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The Best New Year Resolutions For Your Home

And other design ideas for 2013.
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The New Year is in full bloom now but there's still plenty of time to make New Year resolutions for your home. And designer Kimberly Friedmutter, owner of the famous Shangri-Las Vegas, has come up with 10 design ideas to make sure your abode is as fabulous as you are in 2013.

  1. Expect the exceptional: This year think differently, think exceptional. We have a habit at Shangri-Las Vegas of expecting everything we want... and it works! When exceptional becomes your standard, it shows in your home. Putting your best foot forward with each choice you make with regards to your house will bring you one step closer to the home you'll love.

  • Mix and match styles: Traditional designers love to pair similar themes and singular style. We believe the theme of your home is you. For our home we mixed our favorite Shangri-La tropical look with a bit of Frank Lloyd Wright.

  • Function over form: Never sacrifice function for fine or you'll be cleaning more than enjoying. Time to loosen up and really live in your space. While expensive fabrics are great, we know you like to live with your fabrics. This goes for carpet too.

  • Indoor outdoor: Who says you can't reinvent your outdoor space with indoor waste? We love putting indoor furniture outside. Traditional designers want weatherproof fabrics and all the trimmings, which is great but we bypassed the hassle by repurposing "indoor" furniture we no longer used. You might be surprised how long that hand-me-down sofa lasts on the back covered patio or how great the old wooden hutch looks in your Secret Garden. Even scratched varnishes fit perfect in your outdoor rustic entertainment areas.

  • Decorate the stairs: We put glass vessels with battery operated candles on ours. We love drama and what better way to utilize an unused tread area than to decorate it? Beware of glass if you have children, pets, or tight stairwells but otherwise why not? Battery operated candles eliminate the flame's fire hazard and we opted for the remote control series for real luxury. Easy on, easy off!

  • Silverware medley: Old sets of utensils no longer need to be discarded like yesteryear. Grab a wicker basket or divided tray for all your mismatched sets. Contrast is interesting. Mix colors, styles and sizes -- just categorize as forks, spoons and knives for easy picking. What better way than a basket of utensils to create the "help yourself" hospitality?

  • Break with convention: Find candle holders you love and buy a set to use as glasses. Mix in a few on your dining room table and use some as candle holders for a cool consecutive look.

  • Turn off the lights: You may love your rooms, just not your lighting. Create emotion by placing lighting wherever you want it! Whether it's a lamp, sconce or candle, use what you want when you love the way the room looks. Overall general lighting won't ever create drama, even kitchens benefit from specially placed lamps on counter tops. It's rarely done and has a lasting decorating impact.

  • Put your television outside: It might seem counter intuitive but watching T.V. brings family to the space (outdoors). Once everyone's outside, the watching becomes secondary to enjoying a firepit, conversation or star gazing. Life is too short to stay indoors so let the magic happen by doing indoor activities outside.

  • Say it with words: Hang letters and words around your living space with personal meaning to you. I love telling people what to do so I hung the word "sleep" above the bed in the guest bedroom and the word "eat" next to the fridge. Mounting a chalkboard by your bed is a good idea too. Either paint a surface with chalkboard paint or place a small chalkboard inside your favorite frame. At night, before you drift to sleep, write problems you would like solved by morning. It's a great way to decorate and problem solve at the same time. If you have a lot of worries, get a larger board!

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