A new year is upon us and many of us are looking to make a change (or ten) to our home’s interior design in the coming months. As you plan your new design projects it’s a perfect time to review some common myths that have crept into the collective homeowners’ consciousness. Here are few common misconceptions about home design and what can be done to overcome them:
Myth: Good Decorating Projects Should be Completed All at Once
It is easy to put off decorating your home because you want to do it all at once. You think you need to have money saved up and extra time to undertake your grand home decorating project. Well great news: good decorating is a marathon, not a sprint. You can start small and complete each room or project one at a time. In fact, the danger in completing your whole home at once is that you will probably not get around to redesigning for another ten or twenty years. A long-term approach keeps the stress low, and small updates keep your house continually fashionable.
Myth: The Ceiling Must be White
White ceilings are as American as apple pie, but why? There is no reason to paint every ceiling white, and there are certainly no rules against branching out and using color on your ceiling. A great place to experiment is in a child’s bedroom. Be creative and consider a blue sky with clouds or a checkerboard of color. With other rooms you generally want to use a lighter tint of the wall color. If the ceiling is really high, you can paint just about any color that goes with the room. In the bathroom, try painting the walls and ceiling all the same color to give the illusion of more space and take away sharp lines and edges.
Myth: Sofas Always Go Against the Wall
Placing a sofa against the wall seems like a good idea, because it leaves more space open in the middle of the room. However, following suit in your home can create a very plain and boring environment. Feel free to experiment with furniture and create an intimate sitting area in the middle of the room. Use the sofa to create a division between a dining and family rooms, or place the couch next to the hallway in the living room to create a natural extension of the wall. Whatever you do, don’t put your couch against the wall and believe you followed some design rule, because that rule doesn’t exist.
Myth: There's No Such Thing as Over-Accessorizing
Every room needs a certain amount of accessorizing, but there certainly are limits on how far you should go. You want your home to feel classy and well-decorated. What you don’t want is to transform your home into an antique shop or consignment store littered with knick-knacks and pointless decorations. When you plan a room design consciously and strategically choose a handful of items that convey the feel you want. Be mindful of not crossing the line into clutter town.
Myth: There Are Rules to Decorating
The rule of home design is that there are no rules. Certainly, interior design guidelines exist to aid you in making decisions based in proper design principles. But, there’s no need to copy your neighbors’ or celebrities’ home design. At the end of the day, you are the one that lives in your home and you know what colors and accessories you prefer, so make your home uniquely yours.
This post was contributed by Derek Dasher, a writer for www.topalarmsystem.com. He enjoys writing about a variety of topics, including home improvement and home management.
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