As everyone is spending almost all of their time inside their homes, during this quarantine, we’re bound to re-examine the design and functionality of the spaces we live in.
If you’re not blessed with an excess of square footage, decorating and making your space feel truly livable can be a challenge. The shortage often results in focusing on the practical instead of the pretty, which is less than ideal if you’re into design. A makeover doesn’t have to mean pulling down walls and buying a roomful of new furniture. Sometimes one small change is all it takes to make a room feel fresh.
During a worldwide pandemic, and a lockdown within most States in our country, it is obviously difficult to find resources to decorate and reorganize a home interior. Even with certain essential stores selling home goods, many people are in a financial bind and don’t want to spend much on non-essential upgrades to their home. Here are some ideas on how to make spaces feel larger, more comfortable, and aesthically pleasing.
For Furniture…
When I redecorated my living room I really wanted a Pottery Barn type of look, but I wanted to stay in a budget that was less than Pottery Barn’s prices. I ended up going with a large sofa and two club chairs, in a solid white canvas, from IKEA and they definitely look like they came from Pottery Barn, but just a fraction of the price. Although it sounds insane that I chose a white Ikea sofa and chairs, especially since I have two toddlers and two dogs, the textile is a very thick and heavy canvas/cotton material and they are slipcovers, which I can easily remove and throw in the wash machine with bleach. It comes clean very easy. I love how the white sofa and chairs make my living room appear light and airy, and bigger. Most retail stores like Ikea are allowing for curbside pickup. It’s understandably difficult to replace furniture right now, but slipcovers are sold in a wide array of colors, for most couch and chair sizes, with many online retailers.
Less is more. Opting for fewer, larger pieces over a bunch of smaller items will make your space feel bigger and less cluttered. For example, unlike I did, you could choose a sectional instead of a sofa and set of chairs to maximize a petite living room. Although it’s difficult to go furniture shopping right now, you can eliminate unused or impractical pieces of furniture that don’t serve a big purpose in your home.
Go high. Bring bookcases (and kitchen cabinets!) all the way to the ceiling to lead the eye up and fake the appearance of a taller space.
Try furnishings with legs. Sofas and chairs with legs create a more open feel than pieces that sit directly on the ground or those with skirted bases.
Minimize patterns on textiles. Most fabric sofas and chairs are manufactured with solid textiles anyway, but make sure you go with textiles that don’t use a pattern. Since solid textiles aren’t busy, they don’t overwhelm your eyes in a room, and make a space appear larger.
For Room Décor…
Art, Mirrors, and Plants
I used a round mirror to reflect light and bought a dresser to be used as a credenza to place all clutter, including my kids toys.
Use mirrors. They’ll bounce light around the room, making it feel more spacious.
Reduce Clutter. Make the space of a room appear larger by minimizing clutter, and removing unnecessary, unused items in a room.
Opt for oversize. Large-scale art makes a room feel more grand in scale. Having many, small framed art or photos on a wall make a room feel small and cluttered. When I redecorated my living room I place three large 18×24 frames with prints of photos my husband had taken over the years. I had the photo prints done by Walgreens and it was only $20/print.
Hang art high. If you have tall ceilings, take your gallery wall all the way up to emphasize the height.
Plant Life. Buy a tree (I like the height and shape of the fiddle leaf fig), put it in a basket, and place it anywhere that needs a little love. A bare corner is especially a great spot for a plant.
Written by Erica Rivas
Erica is a local Los Angeles Realtor at The Agency, who enjoys discovering new ideas on how to keep her Pasadena home looking fresh.
