This little secret is not to be kept strictly within the armed forces.
Messes, spills, fingerprints, and other mishaps are inevitable (especially if you have little ones around).
Figure out which areas in your home get the dirtiest, and design around them.
I wouldn't go so far as to paint a faux-finished rug on the floor underneath the dining room table that looks like Cheetos.
That may be taking it one step too far.
But, the busier the design, the better it disguises.
I have a friend who put up a chair rail in her foyer and living room just so that she could put wallpaper on the bottom portions of the walls.
She picked out a pretty pattern of flowers and ribbon that had all of the colors she used throughout the first floor of her home.
The finished effect looked great, but what looked even better were all of the fingerprints and crayon marks that you could not see.
The entire reason she wallpapered was to disguise all the marks her toddler (the blossoming Picasso) left all over the walls.
If wallpaper is not your thing, you could always do a faux finish on your walls, such as a leather, suede, or fresco finish.
This is also a great way to disguise less-than-perfect walls.
These techniques are quite easy and there are excellent books describing how to do them.
Also, every tool you could imagine is in the paint aisle.
The only things I've ever used are a paintbrush and a rag, and it has always turned out great.
Besides looking fantastic, these finishes also do a great job hiding the dirt and smudges that build up over time.
Floors are also places that attract dirt like crazy (I hear it has something to do with gravity).
If you get the opportunity to choose carpeting, I would highly recommend picking out a shade that resembles something your son would track in off the football field.
If you are choosing a rug, get one with a pattern that fills up the entire thing, not just a border.
That way, you have the entire square footage of the rug working in your favor by hiding juice spills, bits of popcorn, and the occasional episode of potty training gone awry.
And I don't even need to mention white carpet, do I? Anyone who chooses white carpet for their home either (a) does not have children or (b) does not want children or (c) has children and asks her self every day, "What in Sam Hill have I done?" I once had a friend with white carpet - until the day I tracked dog poop through her living room.
Our friendship was washed away with an entire bottle of Resolve carpet cleaner.
As far as hard floors go, avoid very light shades in tile and laminate.
I once had a bathroom with a floor covered in white tile, and I never will again.
Tile that has a natural mixture of different shades of the same color hides dirt much better than tile that is one precise shade.
Wood floors are an excellent choice, and the more natural shades will do a better job hiding wear and tear.
However, all wood floors will need to be properly maintained to keep them in good condition.
Before you invest in new flooring, get the lowdown on how well it hides dirt.
If you have to, go in the home improvement store with a chocolate bar, smear it over all the samples, and see which one still looks good - that's the keeper! Camouflage also works very well when it comes to fabric surfaces in your home, such as furniture, curtains, bedspreads, and such.
When you are choosing any type of fabric for your home, plan ahead about its ability to hide stains.
We have a deep red easy chair in our living room.
I don't even want to think about the stains that lie hidden on its surfaces, but they're hidden and I'm happy.
Our curtains are in a rich shade of wheat (or should I say peanut butter?).
And I didn't make a quilt for my daughters' bed just to create an heirloom.
I sewed it in a myriad of different shades because I knew how much they enjoyed playing with makeup! A house is to live in, not live for, so go ahead and make a mess.
Just remember to design around it, so cleanup is easier on everyone involved.