MADE TO ORDER VALLEY DESIGNER MAKES HIS OWN RULES TO CREATE ALL THE COMFORTS OF HOME.

Byline: Barbara De Witt Fashion Editor

Interior design guru Joe Ruggiero makes his living traveling to castles, villas and palatial estates, but the house he calls home is nestled right here in the San Fernando Valley.

On a winding street south of Ventura Boulevard, the host of HGTV's monthly series ``World of Design'' and the thrice-weekly ``Homes Across America'' has created a tranquil oasis that's an artistic arrangement of family antiques and things he's collected from around the world.

``I like it to be comfortable, to look like it's filled with acquired objects rather than 'decorated,' '' he explains.

Ruggiero, who also recently launched a signature furniture line, has learned there's a fine line between looking eclectic and touristy. To make your home look well-traveled, he suggests keeping the environment monochromatic so your objects will be compatible. And he also likes things simplistically arranged on shelves, rather than stuffed into curio cabinets or displayed en masse on a table.

Whether you're actually planning a trip, or just want to look like you've been there, avoid the obvious souvenir items, except Eiffel Towers from Paris. Those he approves of, and suggests buying several in various sizes to create an arrangement. Otherwise, the best bet in France, he claims, is the country's marvelous pottery; while in Italy it's glassware from the island of Murano, paper-covered boxes and decorative masks from Venice, and oil paintings.

In Japan, Ruggiero was fascinated with its wooden boxes and ornate hardware, as well as brushes that he says are pretty enough to display. And he also thinks black or oakblood lacquerware trays and bowls are a good investment that blend in almost any decor.

Ruggiero found Scandinavia's handmade birch baskets very decorative, and in Holland, he says the must-have is Delftware, a porcelain design that never goes out of style.

``I'm a big believer in the Burger King theory of have it your way when it comes to home decorating,'' Ruggiero explains. ``Asian might be in, but it isn't for everybody. For instance, I happen to love wicker, old portraits that represent another era, as well as urns and old Blue Willow china. And I even have an architectural model of a stairway I adore.''

Portugal was his most recent trip, so TV viewers will soon be able to see the landscape as well as his favorite landmarks - and local crafts, which he found to be needlepoint rugs and embroidered linens.

But he does draw the line at a few things. ``Almost any collection of collectibles can work as long as you don't force it - but you could send those bunnies and geese with the scarves around the neck to a children's home or back to the farm,'' he quips.

It's his travels and acquisitions that inspired the creation of the first Joe Ruggiero Collection of home furnishings.

Ruggiero didn't actually build the furniture - he left that to Norwalk Furniture Corp. of Ohio - but he did sketch and design the total home collection that includes sofas, dining tables, wall decor, bedding, upholstery fabric and even a room fragrance. And he named each of the pieces that made their debut in April at the International Home Furnishings Show in High Point, N.C., and arrived at select retail outlets last month. An obvious fan of Old Hollywood, he gave his chairs names like Pickford, Barrymore and Hepburn, to slide under Swanson, Crawford and Fitzgerald tables.

With such stylish styles and glamorous names, could Ruggiero give Ralph Lauren a run for his money? No, he says with a laugh. ``Martha (Stewart) has the lower end of the market, and Ralph (Lauren) and Tommy (Hilfiger) have the higher end ... and no one was taking care of the middle, so I took advantage of it,'' he says of his medium-priced collection that includes a $1,000 loveseat named after Douglas Fairbanks Jr.

And unlike those designers who are known for a particular style, Ruggiero's collection travels in three distinct design directions.

Decorators, get out your maps.

After traveling to 14 countries and studying scores of homes in the U.S., he says he couldn't create just one style, though his personal favorite is called Euro-Country. ``It has the spirit of Tuscany and the south of France, as well as the Cotswolds in England ... places where people are leaving the city and going out to the country more and wanting to re-create that feeling in their homes. So I've given an aged look to the wood and included hand-loomed upholstery, needlework, antique boxes, urns and beds with big comforters,'' Ruggiero explains.

Travels to the lofts of New York and Paris apartments inspired a second theme called Boulevard, where the look is sleek, urban and hip. It translates into sculptured sofas, monochromatic tones and tailored interiors.

The third, which he thinks reflects a major trend in decor, is called Spice.

``Armani introduced the colors - guava, watermelon, plum and even pink - on the runway, and that color palette is trickling down to interiors,'' he says, adding, ``it's exotic but more serene than playful and a nod to Asia, as well as the Caribbean and Bali.''

The Joe Ruggiero Collection of home furnishings is currently only available for purchase in Southern California at Norwalk Furniture Ideas, 27911 La Paz Road, Laguna Niguel. Call [phone].

For more decorating tips and trends, and a look at Ruggiero's home furnishings, check out his Web site at www.ruggieroideas.com.

A few shopping tips from a professional

So, you've just signed a lease on a condo or bought your first house ... and don't have a stick of furniture. Or the budget to buy it. Here's your check-list:

Bed: It's going to last you a long time, so splurge on a good mattress and box springs.

Dresser: If you're on a budget, look for a second-hand piece and paint or refinish.

Sofa: Try a discount store such as IKEA and shop for something with simple lines in a neutral color in leather or a textured fabric like hemp cloth, and then add color with throw pillows.

Two side chairs: Buy quality used chairs and reupholster.

Cocktail table: Use an old trunk until you can afford a quality table.

Dining table and chairs: Shop thrift stores for a vintage table to paint or refinish, or buy a 60-inch round folding table and drape to the floor with fabric. You should have six to eight chairs but they don't need to match. Just paint them all the same color, or use director's chairs all covered in the same color of canvas, such as white or black.

Wall art: Take your own photos to copy store and have them blown up to poster size in black-and-white (it's trendier than color) and then framed in simple museum-black wood or fancy gold frames.

Windows: Hang sheer panels of fabric hemmed to the floor from large wooden rings on a wooden pole. Or use black wrought iron rod and hooks, which are currently on sale at most decorating outposts.

- Barbara De Witt

Joe Ruggiero's top 10 decorating disasters

Design expert Joe Ruggiero has seen the good, bad and ugly. Some design ideas, like leopard print sheets or chintz curtains, he merely snickers at. Others have insulted his sense of style so badly they have made his worst-ever list of fashion faux pas. And they are:

1. Fuzzy toilet seat and tank covers.

2. Over-scale odd-shaped lamps, including retro ceramic panther style.

3. Paintings on velvet.

4. Avocado green and harvest gold appliances.

5. Floor-to-ceiling ``smoked'' mirrors.

6. Swag lamps.

7. Bunnies and geese with scarves tied around the neck.

8. Tires made into planters (often seen on front lawns).

9. Ceramic garden gnomes (oddly, pink plastic flamingos are cool).

10. Colonial rocker-recliners in rust-colored Herculon fabric.

- Barbara De Witt

CAPTION(S):

8 photos, 2 boxes

Photo:

(1 -- cover -- color) Local interior designer Joe Ruggiero and his new Hepburn chair from his first collection of furniture.

(2 -- 3 -- color) Design guru Joe Ruggiero with daughter Beth Le Manach, who produces his HGTV show ``World of Design,'' left, and wife Barbara in the family atrium, above. At right is one of Ruggiero's personal collections of Chinese lacquer boxes.

(4 -- color) Topiaries offer a touch of formality to Ruggiero's eclectic home.

Charlotte Schmid-Maybach/Staff Photographer

(5 -- 7 -- color) The Joe Ruggiero Collection travels in three design directions, says the designer. The romantic bedroom, above, is from his Euro-Country design theme, inspired by Italy and France; touches of tropical color and a hint of the Orient are found in his Spice group, right; and his Boulevard design chairs, shown below, reflect the contemporary edge of a London flat or Paris apartment.

(8) Joe Ruggiero's living room has that well-traveled look, with a mix of modern and antique furnishings accented by vintage portraits and garden elements.

Charlotte Schmid-Maybach/Staff Photographer

Box: (1) A few shopping tips from a professional (see text)

(2) Joe Ruggiero's top 10 decorating disasters (see text)