The Tennessean

Regardless of who helps you work on your rooms - be they a stylish friend or a professional interior designer - make sure you're clear about what you like and how you want the finished space to feel.

Some designers like to pull wall colors from a terrific fabric, rug or painting their client loves. This often works better than having a color on your walls and then searching everywhere to find something that goes with it.

Do your best to avoid trends. Remember avocado green and harvest gold in the 1970s? If you don't recall it personally, take a look at photographs.

Think about the big picture, which includes what you see at the end of the hall and also how your rooms flow into each other. Take snapshots from different angles in your rooms before you make changes - it might help you notice the most obvious walls and also those that aren't so obvious.

Want a neutral background but crave color?

"I'd rather bring my color in with the accessories," says Nashville designer Janis Lisle.

If you feel like you just have to keep "resale beige," as Lisle calls it, she suggests using colorful fabrics and accessories so that if you have to move, you can take your color with you.

Looking for tried-and-true? Try the historic color collections of paint that several manufacturers have introduced in the past few years.

"Usually historical colors are grayed a little, and they're not quite as bright or intense," says Lisle. A couple new books showcase color:

Think Color: Rooms to Live In (Chronicle Books; $40) by Elspeth Thompson with Tricia Guild is full of inspiration if you're interested in adding more color to your life and surroundings.

Living Colors: The Definitive Guide to Color Palettes Through The Ages (Chronicle Books; $29.95) by Margaret Walch gives a history of what was cool when, and how popular colors have evolved.