Photo: Jimmy Dean / Unsplash
At some point or another, most people encounter a home that feels on trend with the latest styles but devoid of personality. If you’ve never lived in a space like this, you may experience it when you stay at an Airbnb or view display homes. These spaces can feel clean but unfriendly, luxurious but empty, chic but lacking soul.
If you want to avoid the trap of pursuing the latest trends and instead fill your home with life and personality, you’re in the right place. Below, you will find five tips for giving your home its own unique sense of style:
- Embrace Temporary Trials
Certain adjustments to the home are expensive and cannot be done on a whim. A new kitchen, tearing up the carpets, building an extension – financially, such upgrades are not the best way to experiment with your creativity. Structural and functional aspects need to be neutral to some degree as this will help them stand the test of time and maintain the value of your home. Ultimately, something more permanent also needs to be able to weather your changing emotions and tastes.
So, when you want to try out exciting patterns and colors, focus on things like cushions, blankets, throws, curtains, and other decor elements. A lick of vibrant paint on a feature wall, a flamboyant garden feature (or five) – such upgrades are cheap, quick, and easy. However, they work together to create a house that’s truly yours.
- Buy Preloved
The consumption and use of household goods account for 60% of global greenhouse emissions. Thankfully, you can do your bit for the planet by opting for preloved furniture and decor. Visit your local thrift stores, vintage stores, and second-hand furniture stores to find distinctive pieces that have had fascinating adventures before finding their way to your home.
- Stop Caring What Anybody Else Thinks
There are some interesting psychological theories as to why we care so much about what people think. To truly free yourself from caring about that judgment, you’ll need to do a lifetime of work on yourself. In the meantime, convincing yourself to care just a little less will free you to be more creative with your home’s design.
- Take Inspiration from Nature
You can take inspiration from the rich color palettes of nature by using natural fibers and putting up paintings or photos of plants. If you’re willing to care for a few living things, consider bringing some flora into your home. Tall structural cacti and lush climbers like Monstera deliciosa add beautiful tones and textures to your home in a way that will always be distinctive because every plant is unique.
Science has proven that even seeing scenes of nature, like a picture of a tree, for example, can reduce feelings of stress and boost your mood. So this form of decoration will improve your home’s energy in more ways than one.
- Incorporate All The Senses
Our sense of smell is connected to emotion and memory. By using different fragrances around the home, you can change how it feels without even picking up a paintbrush. The same goes for using different textures and soundscapes across the house. By moving beyond sight to incorporate the other senses, you unlock a world of incredible ways to make your home design not just unique but highly personal to you.
Go on – unleash your creativity and personality into your home so that it can blossom into the unique, personalized place that you have always wanted to inhabit.
