Decorating Secrets from Boutique Owners

Bright, cheerful pillows, quilts, rugs and accessories add whimsy and fun to this living and dining room (left). It's the central gathering place in a white clapboard farmhouse built by Shirley and her husband, Chuck.

New and old cohabit happily in the room. Colorful sand pails sidle up next to vintage rockers; comfy, overstuffed new couches are topped with antique quilts; and a modern steel-and-glass dining table from Shirley's store is surrounded by old, mismatched chairs picked up at farm sales.

"We just kind of did things we remember from childhood--fun, comfortable things," Shirley says.