Moving into a new space can be exciting, but it may also feel empty and overwhelming, at first. Decorating it to feel like it’s truly your own space to live and relax in can get rid of some of those negative feelings.
Megan Featherston, CEO and founder of VNTG Home in Cleveland, and Billy Klausner, president and senior partner of Crystal Illusions in Bedford Heights, discussed how someone can find an aesthetic they enjoy using today’s technology and the pieces to go along with it.
“We live in such an easy to find digital world,” Featherston said. “If we want to be inspired, we can talk into our phone and it’ll bring up pictures of things that we like.”
You can pull inspiration from anything that makes you feel good, whether that’s your favorite restaurant, a park you spend time at or art pieces you find joy in, she added. Other ways to encourage inspiration and self-discovery include creating mood boards and looking through design magazines.
Experimenting with temporary changes, such as removable wallpaper or interchangeable elements, can help you discover what you like looking at long-term, she explained.
Once you discover your personal design taste, you can begin searching for unique elements that you enjoy at stores, auctions or local markets, Featherston added. These unique items can become the focal point of your home and help create a balance between “form and function,” she said.
It’s important to keep in mind that the size of your space may also impact the way you choose to decorate, she added. Larger spaces may need larger pieces, such as oversized plants and open space art, to make them feel more full, while smaller spaces may need open windows and light colored walls to make them feel more open and airy.
Finding pieces you can comfortably live with for a long period of time is important when it comes to decorating your own space, Klausner explained.
“A lot of the fads are just that, and by the time you get it (the decorating) done, people have already moved onto something else,” she said.
The pieces you may find work best in each room can be things that are completely different from each other, as the approach to decorating is different depending on the room and its function, he added.
Sometimes the best approach to decorating a room, especially if you’re using delicate items, is going for simplicity instead of complicated designs, Klausner suggested. However, there are still many different styles a person can choose to incorporate into their home if they wish to decorate with delicate items.
In order to find things, whether you’re looking for a specific piece or simply general inspiration, talking with an expert in interior design may be helpful, as well. Experts will be able to help you find something you might like based off of what other objects you gravitate towards during your conversation, Klausner added.