The interior design faux pas’ that are ruining your chances of getting a spread in Ideal Homes magazine.
When it comes to home interiors it can be difficult to find your way through the clutter… literally! Trends are constantly evolving, and changing a room isn’t like changing an outfit… it takes time and money. Having said that, there are certain pitfalls that you can avoid regardless of what’s ‘in’ at the time.
Catalogue chic
If you’re someone who has been curating your home for a while then this is an unlikely scenario, however, if you suddenly find yourself with a blank room that needs filling quickly, it can be tempting to order everything from the same retailer.
Of course, matching furniture can look great, however if your lounge looks like it’s the set for Ikea’s next catalogue photoshoot, you may want to reconsider.
Not only do these types of décor age quickly – as the looks on display are so often based just on that season with no real view to longevity – they also lack any real personality, which is really what makes your home uniquely special.
Feast or famine
Many of us hold a preference towards either a lively, crowded aesthetic or a minimalist one. Neither is right or wrong, but it’s always best to edge towards the middle ground.
Too much clutter is always going to slip into being characterised as messy – plus, the more junk you have lying around, the harder it is to clean it – and homes bereft of mementos or tchotchkes will leave guests feeling a tad cold.
Putting aesthetic over comfort
It goes without saying, the coolest looking interiors are generally the least comfortable.
Those trendy warehouse conversions with the exposed brick walls and high aluminium stools can look terrific, but may not necessarily be what you want you want to come home to after a hard day at the office.
Still, no one is suggesting you buy the biggest, squishiest sofa on the market, but if style is your thing then consider classic styles such as an Eames-style leather lounge chair or velvet-upholstered dining seats.
Overdoing the DIY
So you saw a cool online video once on stripping furniture and repainting it, and you gave that ailing chest of drawers you inherited from your dad a new lease of life. It looks great! Then you wondered what else you could do? Now you’ve got a coffee table made from pallets and a bench constructed out of some scaffolding wood and everything is a little mismatched – not to mention possibly dangerous – and you realise it may be time to put down that paintbrush and hammer.
The truth is, a little personal creativity can add warmth and love to a home, but there are some things that are best left to the experts.
Letting kids be… kids
Kids love to draw on walls – it’s a rite of passage. So, when your child gets a little older and decides to commandeer their own bedroom décor, don’t be surprised if their bedroom ends up resembling a crime scene in Hamleys.
Garish wall art, race car beds and giant teddy bears may seem cool to your little one, but it’s likely to be headache-inducing to anyone else and they will also grow out of it quickly. Better then, to guide your young ones toward a more classic interior that they can add to and tweak as they grow.
Image: shutterstock_1097019659
