Janet Brooks Design Blog
Showcasing our Nationally Recognized Luxury Home Design Ideas
Ten Creative Interior Design Ideas to Make Your Small Kitchen Look LARGE!
Just because you have a small kitchen doesn't mean that it can't enjoy some serious style. If you are looking to spice up your small space, look no further than these creative kitchen design ideas. 1. Glass always add light, especially when it is added to the fronts...
Our Project Featured in Houzz’ Remodeling Piece
We're excited to share this recent piece on Houzz covering the typical stages of a home remodeling project, including the nitty-gritty behind the scenes work that contractors perform including HVAC, electrical and plumbing. Our Calm Contemporary home remodel was...
Family Room Design: How Can We Have Our Cake, and Eat it, Too?!
In the layout of our family rooms, there are 3 strategic players vying for attention, and in true American fashion, we want ALL of them ALL of the time: (1) the View, (2) the Fireplace and (3) the TV. How to have all 3 directly in front of you at the same time? Well,...
6 Designer Tips for Making Your Home Look Luxe for Less
In this video segment from ABC15′s Sonoran Living Live, Janet provides some design tips during a segment called “Splurge or Save? 6 Designer Tips for Making Your Home Look Luxe for Less”. She discusses how to build up from the floor to create a design foundation for a...
Choosing the Right Hardwood Flooring
It isn't a secret that hardwood flooring can set a beautiful foundation for the design of a home. Since the flooring of a new-build or remodel is such an integral part of the design, it's important to choose the right hardwood from the beginning. When I first started...
Creating a “Design Team” for a Custom Home Build
You’ve probably heard us touting the benefits of a good design team who is working as “one” on behalf of our clients a few times before…but we can’t emphasize it enough. Just as a team of horses who are pulling in different directions wouldn’t make much progress, a...
5 Design Mistakes To Stop Making
As an interior designer, I've seen it all when it comes to good and bad design over the years. What often starts off as a design trend to follow can easily turn into a "mistake" over time. Believe me, there are a lot more than 5 mistakes you can make when designing...
Why Should I Hire An Interior Designer?
I didn't grow up with my mom's friends all using interior designers, and I sometimes wonder if people really understand the process and the value associated with the use of a designer to help you with your interiors, whether it be an update, or the design and...
Fireplaces – How They Can Perfectly Enhance your Home
Throughout the holiday season, nothing feels more cozy than snuggling up next to a warm fireplace on a cold winter's night. Even in the desert of Arizona, a lit fireplace can warm up a room in more ways than one. In my last post, I discussed some of my best tips on...
Unauthentic Design
As architects and interior designers, we are regularly called upon to define a style. We have fun making up “titles” to describe what might be an unlikely combination of design elements and historic periods that somehow work together and beg to be described. ...
Home Gadgets and Interior Design
In 2014, we have constantly seen new home gadgets hit the marketplace and customers can't wait to get their hands on the latest and greatest out there. The home is no exception. Some of the latest gadgets seek to simplify daily life for homeowners and are constantly...
Stone and Tile Flooring in the Southwest
Flooring in residential projects is a direct reflection of changes in trends as they are happening in the design-build industry. When I was first doing interior design in the early 80's, wall to wall carpeting was almost the only thing we used except in bathrooms,...
White Kitchens
A couple of years ago, I gave a seminar at the Paradise Valley, Arizona Design Center on “White Kitchens” and the prevalence across the board in all design styles to lighten up kitchens and go with variations of white cabinetry and even white countertops. Now, 2...
Importance of Lighting in Interior Design
I recently traveled to Ciudad Obregon, Mexico to work on a client project. One of the first things I noticed when I arrived at the home after my evening flight was that in spite of its grandeur, the home seemed dark and uninviting due to its lack of sufficient...