If you’ve lived in the same home or apartment for a few years, you may not have bothered to update your home decor or furniture. You may feel dissatisfied with your dining room furniture or your old kitchen appliances, but it’s what you’re used to. Why change? Changing up your home decor and furniture can actually have a huge impact on your mood. Did you know that almost 15% of Americans say that their home furnishings cause feelings of gloom or stress? Only 20% of Americans are actually happy with their home decor. About 7% of Americans haven’t freshened up their home decor in the last five years and that number increases to 9% when you look at the last 10 years or more. Whether your home is too cluttered, making spring cleaning a nightmare, or your dining room furniture is decades out of date, mixing things up and trying something new can have a rejuvenating effect on your home — and the way you feel!
What Rooms Should I Zero In On?
Kitchens, bathrooms, and living/dining rooms are usually good places to start. Kitchens generally receive a good amount of use, and if you’ve ever thrown a dinner party or other social function at your home, you know that people tend to gravitate towards the kitchen. Freshening up the kitchen by rethinking storage and function can make a huge difference — and make your life easier, in the long run. Bathrooms tend to be a bit smaller — other than the master bath — so even something like a fresh coat of paint or clever storage solutions can make a big difference.
Dining rooms can often be a more formal space that still get a good amount of use. Indeed, Houzz’s recent home decorating survey showed that almost 75% of respondents said they were going to use their dining room at least weekly. A good dining set is an excellent investment and if your style or taste has changed recently, it might be worth looking into selling your current set and looking at new ones. Convertible tables with hidden leaves can be great for turning the family dining table into a table that can seat a good number of dinner guests, for example.
What Are Some Fun Redecorating Ideas?
A fresh coat of paint or new wallpaper can do wonders on any room, as can updating your molding. Redoing grout or tile in bathrooms can provide an easy facelift. Looking at your dining room, replacing seat covers or repainting/re-varnishing furniture can give your dining room furniture new life.
Applying the “rule of threes” to any room in the house is also a good idea when doing home decorating. Odd numbers of objects are more eye-catching and prove to be more interesting to observers than an even number of objects. Similarly, if you put a gallery wall in your foyer, living room, or a bedroom, try to leave three inches of space between frames to make them look even and not too crowded. Gallery walls are a great way to display family photos, pieces of art, or other eclectic items on your walls.
Where Can I Find Unique Furniture?
If you’re not interested in a more traditional route or a uniform set of modern furniture or rustic furniture, for example, you may want to look at antique stores, estate sales, or online to find eclectic blends of furniture that will work well in your home. Who says your dining room furniture all has to match? Even better, obtaining your furniture from these places may give a sense of history and age to your home that can be hard to find.
However, in today’s day and age, more and more retailers are getting creative with the furniture they offer and there are plenty of DIY guides available if you want to go further and add your own flair to more traditional furniture you already own.
Don’t let the way your home looks keep you down. Be adventurous and consider redoing even just one room in your home if you feel stagnant or unhappy with the way your home looks.