Tobi Saunders, owner of 1837 Color & Design, is a trained Architect and Color Consultant. At her company she specifies exterior color and materials for production builders around the county. These builders create large developments of single family and sometimes multi-family residences throughout the US with the predominance of construction happening in the Southern states where population shifts continue to aggregate. Keeping regionality, budget and variety at the forefront of her mind, ...

When you think of Scandinavian design the look of a colorless winter day comes to mind - think pale grey, white and perhaps washed out blue. But this is a modern-day invention. Dagny Thurmann-Moe, the founder of Koi Colour & Design Studio designs exteriors, interiors, products, and CMF strategies for brands seeking a stronger identity through color, materials, and finishes. Dagny is known for challenging the idea of “timeless” design — instead creating time-bound and aesthetically s...

"Mexico is not beige!" is a defining quote from one of Mexico's hottest new designers. Maye Ruiz is an interior designer, creative director of Maye Estudio, and one of the designers selected for the AD100 México & Latin America list, which recognizes the most influential designers and architects in the region. Her work stands out for its bold exploration of color, materiality, and visual storytelling, creating spaces that blend tradition, modernity, and a unique chromatic palette. Maye ha...

If you've never walked into an interior which caused your jaw to drop then you haven't witnessed the overwhelming effect a built environment can have. There are few of these places extant and even fewer here in the United States. I'm lucky to live just a few miles from one - the hilltop home of the Hudson River School painter Frederic Church, Olana. Perched on a mountaintop overlooking the Hudson River, it's sited facing southwest to take in the views of the Catskill Mountains to the west and...

We welcome back former co-host Amy Woolf to discuss the 2025 Colors of the Year and other design trends percolating right now. Which interior colors are the rage, what exterior paint colors are the most popular and what's new in furnishings and decor.

Imagine the tagline for a new paint company "Paint your walls with rock instead of plastic." If that doesn't pique your interest I don't know what would. Meet Maya Crowne and Price Latimer, the entrepreneurs who conceived of a safe, plastic free interior house paint made from natural materials with minerals for pigmentation. It's a fascinating story about two women who never dreamed they would become paint manufacturers one day trying to change the way the world paints, one can at a time.

Think about the skills needed to create a paint color which matches a cat's fur coat. Now think about those needed to transform the look of a big city transit hub. That describes the color chops of Architectural Color Consultant, Eve Ashcraft. She came to NYC after attending RISD and with her unique color skills became the creator of Martha Stewart's original paint line as well as the color-guru of Moynihan Train Hall in NYC. Through the decades, her prowess in the field and her client ...

What do Barbra Streisand, The LA Dodgers and Larry David have in common with one of America's most revered companies? Did you guess? They were all born in Brooklyn! In 1883 The Moore Brothers released their first coatings product and the paint world hasn't been the same since. Benjamin Moore's products and colors are perceived as the pinnacle of good taste and quality. Their color lines have expanded over the years to include almost 3500 colors adding a world of choice which delig...

While this episode began as an interview based on a book about kitchens, it became something much more - A treatise about how we live in our homes, how to make a kitchen your own in ways which acknowledge who you are, how you live and what you love. Sophie Donelson is a former Editor-in- Chief of House Beautiful Magazine. She is a design journalist, speaker, and strategist whose work celebrates the connection between people and their homes. Her 2023 book Uncommon Kitchens: A Revol...

Think about jazz, communism, Dracula and wallpaper. Any commonalities? Tune into this episode to hear how they all converge. My guest is Stefan Ormenisan, the founder and creative director of one of the most unique lifestyle brands, Mind the Gap. Conceived in Transylvania and sold all over the world, MTG offers wallpapers and textile patterns spun from tales of folklore and global cultures. Their products are a color lover's dream. Learn how this amazing company got off the ...

Ever walk into an art museum and find yourself just as mesmerized and transported by the color of the exhibition walls as you were by the art? Well, that wouldn't have been the ultimate goal of the exhibit designers but it does speak to the power of wall paint color, even in a museum setting. My guest in this episode is Kathleen Morris, the Director of Collections and Exhibitions at The Clark Art Institute in Williamstown, MA and the Curator of Decorative Arts there, as well. Kathy shar...

Think there's nothing more to a color than whether it's blue, red or green? If so, hold onto your hat. On this, the first episode of our new interview based format, Architectural Color Consultant Amy Krane introduces our listeners to trained Color Consultant and Interior Designer, Ellen Divers, who has spent the better part of the last decade studying how humans perceive color. Her findings will change the way you choose colors for your space forever.

There are so many functional and aesthetic factors to consider when designing color for non-residential interiors. Your color choices must support a range of branding, comfort, productivity, and /or way finding goals, to name a few. Tens, hundreds or thousands of people may be users of this space and the color decision makers can be a plurality of people. Done well you can soothe an anxious patient, inspire a creative maker or focus a leader. The list goes on... All achieved by the thoughtful...

Is the modern farmhouse style exterior a trend or is it more entrenched in our collective mind as the epitome of what "home" is now? What are the architectural elements that define the modern farmhouse? Why did it come about and can we use those elements on other exterior house styles? We discuss this and more. The modern farmhouse. Are you yay or nay?

Join Amy Woolf & Amy Krane ( and our dogs) begin an engaging conversation which will span multiple episodes about bringing color into your decor. We never stray too far from wall color which rears its head in almost every facet of the conversation. Should your wall and decor color tie into the architectural style of your home? Should you repeat an interior color on the exterior? How about how different should each room be? We cover all of this and more! Tune in.

Sometimes neglected, your basement might get the least love in your house but it doesn't have to be that way. Paint color is the final touch but before that we need to think about the fundamentals when designing this room. What are you going to be doing down there? What's your floor and lighting all about? Are you thinking about finally finishing your basement? We walk you through it all the way to the finish line with paint color!

Putting a paint color on your walls is deeply satisfying but if you want to kick it up another notch (or 10) add pattern to color and you've got the recipe for extraordinary walls. In this episode the Amys talk all things wallpaper. Where can you put it? How do you use it? What patterns are hot right now? Who is selling unique and stunning prints? Tune in to hear us talk wallpaper. And thanks for listening.

Specifying exterior color for multi- family dwellings is a wholly different animal than for single family homes. The ownership, the goals, the sheer size of the complexes offer a completely different set of challenges. When done right the outcome can be stunning, increasing property values and the joy of home ownership. Proper color application for built environments enhances the human experience. Join Amy and Amy as they discuss the ins and outs of how to do it.

In this episode we return to the important subject of exterior house color but examine it on a more granular level with an eye towards the different architectural styles prevalent in the United States. How was the earliest house paint created and how did that influence the types of colors available to use? What types of color palettes were the norm for different architectural styles historically and has that evolved over the centuries? Tune in to hear more color wisdom from Amy Krane & Am...

Every year around this time, the major paint brands launch their Color of the Year. It's a marketing event that's awaited by many, and ignored by others. The two Amys discuss the newest COTY's. How relevant are these? What do choices like these mean? And do we even like them? We let you in on how we've used colors like these in the past and how you can too. All this with a lot of good cheer thrown in for good measure.