Most homeowners don’t have training in interior design but they still decorate their own homes. It’s inevitable to make mistakes when designing our homes. There are some things we find that we think would look amazing in the living room— bringing them home without any idea of how it would be a great addition. Although there is no problem with decorating your home whatever the way you like, there are particular elements of design such as scale, colour, placement, and lighting that must be taken into consideration in any area of your home since they all influence how space will look. 

Even the tiniest error, like hanging a piece of art too high or picking a paint in a gloss finish rather than a matte one can bring a shocking effect on a room. With that being said, here are some of the most common home decorating mistakes you don’t know you’re making: 

Not Considering Scale and Proportion 

Scale is probably one of the biggest mistakes that almost every homeowner makes when it comes to designing their interiors. It requires a talented eye to decorate a space with a flawless scale. Other people place so many small things in a room, thus, making the room look cluttered and not providing the eye with a place to rest. 

There are some people who place plenty of large, bulky items in one room, which make the room look stuffed and tiny. If you want to achieve a proper scale, use a mixture of various shapes, sizes, and heights. New home builders and interior designers are aware of the importance of proportion and scale. Having the appropriate scale for your home will surely result in a successful design. 

Not Taking the Time to Plan 

The last thing you want to do is to have your Pinterest board get overloaded with ideas, your online shopping cart is crammed, and your finger getting tempted to click the “buy now” button. When decorating and arranging a room, it’s crucial that you step back first and examine the space. You must carefully know how to use the space, identify what’s wrong with the room, determine the issues you’ll face when updating it, and what goals you want to achieve. 

You must take note that every room has its own problems and size limitations. If it’s possible, try to make sketches on paper, then collect samples and create lists because these are helpful tactics for planning. 

Place Dark Furniture in a Small Room 

Looking for the perfect decor for your small space can be a significant design challenge that homeowners face. Most designers often notice this mistake in small rooms: putting dark furniture. A lot of people would lean towards bulky, heavy, and dark furniture pieces. This may seem like it’s a safe choice but it instantly turns a room to feel constricted and awkward. 

So, if you have a small space at home, consider choosing lighter fabrics and finishes to lift the space and make it look bigger. Your sofas or curtains should be in linen or have a lightweight fabric, also pick a light-reflecting colour palette. 

Purchasing Textiles and Fabrics First 

We’re sure that most of you are guilty of this—painting first. Before you paint the walls of your home, put that paintbrush down. What you need to do is to choose the rooms’ fabric and primary textiles, including rugs and curtains first before painting. Why is this important? It’s definitely easier to find fabrics that you want and then choose the colour of paint to match them. It would be more difficult to find the fabric you like if there is already paint on your walls. 

Explore samples of fabrics, pillows, rugs, and etc. Once you find what you love and you’re satisfied with your design choices, you may choose a paint shade or shades from the selected textiles and pick up your paintbrush. 

Choosing Bad Lighting 

This is probably one of the last things people consider in their homes. Lighting is actually essential in order to have a pleasant environment. When a home has bad lighting, it also gives a bad design. It’s not a good idea to depend on one source of lighting only. There are plenty of different types of lighting for different purposes, including general lighting, ambient lighting, and task lighting. This is why it’s crucial to evaluate a space and determine what kind of lighting it requires. For instance, ambient lighting is beneficial for a space to create a mood. 

Forgetting Character 

It’s definitely fun to visit showrooms filled with brand-new modern furnishings, but don’t feel too excited and carried away to buy everything at one time and one shop. If you do this, you’re only doing a design mistake in your interior. Don’t buy everything matchy-matchy because it will only result in your home lacking in character. So, how can you add some character to your home? Do it gradually and not instantly. It may even take years to have your home entirely complete and fully designed. 

Although getting an item to match the item in your house is nice, you can establish character within your interior design by placing that rare chair you saw at the thrift store or the lovely painting at the flea market. Slowly doing small shopping excursion during the weekends can sure build your home’s character and you will discover the things you truly like.