Home Decorating For Dummies
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Anyone can walk into a room and say, “I don’t like this room.” To fix a problem-laden room, you need to step back and figure out what went wrong. A little distance can help you find the solution to make that problem go away. When you walk into a room and you don’t love it, follow these two easy steps:

  1. Ask yourself three main questions:

    • Do I like the color of the room?

    • Do I like the room’s lines (or patterns)? Does the room have too many lines (making it seem too busy)? Too few (making it seem boring)?

    • Do I like the room’s combination of textures? Are there too many? Too few? Are they incompatible or just tasteless?

    After you answer these questions, take the second step.

  2. Take a close-up look at the area (color, line, or texture) where the problem seems to be. Come up with some decorating ideas to improve this facet of your room’s design.

After you’ve spotted the problem and generated some possible decorating improvements, you’re ready to take decorating action by following these easy steps:

  1. To find a solution to an unsatisfactory color scheme, narrow your problem down. Then apply some simple color rules to solve your problem. Ask yourself the following questions:

    • Is the room too warm, making you feel overstimulated and unable to relax? If so, apply the “cool colors are calming” rule by adding cool-color accents of blues and greens.

    • Is the room so cool that you feel depressed? Apply the “warm colors are stimulating” rule. Cheer up the cold room with accents from the warm side of the color wheel, such as oranges and yellows.

    • Is the color bland and boring? Spice it up with complementary colors (colors from the opposite side of the color wheel, such as orange and blue, or green and red).

  2. Work in steps, gauging your response as you work.

    For example, what if your walls are too red and make you feel hot and jumpy? To simmer it down a bit, cool the room by degrees:

    • Switch to a cool-colored, neutral upholstery. Beige, taupe, white, and any dampened-down blue or green should do the trick.

    • Add a neutral rug. Soft earth tones, for example, look natural underfoot.

    • Hang cool-colored art with white mats for more relief. A leafy landscape or an atmospheric seascape, for example, brings a breath of fresh air into any room. Any too-hot floral can be matted in crisp white or other cool colors for a breezier feel.

    Your eye and body can tell you when you’ve cooled your room down to your comfort level. You’ll feel more serene (your pulse rate, blood pressure, and body temperature will drop!) in a room that’s balanced.

Adding texture is a remedy you can easily and inexpensively apply and one that brings its very own, very special decorating pleasure.

About This Article

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About the book authors:

Katharine Kaye McMillan, former senior editor of a New York City-based national magazine, is a writer whose work appears regularly in magazines and newspapers. She is a contributing writer to internationally circulated Florida Design Magazine. She is the co-author of several books on decorating and design, including Sun Country Style, which is the basis for licensed signature collections of furniture and accessories by three leading American manufacturers and importers. A graduate of the University of Texas in Austin, she holds a masters degree in psychology and is a doctoral student in psychology at Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, Florida.

Patricia Hart McMillan is a nationally known interior designer, whose interior design work for private clients, designer showcases, and corporations has appeared in publications worldwide, including the New York Times and USA Today. Known as a trend spotter and for clearly articulated views on design, she is quoted frequently and extensively in both trade and consumer publications. She a ppears on TV and talk radio. A prolific writer, she is coauthor and author of seven books on interior design and decoration, with Sun Country Style signature collections of furniture based on two books. She has taught decorating courses at several colleges and conducted numerous seminars across the U.S. She is decorating editor for Christian Woman Magazine and reports on design trends for The Sun-Sentinel, a Tribune newspaper based in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. She has been editor-in-chief of two publications and was head of a New York City-based public relations firm representing some of the most prestigious names in home furnishing and building products. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in English, with a minor in art history (with an emphasis in architecture), from the State University of New York (New Paltz). She was awarded a certificate from The New York School of Interior Design.

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