Welcome to Schoolhouse Switchboard, where our team answers your most pressing design questions—one topic at a time. This week, we’re breaking down how to hang art and mirrors like a pro.

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Hanging a heavy mirror or piece of art can feel like one of those deceptively simple tasks—until you’re standing there with a drill in one hand and a level in the other, trying to make sure everything lines up just right. It’s one of the most common questions we get at the Switchboard: What’s the safest, most reliable way to hang something heavy on the wall?

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As fun as it is to be the go-to spot for dinner parties and weekend brunches, all that foot traffic can leave behind more than just fond memories—your furniture may take a hit, too. Think: wine spills, dropped platters, and one of the more stubborn surprises—heat stains on wood. These hazy white rings or blotches often show up after a steaming dish or piping-hot mug gets placed directly on your table without a trivet. Even a tablecloth won’t always save you if it’s too thin. The result? Marks that look like crop circles and feel nearly impossible to fix.

But don’t panic. These stains might look dramatic, but they’re often totally fixable with a few household items. Below, we’ve gathered some of the most effective ways to remove heat stains from wood—and added tips on how to prevent them in the future, when to act fast, and what common DIY fixes to be cautious with.

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More of us are entertaining at home—whether it’s a quick weeknight pasta with friends or a full-blown garden soirée—and that means our dining spaces are getting a little extra attention. While I’ve previously reported that formal dining rooms are shrinking to make space for open kitchens, they’re not disappearing entirely. In fact, they’re evolving.

Designers are seeing a shift toward warmer, more layered spaces that mix old and new, and make you want to linger long after the dishes are cleared. The dining room is having a quiet glow-up—and it’s not just about dramatic lighting or maximalist tablescapes. It’s about comfort, character, and (maybe most importantly) chairs you actually want to sit in.

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When Ashley Murphy and Marissa Hagmeyer—co-founders of NEAT Method and authors of The NEAT Method Organizing Recipe Book—stopped by our Brooklyn HQ recently, they didn’t just come for a quick hello. They came armed with drawer dividers, stylish bins, and a vision. In just a few hours, they transformed our most chaotic corners (think: a junk drawer overflowing with cords, a coat closet with mismatched hangers, and the under-sink abyss in our studio kitchen) into Pinterest-worthy spaces. But what stuck with me even more than the aesthetic glow-up? The way they made organizing feel approachable—even fun.

Their first ever book, which dropped in January, reads like a friend holding your hand through the chaos. It’s packed with more than 70 step-by-step projects, from refreshing your fridge to finally figuring out your bedroom drawers. “It’s about finding what works for you and what makes sense in your routine,” Marissa told me. “We thought the recipe concept would make it more bite-sized—you can follow the steps, take small doses within your home, and curate exactly what you're looking for.”

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In The Green Scene, there's no such thing as a silly question about cannabis. What's the difference between THC and CBD? How the heck do I make edibles at home? What home design advice can dispensaries teach me? Kick back—we have the answers.

Editor's note: This piece was updated in April, 2025

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