This guide will give you 10 quick tips for making your home look like it belongs in a magazine. These home decorating tips can be used by anyone, no matter how large or small your living space is.

Home Decorating Tip #1:

The most obvious thing to take care of first: clean and de-clutter your environment. You never see stacks of unpaid bills or dirty laundry all over the place in the photos of homes in interior design magazines. The homes are always sparkling clean.

If you need help decluttering, Sink Reflections by Marla Cilley is a good, affordable book that can help get you started.

Home Decorating Tip #2:

Add arrangements of fresh flowers, or at least a single flower in a bud vase .  Have you ever noticed that most magazine photos of interiors do feature flowers? It's because flowers add interest and beauty to a room in a way that few other things can. The flowers don't have to come from a florist. You can pick flowers from your own garden or even purchase a fresh or dried flower arrangement on ebay. If allergies or other circumstances prohibit fresh flowers, you could also substitute silk flowers instead.

Home Decorating Tip #3:

Don't overload on family photos in the living room, dining room and kitchen; save them for hanging in hallways and bedrooms.

Home Decorating Tip #4:

Make sure your furnishings are arranged around a focal point. Subtract everything that doesn't enhance your room's focal point. If you have objects that are competing for attention with the focal point rather than leading the eye towards it, rearrange them. If you want further information and insights on how to do this, please see my related guide to establishing a focal point .

Home Decorating Tip #5:

Don't be afraid to use color! Many people have beige carpet, beige furniture and white walls. While these choices may seem "safe", they don't do much to distinguish your home. If your carpet and furniture are beige, make sure you find some way to introduce a little color into your interior. You can add colorful throw pillows , colorful art , or even be daring and paint the walls an interesting color.

Home Decorating Tip #6:

It is the little details in the room that really distinguish the magazine-worthy from the ordinary. Things like interesting, unusual mouldings and architectural details will go a long way towards enhancing the look of your home.

Home Decorating Tip #7:

Most rooms featured in magazines are large, airy and spacious. Your room may or may not be, but do what you can to make it appear so. Let in as much natural light as possible. Open the blinds.  Add in extra lighting where necessary. Consider using daylight bulbs in your light fixtures.

Home Decorating Tip #8:

Don't be afraid to mix and match. Have you ever noticed that magazines rarely feature rooms with entire matching sets of department store furniture? Overall visual harmony is the key, not a perfectly matched set.

Home Decorating Tip #9:

Most beds shown in magazines have some sort of headboard . A bed with a headboard will enhance the look of most bedrooms.

Home Decorating Tip #10:

Unique handmade accents can often be found as part of the featured decor on the pages of upscale decorating magazines. Handcrafted items usually cost more than the typical mass-produced things that you'd find at Walmart,  but they really will help to make your decor stand out. Even if your furniture is pretty basic, consider purchasing at least one major eyecatching piece that is handmade, unique and original. Ebay's self representing artists' and handcrafted items category are 2 fantastic places to look for unique handcrafted items that will make your home stand out. In many cases you can buy a one of a kind original painting for less money than you can get a print at a store like Pottery Barn.

Resources: Some Magazines That Will Give You More Home Decorating Tips & Ideas!

• Architectural Digest
  
• Elle Decor
  
• Modernism
  
• Dwell
  
• Mary Engelbreit's Home Companion
  
• Veranda
  
• House Beautiful