When Carolyn Leonhardt and her husband, Ted, sold their Seattle-based graphic design business more than a decade ago, she had no idea she would find herself in the home design/renovation business. After successfully remodeling three small cottages in the Napa Valley, word got out and she found herself with several clients looking for help with their renovations. Carolyn's remodels are not lavish affairs, but they're sensibly and tastefully refurbished and have taught her where to spend and where to save. How does she pull it off?  As she tells us, “I study the space to understand how it does and does not work and try to use what is there when possible. Sometimes cosmetic work is enough—new cabinets, new appliances, etc. Other times, major surgery is required, but careful planning and smart choices can keep costs down.” Read on to learn Carolyn's secrets:

Photography by Douglas Sterling.

Above: One of the small 1920s cottage renovated by Carolyn. Here she opened up the roof and added French doors with transom windows above to let light into the living room.

1. Pay attention to the foundation. If you are buying a house, ask the agent about setbacks and lot coverage. Not every house is expandable. Always examine the foundation before you buy, as replacement is costly and disruptive. Usually it's most cost effective to maintain the footprint and envelope of the existing building.

2. I like to make at least one spectacular change. I think the biggest bang for the buck is to open up a ceiling. If you have an attic or a pitched roof, it's likely that you can open it up. It's not cheap, but it's life changing.

Above: The doors in this small three-bedroom cottage are the standard 7 feet but the ceiling was opened up to 15 feet at the highest point to provide a greater sense of space.

3. Keep the same size windows if possible. That said, you can also make a spectacular change with really big windows or French doors. Increasing natural light is always a good investment. If you have single glass windows—even if they're in decent shape—it may be worth replacing them with insulated windows, which will save money on heating and cooling and also help reduce sound.

4. If possible, use existing plumbing locations. In the UK and Canada, plumbing is on the outside of the building, but in the US it is in the walls, so changing it requires much more work. (Many houses have a crawl space, or a basement, which makes plumbing and wiring more accessible.)

5. Insulate all exterior walls and ceilings. If you open up any internal walls, put in insulation, particularly around bedrooms and bathrooms. It's cheap and it helps reduce sound.

Above: Custom cabinets in the kitchen with a marble countertop.  An existing window size was kept above the sink and replaced with double-paned glass.

6. If you can afford it, buy custom cabinets. If you're on a budget, Ikea cabinets are a great buy.

7. A word about countertops—remember resale. Spend a little extra money here. The newest quartz (Caesarstone and Silestone, for example) products include many lovely and discrete options. Also, IKEA still sells great, well-priced Numerar butcher block counters.

8. Unless you are a serious cook, or money is no object, don't buy an expensive commercial-style range and fridge. There are many mid-priced, great-looking appliances out there. Appliances are standard sizes, so start with what you can afford, you can always move up later. Save your money for custom cabinets and countertops.

9. There's a trend now to make kitchens and bathrooms enormous. They are also the most expensive rooms to build. Neither room needs to be huge, but they should be nicely done . A nice touch in a shared bathroom is a separate room for the toilet. It can be pretty small, but include a window if you can, and if not, add an exhaust fan.

10. Buy a good toilet—the new ones are quiet and use less water. Be sure to check reviews, as most showrooms don’t have working models. The Toto Drake ($243 at Amazon) is a favorite of mine. Dual flush models are a good option.

11. Custom glass shower doors cost about $1,500. Great-looking shower curtains cost next to nothing, and you can change them out regularly to get a new look. Plus, you don’t have to squeegee them every time you take a shower.

Above: A small pass through leading to the kitchen was turned into a study painted a dark color to make it feel bigger.

12. I'm a natural light freak and also a big fan of incandescent lighting, though this is no longer P.C. The good news is that CFL's and LED's have come a long way in the last few years. I use dimmers (almost) everywhere. It adds dollars to a project, but lets you completely control the lights. Many CFL's are also dimmable now, as are LED's.

13. Don’t overlook the big hardware stores as a source for materials and inspiration. Home Depot has Velux skylights, Daltile, Kohler cast iron bathtubs and sinks, and a pretty decent selection of kitchen and bathroom faucets.

14. Spend money on door hardware, light fixtures, and faucets. Think of it as jewelry for the home.

15. Last, but not least, never underestimate color. Paint has the power to transform. It is fast (immediate gratification), and even the good stuff is relatively inexpensive, and a careful amateur can do a good job. Hate your house? Try paint first.

 Interested in seeing one of Carolyn's houses? Go to Spring Street Cottage in St. Helena.

Even in the "white kitchen" category, there are endless material and finish options, which means there's plenty of room to maneuver and make your own mark. Here are ten of note from our Remodelista Architect/Designer Directory.

Above: London designer Charles Mellersh mixes textures with honed marble and white ceramic tiles. See Designer Visit: Charles Mellersh in London for more.

Above: Gast Architects combines a painted wood paneled back splash with a marble countertop in this San Francisco kitchen.

Above: Platt Dana Architects use tiles from Cheryl Hazan Mosaic to create a textured wall in this white kitchen in a New York apartment. See The Architect is In: Making the Most of Your Floor Plan to see how the architects maximized the space in this apartment for a busy family of five.

 Above:  San Francisco-based Nicole Hollis uses cabinets to add a tone of gray in an otherwise all-white kitchen. 

Above: Medium Plenty introduces warmth into the kitchen with a wood counter top for the island.

Above: Stone Interiors uses a gray veined marble for both the counter tops and the back splash in this Pacific Heights kitchen in San Francisco. Contemplating marble but worried about upkeep and maintenance? Consult My Dirty Secret, or How I Learn to Live with a Marble Back Splash to learn the secrets to marble maintenance.

Above: In a New York loft, Wettling Architects retained the 100 year old industrial columns and beams in this modern, white kitchen.

Above: New York designer Elizabeth Bolognino introduces open wood shelves into a white modern kitchen in a Colorado townhouse.

Above: New York-based design build firm Leone Design Studio adds high contrast to this white kitchen with a black chalkboard.

Above: Using wood shelves and a concrete sink, Medium Plenty creates a bar out of a sliver of space by the stairs to the kitchen.

In the market for an architect or a designer? See the Remodelista Architect/Designer Directory and your search will soon be over.

We're in cooking mode (our upcoming theme next week is the modern kitchen). We've been cracking open our cook books (and iPads) and trying out recipes from some favorites, including Vegetable Literacy by Deborah Madison and Nigel Slater's classic, The Kitchen Diaries. Alexa's shopping the local markets in Paris. Here's a roundup of what's piquing our interest this week.

• • Julie recently discovered the Marshmallowists, a pop-up shop on West London's Portobello Road offering flavors like Blackcurrant & Mint, Raspberry & Champagne, and Pear & Elderflower. Photo via The Chalkboard.
• Admiring the Comme des Garcons Fluo Wallets at the Conran Shop.

• Santa Monica's latest, an organic Burger Bar.
• Christine's wondering which Architect her dog looks like.
• Stacey is pondering what to read next: Michael Pollan's Cooked or Julia Reed's But Mama Always Put Vodka in Her Sangria!? Suggestions welcome.
• Sarah's proposing Overdressed: The Shockingly High Cost of Cheap Fashion. Think of it as encouraging a slow food approach to fashion (and not before time).
• We're perusing Imogene + Willie's new line of home goods.

• For the cook: Pedersen and Lennard's genius Bread Bin with cookbook shelf display included.
• The power of Instagram: check out this upcoming global exhibit.
• And be sure to follow Alexa on Instagram to see what she's up to in Paris.

If you've perused Pinterest lately in search of kitchen storage ideas, you know there are thousands of images floating around, depicting various space-saving tricks. Here are 10 of our favorite ideas (we're filing them away for any future kitchen remodels).

Above: A wall-mounted dish rack frees up countertop space; image via Fab. For more ideas, see 5 Favorites: Space-Saving Dish Racks.

Above: Wall-mounted soap holder as brush holder; a genius idea from Martha Stewart.

Above: No need to stow away a collection of vintage pots; create an artful tableau using simple wall hooks; image of Adrienne Antonson's house via Design Sponge.

Above: A folding step ladder stowed in a below cabinet drawer; another Martha Stewart innovation.

Above: Kitchen design company Viola Park integrated a knife block into a stainless steel backsplash. The wood knife block holds 12 knives and is available in walnut, rift-cut white oak, and bamboo; $125. Also see 5 Quick Fixes: Knife Storage.

Above: An attractive dustpan displayed in easy reach encourages clean up; see more at Domestic Science: Vipp Dustpan and Brush.

Above: A drawer outfitted for upright flatware storage; see more at Drawer Divider Roundup.

Above: A kitchen drawer slot used as a paper towel holder, via Southern Living Magazine.

Above: Natural Rubberwood Expandable Utensil Tray; $34.99 at Chefs Catalog.

Above: Tension rods as cabinet dividers; via Martha Stewart.

Above: Dog bowl drawer, via BHG.

In Sacramento, Hock Farm restaurant is hoping to inch the state capital onto the culinary map. It's farm-to-fork dining without the usual rusticity, and its design celebrates California without being obvious. 

The Hock Farm design was led by Amy Aswell and KJ Singh of Beta Form Industries. Aswell, an interior designer, named the restaurant herself after the first large-scale agricultural settlement in Northern California: John Sutter's 1841 Hock Farm. The farm was Sutter's personal retreat and named for the Nisenan Hock tribe indigenous to the area. The Hock Farm name was a perfect fit for the restaurant, located across the street from the State Capital and wanting a vocabulary uniquely relevant to Sacramento.

Aswell wanted to be interpretive in designing a space with "farm" in its name. Noting that Sacramento is already called a "cow town," she said diners here want to embrace farm-to-table dining "without being aesthetically dominated by it." Aswell succeeded in sourcing as much as possible from the Sacramento area while creating a space that is definitively modern.

Photography by Kat Alves. 

Above: A neon art piece quotes Hock Farm settler John Sutter, who said of his experience: "I was everything, patriarch, priest, father, and judge." Diners with knowledge of Sacramento history will know the phrase, says Aswell, and it "says something about the ego of the early prominent white settlers." But she likes its ambiguity, saying "We chose not to simply glorify accomplishments but prompt discussions."

Above: Lining the tables are slim black Windsor Salt Chairs from Design Within Reach. 

Above: Many tables--including the "chef's table" above--are made of douglas fir from the Globe Mills building in Sacramento. Having undergone a fire, the wood has areas of veined charring.

Above: Thonet Era Round Armchairs in Turquoise.

Above: The upholstery is a gray tweed-inspired weave from wholesale upholstery distributor Arc|Com.

Above: The brick is not original, but the restaurant is housed in a characterless office building. Says Aswell, "Our goal for wanting to create an 'experience' in this instance trumped our typical interest in building authenticity. The space screamed out for texture." 

Above: Translucent porcelain Aspect Pendants with turquoise cording, fabricated by Schmitt Design in Sacramento.

Above: Simple silhouettes and a polished concrete floor complement a largely neutral color palette.

Above: A utilitarian strategy for hiding supplies in plain sight. 

Above: A selection of bourbons against white tile continues a subtle orange-and-white color theme.

Above: Aswell pored the library for drawings and photos of Hock Farm, and found one that could be enlarged into a wall graphic.

Above: A California-shaped table by J. Rusten Furniture Studio. Says Aswell, "We hope Jerry Brown visits soon and sits at this table!"

Above: When she needed a screen to narrow the opening to the kitchen, Aswell thought of Native American basket weaving applied to a modern material. 12M Design in Sacramento fabricated the partitions by hand.

Above: On the entry table, Schoolhouse Electric's Ion Lamp in black porcelain.

Above: The exterior sign is made of the same reclaimed douglas fir and branded with the Hock Farm logo.

Looking for more? Be inspired by 83 images of Modern Restaurants in our gallery of rooms and spaces. 

A recent Etsy discovery, San Francisco-based Ind Lights offers simple industrial lighting at a compelling price. Made to order, the lighting comes in a choice of cord colors, wall plugs, and canopy options with custom orders welcomed. For more, go to Ind Lights.

Above: The Modern Cage Light features a while plastic cage with a ceramic socket; $44.

Above: The Cloth Cord Pendant Light features ten feet of cloth-covered cord available in a choice of colors; $75.

Above: The Bare Bulb Pipe Lamp with a half inch angled pipe on a gray wall mount; $55.

Spotted (and admired) on French photographer Romain Ricard's portfolio: a simple kitchen stocked with some of our favorite accessories. From Iris Hantverk brushes to Reiss enamelware, recreate a similar setting with our sources below.

Above: Photograph by Romain Ricard.

Above: Muuto's E27 Pendant Light is available in red, yellow, white, green, and dark gray and is $79 at Design Within Reach.

Above: Schoolhouse Electric's Single Loop (L) and Double Loop (R) Edison bulbs are $15 each.

Above: The Table Brush Set, designed by Lovisa Wattman for Iris Hantverk, is made from oil treated beech wood and horse hair for CAD $38 from Mjölk.

Above: The Riess Enamel Colander is made in Austria and completely enameled in white for $39.90 from Kaufmann Mercantile.

Above: The Swedish Washing-up Whisk made of broom root from Iris Hantverk is $12 from Fjørn Scandinavian.

Above: The Red Market Handle is woven from date-palm leaves with leather handles for $38 from Medina Baskets.

Above: The Kamenoko Tawashi Scrubber is a traditional Japanese brush made from palm fiber for $6.50 from Poketo in Los Angeles.

Above: The Vola KV1 Single Handled Faucet with a double swivel spout, worked well in Janet's London kitchen with a moderate sized sink; $997.50 at Faucet Farm.

Above: House-shaped Cutting Boards in three different sizes: Cutting Board 2 (L) is €54, Cutting Board 1 is €27, and Cutting Board 4 (R) is €58. Each made from oiled oak and modeled after the skyline seen from Rundetårn in Copenhagen, available at Ferm Living.

Above: Hickory Hardware's Satin Chrome Pull is $3.15 from Lowe's.

Above: The Aga 8-Mug Teapot in cream is £56.99 from Aga Cookshop.

Above: Hang it all on a white painted shaker peg rail; Shaker Workshops offers Painted Pegboards by the linear foot. Photograph of the High Road House in London.

Looking for more scrub brushes to add to your kitchen collection? See our recent post 7 Favorites: Hardworking Scrubbers with Style.

Colorful Buttering Boards form Ferm Living can be used in a grouping or as single coasters or platters. The boards come in a choice of colors; €17.50 from Ferm Living.

Above: The mats are made from laminated birch veneer.

Above: The mats come in the four colors shown: coral, rose, blue and green.

In furthering their design education, two young architects decide to be their own designers, clients, and builders. The result?  A completely bespoke house where everything is handmade, even the sinks.

Architects Jay Atherton and Cy Keener, friends from graduate school at the University of California, Berkeley, created an out-of-the-ordinary house in downtown Phoenix using the ubiquitous desert building material, concrete block. With rigor, thought, and time, the pair wanted to accomplish as much as possible using just a few materials. Were they successful? Their unconventional and edgy kitchen details and the subsequent founding of their firm, Atherton Keener, might suggest that they were.

Photography by Ye Rin Mok via Dwell.

Above: Walls made out of concrete block frame the opening to the galley kitchen. Concrete block is a ubiquitous building material in the desert climate.

Above: The architects made all the cabinets (bathroom, kitchen, hallway storage) out of plywood which they dyed black. Instead of handles, they cut out narrow slots in the cabinets to serve as hand pulls.

Above: A detail of the marine plywood kitchen sink that Atherton made and inset into the concrete countertop.

Above: An knife holder has been integrated into the kitchen counter.

Above: The architects designed their own inset switch plates from one-eight-inch aluminum and inset them into the concrete block wall.

Concrete and plywood are two materials that are often used together.  See 480 images of Concrete and 194 images of Plywood in our Gallery of rooms and spaces to see more.

Gardenista editor Michelle Slatalla offers this advice in her recent column, 10 Mistakes to Avoid When You Remodel: "Don't skimp on the appliances. Get the ones you really want even if they cost more." Case in point: the two hardest working kitchen appliances, the refrigerator and the stove. The latest designs from Sub-Zero and Wolf should be top of the list of contenders when upgrading or renovating your kitchen.

Wolf Gas Ranges

Above: The new line of gas ranges from Wolf were designed to complement Sub-Zero refrigerators with a slightly more streamlined look and coordinated handle designs as well as design enhancements for improved cooking control, better cleaning, and better fit with adjustable feet that accommodate floor and cabinet variations. The updated professional cookers come in 30-, 36-, 48-, and 60-inch wide models with twelve different rangetop configurations including infrared charbroil, infrared griddle, double griddle, charbroil, and French top. The Wolf 48-Inch Gas Range (shown above) features two ovens: one 30-inch gas convection oven with infrared broiler and ultra-fast preheating, and one 18-inch non-convection oven; pricesrange from $9,325 to $10,680, depending on top configuration, through Wolf Authorized Dealers.

Above: The Wolf gas ranges have been upgraded with sealed dual-stacked burners for more heat control and sealed seamless burner pans for easier cleaning. Porcelain-coated, cast-iron continuous burner grates provide even heating.

Above: The Wolf 36-inch Gas Range has one large gas convection oven with three adjustable racks and a powerful infrared broiler that sears quickly and evenly. Prices start at $6,060.  

Above: Wolf's signature knobs have been redesigned with stainless steel bezels. All models are available with the option of red, black, or stainless steel (as shown) knobs.

Sub-Zero French Door Refrigerator

Above: Favored by many for their space efficiency (opening the doors requires half the space of full size doors) and energy efficiency (opening one French door keeps more cold air inside as compared to one large swing door), Sub-Zero's 36-Inch French Door Refrigerator has two 18-inch refrigerator doors over their classic pullout bottom freezer drawer. Other high performance features include an air purification system, water filtration, and a dual-compressor operating system that separately controls the temperature and humidity of the refrigerator and freezer compartments.  

Above:  Known for their superb performance and design, Sub-Zero took on a French door refrigerator issue and designed theirs based on a pivoting center mullion so that each door has an independent seal. The Sub-Zero BI-36UFD French Door Refrigerator is available in stainless steel with tubular handles or pro handles, or ready to be fitted with a custom panel overlay and frame handles; $10,060 (for stainless) and $8,575 (overlay ready) through authorized Sub-Zero Dealers.

Above: The Sub-Zero interior is spacious with adjustable, sturdy, and easy-to-clean glass shelves. The 18-inch-wide doors open independently or in tandem for full access to the refrigerator’s interior even in narrower kitchen spaces.

Brought to you by Sub-Zero and Wolf, your food preservation and cooking specialists.

Spotted, via Italian designers Teste di Legno, an ingenious way to combine off-the-shelf Ikea components to make a custom compact kitchen, complete with a built-in herb garden:

Above: The Unacucina is made from about a dozen different Ikea products, including a faucet, a table, metal planters, a watering can, a cooktop and a sink. Photograph via Teste di Legno. 

Want to try to make one yourself? Here are some of the crucial components:

Above: Made of birch, a Norden Extendable Table comes in two sizes; an 87-inch-long table that extends to 1-5 inches is $399.

Above: A chrome-plated Glittran Faucet is $149.

See the rest of the post on Gardenista.

For more kitchen planter ideas, see Hanging Window Box From Ikea.

Seattle-based Henrybuilt, maker of custom kitchens, likes to consider itself the creator of the first American kitchen "system." Its combination of finely crafted design with well-designed components (integrated functionality with a clean, modern look) have made the brand a covetable kitchen line. Their latest iteration? The Opencase Storage System that accommodates a multitude of domestic needs beyond the kitchen from pantry, den, to the hall.

Combining system and craft, Henrybuilt has raised the bar on storage solutions. Pricing ranges from $2500 for some single panel configurations to $5000 for panels requiring a number of more complex components. For more on the newly launched line, visit Henrybuilt.

Above: An Opencase pantry configuration. The custom wall-mounted panels in the Opencase system run as large as 8 feet tall by 4 feet wide and come in a selection of woods including walnut, oak, ash, and teak.

Above: Shown here are storage boxes in a pantry that can double as shelving. Note the finely rounded corners of the lid. The rod and panel design allows the system to be both highly specialized in its function and interchangeable.

Above: An Opencase mudroom system. A collection of specialized accessories are available, including shelves, bins, hanging rods, and cloth bags that hang on the rods, allowing them to be easily reconfigured.

Above: An Opencase wardrobe system with removable laundry bags suspended from rods.

Above: Storage bags hanging from rods.

Above: A detail of the shelving. The base of each rod remains fixed within the panel, while the rods can be unscrewed and moved to create different configurations.

For more on the offerings from Henrybuilt, see our previous posts.

“In a world where everything is immediate and disposable, I have always been interested in pieces that last." That's Richard Ostell's philosophy, which could not be more timely. We've been admiring the aesthetic of this British-born, New York-based onetime clothing designer for a while now, and we're pleased to see him parlay his philosophy into an online store with goods for the home.

Simple, timeless offerings form the backbone of his shop. "It might be a bit of a disparate collection," he tells us, "where things that are very humble and simple contrast with things that are really refined and expensive." That said, each piece is a classic of sorts, unified by Ostell's discriminating eye. He's planning on adding to the collection with a series of highly polished copper pieces soon to be unveiled.

N.B. Although his offerings are currently only available online, Ostell is hoping to open a New York storefront by fall. For more, visit Richard Ostell. 

Above: Ostell designed Plate.Bowl.Cup, a straightforward three-piece dinnerware line that is hand thrown in Connecticut and is dishwasher safe. The bowls and cups are $36 each; plates are $38.

Above: The Hakeme Chawan by Matthias Kaiser has brushstroke markings on the inside and out; $128.

Above: Ostell offers three simple glasses including this traditional Spanish Wine Glass; $6. As he notes, "it's all you need for wine".

Above: A Round Vase hand made in Los Angeles by Roger Lee; $70. Lee began working in ceramics not long ago, and now works with Heath Ceramics developing new glazes.

Above: A Facet Bowl by Roger Lee in a textured metallic anthracite glaze; $98. Ostell loves its square faceted shape built into a round form. The designer confesses to being "obsessed with squares," then quickly qualifies: "but bowls should always be round."

Above: The Series 1 Bench is hand made in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Comprised of minimal lines and a strong theme of negative space Ostell aimed for "A quiet simplicity, focused on proportions and a desire to get the balance right."; $3,500. 

Above: The Series 1 Low Table; $2,800.

Above: According to Ostell, the Lumina Daphine Tavolo is "the most elegant lamp in the world"; $440.

Every now and then we get requests for specific 10 Easy Pieces features: this one is for our architect friend Jerome Buttrick, who is searching for a small round kitchen dining table. Here are our current favorites:

Above: Jasper Morrison's Bac Round Table for Cappellini, $3,041 (49.3 inches in diameter); with natural or wenge-tinted ash base and black, white, gray, or brown linoleum top.

Above: Atlantico 018 Round Table by De La Espada at Velocity Art & Design; $1,885. Available in walnut, white oiled oak, and Danish oiled oak (39.40 inches in diameter).

Above: Gueridon Table by Jean Prouvé for Vitra. Available in three oak finishes; prices begin at $3,075 from YLighting (37.5 inches in diameter).

Above: Danish master Jens Risom's 42-inch Round Dining Table is $1,160 from DWR; available in walnut, maple and ebonized walnut.

Above: Ventura Round Table in solid walnut for $1,499 from Room and Board (42 inches in diameter).

Above: Round Cherner Table, available in beech or walnut veneer for $1,799 from Zinc Details (40 inches in diameter).

Above: Maui Dining Table by Vico Magistretti for $675 from Hive Modern. Available in three colors: anthracite, zinc white, and navy blue (39.5 inches in diameter).

Above: Bond 60 Round Dining Table in solid maple for $1,499 from Room & Board (60 inches in diameter).

Above: Sprout Dining Table, brushed stainless steel with a choice of yellow, ivory, or black top; $799 from Design Public (36 inches in diameter).

Above: The Table First Round Dining Table by Magis begins at $1,229 from Lumens

Looking for more kitchen furniture? Sift through all our past posts on kitchen-related topics in our Archive.

N.B.: This post is an update; the original story ran on February 4, 2010.

We're admiring this summer table set up from Canvas Home Store with stoneware plates that look like vintage tin dinnerware and a pitcher that adds a cheerful dash of bright blue color to the spread. See details and pricing below.

Above: Tinware Dinnerware begins at $10 for a bowl and the Tinware Mug is $9. The Large Pitcher is $35.00 (currently on sale for $24.99) and the blue Ceramic Creamer shown is $11.

Take a look at our Shopper's Diary on Spartan, where we first admired the line.

When I'm talking about getting plants to flower indoors, I prefer the word "coax" over "force." It sounds kinder, doesn't it? Well, coaxing Lily of the Valley to bloom indoors is a very good thing to do in May when you're greedy for all the springtime you can get.

Photographs by Erin Boyle.

Above: I bought a pot of already-started pips a little more than a week ago and settled them into their new urban home. Today? There are blooms.

Above: If you live by a nursery that has Lily of the Valley already started in pots, your work is practically finished. To avoid disturbing the roots, I decided against repotting the pips in favor of disguising the pot  I used garden scissors to trim off the top inch of my pot. If you're looking for a new, sharp pair, see 10 Easy Pieces: Floral Scissors.

Above: I lined an old wooden box with a bit of parchment for protection and slipped my plastic pot on top of that. 

Above: After the pot was nestled into a corner, I used moss that I picked up at a local florist shop to cover the edges of the pot. You can also use preserved moss; Green Dried Preserved Moss is $2.99 from Jamali Garden.

Above: I broke my moss into smaller bits so that it fit neatly around my pot, but didn't cover any of the emerging pips.

Above: The wooden box fit squarely enough on our windowsill, which gets filtered light for most of the day. I made sure to give the pips a good drenching mist every morning and night. For similar results, you could use a Brass Plant Mister ($20 from Terrain).

Above: Ten days later, there were flowers. 

Above: If you're hoping to get your hands a little bit more dirty, you can also plant Lily of the Valley pips directly yourself, though in my experience whether they'll flower is a bit more of a gamble.

Above: A bag of pips I picked up at a local nursery came with soil which I moistened before planting. A kit of 12 Lily of the Valley Pips Plus Potting Soil is $45 from White Flower Farm.

Above: I gave a small trim to too-long roots and then potted them in an assortment of small glass jars.

Above: I left just a small bit of the pips exposed and placed them on my windowsill alongside my other plants.

Above: The pips that I started myself grew quickly, but they're not showing any signs of flowering. I'm not sure if it's because I didn't use pips that have been specially prepared for growth indoors, but happily, I've gotten my landlord to agree to let me transplant the experiment outdoors. Here's hoping that they might flower some other spring.

For more about Lily of the Valley, your grandmother's favorite plant, see Would Spring Still Smell Like Spring Without Lily of the Valley?

Ever torn a photo of a dream kitchen from a magazine? Or bookmarked the perfect pantry while perusing Pinterest? Or taken your contractor to your best friend's house to look at cabinets? We are all familiar with these methods of gathering inspiration and ideas for a kitchen upgrade or remodel. Here's an idea that should be added to the inspiration source list: a visit to your nearest Sub-Zero and Wolf Showroom. 

Above: Think of Sub-Zero and Wolf showrooms as life-size laboratories of kitchen appliances and design ideas, with the added bonus of referrals to dealers and builders, designers, and architects. Use the Sub-Zero and Wolf Showroom Locator to find the one closest to you.

Above: A kitchen at the Sub-Zero and Wolf Showroom in the Chicago Merchandise Mart features textured panels on the refrigerator and range hood. Image via LuxeHome.

Above: Showroom kitchens can inspire new ideas, like using Sub-Zero Refrigerator Drawers in a kitchen island for extra storage.

Above: Showroom kitchens can challenge assumptions: Here, a Wolf 48-inch Gas Range is slotted into a small space.

Above: In the Sub-Zero and Wolf showroom in Dallas, a red counter brightens a kitchen. Don't live close to a showroom? Consider adding a visit during your next big city trip. Check the Sub-Zero and Wolf Showroom Locator.

Brought to you by Sub-Zero and Wolf, your food preservation and cooking specialists.

There is something undeniably pleasing about a well-designed spice rack.

When I moved into my first apartment, my top priority when stocking the kitchen was to buy little glass jars for all the hand-me-down spices that I acquired (the benefit of having a chef for a mother). Here are five quick solutions for the kitchen spice display.

Above: Use Metal Tins with Clear View Tops to organize your spice drawer; $48.24 for 72 2-ounce jars from SKS Bottle. Photo from Amy Kundrat's Flickr.

Above: Spices hung neatly on the wall in the home of Allen Hemberger; photo via Design Sponge.

Above: The humble beginnings of my spice collection starts with March Pantry's black glass jars designed by Design is Play and available at MARCH in San Francisco.

Above: Dean and Deluca Spice Rack; $175 from Dean and Deluca. Photo via Time Out New York.

Above: Salts displayed in Weck jars and labeled with kraft paper stickers; $25 for the set of three each at Terrain.

Above: Create a spice drawer using Ikea's Droppar Jars made of glass and stainless steel; $9.99 each.

This isn't our only kitchen storage secret; take a look at our post on 10 Strategies for Hiding the Microwave.

N.B.: This post is an update; the original story ran on April 11, 2012.

When Amanda Hesser and Merrill Stubbs, the founders of cooking site Food52, moved into a new midtown Manhattan office space, they built a test kitchen that's both photogenic and functional (not to mention economical). With the help of designer Brad Sherman, they created a space that allows them to stage photo shoots and cook lunch for staff and friends, all with a healthy dose of style.

It's not the only thing the duo has up their sleeves: they've also spent the last 18 months testing and planning for Provisions, which they describe as "the first kitchen-and-home shop to offer the very best rolling pin along with a great peach pie recipe, or a handsome butter dish with a how-to on making your own butter. It's the shop of our dreams." N.B. Join Provisions now and get $10 off your first purchase and a chance to win a Wüstof Ikon eight-piece knife block set.

Photographs by Nicole Franzen for Remodelista.

Above: The marble counter is Calacatta Gold and the matte white subway tiles are from Daltile (Arctic White 0790 Matte). Undercounter storage is provided via Shaker-style Benson Cabinets by Diamond Cabinetry; "we chose them because they are clean and simple," Sherman says.

Above: Similar vintage Blue Ball jars will be available on Provisions in limited quantities.

Above: Amanda and Merrill sourced Le Creuset cookware in a cream-colored shade called Dune.

Above: "For the shelving, I used reclaimed wood milled from a 100-year-old beam salvaged from a barn in Kentucky," Sherman says. "I had them milled in varying thicknesses because I didn't want the shelving to look too uniform, and the varying thicknesses along with rough condition of the boards give a modern kitchen character."  Sherman used an inexpensive Elfa shelving support system from the Container Store: "We went this route because we needed the flexibility to adjust the height depending on the cookware we'll be displaying and storing, including antique mixing bowls from Sage Street Antiques in Sag Harbor," Amanda says.

Above: The stackable enamel canisters with airtight beech lids designed for Riess of Austria by the Vienna design group Dottings are from Ancient Industries and will be available on Provisions.

Above: The wall-mount Faucet with Curved Spout by Strom Plumbing is $378.99 from Vintage Tub & Bath. On the center island, the team used Restoration Hardware paint in Stone. “We wanted a warm gray, as opposed to a cool gray, because it helps invoke hunger. Blues are appetite suppressants.”

Above: Knife storage slots are built into the John Boos oiled walnut kitchen island countertop.

Every design decision Zach Bliss made for Louro Restaurant was in haste. But the final look, which features clean lines, round edges, and gray and vanilla tones, has an undeniable serenity. Here's the story:

Co-owners Didier Palange and Kiwon Standen decided they wanted to create something new in their West Village restaurant Lowcountry. They partnered with chef David Santos (who hails from acclaimed establishments Per Se and Bouley) and shut down the space for a mere two weeks in order to raise $25,000 on Kickstarter to reopen it as Louro. While raising the money itself was a grand feat, they also wanted to redo the entire space. So they turned to designer Zach Bliss.

Having worked in production design, Bliss is experienced at working under tight time and budgetary constraints. For Louro, his goal was to open up and streamline everything.  "I needed a way to do things fast, clean, simple, and super e-fficient," he says. Drawing inspiration from Portuguese and Danish midcentury modern furniture, Bliss rid the space of any hard lines, employing soft chamfer edges, smoothing over the doorframe, and washing the walls in a warm gray and soft white. He added bespoke character with handcrafted chandeliers and several inventive DIY's.

Do limitations breed creativity? Read on and you may be inclined to think so. For more information, visit Louro NYC.

Above: "I wanted the new micro-seasonal menu to shine," says Bliss of his intention of a simple, streamlined interior. A chandelier inspired by Lindsey Adelman illuminates the space from above.

Above: "Louro" is the Portuguese word for Bay Leaf, the botanical image that graces the wall. Bliss projected a painting on the empty space and had a local artist outline and sponge shade it. Photo by Alice Gao.

Above: The mirrors behind the bar are framed in rusted steel. Bliss created a bar rail out of mahogany wood that allows the perfect amount of space for an elbow to rest. Photo by Alice Gao.

Above: The space was cavernous, says Bliss, which inspired his idea of creating two-tone walls of gray and white. He painted the lower portion in a chalky gray and the top in an ivory tusk to give it an "opening-up sensation." To connect the dining space to the kitchen, he made the tabletops out of Ikea butcher block counter tops. Photo by Alice Gao.

Above: A DIY for the books: To add interest to large blocks of wall space, Bliss designed bespoke bookshelves with a chambered edge (staying true to to the theme of soft corners and turns). He added context to the shelves with black and white photos he took of the interior of the NYC Public Library. (He manipulated the size of each photo and had Kinko's put them on matte board for reinforcement. He then completed the DIY project by rounding the edges so each photo fit perfectly inside the shelving units.) The final result often piques diners' curiosity. "People think they are books," he says.

 Above: The warm and bustling interiors. Photo by Blaise Hayward.

Above: Nary a hard edge can be found, even in the front lettering. Bliss softened a midcentury Portuguese font by taking the edge off the "L" letter. Photo by Katie Ett.

Above: Zach leans against his pseudo library. Photo by Jad Magaziner.

What are your favorite NYC jaunts? Let us know in the comments section below. (And visit our City Guide to see more of ours.)