Page 118 - South Mississippi Living - January, 2016

HOME a designer’s touch DIVINEDESIGN
How to give your home a fresh look in the new year
story by Lynn Lofton photos by John Stricklin
The beginning of a new year brings resolutions and resolve to make changes, improve, make a fresh start. Much of those good intentions concern
better nutrition and improving the shape of our bodies. But what about freshening up where we live? A few simple changes can brighten our homes and give them a different look for the new year, according to two local designers.
Lou Stovall of Those Designing Women says, “One thing I always do in January and February is keep fresh cut flowers in my home. It doesn’t
have to be anything elaborate. Maybe just a bunch of alstroemeria lilies. The color and scent are an immediate mood brightener.”
Gulfport’s Peggy Ryland for years owned Classy Coverups where she helped clients make decisions about fabrics. She says ditto on flowers to enliven a home in winter. “If you put fresh greenery such as Elephant Ears, Iron Plant, etc. from your yard in with silk flowers (of course you have to put them in a vase with water for the greenery), it will make then appear real and nothing makes a home look warm and welcoming like flowers.”
Ryland is still involved with
decorating and has this advice. “The house looks so empty when the Christmas stuff gets put away so why not put out some colorful Mardi Gras decorations, even if it’s just a lot of beads piled in a big clear bowl. Another way to add some color is tobuyormakeathrowtoputon
the back of a sofa. Books on a coffee table, table lamps instead of overhead lighting are also things that make a home more homey.”
Always favoring the idea of putting new colors into a room, Ryland adds, “Bring the colors of your room together with throw pillows and fabric.” >>
118 SOUTH MISSISSIPPI Living • January 2016
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