The Perfect Palette

 Color, color everywhere! Especially in the latest issue of Better Homes and Gardens.

This month, Better Home and Gardens compiled "34 Secrets to Choosing and Using Color" from six editors and designers. The issue is full of modern palettes and clever ways to mix prints, and this article provides tips to help you confidently chose and use colors in every room of your home.

Here are a few of my favorite tips:

7. Try this surefire guide for palette proportion. Think 60-30-10: 60 percent your primary color, 30 percent your secondary color, and 10 percent your accent. Feeling daring? Give yourself an extra 5 percent for a wild card -- a just-for-fun surprise accent.

12. Professionally decorated rooms always have multiple tones of the color scheme in the room. In a green and brown room, for example, that means a paler green and a stronger green with beiges, taupes, tobaccos, and darker browns.

13. People are afraid they'll get tired of a color if they use it on a big piece of furniture, like a sofa. But if you've liked chartreuse since you were a kid, it's a part of who you are. To be totally safe, choose a lighter version of your favorite color -- a light yellow-green can stand in for chartreuse, for example.

Interested in reading the rest? Visit your nearest newsstand!

Additionally, Better Homes and Garden's rules might be helpful when you're planning your spring wardrobe; simply adapt the tips to how you wear color. (Don't be afraid to be bold!) As you know, I've long been a fan of J. Crew's prints and the variety of hues available every season. So, if you've been looking for cardigans, collared shirts, and pencil skirts in your new favorite color, visit jcrew.com!