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Lauren Gallow is a Seattle-based design writer and editor. Formerly an in-house writer for Olson Kundig, she holds an MA in Art & Architectural History from UCSB. She is a regular contributor to Dwell, Luxe, and Interior Design and writes for Metropolis, Cultured, Architectural Digest, and Architect’s Newspaper.

Before & After: An L.A. Music Producer’s Latest Collab? Turning a Midcentury Into His Family Home
Dacoury Dahi Natche, who’s worked with artists like Kendrick Lamar, and local firm Shin Shin stripped dated finishes and added a...
Budget Breakdown: They Built a Net-Positive Home in the Hamptons for $3.2 Million
After moving back to New York from Japan, one woman calls an old college friend at Khanna Schultz Architecture to design a...
Before & After: They Raised the Roof to Unlock Their Midcentury’s Peak Potential
A family adds a glassy gable to their Colorado Springs home to bring in sunlight and views of the nearby mountains.
Construction Diary: How a California Designer Crafted His New Family Home—On Top of Their First Home
Eric Johnson fixed a 1,430-square-foot indoor/outdoor plan atop his ’50s Encinitas beach house, disguising the entire project as...
Why Everyone Looks Forward to This New York Architect’s Lunar New Year Dumpling Parties
Henry Ng explains how, like his design process, the bite-size Chinese treats are layered, collaborative, and sometimes a little...
A Restaurateur From Seattle’s “First Family of Phở” Crafts Her Dream Kitchen for Hosting
The space, revamped for just under $170K, incorporates pops of the same pink pastel hue used since the 1980s as a signature color...
This Tranquil Whidbey Island Cabin Is an “Essay in Wood”
“We wanted a place that would wind down the senses and naturally allow you to go within,” says homeowner Lakshmi Nidamarthi of...
My House: This Bookish Brooklyn Dad Built a New Room for His Son Behind a Secret Door
Writer Augustine Sedgewick commissions Le Whit to revise his 800-square-foot apartment with a fresh kitchen and a trick bookshelf...
Actually Good Word Art—and More Genre-Defying Decor at This Year’s FOG Design + Art Fair
There was nothing cheugy about Henna Vainio’s wall hangings, or the chromatic textiles, raw wood furnishings, and seashell...
How They Pulled It Off: Bringing Daylight Into a Dark San Francisco Victorian
Butler Armsden Architects devised some clever interventions that brightened up the historic townhome’s interior.
Why an Architect Keeps a Tiny Indian Temple Replica on His Desk—and Sometimes Uses It as a Pencil
Anand Sheth says the spiritual object from his mother’s hometown shaped his understanding of rituals as a child, and reminds him...
Budget Breakdown: A Seattle Couple Build Twin Backyard Offices for $51K—No Permit Required
They saved upwards of $60,000 on a new shed by having dad contract and keeping the footprint small.
This Floating Sauna Brings a Touch of Scandinavia to Coastal Connecticut
When a designer wanted a little space to relax with his family, he bought an old pontoon boat and got to work decking it out with...
Before & After: An Architect’s Home Reinterprets Suburbia in the Pacific Northwest
Near Seattle, Neal Barber creates a dream house for his family that suits the neighborhood while subtly standing out.
Before & After: In Spain, a Compact 1960s Apartment Gets a Quirky, Experimental Retrofit
Designer Ismael Medina Manzano stretches the limits of an 861-square-foot flat in San Sebastián with mirrors, curves, and a...
The Unusual Antique Shop Object That Inspired a Designer Couple
The duo behind the Seattle studio Fruitsuper discuss the vintage pecan picker-upper they keep on their shelves alongside other...
Rental Revamp: Textile Designer Josie Ford Adds Layers of History to Her 1920s L.A. Apartment
Smitten with the Art Deco details of the Hollywood Hills flat, Josie introduced a mixture of vintage and contemporary pieces to...
Before & After: They Turned a ’70s Tract House Into a Quirky Desert Dream Home
Interior designer Kelly Kai helps her partner, Catalina Monsalve, find and renovate her very first residence on the outskirts of...
Open House Event: They Gave Their “Grey Gardens” Craftsman a Grand Reinvention
Our in-person L.A. home tour series features architect Chet Callahan’s century-old Los Feliz estate, which playfully merges old...
Construction Diary: In Los Angeles, a Couple Create a Multigenerational Haven
Working with design studio Loaf, the owners of this Silver Lake midcentury embark on a sensitive renovation that honors history.
Designer Joseph Algieri’s Off-the-Wall Work Starts With This Cinder Block
The artist-designer uses “all sorts of weird objects” as improvised tools for his creations.
An Aromatic Desert Plant Reminds Architect Lindsey Wikstrom of Home—Wherever She Makes It
A potted creosote plant she brought back from Arizona brings the smell of the desert into her New York apartment.
Construction Diary: After a Devastating Fire, a Couple Start Over With a $17K DIY Cabin
In the Santa Cruz Mountains, Jeff Waldman and Molly Fiffer build a new retreat with salvaged, charred timber and a community of...
How They Pulled It Off: Custom-Built Record Storage
Local firm Natalie Dionne Architecture created an elegant solution for a Montreal recording engineer’s extensive vinyl collection.
Before & After: Two Art Lovers Turn Their Small Chicago Cottage Into a Collector’s Paradise for $53K
Open shelving sings in Studio Becker Xu’s vibrant renovation of a 19th-century coach house for a couple with pieces from all...
Renovations Stripped Away This Athens Flat’s Character. An Architect Brought It Back, and Then Some
Thanasis Ikonomou restored the 75-year-old apartment while adding fresh touches like custom cabinetry.
Why Architect Rachel Shillander Toted a Mirrored Orb Around Topanga Canyon
Some just-for-fun photo shoots ended up shifting her perspective on the power of light.
Furniture Designer Max Enrich Doesn’t Use His Massive Scissor Collection for What You Think
The 80-some specialized pairs he’s sourced from secondhand markets and peers in the design world provide a well of inspiration.
Textile Designer Arati Rao Is Helping Preserve Craft Culture’s Human Touch
This miniature yarn-making tool was given to her by a weaving center she works with in India, which uses full-size versions to...
Before & After: Think Your Renovation Took Awhile? Try 14 Years
Best Practice Architecture tops off the lengthy transformation of a butter-yellow Seattle craftsman with an addition that...
The Tide Turns for a Trio of Prefab Pod Houses in the San Juan Islands
The founder of the Living Building Challenge and his family join hands to restore a quirky off-grid outpost.
Why Architect Melissa Shin Adds Drawings of Smurfs to Her Project Plans
Never one to take things too seriously, the cofounder of Los Angeles firm Shin Shin turns her childhood toys into watermarks.
Before & After: The Tide Turns for a “Neglected 1970s Box” in Pebble Beach
Feldman Architecture opens up a dark and cramped seaside house with big windows and a healthy dose of wood.
A Half-Baked Design Concept Reminds Ceramicist Sarah Hussaini to Trust Her Process
The wooden object the Not Work Related founder purchased at a studio sale could have been anything.
Artist Gab Bois’s Vegetable-Shaped Catch Holds More Than Just Some Trinkets
The ceramic cabbage dish she thrifted on a trip to Miami will make you do a double take—just like her work.
There’s a Better View in Every Direction at This “Lake House” in Indiana
Its vertical plan channels the progressive homes brought to Beverly Shores as an installation for the 1933 Chicago World’s Fair.
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