THE FARMHOUSE: I KNOW IT WELL. I grew up with it, I live in it, I get it. It’s second nature to me, ingrained in my soul. My grandparents lived on the family farm. A good deal of my childhood was spent there. Truly some of my happiest days were with my grandmother. I’m sure I became a stylist and a designer because of her and that farm. To this day, Benham Lane remains my favorite place.

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But you don’t have to grow up with a farmhouse to create one of your own. These five elements can help yours stand the test of time:

• White paint. Above all, the quintessential farmhouse is white. Use it liberally. It’s fresh and clean and it will never go out of style.
• Tongue-and-groove paneling. Add it as wainscoting, or panel an entire room with it. It’s great on ceilings and as backing for bookcases, cupboards and cabinets.
• Wood floors. Left natural or painted, with or without rugs, wood floors in a farmhouse tell a story. The worn look of well-used stairs and thresholds add character and charm.
• Simple, utilitarian fabrics. Think blue-and-white mattress ticking, burlap, hemp, canvas, worn linen grain sacks and unbleached muslin. Keep it simple.
• Anything galvanized. From buckets to washtubs, watering cans to planters, you can’t go wrong when you bring in these hard-working basics. Put them to use in creative and unexpected ways.

When I remodeled my own home, the family farm oozed out of me. I’m sure I was guided by my grandmother’s hand. When a client says to me, “I want that Farmhouse Feel,” I close my eyes and just imagine myself down home.

LOSING THE LAWN DOES NOT MEAN you will be shunned by your neighbors. In fact, the “anti-lawn” is a hip and sustainable alternative to the resource-gobbling ritual of daily irrigation and frequent applications of fertilizer.

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It’s hard to break off our emotional connection to lawns, but there are healthy ― and beautiful ― alternatives. While you wean yourself (or your spouse) from green turf, you’ll discover an exciting array of groundcovers and no-grass (or less-grass) design solutions.

Here are five ideas to try:

• Grow an “eco-lawn,” such as a custom-blended seed mix that fits the conditions for your region. For example, Portland, Ore.-based Hobbs & Hopkins Ltd. developed “Fleur de Lawn,” a meadow-like mix of small flowers and low-growing clover combined with a specialty variety of dwarf perennial rye grass. Once established, it is naturally self-fertilizing, requires no watering and needs infrequent mowing.
• Learn to live with “golden.” Allow your lawn to go dormant in the summer. When cooler weather and seasonal showers return in the fall, the grass will revive and turn a brilliant green, irrigated naturally by rain.
• Adjust your watering practices. Lawns require more water than other plants, so separate the lawn-watering system from trees, shrubs and flowerbeds.
• Shrink the green. Gradually reduce the size of your lawn, replacing sections of grass with native ornamentals or low-water plants like succulents. You can satisfy your urge for green with alternatives such as thyme, which is visually appealing, aromatic and even edible.
• Replace grass with gravel. I ripped out all of the lawn in my backyard and created a Mediterranean-inspired gravel garden. The warm gold gravel covers all the pathways that surround planted beds, borders and islands. The gravel is permeable, uses no water and is weed-free (thanks to a hidden layer of landscape cloth underneath it).

DO YOU WISH YOU HAD A LITTLE MORE SPACE in your home? Not much really, just a quiet place to sit and read, perhaps a corner to pay bills and organize your household papers. That’s not asking much, is it?

Recently I found myself asking these same questions. In my case, I dream about a spot to sew: a place to be creative, have my bits and pieces of fabrics around me, my sewing notions organized, a table my sewing machine could sit on instead of always having to be put away, a sunny window with beautiful natural light. Dream on … right?

No. Don’t dream, re-imagine.

Do you have rooms that sit unused for months? Dining rooms that see little action except during the holidays, a guest room that sits quietly awaiting occasional visitors? A living room that sees little living or a porch that catches nothing more than kicked off shoes and coats?

With a little creativity and planning, some savvy organizing and a bit of vision, you CAN carve out your little bit of heaven.

Here’s my secret:  Make a room inside of a room.

For example, an unorganized or underutilized closet makes a great office. I’ve run my business out of a closet for the past 18 years (OK, I did have a window installed) — an easy fix for such a valuable space.

A dining room makes a great library, and vice-versa! Imagine candlelit dinners where bookcases live next to china cabinets and lamps quietly illuminate the space instead of an overhead chandelier. A couple of upholstered chairs pulled up to the ends of a table make it cozy for dining and reading.

As for my sewing spot? I have a certain college freshman who just may spend the summer away from home — bingo!

SHARON STONE WASN’T THE FIRST Hollywood star to wear a man’s white dress shirt and look glamorous, but perhaps she’s the most recent. Katharine Hepburn and Lauren Bacall appropriated the iconic style decades ago, knotting the shirttails at the waist, rolling up the sleeves and wearing “his” shirt with tailored slacks or a waist-enhancing skirt.

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I love wearing my husband’s shirts. Crisp and clean, the 100-percent-cotton shirting feels cool and pleasant against my arms and shoulders. Basic white looks classic; Oxford stripes are preppy and playful; chambray exudes weekend casual. Add pearls and you’re ready for a night on the town.

The men’s dress shirt — for her — will never go out of style.

Fashion designers often reinterpret the dress shirt to fit a woman’s silhouette. Recently, I discovered the work of Seattle designer Farinaz Taghavi. Her fascination with the dress shirt, cut for the female body, is expressed in luxurious fabrics and colors, interpreted with self-tie belts, sexy waistlines and wider collars and cuffs. Yet that tailored, classic element is still present in Farinaz’s designs.

On her website she explains: Women “can keep the sleeves open, pull them up, put their collar down or style (the shirt) differently throughout the day. I want women to make their own statements — my shirt is meant to support them, not dominate them.”

It’s brilliant to see how Farinaz has tapped into women’s love for tailored shirts, either the original guy’s button-down or the feminized gal’s shirt. We wear them to make a personal statement rather than follow a prescribed fashion trend-of-the-moment.

And if we manage to add a touch of old Hollywood glamour while doing so, it’s even better.

IF YOU’VE EVER BEEN TO TUSCANY, you may have come home with romantic photos of bright red geraniums spilling from a window box or over the rim of a terra-cotta flowerpot. There’s something irresistible about this cheery red flower. It’s the quintessential summer bloom, reminding us of sunshine, warmth, meals eaten al fresco-style, and the good life.

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Except this flower isn’t really a geranium.

Often called a “zonal geranium,” the true name of the popular red, coral, white or pink summer flower is Pelargonium x hortorum. These plants have fleshy stems that bear full clusters of blooms; the leaves are often ruffled, adding to their charming appearance. Pelargoniums hail from South Africa, so they prefer hot, dry environments and therefore will not thrive year-round in areas where winters are wet and cold. For the summer container or flower bed, though, nothing beats this plant. It will bloom almost continuously until the first frost. I especially love the fancy-leafed and scented varieties (with velvety leaves that smell like apple, chocolate, peppermint, lemon and more).

The true geranium, often called a “hardy geranium” or cranesbill, is a hardy perennial that will usually survive cold winters and then leaf out and bloom the following spring. Geraniums have smaller leaves and tinier flowers than showy pelargoniums, but they make up for their quieter demeanor by serving as the garden’s soft embroidery. As these plants grow, their small, roundish leaves and short stems with open-faced flowers knit together with nearby plants, filling in the garden’s bare spots with a carefree abandon. Two of my favorite cultivars include ‘Rozanne’, which produces almost iridescent purple-blue flowers, and ‘Ann Folkard’, admired for its chartreuse foliage and magenta-purple blooms.

The best news is that you don’t have to choose between pelargoniums and geraniums. Enjoy them both!

IN 2006, WHEN I MOVED from Seattle to Los Angeles, I met Cristi Walden and was invited to join her small group on the first of what I call Cristi’s “Design Field Trips.”

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Through this lively and curious woman, I’ve had a personal education in architecture, design, decorative arts and the cultural history of Los Angeles. We’ve gone off the beaten track to places I never would have discovered on my own, including the just-restored Marion Davies beach house in Malibu and a pitch-perfect Tiki Bar in the basement of a shy but gifted animator. We met tile makers who are keeping alive the art of the past and toured the ancient warehouse where reproduction Bauer pottery is being manufactured.

With a twinkle in her eye, Cristi has a knack for gathering like-minded people, heading out for a day and creating an unforgettable excursion. She calls us the “Merry Band of Archivists.”

Here are some of Cristi’s tricks for pulling together a design-filled day:

• Keep your ears open and just ask. Her contagious enthusiasm opens doors and, frankly, I think people are flattered to be asked to share their home or give a behind-the-scenes tour to kindred spirits.
• Invite participants. Armed with driving directions or a map, we head out to visit an obscure county museum with an amazing art exhibit or an incredible Arts & Crafts house filled with a stunning vintage pottery collection. Camaraderie, discovery and adventure make us nearly giddy with excitement.
• Add food. Cristi makes sure we eat, perhaps at a Mexican cantina, a barbecue spot or a diner. The restaurants seem to fit the theme of the tour, but maybe that’s a coincidence.

After the trip, armed with the email addresses of new friends, I return home with photographs, stories and a much better appreciation of the place where I now live.

HERE’S A GREAT WORD for the Urban Dictionary: Boomerangers. Definition: the adult children of baby boomers moving home again due to financial or other hardship. I get it. Many of my friends’ kids are indeed moving back in either during or after college, or because they can’t find jobs.

On the flip side, there are just as many boomers whose parents or in-laws are moving in with them. It’s no wonder we are called the sandwich generation. According to the U.S. Census, the number of households with at least three generations increased 30 percent between 2000 and 2009.

When the kids or the parents decide to move in, the biggest considerations are space and communication:

• Reorganize existing spaces to provide balance between personal privacy, independence and communal living. Furniture and paint can turn a family or rec room into a studio apartment, a guest suite into a living space or a second floor into an almost-separate apartment — minus the cooking facilities.
• Remodel a basement, attic, garage or other area to create fully independent living space with separate entrances and cooking facilities. Check local zoning and building codes to learn what you can and can’t do. And be sure to get appropriate permits and comply with all requirements.
• Establish and agree on ground rules, such as who can use the kitchen at what hours and when loud music is — and isn’t — acceptable. Make sure each family member has an opportunity to have her or his day-to-day needs accommodated.

Whether it is your kids or your parents moving back in (or both!) look at it as an opportunity to create a new kind of relationship at a unique point in all of your lives.

RECENTLY A FRIEND ASKED if I would be interested in joining her for a presentation featuring a well-known interior designer from New York. I know the designer’s work and am drawn to his particular sense of style. The presentation was titled “American Design in the New Century” and I was curious to see how he might be applying his unique style in today’s economic climate, so I agreed to go.

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As his talk proceeded — accompanied by beautiful photos depicting gorgeous lofts and apartments in New York City and elsewhere, the “country houses” (most second or third residences for their owners) and the sources where the designer was shopping — all I could think about was: Where is this guy coming from? Was it me? Or was the rest of the audience feeling the same?

When the presentation was over, I turned to my friend and reluctantly said, “The best thing about the whole presentation was a wall of simple office-supply clipboards and the artwork clipped to them.” “Me too!” she exclaimed. I felt vindicated.

Later that evening, she called me. She recapped the rest of the day’s events and told me about a conversation she had with a designer who also attended the morning talk. “Loved that wall of clip boards!” she said. We had a good laugh.

My point? Even in the most expensive, elaborate and over-the-top homes, the creative use of something as simple, inexpensive and accessible as those clipboards made the biggest, most memorable impression.

As for American Design in the New Century? Based on the past few years of its first decade, most Americans have come to realize, appreciate and celebrate what is simple and familiar. A creative twist to an everyday object will trump over-the-top and expensive any day.

THE GARDEN TOURING SEASON IS UPON US: Where I live, there seems to be at least one secret garden tour or garden festival every weekend. And I never say no to a chance to don my straw-brimmed hat, sling a camera over my shoulder and spend a day entering a few new garden gates.

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Here are my tips for making the most of a tour day, rain or shine:

• What to wear: the aforementioned hat to protect your skin from sun or showers; comfortable walking shoes (no sandals or heels); and layers for sudden changes of weather.
• What to bring along: a lightweight backpack filled with a water bottle, snacking food, sunscreen, camera and notebook. It’s nice to have your hands free in the garden, in case you want to stroke a scented leaf!
• What to do: Take photos when you notice an attractive plant combination, clever design idea or unusual material — great for future reference in your own backyard; ask questions of the homeowner, designer or volunteer docents, especially to meet an unfamiliar or uncommon plant; be sure to thank the hosts for opening their garden to the community.
• What not to do: don’t step off the walkways; don’t express your criticisms out loud; don’t help yourself to plant cuttings!

I’ve discovered some of the best inspiration for my own landscape-design projects when touring others’ secret gardens. Try exploring in your community and you’ll get an informative horticultural education, too.

IN THE 1990s, Design Within Reach (DWR) tore down the walls of secrecy and exclusivity and started selling high-end modern design classics to the masses, flattening the design world as they went. For the first time, you could buy an Eames Chair — at retail. More than any other single company, DWR has done more to flatten and “open source” the design world.

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But DWR went even further. To an audience hungry for information, they supplied the back story, sharing what were formerly state secrets about designers, materials and fabrication methods. And in the process, they changed, well, everything.

At the time, the only way to get high-end modern home furnishings was to take a trip to your local design center with an interior designer. Access to information was limited to the “profession” and carefully transmitted to consumers through this closed-loop system of designers, showrooms, catalogs and magazines.

While DWR was opening up the upscale market, Ikea was flattening the world by globally mass-marketing “euro-design”. With their sophisticated manufacturing, and DIY warehouse and assembly, Ikea sold high design at a low price. But Ikea flattened style too, making the global local. With stores in 39 countries, you can get that same Ikea experience whether you live in Sweden, Saudi Arabia or San Francisco.

With DWR staking out the high end, and Ikea the mass market, West Elm took on the middle ground, launching in 2002 with only catalogs and a website. And the list keeps growing. You can shop, research and buy just about anything from anywhere online. From eBay to Etsy, you can access to a wide range of products and information that once required a degree in interior design. Or at least the wherewithal to hire one.