2025 has been framed as the Year of the Snake, a season of shedding and recalibration. As we move into 2026, the Year of the Horse, the energy shifts to momentum, confidence, and forward movement, which suits me just fine.
It’s not too late to join Create Your Dream Home: Colour Foundations.
Each Friday you will receive a module to watch and the following Thursday at 11:30 PST we will complete exercises together along with a Q&A.
This training is a condensed distillation of my 25 years of real-world colour experience. Could you piece it together by spending hundreds of hours reading my 18-year blog archive? Possibly. But this course does what years of reading cannot: it filters the information, teaches it in the correct order, and removes the guesswork.
There are three ways to get colour right:
- Hire me through eDesign and receive a complete plan.
- Learn directly from me in a structured workshop while applying it to your own home.
- Read the blog and try to assemble the system yourself.
This course is for people who want option two—clear guidance, fewer mistakes, and a proven framework you can trust. Register here.
Email my team here if you’d like the reveiwers discount.
Here’s a round up of some of my top posts of 2025!
In hindsight, my forecast has been more accurate than those coming from many paint companies, because I’m deep in the trenches every day, helping real clients make colour decisions on new builds and renovation projects across North America.
Want to know the difference between a designer who provides drawings and is on site for months vs. a DIY package from the True Colour Expert? Read this post.
The Organic & Natural Paint Co.
2. 10 Critical Decisions for a Timeless Home Renovation
This is the best way to avoid the ‘can of worms’ phenomenon that happens in a renovation. You know, when you beautify one area of your home and it makes everything else look old? It’s about making the right decisions and in the right order, knowing when to ignore something because you’re ‘moving forward’ somewhere else. There is a HUGE difference between the two distinctions. Read this post.
3. Zellige is the New Travertine
Zellige tile is tricky. If you don’t know how to read the undertones, it can look completely wrong once it’s installed—especially because of its irregular colour variation and relaxed, countrified character.
After extensive sourcing, we’ve found a zellige tile we confidently recommend in our eDesign projects and have shared with members of my True Colour Insider Community. There are many benefits to being an Insider, and it’s currently offered at the lowest price it will ever be. The price increases January 12. Learn more here.
Pink beige zellige tile | Source
In the comments someone thought Zellige tile was strictly pink beige and that’s not true, it comes in all the neutrals and many colours but now that beige is back, pink beige always dominates because it’s the warmest of all the beige tones. Which is why this commenter assumed that Zellige tile = pink beige. Read this post.
R4. What our Dream House Looks like in 2025
It’s wild that we took posession of this house in October 2022, refinished the floors, renovated two bathrooms, replaced lighting and painted everything. At the same time we ripped out all the dead and overgrown shrubs and trees from the front and backyard. Then in September 2023, we installed new hardscaping, all the new plant material in April 2024, and here is what it looks like one year later (below right). All the before and afters of the interior are in this post too. Read this post.
5. How to Create Gallery Walls
Most people have just one piece of art, or a wire hanging, or family photos or words on their wall. If you’d like to learn once and for all, how to change your walls from drab to fab, this post is for you.
6. Sustainable Design: Keeping What Works Instead of Tearing it Out
This conversation got bigger by the end of this year when I changed the name of my YouTube channel to Decorate or Renovate, the Magic is Knowing the Difference.
What the world needs more instead of constantly ripping out the old to bring in the new and trendy, is creativity. Just like what I did with my upstairs powder room, see all the before and afters here.
7. Warm Neutrals 101; The New Cashmere Kitchen
This is without a doubt the new trending kitchen. How to design it so it’s timeless not trendy? That’s what this post is all about. Read it here.
8. Why we Believe Art Must have Meaning
Many people thought this was the best post I’ve ever written, here’s my favourite comment:
“THANK YOU, MARIA! I’m a designer, and I needed this permission slip to accessible joy as much as anyone! Not only did you open my eyes and make me laugh, you changed my life with this one blog post.”
9. $5,000 Colour Expertise vs. $50,000 Design Firm (here’s the difference)
This post was written because I’ve now had a few clients purchase our DIY design packages with expectations that exceed the price point. And I realize that it’s because there is a lack of awareness of the real cost of full service design. Which means that the unicorn we are offering, getting the look right and doing a little leg work on your own to save thousands, isn’t fully appreciated. Read this post.
Don’t forget to sign up for my FREE training on the 5 steps to a beautiful bathroom (without renovating) happening on January 8 at 1:00 pm PST. Sign up here.
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