5 Interior Design Secrets to Improve Your Home

Figuring out your home’s design on your own can be a challenge. Whether you are trying to find the right furniture for your space, or aren’t sure how to pick the best holiday decor, you likely feel overwhelmed trying to piece it all together. If so, you’re in luck – today I’m sharing five interior design secrets that you can put into action today to finally have a home you love!

The First of My Interior Design Secrets: Don’t Buy the Set

I know how enticing it can be. And what could be easier than getting everything all at once?

But buying a set will always throw the scale and balance off in your room.

Instead, look for individual pieces that you love and blend them together. You CAN have an “oversized” piece, but something on the larger side needs to be balanced with a slimmer pieces (think skinny jeans with a super comfy oversized sweater). So, if you pick the giant sofa that is just SO comfortable you can’t imagine a room without it, great! Just resist the urge to also get the matching chair and ottoman because, guess what, they are ALL going to be huge and they will overwhelm your room. Same can be said for that ultra-cool mid century set up. It all looks SO GOOD and is SO ON TREND right now. But you bring it home and it looks like doll house furniture in your room. As a rule of thumb, aim to have no more than TWO matched pieces in a space.

I will never try to talk you out of buying something you love; but I will, until I’m blue in the face, try to talk you out of buying the Living/Dining/Bedroom/Kids/Office/Whatever Room set.

Secret #2: Just because it holds kid stuff doesn’t mean it has to look like a kid thing.

Whenever you can, buy containers that fit YOUR aesthetic to contain the madness. These containers are what will be sitting out and seen in your space, so opt for something that is going to blend into your design and not scream “kids!”. Make these about you, and not the kids (save those cutesy kid containers for their own rooms) Then, when the toys are put away you’re left with a room that you like looking at.

Keep these containers consistent & cohesive in the space. Get 1-2 types of containers in the design of your choosing (varying sizes if needed). If you mix and match too many different kinds of containers, you’ll be facing the same chaotic look that you are trying to fix.

Secret #3: Don’t feel like everything in a room has to shine.

It’s easy to get caught up in the individual aspects of a space and let it cloud your vision. But when your head spins just from walking into a room, it’s too much. When the fireplace is bold, and across from it is a huge media cabinet with lots of little decor, when the rug is brightly patterned, and there are four different pillows with witty sayings on them, the coffee table has gold painted accents and the chair has fringe + embroidery, there is a gallery wall and an accent wall and built-ins happening…

Listen, there are some VERY successful rooms that carry a lot of punch. But generally speaking, this should be left to the very experienced + brave individuals who inhabit these rooms. You can get there too if you really want to, but ease yourself into it. Every space should highlight its best features, whether architecturally or decoratively, and the rest should play a supporting role.

Start with some aspect of the room that gets your heart racing in the best way. It could be an amazing piece of art, the beautiful stone fireplace, a fun vintage chair, a great view, gorgeous tile or wallpaper, etc. Then build from there, thinking about how you can make that piece stand out by complementing it.

Secret #4: Always plan to sit at least as many people as you can sleep in your home.

It’s never fun to find out you don’t have a space to sit at a dinner party.. Or feel like you can’t get up from your seat for fear of losing it.

This goes for your family room, living room, or dining room. At the minimum, if there is a place to sleep, there should be a corresponding place to sit.

The Most Important of my Interior Design Secrets: Skip the interior design trends if they don’t suit your lifestyle

Whether it’s the all-white couch or the flashy decor piece that just doesn’t fit with your vision, know this: just because it’s popular on Instagram doesn’t mean you have to do it. There is no one perfect design style, and the perfect home is one that you can actually, well, live in.

(That isn’t to say all-white won’t work, even if you do have kids! There’s ways to master those potential imperfections if that’s what you want.)

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