You guys, we made the front page of the Philadelphia Inquirer’s Home & Design Section!

Or, to be more precise, we made the front page of the Philadelphia Inquirer’s Home & Design Section seven months ago. We’ve been out of town for months and months and just finally got our hands on an actual copy of the article! It takes up almost the whole front page, then continues inside with another full page (shared by three little ads for a local Buick dealership, patio covers, and some killer overstuffed furniture). How cool is that? The hometown paper. You’re next, New York Times! Oh and while I’m sure it’s much too late to get a hard copy of the article, you can read the whole thing here.

We were also honored to be featured for the first time ever on a podcast a couple weeks back. While we hate hearing our own voices, you hopefully won’t if you choose to listen! It was such a fun experience and a great interview. Huge thanks to Tammy of The Honest Home! She has a beautiful site and an even more beautiful speaking voice (think NPR goddess, especially next to me and Tara!), so be sure to check it out if you’d like to know a bit more about what we do, how we work, and what sets us apart.

Finally, we’re thrilled to have been featured on Apartment Therapy’s Gallery of Cozy Cottage Interiors. In fact, four of eleven images are ours! I’m not sure if they even realize it, because they credited two images to Design Sponge, but hey, look at us go.

It’s been quite a while since we showed some new work, but that all changes this week!

On Thursday, Remodelista (link updated!) is publishing photos of Beth Kirby’s Chattanooga kitchen, which we redid back in January while living in a tiny little cabin just over the Alabama line. Beth (aka Local Milk) just won double Best Photography Blog honors from Saveur, so the photos are sure to be stunning.

We also lured Beth north in June to photograph the Upstate NY home we started redoing in March. Those photos will start trickling out this week, with a Design*Sponge Before & After (link updated) teaser running this Thursday, followed by a full Sneak Peek on Monday.

Oh, plus we’re being interviewed for a podcast this morning, but I won’t say which one until we’ve previewed it and ensured we definitely don’t sound like idiots.

Here’s one more shot of Beth’s kitchen, complete with the styling wizard herself!

Most people–some friends and family included!–don’t understand exactly what we do. They assume we’re just your average “interior designers” who walk into a space, start picking out furniture and finishes in their heads, and don’t get any closer to manual labor than that. For us, walking into a space for the first time is just the beginning of a months-long immersion into a space that, by the end, we’ll have totally transformed with our own hands. The photo above captures a perfect example: Tara debating paint colors atop original wide-plank floors we rescued from wall-to-wall carpeting and refinished ourselves.

Until we manage to coin a better title for ourselves than “interior designers,” we’re always thrilled when someone really gets what we do, appreciates the full scope of our work. Lindsey from Makers Workshop is one of those people, so we’re especially excited that she chose us for an Inside the Makers Workshop feature!

Here’s a peak at some of the kind things she had to say:

People are searching in shiny new stores for something that they simply will not find and only a creative team like Jersey Ice Cream Co. can deliver. They are searching for the soul of their home.

For me, it’s their absolutely brilliant use of texture as a key element in every space. Allowing mismatched wood and painted boards to become focal, gives the feeling that they’ve been there for hundreds of years and makes you wonder who of centuries past stubbed their toe on that small crack just there. It’s a graceful balance of simplicity and warmth. When I look at these photos, I feel almost as if I’m reading a book. I get a sense of who they are, and what they do, and read, and … and perhaps there is a kettle of tea on while Henry paints his latest work of art feverishly away in the front room.

Thanks so much, Lindsey! Totally nailed it. Read the full Inside the Makers Workshop feature right here.