren’t using, you need to design it better.
Designing with kids in mind requires a great deal of practicality and thinking ahead.
A lot of Stephanie’s style was inspired from her time living and working in historic Boston.
Stephanie has an affinity for the autumn and earth tone color palette and often muted colors.
Stephanie talks about her widely shared image of a bookcase behind a tub.
Fun and personality are so important to Stephanie’s brand and her projects.
Second to natural light, Stephanie thinks sconce lighting is the best lighting.
Stephanie tried an old but new trick; painting the trim the same color as the wall.
Tips on designing the “dog chair”.

Mentioned In This Episode:
Stephanie Sabbe on Instagram
Sabbe Interior Design

Decorating Dilemma
Hi Julie!
We love this sofa. As far as furniture layout, we would pull the two wingback chairs back closer to the fireplace and flank them on either side. If you use the storage below the glass shelving often, you could probably angle the chairs in a way so you can still have access. You could definitely add a second sofa; something smaller like a loveseat. Just be sure to consider back height and arm height on the sofa to make sure one doesn’t dwarf the other. Since you already have so many solids, we would try something fun like a bold pattern to make that second piece pop. We like the grey upholstery on the wingbacks and adding a patterned throw pillow. The shelves are hard because of their differences; we like your lamp idea. Another thing we would suggest is taking the art over the fireplace and replacing it with a mirror since you already have artwork over the sofa. You might also consider painting the space; definitely the ceiling coffers. We like creamy white for the whole room. The fireplace has a lot of elements going on and we think if the room were all the same color, it would unify it.
__________________________________________________________________________
How about a rug to ground the seating area? It’s not entirely clear from the pictures, but what if you centered the sofa with the fireplace? You may have to move the piano to the other wall because it feels a bit lopsided having everything on one side of the room. Stephanie agrees with moving the piano and then putting the bookcases behind the piano. Then centering the art and adding two side tables, two table lamps will make that wall feel more symmetrical. If you move the piano and wingback chairs, you have room to put additional chairs in there, as well, to accommodate all the people.
You have a great space and a great start; especially for only 7 months living there! Keep us posted!

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
54 min
November 09, 2020Ep. 166: Nashville Week: Laura Thurman
In this week’s episode, we sit down with interior design expert Laura Thurman of Thurman Design Studio based in Nashville, Tennessee. We chat about how to handle bold, fall colors as well as having pieces of furniture in your living space that create a splash. We also discuss how to balance decor pieces that you may have picked up from different parts of the world with decor pieces that you already have.

What You’ll Hear on This Episode:

Laura’s take on the “modern” style and what it means to her.

How important it is to educate clients on the design process, because most of the time, inspiration comes from education.

How to not be afraid of bold, non-traditionally neutral colors and how to incorporate them into your fall decor.

How Laura takes an outdated house and gives it a much more modern approach without tons of major renovations.

How to utilize gallery walls in your space, and what goes into creating a good one!

How your personality and interests should shine through when it comes to the design of your house, just like in Laura’s Cherokee Soul project.

Design tips for when you have a bold-coloured piece of furniture.

The importance of balancing new and older or collected decor pieces to keep a modern feel to your space.

How to have a balance of scale and not have your space feel too cluttered while allowing your eyes to rest in certain areas.

The three design elements that can spruce up a neutral color palette in a space.

The importance of designing a fabulous powder room.

How to decorate a foyer and give some advice on how to incorporate patterns, coffee tables, and faux plants!

Mentioned In This Episode:

Thurman Design Studio
Laura Thurman on Instagram
Laura Thurman on Facebook
Laura Thurman on Pinterest

Decorating Dilemma

Laura thinks you should paint the whole foyer! Because the walls are faceted, painting just one wall doesn’t seem practical, so go big or go home! When it comes to the rug, Laura thinks a big, round, patterned rug would be best because it would take up more floor space.You should also put the Wedgewood gray on the ceiling and stick to navy on the walls. Laura also doesn’t think the arches should be the same color as the foyer, especially if the arches are introducing a room that is a different color. For having two young kids, we’re all very impressed with how tidy your space is! Keep playing with some more patterns since your sofa and pillows are pretty solid, we recommend swapping out the solid pillows for some patterned ones. We also noticed you don’t have a coffee table and have two square ottomans instead, but we think a bigger, round ottoman would complement your space very well. You should also consider painting the mantle navy blue or a deep green! Some drapes in the dining area would help make everything look a little more cohesive. Some greenery or faux plants would also make your home feel more lived-in and can bring life to a space.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
58 min
November 03, 2020Ep. 165: Peter Pennoyer & Alice Engel
Our special guests this week are renowned architect Peter Pennoyerand the Director of Interior Design of Peter Pennoyer Architects (PPA), Alice Engel. Their work has been featured in Architectural Digest, ELLE Decor, Veranda, Town & Country, and many more. We discuss their love of details and high craftsmanship; especially when they serve a function. We also hear about common mistakes they see from clients, favorite projects and what it’s like to have nearly 10,000 books!
What You’ll Hear on This Episode:
How to balance designing for the particular needs of a family while also designing a space that will last for decades or more. Craftsmanship is the key to longevity.
Ornaments personalize a house and Peter believes it joins art with architecture.
Alice and Peter both find delight in small design details that improve functionality.
PPA’s approach is to work early in the process with a designer and always include the design in the architectural plans.
When meeting with an architect, always have a wish list of how many rooms, and be candid about your lifestyle.
Peter and Alice get real on the biggest mistakes they see from their clients.
Peter opens up about realizing his dream when he designed his house in the Hudson Valley as a square villa.
It’s easy to overdo your design scheme; Peter and Alice remind us that simplistic consistency is often the best approach.
Different ways to bring in and enhance natural light in a house; including “borrowing light”.
The impressive lengths Peter and Alice traveled in order to combine traditional and modern on a house in Ohio that was featured in Architectural Digest.
Why PPA likes to connect to each artisan involved in the process and make it a collaborative process.
How trends and perspectives on design and architecture have been influenced by the pandemic.
PPA has an impressive library of nearly 1o,oo0 books that are central to the office both in design and as a resource.
Why bright red is a color seen throughout PPA’s projects.
Mentioned In This Episode:
Peter Pennoyer Architects
PPA on Instagram
Ohio Home designed by PPA
New York project with copper dome

Find all of the show notes at ballarddesigns.com/podcast

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
1 hr 8 min
October 27, 2020Ep. 164: designer Brigette Romanek
Our guest this episode, Brigette Romanek, is one of LA’s most sought-after designers. Brigette is the founder of Romanek Design Studio and has been featured in Architectural Digest’s “AD 100”, ELLE Decor, Vogue and more. With no formal training, Brigette relies heavily on her intuition and doesn’t believe there are hard rules when it comes to design. We discuss how her one-of-a-kind style is heavily influenced by her musical mother, her travels and her love of eclecticism.
What You’ll Hear on This Episode:
How Brigette went from having no formal training to designing Beyoncé’s home.
Why it’s important to tune in to each individual client’s needs and “speak their language”.
Brigette believes less is more (especially on windows!) and often strays from traditional design elements.
What Brigette means when she says “livable luxe” and why she wants a home to feel functional yet uniquely yours.
When designing a house, a room should be its own vignette but also fit together as a whole.
Lighting is so important, yet difficult, to enhance the overall feeling of a space.
Brigette likes to keep the original character of a building’s architecture and work with it instead of against it.
Brigette’s clients run the gamut of completely hands-off to overseeing each step of the process; and she learns something new each time.
What it was like working with Queen Bey!
One of Brigette’s most challenging projects was working on a commercial project because everyone involved had different ideas.
How Brigette gets away with including a wild card in each of her projects.
Decorating Dilemma
Brigette thinks you can break this up into two separate spaces that will serve as their own vignettes. You can put a rug down when you first walk in to immediately ground the space as well as some curtains to outline a seating area by the window. You could also have a cushion made to go on the bench you already have. As far as the rest of the room, using shelving or bookcases will make a decorative but intentional break in the space. In that middle space you’re not fond of, how about a beautiful table to place vase and even store your keys on? To store your winter clothes and other items, you do have that coat closet that protrudes. Let’s enhance that area and own it so you really love it! You could cover it with a fabric you love, you could paint it, you could change the hardware…play with it. A visit to the Container Store would help organize the inside of it.
__________________________________________________________________________
If we talk about using the things you already own, what if you took the bench you have and put it straight ahead when you walk in and then move the table where the bench is. And then just add Ballard’s double boot tray either right when you walk in or tuck on the backside of the closet. Maybe add hooks above it too? – Karen
And don’t forget to use those high ceilings for some fun lighting!
Mentioned In This Episode:
Romanek Design Studio
Romanek Design on Instagram
Ballard Designs

Find the show notes for this episode at ballarddesigns.com/podcast.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
1 hr 19 min
October 25, 2020Bonus Episode: What We've Learned & Our 4th Anniversary
Today’s bonus episode marks four years since we started the How to Decorate podcast! We talk about our favorite takeaways, tips and tools learned over the years. We are so grateful for all of our wonderful listeners and the amazing guests we’ve had and look forward to way more fun ahead. Listen in for some of our takeaways about treating your room as a vignette, why we aren’t mad at brown furniture, and a little more of the personal ways we’ve grown and changed throughout the past four years.
What You’ll Hear on This Episode:
Your house should be the most glamorous version of yourself.
One of the biggest takeaways we’ve learned is there is no “right” or “wrong” when it comes to design.
Brown furniture was an unexpected key player to emerge.
Tone value is such an important learning tool to apply across the board.
Treating the rooms as vignettes is a simple and manageable way to break up a project.
One of the easiest and most instant ways to change it up? Paint!
The personal changes we’ve all been through since we started the podcast.
Having a plan before you begin helps you reach your full vision and less like you’re never finished.
How much energy is saved using LED lights vs. traditional lightbulbs and all the other things we’ve learned about lighting.
“The Cantaloupe Rule”—no accessories smaller than a cantaloupe!
Performance fabrics will save you many headaches in the long run.
The important relationship between designer and architect.
You should respect and decorate specific to house style while finding ways to infuse other elements.
The relationship between a designer and a client is so personal.
We’ve learned how important measuring is. Or have we? Use our room planner tool!
Contrast brings a space to life; textures, finishes, colors, styles, shapes, etc.
How your wardrobe and personal style can be a reflection of your design style.
We can admire a someone else’s style or approach while not adopting it for ourselves; but there are ways to take elements and apply them towards our own design.
Really study how you live to see if your home is (still) working for you.
You don’t have to buy everything for your room all at once; especially expensive items.

Mentioned In This Episode:
Ballard Designs

Find all of the show notes at Ballarddesigns.com/podcast.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
38 min
October 20, 2020Ep. 163: designer Breegan Jane
In this episode, we sit down with the multi-talented Breegan Jane. She is an LA-based designer, entrepreneur, lifestyle blogger, TV personality, children’s book author, and mother. She’s been featured on HGTV, the Hallmark Channel, and more. We talk with Breegan about using design as a way to keep some order and cleanliness in the house, tips that we can learn from a 23-bathroom house, and how to keep things fresh and new using what we already have while at home with our family.

What You’ll Hear on This Episode:
How Breegan’s impressive and diverse resume has helped to shape her design style and visual expression.
What exactly designing a 23-bathroom house entails.
What kind of tips designers learn from their clients that they use for their own homes.
How Breegan uses design to keep order and cleanliness with two young sons in the house.
Why Breegan insists her 4 and 6-year-old share a bedroom (at least for now).
How you can transition spaces, especially as we are at home more, without buying all new things.
The opportunities and challenges Breegan has faced while working on HGTV’s Extreme Makeover and how she balances work and motherhood.
Breegan talks about her go-to elements for glamour and what she calls “modern approachable luxury” including mixing textures.
In our Decorating Dilemma, we dive deep into modernizing a space with color tones and having faith in the changes your designers suggest.

Mentioned In This Episode:
Breegan Jane
Breegan on Instagram
Breegan on Facebook
Breegan on Twitter
HGTV
Extreme Makeover: Home Edition

Decorating Dilemma
Breegan thinks you know your biggest problem; you just have to be willing to fix it! The color tone in that wood is really dating the space. If you were to paint or stain over those cabinets in white, put two new pendants lights over the kitchen island and add a rug with some color in that space—you would be done! If you (or your husband) are not willing to part with the wood aesthetic, you could paint the kitchen white and try to ebonize the wood with a dark stain. Any color that gets you away from the yellow tone in the wood is really going to modernize it; you could do white, grey, brown or black. You already have a great, neutral style in your home and then you can accent it with any color you want; maybe even some fun bold-patterned drapery. There’s no getting around that dated tone, unfortunately, but you have a beautiful space with wonderful natural light! It may be labor-intensive, but you could do this yourself and it’s not very expensive. In terms of the backsplash? Leave it! You don’t need it and then you can put that money into the other things we recommended. Please report back, Megan!
__________________________________________________________________________
To sort of play devil’s advocate, Caroline thinks you could start by painting the doors, trim and fireplace while leaving the kitchen alone. Breaking up the uniformity of the space will help it look less dated. If you start small, you can get your husband on board with bigger changes.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
1 hr 6 min
October 13, 2020Ep. 162: designer Sara Barney
This week we were pleased to speak with Sara Barney—founder and principal designer of the Austin-based firm BANDD DESIGN. Sara is an Austin native who spent the first 10 years of her career in California in the sports and entertainment industries. Now back on her home turf, she’s taking the design world by storm. Sara was named one of Fortune Magazine‘s Most Powerful Women, one of Austin Monthly‘s Women to Watch, and is a member of the American Society of Interior Designers and the Female Founder Collective.

What You’ll Hear on This Episode:
Much of Sara’s style draws from her varied professional background and from living in California.
Sara decided shortly after having her 2 daughters that she wanted to switch careers and try her hand at design. She took a 1 year online program and her business was booming before she even finished.
We talk about Sara’s approach to styling shelves and her love/hate relationship with floating shelves.
Solids work well for large elements and Sara ties in textures, layers and patterns with smaller pieces.
Sara loves taking risks with wallpaper and shares some of her favorite sources.
The all-white kitchen is a big trend, but Sara prefers playing with colors in the kitchen.
Sara works a lot with young families and gives tips on where she recommends investing in more sturdy, stain-resistant pieces.
3D printed houses are here; and Sara explains how it works and how she got to design one.
What are two of the things everyone is asking Sara for? (matte black fixtures and modern farmhouse)
With people spending more time at home due to COVID, Sara talks about how design requests have been influenced.
Sara talks about best home office solutions and how to make the space not look so “corporate”.
We talk about Sara’s love of and use of deep teal and integrating functional items to fit within the design.
Why one of Sara’s phrases is, “No Schluter ever!”

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
1 hr 13 min
October 06, 2020Ep. 161: designer Markham Roberts
This week, we welcome legendary designer Markham Roberts to talk about his new book, Notes on Decorating. We talk about how his style has evolved, and he shares his knowledge and humor with us. We discuss why practicality is key, how to better combine traditional and modern style, and why his love of hot dogs is unparalleled.
What You’ll Hear On This Episode:
Markham thinks the most important thing is understanding your clients and what makes them happy.
Practicality is key.
Not all decorating is created equal. Markham recommends considering the difference between mountain houses vs. beach houses, country vs. urban, etc., and to choose materials that reflect location, terrain and climate.
When combining traditional and modern styles, Markham thinks there are no rules and it’s best just to DO IT. See what happens and how they relate to each other.
We talk about 3 houses Markham decorated all out West, belonging to 3 clients that were friends, that are very different.
The Nantucket house that Markham decorated truly indulged his creativity. The client’s unique and blunt personality challenged him to make a mix of styles work together.
We love how much Markham uses humor in his approach, and in his book, to enjoy his work. We dive into some of our favorite parts of his book.
Markham tells us how he got creative with a client’s antique pieces so they could be highlighted and not hidden.
We ask Markham about his guidelines on the contrast trend.
Markham talks to us about his love of subtlety, details and the use of simple ticking of fabrics.
We ask Markham for his best nuggets about textiles; don’t always go for the most formal and expensive fabric, play around with them, look at larger samples to really study it.
Markham shares what he loves about one of his personal properties in a small Victorian town in Washington state and how he and his partner, James, have worked for 20 years to make this home truly their own.
Markham tells us why he loves antique quilts and how to be careful when purchasing them.
The only thing that compares to Markham’s love of his dog and tennis, is hot dogs.

Mentioned In This Episode:
MarkhamRoberts.Com
Markham’s Instagram
Notes on Decorating
Decorating the Way I See It

Find all of the show notes at Ballarddesigns.com/podcast.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
1 hr 3 min

About How to Decorate

From the publisher's feed

We want to teach you how to decorate! We'll help you unleash your inner decorator with interviews from interior designers, sharing the trials and triumphs from our own homes, and answering your…