DEAR TORRIE: You’re not alone; many people find it difficult decorating their own home, especially when moving things from one house to another. “Why don’t my things fit the same way?” “I bought this specifically for the family room in my other house; I can’t use it in the living room.” “It just has to go in this room because it always has.”

So where do you start? You need to accept that this house is different. Accept that each room is laid out differently. You might have more or less windows, more open space versus individual rooms, more or less rooms, or maybe you now have a two-story versus a single-story home. I know this sounds like common sense, but it’s the reason why things don’t fit the same way.

Now grab a friend who can help you, or hire someone who will have a fresh perspective. Start by determining the function of each room, besides your kitchen, that’s obvious. Who says that the living room can’t be your family room? Maybe in this house the living room is bigger and will be a better place to watch TV. I’ve done this many times.

Nothing says that just because a room was labeled one thing on the floor plan it has to be used in that way. In my house, the once-formal dining room is where our birds are. I don’t think you’ll see a room specifically noted as a bird’s room on any floor plan. Yes, we could have put them in a spare bedroom, but then they’re not part of our daily activities. It’s important that they have visual stimulation and can see us throughout the day.

Next, don’t get hung up on what rooms you had your furniture and artwork in before. Or what pieces you had together. Sofas and tables can be switched between rooms. The only thing you need to be concerned about is the durability of the items. A silk sofa wouldn’t be the best option in a well-used family room. But maybe because of the size of the room and how you’re arranging the furniture, the living room side tables really fit better in the family room. Just because you had a console table behind your sofa, doesn’t mean it can’t go in your guest room as an accent piece.

Think of every piece in a different way. Ask yourself, how else can it be used and where? Of course, buying new furniture to fit in your new home is an option; it’s not always in the budget. So use what you have first. As Tim Gunn from “Project Runway” says, “Make it work.”

I find artwork can be a troublesome item when moving to another house. The wall space can be so different because of window placement and doorways. Homeowners really struggle with this one.

“I had that piece over my sofa in my last house, but the only place I can put my sofa now is under the windows. What am I going to do with it now?”

So I always like to start with pieces that absolutely must be hung at that moment. If there’s room for all of them that’s great, but many times there’s not. But don’t despair as you can always switch things out every six months or once a year. Start with the biggest pieces, then add in the rest. If you had a lot of smaller pieces throughout your last house, is there a place you can create a wall gallery?

What I really want to stress is to think out of the box. By doing this and getting a little help from someone else, you’ll have your home set up and enjoying it in no time.

One of the most economical ways to remodel your home is to change the furniture Changing the seating, for example, in the living room can suddenly make the room look cozier or more spacious. What kind of look are you trying to achieve?

A huge room can be turned into two areas with a screen, properly placed furniture or color schemes. A screen strategically placed can separate a small work area from the sitting area. In one’s own home they should not be afraid to move furniture around to get the desired look.  They should display whimsical or serious items, whichever pleases them more. No one outside the home should dictate how it should be decorated. The ones who live there should be completely comfortable and at peace with their surroundings.

Sometimes less actually looks like more, more space, more comfort and more possibilities. We like to see our home sometimes as a blank canvass just beckoning our creative touches. It lends to the excitement of going home, knowing that once we get home, our home, we are able to be ourselves.

For example scattered photos throughout the home gathered and placed in one attractive collage will draw many more glances, but they are still personal and bring delight and comfort to the owner.  A collection or hobby can be displayed on a mantle, dresser, or table top. These items show a glimpse of the home owner and invite conversation about a beloved topic.

Mirrors strategically placed in a home improve the lighting and appearance of the home creating the illusion of expense. A mirror placed by a light helps to throw the light and enhance the appearance of the room. Mirrors and lighting can make a big difference in a small room making it appear nearly double in size.

Marred furniture can be sanded, painted or covered with contact paper. Decorative scarves with their fancy designs (pieces of fabric designed to cover tables and dressers) can tie in the color scheme with floral arrangements and throw pillows purchased to match. Desks, dressers, armoires, cupboards and so forth can take on a new look with a coat of paint. For even more elaborate change add new door knobs and drawer handles. One should not limit their self to traditional styles but become innovative with their project. Bringing new life to an old item is richly satisfying and also rewarding. The “artist” can reflect on the resourcefulness and vision for years to come as they turn their salvaged piece of furniture into a one of the kind item.

While it is wise to invest in a few good quality pieces of furniture in the home, there are many places to find bargains to help outfit the rest of home. Just a few of these places are thrift stores, freecycle, garage sales, yard sales, habitat for humanity and your local dollar stores. Knick knacks, throw rugs, candles, furniture, kitchen wares, throw pillows and so forth can be found for little or nothing. Salvaging these items will be richly rewarding in realizing money saved and knowing that one has helped to save the landfills from overflowing from useful items. The money saved on these items can help to enable the homeowner to be able to buy some very good pieces which they will be able to enjoy for a very long time.

Another thing which can be very inexpensive but bring much enjoyment to a home is plants. An herb garden growing on a window sill can do much for the beauty of the home while helping to improve the air within. Pinches of plants can give off a wonderful aroma while cooking and give the household untold health benefits from the fresh herbs being used in prepared foods or teas.  If home is truly where the heart is, there is no price tag needed, let the love freely grow and the home will shine within.

Marina Chernyak is freelancer décor writer and co-owner of online cocktail and console table specialty store.

DEAR ROSEMARIE: Sleep deprivation is not good and studies have shown that it is the cause of many accidents as well as a list of health problems. So let’s get you some options and some sleep.

The easiest, if you have a deep window frame, is to add a black-out roller shade behind your existing shade. When the roller shade is pulled up it will be hidden behind your shade headrail.

Another option is to use drapery panels with a blackout liner. To make sure you get the full benefit of them, you should mount them from floor-to-ceiling and at least 12 inches out from each side of the window; this will block any light from coming in. If you are able to go wall-to-wall, that’s even better. Something you do need to consider is how much wall space your draperies will need to clear your window when you want to let light in. This is called stack-back or how much wall space the panels will take up when fully opened. There are a couple of things that affect the stack-back, including how heavy and thick your panels are and how full you make them. The fuller and heavier the fabric, the more wall space they’ll take up when opened.

Understanding stack-back is important since I’m assuming you want to keep as much of your view into the yard. Without getting complicated with calculations you can figure stack-back this way. Take one drapery panel that you’re considering and gather it together. This will give you a good estimate on how much wall space it’s going to take up when you open the draperies. Let’s say you have a 54-inch wide panel and it gathers down to 25 inches. To have it completely stack off your window, you would want to place the drapery rod 25 inches from the edge of the window. This also allows you a little room if you’d like to cover the edge of the window frame. I normally like to cover at least 3 inches of the window frame.

If you don’t want all that fabric on your walls, you can use a blackout Roman shade. You’ll want to mount it the same distance around the window as the panels. The difference is that you’ll be able to pull the shade up off the window. But in this case you’ll need to consider how much wall space above the window you need to stack it off the window when pulled up. If you have a lot of room above your window, you’ll probably have no problem clearing it.

I do prefer the look of the panels since they frame your window and you’re dividing the fabric. The Roman shade can look heavy with all of the fabric stacked in one place. You also have to worry about the weight of the fabric. You’ll need to make sure you use molly bolts or mount into your wood header when installing the shade.

You can also consider replacing the shade with a sun-up, sun-down shade, which is two shades on one headrail. Two fabrics are used, one between the top rail and the center rail and one between the center rail and bottom rail. When you want the light, you pull it so the sheer shade is covering your window. When you need to sleep, pull it so that the black-out shade is covering the window. The opposite shade will just be stacked either at the top or bottom of the shade taking up very little room.

Now on all the shade options you will get light seepage coming through the sides of the windows, but very little. You could mount the sun-up, sun-down shade on the outside of your window, but I don’t recommend it. I personally don’t like the look, and the shade is heavy. More than once an outside-mounted shade has pulled out of the window frame because of the weight, and since there is nothing supporting that weight.

A better option if you need total darkness, is to add stationary panels on each side of the window covering the edges. I would go 3-6 inches into the window to block out the light.

A more expensive option, but one that will completely block out any light is metal rolling shutters . I have them in my home and I can tell you I have no idea what time of day it is when I wake up. This is good and bad because on the weekend I do oversleep sometimes.

I hope one of these will work for you, and sleep well.

DEAR ROGER AND ANN: Fifteen-hundred dollars gives you a little to work with, so that’s good. I’m assuming you’re looking at the main rooms in your home, versus extra bedrooms, so I’ll focus my suggestions there.

In my opinion, the three main things that can update a home are: lighting, faucets and hardware.

Do you have an outdated brass entry, kitchen or dining room chandelier? You can buy a new one for between $100 and $250 or even paint the one you have. The color depends upon your décor. Don’t be afraid to go for color if your style is contemporary. If color scares you, black always works. A red chandelier could look great in a country kitchen. Remember it’s just paint and anything is better than the brass fixture the builder put in.

If you have the old Hollywood light bars in your bathrooms, I’d spend money there and get rid of them. There are a lot of light bars for less than $200. If your light is OK, you can change it up with paint or new glass shades.

A fun trick to try, which won’t cost a penny, is to flip the light. If your shades currently go down, flip them so they go up or vice versa. I do this a lot. Just because they show it on display with the shades down doesn’t mean it can’t be installed the other way. This works with 95 percent of bath light bars.

So are you still living with acrylic-handle faucets in your bathrooms? Even if you have an older sink and counter that are in good condition, just updating your faucet will make all the difference in the world. You can purchase a simple new faucet for less than $50. You don’t have to change out the shower and tub fixtures if you’re staying within the same finish. So if your shower is chrome, it’s OK to use a brushed or stained nickel. If you have brass in the shower and go with a nickel, I would change both out at the same time.

The same goes for your kitchen faucet; spend the money and update to a newer style. If your sink has seen better days, you can find ones for less than $150.

Now onto hardware. The first impression makes all the difference so look into new front door hardware, which you can find for less than $75. While at the front door, give it a fresh coat of paint or, if it’s wood and our lovely heat has gotten to it, refinish it. I’d also take a look at your porch light. Stand at your door and look at your porch as if it’s the first time you’ve seen it.

Changing out your interior door handles will be expensive and eat up most of your budget. So if they look good, just give them a good polish.

I’ve mentioned many times how hardware can really update older cabinets, but it can get pricey in a kitchen depending upon the number of cabinets you have. So spend some time online searching out good deals; they are out there.

Now for a couple of decorative ideas. New table lamps can make a big difference in updating the look of a room. Gone are the oversized lamps with the bell shades that are wider than the tables they sit on. You can get nice new table lamps for less than $50 at any of the home stores. If your bases are nice, look for a new shade, which you also can find easily for less than $50.

Next, what items do you have that you can paint? Outdated drapery rods can be transformed with simple spray paint. Have a nice rod but simple finials? Change them out. There are a lot of great finials for less than $100 a pair.

Another easy item to paint is wall shelves. Give your wood shelves a punch of color. What color? Look at the colors that you have in your fabrics and artwork.

What about painting your kitchen chairs? Or even just the backs. How about the legs on the table? I personally love two-tone furniture.

And finally don’t be afraid to add some color on the walls. Paint a room or two or at least add some accent walls.

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DEAR BECKY: Just so you know, you are not alone. Besides selecting paint colors, accessorizing seems to be the most frustrating area for most homeowners. Accessories are the finishing touches that make your home personal and bring each room together, just as jewelry shows your personality and dresses up your wardrobe. They both complete and complement your foundation.

Accessorizing is about fussing with things until they feel right, which I know is where you’re frustrated. To help you, I’m going to give you some sets to follow. Once you have them down, you’ll be able to change your items out when you want a new look.

To start, clear off your coffee table, it’s important to start with a blank canvas.

Next, gather up the accessories that you’d like to use, knowing you’re not going to use all of them. Group them by type, just like you see in the store: candles, vases, figurines, greenery, frames and so on.

What you’re going to do is form a triangular pattern that has three layers or heights, as well as a variety of textures and color. Although you can create a stunning grouping with all the same textures and colors, you still need to vary the heights.

Start with your tallest accessory and place it off center and to the back of the table, instead of right in the middle. You want to create a grouping versus lining them up.

Now select the next one you’d like to use. This piece should be smaller. Place it at the second point of the triangle.

Then select the third piece, which will be your smallest. Many times my third accessory is greenery to soften the grouping. If you have a large table or would like to use more than three things, place two more items into your triangular pattern. I do like using odd numbers, but nothing says you have to. It’s all about balance.

Once you’re comfortable creating groupings, do what looks and feels right.

If you need a starting point, take pictures at model homes or cut pictures out from magazines. Then re-create the look by selecting similar accessories from what you have.

I know this sounds simple, but it always isn’t when you start. So here are a couple things to watch for:

• Make sure nothing is too high and blocking your view to the television or chairs where guest may be sitting. You don’t want to have to look around candlesticks to watch television or chat.
• How does your grouping look from all angles? I don’t like using frames on a coffee table because you see the backs when sitting on the sofa. They are best placed on side tables or a console.
• Don’t overcrowd the table. This is sometimes where people go astray and it ends up looking like a sale table. Add one piece at a time and when it looks too crowded take the last one off.
• Are the accessories visually too heavy, too light, too large or too small for the table? You especially need to watch this when you have a small, delicate glass table. But on the same token a large wood table should have substantial pieces.
• Keep the theme the same. I wouldn’t place a rustic candlestick and a country goose together with an Oriental vase. Instead use a brass candlestick and a swan figurine with the vase. Each item does not have to be Oriental but they should have the same feel.
• Have you added color? It can be as simple as color from candles, decorative balls, potpourri, flowers or even books.

Accessorizing really is the fun part and makes all the difference in a well-made room. So jump in and try a couple of different arrangements until you find the one you like.

BEFORE – The homeowner was stumped about what to do with her glass top table because of the rattan shelf, so didn’t use anything.

AFTER – Simple accessories — books and greenery — were placed on the lower rattan shelf. The addition of the flower on the glass top helped balance out the color from her sofa.

Numi’s features,

• A sleek, interactive LCD touch-screen interface. – Yes it comes with a remote.

• Built-in personalized bidet functionality and deodorizer – You can set it to clean the bidet overnight as well as spray preference.

• Innovative dual-flush technology with .6 and 1.28 gallons per flush. – Second flush rinses the bowel.

• Intuitive auto-open and -close lid – You can pass your foot by a sensor and it automatically lifts the seat and then puts it back down.

• Built-in music system – No kidding.

• Heated seat and foot warmer – OK good for cold country.

Now I’m not one who needs an ultimate flushing experience, but for those who do, this is the toilet for you.

DEAR ROSE MARIE: A quick, easy and no cost way to give your room a new look is simply using what you already own. It’s what we in the industry call interior redesign. In just one day and with a little bit of work you can have a completely new room.

Where you start is by completely emptying the room. I know this is a lot of work but it is essential in getting a new look. It’s hard to see how a room can look different with everything where it currently is. Just like an artist, you need to start with a blank canvas.

So first remove your accessories, lamps, plants and then your artwork. Place them where they will be out of the way. Put breakables on the kitchen counter or dining table and lamps on the floor, along a wall so you don’t trip on them. Keep like items grouped together, just how it’s done in the stores. Place artwork by size and try not to lay them in front of each other. The best place to put them is either down the hall or in another room.

Now it’s time to move your furniture. Try to get everything completely out of the room. If not, move it as far out as you can. Be very careful not to hurt yourself; this is not a one-person project. I use carpet installers’ moving glides, but even the little moving discs are helpful for those heavy items. With the room completely emptied, it’s OK to take a short break, but remember everything needs to go back in. You can figure spending about four to six hours for an average-sized family room.

Your next step is to stand in the middle of the room and take notice of the lines in the room. This is easiest to do by looking down at the floor and baseboards. Do you have any angled walls, floor tiles set on a diagonal, or does your carpet and tile meet on a diagonal? Always work with the angles in the room versus against them. Don’t be afraid to place your furniture on an angle. It’s what will give your room a new look and one that is more interesting than before.

Do you have any architectural focal points like a fireplace, great view, built-in bookcase or entertainment unit? Of course, in the family room the television is the primary focal point. Watching television is the main function of the room. It’s important to identify your primary focal point as the next step is to place your furniture.

Start with your sofa and place it addressing the television. What I mean by addressing is that when you are sitting on the sofa, the television is in your line of sight. The sofa does not have to be directly across from the television; it could be on an angle to it, but it shouldn’t be at a right angle. You don’t want to have to turn your head completely to the side to watch television; it’s just not comfortable.

Once your sofa is placed, is there another important focal point in the room you want to see while sitting on the sofa. If you can’t see it, try placing your sofa in different positions until you can see both. Or are you OK if you can see it from another piece of furniture? So, next place your love seat or chair at a right angle to the sofa. If you have a third chair, place it on a diagonal across from this grouping to balance your furniture arrangement in the room. If you don’t have another chair, take one from another room that you’re not using.

Now it’s time to bring back your lighting. A trick to lighting your room is to place your lamps in a diagonal, or preferable, triangular pattern. This ensures that you won’t have any dark corners. Place your trees and floor plants next. If there is a plug nearby, accent them with a floor uplight.

The next step is artwork. You want your artwork to relate to the items around it. Don’t just have it floating on the wall. It’s always best to anchor it to the floor with a piece of furniture or floor plant. A very large piece without something underneath it will give you an uneasy feeling. The bottoms of the artwork should be level with the floor or the piece you’re hanging it over. Only stagger artwork up a staircase.

Try not to place the same pieces of artwork in the same places. This is one thing that will give your room a new look. Just because it was over the sofa before doesn’t mean that’s where it has to go again.

The final and finishing touches are your accessories. Start with the focal areas in your room, normally the coffee table and mantel. The rule of odd numbers and asymmetrical arrangements always work; they are more interesting and pleasing to the eye. Just like with your art, switch things around. It’s been proven that after 27 days we no longer take notice to the things around us. If you are uncomfortable with accessorizing, look in model homes and magazines for placement ideas to follow.

As with all decorating, it’s about balance, proportion and simply how the room feels. If something just doesn’t feel right, it’s probably not properly placed. So move it around until it does. That’s the beauty of interior redesign. Follow your instincts and with these simple steps you’ll be surprised and amazed how different your room will look without spending a dime.

Color is a meaningful constant for sighted people and it’s a powerful psychological tool. By using color psychology, you can send a positive or negative message, encourage sales, calm a crowd, or make an athlete pump iron harder.

Employ the latest color psychology in all facets of marketing and particularly in logo design, web site design, the cover of a book, or the package of a product.

The field of industrial psychology has a sub-field that studies only the psychology of color. It is no accident that Campbell’s soup has used the same four colors on their labels for years and years. When I mentioned that product, I’ll bet an image of that label popped into your head.

Below is a quick overview of the meaning of basic colors in the Western Hemisphere. This information will help you decided what colors to use in your marketing projects. The psychology of color changes with lighter or darker shades of the colors below are often associated with much different meanings. And remember for the World Wide Web, and different cultures have differing views on the meaning of color.

Psychology of Color: Black

Black is the color of authority and power, stability and strength. It is also the color associated with intelligence (doctorate in black robe; black horn rimmed glasses, etc.) Black clothes make people appear thinner. It’s a somber color sometimes associated with evil (the cowboy in the black hat was almost always the “bad guy”). In the western hemisphere black is associated with grieving. Black is a serious color that evokes strong emotions; it is easy to overwhelm people with too much black.

Psychology of Color: White

For most of the world this is the color associated with purity (wedding dresses); cleanliness (doctors in white coats) and the safety of bright light (things go bump in the night … not the bright sunshine!). It is also used to project the absence of color, or neutrality. In some eastern parts of the world, white is associated with mourning. White associated with creativity (white boards, blank slates). It is a compression of all the colors in the color spectrum.

Psychology of Color: Gray

Gray is most associated with the practical, timeless, middle-of-the-road, solid things in life. Too much gray leads to feeling mostly nothing; but a bit of gray will add that rock solid feeling to your product. Some shades of gray are associated with old age, death, taxes, depression or a lost sense of direction. Silver is an off-shoot of gray and often associated with giving a helping hand, strong character (sterling in-fact!).

Psychology of Color: Red

If you want to draw attention, use red. It is often where the eye looks first. Red is the color of energy. It’s associated with movement and excitement. People surrounded by red find their heart beating a little faster and often report feeling a bit out of breath. It’s absolute the wrong color for a baby’s room but perfect to get people excited. Wearing red clothes will make you appear a bit heavier and certainly more noticeable. (Some studies show red cars get more tickets but that maybe because the red car owners drive faster or the ticket giver notices the movement of the red car more prominently). Red is not a good color to over use but using a spot of red in just the right place is smart in some cases (one red accent in a otherwise neutral room draws the eye; a red tie with a navy blue suit and white shirts adds just the right amount of energy to draw the eye (no wonder it’s the “uniform of the day” at the seats of government). Red is the symbol of life (red blooded life!) and, for this reason, it’s the color worn by brides in China. Red is used at holidays that are about love and giving (red roses, Valentines hearts, Christmas, etc.) but the true color of love is pink. Pink is the most calming of all colors — often our most dangerous criminals are housed in pink cells as studies show that color drains the energy and calms aggression. Think of pink as the color of romance, love, and gentle feelings, to be in the pink is to be soothed.

Psychology of Color: Blue

Ask people their favorite color and a clear majority will say blue. Much of the world is blue (skies, seas). Seeing the color blue actually causes the body to produce chemicals that are calming; but that isn’t true of all shades of blue. Some shades (or too much blue) can send a cold and uncaring message. Many bedrooms are blue because it’s calm, restful color. Over the ages blue has become associated with steadfastness, dependability, wisdom and loyalty (note how many uniforms are blue). People tend to be more productive in a blue room because they are calm and focused on the task at hand. Some studies are showing that weight lifters can lift more weight in a blue gym – in fact, nearly all sports are enhanced in blue surroundings.

Psychology of Color: Green

The color of growth, nature, and money. A calming color also that’s very pleasing to the senses. Dark forest green is associated with terms like conservative, masculine and wealth. Hospitals use light green rooms because they too are found to be calming to patients. It is also the color associated with envy, good luck, generosity and fertility. It is the traditional color of peace, harmony, comfortable nurturing, support and well paced energy.

Psychology of Color: Yellow

Cheerful yellow the color of the sun, associated with laughter, happiness and good times. A person surrounded by yellow feels optimistic because the brain actually releases more seratonin (feel good chemical in the brain) when around this color. It is the color associated with optimism but be careful with yellow, when intense, it is the color of flames and studies show babies cry more in (bright) yellow rooms and tempers flare more around that color too. It has the power to speed up our metabolism and bring out some creative thoughts (legal tablets are yellow for good reason!). Yellow can be quickly overpowering if over-used, but used sparingly in the just the right place it can be an effective tool in marketing to greater sales. Some shades of yellow are associated with cowardice; but the more golden shades with the promise of better times.

Psychology of Color: Orange

The most flamboyant color on the planet! It’s the color tied most this fun times, happy and energetic days, warmth and organic products. It is also associated with ambition. There is nothing even remotely calm associated with this color. Orange is associated with a new dawn in attitude.

Psychology of Color: Purple

What color were the robes of kings and queens? Yes, they were purple, our most royal color that is associated with wealth, prosperity, rich sophistication. This color stimulates the brain activity used in problem solving. However, when overused in a common setting it is associated with putting on airs and being artificial/ Use purple most carefully to lend an air of mystery, wisdom, and respect. Young adolescent girls are most likely to select nearly all shades of purple as their favorite color.

Psychology of Color: Brown

This color is most associated with reliability, stability, and friendship. More are more likely to select this as their favorite color. It’s the color of the earth itself “terra firma” and what could represent stability better. It too is associated with things being natural or organic. Caution however, for in India it is the color of mourning.

Basics on How to Use Color Together

Color psychology is complicated field of study and goes deep into the meaning of combining colors for a particular desired effect. We will broad brush some basics that may well enough for you to make good color choices for a web site with marketing in mind.

Monochromatic Color Scheme This is the use of a single color in varying shades. This can be a clean and interesting look on a web site. It’s soothing and pleasing to the eye especially in the blue or green hues.

Complimentary Color Scheme This is using high contrast of color by selecting colors directly opposite from one another on the color wheel (such as pink and lime green). This puts a warm color with a cool color and is pleasing to the eye.

Triple Color Scheme This scheme uses three colors equally spaced from each other around a color wheel. It’s popular with web designers and allows for a harmonious color scheme.

You ARE that first flash of color seen on your web site it’s important to remember that color is the first thing registered by a person who goes to your web site. It that is pleasing, they will read on — if it’s displeasing you may lose them in a nano second. So first select your background color and then select two other colors for your web site. Remember to keep in mind the meaning and harmony of colors.