Unexpected Home Decor Ideas Will Change Any Room

Sometimes, making daily life feel more pleasant comes down to upgrading your space with some new home decor ideas. Even small changes can make a big difference in a room, but if you have the budget, a major change can really transform a space. Take a look around and see what areas of the room you feel need a new look. Then, collect ideas for the things that could change, both big and small. Many people immediately think it has to be a new piece of furniture because that’s actually the easy way out. Instead, consider some other options. Not sure what to do? Check out these home decor ideas to fuel your imagination.

Sometimes, making daily life feel more pleasant comes down to upgrading your space with some new home decor ideas. Even small changes can make a big difference in a room, but if you have the budget, a major change can really transform a space. Take a look around and see what areas of the room you feel need a new look. Then, collect ideas for the things that could change, both big and small. Many people immediately think it has to be a new piece of furniture because that’s actually the easy way out. Instead, consider some other options. Whatever you decide to do, there are some things you should keep in mind.

Best Home Decor Design Tips

Don’t Worry About Rules

With few exceptions, most of the old decorating rules have gone out the window. Your room décor ideas should reflect your personality and be designed for how your family lives. That said, there is a difference between rules and design principles, which help guide your preferences. Design principles encompass things like balance, scale, harmony, contrast and symmetry. These principles apply to any style and are important to keep in mind as you make over your space.

Accommodate Your lifestyle

The coolest decoration ideas in the world won’t work if they doesn’t fit your lifestyle. If you’re a slouchy couch, feet on the coffee table type of person, you won’t be happy with a delicate glass table and a formal sofa, no matter how great they look. It’s much the same with materials and colors. For example, if you’re not the most fastidious housekeeper or have a crew of small children, an all-white room is probably not the best choice no matter how much you love the look.

Plan your space

As with most things, a little planning up front can pay off in big way along the road to a refreshed space. This planning should cover budget as well as what types of new items you’re shopping for. Some of the most basic advice includes measuring the room and identifying the size of the pieces you should shop for. Do you need a modest three-seat sofa or can the family room comfortably accommodate large sectional?  What size rugs should you shop for? Having a plan will save you time and money – and possible a few headaches!

Identify the focal point

A focal point is the element in the room that immediately catches the eye and pulls you in. This can be a piece of furniture, a spectacular view out the window, a painted wall, artwork, a fireplace and so on. These room décor ideas not only have immediate visual impact but will be things around which you plan the rest of your space. The most important thing to remember: Every room should have one. Period.

Pick the Big Pieces First

For the most part, the largest pieces in a room are likely the ones that you will live with the longest. So, it follows that these should be the ones that you choose first. Think about it: It’s far easier to find a rug or a coffee table that goes with a sofa than the other way around. Also, changing the color of a room to better match a sofa you love is among the easier decoration ideas, while trying to search for a sofa that matches your wall paint is more difficult.

Embrace Empty Space

If you’re thinking that your room is too small, have you considered that you might have too much furniture in it? In fact, this is one of the most common decorating errors people make, according to designers. Too much furniture makes a room feel crowded, impedes traffic flow and generally makes the space feel small and closed in. So that means that subtraction is among the best room decor ideas. Try paring down the number of chairs, side tables or cabinets in a room and allow for more ease of movement.

Don’t be Matchy-Matchy

There once was a day that buying the main pieces of furniture in a room as a set was listed as one of the great room decor ideas, but those times are long gone. Matching pieces of furniture and décor that is too matchy-matchy overall is a look you might find in grandma’s house — very dated. Today’s interiors have more variety within a style, incorporating different surfaces and textures and mixing a variety of materials for more interest and freshness.

Be Wary of Trendiness

Adding a few trendy accessories or an of-the-moment chair are great ways to freshen up décor, but redoing entire rooms to reflect current trends will create an obvious interior that won’t stand the test of time. Take rose gold for example: A couple of years ago it was a trending finish and among the hot home decor ideas for all sorts of things including bathroom fixtures. And now it’s not…

Choose Carefully

Don’t feel like you have to buy everything at once or change all the elements in a room at the same time. If you replace the sofa, for example, live with it for a while and think about what type of coffee table, side table or other piece would work best for you. You’ll be happier in the long run if you take your time choosing from among all the home décor ideas.

22 Unique Decoration Ideas For Your Home

Add a Statement Cabinet

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Just because you need extra storage space doesn’t mean that it has to be boring or hidden away. Adding a statement cabinet will give you a place to stash away your belongings but will function as a defining element in your room. There are so many different cabinets to choose from, that it won’t be hard to find a knockout piece to highlight your room. This platinum-front Hamada Cabinet  is by Jean-Luc Le Mounier and uses a metalwork technique that was previously only used for jewelry.

Pop in a Furry Element

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Unexpected textures are a quick route to a perked-up interior and there’s nothing like a furry element as a room décor idea. This ottoman by Rick Owens is a great example. Crafted from Fischer fur, foam and steel, his Single Prong in Black Fur is a monolithic piece that will work in many spaces. Whether its’s used as an accent or positioned as more of a centerpiece, the highly textural look will be a fresh addition.

Go Minimalist

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Even if the rest of your home is a different style, there’s nothing wrong with adopting a minimalist approach for a room décor idea. Editing a space down to clean, unfussy elements creates a room that is like a breath of fresh air. This living room has turned these Baby Beluga Chairs by designer Alexander Díaz Andersson into the main feature. The low profile of the alpaca-upholstered chairs helps create the serene look.

Shake Up Your Lighting Style

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Do double duty and chose a really artful lighting fixture when you need more illumination in a room. Or, swap out a standard fixture for a more distinctive one for a quick style makeover. The range of choices is nearly endless, with table lamps, floor lamps, sconces and ceiling fixtures that reach far beyond the ordinary out-of-the-box lamp. This one is the Lampe Flore by Celia Bertrand from Galerie Scene Ouvert. Lighting is a great opportunity to go a little wilder with your room décor ideeas because it is easily changed.

Go Big With Sculpture

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Small sculptures can be very nice but a large and dramatic one can make an unexpected and positive impact on your décor. Magodi – Abongile is by artist Zizipho Poswa and is a marvelous example for its color, pattern and dramatic silhouette. Large works like this one can be displayed at floor level or on a tabletop of cabinet.

Add an Element of Illusion

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An element that is not what it seems at first glance can add so many dimensions to your décor. Seungjin Yang’s Blowing Armchair looks like a giant version of the balloon creations that kids love. Indeed – those are balloons but the artist developed a way to preserve them in eight layers of epoxy and turn them into a solid piece of furniture. Melding art, technology and creativity, these types of chairs are wonderful room décor ideas and will always get a “wow” reaction.

Keep the Mood Lighthearted

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Interiors that take themselves too seriously can feel a bit overwhelming, so keep the mood light in any space by adding a touch of whimsy. Need a side table? Choose one that is fun and different like this cast bronze table by the Haas Brothers. The feet of the table are just that – feet – and the fact that there is no top to this creature-like bottom leaves you imagining what the rest might look like!

Highlight History

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Antiques endure for many reasons, whether it’s the design, the materials or the provenance. They’re a slice of design history and add depth to any décor scheme. Among the most coveted and collected styles are Shaker design, which are based on simple symmetry and basic functionality. Cleans lines mean these pieces are ideal decoration ideas. Whether you choose some small accent pierces like these from John Keith Russell Antiques or a full set of shaker kitchen chairs, antique pieces are always a good idea.

Add Currency With Futuristic Pieces

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Futuristic form mixes with basic function, in Finn Meier’s Berlin chair from Functional Art Gallery. When you add a high-tech or futuristic look like this to your space, it immediately makes the room feel current. If this is too much of a statement, a smaller sculpture or a tech-focused piece of art are other ways to achieve the same goal.

Add Some Secret Shine

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Bling is always in style as a decoration idea but you don’t have to put on show as a focal point. There are lots of ways to add it to your décor in more subtle ways. The Kaleidoscope Cabinet Designed by Sebastian ErraZuriz  is a sleek and simple in walnut cabinet in the outside. Open it up, however, and you’re greeted by mirrors, glass, an optical lens, and electric components. Just imagine the faces of your guests when you open up this credenza – which is perfect for a bar cabinet by the way – and they see all these marvelous reflective surfaces dazzling the room!

An Unexpected Wall Piece

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Skip the large painting over the sofa — it’s so ordinary. Instead, create loads of interest and conversation by adding an object mounted to the wall instead. Here, a shiny reclaimed airplane propeller takes center stage, but you could use just about anything. Flea markets, yard sales, a salvage yard or even online sources can yield interesting pieces, sometimes at bargain prices. Decide on the type of object you’d like to have and start exploring!

Go For Maximalism

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Instead of paring down, ramp up the number of accessories. If you have a large painting, go ahead and pair it with lamps and accessories, letting it be more of a background than a focus.  This is an especially great tactic for a painting that you might not love as much as you once did, but can’t yet let go. The best thing is that if you don’t like this home decor idea after a while, you can subtract some of the elements.

Add a Little Edge

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Neutral palettes have ruled the decor landscape for quite a while and even if you don’t want to abandon yours, you can still generate some interest by adding an unexpected element like this industrial coffee table. The rest of the room has a basic transitional feel that gets an upgrade from the distressed top of the table and its painted labels. This home decor idea is easy because you really only need to change out one piece.

Change up the Gallery Wall

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Most gallery walls use pictures that are framed and matted in the same way and perhaps even have images that are all related. If you go for an arrangement that is a little less regimented, it’ll give you a whole different look. Try mixing different types and sizes of frames in the same color for a unifying element to tie the disparate works together. It’s a more casual look that creates more interest.

Change Your Bedding

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This is probably the easiest and quickest home decor idea for changing up the bedroom. Swapping out the duvet cover and pillow shams gives the space a whole new look. And, why not forego the usual and pick a pattern that’s a little bit different like this art deco print. It’s done in a neutral so that means it’ll with lots existing decor schemes, including a bedroom that has brightly colored rug like this one.

Add Flowers

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Making changes in a very coordinated and highly designed space can be challenging but adding some big flowers to the room immediately makes a difference. This is a great home decor idea for people who love their interior decor but just want a little something to freshen it up. In this case, skip the smaller arrangements you might be inclined to plop in the center of each round coffee table and choose one oversized floral design instead.

Drape Your Doorway

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If you love the sumptuous look of lush silk draperies pooling on the floor, add some to the doorway of your bedroom or living room to amplify that luxurious feeling. Layer two separate drapes and use a print border on the top drape to amp up the volume of fabric. Then, opt for some seriously oversized tassels for emphasis. Don’t forget: Hang the drapes up near the ceiling to make the room feel taller!

Sweep the Drapes to One Side

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You might have seen the technique of drapes swept to one side for a pair of windows, but using this home decor idea on a single window can make the space seem larger. In this room, drapes hanging on both sides of the window would be heavy and cover too much of it. Instead, pulling them toward the corner lets in more light and pulls the eye upward, extending the feeling of openness and height.

Pick Furniture With Special Details

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Details make the difference and nowhere else is this truer than in interior design. While this stool is part of a larger set that features the same three-dimensional flower detail, adding a single piece adds loads of interest. With the predominance of clean-lined furniture in the market today, anything with this type of detail will stand out. And, by adding a separate cushion in a color from the room’s palette, it emphasizes the piece and draws the eye.

Upholster the Coffee Table

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People regularly use ottomans as coffee tables, so why not have one with an upholstered frame?  This home decor idea mimics what you find in bedroom furniture where the frame of the bed is upholstered just like the headboard. With a piece like this, there’s no need to use a tray to hold a cup or glass as you would with an ottoman. This coffee table incorporates a full glass top.

Add a Fancy Console

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This console table features crystal and intricate silver filigree, but fancy console tables are available in all styles of home decor. Since these are mainly used in entryways and living rooms where guests see them, adding a console table that feels at least a little special for some reason is a great upgrade. Whether the fancy flair comes from the level of formality or because of special details on the console table, it’ll be an outstanding addition to the room.

Add Themed Elements

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Adding a themed piece or two to a living space can be fun and interesting. If you enjoy wine, these chairs crafted from wine barrels would be a perfect addition to a home bar or wine tasting area. Similar pieces and accessories are available to reflect different hobbies and interests that you might have so it’s an easy home decor idea for customizing a room. Just remember not to go overboard with the theme!

These are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to home decor ideas for changing up your space. Looking around at different ideas can help spur your own redecorating plan for creating a new look. You don’t have to live with your space being exactly the same as it was — try something new.