Home Sweet Home

By Liz Stein

Hood & Co. in Catskill

After three solid weeks of trudging up and down the east side of Manhattan searching for the perfect apartment, my friend and I finally found a place we can call home. And with glossy wood floors, a 13-foot ceiling, and an unobstructed view of the Chrysler building, we couldn’t be happier.

Once the thick lease agreement was read and signed by all parties, a whirl of exciting questions erupted: How will we decorate our new pad? What color scheme will we use in the living room? What theme do we want for the bathroom? Do we want to repaint the bedrooms?

It turns out there is a lot to think about when it comes to home décor. Though I consider myself an avid shopper, I must admit: I’ve done a rather limited amount of home furnishing shopping in my days. Aside from distant childhood memories of dreadfully long, boring days of being dragged by mother through Ethan Allen; and über-stressful weekends of frantically digging through the shelves of Bed, Bath and Beyond, trying to find “everything” I needed for college; I really haven’t had an official interior design experience. But I’m really looking forward to decorating our new place with stylish, hard-to-find pieces that’ll give it that individual touch. It’s as though I’m crossing into a whole new galaxy of retail!

Lucky for me, the Valley is home to a plethora of great home décor boutiques with friendly salespeople to help first-timers like myself find that perfect something. Catskill’s Hood and Company is stocked full of great decoration items and kitchen equipment; Hip E Living in Woodstock has a full selection of eco-friendly furnishing options; Handmade and More in New Paltz has beautiful handcrafted décor pieces; and Poughkeepsie’s Davis Furniture carries complete furniture lines for the kitchen, bedroom, and living room.

So if you’ve just moved in to your new place, or are looking to perk up the one you’re in now, be sure to check out these great local shops — I know I will! And if you know of any other home décor outlets, please send me a message!