Many new homeowners sacrifice and struggle to save enough money for a down payment on a first condo or house. For months until the closing date arrives, daydreams fill the air about how you are going to arrange your home, how you will live in your humble abode, how you will entertain friends and, for some, how many kids will fill the home with noise and sounds of joy.

Once the keys are dangled in front of you and the Realtor says, "The house is yours," reality rushes to the forefront and makes itself known. Perhaps it's a leaky faucet that needs to be repaired, or maybe you find out that the bathrooms you love have mold inside the walls — and out go all the plans of decorating. For some, months and months go by, and for others, it may be years before the subject of decorating comes up.

It's important to make sure the bones of your home are safe and sound. But it is equally important to pay attention to how you want to live. An unpleasant or uninspiring environment can make any desires to make your home beautiful disappear. The psyche of a great home begins with a base plan for what you want your home to be. It is a proven fact that nice surroundings help us feel better. Just think of how much money goes into the design of stores and hotels, places where it is expected that we will spend money to make ourselves feel better, even worthy of luxuries we clearly don't need.

If we are to feel good about our homes, it is imperative that we start out by designing a plan that has style: your style. It can be confusing determining just what style is your style. Some may even avoid thinking about it. But making an effort to determine what your personal style is will bring large rewards — and could prevent you from making costly decorating mistakes, as well. Knowing yourself and your lifestyle is extremely important in "making home."

Thumb through some shelter magazines to help you determine what you like and what you don't like. Some people would like to live like the very elegant folks at Downton Abbey, while others feel more akin to the casual lifestyles portrayed in "Modern Family." Both are great and valid approaches for inspiration, but they are quite different in respect to furnishings and lifestyles. In one environment, you would expect a lot of silver and a large staff to polish it. The other is relevant to today's family — void of any superfluous frills, but replete with technology, cleaner lines of furnishings and a do-it-yourself ambiance.

The best approach to your first home is to use or establish some common sense with the design. Start slow. Just as you made the sacrifice to save to be able to buy your first home, use the same type of discipline to save for a special piece of furniture, and do it one piece at a time.

Joseph Pubillones is the owner of Joseph Pubillones Interiors, an award-winning interior design firm based in Palm Beach, Fla. To find out more about Joseph Pubillones, or to read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.