Tips To Help First-Time Homebuyers Create The RoomsOf Their Dreams (NAPSA)—Decorating doesn’t have to be confusing for first-time homebuyers. Starting with the basics and slowly adding small, decorative touches can help firsttime homebuyers feel more at home. Here are some decorating Es \ e ss | a ‘ tips: Begin with a Budget Allocate dollars for flooring, paint, furniture, decorative accessories and any additional items. Then makea list of “needs,” such as a sofa and coffee table, and list of “wants,” such as a portable kitchen island or a plasmatelevision. Start with the Basics Take inventory of furniture items that will make the move into the new homeand those that will not. Select furniture to keep based on your new decorating style or start with a newsofa. For example, La-Z-Boy offers something for every decorating taste, including the La-Z-Boy “Quinn” sofa, which features a contemporary look, and the elegant “Sheffield.” This 11-piece sectional and sofa group allows for a multitude of configurations that can be customized to fit any room. For those facing space challenges, look for furnishings that combine fashion with function. A sleep sofa, for instance, per- forms double duty, turning a den into an instant guest room when out-of-town guests arrive. Like- wise, a storage ottoman such as the La-Z-Boy “Cory” can double as a cocktail table, while hiding magazines, toys and DVDs. Plan Ahead Before making furniture purchases, plan the layout of the room. First-time buyers may have Experts suggest the best way to color coordinate a look for your new living room: Take the color selected from your sofa and pick two complementary colors and repeat each color a minimum of three times throughout the room. a hard time visualizing how their favorite chair and new sofa group will all fit together in the same space. That’s why lazboy.com offers two-dimensional room-planning technology that lets visitors create and view their own room layouts on the computer screen. Also, for those working with an existing color scheme, many La-Z-Boy Furniture Galleries offer Kaleidoscope, which works with customers to select fabrics that will coordinate with existing colors or create a room with inspiration from a favorite accessory. Shoppers simply bring the item of their choice to a participating store to be scanned. The color-matching system compares the color of the item with more than 1,000 textiles in the line and recommendsbase or accent fabrics that either match or coordinate with the scanned accessory. Add a Touch of Color Once furniture fabrics are selected, homeowners can start building a color scheme. Take the color selected for your sofa and pick two complementary colors. Repeat each color a minimum of three times throughout the room in wall coverings, pillows, rugs, window treatments and accessories. This will help tie all items in the room together. Get Personal It’s time to accessorize. Use a wedding photo album asa coffeetable book, frame pictures of family and friends or display shells and rocks collected on vacation to make the home more warm and welcoming. Personal touches are what truly transform a house into a home. And if first-time homeowners still feel that all hope is lost, the galleries also offer free inhome design assistance to help pull it all together.
