12 Things to Avoid When Redecorating Your Apartment
Redecorating your apartment is something we all need to do every now and then. A change in scenery in your own home keeps things fresh and gives you an opportunity to be creative with your living space. However, there are some things you should avoid when redecorating your apartment.
1. Don’t leave any empty walls
Seriously, don’t do it when redecorating your apartment. Not even an as an accent wall. Bare walls in your apartment make it look like you just moved in from your parent’s house and are living on your own for the first time. Now, this may be the case, but you don’t want it to look that way.
To avoid this mistake add some artwork or a bookshelf to an empty wall for some added character. If you want to avoid spending a lot on wall art, there are a lot of good sites that sell affordable, and aesthetically pleasing, prints.
2. Avoid conflicting designs
When you’re done redecorating, every room shouldn’t look like it belongs in a different apartment. Keep your overall design consistent across all of your rooms to have a more coherent feel to your living space.
You can add unique elements to each room to give it a distinctive feel but it should still keep to the same design themes. For example if you use a lot of blue in the other rooms, then one room shouldn’t suddenly switch to green.
3. Don’t overcomplicate things
Make sure you don’t over-design when redecorating your apartment. Each room should have a good balance between the amount of furnishings in the room and the amount of living space. You want to be able to move around without knocking into furniture and you don’t want to look at a wall and be visually assaulted by an overabundance of artwork.
Make sure you’re able to walk through all your rooms without pressing against furniture and keep your walls to three or four carefully selected art pieces or decorations.
4. But also make sure it isn’t too simple
You don’t want to overcomplicate your space, but you also don’t want to make it look like no one lives there. You can avoid this when redecorating by making sure each room has a few key pieces that it needs plus at least one accent piece.
For example a living room needs a couch, entertainment center, and a coffee table. But, you can add to the character of this room by including a stylish lamp or loveseat. Experiment with different pieces in different rooms to see which furnishings will make your space feel more like a home.
5. Make sure the theme you go with isn’t tacky
Now the word tacky is a little subjective but I’m mostly talking about design ideas that either a kid would come up with or is really dated. You don’t want your apartment being underwater themed or looking like it belongs in the late 70s.
To avoid this you can check sites like Pinterest or Instagram for current design ideas. There’s more than enough inspiration out there you can use to make sure your redesign doesn’t come out worse than you started with.
6. Don’t spend all your money
It can seem enticing to go online and buy all the latest trendy furniture or decorations for your apartment, but you’d be making a mistake with your money. First, start by rearranging the pieces you already have then going from there. Once you figure out what you need check your local antique stores or garage sales.
These places may not have the most up to date furniture but you can find some real gems that won’t look like the things everyone else has.
7. Don’t just do what everyone else is doing
You want to keep up with the trends but that doesn’t mean just do what everyone else is doing. Looking on sites like Instagram and Pinterest should serve as tools for inspiration, not copying. To make sure your apartment stays one of a kind, choose decorations that have some sort of meaning to you.
Whether it be a painting you really like, or a table that has been in your family for a while. Doing small things like this will keep your apartment from looking basic.
8. Don’t forget about the floor
Ah the floor, so easily overlooked. We tend to keep our focus on the walls and furniture but always forget about the ground we’re walking on when redecorating. A good way to make sure you don’t make this mistake is to incorporate a rug in every room. Choose colors that go with the other pieces in your apartment or choose a contrasting rug design to give the room some more flavor. You can even get a rug that has a good feel to it so it’ll feel good when walking barefoot on it.
In the words of The Big Lebowski a rug can really tie the room together.
9. Don’t forget throw pillows and blankets
Yes, even if it’s always hot where you live. Adding some simple throw pillows and blankets to your chairs and couches will make your apartment seem a lot more home-like. You can also add to the overall design of a room with blankets and pillows that accent the themes of the room. When choosing these make sure they’re comfortable but also stylish.
10. Don’t mix and match your appliances
I’m mostly talking about the kitchen here. Keep the appliances and kitchenware consistent. This will help your kitchen seem more put together and less like it’s just a big mix stuff you got from your parents. Choose a material and color you like and stick with it. If you have a stainless steel blender, have a stainless steel toaster. If your coffee maker is red, make sure you also have a red panini press.
This is probably the most simple tip here, just stay consistent with your appliance choice. When buying flatware and plates, make sure you buy them as a set so everything goes together.
11. Don’t forget about light
This one might be the most important thing to remember when redecorating your apartment. The look and feel of every room will be dependent on how you choose to light it. I’m a big fan of keeping the blinds open and using natural light whenever possible. By doing this you can maintain a soft feel to all the rooms that have windows in them. Also it’s easy to adjust the amount of light you let in by opening and closing the blinds. However, when the sun isn’t out you’ll have to turn on your lights and lamps.
In order to control the feel of a room choose lightbulbs that light your furnishings in an attractive way. You can also alter the light in your apartment by choosing different types of lampshades that filter the bulb’s light in a different way.
12. Don’t rush it
When redecorating your apartment you’re going to have a lot of excitement and energy. Remember to take a step back and plan things out, not just impulsively buy everything that looks good to you in that moment. Write out a list of goals you want to accomplish and start with those. Then from there start adding on the accent pieces and other additional things you want to include in your redesign. This will help you take time and carefully curate your living space.
You’re likely going to live in this space for a while, so make sure you take the time to make it look good.
