Cindy Crawford: Coming to Tampa, dishing on home design

Before Cindy Crawford was an international supermodel with a Malibu, Calif., beach house worthy of a spread in Elle Decor magazine, she was a fresh-faced teen scraping together money to redecorate her bedroom.

Crawford, who is 43 but looks 23, has come a long way since her childhood room in DeKalb, Ill. The mother of two and her husband, nightclub impresario Rande Gerber, own a waterfront mansion and are building a vacation house in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico.

Now, she wants to help you style your home on less than a celebrity's budget. This month, she launched Cindy Crawford Style, a line of bedding and home accessories sold at JCPenney. And for the past five years, she's collaborated with Rooms to Go to create the Cindy Crawford Home Collection line. On Saturday, she will make her first visit to Tampa Bay on behalf of the Seffner-based company.

She called tbt* from the aforementioned beach house.

What's your favorite room in your house?

We have a kitchen that's open to the family room, and I would say 70 percent of our life happens there. It's just the center of our home. So is it the most relaxing room? Probably not. Homework and all that stuff happens there. But it's just really where we live.

How can you achieve the look you want and still have it be functional?

Oh, you totally can. … For my kids (ages 8 and 10), 'cause they're running around, I try not to have a lot of sharp corners. … In my kitchen we have chairs that have upholstery on them, but I chose a fabric … that has red in it because I think that the two things that stain when you have kids are strawberries and spaghetti sauce.

You mentioned decorating your room as a teenager. How old were you, and what did you do to it?

I was 16. … I did everything. … I chose wallpaper and curtains and little mini-blinds and duvets — 'cause we had two twin beds in there — and pillows. My mom helped me wallpaper it myself. … It was very empowering.

How do you make yourself feel at home when you are traveling?

I try to travel with as little as possible, so it's more like I bring my nightgown that I want to sleep in. I always have some kind of a cashmere blanket … that I use for the plane but I also can use in the hotel, and a good book.

How is dressing your home different from dressing yourself?

When we dress, yes it's for yourself, but it's for the impression you want to make in the world. … The one person you should try to please in your home — or if you're married, the two people — is yourself. … Eighty percent of the time, you're in your house by yourself, and I just think it's really important for it to be the place that when you walk in the door you can … say, "Yes. I live here. I'm happy I live here."