Read the latest articles from Bob Vila (Page 355)

This season, set up a fake tree that won't give you headaches to store the rest of the year. Utilizing an unlikely garage staple, this space-smart design marries whimsy and practicality.

Learn the lore about your favorite festive flair.

Ensure the beauty, durability, and crack-resistance of your next concrete project by following these top tips.

Want a wood finish with lots of charm and not too much prep work? Gel stain has you covered.

Tripping over boots on your way out the door? Build up a station that can handle this season's bulky footwear, and you'll have an organized entryway once more.

As technology continues to evolve all around us, household items that were once commonplace have slowly fallen out of favor to be replaced by the latest and greatest. Whatever happened to the electric bun warmers that Mom and Grandma had? Would a rotary phone even work on the digital infrastructure we have now? (The answer is, “It depends.”) While many of yesteryear's biggest hits have disappeared for good, a few are still holding on. For example, wood paneling is actually coming back into fashion in some applications, and vinyl record and Polaroid enthusiasts can still feed their passions with vintage equipment. If you’ve ever said, “Well, back when I was a kid...,” come take a trip down memory lane with us as we visit some of our favorite household blasts from the past.

It’s inevitable that your houseplants will eventually outgrow their containers. While the signs can be subtle, understanding a little plant language will help you determine when the time has come to upgrade to roomier digs.

Understand the pros and cons of this narrow yet highly efficient design to see if it might work well for your cook space.

Adding houseplants to a space is like putting out the welcome mat. They infuse a home with life, bringing character and interest to every room they inhabit. Some houseplants even offer a little something extra, sporting flashy foliage and the occasional flower. With so many leaf shapes, colors, and textures, there’s a houseplant for every situation. Here are our suggestions for plants that can give your home or office a colorful pop without requiring too much maintenance on your part.

A beautiful and extremely durable flooring option, porcelain tile will retain its sparkling finish for years—so long as it's cleaned regularly and appropriately. Here's how.

Learn why it’s crucial to have your chimney checked out by a pro on a yearly basis.

Engineered quartz countertops rival the sophistication, design, and timeless appeal of real stone, minus the high maintenance. If you're lucky enough to have this luxurious material in your kitchen, read on for our complete guide to keeping it clean.

Shotgun houses, traditionally no wider than 12 feet, feature a cascaded floor plan, wherein each room is arranged behind the other. These popular residential archetypes born of post-bellum Southern America continue to dot modern cityscapes and draw eyes with their memorable color palettes, intricate architectural details, and space efficiency. Take a tour of these wow-worthy shotgun homes to experience their full glory and glamor.

Here's how to spot the no-frills house style popularized in the early 1900s.

Understand the ins and outs of these similar but not synonymous projects so you can plan the right improvements for your home.

Take insulation into your own hands to seal up sneaky air leaks around the house—and save big money. This content is paid advertising created in partnership with Guardian Energy Technologies. Its facts and opinions are those of BobVila.com.

Today, with home buyers on the lookout for extras like heated floors, professionally equipped kitchens, and water filtration systems, it's hard to imagine living in a house without basic necessities like running water and light switches. Yet what we now consider essentials were, at one point, groundbreaking technological advances, some of which you'll find in these 8 historic homes that were truly ahead of their time.

With everything there are trends—and in the world of houseplants, it is no different. As social media facilitates community conversation among home gardeners, it also brings images of beautiful houseplants across people's screens. This online celebration of plants has brought some new stunners to national attention, just as many other old favorites continue to beautify home gardens. Take a look at some of the most popular houseplants in America today.

Whether your digs are cramped or palatial, a storage bench provides both extra seating and another place to stash your stuff. Click through for 20 benches you can build yourself to help make your home more beautiful, efficient, and functional.