Design 101: Tips for Interior Design on a Budget!

Design 101: Tips for Interior Design on a Budget!

The usual trend in interior design is “expensive makes a good design,” but this is hardly true. In fact, once you get the hang of interior design, you can make your home pop out without having to blow your savings into the design, new furniture, and other items. In fact, the tips below will aim to help you make use of spacing, good lighting, and your house’s natural features to create an amazing interior design. This is useful, especially if you’re already talking with moving companies for a house move. Here are some tips you can follow: 

1. Try to share a story. One of the most important and hardest aspects of interior design is planning the “design” in itself. And it’s understandable, as there are a ton of themes and trends you can use for your design. However, you might want to express yourself and your values through a “story.”

• Try to deep dive into your aspirations, dreams, and hopes and try to work on a design in conjunction with your location. What impression do you want your home to give to people who visit?
• What exactly do you “need” for your home? What sort of “function” do you want it to have? How do you want your home to make you feel? If you want your home to be a place for relaxation, what should your home have to pull it off? 
• Use the internet for extra inspiration. Try to check what other people do with their homes, and try to integrate it with the kind of design you want to have.

1. Space matters a lot in design. Remember to plan around your space, and don’t be too hasty when it comes to “fill out” your home’s rooms. The wrong approach to design can make your home look “full” even with few objects and furniture, so be careful when pulling off your design.

• Remember to plan your space accordingly. “White space” or empty spaces around the house leave room to move and rest the eyes. So make sure these spots are adequate all throughout the home.
• Lighting matters a lot, as they can make your rooms brighter and livelier. Make effective use of large mirrors, and try to make sure a lot of natural light enters your rooms. Don’t hesitate to use mirrors as well, as using them in small rooms can make them look bigger. 
• Build from the ground up. Design can be overwhelming because you can use a ton of elements in the design. You can start with deciding the materials of your flooring and your walls, and then work on the essential furniture before adding accessories. 

1. Get more personal with your design. If you want your interior design to have a bit more “oomph,” you might want to rely on items and objects close to your heart. Embrace ownership of the stuff you have, and try to integrate them into the design.

• Make rooms or parts of your room stand out with special furniture or accessories. This can be one of the best uses of your personal items in the design. If you want a particular spot in a room to be emphasized, try using a unique piece of furniture, or a collection of photos on display.
• Conversely, build rooms around personal effects. If you have a favorite chair, a table, or a favorite accessory, try to work your design around this item. This can make your favorite item “pop” once the design’s done. 

1. Create meaningful tension in the design. Good design doesn’t just use effective design principles, it should also try to challenge them in meaningful ways. A lot of designers do this by generating “conflict” and contrast between modern and classic design.

• Rely on classic design principles and antiquated design and furniture to have that “familiar” feeling. This doesn’t get out of style at all. However, it can give a powerful impression if you use inventive fixtures and finishes as well as greens (like flowers and leaves) to keep your design fresh.
• Make effective use of color in your design. For instance, lighter and softer colors can give out the illusion of small rooms being larger. Likewise, darker colors can make big rooms seem smaller. 
• In speaking of color, try to mix and match textures and patterns to add meaningful tension in your design. The main parts of a room such as walls and floors can have “soft” textures such as wood, while fixtures and other furniture can have rough and complex designs. 

1. You don’t have to do everything alone. Remember, you don’t necessarily have to go on the interior design process alone. Even if you don’t have an interior designer, you can hire other professional services to help you with what you’re planning to do. 

• If you’re moving, for instance, you can hire movers NYC or movers from where you’re planning to move and ask them if what services they can provide when it comes to moving your furniture and belongings to where you want them to be as per your design.
• You can also consult the rest of your family as to what they want to do when it comes to the rest of your home. This makes everything a team effort and can help you spend less on professional services and spend less time fixing your home.

Budget, Practical Interior Design

Who says the interior design has to break your wallet? If there’s anything the above proves, it’s that it’s very possible for you to fulfill a stunning interior design without having to spend so much. Reading the above tips can be especially useful if you’re planning on moving to a new home soon – so you can get your interior design in order, and settle in your dream home as soon as possible. 

Sent in by Mary Davis, Outreach Administrator, Roadway Moving

Featured photo courtesy of Le Urban Development Pte Ltd