Designing the interior of your home can be an exciting but sometimes intimidating process. With the right interior design principles, you can turn any room into a beautiful living space that accommodates your unique lifestyle.
In this blog on interior design for new homes, we’ll answer the following questions:
- How do I design my interior for a new house?
- What are the 7 principles of interior design?
- When decorating a new home, where do I start?
- Does interior design increase home value?
- What is the 80-20 rule in decorating?
- Should I hire a professional interior designer for my home?
How Do I Design My Interior for a New House?
Here are some important steps to consider when strategizing the interior design of your home.
- Decide on Styles and Color Schemes
You must decide on an over-arching theme or style for your home before choosing finishes, furniture, and decor. There are a variety of interior styles, like minimalist, transitional, and mid-century modern, to name a few. Looking at interior magazines or scrolling sites like Pinterest for inspiration are great ways to define your style, find color schemes that inspire you, and complement the spaces.
- Select Finishes, Furniture, and Accessories
Once you’ve chosen the overall theme and color scheme for each room of your house, you can begin choosing finishes, furniture pieces, and decorations that will go together to build your vision. You can use tools like interior magazines, Pinterest and Houzz for inspiration when choosing styles and colors. These sources allow you to view professional designs with attractive combinations of furniture, rugs, artwork, and more.
- Choose Focal Points
A fireplace or a kitchen island are natural attention-grabbers and easy to utilize as focal points for room design. Decor-like paintings, framed images, and patterned rugs can catch the eye and affect the overall dynamic of your room.
- Consider Lighting
The lighting you choose for your rooms dramatically affects their atmosphere and ambiance. You can use lighter, darker, warmer, or cooler lighting to create a specific mood for a room using artificial light by lamps and ceiling lights in conjunction with natural light through your windows.
People tend to prefer a kitchen with high sunlight exposure because it creates a positive, high-energy atmosphere. Rooms like libraries and bedrooms may have less natural light and the use of dim lamps for a calmer, more peaceful environment.
What are the 7 Principles of Interior Design?
In the world of interior design, seven principles can be used to apply to each room of your house. These include balance, harmony, rhythm, proportion, scale, emphasis, contrast, and detail.
Balance
Balance in interior design refers to a room’s stability based on a symmetrical, asymmetrical, or radial approach.
A symmetrical approach uses a mirroring effect to divide a room into two, having each side reflect the other. For example, you may place a nightstand on both sides of a bed or matching chairs in your study.
On the other hand, an asymmetrical approach uses different shapes and sizes of furniture and decor to complement each other. The goal here is to balance the room by keeping stability between the two sides. An asymmetrical loft may have a couch on one side and two chairs on the other to balance it.
To take the radial approach, you’ll need a defined focal point (a fireplace, kitchen island, wall painting, etc.) and smaller pieces evenly spaced around it. A large coffee table could be the focal point of a living room with two chairs surrounding it.
Harmony
Harmony considers the individual elements of a room and how they create unity. The size and shape of furniture and style choices determine this. You’re working towards an over-arching theme for each room or the entire house. Even with unique looks, each space can share a common color scheme to add a natural flow as you travel from room to room.
Rhythm
You don’t want your room to stand still. That may sound odd, but giving a room the illusion of movement through rhythm can bring it all together and create a harmonious flow. To do this, incorporate furniture and decor with repetitive patterns, shapes, textures, and colors. A pop of color here and there will draw your eye to specific areas of the room.
Scale & Proportion
As you design the interior of your house, you can look at the dimensions of walls and square footage to determine the best furniture and decor choices. Rooms with smaller ceilings and floor space call for less bulky furniture to avoid overcrowding.
Proportion refers to the spatial arrangement of furniture in each room. Not only do you want to be aware of the distance between furniture and decor but also the flow of shapes, textures, and color elements. How do these elements interact with each other? Are they complementing or overpowering?
Emphasis
Often used in the radial approach, the principle of emphasis’ goal is to create a focal point that catches your eye as you enter the room. You can use color, patterns, and size to accomplish this, for example, a colorful art piece or a stonework fireplace.
The piece doesn’t have to be large or dramatic. A backsplash with contrasting colors from the rest of the room, a colorful flower arrangement in the middle of a dining table, or throw pillows can effectively add something extra to a room.
Contrast
We looked at harmony earlier as a means of tying a room together. Incorporating contrasts into a room can spice up the space and prevent it from becoming too uniform or dull. As contrast suggests, you can place opposites together to create an interesting environment; darks and lights, textured and smooth surfaces, and small and large pieces.
Detail
A room that contains only the basics can appear bland; matching couch and pillows, coffee table, TV hutch. Details add a lot to a room and allow you to incorporate different colors, patterns, and textures.
Rather than just the basics, add the finishing touches like a textured basket, patterned throw pillows, and a cozy throw blanket. Plants and artwork can go a long way as well. Remember, you want each room to include functional pieces but also items designed to draw attention and add attractiveness or warmth to a space.
When Decorating a New Home, Where Do I Start?
When beginning the decorating process, start in the living room. This tends to be a highly occupied space and typically the first room people see entering your home. Because of this, it will create the strongest impression of your house and set the tone for the rest of your home.
As for the actual decorating process, start with an inspiration, such as a rug or artwork. Always choose your most prominent pieces of furniture first. Once you do this, you can work around them to place smaller pieces and decor to complement each other. In the bedroom, always begin with the bed; in the living room, you should decide on your sofa or sectional before anything else.
Consider rooms that are open to each. Be sure to create a visual flow with a cohesive style, look and feel throughout the home.
Does Interior Design Increase Home Value?
Interior design plays an essential role in reselling value. People often mistake the exterior of their home as the breadwinner in real estate. Remember, people typically spend the majority of their time indoors when they’re at home.
The National Association of Realtors shared that an average return on investment for interior design projects is approximately 50%. While a maintained lawn and fresh coat of exterior paint can go a long way, people want to enter a house that instantly feels like home.
What is the 80-20 Rule in Decorating?
The 80-20 rule in interior decorating refers to a room makeup of 80% neutral, significant elements, and 20% decorative elements. Neutral elements include larger and permanent items such as flooring, walls, and certain furniture pieces.
The remaining 20% comprises decor that adds personality to the room, like artwork and engaging, more minor details like embroidered pillows. This balance allows the space to be both functional and visually appealing without being mundane or too overwhelming to the eye.
Should I Hire a Professional Interior Designer for My Home?
Nowadays, the average person can access great resources like Pinterest, providing millions of design ideas and color palettes for rooms. Even with these tools, investing in an interior designer gives you access to personal expertise to guide your vision. Keep in mind that there are pros and cons to both DIY design and professional design.
Taking a DIY approach makes it more challenging to meet design principles fully, but it can save the cost of hiring an expert. Going with a professional can save you time by working with someone who knows their way around interior design. You’ll also be able to collaborate with someone who understands your needs and unique style, giving you confidence that the end product will be a well-designed space you’ll love to call home.
Choose Trinity Homes AZ For Personalized Interior Design
Are you ready to transform your house into your dream home? Let our interior design team bring your unique story to life! Schedule a consultation with us today and start your journey toward a personalized, beautiful living space for you and your family.
