Ways to Give Your Home a Personal Stamp

Mismatched Transoms

The inspiration: Period homes nearby
The project: Designer Jane Schwartz and her husband, Ken, own a 1920s house in Sag Harbor, New York, and wanted their new sunroom addition to blend into the neighborhood. So Jane tucked patterned transoms under adjacent gable, one with a Colonial-style sunburst, the other with Tudor-style diamonds, and matched the doors and windows below them to existing windows. "We're here day and night," Jane says, "and the windows totally make the room."
The payoff: A twist on tradition that takes full advantage of garden views

Arched Sink Window

The inspiration: English cottages
The project: This gracefully arched casement window replaced a window half its size, says designer Jane Schwartz, who craved more light and a better view of her garden from the kitchen. To reinforce its old-world flavor, she kept the wall clear of upper cabinets and finished the sink with a porcelain-lever-handle bridge faucet.
The payoff: A downstairs cleanup zone with upstairs style

Built-Up Cabinet Trim

The inspiration: Vintage dressers and woodwork
The project: After gutting her kitchen and opening it to the dining room, designer Jane Schwartz wanted cabinets with traditional woodworking details. She designed cabinets with fluted columns, bull's-eye trim, panel molding, and drawers only. Along with mimicking freestanding dressers, "this makes for easy, pull-out storage," she points out.
The payoff: A vintage look plus full-extension hardware