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Decorating Advice for Newlyweds

Follow our advice for getting the look you want and living happily ever after.

Don’t ask for your spouse’s participation in every decision. If he or she is design-impaired, they will simply be intimidated by the abundance of choices. If you show him a magazine picture of an elaborately draped bed, he will be so alarmed by the bed hangings that he’ll be unable to see the charming shape of the headboard. Keep him in the loop by sharing your most subdued paint color choices and conservative furniture selections. Keep your riskier decisions to yourself until their successful integration proves your design genius.

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Don’t ask for your spouse’s participation in every decision. If he or she is design-impaired, they will simply be intimidated by the abundance of choices. If you show him a magazine picture of an elaborately draped bed, he will be so alarmed by the bed hangings that he’ll be unable to see the charming shape of the headboard. Keep him in the loop by sharing your most subdued paint color choices and conservative furniture selections. Keep your riskier decisions to yourself until their successful integration proves your design genius.

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Make sure there are comfortable places to sit. If your husband is tall, make sure there’s a chair with a deep enough seat for his legs. The man cave is evidence that men have been exiled from the American living room, which is a shame. Decorate with a man’s larger frame and seating habits in mind. If he likes to put his feet up, put an ottoman table in front of his favorite chair.

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If you love a colorful paint scheme, you will set yourself up for disappointment if you ask for spousal support in the planning stages. Nothing sets off alarm bells more than a fanned out assortment of vivid paint chips. It is very difficult, if not impossible, for the design neophyte to make the imaginative leap from that screaming orange on the paint chip to the nearly neutral effect it has in a traditional living room. Play your cards close to the vest, literally, until it’s too late for him to object.

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Don’t ask for your spouse’s participation in every decision. If he or she is design-impaired, they will simply be intimidated by the abundance of choices. If you show him a magazine picture of an elaborately draped bed, he will be so alarmed by the bed hangings that he’ll be unable to see the charming shape of the headboard. Keep him in the loop by sharing your most subdued paint color choices and conservative furniture selections. Keep your riskier decisions to yourself until their successful integration proves your design genius.

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