Tips on how you can make your home stand out

You live in a beautifully designed house and have bought the most expensive furniture and accessories; a professional has decorated all this in an effort to make it look like it. You yearn for a space that is beautifully put together. Unfortunately, your house does not appeal to you.

Today, I share some tricks that will make your home stand out.

• Always pile on your throw cushions. Have a small cushion placed on top of a big one of a contrasting colour. When you use single cushions on a couch, they look skimpy.

• Arrange your accessories in odd numbers; and balance them in terms of height and width.

• Dark colours make a small room feel big; so why not try painting your walls a dark colour.

• Most people use bath mats in the bathroom. Try using a real rug in the bathroom and see the difference.

• If you don’t have children (young), try a white living room.

• It is okay to mix decorating styles in your home. One style can, sometimes, be overbearing. For example, have an antique clock in your modern living room for a stunning look.

• Vary your lighting. Apart from the direct overhead lighting, have some lamps to use when you want to vary the mood. The lampshades also act as decorative pieces.

• One must not always have the traditional coffee table in. An ottoman too, can serve the purpose.

• For your room to feel grounded, have chairs with skirting to hide the legs. When the there are many visible legs of tables and chairs, the room feels ‘uneasy’.

• Do you have a lonely corner in your living room? Soften it with a potted plant. It could be a live plant or an artificial one. If it is artificial, make sure it doesn’t look very plastic.

• Dining table chairs must not always be identical. Switch up the seating by mixing up your seats.

• If you have some vintage finds, paint them a colour of your choice. Painting an antique sideboard yellow will only make it stand out.

• Our mothers hid TVs in the cabinet. Put yours on display, especially if it is a sleek flat screen.  There are many beautiful, modern TV stands on sale and you can even have a fundi make you an affordable one.

• Don’t be afraid to mix patterns. Stripes and polka dot can effortlessly work together, just like cheap materials work with luxurious ones. You may not get it right the first time, but keep trying.

•You can never go wrong with side tables. They offer intimacy to your room; ensure each sofa has its side table.

• Never divide a small space; this makes it look cramped. Turn your small room, instead, into a cocoon. If it is a bedsitter, unify it by covering your bed in a fabric similar to your walls.

• Hang your artwork together to get a larger piece of art. Six framed pieces (small ones) hanged over a sofa in the living room, will create a bigger impact.