Painting

Just as color can affect your mood, the right (or wrong) color can affect your sleep quality too. There are paint colors that promote relaxation and evoke a sense of calm, helping you settle down for the night and fall asleep peacefully. But there are also hues that stimulate the mind, energize the body, and trigger emotions that keep you up instead of helping you doze off.

If you feel like putting off painting your house, it might be a good idea. Waiting until the time is right can improve the result and increase the longevity of your paint. While it’s obvious that outside conditions must be right for painting your home’s exterior, they also play a role in interior painting.

You might not be able to increase a room's square footage, but you can use paint to visually expand the space. Paint offers a cheap and easy way to update a space, and when used strategically, it can visually extend ceiling height and make walls recede to create a more expansive feel. "Color can trick the eyes and create the illusion of a larger space," says Hannah Yeo, senior manager of color marketing at Benjamin Moore.

Perhaps one of the most polarizing terms in home decorating is simply, “textured walls." They were in, then out, but now—perhaps to the surprise of many—they’re very in again. This time, it's all thanks to plaster.

When it comes to home renovations, the time of year and associated weather will dictate whether you can accomplish your goals. Digging fence posts in the winter or replacing a roof in the rain are immediate passes; painting in the summer is more of a gray area.

There’s something about warm yellow kitchen cabinets that just feels happy—like walking on sunshine. (And don’t it feel good?) We think so. From muddy, muted yellows to ultra-vibrant, high-shine finishes, it seems there’s a yellow for everybody. See how these kitchens are jumping on the butter yellow trend, and take notes on the buttery hues to try for yourself.