Make Your Home Your Beautiful Refuge

Do people truly live in their homes anymore? If you go by how they look inside, you may wonder. So many people today seem to be treating their homes as just a place to sleep, dress, and keep all their stuff. How would it make you feel if you could open your front door and walk into a place that would feel like your own private sanctuary? It isn't difficult to transform your dumping ground into a haven.

Sift Through The Stuff
Do you really need all of it? Chances are that the most you need is about a third of what you've accumulated. If you aren't using it right now, isn't the most recent gift from your best friend, or isn't an heirloom, get rid of it. With the stuff you just can't live without, decide whether you're going to display it or store it. Keep in mind that no surface in your home should have more that two of these objects on it -- having only one per surface would be better. Whatever you decide not to display should be put into a box that can fit on the shelf in one of your closets. If you have stuff that won't fit there, put it in the basement (if it isn't being used otherwise) or a u-store-it place close to your home. Remember, less is better.

Clean It
How often do you vacuum behind or under furniture that is placed almost against the walls? If you're like me, this kind of cleaning only happens twice a year. However, if you want your home to be more inviting when YOU walk through the door, vacuuming the entire floor surface will help get that old-house smell out. That includes moving the furniture and vacuuming. You might want to think about steam cleaning your carpets as well. And don't forget to clean the windowsills, lamps, lampshades, baseboards, and doors that have trim. Mop those linoleum floors. Put a coat of wax on those wood floors too after you dust them. This kind of cleaning should be done once a month to keep your home looking like the place you want to live in.

Paint It
Every once in awhile I watch the TV station, HGTV, to get fresh ideas to use in my home. Right now the trend is to have the walls a medium to dark color. This is something I totally disagree with because these colors just make the rooms look smaller and sometimes depressing. In fact, in my opinion, unless the room is large, the baseboards should be the same color as the walls and a very light color. I usually go for the colors that have the word �â'¬Å"white�â'¬ï¿½ in the name. I've used such colors like �â'¬Å"lemon white�â'¬ï¿½, �â'¬Å"bluebell white�â'¬ï¿½, �â'¬Å"lavender white�â'¬ï¿½, and �â'¬Å"navajo white�â'¬ï¿½. They make the walls a soft white in sunlight or when lights are turned on, but whisper the other color in the shadows.

Do you have paneling that you don't want to take the time to take off the walls so that you can paint? Most major hardware stores (ACE, Lowe's, Home Depot, etc.) have paint that is specially made for using on paneled walls.

What Decorations Do You Have On Your Walls?
The first apartment I had was the typical white-wall type. And the terms of the lease didn't give me the option of painting those boring walls. Most apartments are like this. I was young and hadn't really looked into interior design at all so I went to the closest Woolworth's store and bought run-of-the-mill pictures with plastic frames. Yes, my apartment looked God-awful. Later I learned that the art galleries on the side streets in one of the shopping districts of the city I lived in had original paintings with one-of-a-kind frames at extremely reasonable prices. True, I couldn't afford the larger paintings or the ones painted by famous artists but when the rooms aren't extra large, you don't want something covering the entire wall anyway. And who knows, maybe the unknown artist's work will be famous and worth quite a bit some day. Don't settle for wall items that are going to make your rooms look tacky. Take the time to find those treasures.

What Are You Using For Knick-Knacks And How Many Are You Using?
All of us have precious items that we want to show off but if you have too many on end tables, the coffee table, the bookcase, etcetera; your home is going to look like a junk shop instead of your abode. The coffee table and the end tables are there for things like a lamp and a magazine. One or two knick-knacks will be a nice accent. Any more than that doesn't leave room for things like a cup of coffee when someone comes to visit. Even with collections, it would probably be more noticeable if you just put a few out as a group and chance them every once in awhile to have something different to see.

Of course, transforming your space from a storage unit to a retreat isn't something you can do during a boring weekend. It'll take a little time. I did each room separately and completely before going to the next room. To keep myself motivated, I started with the first room I see when I come in. In my case, it was the kitchen. For you, it may be the living room. I, then, went to the second room I would see when I first walk in after working all day, and then the third, fourth, etcetera. It took me about two months just using my weekends that were free.