Needing Some Ideas

COLOR - get color on the walls.... most of the decorating magazines, I find, are just so completely NOT "liveable" when you have kids. Have you gone to Pandemonium in Grapevine? A lot of places (like that) offer decorating services for a fee... work with a decorator to just bounce some ideas off of. It's crazy because I have friends that want me to come to their homes to help them decorate because I can "see" things and opportunities when they can't b/c they're in it every day. I can say... OH... a roman shade there with a gathering of books / candles would look fantastic... but in my own home... I suffer from the same thing you are! LOL... want to trade? I'll do yours and you can do mine!

Victoria,

Hi there! Well, I am a consultant with Southern Living At Home and I would recommend hosting a party, so that you can receive free and half price products. I would be happy to send you a catalog or come to your home and do a party. We also carry the Southern Living At Home magazine. You would be able to get that magazine subscription through me with huge savings. If you are interested, you can email me at ____@____.com

I agree that painting it is the fastest and least expensive way to dress up a room - I am a REALTOR and I have cilents go to Kirklands or Garden Ridge for the pieces that can warm up a room - Just an idea!

Go look at model homes in your area and see what they have done in those houses. Many of them have certain themes (ie, Tuscany, Texan, etc) and you can start working from there. Same thing with furniture stores they usually have everything grouped together including artwork and colors. You can go there to get ideas without buying anything. Alternatively if you have a piece of artwork or find a picture at a store you like you can build off the colors in that. If you don't mind wallpaper, a new trend seems to be murals that are actually wallpaper. They can cover large spaces and really change a room. A good website to see those is www.Muralsyourway.com. Whenever you do go to a model home or furniture store to get ideas take a digital camera with you to take pictures.

2 things---paint your walls--a home looks like a home when it's been painted--and next, go see model homes in high end nicer neighborhoods. Most of the homes are really decked out and you can get great ideas and save money by doing it yourself. have fun.