How to Decorate Your Home Based On Your Personality
MADE.com sponsors this post. All opinions are 100% my own!
As someone who majored in fashion in college, I’m ashamed that interior decorating has always intimidated me a little. So you’d think I would apply some of the knowledge I’ve learned from styling clothing to designing the various rooms in my house. But interior decorating and design can be a little more intimidating at first glance.
I believe many people desire the feeling of finding their dream home moving into it, and wanting to make every room of their own. But KNOWING how to make it your own is another story altogether. I’ve been to other people’s homes and have admired their decor before. But many times, I also remember thinking, “I like it, but I would never do this to my own house.”
The styles are just different. It’s the same feeling I get when I see a cute outfit at the store to the point where I have to point it out and admire it. Then I follow up and say, I would never wear it, but it’s cute. This insight comes from years of developing an understanding of my style. I know what I like, and I know what I don’t like.
I also know what doesn’t go well with my body type. I also know what I would never wear anywhere. These are the things to understand about yourself when decorating your home too. Questions you should ask yourself include:
- What fits my personality?
- What will simultaneously look good and be functional in my home?
I feel like these are the questions you need to answer to decorate your home based on your personality. And also your home’s character.
In this article, I plan on using the skills I’ve developed in crafting my clothing style compared to creating an interior design style for my home. I hope that you will benefit from doing the same after reading this!
1. Start with a Single Room
As it shamed me earlier to say that I didn’t understand interior design as a fashion student, I am much more ashamed now to say that I have taken several internal design courses. But, unfortunately, I still am not good at decorating my home.
Whew! That feels like a massive weight off my chest!
But as I mentioned, I will attack my insecurities with this while addressing my home decor simultaneously.
I think the big thing that intimidates me about decorating my home is the pure hugeness of the project. There are many rooms in a home and directions you can go in.
And let’s not even mention how expensive furniture and another decor can be once you decide what you’ll buy. What if I made the wrong decision? What if I did it all wrong and hated it for a year?
Well, the good thing is no one is asking you to decorate your entire house during the day. So as with any big project, take it one step at a time. Focus on one room that you want to make better. Is it your living room? Your bedroom? Or even a bathroom. Choose one room and go from there.
While you choose your room to decorate, it is also essential to figure out what makes it unique.
- Does it have big windows?
- Does it have a huge garden tub that you love?
- Or are you gushing over your kitchen for the various amounts of counter space?
Find the items about the room that you love and write them down. Those will be important when we pick out our decor because you want to highlight what you love about a room.
Now the other side. What do you not like about the room? And I know there are things you don’t like about your room because you would not be looking to redecorate it if you loved everything about it. We do this because we must figure out how to hide imperfections.
Now that you know what you like and don’t like about the room, you should be able to do this next step quickly.
2. Understand Your Interior Design Personality
Before we can even start looking for furniture or decorating, we need to learn your style and personality. As I mentioned, it’d taken me years to develop my fashion style, but we don’t have that much time.
So what we can do instead is take a personality quiz instead because quizzes make life so much easier. Made.com has produced an awesome personality quiz to determine your interior design style.
The quiz works like this you answer 11 straightforward questions about yourself, and once you do that, represent you well if your design style. So not only does it tell you what your sellers are and give you a few picture examples, but they also give you some inspirational mood boards to get an idea of how to decorate your home based on your style. It even gives you some ideas on furniture and accent pieces your style design includes. Pretty cool, right?
When I took the quiz, I learned I have a classic style. Meaning I like things like chandeliers and vintage items. Which is impressive considering how much vintage clothing I wear. I knew my interior style was very similar to my fashion style, which is a classic eclectic style.
There are four other styles you could get doing an a.com quiz: Playful Style, Rustic Design Style, Traditional Classic Style, and Minimal Style for those who favor a more minimalist interior.
Do the quiz, look at some of the mood boards, and come right back. It would be best to have plenty of ideas for the next step. Take the quiz here.
3. Think about Your Key Pieces/theme
I hope you got some inspiration from the quiz. I know I did!
Now that you have some ideas on how you want to decorate your room think about what the essential furniture pieces are in that room. Now, remember we made a list of things you love about the place and the things you didn’t like.
For example, if something you love about a room is a giant bay window, you may want to pick a piece that will accent that window, like a chair or a table right next to it. Or if there’s a part of the room you don’t like, for example, not having enough storage, think about furniture that doubles as storage, Pieces that can be beautiful and practical.
Regardless of what’s on your pros and cons list, think about accenting or highlighting the parts of the room you like the most while diminishing the things you dislike about the place.
Once you list the items you want, I do “The Chop.” The Chop is how I shop for clothes. I pick up everything I love. I put it in my cart, and by the end of my shopping spree, I have a cart full of items I know good and well I will not be taking home. So I do “The Chop.”
I go through every single item and picture how I will wear it when I wear it. And most importantly, I ask myself if I like or love it. If I only like it, then it goes back. But if I love it, I’ve got to get it.
Many numerous people may go through this process as being overly frugal. But it’s more than that. Not only is it good for your wallet, but it is a way to guarantee that you only have the things you love in your home.
I give away so many clothes every year because I buy something, wear it once, or worse, not at all, and then give it away. Going through this process has helped me not give so many of my clothes away. The same thing should go for the furniture and decor you pick for your home. Only buy the things you love.
4. Accessorize!
Now that you have your key pieces, it’s time for my favorite part of getting dressed every morning; the accessories! Sometimes it looks like certain items don’t look well together. So I’ll pick a T-shirt, a skirt, or some things that look different at first glance. So different. And it isn’t until I have accessories that it all falls together.
So go to your home and accessorize with your crucial design elements. It is incredible to see what adding a painting to your wall or a desk lamp can do for a space. Plants are suitable for this too. Look at your home and imagine what may be missing. Is there a color that would accent the room nicely? Or maybe it’s a throw blanket. Think about color schemes and items that can fit the place well.
Another vital aspect to consider when accessorizing a room is the color and material of the fabric. Whether it’s for rugs, curtains, throw pillows, or bedding, the fabric and the color can play a significant role in the overall look and feel of the space. For example, if you are considering a rug, it’s essential to consider the overall style and theme. A unique rug with exciting colors and textures can make a statement for a modern, minimalist room. Cowhides Direct offers a great collection of modern cowhide area rugs that can add a touch of edginess to a room like that.
On the other hand, for a vintage or rustic room, it’s best to opt for a rug with classic colors and materials like cotton or wool. Vibrant colors or active patterns may not fit in with the room’s aesthetic. Classic colors like brown, white, or black can work well in these spaces and create a cozy and inviting atmosphere.
Before searching online for accessories for the home, I highly recommend you get an idea for colors and interior style items that would fit your room well before you dig. You do not want websites to make up your mind for you.
It’s a lot easier to find what you want when searching for a “gold light fixture” instead of a “cute accent piece.”
5. Enjoy it
Lastly, enjoy it! As much grief as I’ve felt over the years for not having “anything to wear,” I have felt way more happiness mixing and matching outfits, especially in the company of friends.
Why can’t it be the same for decorating your home? Have your friends review mood boards and discuss what may be missing in a room to make it more You.
Being able to showcase your style is like telling the world who you are without saying a word. I remember telling my brother how much I valued dressing nice in public.
And instead of shaming me for it, he said the world is a stage, and you don’t want to get caught on it without your costume.
I couldn’t agree more!
The home you live in now may not be your last home or you’re only home. But it is your home now, a part of this zeitgeist you live in. So why not make it unique? Why not make it to You?
Thank you for giving me the idea to highlight the parts of my room which I like the most while diminishing the things where I don’t want my attention to focus on. I really love my neutral-colored wall that can serve as my blank canvass for decorating since I think I can hang a lot of crafts on it. It might be a good idea to shop around for pagan supplies that I can use so my room will reflect my personality more.