80 Genius Interior Design Ideas From Professional Designers

A home gym is still a gym, and if the space is cold, dingy, and blah, no amount of convenience will get you to use it. However, designer Tanya Ryno has a fix for that: “If it’s more inviting, you’ll use it.” She and her husband, Jim, of Iron House Design, created this beautiful and serene home gym for our 2024 Whole Home, using calming hues, plenty of fresh air, and luxe finishes to do so.

TOUR THE ENTIRE SPACE

Related Story: 25 Home Gym Ideas That Are Big On Style

If your family is an entertaining bunch, then you need to make sure that your home can comfortably accommodate the number of guests you’d like to bring in. A good rule of thumb, and a way to make sure you don’t over-invite, is matching your living room and dining room seating options, according to designer Dane Austin. “Your living room should be able to seat as many people as you have dining room chairs,” he says.

TOUR THE ENTIRE SPACE

Related Story: Top 12 Dining Room Trends Designers Are Expecting to Take Over in 2025

While large amounts of natural light are on most people’s home wishlists, sometimes large windows can make you feel a bit exposed. Designer Anne McDonald suggests one particular design trend of the past to counter this vulnerable feeling. She transformed part of the large, open reading room into an English snug: “They’re sweet little rooms that are intimate and cozy.”

TOUR THE ENTIRE SPACE

Related Story: 40 Reading Nook Ideas That Don’t Sacrifice Coziness for Style

If your home is filled with patterns, an interior design secret from Colleen Simonds is all about using certain pieces as grounding elements to take a bit away from the busy prints. “The color and glaze on the lamps help balance the tones in the wallpaper,” she explains of this dining room. “The rug was a late—but wonderful—find. The brown is nice and grounding and all the colorful squares bring life and cheerful color to the room. Chic, not serious, and unique. My favorite combination!”

TOUR THE ENTIRE HOME

Related Story: Custom Murals and 7 Other Wallpaper Trends That Will Be Everywhere in 2025

This Texas house didn’t come with a kitchen island, so the team at Fort Design Studio sourced a portable wooden island from Chairish to use instead. Not only does this give the kitchen a wholly unique look, but it warms up the space. It’s okay—even encouraged—to think outside the box when it comes to decorating your home.

TOUR THE ENTIRE HOME

In the same Texas home as above, the Fort Design Studio team installed a pullout Rev-A-Shelf spice drawer to the right of the stunning range. Hilary Colia, one of the designers who worked on this project, explains that this “blew [the] client’s mind—she had been storing all her spices in the pantry and walking back and forth when needed.” There are tools out there designed to make your life easier, depending on your lifestyle—if you find them, take advantage of them.

TOUR THE ENTIRE HOME

“Just by rearranging the space, it feels double its original size,” architect J.E. Schram explains of his remodeled home kitchen. The architect actually took up more space in the remodel, adding about 50 percent more countertop area and 60 percent more cabinet space. However, by simply moving the fridge and the range and hiding away smaller appliances to reduce clutter, Schram made the kitchen feel so much larger.

TOUR THE ENTIRE HOME

Though the phrase is “bigger is better,” designer Jaqui Seerman proves that isn’t always the case. While some aspects of this Beverly Hills home became a bit oversized—like the primary baths—other aspects, like this breakfast nook, got the opposite treatment for the better. “We downsized this breakfast nook from seating for 10 to six, and now it’s one of the most frequented corners of the house,” Seerman says.

TOUR THE ENTIRE HOME

Related Story: 34 Banquette Ideas to Make Every Room More Comfortable

When decorating in a mainly neutral color palette, making sure the space doesn’t feel one-dimensional is key. This interior design secret involves adding rich hues and textures as accents throughout. Lindye Galloway, the designer of this bedroom, explains, “To achieve a sense of tranquility and comfort, we kept a neutral palette and added a few rich tones in accents and blended textures to add some subtle interest.”

TOUR THE ENTIRE HOME

Get creative in the way you tell your family’s story through your interior design. In this NYC home, Christie Ward of design firm Ward + Gray says, “While we were working on the project, the couple got engaged in Rome, so we wanted to find a way to make a subtle nod to that story. We designed this marble patterned floor tile that was inspired by a floor we once saw in a Roman church.”

TOUR THE ENTIRE HOME

“When things are really tonal, texture and layering are a must,” designer Michael Ellison says of this Nantucket home. He used plenty of natural stone, distressed leather, rattan accents, jute rugs, and faux-vellum walls to create this intimate gathering space for his clients, relying on the different textures to provide depth and interest to the entire home.

TOUR THE ENTIRE HOME

In this Los Angeles home, designer Jeremiah Brent explains, “The goal was to find the balance between the pedigree of traditional design and the playfulness of modern design.” By doing so, he created a spacious and beautiful retreat that encourages conversation and connection for a family that loves to entertain.

TOUR THE ENTIRE HOME

This once-dilapidated floating house didn’t look like it had much going for it when Donna and Eric Colson purchased it. “It was red-tagged, completely dilapidated,” Colleen Dowd Saglimbeni, founder of CDS Interiors, says. However, Dowd Saglimbeni was able to completely transform the structure thanks to its good bones and small but open layout, using the panoramic views of the bay as her jumping-off point in designing the ultimate entertainment space.

TOUR THE ENTIRE HOME

In this small maximalist’s home, designer Nick Olsen needed to capture his client’s more-is-more aesthetic without making the space feel too crowded, so he decided to paint the ceilings white. “With all this boldness, you need relief,” Olsen says. He also added a range of earthy elements, like jute and bamboo, to further encourage the balance.

TOUR THE ENTIRE HOME

“We intentionally avoided competing with the picturesque marsh views and wove their tones into various spaces instead,” Cortney Bishop says of this Charleston, South Carolina, home. Her interior design secret involves looking to the outside elements, like taking inspiration from the live oaks along the water for the white oak flooring and cabinetry in the kitchen. She wanted to provide harmony in the entire property, creating “an immersive depth that seamlessly blends with the surrounding environment and the old trees,” as she puts it.

TOUR THE ENTIRE HOME

In this elegant mudroom designed by Ashley Montgomery, the caned cabinet fronts serve practical and decorative purposes. They “provide airflow” to cabinets that hold farm clothes, boots, hats, and gloves, and their natural color breaks up the green woodwork. Such high-traffic areas can feel cluttered, but thoughtful details like caning can help calm the chaos.

TOUR THE ENTIRE HOME

While the concept might seem to clash, this bedroom designed by Leah Ring of Another Human includes rich colors and prints from patchwork textiles to ceramic items and paint, so it’s only fitting that the artwork is multidimensional and unique too. “The bedroom gets great light throughout the day, so we wanted to go for a peachy color on the walls that would give it a nice glow with the sunlight,” Ring explains. The bedroom “feels layered in a comfortable way but not too busy—[you] feel very serene when you’re in the room,” Ring says.

TOUR THE ENTIRE HOME

Meta Coleman was inspired by tile and color to give a California kitchen a refresh. She borrowed square footage from the living room to build this bright walk-in pantry. It’s complete with plenty of storage, tons of countertop space, and adorable cabinet skirts that soften the room.

TOUR THE ENTIRE HOME

The interior design lesson here is that there are no downsides to practically any shade of blue. Designed by Kingston Lafferty, the artwork above the fireplace sets the tone for the bold color-blocking happening throughout the space, including the light green ceiling, the tonal walls and mantel, the Sputnik light, and the patterned chairs and drapes.

Avery Cox of Avery Cox Design, who loves a classic subway tile, can be found using mosaics and penny tiles as well. “If I’m really going for something special I’ll select a hand-painted or marbled tile from somewhere like Balineum,” she explains. Bonus tip: Customizations are having a moment in the tile industry, whether it’s in your bathroom, kitchen, or bedroom!