Vern Yip's design tips

A new year may have you thinking about a home makeover. But before you jump at those furniture sales, take Vern Yip's advice: get out your ruler, make some plans, consider carefully what you really want. Yip is an interior designer and was the longtime makeover artist on the Learning Channel's interior-design show Trading Spaces. His new book, Vern Yip's Design Wise: Your Smart Guide to a Beautiful Home, is intended to help regular folk made the right decision about home decorating. He also takes a tour of KCRW's famously unglamorous basement, and offers some tips for improving it.