Articles by Jo Simmons

Living rooms can sometimes be overlooked now that so much of our at-home socializing takes place around a table in an open-plan kitchen space, but nothing beats being able to sit comfortably with friends and family, to talk, enjoy a drink or watch a m…

Christmas carries the weight of expectation and pressure, so while it should be a happy time spent with family and friends, it can easily slip into feeling stressful and labor-intensive. Which is a shame, because when Christmas goes well, it’s a wonde…

Anyone who has taken on a house in need of some love and personality may dream of transforming it in one go. In reality, not many of us have the money or stamina for that and instead tackle the work room by room. That was the case in this London home….

While interior designers have the creative job of choosing paint colors for a project, it’s the build team who apply them to the walls, ceilings and woodwork. On this project — a Georgian-era London home that glows with warm and surprising colors — pa…

Having bought this big, beautiful house in London, the owners wanted to rethink the kitchen and living space with longevity in mind. They asked Rebecca Nokes of John Lewis of Hungerford to design it using cabinetry and appliances that would last. They…

Tucked in among the hills of Provence in southern France, with long views toward the Mediterranean, this 19th century farmhouse had old bones, original features and an idyllic setting. Its interior was in reasonable shape, but when its new owner — a B…

This yard in west London had always been cherished by its owners. “They really loved it,” landscape designer Peter Reader says. “It’s a strange triangular shape and quite quirky. It has areas of woodland too — unexpected in London — and they loved the…

The plot this Surrey, England, house sits on might be huge — 7 acres — but the idea behind its design was surprisingly compact. “The owner said, ‘Make it eco-friendly and make it more interesting,’” says Kenn Daly of Sustainable Landscapes, who master…

For many of us, the morning is a busy blur of family breakfasts, random tasks, frantic clock-watching and rapid showering. So how can a morning feel more calm than chaotic, more productive than problematic? One option is to take a leaf out of a truly …

As you might expect from a former agricultural building, this converted barn in Gloucestershire, England, is brimming with original features, including honey-toned Cotswold stone and hefty beams. When its owners bought it, they wanted to update the in…