Stop Making These 5 Interior Design Mistakes
Stop in the name of design. Here, I will reveal the worst interior design mistakes. You will want to avoid these things. A few of these mistakes must be dealt with or can hurt your home's value.
Mistake #1 – Different Flooring throughout your home
Have you walked into a home and been greeted by tile flooring, carpeting, and hardwood floors all on the same level? You want to avoid this. Not only because it makes each room appear smaller and not well thought out, but nothing hurts your home's value more than having three or more different types of flooring on one level.
Home buyers are looking for one flooring material throughout the space, except for tile in the bathrooms. Two other exceptions would be tile in the kitchen and carpet in the bedrooms. However, the masses are moving away from that as well.
When planning your space, look for one flooring material that functions well throughout your home. Hardwood, tile, and luxury vinyl flooring are the most common styles. If you are concerned about every room looking the same, try placing area rugs on top of your flooring which will allow you to create distinct décor in each space.
Different Flooring Throughout Your Home
Mistake #2 - Poor Lighting
You can spend tens of thousands of dollars on your home's décor, but you will have wasted your money if the lighting is poor. Having just one light in the center of the room is a design mistake you want to avoid. Your lighting should highlight all of the different elements in a room.
You certainly want to play up your natural lighting. Still, there should be a primary fixed light source accompanied by recessed lighting, pendant lights, and lamps. Invest your money in good lighting.
Poor Lighting
Mistake #3 - Out of Scale Furnishings
Too often, people purchase furniture and accessories that are out of scale for space. The furniture selected is too big or too small for what it was intended. Before you impulse shop in a large furniture store with high ceilings and plenty of space, make sure you've already measured your room and then find out the furniture's dimensions to ensure that the items you purchase will be proportionate to the room.
Developing a plan is the key here. I use AutoCAD to create my layouts, but if you don't have a CAD tool, use painter's tape and lay out your furniture that way. Either step will help you avoid costly mistakes. Speaking of measuring, did you measure your front door or the door to the room where the new furniture is going? Do that before your next purchase too!
Out of Scale Furnishings
Mistake # 4 - Area Rugs Out of Scale
Avoid buying an area rug that is too small for the space. This is an interior design no-no. Remember when we talked about scale earlier? Well, that applies here too. A rug that is too small for the space looks out of scale, and more importantly, it cheapens the entire look of the room.
How do you avoid this mistake? Here's a general rule of thumb. If you are buying a rug for a living room or family room, start with a rug size of at least 9x12 or 11x14! All the seating and tables should touch the area rug for the living room. For the bedroom, at least 2/3rds of the bed should sit on the area rug. The dining room, the table, and the chairs should all sit on the area rug. The size of the area rug can make or break your design.
Area Rugs Out of Scale
Mistake #5 - Curtain Length
With curtains, there are two common mistakes you want to avoid. The first mistake is hanging your curtains at the top of the window trim. You're not taking advantage of the wall height. Place your curtains as close to the ceiling as possible to correct this mistake. Curtains put higher on the wall make the space feel and look bigger. Now with that, remember you'll need to purchase longer curtains.
And the second common mistake is curtains that don't touch the floor. This feels like an incomplete look. Like the tailor ran out of fabric. Curtains that touch the floor, bend or puddle on the floor give the space a luxe feel. And is money well spent.
Curtain Length
I hope you found these tips helpful so you can avoid these pitfalls in your interior design. Your home should inspire you, and we all should make the most of what we have. If you still need to do so, please subscribe to my TikTok and YouTube channels, and leave a comment below. This will help me grow my channel.
Also check out my Amazon Page where I’ve curated some amazing furniture and accessories items that will work great in any home. Not to mention all of the selections work well together, so you’ll be able to seamlessly put a room together all on your own!
And as usual, I appreciate you and will chat with you next time.