home decor tips – Your Design Guide

Day 2: Find Your Dining Direction

Jill Seidner's breakfast room mood board: a white pedestal table, a white corner banquette, a walnut and cream dining chair, black and white accessories, art and a lucite bar.

Day 2 of the dining room challenge: before you measure a wall or buy a thing, you choose a direction for your dining room style. Three words for how this room should feel.

YOUR DESIGN GUIDE | ROOM CHALLENGE | DAY 2

Welcome to Day 2.

Yesterday you looked hard at the room you have: three photos, one honest score and the one dinner this month is working toward (if you missed it, start with Day 1: Start With the Dining Space You Already Have).

Today, before we measure a wall or move a chair, we decide where we’re going.

This is the step people want to rush. But every dining room that really works starts with a direction, not a shopping list. Without one, you end up with a table you like, chairs you like and a rug you like, and a room that still doesn’t feel like anything.

Step 1: Gather 10 to 15 dining rooms you love

Open Pinterest, a magazine or your saved photos and pull 10 to 15 dining rooms or nooks that make you stop. Don’t overthink it, and don’t worry about budget yet.

Choose quickly. If you have to talk yourself into it, skip it.
Mix it up: big dining rooms, small nooks, a restaurant or hotel you loved.
Include one you could never live with. It helps more than you’d think.

Lay them out side by side, the way you did with your photos yesterday.

Jill Seidner's How to Create a Dining Nook guide: choose the space, a round pedestal table, banquette and bentwood chairs, a round rug, a pendant light and layered accessories, with the key pieces for a dining nook. — Nooks count too. Save the cozy corners you love, not just the big dining rooms.

Here’s what most people don’t expect: the rooms you love have far more in common than you think.

In the full Day 2 lesson, you’ll get

The 3-word direction method I use with every client
The “what repeats” scan, with my Dining Nook and Built-In Banquette guides
24 direction words, plus my own breakfast room board as an example
The one-image test that tells you if a piece belongs in your room
A printable Day 2 checklist to download and keep

Read the full post on Substack

From my shop

Need more dining rooms to pull from? The Big Book of Mood Boards has 140+ designer-made boards for every room, each with the pieces that make it work, so finding your direction gets a lot easier.

Cover of The Big Book of Mood Boards 2026 Edition by Jill Seidner: 140+ designer-made interior design mood boards for every room. — The Big Book of Mood Boards: 140+ designer-made boards for every room.

Get The Big Book of Mood Boards

Want help with your own room?

If you’d love a designer’s eye on your own dining room, my $397 Complete Room Design gives you a furniture plan, furnishing selections, a paint palette and a resource list for one room, all done online.

The $397 Complete Room Design by Jill Seidner Interior Design: a furniture plan, furnishing selections, a paint palette and a resource list for one room. — The $397 Complete Room Design: a full plan for one room, done online.

Get the $397 Complete Room Design

Dining room challenge Day 2: FAQ

What is a dining direction?
It’s how you want the room to feel, decided before you shop. A direction is what makes the table, the chairs and the light belong together, instead of three pieces you like that never become a room.

How many inspiration photos should I gather?
Ten to 15 dining rooms or nooks that make you stop. Choose quickly; if you have to talk yourself into one, skip it.

Why include a room I could never live with?
Knowing what you don’t want sharpens what you do. It helps more than you’d think.

Do small dining nooks count?
Yes. Save the cozy corners you love, not just the big dining rooms, and mix in a restaurant or hotel you loved.

Read more on Substack: follow along with the challenge, or subscribe for all the perks and the daily lessons. New here? Start with Day 0.

Subscribe on Substack

Originally published on Your Design Guide. Read the full post on Substack: Day 2: Find Your Dining Direction

How to Make an Apartment Look Expensive (Without Starting Over)

Most apartments don’t need a renovation to feel elevated. They need a few deliberate choices. When I walk into a rental that looks expensive, it’s almost never because of a big budget. It’s because someone made decisions with intention: a palette that holds together, light that feels warm, and furniture and decor that were edited instead of collected.

If you’ve been wondering how to make an apartment look expensive without starting over, this is the guide I give clients. Five steps, a short upgrade checklist, and one designer tip that ties it all together.

Step 1: Start with a cohesive palette

Pick two or three neutrals and one accent color, and let them carry the whole apartment. When every room speaks the same language, the space reads calm and unified, and that’s the look people describe as expensive. It also makes shopping easier: if a pillow or a print doesn’t fit the palette, it doesn’t come home.

Step 2: Layer your lighting

Most apartments come with one overhead fixture per room, and that’s what makes them feel flat. Mix three kinds of light: overhead, task (a reading lamp by the sofa, a lamp on the desk) and ambient (table lamps, a floor lamp in a corner). Layered light creates warmth and depth, and it’s one of the fastest changes you can make in a rental.

Step 3: Choose larger-scale art

A cluster of small frames can make a wall look busy. One bigger piece makes the room feel curated and more sophisticated. If you’re choosing between three small prints and one large one for the wall over the sofa, I’ll almost always point you to the large one.

Step 4: Upgrade your soft goods

Rugs, pillows, curtains and bedding are where quality shows, and they’re the pieces you touch every day. Investing here changes how a room feels far more than a new accessory does. Curtains hung high and wide, a rug that’s sized to define the space and bedding with real texture all quietly say “finished.”

Step 5: Style with restraint

Edit your decor. Negative space is a luxury in itself. A shelf with a few well-chosen objects looks more intentional than one that’s full. If this one feels hard, my post on why your room doesn’t need more stuff walks through how I edit a room.

The upgrade checklist

Once the five steps are in place, these are the finishing moves I check off in almost every apartment:

Add an area rug to define the space
Use matching storage
Bring in greenery
Swap basic lighting for stylish fixtures
Choose one statement piece to anchor the room

That last one matters. A statement piece, like an accent chair, a sculptural lamp or a bold piece of art, gives the eye a place to land, and everything else can stay simple around it. For more quick ways to make a space feel complete, see how to instantly pull your room together.

Plan it before you buy it

In the guide you’ll see a sample one-bedroom plan (a 12′ x 16′ living room, an 11′ x 13′ bedroom and an 8′ x 10′ kitchen) next to a living room selections board: sofa, art, greenery, pillows, coffee table, console, accent chair, area rug, storage basket and lamp. That’s how I work. I decide what goes where, and how the pieces relate to each other, before anything gets ordered. It’s the difference between a room that was planned and one that just happened.

If you’re setting up an apartment now, my Apartment Setup Kit walks you through it step by step: the apartment setup guide, a planner and workbook, budget sheets, The Room Layout Fix lessons and a styling checklist, all in one download.

Designer tip

Good design isn’t about more. It’s about the right things, placed with purpose.

Want help with your own room?

If you’d like a designer’s eye on your apartment, book an online design consultation with me. We’ll look at your space together and decide what to keep, what to change and what to buy first.

Book a design consultation

How to make an apartment look expensive: FAQ

What’s the fastest way to make an apartment look more expensive?
Layer your lighting. Adding table and floor lamps to a room that only has an overhead fixture creates warmth and depth right away, and nothing has to be installed.

How many colors should I use in an apartment?
Two or three neutrals plus one accent color. Repeating the same palette from room to room is what makes the whole apartment feel calm and unified.

Is one large piece of art better than several small ones?
Usually, yes. Larger-scale art makes a room feel curated and more sophisticated, while lots of small frames can read as clutter.

Can I make a rental look high-end without renovating?
Yes. Everything in this guide works in a rental: the palette, the lighting, the art, the soft goods, editing your decor and one statement piece to anchor the room.

Follow along on Substack: I share guides like this one every week, plus room formulas and the full lessons for subscribers.

Subscribe on Substack

Day 1: Start With the Dining Space You Already Have

A calm dining nook with a round white pedestal table, a cushioned corner banquette, a green dining chair, a cream dome pendant light and abstract art on the wall

Day 1 of the dining room challenge: before you measure, move or buy anything for your dining space, you look. Three photos, five questions, one honest score.

YOUR DESIGN GUIDE | ROOM CHALLENGE | DAY 1

Welcome to Day 1.

Yesterday you cleared the table (if you missed it, start with Day 0: Tomorrow, We Start With the Table You Already Have). Today, we look at the dining room around it.

This is the step almost everyone skips. They go straight to “I need a new table” or “I need a bigger rug,” and they buy the fix before they know the problem.

When I walk into a client’s dining room, I don’t start with ideas. I start by looking. Today, you’re going to do the same.

Step 1: Take three photos of your dining space

Don’t tidy first. We want the room the way you actually live in it.

From the doorway, the view you see when you walk in.
From the far corner, looking back toward the door or kitchen.
Straight on, at table height. Sit in the chair you use most and take the photo from there.

Here’s why: a photo shows you what your eye has stopped seeing. The light that hangs off-center. The rug that ends under the chairs. The sideboard wall that’s been bare since you moved in.

Look at your three photos side by side. Something will jump out at you right away.

That first reaction is useful. But it’s usually not the real problem.

What the full Day 1 lesson covers

In this guide, you’ll get:

The Day 1 worksheet (a printable page you’ll use again on Day 30)
The “what’s bothering you” checklist: the 6 problems I see most in dining spaces
The everyday vs. hosting test, so you plan for how you really use the room
The one-dinner plan: the date and headcount everything this month works toward

The rest of today’s lesson, with the five questions and the honest score, is for paid members on Substack.

Read the full post on Substack

New to the challenge? Here’s how it works and what each week covers: Join the November Room Redesign Challenge.

From my shop

Want the layouts, dimensions and lighting for every room in your home, dining space included? It’s all in my 151-page Complete Home Design Guide.

Cover of The Complete Home Design Guide by Jill Seidner: a 151-page designer handbook with layouts, dimensions and paint picks. — The Complete Home Design Guide: layouts, dimensions and lighting for every room.

Get The Complete Home Design Guide

Want help with your own room?

Get the $397 Complete Room Design

Dining room challenge Day 1: FAQ

Should I tidy my dining room before I take the photos?
No. Don’t tidy first. The point is to see the room the way you actually live in it, so the photos show what your eye has stopped seeing.

Which three photos do I take?
One from the doorway, the view you see when you walk in; one from the far corner, looking back toward the door or kitchen; and one straight on at table height, from the chair you use most.

Why look at photos instead of just looking at the room?
A photo shows you what your eye has stopped seeing: a light that hangs off-center, a rug that ends under the chairs, a sideboard wall that’s been bare since you moved in.

Do I need to buy anything on Day 1?
No. Day 1 is about looking, not buying. Most people buy the fix before they know the problem, and this step is how you avoid that.

Read more on Substack: follow along with the challenge, or subscribe for all the perks and the daily lessons.

Subscribe on Substack

Originally published on Your Design Guide. Read the full post on Substack: Day 1: Start With the Dining Space You Already Have

Day 0: Tomorrow, We Start With the Table You Already Have

Your Design Guide November Room Challenge roadmap: Day 0 kickoff, then Days 1 to 7 figure out what you're working with, 8 to 14 build the dining plan, 15 to 21 color, walls and storage, 22 to 25 get ready to host, 26 to 30 finish it like a designer.

The November Room Redesign Challenge starts today. Here’s how this dining room challenge works, and the one thing to do before Day 1.

YOUR DESIGN GUIDE | ROOM CHALLENGE | DAY 0

Welcome to November.

And welcome to the Dining Nooks + Dining Rooms challenge.

We are not starting by shopping for a new table.

We’re starting with the one you already have.

Because the most common thing I see in dining rooms is a room planned around a purchase. Someone falls in love with a table, buys it, and then tries to make the rug, the light and the chairs work around it.

Sometimes that works.

A lot of the time, the table is the wrong size, the light is hanging over the wrong spot, and the chairs scrape the wall every time someone sits down.

So this month, we’re doing it the way I’d approach a real design project: first we look, then we measure, then we plan, and only after that do we decide what (if anything) is worth buying.

It doesn’t matter whether you have a formal dining room, an open-plan dining area, a breakfast nook or one awkward corner off the kitchen. If it holds a table, it counts.

How the dining room challenge works

Every day from tomorrow, I’ll publish one short written lesson with one clear next step. Most take 15 to 30 minutes.

Week 1 (Days 1–7): Figure out what you’re working with.
Photos, your design direction, shopping your own house, measuring, the table math and the flow.
Week 2 (Days 8–14): Build the dining plan.
Chairs, banquettes, the rug, the light, and your own dining board.
Week 3 (Days 15–21): Color, walls + storage.
Paint, wall finishes, art, windows and the sideboard.
Week 4 (Days 22–25): Get ready to host.
The dinner plan, the table setting, the centerpiece and the buffet.
Final days (26–30): Finish it like a designer.
Mix old and new, edit, and make your final shopping list.

There’s a catch-up day at the end of each week, so if Tuesday gets away from you, you won’t fall behind.

You can follow along daily or go at your own pace. The lessons stay in the archive.

What we’ll cover this month

Things like:

how big your table should really be
round, oval or rectangle
chairs that are comfortable for a long dinner
when a banquette beats chairs
the rug size that keeps chairs on the rug
how big the light should be, and how high to hang it
a color story for the room
art and the sideboard wall
storage for dishes and linens
setting a table that feels like you
a centerpiece people can talk over

And plenty of small things that make a surprisingly big difference.

Lowering a light six inches.
Swapping the two end chairs for a pair that doesn’t match.
Turning the table.
Moving a rug that’s two sizes too small to another room.

Sometimes the fix isn’t expensive.

It’s just something you wouldn’t have thought to change.

Week 1 includes the table math. If you want a preview, here’s the dining table math I do before anyone buys a table.

Jill's Dining Room Design Ideas guide: a round wood table with mixed chairs, a sculptural pendant and a styled sideboard, with design tips. — A round table with mixed chairs: one of the ideas we'll test in your own room in Week 2.

Print your dining room checklist

If you haven’t yet, grab the free Dining Nook + Dining Room Checklist (it’s linked in the challenge welcome post). It has what to measure, the clearances that make a table comfortable, the rug and lighting rules, and a hosting list for the week before Thanksgiving. We’ll use it all month.

Your one thing for today

Clear the table.

All of it. The mail, the laptop, the fruit bowl, the stack of things that “live” there.

Don’t style it, and don’t tidy the rest of the room. Just clear the table, so tomorrow we can see the room honestly.

Then tell me in the comments on Substack: what kind of dining space are you working with, and what’s the one thing that bothers you most about it?

I read every comment, and your answers help me shape the lessons ahead.

Tomorrow is Day 1. We start with photos, a fresh look at your space, and figuring out how you really use it before we change a thing.

Join the challenge

Days 1–30 are for paid subscribers: $9 a month or $90 a year. Free gives you the ideas. Paid gives you the plan.

From my shop

Want a head start on Day 2, when we find your dining direction? The Big Book of Mood Boards has 140+ finished boards for every room of the home, plus a holiday section, to help you see what you like before you buy a thing.

Cover of The Big Book of Mood Boards by Jill Seidner: 140+ finished room boards, with sample pages and a living room mood board. — The Big Book of Mood Boards: 140+ finished boards for every room.

Get The Big Book of Mood Boards

Here’s to a table you love gathering around.

Jill

Want help with your own room?

If you’d rather talk your dining room through with a designer before you buy anything, book an online design consultation with me. Bring your photos and measurements, and we’ll sort out the table, the rug and the light together.

Book an online design consultation

Dining room challenge: FAQ

Do I need to buy a new dining table for this challenge?
No. We start with the table you already have. First we look, then we measure, then we plan, and only after that do we decide what (if anything) is worth buying.

What if I only have a breakfast nook or a corner off the kitchen?
It counts. A formal dining room, an open-plan dining area, a breakfast nook or one awkward corner off the kitchen: if it holds a table, it works for this challenge.

How much time does each lesson take?
One short written lesson a day, with one clear next step. Most take 15 to 30 minutes, and there’s a catch-up day at the end of each week.

Will my dining room be ready for Thanksgiving?
That’s the plan. Thanksgiving lands on Day 25, and Week 4 is all about getting ready to host: the dinner plan, the table setting, the centerpiece and the buffet.

Read more on Substack: follow along with the challenge, or subscribe for all the perks and the daily lessons.

Subscribe on Substack

Originally published on Your Design Guide. Read the post and the comments on Substack: Day 0: Tomorrow, We Start With the Table You Already Have

How to Instantly Pull Your Room Together: 6 Easy Room Formulas

The secret to a polished room isn’t buying more. It’s styling what you already own.

You have a sofa you like. A rug you chose carefully. A few pieces of art, a couple of lamps, maybe a new coffee table. And somehow the room still doesn’t feel done.

This is the most common thing I hear, and it’s almost never about the furniture. The sofa is fine. The rug is the right color and the wrong size. The art is lovely but hanging six inches too high. The curtains stop just above the floor. One overhead light is doing all the work.

These are small things. Together they’re the difference between a room that’s furnished and a room that’s finished. The good news: you probably already own most of what you need. It’s a matter of placement, scale and a few designer measurements.

So today I’m giving you my six go-to formulas, the same ones I use when a client’s room feels “almost there.”

Shop the pieces that pull a room together

Some links are affiliate links; I may earn a small commission.

Before we get into the formulas, here are the hardworking basics that show up again and again. You may already own something similar.

A rug big enough for the seating: Carmara Jute Rug 8′ x 10′ (Serena & Lily): Shop it
A warm table lamp: Luis Table Lamp, Pleated (Lulu and Georgia): Shop it
A plug-in sconce, no electrician needed: Tailor Soft Bronze Plug-In Wall Sconce (CB2): Shop it
A pillow cover with texture: Bettie Velvet Throw Pillow Cover 20″x20″ (CB2): Shop it
A throw for the sofa: Organic Rib Knit Throw Blanket (Parachute Home): Shop it
A mirror with presence: Ethel Wall Mirror (McGee & Co.): Shop it
A tray to ground a surface: Kingsley Tray (McGee & Co.): Shop it

Browse the full edits: Rugs That Fit the Room · Lighting I Actually Use · Living Room Essentials

The one test I’d do first

Stand in the doorway, turn off the overhead light, and take a photo of the room. A photo shows you what your eye has stopped noticing. The rug floating in the middle. The corner that goes dark. The art sitting too high above the sofa.

Look at that photo and you’ll usually spot two or three of the six problems right away. The full post walks through how to fix each one.

In the full guide, you’ll get

6 room formulas with my guide graphics showing exactly how to put each one together.
The designer measurements I use, from rug sizes and pillow math to art height and curtain rod placement.
Easy swaps for every formula so you can pull it off with pieces you already own.
Styling secrets that make a room look more expensive, plus a pull-it-together checklist you can walk through room by room.
Shop-the-look picks for every formula, the pieces I’d reach for if you do need to fill a gap.

The full guide, with all six formulas and the measurements behind them, is for paid subscribers on Substack.

Read the full post on Substack

Want more formulas you can use today? My 7 easy room formulas post is free, and the room numbers I use on every project are the ones to have in hand before you move a single piece.

Take the guesswork out of every room

If you’d like every measurement and room plan in one place, my Complete Home Design Guide walks through the whole house, room by room, so you can style what you own with confidence.

Get The Complete Home Design Guide

Want help with your own room?

If your room is “almost there” and you’d like a designer to finish it with you, my $397 Complete Room Design is the easiest next step: I’ll design one room with you, start to finish.

See the $397 Complete Room Design

Pulling a room together: FAQ

Why does my room still not feel finished?
It’s almost never the furniture. Usually it’s the small things: a rug that’s the wrong size, art hung too high, curtains that stop above the floor, or one overhead light doing all the work.

Do I need to buy new furniture to pull a room together?
Usually not. You probably already own most of what you need. It’s a matter of placement, scale and a few designer measurements.

What’s the quickest way to see what’s wrong in a room?
Stand in the doorway, turn off the overhead light and take a photo. The photo shows what your eye has stopped noticing, like a floating rug, a dark corner or art sitting too high.

What are the basics that pull a room together?
A rug big enough for the seating, a warm table lamp, a plug-in sconce, a textured pillow, a throw for the sofa, a mirror with presence and a tray to ground a surface.

Read more on Substack: subscribe free for more room fixes like this, or upgrade for all the perks and the full guides.

Subscribe on Substack

Originally published on Your Design Guide. Read the post and the comments on Substack: How to Instantly Pull Your Room Together: 6 Easy Room Formulas