Updating your home’s look can be as simple as adding one special piece -- such as a plush rug, a throw or a stunning lamp -- to a room. But if you want to start from scratch, then follow these suggestions to create the home of your dreams.

Define Your Home’s Style
Just as your wardrobe reveals whether you’re a carefree mujer or the prim-and-proper type, la casita, too, is an extension of your personality. Figuring out what style you want for your home is crucial. If a warm and cozy space makes your heart leap, then you may want to opt for traditional or country furnishings, such as brass lamps, plush sofas and area rugs. Other styles to consider are classic, modern, rustic or eclectic.

Choose the Main Element
In any given room, decide what will be the element around which you will decorate. Will it be the color scheme or will it be fabrics? The furniture? Or will it be the home’s architecture that takes precedence? Whatever you decide, choosing a single element will bring your options into focus whenever other design possibilities become overwhelming.

Color Scheme
The next phase is to select a color scheme that best fits the style you’ve chosen. Experts suggest using colors that would not ordinarily occur to you. Keep in mind that any color you choose, whether bold or cool, should complement the main element that you’ve chosen.

Play with the Design
Make a diagram of your home, and lay out the color and fabric swatches, then the furniture cutouts for each room you will decorate. Experts say this is a good time to incorporate personal themes from your hobbies, heirlooms, wardrobe, favorite paintings, photographs or travel destinations. Also tear out any magazine clips of home design that inspire you.

Edit, Edit, Edit
t’s easy to have too many competing ideas. So keep things simple with this general guideline: If you choose neutral wall colors, then you will have more room for creativity or boldness with the furnishings. But if you choose bold wall colors, then you will be limited by the boldness of the furnishing you use.

Photo: Corbis Images

Breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer and the leading cause of death among Hispanic women. In recognition of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, we asked Olivia Fe, executive director and founder of the Latina Breast Cancer Agency (latinabca.org) -- an advocacy group based in San Francisco -- about what Latinas can do to reduce their risk of breast cancer. 

1.   Do Self-Checks. “Early detection is critical to survival,” says Fe, whose organization educates Latinas on breast cancer and helps them get access to early detection and timely treatment. “While a breast self-exam is not a substitute for an exam done by your physician, you know your body best so by doing monthly self exams you’re more likely to detect any changes in your breasts.”

2.   Know Your Family History. Knowledge of your family’s history of breast cancer will help you and your doctor decide on the best course of preventative action for you.

3.   Be Your Own Advocate. Speak up, ask questions -- and get a second opinion if you’re not satisfied with your doctor’s responses.

4.   Get Yearly Exams. Annual clinical breast exams performed by a physician are recommended for women ages 40 and older, and every one to three years for women ages 20 to 39. Yearly mammograms are also recommended for women over 40. Enhanced breast cancer screening -- such as more frequent clinical breast exams, annual MRIs, or mammograms before the age of 40 -- may be recommended for women at high risk of breast cancer.

5.   Live a Healthy Lifestyle. Studies show that eating healthy and exercising at least 30 minutes every day can help lower your chances of breast cancer. Eat a variety of antioxidant-rich vegetables and fruits, nuts, legumes, whole grains and oily fish (like salmon and tuna). Avoid foods high in saturated and trans fats, avoid smoking and excessive alcohol -- all of which can increase your risk of breast cancer.

As a child in Venezuela, Lumareli Marcaccio often accompanied her abuelita, a retired nurse, to volunteer at local medical institutions. Caring for the bed-ridden and hospice patients taught her one valuable lesson: that elderly care was a family’s and a community’s responsibility.

So when Marcaccio’s other grandmother, “Nonna,” as she calls her, showed signs of dementia and Alzheimer’s, Marcaccio immediately got her round-the-clock help. She hired and trained the staff herself, stayed abreast of medication disbursements, and assisted with meal planning and grocery shopping. But when Nonna's children took back the reigns and placed her in a facility, Marcaccio watched Nonna "deteriorate drastically” outside “of her familiar surroundings."

Later, after moving to the United States, Marcaccio saw many of America’s elderly lagging in facilities; they needed better care. She was galvanized to open Boston's ComForcare Senior Services in July 2011. Her goal? To improve the quality of life for the cognitively challenged and the elderly within their own homes.

Marcaccio, a civil engineer by training, thought of everything. Not only does ComForcare provide home remodeling services to help clients with mobility issues, they also offer personal care suited to each person's particular needs. For example, ComForcare provides “services in different languages, retrofitting services for accessibility and safety, and training caregivers in different chronic diseases so that we can tailor our care plan to any person regardless of their health issue," says Marcaccio. When asked how other entrepreneurs could turn personal tragedies into triumphs, she responds simply: "Faith…everything in life happens for a reason."

Laura Contreras-Rowe has always had a motto: “Aim high”.

As a young Tejana living in a trailer, surrounded by gangs and drugs, Contreras-Rowe was inspired by golfer Nancy Lopez to strive for a better life. After building her successful real estate business, she felt a duty to give back to la comunidad and inspire Latinas across the U.S. to “succeed to astounding heights with courage and tenacity”. In fact, Contreras-Rowe wrote the book on it -- Aim High: Extraordinary Stories of Hispanic and Latina Women.

Today, the award-winning author zips around the country delivering a message of hope to women and business leaders facing challenges in their lives. In honor of National Hispanic Heritage Month, Las Fabulosas asked Laura to reflect on how far nuestras mujeres have come and offer some mottos we can use to persevere through difficulties.

Why Be Average?
“When I was on book tour, I spent time with great organizations that mentor elementary, middle and high school girls. Through these organizations and schools, I was able to spend time with ex-gang members, pregnant teens, homeless kids and kids that just wanted to hear a positive message to get them through the week. They are the future of our generation and they cannot be forgotten.”

Get Your Inner Latina On
“I have a friend who tells me: ‘Get your inner Latina on’. I always laugh when she says this, but it does put me into a thought process of: I can achieve anything with hard work and perseverance. I believe we all have the ability to look forward and never let our past define our future and what we have been called to do in the life.”

Photo: Corbis Images

Most of us abide by the yearly spring-cleaning ritual. But a growing number of Latinas con la falda bien puesta realize that spreading household chores over the year lightens the load. Here are five timely reminders when giving your home a deep scrub this season.                

Clear the Clutter
Before you do anything else, open up more of the surface area that you will need to clean. That means disposing of unwanted items, such as clothing you haven’t used in more than a year, unnecessary cooking utensils, piled-up magazines and papers, withered plants, and any other items that you are ready to let go. If you find expired vitamins, canned goods, or cough medicine, well, you know where those go.

Use your vacuum on every household item that collects dust, and insert it into every nook and cranny that you find. Remember to vacuum such things as moldings, window curtains (in front and behind) and windowsills, upholstered furniture, sofa cushions, and both sides of your mattress. Give a wipe-down to closets, as well as kitchen and bathroom cabinets.                     

Deep-clean Your Carpet
According to the Environmental Protection Agency, a carpet acts as a “sink” for indoor pollutants, such as pesticides, dust mites and fungi. But since a regular vacuum will not pick up the mites and mold that are hiding deep in the carpet, many experts recommend steam-cleaning at least every six months. If you want to hire a company to steam-clean your carpet, remember that carpets dry faster in warmer weather. So schedule your appointment early in the month.

Disinfect Linen
Because dust mites thrive in used bedding and may trigger allergies, wash pillows, comforters, duvet covers and mattress pads to get you through the winter. Remember to wash bed sheets on a weekly basis in a hot rinse and a dry cycle. And in order to prevent overusing one side of your mattress, turn it over bottom-to-top and head-to-foot.

De-grime Your Home Appliances
Remember to clean the filters and bins inside washing and drying machines. Another popular spot where dust gathers and grime accumulates is behind refrigerators and dishwashing machines.

Photo: Corbis Images