When you’re ready to select a wood floor, do you find yourself concerned with whether your choice is environmentally responsible? Well, fortunately there is a simple way to determine that. Look for flooring with the Forest Stewardship Council certification;

An international, not-for-profit organization, the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) was created to protect the world’s forests by promoting their responsible management. With an international presence that extends to over 50 countries and recognition by every major environmental group as well as the Green Building Council in the United States, the FSC is your best source for evaluating your potential wood purchases.

As forests are damaged and destroyed across the planet, FSC and organizations like it work hard to ensure that our children will also be able to enjoy the forested areas we have now. The goal is not to stop cutting trees, but to support responsible harvesting with no hazardous pesticides and no damage to the people who live in the forests.

FSC requires certification to be re-confirmed annually, so it is not possible for organizations to meet the certification once and then go on to break the rules.

How much more meaningful will your beautiful wood floor be if you know that the trees it represents were cut responsibly? If this means something to you, just ask your salesperson to show you products that are FSC certified, and enjoy your floor.

The Four Seasons of Decorating: Winter

In the cold weather, a warm winter room makes the season more inviting and enjoyable. After a day of cold and snow, you can escape to a room that makes the best of winter.

With a winter space, think warmth and coziness. The perfect flooring for winter is rich, deep carpeting. Sink your feet in their thick socks into a cushioned plush or an attractive sculptured carpet. Whatever your preference, soft flooring takes the sting out of the coldest months.

You can take a chance with dark colors in your winter room. Consider a rich brown for the walls, accented with creams and ivories in your fabrics. Remember texture – just like every snowflake, mix a variety of textures as well as patterns to create your winter room. For window coverings, how about velvet curtains? Reaching from the ceiling to the floor, their warmth will complement your winter space.

If you have a fireplace, make it the focal point. Angle your furniture so that everyone can sit and watch the fire on long winter evenings. Don’t forget lighting. With early sunsets, a few lamps tucked into the corners of rooms, or a bevy of candles for special occasions, makes a winter room extra cozy.

Holiday accents make great accessories, and don’t forget a few soft throws to wrap around you on chilly nights. Now, light your candles and get settled in that deep armchair. Your winter room adds warmth to the season.

For the other seasons, click here.

The Four Seasons of Decorating: Fall

What do you love about fall? Is it the cooler days? The rich colors of fall leaves? The sense of harvest, of completion of the summer’s efforts? Or maybe you’re just glad to get the kids back into school! Make a room feel like fall all year round with your decorating decisions.

Start with the flooring. The best choice to invoke fall is wood. A rich deep pecan or the brown-red of cherry brings the season right into the room. Echo the dark tones in your furniture, or bring in a rich gold to reflect against the shine off the floor. Metals such as bronze and antique brass bring the glow of the season into the space.

Colors are easy – just step outside at the height of the season and look up. Every fall leaf gives you color options. You can take the light gold of aspens or birches and match that with the rich reds of maples or the soft browns of oaks. They’ll all work together. Curtains in fall colors would look lovely, or consider wood blinds in tones to complement the floor. Bring the forest inside.

Accessories can be found in your grocery store. How about gourds, Indian corn and pumpkins? Cut branches of fall leaves and mix with big chrysanthemums or sunflowers. Gather acorns and buckeyes and pile them into turned-wood bowls. Let every corner remind you of the season.

For the other seasons, click here.

The Four Seasons of Decorating: Spring

When you’re planning your home’s décor, one interesting way of looking at each space is to echo one of the four seasons. Every season has its own personality, and there are so many possibilities for bringing a season into a room.

We’ve talked about Summer, now let’s talk about spring. Think light colors and smooth textures, with a sense of freshness and shine. For flooring, natural bamboo sets just the right tone. Follow that light approach with a light, fine-grain wood for cabinets and furniture such as maple.

Bright pastel colors such as crisp yellow-green, pinks and lavenders speak to spring, and be sure to add plenty of pure whites – possibly in moldings and baseboards, and even in sheer curtains. Spring patterns in fabrics are easy to find – florals, bright abstracts and maybe a nice check can say spring if the colors are right.

Spring is about growing things, so add plenty of flowering plants in pots; tulips, daffodils and especially hyacinths for their amazing scent provide the finish to the space. Outside it may still be cold, but inside you’ve introduced spring into your home and your life.

To learn more about the other seasons, click here.

The Four Seasons of Decorating: Spring

When you’re planning your home’s décor, one interesting way of looking at each space is to echo one of the four seasons. Every season has its own personality, and there are so many possibilities for bringing a season into a room.

We’ve talked about Summer, now let’s talk about spring. Think light colors and smooth textures, with a sense of freshness and shine. For flooring, natural bamboo sets just the right tone. Follow that light approach with a light, fine-grain wood for cabinets and furniture such as maple.

Bright pastel colors such as crisp yellow-green, pinks and lavenders speak to spring, and be sure to add plenty of pure whites – possibly in moldings and baseboards, and even in sheer curtains. Spring patterns in fabrics are easy to find – florals, bright abstracts and maybe a nice check can say spring if the colors are right.

Spring is about growing things, so add plenty of flowering plants in pots; tulips, daffodils and especially hyacinths for their amazing scent provide the finish to the space. Outside it may still be cold, but inside you’ve introduced spring into your home and your life.

To learn more about the other seasons, click here.

Summer brings childhood memories home more than any other season. Whether you spent your summers on the beach, on a farm, or in the city, you can grab those memories and the feeling of summer and create a room that reflects the best of the season.

Summer is all about living outside, and tile is the best flooring choice for handling the inevitable dirt and dust tromped in. Water from the dripping feet of kids just in from the pool, and spots from melting popsicles clean up in an instant on tile. Consider putting the same tile on both your family room and patio, almost erasing the distinction between inside and outside.

What are the colors of summer? You can go for the golds – bright yellows to deep oranges that reflect the vivid sunlight. Or take the opposite direction and let cool sky blues refresh your space in the heat. Whatever you choose – keep it bright and don’t be afraid to mix and match many colors and patterns, just like a pile of beach towels thrown in a corner.

If your upholstery is dark, how about getting white canvas slipcovers? They’ll brighten the space and make it easy to clean up summer’s messes. Tumble a variety of throw pillows on top, and your room thunders with summer.

Wrap your summer space in beach accessories to finish up. A collection of shells in a big jar or scattered on a pile of sand on a glass-topped table bring the beach to your home, even if you live in the Midwest. Celebrate summer, both inside and out.

Summer brings childhood memories home more than any other season. Whether you spent your summers on the beach, on a farm, or in the city, you can grab those memories and the feeling of summer and create a room that reflects the best of the season.

Summer is all about living outside, and tile is the best flooring choice for handling the inevitable dirt and dust tromped in. Water from the dripping feet of kids just in from the pool, and spots from melting popsicles clean up in an instant on tile. Consider putting the same tile on both your family room and patio, almost erasing the distinction between inside and outside.

What are the colors of summer? You can go for the golds – bright yellows to deep oranges that reflect the vivid sunlight. Or take the opposite direction and let cool sky blues refresh your space in the heat. Whatever you choose – keep it bright and don’t be afraid to mix and match many colors and patterns, just like a pile of beach towels thrown in a corner.

If your upholstery is dark, how about getting white canvas slipcovers? They’ll brighten the space and make it easy to clean up summer’s messes. Tumble a variety of throw pillows on top, and your room thunders with summer.

Wrap your summer space in beach accessories to finish up. A collection of shells in a big jar or scattered on a pile of sand on a glass-topped table bring the beach to your home, even if you live in the Midwest. Celebrate summer, both inside and out.

We’re on our final post in this series, and this one may be your favorite, “be grateful.” It’s easy to feel frustrated when our budgets don’t measure up to our tastes whether decorating a new home or fixing up the one we have. Now is a good time to step back and appreciate what we have.

First off, just having a home puts us in a better place than many people in the world. Then, the choices and quality you’re considering for your flooring and other home fixtures weren’t even available only a few decades ago. New technology, the opening of global markets and a desire on the part of manufacturers to expand their offerings puts you in a strong position to make your home beautiful, no matter how small your budget.

Finally, creating a home for yourself and maybe your family is not about comparisons. It’s about finding the you in your space, and using your choices to make that happen. Instead of focusing on limitations, think about the possibilities. This is an exciting time for you. Enjoy it. And be grateful for the opportunity.

To see the other tips in this series, click here.

Number eight in our collection of Rita Wilson tips is actually a combination of two of her suggestions: “If you travel a lot, have a packed toiletries bag ready to go,” and “There are one thousand stylish things you can wear while traveling…” Now, we’re not going anywhere right now. We just bought our house, or just fixed it up, and we’re very happy, thank you.

However, eventually you may want to sell your home. Whether due to a job transfer, a life change, or the desire for more room, the average homeowner stays in a home about five years. So when you’re choosing your permanent home finishes, pause at least a minute to consider the affect of your choices on the home’s resale potential. I’m not saying you have to make the home satisfy-everyone-beige. However I am suggesting that even if you love a blue kitchen, maybe the best place to show your color preference is in accessories and paint rather than countertops.

It’s your home and you have every right to make it totally your own. Just keep the resale issue tucked away in a part of your brain as you make your flooring and other permanent home choices. Your salesperson can be a great resource in this area.

Because someday you may want to take a trip to a new home, make choices so that this home will support your goals then as well as now.

To see the other tips in this series, click here.

OK, admittedly; tip seven in our Rita Wilson fashion suggestions requires quite a stretch to convert to home décor. But just hang on….. “Enjoy new bedclothes once a year.” She’s talking about not wearing old and faded PJ’s, or whatever you prefer to wear to bed. We’re talking about maintaining your home décor.

How long has it been since you had your carpets cleaned? Put a new coat of polyurethane on that wood floor? Is it time to replace your window coverings? Just as your wardrobe needs refreshing, your home needs that too. If you’ve ever visited a home where people have lived for 20 or 30 years, you can often see that they decorated once, when they moved in, and never thought about it again. Do you have a regular budget amount set aside to cover new clothing purchases? It’s smart to do the same with your home. By setting aside a certain amount in savings every month, when it’s time to replace or update, you have the money ready.

Keep your PJ’s fresh, and your home fresh too. You’ll feel better every time you walk into your home, or lay down to sleep.

To see the other tips in this series, click here.