decorating a room from scratch -- where to start?

[Anonymous]

My husband and I are now living in our 4th home. One of the things I enjoy most about moving is getting to re-decorate. We do everything ourselves including painting. Painting is not hard and you can save a lot of money if you do it yourself. What might make it hard for you is the high ceilings.

I love watching HGTV but a few years ago there used to be a decorator, Christopher Lowell on tv. He always talked about the 7 layers of design and how you go about decorating a room. I found a link where there are videos you can watch.

http://www.christopherlowell.com/design/seven_layers.php

In some rooms I have painted first and then designed around that color but as we have acquired items over the years, I have also designed around items. For example in our first home we bought a wonderful oriental rug that we have used in all 4 living rooms. I always pick a paint color that works with it. Right now the living room is a pale blue, it has been a very deep brown and a lighter beige. I loved one color so much I used it in two homes.

Big ticket items I purchase in neutrals so you can change the look with different pillows and accents. Since you don't have a lot of money to spend, see if there are any items in your house that you can re-purpose and use in the room.

I'm sure it is going to look great.

[Anonymous]

Room has lots of light, go with light colors. If very dark, go with darker colors. Start with the rug. Solid well made wool rugs can be very nice. If it is a large room, think of solid curtains.