BC-KRTEENS-MAKEYOURMARK:KRT - youth, lifestyle

BC-KRTEENS-MAKEYOURMARK:KRT - youth, lifestyle
Make Your Mark: Your decorating dilemmas solved
(PHOTO)
By Mark Montano
(KRT)
Dear Mark,
My room is a box and I don't have a closet. Do you have any suggestions for me?
- Darienne, 17, Nogales, Ariz.
Hey Darienne,
This is always a tough one because we all have so much stuff. The first thing I am going to tell you is to get rid of some things - things you aren't using or haven't used or worn in the past six months. Donate them to a charity so someone else can put them to use.
For super-small rooms, the only place to create real space is under the bed. You are definitely going to need some help from Mom or Dad with this one, but it's really worth the effort!
If you are allowed, get rid of your box spring and raise your bed about 14 inches with four 4-by-4 posts. You have to attach these posts to your bed frame so they are secure and your bed doesn't wobble. Now have a have 1-inch-thick piece of plywood cut to fit inside of your bed frame, where your mattress will sit.
Your bed will now look the same height, but will have a ton of room underneath. You can use a bed skirt just like you would if you had a box spring, only it will be covering your new storage system! This new under-bed space is perfect for pull-out storage bins, which are great for socks and T-shirts and off-season clothes.
Here's another quick idea. You can create simple corner shelving by having four triangles cut from wood and & quot;L & quot; bracketed to a corner of your room. You can do this for about $20. Corner shelving is great because it's out of the way and easy to do. I like corner shelves that measure 22 by 22 by 31 inches. Paint them the color of your walls and start decorating!
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Dear Mark,
My friends are totally into decorating and I want to make them a fantastic gift for Christmas for their rooms. Do you have any ideas that are unique and not too expensive?
- Tia, 17, Havre, Mont.
Hi Tia,
I have an idea for you that is perfect and will allow your friends to decorate and have a memory of you together! It's a photo pillow! It's really easy.
Take a great photo of you and your friends and have it made into a color Xerox heat transfer iron-on. You can enlarge it to any size, but I like to use a standard letter size, which is 8 1/2 by 11. Iron that onto a piece of 16-by-16-inch, 100-percent white cotton fabric and make sure to follow the instructions, because they are very specific!
Next, take two pieces of fabric that are about 20 by 20 in a color that picks up one of the colors in the photo. If someone is wearing a pink blouse, that could be a good color to make the pillow. On one of the pieces center the white cotton photo piece and zigzag it on to the pillow fabric. If you fold under the edges of the photo fabric about half an inch and press, making sure not to touch the iron-on, and then zigzag, that will make it much neater. Now, with right sides together, stitch up the pillow leaving about a five-inch hole for stuffing when you turn it right-side out. There you go! I hope they love it.
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Need help with your room? E-mail your question to markmontanonyc@aol.com. Starting Oct. 10, Mark Montano can be seen on TLC's & quot;While You Were Out. & quot; Check local listings for times. Mark also writes & quot;Cool Room, & quot; a monthly room makeover column in CosmoGirl magazine. He is also the author of & quot;Super Suite: The Ultimate Bedroom Makeover Guide for Girls & quot; and an award-winning fashion designer in New York City. He has appeared on networks like MTV and Lifetime to discuss hip decor and his fashions have been featured in publications like Vogue and The New York Times. For more information about Mark and his work, check out www.markmontano.com.