Exquisite home accessories are found at Accento Designs BY ANITA STRATOS Correspondent Accento Designs in Marlboro will help you pick home accessories that fit your style and space. Photo by JERRY WOLKOWITZ You may have noticed the yellow house at 11 S. Main St. in Marlboro with the sign in front reading "Accento Designs." Next time you're driving by, stop in - the original rooms in this classic older home have been converted into beautiful retail showrooms overflowing with the latest in home accessories and furnishings. Owners Cathy Postorino and Loretta Zamkoff put the welcome mat out for their showroom in August of 2002, and they have warmly invited the public to come browse through their collections ever since. Their goal is to focus on presenting exquisite accessories for the home because during the course of their careers as interior designers, they found that one of the biggest problems confronting their clients was finding the right accessories for their homes and placing those accessories correctly within each room. Responding to that need, Postorino and Zamkoff offer an accessorization service wherein they consult with homeowners in their homes in order to get a good sense of their style and taste, always getting as much input from the client as possible since décor is "a very personal thing," they say. They will then bring in and properly place accessories that not only complete the rooms, but also reflect the clients. "Accessories are the finishing touch of a home," Postorino explained. "They add excitement and pull a home together." Postorino and Zamkoff also offer a full design service, which covers everything from flooring and furniture to window treatments and lighting. Whether their clients are starting from scratch with a new home or updating their existing décor, everything they need can be done through Accento Designs. Not having to seek out and contact sources for every aspect of their home's needs saves clients many hours of painstaking work. One of the major differences between Accento Designs and other design services is that Postorino and Zamkoff have opened their retail showroom to the public, and they encourage visitors to come in and explore. Every room on the first floor of the converted home is rich with the latest in home accessories, and each room has its own style and "tells its own story." Room styles include country French, old world traditional, informal eclectic, and a garden room that brings the beauty of the outdoors inside. Once Postorino and Zamkoff have assessed their clients' needs, they work at the client's pace. They feel there is a definite advantage to working as a team on each project because two points of view afford their clients more ideas and options. They say they continually receive high recommendations from their clients, who enjoy working with the outgoing and friendly pair. The newest approach in home accessories is "transitional" pieces: objects that would be equally at home in a traditional setting as they would be in an eclectic environment. Most of the pieces offered by Accento Designs fit that objective perfectly - all customers have to do is enjoy walking through the rooms and deciding which items they love most. Reproductions of antique and even ancient pieces are all the rage right now, including tapestries, mirrors and wall sconces. Old world urns are extremely popular and very versatile with their varied shapes, sizes, and colors. Another prevalent accessory is the tray, which can be used in different ways. Smaller trays are great as accent pieces on dressers or end tables, while larger sizes are often presented as tray tables with attractive bases. Luxurious throws are not only fashionable, giving a sofa or chair a softer look, but they're also functional all year round. Accent lamps have also made a big comeback, with beautifully designed bases and gorgeous shades that highlight any space. Decorative boxes are very trendy, coming in all sizes, styles, and colors, and add lots of interest as well as being great places to tuck away smaller items like photos. Accento Designs also carries outstanding artwork, area rugs, custom florals, trees and furniture. You've probably noticed that one of the hottest new trends is using reproductions of old ceiling tiles in picture frames and wall art. Now, there's a brand new look for these classic pieces - window cornices. Postorino and Zamkoff are working with a custom artist who is creating stunning cornices with authentic old ceiling tiles - not reproductions - as well as using them to fashion bed crowns and headboards. Every creation is unique, since ceiling tiles were made with many different patterns, and the different colors and applications of paints give each client a different look. A beautiful example of these cornices adorns a window at Accento Designs. Another classic look that has reappeared in today's stylish homes is ceiling medallions, which serve to accent a chandelier and break up the monotony of a plain ceiling. Both Postorino and Zamkoff have backgrounds in art, and they will custom design and hand paint the perfect ceiling medallion for your home. The design team's expertise in art also serves in their custom designed murals and wall art, interesting features used in a growing number of homes. There is a definite move in home décor toward old world elegance, which includes pieces in colored porcelain trimmed with old gold, crystal chandeliers, and columns topped by torchiers that sit flat against the wall. Decorative wall shelves of all sizes are being used to hold pictures and other pieces, adding dimension to formerly flat areas. Postorino and Zamkoff add new merchandise to their showroom daily. They keep their inventory fresh and unique so that their clients' homes will all be different from each other. The design team travels all over throughout the year to find exceptional pieces of varying styles, so each visit to their showroom will be a new adventure. The second floor of Accento Designs houses fabrics from which Postorino and Zamkoff can help their clients make just the right choice for window treatments or upholstered furnishings. With people focusing more on improving their homes, Postorino and Zamkoff have even worked with clients in other states. Locally there is a lot of new home construction, and help from this design team can keep the experience of filling large empty spaces from becoming intimidating and overwhelming. For more information, call (732) 431-4993. Or better yet, stop by and browse around the showroom Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., or evenings by appointment.