Do you know what your design style is?
If we asked you “how do you like to decorate your home”, would you know what to say?
In this blog post, we’re going to help you figure out your design style in 5 steps. We want to encourage you to take time to go through this process at your own speed. You’d rather end the process knowing what your design style is, than ending frustrated and still not knowing. 😉
Be Open Minded
Think of this time as a “dreaming session”. Don’t think about what you already have in your home. This is a time to think about what your dream house would look like, what styles make you swoon or drool!
We’re finding your style here, not redecorating your entire house. Knowing your design style will help you moving forward, knowing what items to purchase or what colors/designs to look for.
Research
We know we sound a bit nerdy saying “research”. However, this is research. 🙂
There is no wrong answer here; you’re looking for pictures that you’re drawn to, and love the minute you look at it. That’s it.
You’ll want to start with either Pinterest or Google Images.
We recommend Pinterest because it’s also easy to keep all of your pictures in a “board” or stored in one area.
Next, what you need to do is search on Pinterest or Google Images. In the search bar type in a design style.
Below we typed in “transitional living room” into Pinterest.
Next, we typed in Transitional Living Room on Google Images. You don’t have to do both, just pick which ever website you like best.
You’ll notice a variety of living rooms came up in the similar style.
Here are different design styles you can search for:
- Modern Farmhouse
- Traditional
- Mid Century Modern
- Eclectic
- Transitional
- Boho
- Minimalist
- Scandinavian
- English Cottage
- Rustic
- Industrial
- Modern
- Coastal
- French Country
We recommend searching the specific style and then adding “living room” or “bedroom”. Then you can get a full effect of the style. Example: Coastal Living Room or Modern Bedroom.
Create a Design Board
Once you start to find a style you like, you’ll want to store all of the pictures somewhere.
If you’re using Pinterest, then creating a new “board” for your design style is a great way to do it!
If you’re NOT using Pinterest, then you’ll want to save the photos in a folder on a document on your computer or on a google drive.
Every time you see a picture you’re drawn to, add it to that “board” or document.
Look for Similarities
Once you have about 15 pictures in your “board” or “document” then we want you to start looking for similarities.
Is there one design style that is dominant? Are there 2 styles that you are equally drawn to? Is there a color scheme that you see over and over again? Is it more dark and moody, light and bright, or a mix of both?
If you don’t start to see a theme…then go back and look for more pictures. Keep researching different styles until you start to see a few themes emerge.
By now your “Design Board” or “Design Document” should be filled with pictures you absolutely adore. If you don’t love it, delete the picture. This board is only for things you LOVE.
Claim Your Design Style
Now you’re ready to claim your design style! You should have at least one dominate design style from your design board/document. If you have a mix, then do a little more research to see if that is it!
For example: If you have a mix of traditional and eclectic pictures, type in “traditional eclectic living room”. That could be your style! It’s totally okay to mix styles, but one of the design styles should be more dominant.
You need one dominant style but can add in another style in smaller ways. If you have 2 dominant styles, the look will clash.
By now you should be able describe your design style. For example: I like light & bright spaces that are transitional with coastal accents OR I like rooms that are full of color with a modern farmhouse style.
If you’re still having a hard time figuring it out, reach out to us. We’d love to help you find your style!