Linly Designs, which has one location in Clarendon Hills, just opened a new, 3,000-square-foot showroom at 1766 Second St. in Highland Park. The showroom offers a variety of Linly Designs’ services, such as Accessory Call (which includes two at-home visits), kitchen and bath remodeling, silk floral arrangements, and decorations set-up, as well as custom furniture, cabinetry, and window treatments.

Polynesian-themed Trader Vic’s once offered Chicago cuisine from around the world (from Chinese to Thai to French), delicious Mai Tais, and one-of-a-kind-décor including antique tribal masks, woven-grass wall coverings, and indigenous artifacts. The restaurant has closed its doors in the Land of Lincoln, but now’s your chance to take home a piece of it at this week’s Leslie Hindman auction. Sale highlights include the Tiki head that stood at the entrance of Trader Vic’s at the Palmer House Hilton, a tortoise shell, and three Pacific giant clam shells. The auction is at 10 a.m. Wednesday and Thursday. For more information, check lesliehindman.com.

The Chicago interior design trio known as Divas N’ Design is offering a contest for a $6,500 bedroom makeover beginning August 31. To enter, upload a photo of your currently drab bedroom to the firm’s website and briefly explain why the sorry state of your chamber is keeping you up at night. If you win, it might be the best thing since Ambien. The winner will be chosen September 28.

They’ve mastered the art of relaxation in Italy. Long, leisurely lunches; laid-back, wine-filled dinners. So it’s no surprise that Devon & Devon of Florence, Italy knows how to beautify the bathroom – a space in the home that should exude relaxation and comfort. We’re taken with their new white-porcelain Dorothy accessories collection. The classic style of this soap disk, towel holder, and robe hook has been revised into a neo-romantic look, and the dainty feel would add a dream-like quality to any bathroom. We’re thinking it’s time to break out the candles and bubble bath.

You know summer is ending when it starts pouring outside and garden stores start putting up their sale signs. Jayson Home is doing just that—tomorrow is the first day if its annual Garden Sale, when everything out in that pretty courtyard adjacent to the store (including plants and containers) will be marked down by 30 percent. And when that space clears out, guess what’s going to fill it? A big white tent housing gorgeous antiques and vintage finds from England, Belgium and France, for Jayson’s fifth Fall Flea Market, October 5-7. Mark your calendar. It’s a fun event that spreads throughout the store. Come early on opening day, and there will be warm coffee and a croissant in it for you. Whatever, summer. We’re so over you. 

Something about these funky cabinets from the Ravenswood furniture importer Nadeau caught our eye—partially because we didn’t know exactly what they were at first. But, then again, that’s part of their appeal. Turns out these industrial steel cabinets come from India and are meant to resemble the containers used to ship the store’s inventory, a lot of which comes from that region. We like the self-referential take on the whole importing business (hey, if it looks this good, why not incorporate your business model into your design?) and, with three removable shelves, we love the versatility. Can’t you see one of these numbers serving as extra storage for a kid’s room or office? Nadeau currently has red and green options available; otherwise, you’ll have to wait for the next container… of containers.

The temperature might be dropping (hallelujah!), but there’s still plenty of time to enjoy your favorite outdoor spaces. Whether you like to curl up in your backyard with a good book or host cocktail parties on your rooftop, Orange Skin’s new Modulo outdoor pergola might offer just the arrangement. Complete with moveable shades, this outdoor addition can hide you from the sun at any time of day – especially perfect for lounging outdoors in the evening or eating al fresco before dusk. Available in customize sizes and a variety of colors.

Now that presidential hopeful Mitt Romney has chosen Wisconsin Congressman Paul Ryan as his running mate, politics are heating up more than ever. Now the big question is: what does this mean for the path to your decorating scheme? We in the design world always say a throw pillow is an easy way to change up your look for the season, so here are some ideas for a little partisan style during campaign season. The JFK Presidential Library has a few options available—on both sides of the aisle. These hand-hooked pillows, available with both a donkey and an elephant, are wool on the front with a velvet backing ($68 each). Meanwhile, if you're apolitical, moderate, or just plain indecisive, the Washington D.C.-based company Naked Decor offers a centaur-esque, half-donkey-half-elephant option for those with less of an opinion who still want to be patriotic. We’re also loving the more diplomatic “VOTE” pillow. Both are available online for $49.95.

Designers Robert and Cortney Novogratz, parents to seven kids (ages 3 to 15), have teamed up with CB2, kicking off a line of furnishings with the wool Family rug. The rug, which spells out its message in bold type, is a big statement. Whether you’re into the vertical rainbow or the bold black-and-white version, it seems perfect for, you know, a family room. And leave it to CB2 to show us exactly how the rug is made, which is something cool for kids to see. Sort of like an especially illuminating episode of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood.

We’ve all got a hopelessly outdated chest of drawers or other piece of furniture gathering dust in our basements, bumming us out. Here’s an easy way to make it look attractive (after removing the hideous drawer pulls, of course): Annie Sloan chalk paint. The hassle-free paint developed by Annie Sloan, who’s based in Oxford, England, requires no priming, sanding, or anything at all complicated. Plus, it has extremely low VOCs, can be used on walls and metal surfaces as well as on wood, and the colors are great. Layer them to get the perfect shade (we’re fans of the Duck Egg Blue mixed with Country Grey); use distressing techniques and apply waxes to create interesting effects. Find the paints around here at Vintage Pine, Di Lucca Designs, Affordable Antiques, and Tattered Tiques. We’re upset we didn’t know about it sooner.