When it comes to interior design, we all have slightly different ideas about what looks good! It’s your own space, and in the end what is important is whatever makes you feel happy, relaxed, and comfortable. However, there are times when are homes are judged by others, for example, if we want to sell the property.
Interior design experts Jordan Cluroe and Russell Whitehead of Changing Rooms fame recently spoke to The Sun newspaper about their pet peeves, which they reckon could devalue your property. While you may not agree with them, it’s interesting to see what they, and other interior designers, really think about your home!
Small rugs
First up, the duo explain that a small rug can look like an island in the sea. They advise on going big enough to get the edges of all the furniture in the room onto the rug, to pull the interior together.
Curtains that are too small
They also have very definite ideas about curtains, which they believe should be fitted from floor to ceiling where possible, rather than just to cover the window size. This certainly helps to show off some beautiful ready made curtains in a gorgeous fabric or print, and make them the focal point of the room.
Russell said: “Often people will go too short or not big enough with their window treatments and it makes the window feel leaner than it is. If you actually set your curtains outside of the window, take them wall to wall, floor to ceiling and it will just make the windows feel that much bigger and more exciting and make more of a feature.”
Furniture pushed against the wall
If a room is on the small side, most people tend to push sofas, chairs, and tables right up to the wall, in order to keep the floor area as uncluttered as possible. However, the experts feel that this merely emphasises the smallness of the room, and you should be bold and bring it in a few inches.
They commented: “Often we see furniture clinging to the walls and if you move it in a little bit, it can make the space feel bigger and that’s a mistake people make. All the sofas and chairs are clinging to a wall, by bringing it in which you would think would be counter-intuitive actually makes a room feel bigger.”
These are interesting tips, which are easy to follow and might be worth considering, if you want to sell your home, or just fancy a fresh start.
Elsewhere, House Beautiful has a few more suggestions to make. They warn against the trend for matching wall art to the rest of the décor. This seems like sound advice, as hopefully your wall art will last for much longer than your shade of paint or latest wallpaper.
It would be a shame to avoid buying a piece you truly love, just because it didn’t match the sofa. If you really can’t live with a clash of colour, there will always be another more suitable place to hang the work. However, they warn that the art should be hung at eye level, rather than too high up the wall.
The publication also warns against the trend for bland safe interiors, which don’t contain enough evidence of human presence. This can lead the space to feel more like a mid-market hotel than a real home. While too much clutter is off-putting, going too far the other way, and having an anonymous and personality-free zone, can also feel wrong.
Along the same lines, they advise against choosing matching sets of furniture, such as a bed, drawers, dressing table, and bedside tables. This can look unimaginative and rob the room of character. Instead, they advise choosing pieces that complement each other, but don’t look like they are all from the same manufacturer.
Another pet peeve of many interior designers is poorly thought out lighting. This makes sense, as the right level of light is important for creating an ambience in a room. Lights that are too bright can feel harsh and unwelcoming, making it difficult to relax. Instead, use table lamps and wall lamps to complement the overhead lights, and use low voltage bulbs.
Some designers are turning against the trend for everything grey, especially where the walls, furnishings, and fabrics, are all in similar tones. This can look drab and soulless, they reckon. Instead, they advise adding pops of colour, with curtains, cushions, or rugs.