Decorating with a Budget

Host Joan Steffend gives a tour of her own home, and shows how she's been "bitten by the creative bug." She admits that she tires of her kitchen decor rather quickly, so she uses a black and white theme that can be easily and frequently altered for about $100. She also shares some inexpensive decorating ideas that she has incorporated throughout her house.

Tips:

1. The black and white kitchen is splashed with bold colors, found in the chair cushions and accessories. Steffend has covered her kitchen chair seats with place mats and attached them with upholstery tacks. The breakfast bar stools are covered with red fabric that has been brushed with black and white fabric paint to match the pattern of the wallpaper.

2. Steffend uses a sunflower and checkerboard theme throughout her kitchen. A black vase full of sunflowers sits on black and white tile, and coordinating pillows accent the small sofa in the room.

3. The design of Steffend's kitchen maximizes both storage space and working space. One good idea for adding storage: Build cabinets beneath an existing breakfast bar or countertop that doesn't have any.

4. Let children's bedrooms reflect the child's personality. Steffend made polar fleece quilts for her daughter's bed using primary colors and large accent buttons. She also made pillows with the leftover fabric. The colors coordinate nicely with the bold blue color of the walls. Steffend hung three clocks on the wall, each in a different primary color. The clocks are set in different time zones so Steffend's daughter can keep up with the time in the cities her dad travels to.