MANKATO — The approaching New Year might have you thinking about making some changes.

And that could include the decorations in and around your home, garage or cabin. We’re not talking about holiday decorations, either.

While some people are content with just repainting the walls in their living room, some, such as Mankato resident Elda Nussmeier, have taken their interior decorating desires beyond the next level.

Nussmeier used her love for watermelons to transform her cabin on Lake Washington into a pink and green palette. It all started when she received a papier-mâché watermelon from her sister as a housewarming gift in 1991.

Nussmeier had just moved to Minnesota from southern Indiana. It was then that she already started to make plans for some exciting decorating.

“I would hope to some day have a lake house to have a watermelon cabin,” said Nussmeier.

Her hope turned into a reality when she renovated her cabin from a northern woods theme into a full-fledged watermelon haven.

Even outside the cabin there is a tree stump that has been carved into a watermelon.

“We found a fellow from Owatonna who carved a watermelon shaped tree we have close by the dock painted the colors of (a) watermelon,” said Nussmeier.

The theme continues inside the cabin with lime green walls in the main living space and pink walls in the two bedrooms. The furniture and accessories are black, pink, green and red to match the colors of a watermelon as well. From watermelon silverware to a melon scoop to watermelon towels, it’s exactly what Nussmeier had dreamed of.

“It’s a happy place for us,” Nussmeier said. “We have taken this thing to the Nth degree.”

But not everyone has to take their decorating dreams as far as she did to enjoy it.

Go green!

Linda Leech, an academic advisor at Minnesota State University, has one room in her house that reflects a meaningful theme to her and her family.

As a birthday present for her husband, Leech’s three children painted the inside of the garage green. If that doesn’t catch your eye, the large Green Bay Packer “G” that is painted on the wall will. It is the first thing you see when you open up their double garage door in Mankato.

“It is quite an obnoxious representation of (my husband’s) obsession,” Leech said. “My husband was born and raised in Green Bay during the Lombardi era. He is quite an obsessed Packer fan.”

And although not everyone may like green walls, Leech said the reactions are almost always positive.

“It depends upon their football loyalties, but everyone is very impressed by the sheer magnitude of the artwork and how professional it looks,” she said.

Found treasure

Pam Orth learned that decorating on a theme can be as easy or complicated as you want it to be. If you don’t have a lot of money to spend, look around your house for items you already have to incorporate into your themed room, such as in your basement or attic, or even in your neighborhood.

Orth, a mother of five, came across an undersized French door in a cottage on Lake Washington that was being torn down. When she was building her house three years ago, she had an electrician install a plug above the island in the middle of her kitchen and turned the French door into a light fixture and display area.

“When people walk into our home it is the first thing they see and it almost always prompts people to comment on it,” Orth said.

Her French door light fixture has become an ornate display for Orth’s many antiques.

“It gives off such a welcoming and warm feeling, and it is entertaining to look at all the unique things I add,” she said. “I have been collecting antiques all my life and enjoy displaying them.”

Orth has carried on the antique theme to her garage, which used to be the family’s dumping zone and storage area.

“When people see our garage the first time, they can’t believe it,” said Orth. “They pretty much want to hang in the garage every time they come over.”