Interior Design Tips to Make Your Home Look Better

You don’t have to spend a ton of money and time for your home to appear elegant, expensive, and new. Both on-trend and timeless options can be recreated with purchases from thrift stores and big box stores, or even with the furniture you already have. Next time you have an afternoon to spare, try out some of these tips to give your home a new feel.

Paint

Paint is quite inexpensive, and the cost of using leftover paint from former projects is even better; either way a bit of paint can make a big impact. You might want to tone a color down or add a touch of something bold to enliven a space. Even just a fresh coat of the same color paint is a great way to change a room's overall feel. An accent wall is a great place to start; a bold color can accentuate key furniture pieces while not being overbearing.

Cabinets are another great place to apply paint for a home makeover. Again, you may not even need to change the color, just giving a fresh coat of paint makes a space seem cleaner and brighter. But if you do decide to switch up the color you use, consider going for a light pop of color that will open up the room.

Paint can be a unique touch for your ceilings, as well. A unique color can draw the eye up, making the room more interesting as it adds color and height to the interior. Consider scraping off old popcorn ceilings and adding a fresh coat of white paint for a safer option that can still transform your room.

Hardware & Fixtures

If your budget only allows for decorating on a dime, consider updating old fixtures. Light fixtures and switch plates are a great place to start. Choose switch plates with bold pops of color or interesting textures that contrast nicely from the walls against which they are affixed.

Follow that up with choosing light fixtures that complement the new style you intend for your home. You can make them consistent throughout for a traditional, sleek style or switch things up for a more modern contrast, using a unique new fixture for each room. Recessed lighting can also brighten up a room and add depth. Most importantly, choose those options that suit your tastes as light fixtures can be one of the first things you notice when you walk into a room.

Next, take a look at your bathrooms. One of the ways to energize a bathroom is to update the showerheads. While their base function remains the same, showerheads are available in a wide array of styles and water pressures. Choose one that has a handheld head attached to a hose for convenience, or go for the more minimalistic look of a showerhead affixed to the wall. 

You should also consider switching up the faucets. You can get fancy faucets as a centerpiece of the bathroom or sleek fixtures that don’t take away from your other decor. There are many shapes, sizes, and colors to choose from - so be creative!

Cabinet hardware is a great, inexpensive way to change the feel of your kitchen, bathroom, or laundry room. Think about trying a different material for the cabinet handles, such as brass, wood, pewter, or ceramic, and play around with different colors. Darker handles on light cabinets and vice versa can add a pop of color whereas choosing a similar color can allow other elements in the room to shine.

Another type of hardware to update in your home is the door knob. While they are not often thought about, door knobs can be ornamental as well as practical. A new knob on your front door can completely change the feel of entering your home, while knobs on inside doors can add elegance or flair to your rooms.

Floors

Give floors a good cleaning for a new-home feel. Carpets can benefit from deep cleans with carpet shampooers; these are available to rent at reasonable prices. For rugs that may be more delicate, you may wish to scrub by hand. If you have hardwood floors, give them a thorough cleaning and a fresh wax job to brighten them up. Clean or renew the grout in tiled floors as well; old grout ages a home and can make it feel grubby. Brightly clean or new grout makes a home look new again.

If you have a larger budget to refresh your home's style, consider replacing carpet with hardwood floors. The lustrous gleam of well-cared-for hardwood floors is hard to beat when it comes to reinvigorating your home. Wall-to-wall carpeting may be soft and warm, but hardwood floors provide a classic elegance. This investment may be on the costlier side but it is well worth the price; it is long-lasting and adds to the resale value of your home. Darker woods tend to appear more luxurious, but paler options like birch and oak tend to be less expensive. Make your choice with care and enjoy the long life and luxury of hardwood floors.

Declutter

Among the most affordable options to improve your home's appearance comes with the best possible price tag: free. Simply declutter your home. Most people have at least small areas of clutter. Horizontal surfaces seem to collect mail, paperwork, receipts, the spare debris emptied from pockets, and half-finished projects. It is easy to overlook cluttered spots; they simply become part of the landscape. A trick to really noticing those areas is to take a picture of the living spaces in your home. This helps you to see them through fresh eyes, and you’ll be able to compare your before-and-after photos. Clear up these spots for a neater, more elegant home.

Improve your storage options to help in the decluttering process, particularly if you have minimal closet space. You can really add to the wow factor of a room by adding a facsimile of built-in shelving; simply place bookcases close together to fill up a focal segment of wall. Cube storage has been growing in popularity and comes in a variety of arrangements with a broad selection of fabrics and patterns for fabric cubes to act as drawers inside it.

Furniture

Another free option for giving your home a new look is moving the furniture around. Rearranging furniture and accent pieces is among the quickest, easiest means of changing a room's appearance, refreshing the space. Adjust a room's lines by angling chairs and sofas differently. Ensure that natural light is highlighted; this will add to a room's spatiality.

You can also breathe new life into existing furniture by adding throw pillows and blankets to chairs and couches. If your budget is tight, simply switch existing pillows from one room to another. Trade small pillows from your bedding set with throw pillows from the couch and enjoy the novelty of old things in new places. Try modern designs of pillows and blankets, if you are buying new, to revitalize your furniture. Consider simply buying crisp new covers for your pillows, as well.

Decor

Sometimes, you need only update your decor to improve your home's appearance. If you are a do-it-yourself type, consider changing out the legs on chairs or sofas, reupholstering, or even using fabric paint to breathe new life into old furniture. Try secondhand stores to find heirloom pieces; these can add an air of timeless beauty. An old dresser with inlaid wood, a vintage chandelier's unique shape, and an antique cabinet of metal with a rich patina are beautiful pieces that you won’t find in every home. Check thrift and consignment stores for glassware, art, and mirrors to add a unique class to your home.

Use metallics in additional pieces of decor. These catch the light and add a new look to brighten your home, adding in a fancy air. You could also consider light fixtures that have metal finishes, metallic wallpaper, and high-gloss paint. Metal decorative accents or pedestal tables toss the light and reflections around in different ways to add interest.

Go big with wall art. Replace a few outdated pieces with a large statement piece. New, modern art can add an entirely new feel to a room. You can also use old pieces to arrange a gallery wall. These careful arrangements of eclectic art pieces are trendy and give a room a focal point. Tie in colors that you prefer to have prevalent in your decor for a unified space, or add contrasting pops of color to draw the eye and add distinct notes.

Use new lamps to make a big statement, literally: more light makes a room look larger. Do not block windows to permit natural light entrance. While you are at it, add plenty of light by means of floor and table lamps throughout your spaces. Check big box stores for inexpensive lighting fixtures for a priceless appearance of a bigger room. or pick up a few lamp bases at a thrift store and add some bright new lampshades.

Try adding fresh plants and flowers as focal points in the decor. Hanging planters or potted plants on bookshelves or accent tables are great ways to add life and fresh air to your living spaces. If you have children or pets, be sure to choose plants that are non-toxic. You can also use a favorite vase to add cut flowers from your garden so that you can display temporary splashes of color and dashes of scent.

When it comes to natural light, there is more to your windows than arranging furniture and decor so that it does not block them; you should also be sure to accentuate your windows with long curtains. Place floor length curtains above the tops of windows to make ceilings look higher. Hanging curtains from the top of the wall, at the highest point possible, is good for drawing attention to the space's height that gives you an instant touch of drama.

Use rugs as stand-out statement pieces that are practical as well as sharp in appearance. Whether you select an option that is modern, classic, or antique, a rug can tie in the colors of a room and bring it all together. Whether you choose colorful geometric shapes, ornate floral designs, or a mix of various styles, your rug options will say a lot about your tastes, making your space highly individual.

Welcome to Your New Space!

There are many easy ways to update your home without going broke and have a ton of fun doing it. Following these tips will help you to quickly improve the appearance of your home with ease and without much pressure on your bank account. Whether you choose to spend an afternoon cleaning and rearranging furniture or take a weekend to repaint the house, you’ll enjoy the feel of a fresh space.