Twitter Chat with John Gidding, and a HUGE Giveaway!

R Chan

How do you make a room functional for kids, yet designed well? I feel as though most rooms are not kids friendly.

Kate

I have a small Cape style home and currently have all valances for window treatments. I have always felt that my rooms were too small for more dramatic draperies but want to change things up. I need privacy and light control but blinds seems so generic. Any ideas?

Jennifer Hamilton

I have been in the process of painting pieces of furniture. What is the best type of paint for that and what process do you recommend? Thanks!

Vanessa

How do I get rid of textured paint? It feels like there’s sandpaper on my walls!

Amy K

How do you maintain a balance of feminine and masculine when decorating?

Ashley

I have a 40’s era home and I’m currently modernizing my kitchen (getting stainless appliances ect) how do I do that without losing character?

Tanya

I’d like to hear your suggestions on how to improve a 70s brick ranch curb appeal?

Holly

A fabulous giveaway- thanks so much to Nicole for setting it up, and her blog, which has been a great resource!

One thing that has been a challenge in decorating our new home, is incorporating our cats- we have 4! Any ideas on how I can make sure they have proper scratching posts, litter boxes, etc without sacrificing the design of my home?

Genavee

For rooms that need to be multipurpose (like a studio apartment) what is the best way to make different areas mesh well, while still keeping some feeling of separation?

Intisar

Our famliy room is next up on our DIY house renovations. It has paneling and half wall of brick surrounding the fireplace. We have painted the paneling, which helps for that wall. But the brick wall and floor really irks me. How would we go about removing this, and what should we expect underneath?

Allie

How do you make a high-ceiling room not seem so sterile? Our master bedroom has a pitched ceiling and the room feels very impersonal. It’s pretty square, windows on the one end, door on the other. There just seems to be so much wall and ceiling and I don’t know how to warm it up without making it cluttered.

Sarah R.

What is the best way to add light to a dark living room without a bright color paint?

Lindsey

What never goes out of fashion in home decor? I see new trends all the time and I wonder what I should buy furniture wise that won’t seem dated two years later.

Claudia

offset walls – we have an S shaped wall between our living room and kitchen/dining room, and it is load bearing. How do we go about un-offseting it and make both rooms bigger, and obviously, deal with the load bearing issue?

Stephanie

I live in an apartment and have slowly been adding pieces that I love and getting the decor the way that I love it. Problem is, I’m most attracted to more minimalist spaces, but I’m also attracted to so many little things here and there. How do you keep things clean, simple, sophisticated, and not-cluttered? Do you rotate accessories?

Michelle

I would love ideas on inexpensive window treatments for “Ranch” style windows – the ones that are placed high and rectangle shaped. I hate the ugly vertical blinds we inherited…
Thanks!

Julie T

We have a double master bedroom, and it is huge (think master and another bedroom)…but even with our bedroom furniture in there, there seems to be a lot of empty space (in the area where the 2nd room would have been)…any suggestions on how to fill it without creating a bunch of clutter?

Laurie

How do you accomplish exterior updates without spending a fortune in labor and materials?

I have a 1920s colonial and it needs a bit of a curb-side update, but I want to respect the lovely bones and beautiful mature trees.
Thanks!

Laurie, Upstate NY

Kim L

Hi!  My question is regarding handing curtains.  I’m trying to finally decorate my bedroom in my new apartment, and I’m having an issue with hanging up curtains.  The window in my bedroom spans the full length of the wall, so there is no room to hang a curtain rod on the wall, since there is no wall space next to the window, only the wood paneling window border.  How would you suggest I hang curtains, or is it a lost cause?  Thanks!

lilia

What rule should I follow when it comes to decorate a wall with a lot of pictures, prints, etc? The same color frame for all of them? How many is too many? Thanks!

Heather

What do you think is the single most important statement to make in the entryway of a home?

Jenna

What’s the best way to design around the tall windows that are common in older (90+ years) that extend closer to the floor than in more modern homes? I can’t figure out the best way to place furniture without partially blocking the lower part of the window.

Mama Nailah

John,
What inspires your designs? How do you strive to make your products stand out and have better quality and durability than others in the market?

Rachel

We’re thinking of knocking down a wall in between our living and dining room to open up the space and create more options for arranging our furniture. Is this a no-no in turn-of-the-century home? Do we need to retain the character of the home by leaving the rooms smaller?

Whitney

My husband and I recently moved into a loft. No closets. Huge open space. 1200 sq. feet with a 38 foot wall of windows.

Do you have tips for storage and dealing with the open floor plan? Thanks!!

Amy

I love all types of styles and colors, vintage, comtemporary, retro, romantic, etc. I’m having trouble making them all work together in my home. Any suggestions on how to mix it up while keeping everything complimentary???

Jayme

I have a bult in corner “fireplace” in our apartment, it was never a real fireplace, but it did have one of those old gas radiators. I have no idea what to do with the space. I’m baffled. The shelves to display my owl collection well though…but what about the rest?!

Karen

Our master bedroom is tiny and our bed is huge. What kind of bed side tables do you recommend. Or is their an alternative way to give my husband a storage place so he can store his things?

Thanks again for all of your creativity.

Robyn

Our two-story Money Pit was built in the early 80s. It is Tudor-style, but throughout the major renovation process over the years, we are very slowly transforming it into a French country inspired shabby cottage, mostly DIY. The current stair bannisters are light wood, and I hate them. There is a bannister rail going up the length of the stairs on the wall, and on the other side there is only bannister from where the wall stops down to the foyer floor. Should we replace them with something else (*But what?*) or refinish them? I am at a loss. Thanks!

Jen

I hate gold-trimmed mirrored closet doors, and they are everywhere in my house. Unfortunately, we need the doors on the closets. How do I improve upon them?

Colleen

My husband and I are planning on remodeling our kitchen (painting cabinets, removing cabinets and installing floating shelves, changing doors to add glass to them, etc etc). He wants to tile the floor in the kitchen. I want to carry the hardwood from the rest of the house into the kitchen, to keep things flowing nicely.
Any advice? Pros and cons to tile/hardwood in the kitchen? Thanks!

Jenny

Book storage/display. What are the best options for that – bookshelves, etc. Some good, reasonably priced ones would make my day. And if they are plain how to dress them up?

Melissa

I rent an apartment and would love any tips for creating a welcoming space in a TINY bedroom with little to no storage opportunities (read: one closet for the whole house that would better accommodate a mop and broom). I don’t have hundreds of dollars to spend on solutions for this temporary living space, but I also don’t enjoy feeling like a squished sardine in a room I’d rather have as an oasis!

Laurie

We are expecting our first child in February. I would love to get some tips on arranging/defining/organizing a space for our little one in our one bedroom apartment.

Joi

What’s one color you always like to infuse into a room?

carol

my sister has a brick fireplace and I would really love to paint it for her to brighten up the room… I was leaning towards white, but not sure what color white to get or if we should go with something that’s completely different? (her walls are an off white/neutral color and her base boards are white)

April D.

I’ve been obsessed with turquoise shades for about 2 years now. I’ve found a few that I would like to paint on my bedroom walls. However, I’m afraid it will be too dark for my liking even though the bedding and curtains are white. Do you recommend painting in colors you love or staying neutral with the paint and using accessories to decorate in the stronger colors?

Janelle

We just moved into our new house and there is a lot of closet space, but a lack of shelving. How do I organized them to maximize my storage capabilities?

Thanks!!!

Val

I’m in need of a new kitchen floor. So much in need that I have duct tape over a section of the floor! Eeeek! What kind of flooring is affordable & still looks nice? Is it easy enough to install myself or would I need to hire someone?

Eileen

How do you decorate a living/common area while keeping things baby/child friendly?

Bethany

Half my house has white trim, and half has wood. Is it okay to have mixed trim colors, or do you recommend going all white to make things more seamless? Will white trim go out of style? It seems pretty trendy right now…

Alana

I’ve fallen into the blue-blue-blue thing with my bedroom decor. Deep oceany-teal headboard, light blue linens, blue patterned curtains. I grew up near the beach and like my bedroom to be light and airy, but am resisting adding yet another shade of blue to the walls. Any suggestions that won’t go dark (not that I’m scared of dark) but will still keep it light and airy that are not blue?

And do people actually paint their walls white anymore? :)

MRG

*Crossing Fingers*

Hanna

Is there one store that you would love to buy everything from – if you could?

katie

what are your thoughts on painting dark wood trim white?

Robin (noteverstill)

I’m having a color problem. We’re painting over the previous owner’s bad choices one room at a time. We painted the family room, including its high cathedral ceiling, a very deep teal: Duron’s Cote d’Azur. We painted the living room a pale grayish purple: Duron’s Vesper Violet. The two rooms are at opposite ends of the house on a diagonal and not visible from each other. However, now I’m ready to paint the hallway areas that do run into both colors. Can you recommend a color choice? I’d love a pale neutral gray more than a cream, I think, but I’m open to any suggestions.

Andrea

Do you have any advice for making a tiny bathroom (3’x10′!) appear larger?

Stacy

Our home has little natural light. Can you give me some inexpensive and creative ideas and tips to make a space lighter and brighter when there is not enough natural light?

Erin

What are three great design tips or ideas for making a rental house feel like a home without being able to paint!

Amanda

I’d like to know, what paint colors make rooms seem bigger? Are there any colors to avoid when painting a small space?

Thanks!