by Design House | Mar 27, 2024 | Blog
We want to use what comes from nature, and biophilic design has been proven to create both a calming and productive environment. But what qualifies as a natural product? Bear with me for the definition and groundwork so we can talk about some exciting products from...
by Design House | Jan 5, 2024 | Blog
The 5 “R” Resolutions Are you taking down those Christmas decorations and your space is looking a little bare, boring, or just uninspired? Maybe it is not functioning that well for you either. You need an enjoyment return on your home investment. ...
by Design House | Oct 27, 2023 | Blog
What is trending right now? I continue to be asked about trends when I return from the market. Although most of you know I always say “trend” lightly, but after covering so many miles of different showrooms, and taking thousands of photos, I certainly will share what...
by Design House | Sep 22, 2023 | Blog
Embracing Biophilic Design & Sustainability In a bold move during the pandemic, this engineering firm ventured into a 22,000-square-foot space, redefining workspace dynamics. Our commitment was to both biophilic design and sustainability while dealing with the...
by Design House | Sep 8, 2023 | Blog
Transforming Spaces Art can transform spaces and affect our happiness and well-being. Whether it’s your home or office, both need art to function best. It makes the space more visually appealing and stimulating. Art can reduce stress and promote relaxation, provide...
by Design House | Jul 21, 2023 | Blog
Revolutionary fabrics The design industry thrives on innovation, and we all know technology is revolutionizing every aspect of our lives, but you may not have thought about it for fabrics. Remarkable technology is continually offering innovative options, but we have...
by Design House | Jun 19, 2023 | Blog
From Fragments to Flocked marvels It is truly amazing to understand and learn the history behind how wallpaper became wallcoverings and walls became wonders. Wallpapers made their debut in the 16th century, primarily adorning confined spaces such as cupboards and...
by Design House | May 13, 2022 | Blog
spring market update 2022 Back to Spring High Point in Person! After a couple of years off, Spring High Point Market was back, and without masks! While less product was available than in past years and one major manufacturer was closed for complete renovation of their...
by Design House | May 6, 2022 | Blog
Design house has been named a Finalists for the 2022 Showroom of the Year – Winners will be announced at this summer’s Lightovation at Dallas Market Center We’re honored to announce Design House has been named a Furniture, Lighting, and Decor...
by Design House | Nov 8, 2021 | Blog
(Click here to read the first two installments we posted about the furniture supply chain issues affecting our industry since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic crisis.) Asia in Duress “Asia’s supply chain is under duress in a very significant way. We are really...
by Design House | Jun 23, 2021 | Blog
High Point spring Market 2021 After having markets cancelled, and virtually attending markets from New York to India for over a year, I was eager to actually be present at, sit, touch and evaluate in person for all of you! I am going to give you an honest report with...
![[Updated 9.27.21] Lead Time Challenges in the Covid-Era](data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB2aWV3Qm94PSIwIDAgMTA4MCA1ODEiIHdpZHRoPSIxMDgwIiBoZWlnaHQ9IjU4MSIgeG1sbnM9Imh0dHA6Ly93d3cudzMub3JnLzIwMDAvc3ZnIj48L3N2Zz4=)
by Design House | Mar 16, 2021 | Blog
Want to Know Why You Can be Waiting 16 Weeks or MORE For That Chair or Sofa??? [updated 9/27/2021] Six months from our original post (see below) on lead time challenges in the Covid-Era, we’re still dealing with the Saga of the Supply Chain and getting a lot of...
by Design House | Jan 20, 2021 | Blog
Don’t you love it that we can really say 2020 is hindsight! During the most unpredictable and challenging 2020, more people realized the power of design to make our environments safer, more comfortable, and personally suited. Sheltering in place created demand for...
by Design House | Sep 9, 2020 | Blog
As a designer, I was beginning to see the dedicated home office space decline a little as technology allowed our clients to use their tablets or laptops anywhere in the house when they needed to do some occasional or extra work at home. Often, if they had a study, it...
by Design House | Jul 22, 2020 | Blog
High rises and apartments are popping up like wildflowers in Houston, and whether you are purchasing or renting, you can and should make it your own, personalized space. Although it may be smaller than you would like, or you are downsizing from a larger home, it...
by Design House | Jan 6, 2020 | Blog
2020 Vision for Interior Design As we begin 2020, perhaps I’m relating it to good vision, but I’m feeling it too. For the start of this new decade, I’ve made my own actually “doable” resolutions, how about you? Personally, I’m going to start clean and...
by Design House | Oct 29, 2019 | Blog
Inspiring Interior Trends from High Point Market Fall 2019 I’ve been walking a large part of the 12 million sq. ft. of interior design showrooms at High Point market twice a year for many years. I’ve seen lots of products come and go and come again, but technology...
by Design House | Oct 10, 2019 | Blog
Picking the Perfect Performance Fabric It’s been almost nine years since I first wrote about performance fabrics and bringing them inside from their common use outdoors. My blog back then was about Sunbrella and nanotech technology and how you could have kids, pets...
by Design House | Sep 3, 2019 | Blog
Modern Wallpaper / Wallcoverings – Types and Where to Use Hang Ups? We all know it’s a big NO to those robo calls but a big YES to wallcoverings today! You may have some hang ups about using wallcovering though, if you remember when it was not only hard to...
by Design House | Jul 24, 2019 | Blog
Remodel & Home Additions Design Trends for 2019 If you are about to remodel or build onto your house, here are some of the current trends to consider, whether working on your kitchen, bathroom, living space, laundry room, or outdoor area. Kitchens Everyone always...
by Design House | Jul 3, 2019 | Blog
Shower or Tub??? OK, it’s time for me to eat my words again, or maybe just issue a change in opinion about showers vs. tubs. Most people have a very definite preference, and when we are working on projects we have to determine those preferences. For resale, we always...
by Design House | May 22, 2019 | Blog
The End of Harvey This blog post is a follow-up to The YEAR of Harvey.Many of you have been so kind as to inquire about how and what we’ve been doing since Harvey. Thus, I feel the need to write the end of the Harvey story, even though I rarely post personally. We...
by Design House | Feb 18, 2019 | Blog
Furniture In Motion Would you believe that over half of the furniture being produced today is equipped with motion capabilities? Even though I see so many options, I still find that surprising. However, when you think about how many items do have the...
by Design House | Jan 8, 2019 | Blog
What Will 2019 Bring to Interior Design? Can you believe it is 2019 already? I hope you enjoyed the holidays and family, but now that you have taken down the holiday decorations, is your home looking a little tired and needy? We all look for that fresh...
by Design House | Dec 13, 2018 | Blog
2018 Holiday Tabletops – A Texas Christmas and Baccarat’s Table Design House was so honored to host Baccarat, the renowned French manufacturer of fine crystal, with their own tabletop this year, which also revealed their fall collection. The President, Jim...
by Design House | Nov 26, 2018 | Blog
Ten Award Winning Holiday Tablescapes The holidays are stressful enough with finding the perfect gifts, decorating the house and cooking for a crowd, but when you add all of the fabulous Pinterest and Instagram posts, it is enough to make anyone feel inadequate. Well,...
by Design House | Nov 16, 2018 | Blog
Interior Design Inspiration from Valencia The invitation to visit Spain for a week to meet with manufacturers and learn about new products proved to be rewarding in many ways! Not only did we get to meet with a wide variety of vendors, as you will see from the photos,...
by Design House | Nov 13, 2018 | Blog
High Point Market (Fall 2018): Trends Continued The climate of our society today and our hectic lives, along with increasing technology, makes us yearn for simpler times and quiet comfort. However, we still take advantage of technology that offers us products to make...
by Design House | Nov 5, 2018 | Blog
High Point (Fall 2018) It was an interesting and crazy start to High Point market this time, complicated by Hurricane Michael’s remnants. Connie heading off to High Point Market from the Design House showroom! Not the smoothest drive this year thanks to the hurricane....
by Design House | Oct 18, 2018 | Blog
Closet Lighting – How To Be Best Dressed! Do you get dressed before daylight to get to work on time? Does it look like something goes together until you get to work or an event and realize, to your embarrassment, that they don’t? Even in daylight hours, closets rarely...
by Design House | Aug 27, 2018 | Blog
The YEAR of Harvey It’s a year after Hurricane Harvey and I am still a nomad after forty years in our home, which we had remodeled. First, we spent a month in a hotel room; then we were lucky enough to find an apartment with a six month lease, though unfortunately...
by Design House | Aug 27, 2018 | Blog
For Those Who Said Gray Was On the Way Out Check out Pantone’s “In Praise of Gray!” They say heading into autumn/winter 2019/20, they see grays as a key color for cars, paint, home textiles and interiors. From the cool tones to the warm, light to...
by Design House | Jul 9, 2018 | Blog
New Innovative and Exciting Ways to Use Wallpaper If you haven’t taken time to peruse today’s wallpapers, you are missing an opportunity to get the “creative juices” flowing! It is really a treat to see what is out there today and what you can do with it. There are...
by Design House | Jun 22, 2015 | Blog
Nautical Themed Decor for Summertime Nothing makes a home feel “beachy” like furnishings that have a nautical touch. Stripes, knots, and seashells can make you taste that salty sea air, whether you’re decorating a beach house or a bedroom miles away from the...
by Design House | Jun 18, 2015 | Blog
“Singing the Blues” at High Point Market The High Point Market, the largest furnishings industry trade show in the world, takes place every six months, and the Spring 2015 exposition recently showcased the upcoming trends in the interior design industry. Let me...
by Design House | Jun 10, 2015 | Blog
June 21st marks the first day of summer, but for most children summer break just started. Summertime is usually connected to outside activities like pools, parks, and family vacations, but who says your home can’t feel summery? Follow one of more of the below easy...
by Design House | Jun 8, 2015 | Blog
Hurricane Preparedness for your Houston Home If you live in Houston, hurricane and flood preparedness is an all-year event. The recent storms in Texas caused some of the worst flooding in the Houston area since Hurricane Ike back in 2008. Now that hurricane...
by Design House | May 29, 2015 | Blog
Woman In Gold Have you seen the recent film, Woman in Gold, starring Helen Mirren and Ryan Reynolds? It’s based on the true story of Maria Altmann, a Jewish refugee who fought the government of Austria to get back a Gustav Klimt painting stolen from her family...
by Design House | May 27, 2015 | Blog
Art, Design, and Catastrophe As Houston sits submerged in water from the recent floods, I find myself snickering at pictures of fancy-shmancy party-goers in Venice falling into the Grand Canal during the 2015 Venice Biennale, one of the most important...
by Design House | May 21, 2015 | Blog
DHI Supports Red Nose Day! Design House staff, from left: Paige, Rima, Rebecca, Connie in the flowers, Moriah being dramatic, Jin, and...
by Design House | May 21, 2015 | Blog
People Watching at Maison & Objet in Miami Last week, Connie and I went to Miami to attend Maison & Objet’s first show in the Americas. In case you didn’t know, Maison & Objet is a major French trade fair for interior design, one of the largest in...
by Design House | May 8, 2015 | Blog
Choosing Showroom Artwork As a designer here at Design House, choosing art for our showroom has been one of my favorite things to do. I was a painting major and it’s a dream come true to be around so much art every day. Just this week, an art vendor stopped by,...
by Design House | May 1, 2015 | Blog
Houston Arts & Culture: Sweeney Todd One may think opera is all about plus size women wailing away in their Viking helmets, but it’s so much more. I like to think of it as the greatest expression of storytelling through music. I’ve often been told that...
by Design House | Apr 29, 2015 | Blog
Lighting Today in Interior Design Has lighting become confusing? Don’t know what to look for as replacements? Too many new choices? And you may be frustrated by all the discontinued light bulbs! No need to stress or hoard. It’s just getting better!...
by Design House | Nov 13, 2014 | Blog
The annual Christmas Share program spreads the joy of the holidays to many families by providing toys, gift cards, and blankets to hundreds of children in the area. The families we serve struggle to provide food and basic necessities for their children often without...
by Design House | Feb 26, 2014 | Blog
Fabric House in Houston has more than JUST Fabric! The physical expansion will house separate rooms for all our growing selections of wallcovering, trims and drapery hardware, giving these lines their own space from all the many fabrics. Fabric House “houses”...
by Design House | Dec 19, 2013 | Blog
1st PLACE : DESIGN HOUSE for Best non-primary Residential Home!! The design team ( Connie LeFevre, Jennifer Renner, Amanda Lockhart, & Jin Lee Bang) were proud to accept another 1st place award, with all the creativity and fun challenges in designing the gorgeous...
by Design House | Dec 19, 2013 | Blog
Design House winner 2013 Papercity Design Awards!! for Exterior/Garden Residential...
by Design House | Dec 19, 2013 | Blog
Houston’s top designers decked the tables in a holiday showcase. Check out Design House and the work of Connie LeFevre in Culture Map....
by Design House | Dec 19, 2013 | Blog
WINNER!..Judges voted on Best Ports of Call for: Best Décor – Chilling in St. Petersburg by Design House, Inc. The People’s Choice for Best Port of Call was awarded to: St. Petersburg by Design House,...
by Design House | Mar 7, 2012 | Blog
What is NEW in flooring? A few innovative and cool options for your floors! We recently installed liquid floor squares in a church area for youth. These 2 ft squares can be dropped into complementary laminate flooring & spaced just far enough apart for the...
by Design House | Aug 30, 2011 | Blog
Are CFL’s Dangerous and what are the pros and cons of the changing light bulbs? The shelves are full of CFL light bulbs with the new regulation going into effect Jan. 2012, but are CFLs dangerous since they contain mercury? Fluorescent lighting has been used...
by Design House | Aug 23, 2011 | Blog
So what will replace the 100 watt light bulb? So what will replace the 100 watt light bulb as of Jan. 1, 2012? One option is the halogen A19 light. This bulb is a 72 watt incandescent that has halogen technology. Another option to get the same amount of...
by Design House | Aug 17, 2011 | Blog
Evolution of lighting causes interior designer bulb hoarding? Have you been storing light bulbs like a squirrel because you heard the government was banning incandescent light bulbs? You are not alone, but no, they are not. However, the wattage is being...
by Design House | Jul 29, 2011 | Blog
Is your Kitchen Making you Fat? Interesting article out of the UK recently paralleled how as kitchens have almost doubled in size since l920, women have added on average half an inch to their busts, an inch to their waists and three-quarters of an inch to their...
by Design House | Jul 8, 2011 | Blog
Technology has improved fabrics! white sofa and kids…you can have both now. With todays advancements in technology, we can now have chenille’s and woven fabrics for our outdoor spaces and luxurious and practical fabrics that can be cleaned with bleach. We have...
by Design House | Jul 6, 2011 | Blog
Why Support Locally Owned Businesses? 1. Local Character and Prosperity In an increasingly homogenized world, communities that preserve their one-of-a-kind businesses and distinctive character have an economic advantage. 2. Community Well-Being Locally owned...
by Design House | Jun 24, 2011 | Blog
ADA Compliant Sconces; now Beautiful and Practical At Design House we are now offering amazing sconces that are not only simple, clean lined & beautiful, but also ADA compliant, so they can be used for residential narrow hallways and also for contract or...
by Design House | Apr 29, 2011 | Blog
African Beads and Jewels that Benefits Disadvantaged Kenyans On the mission trip in Africa, we toured and shopped at “Kazuri”, a large bead factory which provides employment and benefits for single mothers. They showed us how they process the clay, paint the...
by Design House | Apr 13, 2011 | Blog
Innovative and Sustainable Outdoor Furnishings Something fun and different I saw at market this year were some great “forward thinking” outdoor furnishings and decor. These eye-catching pieces were made with innovative materials, such as ceramics, metals,...
by Design House | Mar 22, 2011 | Blog
The color GREEN; as a Pigment and a Movement This is some interesting information recently read about GREEN as the color used to paint an enviromental movement. It automatically makes since that GREEN would be the pigment chosen for obvious reasons (nature) but...
by Design House | Mar 8, 2011 | Blog
Want Clean Air with Low VOCs (volatile organic chemicals) in your Environment? Try wool carpet. Wool is a natural fiber that has the ability to absorb indoor contaminants, including formaldehyde, sulphur dioxide and nitrogen dioxide, and lock them into its...
by Design House | Feb 21, 2011 | Blog
Suffering from “recessionary survival fatigue” and Considering Remodeling, Buying a new Home or Preparing to Sell? Here is what a 2011 consumer preference survey revealed – so you can make some smart decisions. The top-ranking features that consumers want...
by Design House | Feb 9, 2011 | Blog
How has the Economy and Other Challenges in the Design Industry Affected Business? I’ve seen the economy go up and down – remember the slogan “Stay alive to 85”? I’ve found that especially during those times, not unlike today’s economy, you can actually emerge...
by Design House | Feb 3, 2011 | Blog
What Can You do to Get Ready for Cold Weather in Houston? The last couple of years has been quite a learning experience for me, both as a resident of Houston and also as a business owner/designer. After living in an area for more than 30 years with nothing...
by Design House | Feb 2, 2011 | Blog
Have Allergies in your Family? Or just want a Healthier Environment? Have allergies in your family or just want a healthier environment? Consider textiles that have the Oeko Tex rating. They contain no allergenic dyestuffs or formaldehydes, are tested for...
by Design House | Feb 1, 2011 | Blog
Why Good Lighting in your Home so Important, and How Easy is it to Improve Your Interior Lighting? Are you building a new home or remodeling? Maybe you have already done so, have spent a lot of money, bought beautiful furnishings, and the space still doesn’t...
by Design House | Jan 31, 2011 | Blog
How has Interior Design Changed and Evolved over the Years in Houston? I began DHI working alone as a designer, which honestly is not the best way to begin. However, it worked for me at the time with small children. As they grew up and I got busier with more...
by Design House | Jan 31, 2011 | Blog
What is the Future of Interior Design in Houston? The design culture in Houston is becoming EVEN more diversified, personalized, current, cutting edge, but still warm and inviting. I don’t believe that other major Texas cities are that different, or for that...
by Design House | Jan 21, 2011 | Blog
SHOWROOM UPDATE: Here is a glimpse of some of the showroom’s new year inventory showing the variety of upholstered...
by Design House | Jan 17, 2011 | Blog
What is the BIG difference in Paint Finishes? After much deliberation, you finally select a paint color and then they want to know the finish! You probably all know about flat, eggshell and glossy finishes, but FYI there are some in between. Matte is between...
by Design House | Jan 14, 2011 | Blog
How is Sunbrella Fabric Like a Carrot and Crypton Like a Diaper? And what about nanotechnology and permanent protection? How exciting fabrics are becoming today! Who wouldn’t want to have beautiful fabrics remain free of stains and fading. So how do you get...
by Design House | Jan 12, 2011 | Blog
by Design House | Jan 11, 2011 | Blog
by Design House | Jan 11, 2011 | Blog
With and eye for the unique, Connie LeFevre, ASID, RID and her company, Design House, Inc. are noted throughout the community. With fresh design ideas and a medley of different items all over the showroom it is not hard to figure out why the company is so successful. ...
