22 affordable tricks for adding style to your home
"Home, Sweet Home." Yep, there's nothing better than having your own four walls. It's where we feel most comfortable as we're free to do as we please. So as the kings and queens of our castles, wouldn't it be great to give our living spaces a stylish and exclusive finish? Before you start reaching for your wallet though, it's important to know that you don't actually need a ton of cash or a professional interior designer to make this happen. All it actually takes is a few tricks to bring some luxury to your home...
First, you need decide what's important to you. It's time to set priorities — do you want a cozy couch or a designer sofa? Would you prefer a rain shower or a bathtub with subdued lighting? Whether it's rustic or modern, elegant or functional, the interior design also needs to have a clear theme running throughout your home. Take a look at some of these ideas and be inspired...
1. The floor takes up the most space in your home, which should be enough of a reason to give it some much needed attention. A general rule of thumb is that your home looks more elegant if there is more floor on show. That's why it's best to opt for wall-mounted sideboards or furniture with long legs. It's also recommended to keep as much stuff as possible stowed above your eye line.
2. Here's very simple trick for making the area your walls and floor meet look as chic as possible. Simply add a piece of molding above the baseboard and paint in between to give your room a more spacious appearance.
3. The contrast between white walls and rustic wooden floors creates a dramatic effect in your living room — what an exquisite choice!
4. The most colorful apartments need rugs that perfectly match your sofa and drapes. But even if you hold back on the use of colors in the rest of the room, a slightly louder rug often proves to be the perfect finishing touch that brings everything together.
5. Long drapes that hang from just below the ceiling down to the floor look classy and really stretch out your walls. While heavier materials have a lavish effect, lighter ones bring more life to the room.
6. Hallway boards are another great way to give your home a luxurious finish. With a bit of skill, you can make them yourself from wooden panels at a very reasonable price.
7. Polyurethane beams look just like real wooden ones for that rustic finish. They're also easy to install, meaning you can add structure to your ceiling for a fraction of the price and hard work.
8. There are also affordable alternatives for ceiling molds that can simply be glued to the ceiling. No chandelier looks authentic without stucco decoration.
9. What effect do you want with your wallpaper? Whatever you choose, it's important to have a clear plan and trust your judgement. Brave choices show confidence — and confident interior design is often classy. Shiny wallpaper or bold colors can really bring out the best in your room. Woodchip wallpaper has no place on your walls if you're going for an elegant look though.
10. This is something you always see in old James Bond films or episodes of Dallas: wall paneling made of slate, stone or wood. This 1970s design solution can still look great today, as the porous surface of the material radiates warmth and naturally softens the light.
11. If it works well for your floor and walls, it's worth trying for your windows and doors. Wainscoting and frames are easy to install and cost much less than replacing your doors and windows. You cal also change your door and window handles if you want to go for a different look.
12. On stairs, you should remove the old carpet runners. If the exposed steps look unsightly, you can spruce them up with laminate flooring or a fresh lick of paint (make sure you contrast the colors!).
13. Materials that feel nice to touch (wood, stone or fabric) should be a running theme in a room. There's no harm in being creative and trying out new things.
14. Mirrors make the room look larger and add a touch of splendor with their smooth surfaces. So why not hang up a mirror instead of covering your walls in pictures?
15. You don't need a real Picasso to add a classy centerpiece to your room. When choosing pictures, it's instead important to take a look at how they're framed and hung on the wall. While posters stuck to the wall using Scotch tape look cheap, they can become the highlight of the room if you frame them and put them behind glass. It's best to group smaller pictures together as in the image below.
16. It's also better to group together decorations and flowers than have them spread apart. Having objects grouped in odd numbers (3, 5 or 7) looks particularly stylish.
17. Attractive cushions for the couch can really transform your living room. That's why you should invest in high-quality covers for the best results.
18. Placing a narrow table behind your sofa is a great way to turn it into the centerpiece of your living room. It's cheap to make, too!
19. You can buy a cheap kitchen table and tile it yourself! This way, you can create your own unique design that matches the rest of the room.
20. Having several smaller light sources dotted around gives the room structure and highlights what's important to you.
21. Are you bored of your bathroom? Simply painting over old tilework can give it a new lease of life.
22. A large mirror and high-quality materials are a must for your bathroom. Wooden or stone paneling has a particularly stunning effect (there are affordable laminate alternatives that are suitable for bathrooms). Also think about incorporating different light sources into the design.
To finish, here are a few more ideas you could use in your own home...
Who dares wins! It certainly takes a lot of courage and conviction when it comes to interior design. If you have a clear idea of what you like, you can do a lot within your four walls. The difference between a conventional home and stylish one has little to do with your budget, but your will to make your dreams become reality. So what are you waiting for — it's time to get to work!