If you’ve changed things up with your home decor in the last few years, you may remember the thrilling feeling that crept up as you were nearly done. The last books on the shelves have been aligned as you step back to take in the brand new and unfamiliar territory. Much as if a new life was laid out in front of you.
But after a couple of months, you feel the magic slowly disappearing. The chair is now covered with clothes you pile on after coming home from work, sometimes the mess even extends to the living and dining areas. Your living space now bores the life out of you.
The desire to fall in love with your home grows once again.
Good news is that there simple ways to give your living space a completely new feel and it never has to be too extensive nor expensive. Having moved to a few different places in Melbourne, we thought we’d share some of our tips on the fastest way to make this happen. Starting with:
Removing Clutter
Both big and small home transformations require some degree of change to the existing layout. Wherever possible, you’ll want to clear the way for whatever’s to come.
Though it may seem obvious, removing clutter is the indisputable first step in any home pick-up. Not only will it open new possibilities for furniture and furnishing configurations, but will also leave the living room clean anyway if your burst of decorative passion suddenly disappears and you decide to hold off for now.
Similar to spring cleaning, you may find your ‘new home’ simply by getting rid of the extra objects that invaded your space, so that the rooms would get back their fresh, neat look.
As difficult as it might be to part with your old perfume bottles, you’ll want to dispose of them Marie Kondo style. The point is to have only the stuff you need, just like you used to when you first moved in. Looking for the dustiest pieces is an easy way to identify the objects you barely use and toss them out.
Rearranging the Main Furniture
Moving the key pieces of furniture such as the bed or sofa is the second thing you should try when re-imagining your living room. It might not seem like a big deal, but finding a new configuration for the big pieces of furniture opens up endless possibilities to restructure the existing furnishings scattered around. You may even bring in new objects to fill out the once cluttered space.
Or… go full on minimalist style and embrace the negative space in your house. It can be pretty artistically pleasing 🙂
Whichever you choose, get someone to help you move things around and turn it into a Saturday activity. You don’t have to envision the final design beforehand – let your creativity flow and get inspired along the way!
A simple rearrangement idea could be to turn two armchairs you rarely sit on into theater room chairs, by just placing them to face the television. Prop a small table against the wall, and your laptop on it — voila, a mini home-theater. So whenever you want to make a movie night or watch YouTube videos with your friends, simply take a seat and enjoy your own two-person cinema. Snuggle up with your loved one by combining the chairs, get some blankets and hot chocolate and you’ll be assured of a super cozy evening.
Utilize That Wall Space
Walls are the biggest blank canvas in most homes. Use them! Fill in those walls with framed pictures of your photos on Instagram, a DIY jewelry hanger or simple paper cut art.
Best part about wall decorating is that none of it is expensive or permanent by any means. The idea is simply to create some visual interest in an otherwise overlooked area of the home.
Introduce New Colors
Whether they’re bedsheets or sofa covers, having a couple of interchangeable sets is the fastest way to transform up the color palette of any given room. It makes sense to start here as they are the biggest and most used pieces of furniture in any house – everyone has one.
You can try warmer colors for the winter time to make the space feel more comfy, and lighter neutral colors for the hot days. Buying a new sofa altogether might be too costly, but choosing the right cover for your couch can make it look like you just bought it from the store.
The second biggest way to introduce color into the home is by using rugs. Big, noticeable and color coordinated ones that match your space are the kind should be looking for.
Here’s a live demo of this in action, straight from the homes of our friends across the globe:
Check out Hayley from mumlittleloves set the color scheme for her room. From the slipcovers, the rug, to even the window frames are so masterfully matched!
Or for a less bold option, consider Magdalena’s approach to designing a simplistic but stylish room with black and white elements. Once again, notice how the rug forms a crucial piece of this intricate puzzle.
Bringing In The Outdoors, Indoors
After moving all that furniture around and tidying up, you might find that there’s a lot more space to work with than you might’ve considered. Here’s your chance to bring in some new elements to fill the space.
When it comes to choosing decorations, you can never go wrong with bringing in a plant or two – it’s the classic. Other than being readily available and oh so affordable, plants are some of the best ways of adding some spirit into any drab environment. Humans do appreciate nature in their surroundings after all – science has proven this.
It doesn’t have to be excessive, just a small palm tree will make the room feel more alive. A Ponytail Palm can be a good option if you’re a workaholic that forgets to water the plants. You only have to place it in good light and water it whenever the soil starts dry-cracking.
Conclusion
Giving your home a noticeable makeover doesn’t have to be difficult, nor will you have to pick up the phone and dial the contractors. Working with the biggest elements in the room and then adding a few spicy decorative elements is all it takes to hit the refresh button on your home – and we’re all for it!
After all, home should be your favorite place in the world. Until you can afford to change houses whenever you get bored, you’ll just have to keep things interesting in the house you already have.
The best part? Looking for ways to re-create your rooms is also a great way to spur creativity, pick and a new skill and make your friends green with envy 😉
Want to give your living room a bold new look? Start with the couch! Give us a visit on our main website and discover the brands and sofa models we make customizable, bespoke slipcovers for:
Image Sources:
Minimalist Living Space – http://www.momtoob.com/
Mini Home Theater – http://cdlapa.com/home-theater-design-concept/
Slipcovers and rugs –
https://www.instagram.com/p/CA4i7peHC1x/
http://mumlittleloves.com.au/a-sofa-slipcover-review-with-my-friends-at-comfort-works/
https://feinundfabelhaft.de/grosse-liebe-unser-weisses-sofa/
Plant Decor – http://www.stupic.com/