According to my 15-year-old son, “Real men wear pink.”

Colors today aren’t as strongly associated with specific genders as they used to be. Plus, the lines between fashions for men and women are blurry right now – have you seen (or carried) a “man bag” or noticed girls wearing menswear-inspired vests? If you haven’t heard the term “metrosexual,” you’d better get with the times!

I think it’s GREAT that colors and patterns – and fabrics and furniture styles – aren’t being stuffed into rigid gender categories. I’ve seen tweeds, suiting stripes, and hounds tooth patterns appear in “feminine” rooms. Floral fabrics of all kinds appear in every room in the house, and dark leathers traditionally associated with “masculine rooms” like studies and libraries are ubiquitous.

I say embrace it! Try using hot pink suede throw pillows with your brown leather couch. Put a navy suiting stripe on your guest bedroom duvet cover, and add floral accents. Paint your baby girl’s room blue if you want to.

Have fun, but when you’re designing a living space for your family, please don’t forget: Everyone should have at least one room or space where he or she feels totally comfortable…even if it’s just a corner nook. Get each family member involved in making decisions that affect the spaces that are most important to him or her.

Give yourself permission to play with color…but don’t force YOUR style on the other people who have to live in your home!