Design Tips

Decorate with fresh flowers. I spend $3.99 per week at Trader Joe's on a luxury — fresh flowers for my kitchen island. It feels naked without them. A potted herb you use for cooking or a fruit bowl can have the same effect.

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Tobi Fairley Interior Design 7. Don't skimp on drapery. More is more in this department. Professionals use fabric yardage that's two and a half to three times the width of the window for fully functional drapes. With fixed side panels (for show only), you can get away with fabric twice as wide as the window. Don't skimp.

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1. Don't push the furniture against the wall. You will have a much more interesting space if you allow breathing room around your pieces of furniture, as we see here. Allow the furniture to float in the room, away from the walls. This will help create a conversation grouping.

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2. Don't buy small, cheap throw pillows with solid forms. Pillows should be generous, overstuffed and formable, like these. Use soft, plush, down-filled pillows that can take a shape. There are great synthetic fill options, too. Use the classic "designer's chop" to determine if they will shape up: a quick karate chop to the top edge to break up the pillow's blockiness.

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. Don't skimp on area rug size. An area rug defines a grouping of furniture. Buy one large enough to lie under at least the front legs of each piece of furniture in your grouping.

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