By NICKI LEFEVER
For Smart

The air conditioner is working overtime, but your home looks and feels more like a mountain cabin than a summer beach house.

The pinecone centerpiece on the dining room table reminds you of Christmas, the heavy winter blankets draped over the furniture make you hot just to look at them and the dark curtains make the room feel bleak and stuffy.

“I say it’s past time to undress your house,” said interior decorator Eileen Briddell of Ambiance & Furniture Finesse in York.

She said summer-inspired decorating is “a matter of lighting things up a bit.”

Opening up your home to natural light, bright colors and fruity fragrances is the perfect way to make life indoors as pleasant as outdoors but without the heat.

Many homeowners don’t have the time on their hands or the money in their wallets to go hog-wild redoing their houses every season, but that is not a problem, Briddell said. “If you invest in a few seasonal items that you can exchange every so often, it will make a big difference,” she said. Think small, because there are a lot of little things you can do that give the house a light, bright and summery feel.

1. Start by removing the winter throws. Leave furniture bare or replace the throws with a light-cotton throw or sheet. Look for any pillows, furniture or other accessories made of wool, chenille, velvet, leather and other heavy, dark fabrics and put them away. Sew together a pillow cover using light fabrics in colorful-floral or pastel-plaid prints. Drape fabric over the furniture. You can find discount fabrics at a craft store for as little as $1 a yard. Work with your winter décor. For example, if you have a tan couch with hunter green, chenille pillows, change it up. ‘‘Treat the tan as a sand color and add purple pillows for accent,‘‘ Briddell said.

2. Pick out a few silk flowers in fresh, bright colors and arrange them in an old basket. Use gerber daisies, orchids, dahlias or other spring flowers in different shades. If you want a more sophisticated look, arrange them in vases with rocks or crystal pebbles at the bottom and sit them around the house. Artificial flowers start at 50 cents and range up to $10 or more. ‘‘One flower arrangement can change the feel of the whole room,’’ Briddell said. ‘‘When I put the gerber daisies on the breakfast table, it changed the whole kitchen.’’

3. Candles are another seemingly simple addition to the home décor that can make or break a room. Change out cinnamon and evergreen scents for fruits and flowers to make the seasonal transition. Arrange the candles in a flower-pot saucer and accent them with glass pebbles, sand or flowers, or fill a glass bowl with water and drop in rose petals and a few floating candles. Votive candles are around $1, and pillar and jar candles cost between $5 and $20.

4. Use fresh Granny Smith apples for a centerpiece on your kitchen table. ‘‘They are naturally a brilliant green’’ Briddell said, ‘‘and they will last up to a month.’’ Also try lemons, limes, oranges and other brightly colored fruits or flowers to match.