the FRANCIS FILES
Interior Design Blog
Interior Design >
Design History >
Inspiration >
The Meadow Collection: Painterly Floral Wallpaper & Throw Pillows
The Meadow Collection: Painterly Floral Wallpaper & Throw Pillows
The Meadow Collection with Marigold Furniture: painterly floral wallpaper, down throw pillows and 34-inch lumbars, all made in England. Read more...
Lacquered Walls: A Designer's Guide to High Gloss Rooms
Lacquered Walls: A Designer's Guide to High Gloss Rooms
Flat paint sits on the wall. Lacquer pulls you in. What the finish asks of your walls before it rewards you. Read more...
Designer Tips for Bookshelf Styling: The Complete Guide & Best Products
Designer Tips for Bookshelf Styling: The Complete Guide & Best Products
Styled shelves look collected because they follow a method. My 70-30 rule, the step-by-step order I use, and accessories under $300 that work. Read more...
The Best Navy Blue Paint Colors (And How to Use Them)
The Best Navy Blue Paint Colors (And How to Use Them)
Navy does not need more navy. It needs something to push against. The blues I specify and what to put beside them. Read more...
The Best Blush Pink Paint Colors: Grown-Up, Not Girly
The Best Blush Pink Paint Colors: Grown-Up, Not Girly
The word pink scares people into greige. The right blush is one of the most flattering colors you can put in a room. Read more...
How to Create a Whimsical Wildflower Table Setting
How to Create a Whimsical Wildflower Table Setting
A wildflower table I set by the fireplace in West Midtown: colored bud vases and tapers, vintage silver, jacquard napkins and plain white china. Read more...
The 21 Best Bouclé Accent Chairs of 2026: A Designer Guide
The 21 Best Bouclé Accent Chairs of 2026: A Designer Guide
Bouclé has been around since the 1940s. What to look for in the fabric and frame, and the bouclé accent chairs I would buy at every price point. Read more...
Leopard Print Decor: The Guide to Styling Animal Prints at Home
Leopard Print Decor: The Guide to Styling Animal Prints at Home
Leopard is a neutral. How to use it underfoot and in small doses without the room tipping into costume. Read more...
The Clam Chair: A Cozy Icon of Danish Modernism
The Clam Chair: A Cozy Icon of Danish Modernism
The sheepskin Clam Chair in my living room is a guest favorite. The recently uncovered story behind this Danish modern icon and its club-shaped legs. Read more...
How to Make Fabric Panels Using Hollow-Core Doors
How to Make Fabric Panels Using Hollow-Core Doors
How I filled a tall wall in my Midtown apartment without a gallery wall: hollow-core doors wrapped in Lee Jofa Indiennes Stripe and hung on French cleats. Read more...
Beautiful Boudoirs: Transitional Bedroom Rug Ideas
Beautiful Boudoirs: Transitional Bedroom Rug Ideas
How I choose a rug for a transitional bedroom, from sizing under a queen bed to materials and color, with the handmade designs I would put there. Read more...
The Best Sage Green Paint Colors (Without the Minty Mistake)
The Best Sage Green Paint Colors (Without the Minty Mistake)
The line between a dusty sage and a dentist-office mint is thinner than you think. Here is where it falls. Read more...
The Return of Silver and Chrome in Interior Design
The Return of Silver and Chrome in Interior Design
Silver is back after years of brass. Why warmer palettes make chrome and nickel look fresh again, and the difference between polished nickel and chrome. Read more...
Meet the New Cloud Rug + More Cloud-Inspired Decor
Meet the New Cloud Rug + More Cloud-Inspired Decor
Meet the Cumulus Cloud rug, our first Tibetan hand-knotted design, in four colorways, plus cloud-inspired mirrors, art and lighting to go with it. Read more...
From the Archives: A Classic & Contemporary Family Home
From the Archives: A Classic & Contemporary Family Home
Design boards for a family home: a hardworking back entry, a classic contemporary living room, a calm primary bedroom and a bath lifted past builder grade. Read more...
Impressive Entrances: Entry Hall Rug Ideas
Impressive Entrances: Entry Hall Rug Ideas
The entry rug grounds the architecture before anyone takes off a coat. How I choose one for a foyer or a narrow hall. Read more...
The Best Charcoal Gray Paint Colors (and How to Live With One)
The Best Charcoal Gray Paint Colors (and How to Live With One)
Dark walls make a small room feel bigger, not smaller. The charcoals I trust, and how to live with one. Read more...
Why Library Dining Rooms Are the Most Inviting
Why Library Dining Rooms Are the Most Inviting
A room that hosts a meal and houses a collection. Why bookshelves around a table work better than any wallpaper. Read more...
From the Archives: A Neo-Traditional Townhouse Design
From the Archives: A Neo-Traditional Townhouse Design
Design boards from a Beltline townhouse: a neo-traditional living room on an Iconium rug, a custom banquette for a small dining room and a pass-through bar. Read more...
From the Archives: A Serene Bedroom Two Ways
From the Archives: A Serene Bedroom Two Ways
Two schemes for one Ohio client's primary bedroom: cool blues with natural texture, and warm neutrals that mix traditional and modern pieces. Read more...
Simple Fall Tablescape Ideas for Moody Autumn Entertaining
Simple Fall Tablescape Ideas for Moody Autumn Entertaining
My formula for a moody fall table: repeat one accent color twice, pair a loud pattern with a quiet one, and make the centerpiece a third of the table's length. Read more...
Creative Striped Bathroom Tile Inspiration
Creative Striped Bathroom Tile Inspiration
Stripes give a bathroom pattern with restraint. Ten ways to lay them, from a powder room to a primary bath. Read more...
The Best White Paint Colors: 9 Designer-Approved Picks
The Best White Paint Colors: 9 Designer-Approved Picks
Just white is never just white. Nine I have used in real rooms, and what each one does to the light. Read more...
How to Add a Baking Station to Your Kitchen
How to Add a Baking Station to Your Kitchen
A kitchen cart turned into a baking station for extra prep space, with cabinets in Behr Perennial Green, a low-commitment way to try a bold color. Read more...
Hand-painted tropical wall mural with palm trees in green and white bedroom design by Kevin O'Gara on Thou Swell #wallmural #paintedmural #bedroomwall #bedroomdecor #bedroomdesign #tropicaldesign #tropicalwall #tropicalmural
Hand-Painted Tropical Wall Mural
I hand-painted a palm mural in the West Midtown guest room in one day, using sample pots of Magnolia Home paint over KILZ primer. How I sketched and layered it. Read more...
Spring patio design ideas with modern patio furniture sectional and potted garden on Thou Swell #patio #patioideas #patiodesignideas #patiodesign #patiofurniture #homedesignideas #patiodesignideas
Spring Patio Ideas From the West Midtown Townhouse
My mom's West Midtown patio, ready for spring: painted-over red stone, a grey sectional, terracotta pots from Dove Hill and a plan for climbing hydrangea and jasmine. Read more...