4 tips for decorating your home
People spend an average of 90% of their time indoors, of which 70% in their own home (GGD). You naturally want nothing more than for your home to be just that—a true home. An interior where you feel comfortable is therefore absolutely essential! But where do you start if you have a new house or want to redecorate your current one? Our 4 tips will get you a long way!
Tip #1: Choose furniture that suits your space
When decorating your home, it's important to account for the space you have. Once you know exactly how big or small the space is, you can decide which home items will fit. A corner sofa is incredibly beautiful and comfortable, but with limited living space or a narrow living room, a 3-seater sofa will probably work better. Putting a corner sofa in a small space can quickly make the area feel visually smaller or narrower.
The opposite is also true: when you decorate a large space with small furniture and accessories, they'll likely get lost in the room. Found a new sofa and want to know if it will fit your living space? Our tip: use newspaper or painter's tape to outline the dimensions on the floor. This way you can best estimate whether the sofa will fit in the space.
Tip #2: Go for one colour or colour palette
When styling your interior, you often choose a colour where you feel comfortable. When you have multiple favourite colours, choosing can be difficult. Do you match colours or go for just one? Actually, anything's possible. What's important is to know beforehand what interior you want to create. Buying various furniture and accessories in lots of colours and materials can quickly result in a busy interior. Would you prefer a calmer and more harmonious interior? Try to match your furniture together and think about how it can stand as one. Choose as much as possible the same materials, such as the same type and shade of wood. And the same goes for colour! Opt for one or two main colours or the same colour palette.
To figure out which colour or palette suits you, it's helpful to gather inspiration through home magazines or the internet. Get the colour palette out and look for colours, interior styles and home trends that suit you and each other. You'll quickly find that, for example, botanical home trends are characterised by green, blue and grey tones combined with natural materials! Did you know that a floral rug can be perfectly combined with a botanical interior with various flowers and plants?
Tip #3: Think about what fits your interior
What applies to choosing colour is just as relevant when choosing an interior style. When you mix furniture and accessories from different interior styles, the result feels disconnected. You might find something really beautiful, but does it actually fit with the rest?
You've set your heart on that one classic mirror with lots of ornate details, but the rest of your living room has a modern look? It's probably not a smart choice to hang the mirror in the living room. Before making a purchase, it's worth pausing to consider whether the home item or piece of furniture fits with the rest of your interior. Many interior styles can appeal to you without all of them appearing in your home. You can actually compare it to your own clothing style. You can find a piece of clothing very beautiful, but perhaps won't wear it often with the rest of your outfit.
Choosing an interior style is therefore a matter of making choices. First look at the home trends that appeal to you before matching furniture and accessories. To give you an example, let's look at the industrial style. This style is characterised by robust home items such as steel lamps, wooden tables, a sheepskin and darker colours.
Tip #4: Go for practicality
You've probably worked out by now that decorating a home isn't just a matter of choosing what you find beautiful. Let's add another layer to that. The functionality of a piece of furniture or home accessory also matters. Think about laying down a high-pile rug while you have a puppy running around who isn't fully house-trained yet. Or that oh-so-beautiful wooden coffee table where your children love to drink their lemonade and occasionally knock it over. Ask yourself whether the home item is suitable and practical in your house. Our tip: ensure plenty of storage space by using storage boxes you can easily place in an open cupboard or behind a unit. This way you create enough space for your things and a calm living environment.
If we can briefly summarise all the tips, we can conclude that you can't just randomly combine furniture, home accessories and colours. It's important to constantly keep your desired interior in mind. Not all sizes, colours, styles, furniture and accessories are equally suitable to match together. Account for the space you have and the atmosphere you want to create.
We're sure that with our tips in mind, you'll create a lovely home and enjoy your new interior!
