Before and After

1. Draperies made with Highland Court Marakesh Collection magenta silk. Larry’s Inc., Little Rock, (501) 663-0674, larrysinc.com; M. Grace, Bentonville, (479) 715-6050, mgracenet.com

Seamstress extraordinaire, creative crafter and doting grandmother J.J. Davis always has a project pending, but space to implement her ideas was in short supply in the North Little Rock home she shares with her husband, Jerry. In seeking a space where she could sew costumes, cut patterns or play with her grandsons, the solution was simply a few steps away, in the couple’s unfinished basement.

Summer living calls for easy, versatile pieces, offering the chance to break from tradition and loosen up your decor. To inspire your vacation-time style, At Home asked three top designers to create fresh combos for a summery setting, all based on one piece of furniture.

For families with children in the neonatal intensive care unit at St. Edward Mercy Medical Center in Fort Smith, options for staying near their child overnight were once limited to camping out on a hospital sofa or booking an extended stay at a hotel. That was until Ronald McDonald House Charities became involved, and raised the funds to convert a wing of the hospital used as physician sleeping quarters into a virtual home-away-from-home for families in need.