Fearless Home Decorating

I have a few tips and tricks to share with you about decorating your living space. It doesn't matter whether you're decorating a mansion or one corner of one room, the primary directive is still the same:

Remember that it's YOUR space.

Home decorators who call themselves "Interior Designers" want to play with your money and do what you can do for yourself. You know what you want to see when you look around you. You are the one who lives here. You can do it. Don't be afraid.

So today, let's not try to tackle a mansion. Let's just go for one room. Here are my tips for starting from bare walls.

1. Find yourself a perspective in the room, a place where you might choose to sit most of the time which allows you to see all parts of the room. Sit down and look around you.

Note any and all interesting architectural aspects of the room, note windows and doors, wall coloring, rug or floor coloring. Based on this, decide if you want the room to remain simply a neutral canvas or become a colorful display in its own right by painting the walls in vibrant colors or using bright rugs.

For today's example we will stay with a neutral room and save colored walls another day. Again, look around you. Decide what you like to look at the most and put it in that space. Hang your favorite posters and pictures, a kite, a mirror. Always remember that this is YOUR space and you can do anything you want with it and the only rules in play are your rules.

2. This is my favorite tip of all times: Make your space appear larger using "see-through" furniture. What's that? Example: Avoid heavy wood. Instead of a lazyboy type recliner, choose one with steel legs and a detached footrest. Choose coffee and dining tables with glass tops.

3. Remember that a loveseat takes up less room than a full-sized couch and will make your space appear larger. Costs less, too!

Once your furniture is in place, choose accent pieces. Remember that you will be looking at this room every day and the things you choose reflect what you like and can afford. If you've been watching any of the Design shows on television, you might have noticed that in some styles like Shabby Chic the colors don't even have to match!

You can choose accent pieces just because they're attractive to you, or for function. For example, lighting. Lamps should suit your personal needs. Do you need enough light for reading, or just enough for mood and to avoid stumbling over furniture?

Now we come to budget. Many times we have little choice over the way we decorate because we have no money and have to use what we can find at the cheapest price. Do what you have to do, but there are places to buy things cheaper than you think.

For instance:

1. The mattresses at Ikea are far more comfortable than American traditional box springs and mattress sets, come in one piece, and cost less.

2. If you just can't afford to buy new, shop your local craigslist online, thrift stores and Dollar Tree stores.

3. Don't forget weekend garage sales.

That's all for now, but I hope I've helped you at least a little. Remember: Have no fear! This is YOUR space!