How do you brighten up your home and spruce up your garden for the hot summer months? Read on for some exciting, creative tips that make those projects easy! After the long winter months, your house can look a little frumpy; try these tricks to make it sunny.

If you look outside in the summer, Maryland and Virginia are a lush, verdant green. Try brining the outside in by painting a wall or the back of a bookcase with Benjamin Moore paint Vale Mist or Par Four (www. Benjamin Moore.com) to bring that wonderful green tone inside.  If you really want to warm up a space, try Benjamin Moore Hawthorne Yellow.

To make your house summery, light and airy, start in your dining room. Try white or crème slip covers over your wood chairs says Kim Johnson, of Kim Johnson Designs. ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ).). Target or Bed Bath and Beyond have a great selection which are tied in the back and fit most dining room chairs.  Use a beautiful, crisp white dining room table cloth so your dining room will look airy and bright. You can also use sheers and take down your heavy drapes to add light. Use a light table runner for added brightness.

Move upstairs to your bedroom and add white cotton bedding or put sheers over your bedspread. Another place to use sheers is replacing heavy winter drapes to give your windows an airy, crisp feeling. Change your shower curtain and use something light or something with shells. Again, Bed Bath and Beyond have great options.

Edit your space for the summer. Get rid of clutter. See if you can box up a few knick knacks and give your space a cleaner look. It always helps to wash your windows and reflective surfaces.  There is nothing as airy as light coming through a clean window.

Pretend you’re European and buy fresh flowers each week.  Put them by your nightstand, in the den and kitchen. It only adds $ 10.00 or $ 15.00 a week to your grocery bill and there is nothing as luscious as fresh flowers.

To spruce up your garden, try planting herbs in containers. Rosemary, Basil, Lemon Balm, Chives, Parsley, Oregano and Cilantro are all easy growers. Make sure you use potting mix, not potting soil to give the roots enough air.

For great garden color, you can plant perennials like Russian Sage, Hydrangeas, Moon Beam, Day Lilies, Coral Bells or Peonies.

Annuals are more showy and yield riots of color. Try Petunias, verbena or geraniums. Don’t worry if you haven’t planted yet. Anytime after Mother’s Day is safe. Your local Home Depot can help you with planting details.