Rules are made to be broken-especially when it comes to home décor.

Your home’s décor should be fun-loving and approachable. I think every room should have to pass the “Twister Test,” meaning a person should feel comfortable enough - in any room - to unroll a plastic mat, spin the dial and contort themselves into human game pieces.

Every room needs a surprise. Taking pieces out of context and using them in daring ways is a surefire method of bringing some excitement to a space. Use high contrast colors in cheeky patterns. Paint a serious wooden chair an un-serious color, like orange. Install an industrial-like sprayer for a faucet and have a really cool way to access water in the kitchen.

And who says you have to put a sink in a plain old manufactured cabinet? Put it in a beautiful antique wash stand or farm table and have it be a really great looking conversation piece. Don’t just stick the kids’ drawings on the fridge with magnets - treat the countertop to a gallery of their framed art. Better yet, encourage doodling directly on the fridge: the Amana Jot refrigerator comes with a dry-erase panel where anyone can draw pictures, scribble messages or compete in a friendly game of tic-tac-toe.

It’s personal, fanciful elements like these that make me hear people say, “I love that, that’s different, that’s exciting.” So shake things up. Break the rules. Be you.

You’ll never get an authentic, personalized space by picking things out of brochures. Use your own sense of whimsy to turn your home into a fun and unexpected place to be.