When you embrace your individual style, your home can become a personal museum of all the things you love. What better way for your family and guests to learn what exactly makes you tick? When you feel at home and relaxed in your space, other people will too.
Whether you are working on your own or with an interior designer, you’ll need to start with a general idea of what you’re looking for. You don’t need to have your own style figured out in full. But it does help to have a general idea of what goals you’re trying to achieve or what spaces you’re trying to transform.
To help you get a bit more detailed in your thinking, here are some tips to help you on your journey of interior design self-awareness.
Create a Mood Board
A mood board is a visual tool that helps you communicate your design concepts and ideas. It’s a collection of images, materials, color palettes, text, and other elements arranged to evoke a particular style or feeling. If you need some help, you can do some online research, or ask your designer.
A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words
Go beyond your mood board and collect some images of rooms you like. This blog is an excellent resource for images. Analyze each room and make notes about the specifics in each that you especially like and why you like them. Pay attention to colors, patterns, furniture styles, and decorative accents that consistently appear in your selections. Are there any common themes emerging?
What’s your lifestyle?
At Decorating Den Interiors, we’ve been dedicated to Lifestyle Decorating for over five decades, with a central focus on creating spaces that reflect our client’s lifestyle. Reflect on your own, and your family, how you live, interests, and personality to determine what you want your space to feel like. Do you prefer a cozy and rustic vibe, a sleek and modern aesthetic, or a colorful and eclectic atmosphere – and don’t forget what you don’t like, too, when you define how you put together your space.
Research Design Styles
Familiarize yourself with different interior design styles by researching and learning about their characteristics, history, and key elements. Some popular styles include Traditional, Scandinavian, Mid-Century Modern, Industrial, Bohemian, and Coastal, Minimalist, Maximalist, Dark Academia, and Classical. More recently, new Interior Design styles such as Japandi, Hygge, and Biophilic have emerged. There’s also Sustainable and Eco-Friendly Design – which can be incorporated into any of the styles.
Experiment with Samples
Before making any significant design decisions, experiment with samples of paint colors, fabrics, and materials to see how they look and feel in your space. This will help you visualize your ideas and make informed choices.
Start Small
You don’t have to overhaul your entire space at once. Start small by updating one room or area at a time, incorporating new elements, and gradually refining your style as you go along.
Seek Professional Guidance
If you’re feeling overwhelmed or unsure about defining your style, consider working with Decorating Den Interiors. Contact us today to schedule a consultation. For us, no two homes are ever the same. We’ll bring all the samples to you, so that you can observe them in your space. We make sure everything fits – and works with your lifestyle.
Finding your interior design style is an exciting journey that involves exploring different aesthetics, understanding your preferences, and discovering what resonates with you. We can help and make it even more fun.
