I want to talk with an interior designer about home decorating. I’m a contractor. When it comes to designing and picking out finishes, I find it very difficult. I have a knack of putting the puzzles together but I do not have a knack for finding the pieces. To help us find those pieces I’ve invited Kerrie Kelly from Kerrie Kelly Design Lab. She’s an interior designer based here right here in Sacramento.

Todd: A lot of times homeowners have a hard time visualizing what they’re going to do. So, one of the secrets I tell potential clients is to go up to El Dorado Hills, Serrano. Also, go to Winchester. Go to these high-end subdivisions where they have model homes. You know someone spent hundreds of thousands of dollars staging and designing those model homes.

Kerrie: I think model homes are a great way for people to envision a lifestyle for themselves. Not only is it the interior; it’s how that spills out to the exterior. Now we live in a place, especial in California, where we can blur the lines between Indoors and Outdoors.

Todd: The California rooms are becoming so popular because your kitchen doors and family room doors open right up into another living area. It’s outside. Maybe you have a fireplace. You can have big screens… In California, we get to do that. We are absolutely blessed here in California to have that advantage.

Kerrie: We’ve evolved the concept of Outdoor Living, as far as, what we’re doing, as far as entertaining and living. The materials now work for us. For example, take those Sunbrella fabrics. There’s a pallet that I would specify as indoors, for durability sake. Those fabrics can now spill outdoors with stripes, and plaids, and solid colors, and all of our favorite things. It’s not just beige anymore.

Todd: I’ve seen certain Trends in the design business, but there are some things that I think will be around forever. These items can be integrated into your home.