Lighting, throw pillows, furniture placement, wall colors, accent décor—decorating a new room requires homeowners to make a lot of decisions, and there’s especially lots to consider when decorating multiple areas of your home. Decorating and redecorating both require homeowners to use their editorial eye to achieve the optimal dining room, kitchen, or bedroom setup. If you’ve never watched HGTV or flipped through a home design magazine, you may not know where to being the home decorating journey. The embellishing process can be an intimidating one, as you likely want to perfect the place you call home. Whether you’ve just moved in and are ready to embellish a new home, or simply looking to redesign the one you’ve resided at for ages, take a look at Quinn’s Mercantile’s top home decorating mistakes to avoid.
Common Mistakes Made When Decorating a Home
Before looking toward all the things you want to accomplish with your decorating process, you should get familiar with the common mistakes made while decorating homes. Some of these mistakes may seem minor, but they can make a world of difference in a room’s appearance. Avoiding the following decoration mishaps is the first step in procuring the ideal home.
Overlooking the Scale and Proportion of Your Rooms
Proper scaling and proportions are two key components of creating any cohesive room. Scale refers to the size of something, while proportion is the size of those things in relation to one another and the room.
You should know the dimensions of any room you intend on decorating, so as not to order oversized or undersized fixtures and furniture. Keep scale and proportion in mind during all phases of decorating—from the appliances down to the throw blanket, each piece should work in harmony, even the conversation pieces.
Pro Tip: Make sure that you’re considering the width, length, and the height of each room. Often do homeowners decorate without keeping their vertical space in mind. You can utilize a room’s vertical space to include extra storage furnishing and make the room appear more spacious.
Neglecting the Purpose of a Room
If you’re trying to create a harmonious environment, try to decorate while adhering to the room’s purpose. The kitchen is for cooking and eating, so does it need a recliner? The answer, though it would make for some comfortable dining, is no.
Keep a focus on what you want to accomplish out of each room throughout the entire decorating process. When you lose sight of a room’s main function and opt for fun knick-knacks, you’re likely to end up with a mass of clutter that doesn’t add up.
Committing a Little Too Hard To the Theme
Pulling inspiration from your favorite magazine and its outlined theme is natural, but that’s all it should be—inspiration. One of the common home decorating mistakes to avoid is overdoing a themed room. While entertainment spaces, at-home bars, man caves, and she sheds are prone to thematic concepts, your most frequented areas should remain true to ideas that actually resonate with you.
The reason you’ll want to avoid choosing a theme for your rooms is that they tend to get outdated. Pull elements from your favorite themes to make the room uniquely your own.
Putting it in perspective: For example, if the design in a fictional space-themed TV series inspires you, opt for a few tones and textures from the show rather than embellishing your entire area with star patterns and chrome.
Lack of Lighting or Too Much Lighting
Quality lighting is one of the most essential elements of any room. Too much or too little lighting can make a huge difference in how large or claustrophobic, harsh, or welcoming a room feels.
Three different lighting factors you should be extra considerate about are included below:
- The color of light: Will the room you’re decorating look best with fluorescent or incandescent lighting? How will the wall’s color reflect this light? These are questions you should ask yourself before purchasing light bulbs and fixtures.
- The quantity of light: While some rooms, such as an office or home library, may require ample yet elegant lighting, other spaces, such as your entertainment space, will fare better with fewer lights or by adding dimmers.
- The light’s placement: Overhead lighting can be harsh. Mix and match different angles of lighting to achieve an illuminated room that doesn’t create inconvenient and unwanted shadows.
Buying Furniture That Is Not Built To Last
Furniture is often a big-ticket item in the decorating and redecorating processes. Do your research before pulling the trigger on a pricey loveseat or expensive dining set. Some furniture has a costly price tag simply for the high-end brand, not the quality.
Invest in reviews before making investments. Online shoppers’ reviews may reveal that a brand’s furniture is not as reliable as advertised. Choose furnishing that is built to last so you don’t have to haul your couches and chairs to the curb every couple of years.
Painting Before Testing
Homeowners should always swatch a few paint colors before landing on their final choice. Observe the swatches throughout the day, so you can assess how you like the colors in various lighting. Avoid overwhelming your home interior’s appearance with too many intense colors.
Pro Tip: If you’re drawn to a vibrant paint color, consider using it for an accent wall. Accent walls give you the opportunity to play with fun wall patterns and colors without interfering with the cohesiveness of a room.
Forgoing Your Personal Taste
While it’s fine to pull inspiration from the latest interior design magazines and TV shows, you want to avoid making every decision based on the newest interior buzz. Remember who you’re decorating for. With thoughtful assessment during each phase of the process, you can strike a nice balance between patterns, hues, and furnishing that suits your style and interior designers’ recommendations.
When It Comes Time To Decorate
Once you’re ready to start your decorating endeavors, consider Quinn’s Mercantile. We have a plentiful selection of home décor products available. We even have bar accessories and décor for your at-home entertainment spaces.
Establishing your ideal home interior takes investments of time and money, but the outcome is well worth the effort. And at Quinn’s Mercantile, homeowners can optimize their space without breaking the bank. Contact us today to learn more about our products and deals.
