** This giveaway is closed.  Congratulations to the winner, Brooke Morrow!  ** This post is sponsored by Arhaus.  As always, all opinions and words are honest and my own.  (And you’re going to want to stick around, because this is one of the biggest giveaways I’ve ever hosted!) Shopping for a sofa can be an intimidating process, especially if you’re buying it online, which is fairly typical these days.  Even if you are fortunate enough to see the piece in person, it’s usually not the exact piece.  You’re still customizing the fabric, finishes, and perhaps even the configuration.  You don’t know with 100% certainty that the piece will work until it’s sitting in the space.  BUT, there is a lot of leg work you can do upfront to greatly increase your chances of success and get the odds close to 100%. So, let’s talk about customizing a sofa! If you

A few weeks ago, Jeff asked me a dangerous question.  “Would you like to go to Barnes & Noble?”  Well, of course, the answer was yes.  I am so glad we moved to a city that has a good bookstore.  Now, we do have an even larger library, but I must admit that I love owning my books.  I want to have the freedom to put Post-it notes in them and to revisit them for inspiration and information time and time again. I purchased several books and magazines on this particular outing and one of the books I bought was a 1961 Better Homes& Gardens decorating book.  It might sound a little odd, but I love looking at old decorating magazines and books for inspiration.  These dated decorating guides are a great indication of what decorating choices are timeless.  If there is a thread that ties good design from 1961