Sometimes, rules are made to be broken. While traditional methods of home décor are still applicable today, more and more people are staying to develop their own personal style.
Here are a few of the most commonly broken ‘rules’ of design and how they could be integrated with your home interior.
1. The couch is the focal point of a living room.
You may prefer a simpler couch, surrounded by unique furniture or opulent armchairs. Others may choose not to have a couch at all – instead favouring chairs, benches, beanbags, futons or any furniture they desire. Choose the furniture that you want, not what you think every living room should have.
If all your furniture is on the simpler side, it doesn’t have to serve as a focal point. Instead, try unique artwork or décor to spice things up.
2. You should keep things simple in small spaces.
When you think of indulgent or dramatic décor, you wouldn’t be at fault for jumping to the image of a large mansion room. However, these styles can also be applied to smaller interiors when done right.
If you’re into printed wallpaper but are worried about it making your room look smaller, try using larger prints. They’ll stand out without being too overwhelming, plus your room will look much more exciting!
3. Every room should have a rug or carpet.
Traditionally, most – if not all rooms were expected to have some form of carpeting. Today, though, home decorators have plenty more options! You’ll be able to choose from:
- Marble
- Tiling
- Stone
- Linoleum
- Wood
- Concrete
And that’s just a few of the options on offer at your local hardware store! These flooring styles have some benefits over carpeting, for instance, they’re easy to change, easy to clean and can be used to make a subtle statement.
4. Your furniture should always match.
If all your furniture matched correctly, your interior would have no points of interest or excitement. Instead, switch up colours, fabrics, textures, and styles to create a composition that reflects your favourite design elements as well as your own personality.
While the result you come up with may not be to everyone’s tastes, they’ll be yours – and that’s what matters in your own home!
5. A coffee table should be placed in front of the couch.
Firstly, you don’t necessarily need a coffee table when there are so many alternatives to choose from. You could try a sideboard, end tables or even a tray that could be placed on an ottoman.
Maybe you don’t even want an alternative – the open space could be used to move around or allow children to play.
If you do choose a coffee table, put it somewhere that suits the needs of you and your family.
6. Vintage pieces should be kept as they are.
Often, the attitude towards vintage items is that they should be treasured and preserved for years to come.
While that’s fine for some, you may prefer to get as much use out of your vintage finds as possible. Use them, wear them down, paint them and embellish them – whatever you need to do to create your dream home décor pieces.
7. Use small furniture in small rooms.
There’s no reason you can’t go large in a small space. Sometimes, using small items in a small room can cause them to look cluttered and misplaced. Larger pieces will fill the area more effectively and may actually make the room look bigger!
8. Your dining chairs and table should come as a set.
More stores today are offering dining tables and chairs separately, rather than as a set. But why? As it turns out, there is a growing trend for the ‘mix and match’ approach.
You don’t need to have an identical matching set to look stylish. Try a simple table with some quirkier chairs or vice versa. Or, for the truly creative, why not try six unique chairs surrounding a table? Sure, it may take a little effort to pull off, but the look is truly original once you do.
9. A dining area should just be for dining.
In smaller homes, space is at a premium. Many people simply can’t dedicate a whole room solely to eating their evening meal. Therefore, it’s perfectly acceptable to get creative and find ways to use the room aside from meal times.
Ideas you could try include:
Bookshelves to turn your dining room into a mini-library. Simply add a cosy armchair to a corner and you’ll have a quiet reading nook away from the busier living areas.
A flip-top table that could turn your dining room into a family game centre.
Adding a small desk that could give you a peaceful place to work if you don’t have space for an office.
10. Your kids’ artwork should be stashed away.
So what if it doesn’t fit conventional art standards? To your child, their art is a masterpiece, so show them how much you appreciate their effort by having their favourite piece framed and placed on the wall.
Choose a colourful frame to match the painting or a clean, white frame to make the artwork stand out. Then, hang it on a blank wall to create a family-oriented focal point. It’ll be safer there than stuck on the fridge with tape.
It’ll be sure to brighten up the room and will be meaningful too!
Do you find yourself breaking interior design rooms when you decorate your home? Tell us what works for you in the comments below!
