16 Ways to Make Your Home More Elegant

You want to make your home more appealing, but you’re not quite sure where to start or what exactly needs to be updated. Sound familiar? The thought of redesigning or renovating your home can be overwhelming, but as long as you plan ahead, you can achieve the look you desire.

When developing a strategy, start with the bigger concept. What are you trying to achieve? Do you need a complete renovation, do you need to improve an existing space, or are you starting from scratch? Maybe you want your home to feel more open and airy. Maybe you want to make it cozier.

Start by thinking about the colors you want to use in each room. What aspects of the room need to be improved? Does it need more light, is it too small, too big, is the ceiling low? Does the room lack warmth or is it too cluttered?

Each of these issues can be addressed with good planning. But before you can start, you need to understand which aspects of your home you need to focus on. You don’t necessarily have to tackle every room at once, you can start with a few or just one at a time.

1. Establish a color scheme

Before you begin painting, decorating, or furnishing a room, it’s important to have an idea of what color scheme you want to emphasize. Color schemes can range from neutral, monochromatic to contrasting and everything in between.

Often, it’s best to start with a light, neutral color on the walls and use it as a blank canvas for the furniture and accessories that will be placed in the room. This allows for a greater number of color combinations without overwhelming the space.

You don’t necessarily have to use white for walls, although it can work very well. However, try to stick to lighter shades rather than more saturated colors. This will give you more freedom to furnish and choose furniture with bolder colors.

2. Create the illusion of height

If the ceilings in your home are low, there is little you can do to change that unless you remodel. However, you can create the illusion of height through the type of furniture you use, wall patterns, and the use of moldings.

Crown moldings not only serve to enhance the look of the room and fill gaps, but they also have the effect of making a room feel taller. It directs the eye towards the ceiling and makes it appear higher than it actually is.

Thin, vertical patterns also have the effect of making walls appear taller and the ceiling appear higher than it actually is. This can be achieved with various wall textures: stone, wood, striped wallpaper, as long as the orientation is vertical.

3. Install crown molding

Crown moldings can instantly add elegance to your rooms. Additionally, it makes rooms appear taller while simultaneously concealing construction flaws.

When painted in a light color relative to the surrounding walls, it can also create the illusion that the walls recede further back. This makes rooms appear larger than they actually are.

Wood crown moldings are available in various shapes and sizes and can be painted, stained, or left natural. Consider crown moldings as a way to instantly add attractiveness to your rooms.

4. Consider a coffered ceiling

Coffered ceilings can instantly add visual interest and elegance to any room. The pronounced recesses and intricate detailing immediately draw the eye upward.

Coffered ceilings, once only used in large public buildings and palaces, are a great option for residential houses thanks to streamlined modifications in modern materials.

Coffered ceilings can be painted or detailed to personal aesthetic preferences. They can be minimalist in detailing or opulent and intricate, depending on the desired effect.

5. Add wall texture

Adding texture to walls can add a lot of visual interest to a room. Texture is not limited to wallpaper, but includes metals, bricks, natural stone, concrete, plaster, wood, and more.

While it’s possible to apply textures to all wall surfaces in a room, it’s often best to highlight a specific wall. This helps to draw attention to that particular wall. You should make sure that particular spot deserves to be the focal point.

You can also use the textured wall as a feature wall and add more interest to it by placing artworks or sculptures in front of it. If you opt for a feature wall approach, make sure the surrounding walls complement it in terms of color.

6. Highlight statement pieces

Statement pieces, whether it’s furniture, artworks, sculptures, or natural elements, should immediately catch attention when someone enters a room. Make sure to place them in a way that they are seen right away.

You need statement pieces in rooms, especially in living spaces such as living rooms, dining rooms, family rooms, etc. They provide a special element of interest and attract visitors into the room. They also make excellent conversation starters.

Look for items that are unique or have special meaning to you. They can be colorful or highly embellished, or they can be more luxurious in terms of material or composition. The important thing is that they add a special value to a room.

7. Invest in a quality sofa

Of all furniture pieces, the sofa is the one you really want to take your time finding. It’s a piece of furniture that you will have for many years, so try to find one that you’ll be happy with and that will make your room look great.

A good sofa should be comfortable and fit well in your living room, reflecting your personal taste and style. Consider the material, color, pattern if any, and how it works with the room’s color scheme.

Scale is also important. You don’t want to choose a sofa that looks too big or too small in the room. Also consider the orientation of the sofa. Is it more practical to place it in the center of the room or against a wall?

You also need to think about the shape of the sofa and what other furniture pieces you will be using in combination. An L-shaped sofa or a sectional can serve as a single focal point, or you can combine the sofa with a loveseat or chairs.

8. Add some throw pillows

Pillows are a great way to liven up your furniture and add some color and texture. They also provide additional comfort. If you have existing pillows that are outdated or worn out, consider replacing them to breathe new life into your room.

Start by choosing a specific color and stick to it for your pillows. You can combine similar shades or use complementary colors for it to work.

Think about patterns as well, you don’t want to create too busy of a look by combining too many patterns or materials. A good formula to use is a solid, a simple print, and a busy print.

Layer the throw pillows. A single throw pillow on each side won’t look as good as having two or three. At the same time, don’t overdo it. The throw pillows should get smaller as you move towards the center of the sofa.

9. Add flooring

Flooring includes all the finishing surfaces that are placed over a floor structure. It can have a big impact on the appearance of a room as it occupies a large area. It is also available in a variety of materials.

Wood is a popular flooring material in homes, it gives rooms an elegant look and is relatively easy to maintain. It can also be stained in various tones, making it very versatile. However, there are other options as well, and you should consider what is best suited for your home.

Bamboo has gained popularity recently due to its eco-friendly appeal. Laminate flooring, a cost-effective alternative to hardwood floors, has also gained popularity as it can be effectively designed to resemble hardwood.

Other traditional flooring options include carpeting, ceramic tiles, vinyl, and linoleum. Which one to use depends on the usage of the room and the overall aesthetic you want to achieve.

Of course, another alternative is to use rugs in certain areas of your home. Rugs bring color and additional material texture to any room, making it softer. They can also make a room cozier.

10. Invest in tableware

While probably not the first thing that comes to mind when thinking about how to beautify your home, a good set of tableware can make the dining room look more inviting and add some color.

Elegant tableware can give your meals a nice finishing touch on the table. Besides tableware, runners, vases, and candles among other accessories can add even more visual appeal to the dining room.

Try to incorporate the tableware and surrounding accessories or accent pieces into the color scheme of the room. It doesn’t necessarily have to match, although it’s often a good approach, but it should at least complement the colors of the room.

11. Inspiring art and sculpture

Art and sculpture bring a room to life. They are focal pieces that reflect the taste and personality of the homeowner. Take your time when choosing artworks, they should truly inspire and have special meaning to you.

Due to their significance and because they are natural focal points, make sure to place them front and center. They should be the elements that visitors see first and automatically catch their attention.

12. Use mirrors

Mirrors are a great way to add interest to a room and make the space appear larger. You can find mirrors in a range of sizes and frame types, from highly embellished to minimalist and frameless.

Place them strategically in the room. Think about what they will reflect, whether it’s a grand chandelier, an artwork, or maybe a striking piece of furniture. Depending on what you want to reflect, place the mirror accordingly.

Additionally, mirrors don’t have to be flat against a wall. You can place them in a recessed alcove for a more architectural look. You can also add architectural features to the mirror to make it blend better into the room layout.

13. Install attractive lighting

Lighting can add significant value to a room. From selecting fixtures, to create visual interest, to the actual dynamics of the light itself, lighting can highlight areas of the room and set the mood.

There are three types of lighting that you should focus on. Ambient lighting, which illuminates the entire room. Mood lighting, which can be used in specific locations to evoke a certain feeling. And finally, accent lighting.

Accent lighting is used to highlight specific elements in the room. For example, if you have an artwork or sculpture that you want to highlight, accent lighting helps draw attention to it.

14. Natural elements

Natural elements such as plants or flowers are always a nice touch in any room. They work well as a contrast to the more formal stiffness of the materials used for furniture or architectural elements of the room.

They also help add some color and organic relief to the straight geometry of most rooms. Place them strategically in a room in this sense, using them to create a certain balance or to highlight a specific spot in the room.

15. Space out your furniture

It’s important to space out your furniture adequately. If it’s too close together, the room will feel cluttered and small. If it’s too far apart, the room will feel empty and cold. Find a balance.

You also need to consider the distance of your furniture from the walls. In some cases, it may make sense to pull your furniture away from the wall to make the room appear larger.

In other cases, you may want to place furniture against the wall to further open up the center. Experiment with what looks best. Try to envision the space with furniture in certain places and how the room feels depending on the layout.

16. Remove unnecessary furniture

Removing furniture pieces, accessories, or decorative items can sometimes go a long way in making a room look more appealing. The less-is-more concept certainly has its place in interior design.

With all the furniture pieces or decorative items we accumulate over time, it’s easy to lose track. Take an honest look at the rooms in your house and ask yourself if they feel too crowded or cluttered.

If the answer is yes, then it may be beneficial to remove certain pieces. Focus on the pieces that you absolutely need or that add aesthetic value to the room, and eliminate those that don’t.