10 Rules of Interior Decorating: Some Tips to Help Create a Successful Home Décor Scheme

Learn 10 interior decorating rules, or tips and tricks, that will help you approach and deal with decorating any experience with confidence and ease.

There are no hard and fast rules to interior decorating in fact, it’s by breaking the rules that some of the most stunning and memorable interiors decorating schemes evolve.

But the following 10 interior decorating rules can be treated as tips to help build decorating confidence and create stunning interiors.

Interior Decorating Rules: Personal Considerations

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1. What Does the Owner Like?

Whether decorating for yourself or someone else, knowing the owner’s personal style, likes and dislikes is essential. Create a design book packed ideas that appeal to the homeowner.

2. Create a Budget

Never the fun part, but budgeting is an important aspect of every interior decorating project. Be realistic and try to be as detailed as possible, itemization is a great tool.

Room Considerations

3. Know the Space

A vague idea of the space to be decorated is usually not enough, learn the dimensions (carry a cheat sheet), the outlets, the direction windows face. Learn everything about the room before beginning the decorating process.

4. Find the Focus

Each room should have a focal point, if there isn’t one, then create one through interior decorating objects or style. If there is one, take note and treat it as such.

5. Think about Function

Be practical when considering what the room is and will be used for. Workaround the function with interior design schemes or the room will quickly lose its appeal.

6. Find a Theme or Unifying Element

Whether its color, style, form, or pattern a theme or unifying element is necessary for each room to keep it cohesive and pleasing to the eye. The theme can be obvious to visitors or it can be more obscure, but a good theme brings everything together.

7. Consider Lighting

Whether the light is natural or artificial, lighting is a very important part of the decorating scheme and existing and new light situations should be considered. Don’t forget to look at the room at different times of day if natural light plays an important role.

8. Use Balance and Scale

Learn about the scale and how to create a sense of balance in a room with the right sized pieces and dramatic or bold elements. Without balance, a room will feel off-kilter and oddly uncomfortable.

9. Consider the Entire House

A room can look great, but fall flat is it is considerably removed from the decorating scheme of the rest of the home. Not everything needs to match but there should be something that ties the room to the rest of the home.

Going Shopping

10. Carry Samples

When it’s time to begin matching colors, patterns, paint, fabrics and other design elements it’s important to have samples at hand to get the closest match possible.

By using these interior decorating rules as guidelines or tips there is some creative flexibility but there are also some markers to keep the decorating project on the right path and will result in a successful interior design scheme.