You don’t have to furnish your home with the most expensive items to make it look high-quality. Many simple changes can make your home look more elegant without the high price tag. We’ve listed the 18 most common decor mistakes that can make your home look cheap.
Using Too Many Plastic Accessories
Plastic can look extremely cheap in a home, so if you have too many accessories or furniture made from plastic, it can bring down the overall design. Switch out plastic for alternative materials like wood or metal, which can look more robust, durable, and sophisticated.
Having Cluttered Rooms
If your home is filled to the brim with clutter, it can feel messy and even dirty. More organized storage will improve its face value. Verywell Mind explains how uncluttering your home can also help boost the ambiance and improve focus.
Choosing Mismatched Furniture
Having matching furniture can make a home look classy. It gives rooms a more cohesive design. If you have chaotically mismatched furniture, it can look tacky. Making sure that your main pieces of furniture match and then introducing unique items here and there is the best way to mix up your furniture.
Implementing Too Many Open Shelves
Open shelves can be the perfect place to display ornaments, artwork, and books, but they need to be done tastefully. If you have too many open shelving units that are overflowing with items, it only adds to the clutter, which can make everything look less dignified.
Making Poor Lighting Choices
Lighting can make or break a room’s ambiance. Harsh overhead lighting could make your rooms look cold and commercial. Setting the right tone with ambient lighting by using warm candles or colored LEDs can make everything feel more elegant.
Neglecting Your Window Dressing
Bare or empty windows can make a room feel completely different, even if it’s furnished perfectly otherwise. Bare windows make you think of empty homes or unfinished rooms. Adding a pair of curtains or blinds for an attractive window display will add value and warmth.
Only Buying Cheap Fabrics
Good quality fabric doesn’t have to cost the earth. Often, you can tell how cheap a fabric is simply by looking. Think about thicker, bolder fabrics compared to cheap and thin. Better Homes & Gardens advises that you should always look at the thread count; the more tightly woven, the better it will wear.
Choosing Short Curtains
While window dressing is important, it’s also vital not to install curtains that are far too short. Floor-to-ceiling curtains, or even just curtains that drape onto the floor, can add a more sophisticated layering effect. Short curtains can make ceilings look lower and windows unbalanced.
Having Excessively Themed Decor
Having just one room with a theme is much better than theming your whole home. This can easily look tacky, especially if you have too much of one thing throughout. If it’s a niche theme or hobby, it can look more effective contained to one styled room.
Showing Too Many Personal Photos
It might be time to pack away some of those childhood favorites because having far too many personal photos can overwhelm visitors. Personal photos lining every wall and shelf not only feel cluttered but leave no room for artwork or creative decor.
Having The Wrong Size Couch
According to Martha Stewart, the couch is the piece of furniture that “anchors the space” in your living room, which is why it’s so important to get it right. If you have a huge space with a tiny couch, everything will feel a little off. Correct couch placement and sizing are paramount.
Using Inconsistent Color Schemes
Even if you enjoy rooms decorated differently, the color palette should still have some cohesion overall. Whether it’s bold colors throughout or minimal décor instead, it should all feel connected. The colors you choose should complement the space they’re in.
Adding Outdated Accessories
Adding accessories to your home can add style and sophistication – as long as they’re the right accessories. If you have an elegantly modern home that displays only dusty, old-fashioned antiques, it won’t feel right. If you do like antiques, blend vintage touches with contemporary in a subtle way.
Buying Too Many Fake Plants
Many fake plants look very convincing, but if you aren’t buying the right ones, they can easily look like shiny plastic. If your home is filled with poor-quality plastic plants, this will only devalue your decor. Real houseplants will always look more stylish.
Putting Old-Fashioned Carpet in Every Room
If your home has wall-to-wall carpeting in outdated color schemes or faded patterns, it can feel dusty and dated. Carpeting can work best if the material and color are chosen to complement the room and then blended with other flooring choices, like hardwood.
Ignoring Functional Needs
A home can be elegant while still feeling functional. If you choose style over substance, it can make a home feel superficial and cheap. House and Garden explains that “functional” means something personal to you: it’s dependent on your daily routine. Decide what you need from a home, and implement that.
Choosing the Wrong Artwork Scale
Artwork should complement a space by design and be the right size for the wall. If you choose tiny artwork for a huge wall or artwork that is far too big, it can all result in an imbalance that feels unimpressive rather than creative.
Not Adding Personal Touches
The final decor mistake you could be making is failing to add unique or personal touches to your home. While it’s important to never overdo it, incorporating personal items, unique finds, or even gifts from loved ones will turn a cheap, clinical space into an elegant, welcoming home.
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