The Lookiloos Credo

We believe that every house has a story. We believe that our homes have the power to both reflect and define our identities. Living in a great space, whether big or small, can be not only inspiring, but life-transforming. Envy shouldn’t be considered a deadly sin.

The Lookiloos Mission

To indulge the inner Lookiloo in all of us – to inspire creativity and satisfy curiosity by showcasing great architecture, landscapes, design and decor.  To connect Lookiloos with home improvement and real estate-related resources and events. And to provide a community forum to share advice, insights and stories of home.

Are you a Lookiloo?

You love your home, not just for what it is, but for what you know it can become. You have read "Under the Tuscan Sun” and are convinced that the greatest dinner parties are only a remodel away.  Peeking into other people’s homes gives you design ideas, but it also feeds your secret fantasies _ and there’s nothing wrong with a good fantasy. You brake for open houses.

The Lookiloos

Desiree Northend – Founder / Image Maker

Desiree has an eye for details and a passion for sanctuary spaces. A mom to four boys, she was
forced to “get a life, you’re driving us nuts” after the birth of her
twins. A photography course
taken on a whim turned into an award-winning career. Behind the camera,
her eye focuses in on the lines of crown molding, the clock niche and
even the socks shoved under the sofa. She notices everything. Having
done a complete remodel of her family home, she still searches for the
ultimate goal — the sanctuary.

Julia Prodis Sulek – Founder / Story Teller

Julia Prodis Sulek is a reporter at the San Jose Mercury News who specializes in storytelling _ getting the story-behind-the-story, or in case of
Lookiloos, the story behind closed doors. An architect’s daughter, she
has developed a critical eye for form and function and an appreciation
for open spaces and modern design _ as well as an insatiable compulsion
to critique the designs of others. Her mother, who is always
battle-ready for a party with a shed full of table rounds and folding
chairs, inspired a love of entertaining. A summer job as a tour guide
at Hearst Castle forever redefined her standard for ultimate California
living. Her 1939 art moderne house has a screened porch for that
requisite indoor-outdoor living, and she drives an old convertible. All
she needs now is a remodeled masterbath _ and a view.

Sheila Bernus Dowd – Founder / Tech Mom

An entrepreneur, blogger and mother who works from home, Sheila’s 1940s
California bungalow does triple duty. Whether blogging from her laptop
on her dining room table or twittering from her Blackberry (with her
two young children underfoot), Sheila’s not afraid to express her
opinion. Her home is in major need of a top to bottom remodel, so
Sheila has been hitting the open house circuit for years trying to make
sense of the fine lines between classy, tacky and child friendly. Her
kitchen is the heart of her home, where she is positive that the dark
brown grout and white tile will never be considered fashionable again. Sheila also blogs at Xiaolinmama and Silicon Valley Moms Blog.