I’m an interior expert – 10 things making your home look cheap & why you absolutely have to take artwork off the wall
AN INTERIOR expert has shared the ten major mistakes your making when it comes to decorating the home and it’s making your house look cheap.
Danielle Watson, a teacher turned interior designer shared her top tips to styling your home and making it look expensive.
The mum-of-two who strives to help others love their home on a budget shared her tips on her podcast Fig & Farm (at home).
She said: “Some of these are free, so you can take big action today, but some of them might just need a little bit of rethinking.”
MOVE ABOUT
The first free way you can elevate your home is by removing furniture that is pushed up against the wall.
“If your furniture is tightly snug against every single wall, let’s move it out a little bit,” she said.
CLEAN & TIDY
Clutter was another way to instantly make your home go from fab to drab, so make sure you have good organisation and storage in the home or have a clear out, Danielle added.
LIGHTEN UP
Light fixtures also made a massive difference to how expensive your home looks says Danielle, even if you don’t think about them all the time, your guests will spot it right away.
“Ambient lighting is one of the easiest ways to create a home that feels cosy, and make it look a little more expensive,” she added.
Even if you can’t afford to switch up your ceiling lights yet, she said go for table and floor lights to add warmth instead.
CUSHION THE BLOW
Detail is key, and flat cushions will make all the difference in making your living room look chic.
“A trick I use is if I have an 18×18 pillow cover I get a 20×20 insert, because I want that pillow to be full and plush,” she added.
RUG-GED LOOK
A lack of a rug on wooden flooring or one that is too small can also make your home look undone and look ‘cheap’.
HEAVY LIFTING
“Sometimes having too much heavy furniture in one area can make your space look cheap,” she added.
Instead try and place bulky looking furniture in different places around the room so that it creates contrast in the room.
She said if you have lots of dark furniture you could try painting it to create that contrast instead of buying new pieces.
Home upgrades that add the most value to a house
The best renovation to add value totally depends on your property, the local market and your potential buyers.
Zoopla shared a list of upgrades that will instantly add value to your home.
- Loft conversion – increase of 15%
- Off-street parking – adds £50,000 to property price
- New kitchen – increase of 15%
- Garage conversion – increase of 15%
- Cellar or basement conversion – increase of 10-15%
- Open plan living space – increase of 3-5%
- New bathroom – increase of 3-5%
PERFECT MATCH
Also on the list was furniture that matches too much as it isn’t personalised to your style.
While you want your own personal style to be shown throughout the home – the interior pro also warned against having too many design elements competing with each other.
CLASHING MATERIALS
Instead of having a lot of mixture of materials such as wood and metal or lots of colour, try and opt for just a couple that work well.
Otherwise, your design choices could clash making the room look messy.
OFF THE WALL
Artwork on the walls can be tricky to pull off, but Danielle recommends a few tricks to stop it from looking tacky and generic.
Instead of hanging it on the wall alone either make it into a gallery wall or put it on a shelf with other items to elevate the lock and let it blend in with the room.
SO-FAR SO GOOD?
Last but not least, Danielle said over stuffed sofas can make your home look cheap even if they are the most comfortable thing to sit in.
“It can contribute to the feel of it being too heavy in appearance,” she explained.
“When you have that generic piece, it’s hard to inject personality into it.”