I've just bought my first home, and am trying to find my design "sweet spot". I live near the beach and I finally decided that I want to keep a beach-y color palate in the house. Two problems - the floors we have are dark laminate (we don't have the money to change that right now), and all of our furniture is dark brown. Over the next year I'll be slowly replacing the furniture, but before I start doing that I want to have a real design plan in mind so that eventually everything fits together instead of feeling mis-matched. All of the beach-y design ideas I've seen seem really kitchy - lots of jars filled with sand and star fish. Any ideas on how I can design a room to be light and airy with beach colors, without it seeming like I'm trying too hard? Couch and art ideas would be particularly helpful, as these are the first things I'm going to be looking for. Thanks!!!