Trendy interior mixes function, fashion

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Whether you're planning to renovate your current home or build a new one, it helps to know what's in style. It is especially important when remodeling to avoid spending thousands of dollars on features and designs that are no longer considered up to date.

A home's interior is a reflection of its owner, which explains the myriad design options. But fashions come and go. It might just be time to breathe new life into that room with the orange shag carpet.

Achieving a home design that is stylish and up to date means getting the latest scoop on everything from paint colors to appliances.

Sue Pelley of Interiors by Decorating Den in Montgomery Village says she can usually determine when a homeowner last renovated with just one look.

"Colors change in eight- to 10-year cycles, and as a decorator I can tell how long ago you remodeled," says Mrs. Pelley, who adds that trends for home designs and furnishings usually follow the women's fashion industry.

For interior paint schemes, she says that while the avocado greens and harvest golds of the '70s are gone, a lot of colors are just moving into new shades.

"We're moving into warm peaches and warm oranges; the hue is different," Mrs. Pelley says. She adds that cool shades of opal blue to very light blue are popular, as well as chocolate browns and cappuccino colors.

Linda Reimer, president of Design Basics, a national home-plan-design firm, agrees that off-white walls are being replaced by much warmer hues.

Home buyers today are as likely to select a house for size as for the details that provide character and make it look like home.

"Homeowners in the past chose a larger square footage over amenities, but now its pretty evenly divided with half of the people selecting smaller, well-appointed homes with unique architectural details, oversized molding, rich finishes and distinctive windows," Mrs. Reimer says.