Our 10 Most Popular Posts of 2016

Whew, what a year 2016 has been! Before we officially ring in 2017, we thought it only fitting to look back through some of our best posts here on How to Decorate.

Use a series of paintings to fill a blank wall in a living room

1. 10 Ways to Fill a Blank Wall

We get this question almost more than any other in our Decorating Dilemmas column. What do to with a big expanse of wall space is tricky because the options are endless! We’re answering that question in this post with 10 different ways to turn that blank wall into a focal point.

2016 Southern Living Idea House in Mt. Laurel outside of Birmingham, Alabama

2. Tour the 2016 Southern Living Idea House

We always love getting to share the fantastic spaces of the 2016 Southern Living Idea House here on How to Decorate. This year, a group of designers from across the southeast celebrated the 50th Anniversary of Southern Living by designing some spectacular spaces that showcase that iconic Southern Living style we’ve all come to know and love about the magazine.

Interior designer Ashley Gilbreath's entryway in the 2016 Southern Living Idea House

3. Ashley Gilbreath’s Foyer in the 2016 Southern Living Idea House

The foyer of the 2016 Southern Living Idea House in Mt. Laurel, Alabama was a showstopper, and we can’t help but want to take in all the gorgeous details again!

Lies we tell in our catalog about the rooms you're seeing

4. 10 White Lies We Tell in Our Catalog

You only see the clean, stylishly decorated rooms that are published in the catalog, but we wanted to give you the real scoop on how these spaces are created. Take a behind-the-scenes look at what goes into making our rooms catalog ready, and what things we fudge a little.

How to arrange your porch with chairs and a loveseat

5. 15 Ways to Arrange Your Porch

Our philosophy is that outdoor spaces should be treated with as much care and attention as your indoor spaces. A beautiful porch can transform the way you live in your home, so we offered up lots of different ways to create your ideal porch or patio.

Use a leggy tufted ottoman in a small room that already has heavy furniture pieces

6. 10 Living Rooms without Coffee Tables

Ottomans are a fantastically functional piece of furniture that often get overlooked for coffee tables. Maybe it’s time you conside red an upholstered piece for your living or family room. Here are 10 spaces that do just that!

How to pronounce the word cachepot

7. 10 Home Decor Words You’re Probably Mispronouncing

With so many home decor words coming from various languages, it’s no surprise so many of us mispronounce common words. Here are 10 words you may be mispronouncing, but we’ve got you covered with a pronunciation key for each.

How much do you know about interior design? Test your knowledge

8. Quiz: How Big a Design Buff Are You?

You love design, constantly redecorate your home, and love browsing home decor ideas — but how well do you really know your stuff? We created this quiz to test your design knowledge and reveal just how big a design buff you really are!

3 Super Chic Summer Bedrooms

9. 3 Super Chic Summer Bedrooms

When we think of summer, we think of a slower pace — enjoying the weather from your front porch, afternoon walks, sleeping in just a bit later (one can only hope!), reading in bed. We want all of those places for relaxation, especially bedroom, to feel inviting, light, open, and carefree. We thought we’d pull together 3 pretty bedrooms that capture that casual, chic summer vibe.

Eddie Ross' dining room in Ballard Designs Summer catalog

10. Entertaining with Eddie Ross

If you’re a trained chef and you’ve worked for Martha (yes, that Martha), then chances are you know a thing or two about entertaining. We got a chance to ask expert Eddie Ross, who also designed three beautiful rooms for our Summer catalog, for a few tips on the art of entertaining.

Alright, those were our top 10 posts of 2016. We’ll see you next year with even more decorating inspiration and ideas.

Did you like this post and find it helpful? Rate it below and share your thoughts in the comments.

Caroline McDonald

Caroline lives for pairing together patterns, mixing furniture styles, and oogling over our newest furniture pieces. As you can imagine, her little 1920's craftsman is in a constant state of flux. Here on How to Decorate, it's her goal to help you turn your home into your own little slice of paradise.

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  1. Reply

    Yvonne Zhu

    December 31, 2016

    I love the dinning set in the picture in #8 Quiz. Is that from Ballard? if so, can you tell me which ones? thanks

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