Apartment shopping is not easy

I haven't physically seen my new apartment yet, though I have seen pictures of basically what it looks like online. All the same ... shopping for furniture is just causing me a lot of confusion.

I have a budget generously given to me by my parents to pick out some furniture so it's not completely bare when I move in. This will consist of a futon, entertainment center and lamps for the living room, as well as a bed frame/mattress and dresser for the bedroom. My parents are also giving me and old dining room set of a table and chairs for that part of the apartment. So that's all set.

Now the hard part -- choosing what furniture to get. I'm no expert at decorating, especially since I've never had to before. My parents furnished our house and my two State College apartments were pre-furnished.

I've found quite a few pieces I like, but furniture is expensive -- especially when bought in sets. So my dilemma is finding furniture that matches. I don't really want to spend money on stuff that doesn't match and end up replacing it with other furniture later. The worst part is I want the living room to be greens, browns and blues (I think). But finding wood furniture of the same color is harder than I would've thought! I'm afraid of buying different pieces from places and then putting it all in the apartment and having it not match at all.

I've got a few weeks to continue searching and I hope I'm able to find pieces I like in the end. So far I've picked out a few things for the living room that might work...