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    top home + design articles of 2025

    Hidden gems, affordable finds, more top Houston design news from 2025

    Emily Cotton
    Dec 26, 2025 | 4:30 pm

    Editor’s Note: As 2025 draws to a close, it’s time to look back at which Home and Design topics Houston readers flocked to the most. Not surprisingly, articles that offered affordable finds proved popular, with the closure of a warehouse devoted to vintage home supplies taking the top spot. Other popular stories showcased local experts in thrifting, a Houston family who received a new home on national TV, and pro tips for reducing clutter.

    With sustainable living more popular than ever, we expect readers will continue to be interested in where to find thrifted and affordable items. Here are the 10 most read home and design articles of the year.

    Houzz top kitchen remodel trends in 2025
    Photo by Joshua Caldwell / PureHaven Homes, Clayton Vance Architecture

    Houzz documented the latest kitchen design trends.

    1. Houston warehouse full of historic home supplies holds massive closing sale. Historic Houston’s salvage warehouse announced in January that its rented First Ward warehouse space had been sold to developers (gentrification, we know thee). A series of warehouse sales ensued, and owner Lynn Edmunson promised to find a home for future pop-ups.

    2. These are Houzz's top kitchen remodel trends for 2025. According to interior design platform Houzz, homeowners are shifting what they want in a kitchen. The data shows a sharp decline in searches for Rustic and Farmhouse styles, while Traditional kitchens made a nice rebound. Also popular in the search bar was the ever popular “sustainable.”

    3. Houston's massive antiques mall is full of hidden treasures. The Antique Gallery in Spring offers 85,000 square feet of vintage and antique finds sold through over 240 vendors. The classic Main Street theme is anchored by Pam’s Cafe and coffee shop, a counter-service eatery that offers shoppers the opportunity to take a break and try Pam’s delicious and revolving menu items.

    4. Houston designers shop this River Oaks store for eclectic accessories. Will Hunt Lewis’ expertly-curated vintage, antique, and new accessories boutique shines as the culmination of a career spent buying and merchandising for Jonathan Adler, One Kings Lane, and Kravet — plus his own floral design and events business in Mississippi. Lewis’ keen eye and excellent taste have made him indispensable to top Houston designers.

    5. Houston family dishes on life after Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. The Elrod family’s devastating house fire left them grieving a beloved grandmother as well as the family cat. This resilient family was nominated by their local community to be the recipients of a brand new Taylor Morrison home — as did all of the family’s for this year’s revival season, which was led by The Home Edit’s Clea Shearer and Joanna Teplin.

    6. Houston organizational expert shares 8 tips for reducing clutter. Carroll Cartwright of Neatly & Co shared tips for getting organized in the new year. The one-time corporate hotshot turned sought-after organizer spent 2025 going viral for an over-the-top walk-in pantry and has since seen Neatly & Co become personal organizer to Kourtney Kardashian.

    7. Hidden gem Houston store offers timeless antiques at affordable prices. Frustrated by the lack of authentic antique Greek and Turkish decor to buy locally for their own home, Melis and Umit Aktura turned a personal project into a thriving import business that attracts designers and the public by the literal truckload. The Spring Valley store sells imported decorative goods from Greece, Turkey, Indonesia, and India — all 100-years-old or more.

    8. This Houston furniture store sells big name brands at deep discounts. For 35 years, everyone from college kids to design pros have shopped showroom-condition secondhand furniture at this longtime Houston staple. Proprietor Sherri Enroth, colloquially known as “Sofa Sherri,” tells CultureMap that Gen Z’s passion for thrifting has given the store new life.

    9. Houston's 'Patron Saint of Thrifting' is always hunting for fresh finds. Meet the Lady behind Houston’s popular Resale & Thrift Guides, successful weekly YouTube series, and thriving group antiquing trips. Lady Mary Beth has taken a career in corporate gift buying and used her expertise to turn her passion project into a real success.

    10. 6 Houston experts dish on their Round Top Antique Show favorites. Six stylish Houstonians shared their top picks for the fall season of the quarterly antiques fair. From Lily Barfield of The Marlene Inn, to restaurateurs like Latuli’s Allison Knight and Truth BBQ’s Abbie Byrom-Botello, readers learned some of the best places to pick up stylish home decor at the sprawling shopping extravaganza.

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    2,000 color options

    Premium Brazilian design brand debuts first Texas showroom in Houston

    Emily Cotton
    Feb 26, 2026 | 1:30 pm
    Marel design showroom
    Courtesy of Marel
    Brazilian luxury home brand Marel offers full customization for every room.

    Just as Carnival kicked off in Brazil earlier this month, the festive South American nation laid down some roots in the Upper Kirby District. Marel, the nearly 60-year-old ultra-luxe legacy cabinetry brand, introduced their tailor made storage solutions and countertops to Texas through the opening of their unequivocally cool new showroom.

    Designed to feel more like a residence than a traditional showroom, the 2,200-square-foot space introduces Marel’s signature mix of sleek cabinetry, custom furnishings, and lifestyle solutions for kitchens, living areas, offices and beyond. Known for its lacquered finishes and an impressive palette of more than 2,000 color options, the Brazilian brand has built a reputation for blending functionality with bold visual appeal since launching in the 1960s.

    The ever-growing design corridor along Richmond and Kirby, along with friendly neighbors down Colquitt Street’s famed “Gallery Row,” is the perfect place for Marel to plant some roots. Bookended by Kata Robata and Westheimer Plumbing & Hardware at 3600 Kirby Drive, Marel’s approximately $30,000 starting price shouldn’t make anyone blush.

    Marel’s Italian-inspired designs are all ethically-manufactured in southern Brazil from fine woods, natural stone, and specialized metals. Conscious production, use of clean and renewable energy, environmental commitment, resource-saving processes, and the use of certified materials are all core principles that the brand is proud to bring to Houston.

    “Texas presents itself as a fast-growing state [for contemporary design], and a place that is also multicultural here in Houston,” co-owner Wilson Bortolucci Filho tells CultureMap. “We were interested in exploring that and being a part of this community — so we ended up choosing Houston.”

    “This is a place with people from all over the world,” co-owner Conrado Evangelista adds. “So, we are trying to sell something quite different in style, design, and that’s why we believe Houston will be a nice place to have a product like this.”

    While Marel’s Houston showroom may be the first in Texas — and third in America — the brand isn’t a stranger to Houstonians. “There is a designer who knows us, and knows our products, who kept recommending us to other people. So we were already selling through them,” explains Evangelista. “But now we have a showroom, a place to show our products, finishes, and everything else.”

    The Marel experience is one in which, besides the two-to-three month lead time, anything is possible. “We like to have a conversation with the client, architect, or designer, and try to understand their vision for the project — kitchen, closet, bathroom, living room, whatever it is — then we tailor it the best way we can for the project,” says Evangelista. “We can tailor the colors of the paint, aluminum, even the colors of the hangers. It’s very customizable with a big range of products and finishes.”

    For its opening, the Marel showroom partnered with Houston-favorite Urban Harvest. The partnership continues beyond opening night, with a portion of future sales benefiting the Houston nonprofit’s efforts to expand access to fresh food across the city. Learn more about Urban Harvest’s weekly Saturday farmers market at nearby St. John’s School here.

    With its blend of global design sensibility, entertaining spirit, and community connection, Marel Houston’s arrival signals a fresh new lifestyle destination for Upper Kirby. Visit the Marel showroom Monday through Friday from 9 am to 5 pm and Saturdays from 10 am to 2 pm.

    Marel design showroom

    Courtesy of Marel

    Brazilian luxury home brand Marel offers full customization for every room.

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