Who doesn’t love a good interior design hack? These ideas might be small and simple, but the outcomes can have big impact on a space.

Hang curtains higher

This trick will help make your room feel taller and therefore bigger - because it draws the eyes upwards and makes windows feel bigger than they actually are.

When hanging your curtains, hang them higher than the window itself. It depends on how much wall and ceiling space you have, but 15cm higher should do the trick in most homes.

Add wall lighting

Layered lighting is one of the best ways to add some ambience and style to your home. Not only does it provide additional light but the light fitting itself acts as a stylish piece of wall decor.

It doesn’t necessarily mean that you need to get the electrician out to chase holes in your walls (although granted, this does look more seamless) - there are plenty of plug-in options available now, or even battery powered wall sconces which give the look of wired-in wall lights but are powered by small remotes.

Scale your wall art

At this point I’m sure I sound like a broken record but scaling your art is such an important part of making a room work. Making a statement with a piece of art, print, or photo that you love is a great way to bring some interest and joy into a room.

As a rule of thumb it should take up at least 2 thirds of the space that it is filling. You don’t necessarily have to get one huge piece of art, this could be a pair or trio of prints together, or a gallery wall.

Add a statement rug

And again, one of my favourite things to harp on about, is getting the rug right for your room. In fact I wrote an entire blog post about it: How to choose the right rug.

Adding a statement rug has multiple benefits; helps add a focal point to the room, groups furniture which might otherwise feel like it’s floating, and adds colour and texture to a space. Check out the examples below by Katie Hodges Design - all of her designs feature huge rugs which fit beautifully in the spaces they occupy.

Mirror tricks

I recently went to a client’s home which was a single aspect flat with a view across London from the balcony. Inside, they’d installed seamless, full-height mirrors on the walls perpendicular against the balcony doors - and the result was that the view was doubled in the reflections, making the space feel like it had double the light than it actually did.

Mirrors can be used for all sorts of trickery in the home - by making views seem bigger, bouncing light around a space, or making a room feel double the size. If you have a blank wall in a small space, try adding a big dramatic floor length mirror. Or if you have a darker room, add a mirror to reflect the light around the space.

Think in styled vignettes

In interior design, a vignette is pleasing group of objects which are styled together. I often think of them as “photo moments” - a group of items which would look great photographed.

Try bringing this idea to an armchair, for example. If you start with the armchair on it’s own, then add some cushions for texture, a piece of art above it on the wall and a floor lamp next to it to add some height and style. Then a plant to bring some nature, and a side table.

The result is a corner which is functional (hey you’ve just created a stylish reading nook!) but also looks great.

Group decor into 3 or 5

Styling your shelves is a great way to curate your decorative objects and add some design flare to a room.

Generally speaking, objects look best when grouped in odd numbers with the optimum being 3 or 5. This isn’t a hard and fast rule though but it can help to remember when you style a shelf.

Make sure to play with height and depth - you can lean pictures and art behind smaller objects, or give small items height by stacking them on books.

Hide the clutter

Lastly, I know this one is difficult to achieve all the time, but you will make it easier for yourself to hide clutter and mess if you have enough storage for it. No one lives in a show-home (as I write this, books, cards, bits of paper and cat toys are strewn around me on our living room floor…) but hiding the clutter is one of the best ways to upgrade your space.

Even just having an aesthetically pleasing basket or laundry hamper to chuck toys and other bits into will work. You can also look for multi-functional furniture which acts as hidden storage.

If you’d like my help with your next project, check out my services to see how we can work together. If you’ve enjoyed this blog, don’t forget to subscribe below to receive my new post in your inbox every Sunday.