Decorate your home like an interior designer with these tips

Sarah Tolle – Homify Canada Sarah Tolle – Homify Canada
homify Modern living room
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Creating a home decor scheme that aligns with your initial vision is a real challenge. The assembly of each area often brings about many surprises and obstacles which can cause you to deviate from your original decor plans, and things like price, technical difficulty, and spatial limitations often seem to intrude upon even the best of ideas. 

Many homeowners question as to whether it's better to DIY when it comes to home decor, or whether it's worth it to hire a professional interior designer to do the job. While hiring a professional offers the obvious benefits of experience and expertise, doing it yourself can be a highly rewarding experience full of self-discovery and learning. Perhaps the greatest benefit of DIY- beyond saving money – is your ability to deeply personalize your decor, creating a space that speaks to your unique vision from a very personal point of view. 

If you're a fan of doing your interior design yourself, here are some guidelines for undertaking some basic home decor projects:

​Painting the Walls Yourself

It doesn't require a rocket scientist to paint walls, but it does require that you know how to properly wield a brush or roller. Keep in mind that the walls should be painted in vertically oriented strokes from top to bottom. If you're a beginner, you'll want to stick to a solid colour; if you have some experience, you can undertake a more complex design like the colorful geometric wall in this room.

Keep these tips in mind: always use plenty of large drop cloths, remove light switch covers and furniture before starting your paint job, and always test your paint colour in a discreet spot before going all the way.

Looking to make your home into a more relaxing space? Use the decor tips in this ideabook guide!

​Creating your own wall hangings

To create something unique, you don't need to have extraordinary skill – all you need is a bit of imagination and the raw materials. The small details that you incorporate into your home's decor make the place truly yours; don't hold back when it comes to expressing your sense of style, humor, culture, or aesthetics. When in doubt, remember that less in usually more – simple lines, patterns, and color schemes with plenty of negative space (like this recycled wooden frame example) often speak louder than busy, complicated constructions.

​Building your own furniture

Although fewer people attempt to make their own furniture, this is a great way to add character to your rooms! Designs that recycle old industrial equipment and wooden pallets are especially popular, and there are many tutorials online that'll take you through the project step by step. As you create your DIY furniture, remember to invest in high-quality materials – you'll likely be spending less money that if you were to purchase the furniture brand-new, but not too much less. Furniture supports a lot of wear and tear. That said, if your place sets the right stage for industrial chic furniture made of heavy-duty materials, then this DIY solution is especially appropriate for you.

​Adding your own focal points

An interior designer focuses on creating a visually engaging focal point in each room, a spot where eyes are instantly drawn. This focal point will allow your guests to instantly grasp the room's sense of style. In this example, a large graffiti mural covers the main wall in this open concept living room, creating an edgy, artistic atmosphere. Like this mural, your focal point – whether it's a table, a creative lamp, or a contrast couch – needs plenty of room to breathe, so always give your focal object the center stage by surrounding it with more downplayed items.

You can also use a single standout material as a focal point – recently, metallic materials have become very popular. Have a look at this ideabook all about incorporating copper into your home for more tips on this decor trend.

​Doing your own wallpaper

While the tiny floral prints of the 80s seem to have vanished, wallpaper is coming back into style with large, colorful patterns, colour fades, and mural-sized images. Consider adding just one statement wall covered in wallpaper, instead of the whole room. Avoid bubbles under the surface of the wallpaper by making sure the wall surface is clean and by diligently using a good wallpaper roller to smooth it out.

​Add interest through recycled items

Any interior designer will tell you that eco-friendly design is topping the charts in terms of popularity, whether it's in the form of energy-efficient appliances, a passive heating system, or through a room's resource-friendly recycled decor. This pallet coffee table took little more than a pane of thick glass and a few screws to attach 4 wheels to the bottom. The pillows are likewise a simple construction made from squares of used fabric. In combination with the neutral colour scheme, these objects contribute to a down-to-Earth, shabby chic vibe.

​Create your own unique look with vintage items

Vintage furniture and decor offer styles to suit every type of interior. Adding these timeless items will infuse your space with charm and soul. If you feel that your space is lacking a sense of character, count on a well-selected assortment of vintage pieces to create a more complete story within your space. When it comes to vintage, there's no need to stick to one culture or time period – some of the best arrangements, like this one, display an eclectic blend of objects that all sing their own song in some way or another.

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