Your home is the center of your world. No matter how much time you spend away from it, at the office or in the car shuttling children back and forth, home is the center point. And within the home, you need to have an even smaller center for yourself, one that belongs only to you.

As a woman, I know how important a private space is. Sometimes I have bad days, when everything collapse, and I need a place to put myself back together.

Sometimes I only need a place where I can spend the whole day reading my books, without hearing the TV sounds, music, or any noises out there.

You deserve privacy and solitude, if only for a few short and precious minutes. The place where you could throw all your emotions, where you can find a calm and serenity in the middle of the hectic days.

Ideally, you would have your own room, "A room of one's own" in the world of Virginia Woolf. A room where everything - the furniture, the colors on the wall, the pillows on the chairs- would reflect your own tastes and the way you want a private sanctuary to look.

Alas, a few of us really do have rooms of our own. If you can't have a room, take a corner. Or a bathroom, or even just a comfy chair surrounded by your own things.

We all know that it is best to gain by giving, and the best way to get your husband or partner to happily grant you your own territory is to suggest that he deserves some, too! Even allowing the children to each have a spot that they can control will help them respect your space. If everyone in the family has his or her own private retreat place, imagine how peaceful it could be!

If you do have a space you can claim, start by painting the walls a calming and soothing color to help you reduce stress the minute you enter and close the door. Find a big comfy chair that will envelop you in its softness on those days you just need to collapse.

Fill your space with the scents you love, from candles and incense to bowl of potpourri and fresh fruits. Build yourself a sacred space within your sanctuary, perhaps a shelf or countertop where you can place selected objects that have great meaning for you. For example, a picture of a place you long to visit will help you focus your thoughts on that and let the stress of the day fall away.

You could also put some pictures on the wall, choose the color of the curtain, the rug, and many others that could help you reducing your stress day. However, it is so much fun and relaxing to decorate your own space. :) (VSPS/JKT/VC07)