Avoid These Interior Design Mistakes
Interior design can be a complicated and unique process, especially if it is your first time designing a space. For many homeowners, or renters, interior design can seem challenging, as it comes with lots of different moving pieces (no pun intended!). Without the proper strategy and game plan, you may wander into interior design mistake territory, where no homeowner or renter wants to be!
Of course, mistakes are common with interior design, especially if it is your first time designing. Additionally, interior design mistakes can be helpful, as they can teach you what to avoid next time. But, there are a few basic interior design tips and tricks that even the most experienced interior designers still benefit from.
Let’s unpack some of those common interior design mistakes, but also share some ways to avoid them. And don’t worry, we won’t leave you just there, we’ll also look at several interior design practices you can start soon!
The Importance of Interior Design
Before we look into interior design, we need to have an understanding of the importance of interior design. Beyond interior design serving an aesthetic purpose, it serves multiple functions for a variety of spaces. Interior design is important because it helps to:
Provide Creative Expression
With interior design you can really allow a space to march to the beat of your own drum. If you are drawn to modern looks, then you can create a more modern, focused space. If color and patterns are your thing, then that can also come to life in any room! One beautiful part of interior design is that it can be the space for your creativity and personal expression to shine.
Maximize Your Space
Regardless of the size of your space, interior design is important to make the most of a space. Whether it is a smaller office space or grand living room space, interior design works to make sure furniture is placed carefully and strategically. Interior design also extends to decor and color palettes with your space. Collectively, these elements work to make sure you’re optimizing your space, be it small or large.
Meet Needs for Family Members, Such as Children or the Elderly
If your home is home to more family members than one, it’s important to be mindful of how your rooms can meet the needs of other members. This isn’t to say that you can’t curate a space that reflects your mood or aesthetic. Rather, it means to curate a space that also meets the needs of any children or elderly family members. You’ll want to make sure your space is toddler friendly, but also helpful for the elderly to navigate. This concept is also important for family members who are disabled, as you’ll want to make sure your space is accessible.
Optimize Resale Value
If the time comes that you decide to sell or rent your home, then it will be worthwhile to amp up your interior design. When a room is carefully designed and curated, then it may influence a buyer’s decision to make an offer soon. This can help them to visualize spaces and can see their potential future home in action!
The Most Common Interior Design Mistakes
When designing a room, it is easy to feel rushed and overwhelmed in the process. You’re excited for a new space and eager to decorate, but sometimes in the rush things can get missed and mistakes can happen. Some of the most common interior design mistakes are:
- Wrong size rug, either too large or too small
- Not enough lighting, whether natural or or not
- Too matchy-matchy
- Furniture is out of scale, either too large or too small
- Selecting paint first
- No clear aesthetic direction
- Lack of friction or contrast in furniture or decor
- Lack of investment pieces
You may be reading this list and thinking, “I currently have some of these mistakes in some of my rooms!” and that is normal! These mistakes are very common, but incredibly easy to fix.
Common Interior Design Mistakes in a Bedroom
Let’s break down further and look at some of the more common mistakes in certain rooms. The bedroom is usually a space of relaxation and comfort. But, that does not make it a stranger to interior design mistakes. Some common bedroom interior design mistakes include:
- Too much of this, too much of that: Be it too much clutter, too many pillows, or too much artwork, this is a common error seen in the bedrooms. In a space where you’re meant to wind down, less is always more!
What to do instead: If you’re prone to creating clutter in your bedroom, consider including pieces of furniture that are multifunctional. These are pieces that serve multiple purposes, such as a sleek nightstand with drawers. A nightstand like this can have items on the top, such as a lamp, but stow away books or TV remotes. You can also add a plush storage ottoman at the end of your bed, if the space allows.
- Inadequately sized furniture: It is important to make sure that the pieces in your bedroom are fit to scale, and that there are not too many large or small items in the room.
What to do instead: Interior designer, Brianna Unterer, suggests that a bed can be the focal point of the room. And with that, you will want to ensure that each piece of furniture, bed included, is at the appropriate scale for its space. Generally speaking, it is always best to leave 2 feet of rug to extend out from under the bed.
Common Interior Design Mistakes in a Living Room
Your living room is often the center point of the home. A space where you can really bring your creativity out, but it’s also the space where you may host your guests the most! With that in mind, it’s beneficial to make sure living room design is top tier. But, there are a few common interior design mistakes seen in the living room. Some of these are:
- Wrong rug size: Similar to the wrong scale of furniture in the bedroom, a rug in a living room can either overwhelm the space or not do much for it!
What to do instead: Interior designers recommend understanding the goal of placing a rug into a living space. This can help determine its size, like if it needs to be placed under a coffee table set. Medium and larger sized rugs work too if placed strategically with the furniture while also being mindful of the entire size of the room. Some designers suggest that the front legs of a piece of furniture (chair or sofa) stand on the rug for the sake of design and flow.
- Lacking a focal point: A living room can quickly become overwhelmed with too many pieces of furniture or decor, but can also be underwhelming if too bare and empty. This tension is common, especially if there is no clear focal point in a living room.
What to do instead: You’ll want to find a piece of furniture that can serve as a focal point in your living room. Look for a furniture piece, or artwork, that is visually appealing and interesting. From here you can orchestrate other pieces of furniture around it, and even gather a sense of color inspiration from it.
So, How Do I Prevent Common Interior Design Mistakes?
Now that we have an idea of a few common interior design mistakes, let’s look at some tips and tricks to prevent any additional mishaps. These tips can be applied to any room in your home, regardless of its shape or size!
Step 1: Brainstorm, Plan, Get Inspired
Before you head to the furniture store, you’ll want to create a plan of what you’re envisioning your space to look like. This may mean gathering inspiration pictures from magazines or online publications, and gathering descriptive words on paper to reflect how you want your room to feel like. Doing this will help to eliminate what you do not want in a space, but will also help you narrow down exactly what you’re looking for.
Step 2: Measure and Map Out
After you have a vision of what you want your space to look like, you’ll also want to know your space’s measurements. This will be helpful when you go to look at pieces of furniture to see if they will fit in your space—don’t be afraid to bring your measuring tape with you when you go shopping! All of this helps to say time, money, and any trips back to the store.
Step 3: Use the 60-30-10 Rule
If you’re new to the world of interior design, it can feel like a different planet. But, an easy rule to follow is the 60-30-10 rule. In any space this looks like 60% of the room being focused on its main color. This translates to the main color being found in the sofa, walls, or any other big furniture pieces.
30% of the space is focused on the room’s secondary color. This color is found in side chairs or curtains.
The final 10% is all about the accent color in a room. Accent color is seen in throw pillows, smaller decor, or art.
The 60-30-10 rule is a helpful starting point to spruce up your interior design in any space. Additionally, this works in any room from the bedroom to the living room.
Step 4: Use the Red Rule
Another common interior design rule is known as the red rule. The rule is simply adding a pop of red into a space to bring a different flare and feel to any room. When adding red to a room, it is important to be strategic with what kind of red colored item you add, and where. Interior designer Sheri Peterson explains it this way, “It comes down to hue, value, and chroma…colors that are complementary…are the most pleasing to the eye when they are of similar value and chroma.” Essentially, you’ll want to ensure that the shade of red you select to include in a room is complementary to the other colors in that space, like darker, brownish reds for deep earth tone rooms or light reds for monochromatic beige rooms.
Step 5: Remember the 7 Interior Design Principles
When in doubt with any design concept for a room, look back at 7 basic interior design principles. Check to see if they are in line with the following:
- Balance: either symmetrical or asymmetrical
- Harmony: a consistent thread of cohesiveness
- Rhythm: inclusion of color, finishes, texture, and prints
- Appropriate scale and proportion: including items that are neither too large nor small
- Friction: create contrast, or friction, with strategic opposite items
- Details: the little things matter, from finishes to door knobs
- Emphasis: spice it up with a eye-catching focal point
Some Final Interior Design Thoughts…
Even though it can feel overwhelming when tackling a new, or familiar, room with fresh interior design, these tips and tricks are helpful starting points. Regardless of where you are in the interior design process there are simple and easy ways to elevate your space whether it be bringing in a pop of red, adding in the right sized items, or just focusing on detail. You do not need to be an expert of interior design to make a place look like a designer did it!
Furnishing A Space With Price Point Furniture in Nashville, Tennessee
If you’re ready to bring your interior design dreams to life, then stop by one of Nashville’s largest furniture outlets, Price Point Furniture. We offer a variety of pieces to meet any of your interior design needs, from modern living room furniture to living room sets to Stearns & Foster mattresses, we have it all!
Visit one of our locations in the greater Nashville area today, and connect with one of our dedicated team members. We look forward to meeting you and joining you on any interior design journey.