How to Make a Room More Grown-Up

Get rid of items that people typically associate with being younger. Remove posters that you've pinned or taped to the wall. Choose more grown-up decorating subjects for your posters; instead of the teen posters pulled from magazines, buy posters from museum gift shops or art stores. Have the posters framed and matted. If you do have a collection of important posters, such as collectible rock 'n' roll posters, have those framed.

Stay away from using the primary colors red, blue and yellow together in a room; these can look like the colors for kids' rooms. Choose subtle colors such as brown and beige as your room's main colors, then accent with a brighter color such as blue or red.

Paint the trim and moldings white. This gives the space a more grown-up look.

Select a unified decorating style. A room full of mismatched furniture from second hand stores is often the mark of the person just getting out on his own. Choose a more grown-up decorating style such as Tuscan or Japanese and decorate in that style. For example, Tuscan-style decorating features colors such as Sonora red, Sahara and graphite. Wrought iron fixtures such as candle sconces are common in the style, as are stone textured walls. Decorating styles often feature specific color palettes as well as furniture and accessories that are associated with them. When you select a unified decorating style, it helps you choose these various decorating elements and helps you avoid the mismatched look that first-time apartments often have. This consistency makes the space look more grown-up.

Create an accent wall and hang a gallery of pictures. Paint the wall mature colors such as forest green or chocolate brown. Choose a visual theme such as flowers, cityscapes or modern abstract designs and create a picture or photo gallery based on that theme. Or choose pictures that tell a story in a visual sequence. This shows that you put some thought into how all of the elements of the display work together, making it look more grown-up. Finally, unify your picture gallery by painting your frames the same color as the wall.

Get rid of the clutter. Buy containers to store important papers. Choose double-duty furniture such as an ottoman with a hidden compartment to store hobby supplies.