Enter my world.

On the continent I call home, I like airy, light colors in the rooms of our home.   

"Colors in a home are very subjective and taste specific," wrote Lisa Poundstone, owner of Design Smart Home Staging & Redesign (www.DesignSmartStaging.com), in an elegant email. "Of course," she continued, "there will always be people that are attracted to different and unusual things than the norm."

I wondered if she had me in mind when she wrote that.

Not to worry, my world of interior home colors seems to conform to the norm.  My tastes fall somewhere in the middle of that bell-shaped curve denoting a sense of normality, plus or minus a few standard deviation points.

"Browns and earth tones are very popular here in the Northwest," Shad Mattingly, co-owner of Mattingly Home Furnishings (www.mattinglyfurnishings.com) said as we chatted in his store's large showroom. "People out here tend to have lighter colors in their interior rooms to offset the dreariness of the rain."

While the paint color on the walls creates a mood in one's home, so too does the color of the furniture. "Furniture reflects, highlights the interior colors of a room," Mattingly continued.

Poundstone agreed. "People in the Northwest have been gravitating towards very neutral tones in furniture, ranging from the light creams, beige, tan and mocha to dark chocolate browns and mid-tone taupes, as well as grays of all tones."

This sounds almost identical to how my wife has decorated our home.  For me, furniture should be functional; for my wife, furniture should compliment the paint on the wall.

While the color of a home's walls and furniture work hand in hand to create a mood, a splash of color here and there works wonders.

A common error Poundstone said she sees in many homes is the lack of a bit of color to bring interest to the room.

I have not made this error.

"A chair, pillows, curtains (and) throw rugs can add a splash of color that gives a room that special feel," Mattingly continued.

Did he say "splash of color?"  Check out the area rug in our family room.  I've got this part of the room/furniture interaction down cold.

Lightheartedness aside, creating a home environment is reasonably easy and inexpensive.

After all, it is your world.

[Mattingly Home Furnishings, 5001 Pacific Avenue SW, Lacey;  Military discount].