WHILE HOUSE HUNTING to relocate for a new job, Kristine and Lars Niki toured a home in Durham, Conn. The owners had left behind carpets, drapes and wallpaper exuberant with color and pattern, ...

PARIS, FRANCE - MARCH 06: A Fashion Week guest is seen wearing red sunglasses, golden LV logo earrings, a gold large chain with Louis Vuitton logo pendant necklace, a white with red / blue / yellow ...

There's a science behind the elegantly arranged bouquet of hydrangeas, or the bushel of roses with a trail of ivy a bride grasps as she walks down the aisle. Like many beautiful things, it takes work.