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Mary Susan Bicicchi has a solution for a split color personality.

You can see the dilemma in the new trends announced by paint companies.

Benjamin Moore says its hot colors for 2008 will be Peacock Feathers, an unabashed blue; split pea, obviously green and Gypsy Pink, which we probably don't have to describe.

On the other hand, the same company is touting a trend called Modern Tranquility and another named Organic Comforts.

Wedding Veil and Sidewalk Gray are not bright colors.

Designer Cynthia Rowley, the Barrington native who stormed the Big Apple, picked adventurous and vibrant colors, a "spicy mix of earth and jewel tones" for Sherwin-Williams.

That company presents saturated colors in a category called Around the World, but the shades in No Place Like Home include Gorgeous White, Mountain Air and a pale Pink Shadow.

Glidden's Colour of the Year is a golden yellow -- as seen in a shiny Asian-inspired dress.

But another one of its themes is Ebb & Flow -- a collection of water shades with quite a few pastels.

Bicicchi, whose Interiors by Mary Susan is in LaGrange, is a real color fan.

But she says one way to handle any color ambiguity in your psyche is neutral walls in most rooms with bolder pockets of color.

"I'm very dramatic in powder rooms," she said. "I have a client who wants fingernail red -- that's how she described it -- in the powder room. We found a wonderful caramel for the rest of the home."

In her parents' Downers Grove condominium, an accent wall in the great room is a dark merlot, while the other walls are a soft neutral.

"Color lifts the spirits," she said. "I love helping people understand what colors they can live with. People need to look good and feel good in the space."

And blues and plums -- cooler colors -- seem to be replacing oranges, reds and golds that have been so popular, she said.

New color trends can always be introduced into a room with accessories and artwork, said the designer.

For example, you can pull turquoise from a painting, add pillows and enjoy a Caribbean feel.

Rowley, who designs clothing and home furnishings as well as writing books, came up with three combinations of colors inspired by New England, the desert and Morocco and Spain.

"I find inspiration in adventure, and these colors remind me of places I have traveled," she said.

"Just as wearing dark colors can make you look slim, dark walls and floors can make a room look sleek -- and they provide a great backdrop for brightly colored accessories," Rowley said.

"The modern way to decorate is not thematic, using all earth tones, for example. It mixes earthy with techno; retro with futuristic."