My sister and I went to buy blinds this weekend for a very small, even teeny, bedroom window. According to the sale flyer, said custom blinds were 60% off. When we were told the total amount for said blinds, however, they ended up costing the equivalent to the GNP of a small third world country. Did I mention this was a teeny window? We ended up ordering a cheaper alternative - ready made blinds ordered to the correct length. They were about one quarter of the price and will still look good.

So if you want custom blinds, you can say goodbye to your bank account. Instead, why not explore cheaper alternatives that can be dressed up with a little work. Blinds to fit most windows of a standard width can be ordered in custom lengths at a much better price than totally custom ones. Feel free to ask the shop for cheaper alternatives. Most can come up with several selections that will work for you. So my motto this week has been "Go cheap or go home (with a pocketbook still intact)."

Daniel Drolet of Canwest News Service recently observed in the Windsor Star that

The colour palette available to consumers in any given year is determined by the Color Marketing Group, a U.S.-based international association that does colour forecasting. Increasingly, the fashion world is influencing colours in home design. And because fashion is influenced by current events, the recession has muted colour options in 2009.

I am not entirely sure I agree. I see so many bright and sunny colors in home decor lately. Of course, that may be a reflection of where I live and the southwestern colors that are such a strong influence around here. I certainly hope that people will brighten their color palette. Your surroundings can influence your mood and outlook. We can stand a brighter outlook for the next year. So go out there and add some color to the neighborhood!

When you have a whole room to decorate. the thought of all you have to change can cause your pocketbook to shrink. But you can redecorate most bedrooms or bathrooms for the cost of a few top sheets and a little creativity.

Sheets can be one of the best low-cost materials in home decor. There are dozens of ways to use them and you don't have to buy the highest quality ones to do it - although you can easily find high thread count sheets at most discount or bargain basement stores now. Remember to buy the largest (king) you can find for decorating (more fabric for the buck).

If you are decorating a bedroom, use the sheets to add a bright new cover for an old comforter (just make a bag out of two sheets and stuff the comforter in the middle. The bag can be closed with buttons. Upholster a small side chair with a sheet to match. You can also cover a side table with a sheet cloth, cover a bench at the foot of a table, make pillows with sheet scrap fabrics, cover a lampshade, make easy curtains, use as a wall covering, braid strips for a rag rug or make drapes for a canopy bed. You can do all of these things with sheets, but I would recommend you not do them all in the same pattern. Too much of a good thing (or floral sheet} can really be too much!

I saw this terrific valance idea this week. The homeowner had created a wooden shelf painted to match her decor. She then added cabinet knobs along the bottom of the shelf. She created a valance that had loops along the top which were then looped over the knobs. Family pictures and other collectibles were placed along the shelf.

Photo: Pamela Cole Harris

As I have driven around neighborhoods looking at the fall colors this year, I have noticed that people are decorating their yards and houses less than they have in the past. Is it the economy? Or is the tense state of the world responsible for the lack of celebration? What about you? Do you have the spirit? For which holiday(s)?

Do you like to play with your room to find out how it will look in different colors and with different furniture. We all know you can't afford to do it for real. Your budget would explode! But did you know that there are tools online that allow you to experiment to your hearts content?

• From Armstrong Floors: http://www.armstrong.com/flooring/design-tools.html - it's not just for floors!
• From Better Homes and Garden: http://www.bhg.com/decorating/arrange-a-room/ - To arrange a room and color a room
• From Room Designer: http://www.room-designer.com/findanyfloor/ - Another site not just for floors

Now go online and create!

Today I took a long walk and took picture of the natural beauty of Colorado at this time of year. My plan? To have those pictures enlarged and frame and mat them with some frames I acquired this summer at a yard sale. I think I will mat them in black! You can easily do the same!

This is an easy project and with the availability of disposable digital cameras, anyone can take picture like a pro. So why not make it your weekend project? And let the kids help. Give them their own camera and let them take pictures of whatever they want. You might be surprised at how creative they can be. Then send me a sample of what you did and I will post them in a gallery for all to see. Now go create!

Photo: Tim and Annette

I was watching home improvement shows this weekend and I was surprised at the change in attitude - not that a change was surprising, but the vehemence of the change was surprising. Homes with carpeting were greeted with "ewwwwwwww!"

I, for one, look forward to curling my toes into a warm carpet with waking on a cold winter morning. Of course, my toes are heat-seeking missles in the winterl

So what is your least favorite floor covering? Vote in our poll and let me know!

I have a confession to make. I love, love, LOVE autumn. The air, the trees, the crispness in the air make me feel alive and ready to face winter. You get the idea, right? I love autumn.

OK. I hate, I mean detest, autumn colors in the home. The orange or rust that looked so wonderful in that tree or bush makes me cringe when it is on a wall. I must have had a childhood encounter with a runaway gold appliance!

I have made my confession. I apologize to you brown-wall-lovers out there. Do you forgive me?

What about you? Do you love Autumn indoors?