Decorating is highly personal. Everyone has design choices they adore and others that make them uneasy, frustrated, or just plain annoyed. In this episode we talk about the small things we avoid in our own home—like a particular furniture arrangement or a color pairing that makes us squirm. We also share several places to find original art across a wide range of budgets, give an update on our beloved chihuahua, reveal a new trick for catching typos, and finally conclude the long-running saga of which computer bag John would end up choosing. Also: Drunk House Love makes a cameo.

You can download this episode from major podcast platforms—Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher, and TuneIn Radio—or listen on the podcast feed. Use this page to find links, notes, and photos we mention in the show. If you read posts in a feed reader, click through to see the audio player on the website.

What’s New

• We picked up a painting at Homearama from painter Rita Driscoll of Yellow Door Art RVA. It was a great find and a perfect reminder that showhouse events are excellent places to discover original work.
• We also found several small, affordable art pieces that Sherry was thrilled about—some of those small treasures can completely change a room for very little money.
• Sherry quickly framed pages she ripped from a recent magazine to create an instant, inexpensive piece of wall art. It’s a fast fix when you need something to fill a blank wall in the early stages of decorating.
• We covered affordable ways to find or make art back in Episode #17, including mood-board ideas and inexpensive wall-fillers that look great when grouped together.
• We shared a roundup of artists and resources we love in a post about a commissioned portrait from a talented neighbor; the post includes a variety of shops and creators across different price points.

• Here’s a photo of Burger before his surgery. You can see the eye mass that needed to be removed. He wasn’t entirely convinced by the doggy ice cream offer, but we’ll share a recovery photo once he’s feeling better.

Updates

• I finally picked a computer bag after a lot of reader suggestions: the eBag Professional Slim Laptop Bag in Heathered Grey (it has an orange interior, a fun nod to the old Jansport days). I’ll try to post a photo of me wearing it on our next trip.

• Another brand mentioned many times was Timbuk2, which has many solid options for laptop-friendly bags.
• Jansport has also added some sleeker, laptop-friendly backpacks to their lineup if you prefer that style.

What’s Not

• We talk about casting calls and DIY shows and admit we missed that Love Yurts is already airing on DIY. Clearly we have some catching up to do.
• If you’re daydreaming about a Modpool, we referenced a short video that gives a quick overview—those heated shipping-container pools are definitely conversation starters.

Design Neuroses

• Sherry has a strong urge to line books and frames up with the edge of the surface they sit on. Even when a dramatic angled photo seems to contradict that instinct, the straight alignment gives a calm, intentional look.
• We shared a recent photo of the breakfast nook at our beach house and talked about lighting placement—imagine a pendant dropping right in the center of that doorway and you’ll get the point about planning sightlines.
• We also explained why we chose the kitchen layout we did: keeping the fridge and dishwasher out of direct view from the front door created a cleaner, more welcoming entry.

• One small product favorite we mentioned is a soft white LED bulb that casts gentle, flattering light—perfect if you want a bulb that’s easy on the eyes.

We’re Digging

• For listeners who liked our past book club pick The Kind Worth Killing, Sherry recommends several Liane Moriarty novels. Favorites include What Alice Forgot and The Husband’s Secret; she also plans to read Truly Madly Guilty and The Last Anniversary next.
• We also recommend using a writing checker like Grammarly to help catch typos and improve clarity. It’s a simple way to tidy up drafts before publishing or sharing.

If you want to revisit anything we’ve dug up in past episodes, we linked a master list that gathers all our past recommendations in one place—handy when you can’t remember which show mentioned what.

Special thanks to Thomas Avenue Ceramics for sponsoring this episode. They offer an excellent selection of tile that ships directly to your door; we highlighted a few of Sherry’s favorites from their collections. As a reminder, some episodes include affiliate links.

Thanks for listening and for following along with our design adventures.

*This post contains affiliate links*