Have you noticed the simple decorating style of many homes featured in home decor magazine? These homes look clean, simple and beautiful. To be honest, I love the simple designs of these homes. Do you?
If you are in the middle of or thinking about doing some decorating; I think we can learn something from looking at the simple decorating techniques of the homes we see in magazines.
What Do I Like About Simple Decorating?
What I love about simple decorating is it gives you the perfect amount of furnishing without looking cluttered. I also like how crisp and clean these spaces are with a simple design appear. There is more focus because there are less items and distractions.
Most importantly to me and you if your decorating budget small, is simple decorating techniques require you to buy less to make your home look beautiful.
Lessons To Help Decorate More Simply
After paging through many of the popular decorating magazines I believe there are 6 simple decorating tips that can help you decorate your home.
Simplify Small Appliances on Counters
The kitchen is often the heart of the home and also a great place to focus on creating simplicity in your home decor. A quick way to help give your kitchen a simpler design and appearance is limiting the number of things taking up space on the counters. Things like small appliances, canisters, and utensil holders add clutter to your kitchen. When you are decorating simply you want to remove all clutter.
Slim down the items on the counters by eliminating the small appliances and items you don’t use everyday. Have an item or two that adds color to your kitchen, such as a bright colored bowl, tea pot, or hand towels. These items will have a great impact on the simple decor of your new kitchen.
Another benefit to having less on your counters is they will be easier to clean.
Limit your Decor to Only Your Favorite Items
When you are decorating simply you don’t have to display everything. Showcase only your favorite items and those with special meaning. By limiting extraneous decor and furnishing, you give more focus on your favorite items.
Simplifying and purging is an opportunity to reevaluate the items you have now. Go through the items in your home and ask yourself if you still like this item? Does it still reflect your style or has my style changed since I bought this decor? This often helps me limit accessories from my space.
Also, simplifying your home accessories does not mean you have to get rid of decor. Instead of getting rid of the edited items put them in box and throughout the year rotate items. This way you can change up the look of a room without having to buy new decor…shop from the items you already own first.
Having less decor will also give your home a more designer look that people may think you spend a lot more money to design.
Simplify Your Wall Art
If you love the designer homes you see in the decor magazines another way to simplify a room is cleaning your walls up. Now I am not talking about actually scrubbing the walls…I am suggesting reducing what is on the walls.
Many homes featured in decorating magazine have less on the walls than often we do. I think often we believe every wall needs something…that is a big mistake. Simplifying the wall decor to a few items…especially larger pieces or groupings will give a room a simple look that doesn’t look bare.
How to judge what size art is good for a wall…well the bigger the wall the bigger the art can be. Generally speaking you want some blank wall space around your wall items (12″-18″ is a good range of wall space).
Simplify Your Paint Colors
Give your home a simple look by reducing the number of paint colors. When I bought my first house I must admit I went a little crazy with the color schemes. Nearly each room a had a different color scheme…making the my house feel disjointed and far from simple.
If you are shooting to simplify your decor reducing the paint scheme to 1-3 colors is a good idea. This is especially true when painting the publics areas in your home. Limiting the paint colors creates a unified appearance and a great backdrop for other decor and furnishings.
What I suggest doing is have one neutral wall color throughout your home. Then you can layer in other colors with home accessories and furniture. Decorating this way also makes it easier to change out colors throughout the year.
Simplify Clutter
One key to simplicity in the home is reducing things that are distracting, cause stress and aren’t necessary. One thing that causes all three of those negatives is…CLUTTER. This is a simple design home’s worst enemy.
Clutter is very hard to stay on top of in our busy lives, I know because I am constantly working on to reduce and eliminate clutter in my home. Removing all clutter may be an impossible task at first for you, but it is possible.
Simplicity is beautiful in home decor. So if you are like me and desire a simply decorated home, commit yourself to once a week take time to simplify clutter in one area of your home. Purge unwanted items and give things you need to keep a new place to call home. Over time your weekly decluttering efforts with help you get closer to simplicity in design that is free of clutter.
Dwell Feb 2015
Everything Has Purpose in Simple Design
Another thing I notice when flipping through decorating magazines is everything has purpose in simple decorating. This may be the result of reducing the number of items in a room and simplifying clutter.
When you simplify your home decor what is left are elements that are needed in the space to add function and style…which is the purpose of decorating a home.
Look at your home, do your have decor that doesn’t serve one of these purposes…function or style. Are there items that conflict with the overall style of the room…if so remove it because the item doesn’t serve the overall style of your home. Do you have furniture in a room that is never used…if so simplify the furniture to the pieces that are used everyday.
When you remove items with no purpose in your home you will be on your way to creating a more simplified look. Soon your home will look like the homes featured in magazines.
Simplicity Right For You?
I think simplicity is beautiful in the home…but is it right for your home? Well you have to answer that question…and please free feel to do so below in the comments.
If a home that has less clutter and distractions, is easier to clean and is more focused on the needs and style you love then a simplicity may be right for your home. It sure looks beautiful in the decorating magazines and I am sure you can create the same look in your home if you apply the simple decorating methods I discussed above.
Happy Designing!