Posted by Pillow Decor on 2013 Nov 17th
What's Your Decorating Style?
Contemporary, modern, traditional or eclectic? Do you know what your decorating style is. Get a grip on your personal decorating style before you go shopping!
Many people struggle to find their personal decorating style, which makes decor shopping overwhelming and frustrating. You want everything to be seamlessly integrated, comfortable yet on trend, and hopefully unique to you and your lifestyle... a difficult task if you don't know what you're looking for. As a first step to pinpointing your unique style, let's uncover some of the main decor and design genres.
Different Home Decorating Styles
Contemporary: This decor style is sophisticated but comfortable, featuring clean lines mixed with smooth, round surfaces. Contemporary color palettes generally focus on neutral tones like beige, white, and tan, often with accents of bold color. Decor elements include light woods, metallic or reflective accents in chrome, steel or glass, and natural, textured fabrics. This style promotes ease, simplicity, and functionality. One of our favorite contemporary pillows is the Winter Flock Black and White Throw Pillow.
Modern: This decor style is for individuals who love both luxury and comfort. It mixes ornate patterns with furniture that is typically modeled after 18th century English, British Colonial revival, 19th Century neoclassical and French country. Think symmetrical arrangements, rich color schemes and bronze or gold accents. Traditional homes often include peach, red, tan, and green tones, a variety of trim, tassels and fringe, and heavier, luxurious textiles such as velvet and chenille. Visconti Gray Chenille Throw Pillow looks great in any modern room; pair it with a dramatic accent pillow to make your sofa pop.
Traditional: This decor style is for individuals who love both luxury and comfort. It mixes ornate patterns with furniture that is typically modeled after 18th century English, British Colonial revival, 19th Century neoclassical and French country. Think symmetrical arrangements, rich color schemes and bronze or gold accents. Traditional homes often include peach, red, tan, and green tones, a variety of trim, tassels and fringe, and heavier, luxurious textiles such as velvet and chenille. Traditional lovers should check out our Traditional Floral decorative pillow in wine.
Eclectic: Don't be afraid to mix styles if it suits your aesthetic. Just remember that eclectic decor is not cluttered; rather it is a purposeful, mixing of styles with the goal of producing a cohesive, unified design scheme. To avoid design chaos, pay attention to scale, play up contrasts (pairing the ornate with simple and clean, or bold patterns with solids), balance the mix of different styles so that they appear to be evenly represented, mix your accessories (but don't use too many) and use color to tie everything together. Done right, this style can produce a look that is entirely unique. We love the following pillows for their aesthetically pleasing audacity!
How to Find Your Own Decorating Style
While keeping these styles in mind, it's time to walk around your house and look at its contents with a critical eye. Make a list that includes things you love and things you wish you could replace. Spend some time purging things that you don't love and that don't have any sentimental value. What are the elements that unite your home and which items do you love? Is there a theme in furniture, textiles, colors, or accessories?
Go-to Stores? Where do you shop and what are you drawn to in those stores? This will tell you a lot about your style. Do you prefer stores with a singular, strong design aesthetic like Restoration Hardware or West Elm, or do you find yourself seeking stores with an eclectic mix of items and styles?
How do you dress your walls? Art is very personal -can you tell your design style from your art choices? Oil paintings suggest a preference for the traditional, while a tendency towards landscape watercolors might indicate contemporary leanings. Or perhaps you would prefer to fill you walls with sophisticated black and white photos?
How do you dress yourself? Look at your wardrobe and see the themes. Do you love color and pretty, feminine silhouettes, or do you tend toward neutrals and classics? This will help you determine your overall style, which likely translates to your favored home decor genre.
What do you like to do? If you have strong interests and hobbies, incorporate them into your design through art, wall hangings, photographs, throw pillows, books, and accessories. Your home should be an expression of you and your life, or the lives of those you love.
Where do you like to go? Where do you go when you travel and where do you like to stay? Incorporate items you have brought back from your travels or use what you have seen or where you have stayed as inspiration for your own home. Travel is easily incorporated through art, textiles, accessories and color.
Imagine your dream home. Room by room, envision what your dream home would look like and look for a common thread. Start a file or pinboard of designs you like and don't hesitate to use your friends' homes as a source of inspiration. Whether your inspiration comes from design, colors, shapes, materials, or just an overall vibe—this will help you pinpoint your personal style. Match your style with one of the genres and start searching for similar items to enhance your home. Remember that your style is an expression of what makes you happy, what inspires you, where you live, how you live, where you've been and where you want to go. Have fun!