How to Use Basic Design Principles to Decorate Your Home
Some people are born with a great eye for decorating or design. Others learn the skill and are able to apply it successfully. And then there are the rest of us. If you don’t have much of a knack for design, a few basic techniques can go a long way.
These decorating rules and principles are simple enough that most anyone can apply them. Your home might not look like a West Elm catalogue, but it’ll look presentable.
You might already be familiar with the rule of thirds for photography. Designing with odd numbers as a foundation can create harmony and visual interest, explains designer Cecilia Walker:
Follow The Rule of Odd Numbers
The basic idea of the rule is that details and objects that are arranged or grouped in odd numbers are more appealing, memorable, and effective than even-numbered pairings.
Find Your Room’s Focal Point
A room’s focal point is its most emphasized feature. It’s the thing your eyes are naturally drawn to when you walk into the room. And everything around the focal point compliments it.
If you’re lost with how to start decorating a room, finding its focal point is a good start. Many rooms have built-in focal points: a large window with a view, for example, or a fireplace. If your room doesn’t have a built-in focal point, here are some tips and options for creating one:
Paint one wall a different color, then accessorize with artwork or shelves, says interior designer Coral Nafie.
Decide what you want to use the room for, then create a focal point around that, says The Inspired Room. For example, if you want to use a room for reading, you’d make a bookshelf your focal point.
Nafie also suggests simply using a large piece of furniture as a focal point.
You could use a large piece of artwork as a focal point. A large mirror also works well.
Once you find the focal point, decorate around it. Use its main color in elements throughout the rest of the room. In the above example, the focal point—the fireplace—is white. The red walls make its color stand out, and the white candles, orchid and vases all around the room compliment the fireplace.
You can also frame it. In the photo, the vases, windows and sofas serve this purpose. A fireplace is easy to frame, as it usually comes with a mantle. You can add decor on or above the mantle. If your focal point is a large window with a view, you might arrange your furniture to frame it. If it’s a large mirror or an interesting piece of artwork, you might frame it with two smaller elements on either side.
Once you have a focal point, a center point helps balance the room. Apartment Therapy explains:
The center point is the core of your room’s layout. It doesn’t have to be the exact middle of the room, although that’s the case in many homes. The center point of a living room is where the coffee table or center table will sit, with seating arranged around it.
Think of it as the room’s anchor.
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