Guide to Your Dream Home
How to decorate when you are starting from scratch – or don’t know where to start.
1. Decide what you like
It can be overwhelming walking into a showroom straight off, so take the time to look online or use design magazines such as Ideal Home & Real Homes. Compile the images that you like together, whether that’s on a computer or cuts outs onto a mood board. Apps such as Pinterest are great for this.
Once you’ve compiled a dozen images for each room you’re interested in decorating, consider what they have in common and will the different rooms work together?
2. Create a budget
Figure out what you’ve got to play with, be honest about everyday expenses and commitments as there is no point over stretching yourself and then regretting it later on.
If you can afford to do the whole house at once great, you may be able to gather savings along the way. However, many of us need to go round room by room in which case you need to identify your priorities first –my tip would be to do the rooms that you use most often and spend most time in. It’s not a race, creating your home is a journey that you should enjoy.
3. What do you have and what do you want to keep?
Often you’re not starting from complete scratch so is there some items that you’d like to keep that need worked into the styling? Perhaps there are features of the room that you’d like to embrace or alternatively hide.
4. Pick a style
Go back to your collection of images and identify what sort of style you like best. Does colour play a prominent role? Do you like modern or traditional settings? To make a room flow well it is advisable to stick to a certain style throughout as it helps bring it all together.
5. Sketch out a floor plan
Draw out your room on paper or use an online app. This is really useful when you start to look at furniture. Is there an obvious way that the rooms need setup or is there flexibility? For example in a bedroom, you can be limited by the options for where a bed can be positioned, a fire place in a living room could limit the use of a wall but also become the focus for the room.
6. Is built in-storage a consideration?
Storage can be a big issue for many of us and at times freestanding furniture can just look cluttered or leave lots of ‘dead space’. Bedrooms, hallways, utility rooms, and even living rooms can benefit from fitted cupboards or wardrobes that give a sleek and contemporary finish. Sloping ceilings, and awkward spaces can be a frustration when redecorating but considering a bespoke fitted solution could open up other opportunities for styling the rest of the room. Take a look at our fitted wardrobes page, they needn’t only be used in the bedroom!
7. Pick a colour palette
Some people say to start from the floor up, but I think you could just as easily work from a painting or piece of furniture. The key thing is to identify the item that you favour the most and then work from there considering what compliments it.
It is also worth noting here that paint is probably one of the least expensive parts of the project and as it can be available in an infinite variety of colours I’d suggest it can be one of your later decisions.
8. Select a starting place
This will probably come again from your collection of images, as you may have identified a certain sofa, carpet or kitchen design that you have fallen in love with. Use this as the lead for the rest of your room décor so that it complements each other and brings the room together.
9. Pick out you investment furniture pieces
Investment furniture items are those that will be used forever, therefore it’s worth investing in good quality rather than having to repeat purchase too early in their lifespan. Investment pieces include items such as beds, sofas, chest of drawers and a dining table.
I would suggest when looking at investment pieces such as sofas to go fairly neutral as that way you are less likely to get bored of them. Accent pillows, ornaments and other accessories can be used to bring character to the room and are more affordable to change again in the long term.
10. Choose your flooring
You could choose your flooring before or after your furniture, the key is that it all works together. You might have fallen in love with a modern tartan carpet, in which case that is the focus for your room or perhaps you are just looking for something neutral to use as a base. First off you’ll need to decide if you’d like hard flooring or carpet, and then take it form there. For more information on how to decide your flooring click here
11. Curtains/blinds
Like either of the above points, your window dressing could act as the focus of your room or as a background piece that has a functional role. Choosing whether to go curtains or blinds will come down very much to the style you have chosen, the room in which you are decorating and perhaps any noise reducing measures required. There is a variety of different styles to choose from for more information click here
12. Select your accessories
Accessories help finish a room, they are also an opportunity to bring your personality out. Lamps, mirrors, ornaments, pictures they bring your room to life, be careful not to take it too far and end up with a room full of clutter!
13. Read our blogs
It can be draining surfing the internet all day and night trying to find answers so we’re doing our best to compile blog articles on useful information that will help you decide what’s best for your house. Click here to see our current collection. If you have a particular query that’s not answered here please drop it into an email and we’ll get back to you as well as getting our website updated for everyone else’s benefit.
14. Speak to an expert
We know it can feel overwhelming at times, so we offer a free in-shop consultation where you can sit down with one of our team and discuss your project in detail. Based on our experience we have found that our customers have a number of questions that they’d like to ask and we endeavour to do our best to answer them without any pressure to buy.
By popping into one of our showrooms, in Montrose or Carnoustie you’ll be able to browse our stock and ask any queries that you may have.