I had a choice at the COCOCOZY Design House…be safe or be bold. I chose to be bold when it came to the rear balcony of the house. Design house partner Cement Tile Shop helped me take my new found design boldness to a new level. They came on board and provided us with everything we needed for tiling exterior spaces. I used Cement Tile Shop Bordeaux IV pattern in neutral colors on the balcony and front entrance.

You have seen the front walkway several times on Instagram and here on the blog…today, I’m so excited to share with how this outdoor space on the back of the house looks with the new tile.

Monogram is one of our most amazing COCOCOZY Design House partners.  They gave us all of the fabulous kitchen and laundry room appliances for the Design House. We’ve come a long way since I first wrote about Monogram, GE’s high-end line of appliances that are all pro chef quality.

Time for a little update on the master bathroom at the COCOCOZY Design House. It feels like just yesterday the bathroom design started and we’re already finishing up. Now that we are almost complete with the baths, time for a little sneak peek!

Remember what the bathrooms used to look like? Every bathroom at the COCOCOZY Design House looks great now with all of the TOTO plumbing fixtures.  Bright and clean, these bathrooms are coming together great and are giving me serious bathroom envy. TOTO provided all of the amazing sinks, faucets, shower and bath hardware, tubs and toilets for the Design House.

This week’s Picture of the Week is this amazing wrought iron gate and stunning green front door designed by Wendy Haworth in Los Angeles. I love doors and I love iron gates. And this photo has both in one!

Bright and welcoming when combined with the white exterior wall, I love the green paneled door and the ornate ironwork. The detail of the ironwork is an intricate design of scroll panels with a round wrought iron top. Ornamental fencing is a great to add detail to your home’s entrance. This Beverly Hills home is giving serious entrance inspiration and vision.

I recently set a holiday lunch table out in my garden. Have you ever wondered how to style a holiday table when entertaining guests? I live in Southern California so it doesn’t exactly look like the holiday season for those in the East Coast or in colder places, but since it’s so nice outside, I had to take advantage of the weather outside during the holidays.

It was warm outside (around 53), but I still had heat lamps just in case. You never know how cool it can get in the evening. Here’s how I style a holiday table using a traditional plaid.

I absolutely love this green trellis sitting room in Sara Ruffin Costello’s New Orleans home. I visited this house during design showcase years ago and stood in this very room and loved it. So much fun running upon it again!

Some of the ways to decorate your space inspired by this look.

The dilemma remains–rug v no rug in the dining room. I am trying to decide what to do at my house. Currently, I do not have a rug under the dining table. I always thought it was weird to have food over any soft surface other than hardwood, stone or tile, but lately all these fabulous dining rooms with rugs under the table changing my mind. Dining tables rugs ground the space are, and they’re winning me over.

Let’s decide on rug or no rug. Here are a bunch of great dining rooms: some with a rug under the table, some without. Which do you think looks better of these fabulous dining rooms. I found a few great ones with rugs under the table and a few without.

If I had to describe my style, it’s a mix of traditional and modern, so I love a rustic modern home. This home from Kate Marker Interiors is the perfect combination of bright and neutral. Tall ceilings and larger than life chandeliers define this rustic home.

From the exteriors to the foyer, the continued color scheme throughout sets the tone for this beautiful house tour.

Take a look below!

Just in time for Halloween, I bought a few pumpkins the other day in a plan to decorate for fall. But as I brought them home, I noticed they clashed with the other colors. The orange didn’t really match my house so I decided to just changed the color of the pumpkins!

I decided on a hunter green, mist green and a powdery blue for my little pumpkins. And it worked out. This little pumpkin makeover perfectly matched my decor.

Check out how I did it below! If you’re looking for a jack-o-lantern how to…I took a much simpler route to making these pumpkins my own!

Who says small spaces can’t do great things? This small apartment from Martin Brudnizki Design Studio proves big things can come from a well thought-out space.

Martin Brudnizki carefully designed this eclectic space, where almost every surface is covered with framed art including the kitchen cabinets. Such a cool use of a small space and making walls tell a story. Notice all the unique and perfectly blended artwork throughout the space working with and enhancing the open layout.

I have a dilemma at the COCOCOZY Design House that I am renovating. The living room is extremely long and I couldn’t find the right placement for things because the layout makes furniture arrangement difficult.

That is until I recently found this long living room designed by Amanda Barnes Interiors and shot by Alyssa Rosenheck. This design works out the space just fine. Love the two long dueling pale pink velvet sofas mirroring each other at one end and the seating group at the other with leather and brass chairs and a fiddle leaf fig.

This design makes great use of the space in a long living room. Light and airy, this is definitely an inspiration for my reno project decor.  Thank you Amanda and Alyssa!

The COCOCOZY Design House is coming along. This is the back patio. With new stucco, a fresh coat of paint and lovely cement tile from Cement Tile Shop we have transformed this outdoor area.  We did the same to the front walkway that I showed you a bit of last week.  The design house is a 1930 Spanish Colonial style house in Los Angeles’ View Park neighborhood.  I wanted to honor the architectural history of the home while also providing a little bit of a trendy twist – this cement tile did just that for both the front and the back hardscape area.  Want to see what it looked like before?  Well read on…

I am dreaming of a good weekend.  Are you?  This is my courtyard just before dusk…the perfect late afternoon light. Weekend in sight.  Also, in sight, is the hot pink metallic painted exterior of my neighbor’s house. Never could I have imagined I would move in next to a nice neighbor with a bright pink house.  So very Los Angeles. Now that I have lived here for over a year, I can’t imagine not having a pink house right next door. You can’t write the script of your life because you can never imagine what is in store for you.  You just have to live it.  What’s your view this Friday?

I was so thrilled when some early preview photos of the COCOCOZY Design House in progress came into my inbox the other day.  I was particularly excited about this shot featuring the front door painted in Benjamin Moore’s Newburg Green. My dear friend and fab realtor Samantha Nugent, who will be the listing agent when we put the COCOCOZY Design House on the market, decided to have some professional photos taken of the house while it is still under construction.  A professional photographed preview.  I was reticent to show any part of the house in progress  There are still.lots of rough edges as we are still several weeks away from finishing things up. This photo of the front door brought me out my don’t-show-too-much attitude.  We took the fabulous old existing door from this 1930 Spanish Colonial and brought it back to life with some sand paper, elbow grease, a fantastic paint color and a lot of love.  You won’t believe what it looked like before. Today I am all about this front door makeover!

I need to brag about my dear friend Linda Grasso for a second.

Linda is the editor of Los Angeles magazine Ventura Blvd and the host of the SheSez with Linda Grasso podcast. She is a veteran journalist who interviews fascinating women about their bold, innovative, and sometimes badass moves. She and her husband Charlie recently remodeled the kitchen in their fantastic Encino home. They’ve lived in the house for years and have raised their sons there.

A little background, Linda and I go way back. We both worked at E! Entertainment Television, where we became friends after working on a project together. She has since been a fabulous confidant and consistent sounding board over the years! You may remember when she interviewed me on her podcast — which you can catch up on by clicking here.

Anyway, I went over to Linda’s house right before the remodel to have lunch with her and to brainstorm with her about fixtures, counters, the works. I loved her old kitchen… it had a Tuscan or French country feel to it. Linda and Charlie were ready for a change, though. This whole project started as an interior paint refresh, but it turned into a whole new kitchen. Like me, she is an avid cook and entertainer — so I understand her desire to create an inviting place that she’s proud of.