DECORATING AND PLANNING YOUR NEW HOME

[Music] [Music] no matter where you live in an apartment building many years old in a brand new house in a housing development you can create a clean attractive environment [Music] not so long ago only people of means could furnish and decorate a home dictated in accordance with the fashions of those times today we use the home as an expression of ourselves arranging and decorating to suit our own comfort and sense of design regardless of budget for decorating and planning play an important part in helping attain the things we want out of life to achieve a nicer place to live first it is possible to decorate and arrange what we have at a small cost second remodel to suit specific needs of area arrangement and third plan and build a completely new home specially suited to individual tastes and pursuits first let's see what can be done with a minimum of money take this room ask yourself this question is it really arranged and decorated to be most practical and attractive one way to add color and texture to a drab room is through tasteful and creative use of self-adhesive papers you can match the room furnishings with the same paper allowing it to blend in as part of a unified arrangement the nice part of working with this type of covering is that it allows you to do a great deal in a short time for a minimum of cost by rearranging the bookcase a study area can be created these areas can serve us by isolating functions such as studies and hobbies one thing you should do is keep things orderly it can be discouraging to work and live in an area cluttered and disorderly the pattern and color selected should be based on your own likes and dislikes as well as the feeling or mood you're trying to create there's no end to inexpensive decorative possibilities once you put your imagination to work finished let's compare here's the room the way it was the way it is now quite a difference isn't it of course painting fabrics all of these provide additional decorative elements you can apply the same idea to almost any room in the house color plays an important part in our lives a color chart or wheel shows the right colors for matching or contrasting generally select the blues and greens for the restful and cool quality and the Browns and reds for their bright and active feeling for a more complete change consider remodeling why one because things wear out - because better ways of doing the same job or developed and three because new labor-saving appliances are now available here's a kitten that was perfectly adequate 20 years ago but is now on eight and view of new design and methods of food preparation to see how awkward this kitchen really is let's follow this homemaker as she prepares to bake an apple pie poor layout of the equipment forces her to walk from virtually one end of the kitchen to the other the sink is too far away from the work area as are the storage areas the refrigerator is also too far away and has a door that opens the wrong way for convenience this type of oven means more energy expended in stooping and bending let's see what can be done with remodeling starting with the bare walls add the three basic elements refrigerator range and sink in an efficient work saving triangle next add storage this way there's a direct line from food storage to food preparation with proper lighting we highlight the important work centers finally add spots of color and texture including finishes such as rich antique copper or stainless steel all of this helps to make the room a pleasant place to work and live let's follow her now as she prepares an apple pie the refrigerator is closed and the door opens on the convenient side the work area is between the sink and oven and close to both all her accessories are close at hand avoiding unnecessary steps and energy quite a difference isn't it large numbers of Americans look forward to building and owning their own homes here are some of the main problems that can be solved in building your own home enough bedrooms adequate closet and storage space a room for family activities a rear entrance and half baths one or two quiet areas separate dining area easy to see through windows an eating space in the kitchen complete insulation for year-round comfort new homes today are the result of planning and study made by people in every phase of home construction from builders to architects and interior decorators and designers to find out what is being done see many homes learn all the different ways of solving home problems see the latest ideas about area arrangement and materials ample closet space is a must rooms are larger and well-designed for living and activities materials help control sound area arrangements help provide the needed half-bath near the rear entrance new compact equipment can provide year-round comfort kitchens are designed for maximum efficiency with minimum work [Music] there are many places where you can get ideas about your new home remodeling your present home or just redoing what you have it's a good idea to talk with architects and interior decorators these people have access to ideas and new methods and materials not available to the general public no matter how you wish to begin your own programme of home improvement what your own financial resource lead where you live can become a more attractive place if and work home decorating and improvement provides an opportunity to express ourselves and create a more pleasant and exciting environment [Music]