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My husband, Reginald, and I have lived in our New Jersey home for 17 years. But we've been too busy raising kids and too broke putting them through college to take on any major home improvement projects. So when I saw an ad in my local paper looking for people to appear on a new TV home-makeover show, I dialed the number right away.

a producer for Guess Who's Coming to Decorate, a home-makeover show on the Style Network (check your local listings), called and asked me to submit some photos of my home. They must have liked what they saw, because within days we were selected for a free makeover. The first thing people asked when they out my house would be on TV was, "How did you do that?" Here are some tips :

* Watch your local newspapers for ads seeking makeover candidates.

* Do research. Look on the Internet for guidelines on how to get picked for your favorite show. When I looked up Guess Who's Coming to Decorate, I found background information on the show and company.

* Be flexible. None of the rooms I had targeted (my attic and writing studio) were chosen for the makeover. Instead they decided my dining room, with its red-brick fireplace and bay window, and my foyer had more character. The total budget for our two-room makeover: $2,000.

* Be prepared for the production crew to take over your entire house. Reggie and I camped out at a nearby inn while the crew got busy.

* State your preferences up front. We were adamant that our home's exposed wood beams, fireplace, door and window frames not be painted over. You might also ask who's liable if something is damaged.

* But keep it all in fun. You'll confront some stressful situations but you have to stay in good spirits. Room makeovers may look simple on TV, but they actually involve a complex production process. When we finally were allowed to view the results, we were overwhelmed.

It was so lovely. In the dining room there was a new table with freshly slipcovered chairs, a new bookcase and an animal print rug that retained our Out of Africa theme. The fireplace had been covered with a contemporary facade that updated the entire room. In the foyer my old dining table had been stained and updated with a new bamboo base that the designer, Orna Yaary, had made out of an inverted wastebasket. And both rooms were finished with new roman shades and linen valances. We loved it?

The best surprise: They'd invited a mystery guest, Cathy Ranieri, an old friend I used to work with, to help decorate (hence the show's title). Cathy and I sat in one of the newly designed rooms talking for hours long after the crew left. I got the makeover I wanted--and memories to last a lifetime.

Stephanie Stokes Oliver is editor-in-chief of essence.com.

4 THINGS I LEARNED FROM THE PROS

1. YOU'VE GOT TO PURGE. Clearing space for a decorating project was a tedious but rewarding task. I found valuables that had been misplaced for years.

2. THINK MULTIPURPOSE. This project made me look at my rooms in new ways. For example, if you sit and read more than you entertain, consider giving your dining area a dual purpose by installing bookshelves, an easy chair or a chaise longue.

3. BE OPEN TO SUGGESTION. I had always preferred home furnishings in light-color woods But the darker furniture used by the decorators seems more chic and elegant to me now.

4. DON'T BUY NEW--REDO. I considered buying new dining-room chairs until the TV folks made my old ones look like new with gold-velvet! slipcovers They also stained our old dining table, which gave it an instant lift--a real boon for the budget conscious.--s.s.o.

COPYRIGHT 2004 Essence Communications, Inc.
COPYRIGHT 2004 Gale Group

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