Sensible shoes rarely reflect the latest fashion and cars with great gas mileage aren't as sexy as sports cars. However, with energy-efficient homes, you can have an efficient and comfortable house that's as stylish as it is smart.

The factors that make a home efficient are mostly invisible. Higher insulation values, tight construction and proper sealing techniques are only evident in greater comfort and lower energy bills.

High-efficiency windows, doors and skylights can be found in almost any style you desire. From French doors to bay windows, double-paned windows have moved from utilitarian to wood-faced models that look like those on grand old homes.

High-efficiency windows can even help your furniture, photos and artwork stay beautiful longer. Most low-E coatings, the coatings that keep the heat out in the summer and in during the winter, block damaging ultraviolet rays and can reduce fading by up to 75 percent.

High-efficiency appliances can offer all the top-of-the-line features while still saving on your energy bill. Energy-efficient lighting has come a long way from stark fluorescent tubes. Newer fluorescent ceiling lights look like traditional lights, and new technology has eliminated buzzing and flickering and made the light closer to natural lighting. Compact fluorescent bulbs are now available for almost any kind of lamps, and high-tech LED lighting that's both modern and very efficient is increasingly available. As always, look for the ENERGY STAR® label to find the more efficient models.

According to the American Institute of Architects' Home Designs Trend Survey, a survey of 500 architectural firms, the firms' clients are asking for cost- and energy-efficient products, as well as "green" products, such as renewable floor materials like cork and bamboo.

Some of the area's best builders are constructing homes certified by Jackson EMC as Right Choice™ homes. These Right Choice homes offer attractive styling as well as guaranteed energy savings and guaranteed comfort, plus Jackson EMC's lowest rate.

To find out more about Right Choice homes, including Right Choice builders and subdivisions that include Right Choice homes, go to www.jacksonemc.com/RightChoice.