As the saying goes, your home is your castle, but if your castle is feeling a bit like a folly, it’s time to batten down the hatches and redevelop your own style and give your castle a bit of a make-over in time for the holiday season.

Step 1: Forget whatever your Mom told you

Your home is your castle, but it doesn’t have to be your mother’s castle. Decide what your home is to you and make it feel like somewhere that suits your own personal tastes.

Is it a tiny refuge for your family? A place to store the pets, plants, and various knickknacks that clutter up life? Or is this castle meant for entertaining?

If your mom hated modern decor, but you have your eye on a set of wooden bifold doors for your kitchen, then it’s time for an update to YOUR style and YOUR look!

Step 2: Start with the basics

What are the basic elements of decorating your home? Start with paint. Paint can be customized to fit any mood or style of room you create. Don’t be afraid to splurge on high-end colors if you can’t find them at a reasonable price. Also, don’t forget about the floors, if you haveĀ red oak floors, you should probably go for colors that complement the red oak.

Do you want the color scheme to match your personality? If so, paint is a great place to start. Paint can also be customized with stencils and even elaborate murals to fit just about any theme you’re going for!

Step 3: Upholstery and carpeting

The next step is upholstery and carpeting. Find out what kind of carpeting and upholstery will work best for the space you want to decorate.

Find out what kinds of furniture pieces are available for those areas as well.

Step 4: Wallpaper

Wallpaper is a great way to transform the look and feel of your home. It’s not just for the bedroom anymore. Consider painting walls all over with a bold color scheme or adding patterned wallpaper instead of plain paper.

You can print out your own artwork and arrange it creatively on your walls without needing to pay a professional artist or designer. If you want fancy patterns, search online for patterns to create your own wallpapers with free, printable templates.

Step 5: Storage

The final step is storage. It can be difficult to think about storage if you are using open shelving, but no home is complete without the right accessories on hand.

Storage items can be used to organize your decor, make it look more cohesive on the wall, and make your home seem less cluttered. You can even use storage items as decorative elements! Add a bit of flair with tiny ceramic planters or faux wine bottles instead of regular mugs.

Taking the time to consider what your home means to you, how it will function, what your style is, and how to incorporate all of that into every square inch of its design will create a home that you can truly be proud of.