I want to listen to Beethoven and Mozart. I want to read the best minds. I want to live with uplifting art. I don't want to live a grubby life.

The rooms that are lived in are the ones we find most comforting.

The correct word is like any small detail -- it enhances life.

My grandfather was a Methodist preacher, and my father was an unsuccessful businessman. We didn't have status or wealth.

We can finish a house, but never a home. Once you fall in love with a house, you find continual pleasures in fixing it up and making innovations that satisfy your creature's comforts.

I feel very strongly we are spiritual beings in a physical body, and we should make our surroundings as beautiful and soulful as possible.

Be mindful of the very moment you are living. Start exactly this second. You don't wait until the children get out of the house or when the sun comes out. Create something better.

I want my readers to find their own way.

My message is that happiness is the first principle of life. But you must choose it. We all have pain, but suffering is a choice. You can be happier if you make some changes in your life.

Make your physical surroundings as beautiful as possible.

Seeing well transforms mere existence into the art of living.

When you let go, you lose pain and gain insight.

The 'art of tea' is a spiritual force for us to share.

The home is the center of your soul; it's a total reflection of your inner life. If you have a dreary home, it means you are dark inside.

Feeling at home with ourselves and being able to create a spirit of place that nourishes us physically, emotionally and spiritually is a goal worthy of our highest priority.

Our painful experiences strengthen us in becoming more empathetic, more caring, and deeper human beings. We grow in depth of understanding, with greater appreciation for the miracle of life.

Being a decorator allowed me to see what about people's environments made them happy. And what things they could do to have more light and color and joy in their daily lives.

Each of us must become impassioned, finding meaning and self-fulfillment in our own life's journey.

You're not going to be dreary on the inside if you're not dreary on the outside.

We have to establish time boundaries and learn how to say no.