Design Advice From HGTV Guest Designers

Your "personal style" means just that, YOURS! Not your mother's, not your sister's, and not your best friend's. Look past the trends. These are important to shape your style, but you need to dig deeper finding what really makes you feel good expressing yourself. Are you formal or casual, do you entertain with intimate dinners or large groups buffet style, are you single, married with/without children, do you have pets, are they big or little, what colors do you like, dark or light, earth tones, neutrals, or bright hues, do you feel good with patterned fabrics or prefer solids and textures? Pour through design magazines pulling photos of rooms you respond to, go to home tours, and visit home furnishing stores. Relate this to your home. Does it have a contemporary open floor plan or traditional well defined rooms? It takes a lot of careful thought. Your style is not written in stone. It is a process changing as you're exposed to new things through your travels and life experiences, as your children grow, leave home and have children of their own, and as you age. Remember to have fun with it.

Bruce Kading, ASID, CID
Senior Interior Designer
William Beson Interior Design, LTD.
E-mail: brucekading@williambeson.com
Website: www.williambeson.com

How does the average person go about choosing a design style that best fits their home, family and lifestyle? One must look through books and magazines, cutting out or isolating the styles that feel good to you. If you have no experience at this, the best thing is not to mix too many styles..either the garden (shabby chic) look, or colonial (Tommy Bahamas) look. There are so many...or just classic looks using color for interest. Follow the picture details. Never use just white walls--you'll never get the warmth you want with white. Even if you want to go with a monochromatic color scheme, use a shade of
beige for the walls. Don't worry about the room looking smaller--you want it to be inviting and cozy. Color is the least expensive thing you can do for a room but it has the biggest impact. Don't be afraid to use several shades of the same color. Decorating is a process so don't try to do it all at once. Start with a pillow, piece of clothing--something you LOVE for color and build around it.

Susan Lane
Designer, Susan Lane Designs
E-mail: lanewerth@aol.com