If you’re looking to renovate your home but don’t know where to begin, Robert and Cortney Novogratz may provide some inspiration.

The New York City-based designing duo, who have decorated spaces for Oscar-winning actress Julia Roberts, singer-songwriter Suzanne Vega, and skateboarder Tony Hawk among many others over the past two decades, began their careers with very little decorating know-how.

“Before we got married we bought a condemned building and turned it into a house, so we literally learned everything on the job, and to this day we’re continuing to learn things depending on each project,” Cortney Novogratz told Cityline.ca while in Toronto recently to promote Home by Novogratz, the design book based on their HGTV program of the same name. “We’re self-taught designers, so we tell people, ‘It’s your home. Trust yourself, take a little bit of risk, and at the end of the day, design with your gut.’”

The couple says that when they were starting out, they looked through magazines and clipped out items that they liked to help determine their own design aesthetic.

“A great way now of doing that is to look through design blogs like Apartment Therapy or Design Sponge – there are so many amazing ones out there and you can really see what you like,” notes Robert Novogratz. “Print them out on a computer and make a book. I think that’s a great way to start.”

Whether your project is as big as a whole-home renovation, or as small as giving your front hallway a refresh, the first thing to do is think about budget. It’s also important to give some thought to how you want to live in the space, Cortney Novogratz says, and that’s true whether you do the work yourself or hire decorators to help.

“Do you have a collection of something? An assortment of books? Are you more minimalist? Really ask yourself, how do I want to live, and where am I going to put the money towards,” she suggests.

The Home by Novogratz book details 20 projects the couple worked on, from a $15,000 Brooklyn condo makeover, to the creation of a $35,000 Brazilian tree house (a suggestion from one of their seven kids), to a $300,000 beach house reno in the Hamptons. There are also suggestions on how to declutter a space, easy ways to turn flea-market finds into modern treasures, and ask-the-expert columns offering suggestions on everything from buying media art to creating the perfect kitchen.

The wide range of project budgets, along with plenty of details on how rooms came together, help make the book user-friendly for everyone. Their top suggestions if you want to make a change without spending a lot of money? 1) Give your house a good top-to-bottom cleaning. 2) Declutter. 3) Paint. You’ll be amazed at the impact those simple actions can have.

“The coolest spaces I’ve seen are people without a big budget,” Robert Novogratz says. “It’s about creativity, it’s about what you love. It’s like going to a wedding – you go to a wedding where people spent a fortune and there’s no real feel to it. Then [there are] some people who don’t spend a lot but have put a lot of time and thought into doing something special. It’s just like that in the home.”

Our friends at Thomas Allen Publishers have generously offered us a signed copy of Home by Novogratz to give away online. For your chance to win, email submissions@cityline.ca, and be sure to include your full mailing address including a contact phone number. Please include “Novogratz” in the email subject line.