Buying a new home is an exciting time. With that excitement also comes a bit of stress and uncertainty -- especially when it comes to making your new house feel like your home.
No matter how great your new spaces are for accommodating your family and lifestyle, empty spaces and white walls can be overwhelming and, well, boring. I understand the desire to personalize your new home as quickly as you can. Being surrounded by the things you love really have an impact on your happiness.
Here are some ways to personalize your new home.
- Establish a whole house color palette. Take a look at your furnishings and accessories and determine the dominate colors. From those, create a 3 - 4 color palette that you can spread around your entire home. For example, the colors may be grey, blue, green and yellow. Use those colors in various shades (lightness and darkness of a color) throughout all of your rooms. This immediately creates cohesiveness and allows you to move your pieces from room to room because they always coordinate.
- Create art walls. Nothing makes a house feel more like a home than art on the walls. Collect all of your art and photos in one space and begin grouping them together in collections for hanging. Focus on a few large walls that need filling and hang several pieces to create impact. You are much better off having 3 large art groupings than spreading your art out so that each room has 1 piece.
- Style your bookcases. If you have built ins or stand alone bookcases in a family or living room begin styling those to show off your treasures and tell your story. Use only your nicest hardback books and favorite treasures. Often books look even better if you take off the jackets! Sort books by color or size and begin stacking them horizontally and vertically. Once those are set add in your accessories to complete the look. Remember to leave space for you eyes to rest.
- Jazz up your powder room. This small room is a quick and easy space to decorate. Select a bold color from your palette (see #1) and paint or paper the entire room in that color. Add a new mirror or light fixture (if you don’t love the current pieces) and frame some great notes, pictures, kids’ art or calendar pictures and make a statement via art. P.S. Don’t forget to paint the ceiling. Add a great soap dispenser and hand towel and your room is ready to show off! (see more tips about adding a splash to your powder room in this video)
- Outside add a pair of flower pots to your front step or porch. Flank you door with two large pots filled with evergreens or a favorite perennial to welcome guests. The pots should match the style of your home and should be appropriate in scale (bigger is often better, but make sure you have room to easily enter the door). A welcome mat that reflects you is a great final touch.
Most importantly, make sure that everything you place in your home means something to you and reflects who you are!
Best,
April Force Pardoe
Owner & Interior Designer
AFP Interiors
