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It's only mid-February, and homeowners across the Northeast and Midwest regions are already counting down the days until spring begins, thanks to the constant snowstorms and sub-freezing temperatures that have caused entire cities to shut down for days on end. But for thousands of homeowners, the inconvenience of winter weather weather goes beyond messy work commutes and extra layers of winter clothing. According to the Boston Herald, about 150,000 low-income residents in Massachusetts depend on heating assistance programs, and 18,000 homes in the Boston area alone are in need of immediate aid at the moment, despite the $13 million that the federal government awarded to Massachusetts on January 21. That $13 million, bringing the state's total federal fuel assistance to $144 million for 2...

Interior design is typically a service affordable only to the wealthy, but a new startup is looking to change that.Laurel and Wolf, which recently just raised $4.4 million in its Series A round of fundraising, aims to bring interior design into the digital age. The new company is a web-based platform that connects professional interior designers with clients, who -- for a small, flat fee -- can get their residential and/or commercial spaces custom designed. Designers compete to win a client, offering them concept designs for their spaces, and once chosen, the selected designer will continue to revise the plan until it's been perfected.The startup is the brainchild of Leura Fine, a Los Angeles-based professional designer who has done designs for Elton John, and even designed the interior of...

Coca-Cola is one of the biggest and most recognizable brands in the world, responsible for everything from Diet Coke to Sprite and Minute Maid. However, according to the company's former head of global design, David Butler, the brand actually lacked a consistent approach to design until 2004. His views, available in his newly published book, "Design to Grow: How Coca-Cola Learned to Combine Scale and Agility," are a must-read for website design agencies, small business owners, and everyone in between. Upon joining Coca-Cola in 2004, Butler says that he was immediately charged with helping the company develop a vision, strategy and approach to ensure that the business would be getting the most out of their design efforts. At that point, Coca-Cola was already one of the largest brands in ...