Advice Archive | August 2025

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August 31st
- Don't Ask AI, Ask an Interior Designer — The Perfect Blue Paint, Balancing Deep Browns and the Golden Rule for Colors
- 5 Back-To-School Organizing Tasks to Reset Your Home After the Summer Holidays
August 30th
- Here's Why Your Open Plan Layout Isn't Actually Working — 5 Mistakes You're Probably Making and How to Fix Them
- These 7 Everyday Problems With Kitchen Cabinets Drive People Crazy — Here's Which of Them You Can Fix Yourself
- I Write About Sleep for a Living, This Is the One Surprisingly Common Thing I’d Never (Ever) Do in My Bedroom After Talking to Sleep Experts for Years
August 29th
- 5 Unexpected Exterior Wall Colors That Will Bring a Dull Garden to Life — And Extend the Feeling of Summer a Little Longer
- I Asked Professional Home Organizers for Their 'Organizing Icks' — These Are the 9 That They Say They Can't Stand
August 28th
- The ‘Hidden Hue’ Rule Is Possibly Why Your Neutral Color Scheme Doesn’t Look Right — And It’s So Easy to Fix When You Know How
- Wait, Why Do My Plants Move at Night? 10 Houseplants That Do It, and the Reason Why
- How Interior Designers (Secretly) Use Curtains to Make a Room Look Bigger
August 26th
- Don't Redecorate Yet! Well, Until You Understand How Dominant and Recessive Colors Work — What You Need to Know About 'Color Saliency'
August 25th
- Short on Cabinet Space? You Only Really Need These Two Types of Cocktail Glass to Seem Like a Good Host, an Elite Bartender Tells Me
- What Colors Make a Room Look Bigger? 5 That Designers Reach for to Make Walls 'Visually Expand'
- As a Baker, These Are the Oven Features I'm Manifesting for My Next Kitchen (and Now You'll Want Them, too)
August 24th
- The Pipes on My Garden Walls Were an Eyesore — Until I Found These Clever and Stylish Ways to Disguise Them
- Hold Up, Is 'Biphasic Sleep' the Answer to Sleeping Better in the Summer? Why I'm Taking Up the Midday Nap
August 23rd
- I Always Close My Curtains Before I Go on Holiday, But These Security Experts Just Gave Me a Good Reason Why It’s a Bad Idea
- 5 Types of Tropical Houseplants for a Home That Feels Like Summer, All-Year Round
August 22nd
- My Mom Told Me This Supermarket Herb Is a Brilliant Natural Pest Repellent for Your Outdoor Table — And It Looks Great While Doing It
- Not Just for Your Suitcase, Here Are 5 Ways You Can Use Your Packing Cubes to Organize Your Home Once Your Holiday Is Over
- No More Awkward Leaning or Straining to Hear Each Other — Here's How to Arrange Garden Furniture so People Actually Stay and Talk
August 21st
- 5 Mistakes You're Making With Your Garden's Firepit — From Placement to Materials, There Are a Few Things You'll Want to Keep in Mind
- Stop! Step Away From the Paintbrush — Here's 4 Things Interior Designers Would Never, Ever Paint Around the Home
- My Bathroom Has Been So Hot Lately, so I Reached Out to Experts to See How I Could Keep It Cool — Even During Summer Weather
August 20th
- How to Design a Good Patio — 6 Ways to Elevate Your Outdoor Living Space Without Having to Do Too Much
- 'Moonlighting' Is the Beautiful, Subtle Way to Light Your Garden at Night That All the Best Landscapers Use
- Undressed Water Features Are Boring — So, Here Are 5 Aquatic Plants to Add to Your Water Feature to Up Its Style Points
August 19th
- Oh, so It's This Nature-Inspired Color Rule That's the Reason Your Home's Scheme Doesn't Feel Like It's Working
- Forget What Color You Paint the Walls, It's the Flooring That Does the 'Quiet' Work in Making Your Room Feel Bigger — Here's How
- "The Upkeep Is Endless and Exhausting" — 5 Design 'Dirt Magnets' That Professional Cleaners Tell Me They'd Never Have in Their Own Homes
August 18th
- No More of These, Please — 4 Outdated Window Treatments Designers Don't Want to See You Using Anymore
- So It Turns Out, I Suffer From ‘Design Fixation’ — Psychologists Explain What It Is, Why It's Holding Your Interiors Back, and How to Get Over It
- No Shame, These 5 Types of Mess Are Prevalent in Most Homes — Here's How You Can Turn It Around for a Neater Space
August 17th
- 4 Front Door Design Mistakes You've Made That Are Probably Ruining Your Home's Curb Appeal
- Design, Debated — Is It Ever Considered Acceptable to Paint Antique Furniture?
- 'Sleep Divorce' Might Be the Saviour of Your Sleep (and Relationship) — Here's How It Can Be Done, Even If You Don't Have Separate Bedrooms
August 16th
- Decking Too Hot to Walk on Barefoot? These 4 Hacks Will Solve This Problem for Good
- 5 Common Kitchen Cabinet Problems Experts Always See, and What You Should Do Instead
- Why Your Garden Lounger Always Feels Better Positioned If It's Under a Tree — Hint: There's Science Behind It
August 15th
- 4 Garden Designs That Look Great on Pinterest, but Just Don't Work With the UK's Climate
- Afraid of Color, but Want to Incorporate More of It in Your Home? Here's How to Get Over Your 'Chromophobia'
August 14th
- What to Put in Your Sun Trap — 5 Seamless and Elegant Ideas for Your Garden's Sunniest Spots
- Should Doors and Trim be the Same Color? In 2025, Here's What Designers Are Doing
August 13th
- Wait, What? Interior Designers List an Off-White in Their Cheat Sheet of the Best Farrow & Ball Green Paint Colors — Here's Why
- 5 Possible Reasons You're Not Decluttering — And How to Overcome Your Specific Roadblock
August 11th
- Wait, There's a Difference Between a Hue, Tint, Tone, and Shade? Here's How to Talk About Color the Right Way
- Suddenly, Short Curtains Have Got My Attention in the 'Long vs Short Curtain' Debate
- How to Master 'Sleep Hygiene' — And Plan Your Way Into a Healthy Rest Routine
August 10th
- How to Keep Your Pantry Cool During Sweltering Weather — And Keep Your Produce Its Best Despite the Heat
- How to Organize a Six-Drawer Dresser — A Blueprint to Follow on What You Should Store in Each Compartment
August 9th
- I've Just Discovered the Concept of 'Digital Minimalism' — Now, I Want to Rid My Life of Its Virtual Clutter
August 8th
- 5 Exterior Paint Mistakes to Avoid If You Don't Want Your House to Become the Worst-Looking on the Street
- Bought Something New, Now Hate Everything Else in Your Home? You're Not Alone — It's Called the 'Diderot Effect', and This Is Why It Happens
- A Landscaper Told Me They Always Paint Fences in Small Gardens This Unexpected Color — Here's Why
- Wait, My Sleep Obsession Might Be Causing Me to Lose Rest? Meet Orthosomnia, the Tech-Stress Affliction Everybody's Talking About
August 7th
- How to Hide Bins in a Front Garden — A Designer Gives Us the Lowdown on Disguising These Eyesores
- If You Don't Know the '18-Inch Seating Rule', It's What Could Be Making Your Living Room Feel Cramped, Unwelcoming, and Uncomfortable
- "I'm a Water Feature Designer, and This Is Everything to Know About Building a 'Rill' in Your Garden"
- 5 Types of Indoor Hoya That Will Brighten Up Your Home and Add a Burst of Leafy Greenness
August 6th
- Is My Patio Out of Proportion? How to Find the Perfect Balance of Paving and Planting in Your Garden
- When It Comes to Creating 'Color Harmony' in Your Home, These 8 Rules Will Ensure You Get It Right Every Time
- What Is the Pile Decluttering Method? Well, It's All in the Name and Perfect for When You're Planning to Move House
August 5th
- Wait, All Frothed Milk Isn't the Same? These Are the Methods for Different Coffee Types, and the Piece of Kit I'd Always Choose as an Ex-Barista
- Should You Put a Sofa in the Kitchen? Yes, but Only In These Specific Fabrics, Designers Warn
- What Is the 10-3-2-1-0 Rule for Sleep? These Schedule Guidelines Will Help You Spot Your Very Worst Sleep Habits
August 4th
- Please, No More 'Builder Beige' — Discover the Most Outdated Exterior Paint Colors in 2025
- What Color Rooms Actually Look Good With Houseplants? These Are the Secrets to Making Color Theory Work With Your Plant Choice
August 3rd
- 5 Drawbacks of a South-Facing Garden That Not Enough People Talk About — They're Not All Fun in the Sun
- Stop, There's a Difference Between a 'Turntable' and 'Record Player'? Here's Why They're Not the Same Thing, and Which You Should Get
- 4 Things Never to Put in Your Garden's 'Suntrap' — And What to Swap Them for If You've Made Any of These Mistakes
- How to Make a Small Room Look Bigger With Wallpaper — 9 Tricks That Are Like 'Spatial Sorcery'
August 2nd
- How Wide Curtains Should *Technically* Be, and What Looks Best Aren't Always the Same — Here's How to Get the Latter
- 5 Mistakes You're Making That Make Patio Heaters Less Effective — Or, at Worst, Actually Pretty Dangerous
- How to Store Knives in a Kitchen Without Cluttering Your Counters — Alternatives to Knife Blocks That Are Way More Stylish
August 1st
- How to Keep a Kitchen Cool — And the 5 Reasons Yours Is Overheating in the Summer