Home-Decor challenged

I will be the first to admit, I have never taken an interest in or made any kind of effort at all to decorate a home I lived in, except for maybe my first apartment, which in all honesty, had a lot more style than any other home I've lived in.

Anyhoo, almost every single thing in our house is a hand-me-down, or bought quickly out of necessity or on impulse. Needless to say, it looks like shit.

Since I am creeping up on 40, it is pretty embarrassing to have anyone come into our house. The theme song from "Sanford and Son" constantly plays in my mind. I am almost to the point where I'd like to chuck everything and live on cushions because at least it would have some kind of flair. The problem with that is, since everything I've collected so far is some kind of weird rustic flavor and that is NOT AT ALL where I'd like to be and I would literally have to toss EVERYTHING. I can't get rid of the quilt my mom made or the brass candlesticks my grandma gave me, but I can't figure out how they could be incorporated into color schemes like this:



The whole idea seems very overwhelming and horribly expensive. I think it might require a few more years of looking and dreaming.