Design 101- 2 Important Questions to Ask Yourself Before you Begin Decorating

Have you ever decorated a room and then turned around and redecorated it much sooner than planned? If so this post is for you!

One common mistake people make in decorating is thinking all they have to do is find furniture and décor they love, buy them, bring them home and after a little color coordinating they’ll be done.

Although buying things you love and color coordinating are important aspects of designing a room it is most important to start with one’s end goals in mind.

There are two questions you should always ask yourself before you start designing or decorating a room. Can you guess what they are? Humor me and see if you can guess them.:-)

First question(s) is what is the purpose of this room? What kinds of activities will be happening in this room? Try to imagine yourself in the space.

What setup would help these activities go the smoothest? What pieces of furniture are necessary for the purpose of this space and which are not?

You may think this is a no-brainer question that everyone already thinks about before they start decorating but you would be surprised how many people (myself included) jump into buying things for a room before considering this important question.

For example, someone may buy a house with a formal dining room and just start decorating it as a dining room even though they rarely entertain.

Additionally because they’ve seen it in other peoples’ houses they think a dining room “should” have a buffet table. So, they go get one even though they don’t have table linens or anything to put in it.

The room becomes a useless space full of stuff. With more planning he or she would realize that the room would not be worth using as a dining room and could create a more purposeful, meaningful space for their particular family.

Perhaps a playroom, an office, a library, or a music room would be more functional for the family?

If you take the time to be thoughtful about how you want a space to help you function in your life you can prevent unneeded expenses and get more enjoyment out of your home.

The second essential question to ask yourself before you decorate a room is, what mood do I want the space to exude?

For example, do you want your bedroom to be calm and serene or bold and cheerful?

A bathroom to be elegant and sophisticated or rustic and relaxed?

Note: Minus the mirror sconces–they definitely bring in an elegant vibe which I like but if someone was going for a relaxed rustic bathroom those particular sconces wouldn’t help create that mood.

A family room to feel energetic and  hip or peaceful and traditional?

And the options for moods go on and on and on (til the break of dawn).:-)

Again you may think this is an obvious question to ask yourself but it is common for people to jump into buying things before considering the mood they want and then they wonder why they’re not happy with the room even though they love the decor they picked for it.

Deciding on the mood for the room first is so essential because all other decisions for the room will be based on those descriptive words.

When considering paint colors you can then ask yourself does this color reinforce the mood I’m going for? Does this piece of furniture match the mood I desire for the space? Does this wall treatment or wall decor support the vibe I want in the room and do I love it?

While it may be fun to start decorating with shopping it is imperative to first take the time to think about and answer the questions discussed in this post. I am confident that doing so will in the end save you some time and money and help you create spaces that will enrich your life!

To view my 10 other Design 101 posts you can click, Here.

What have you been up to? Are you working on any home related projects right now? I have been working on my other IKEA bookcase hack this week. Almost done! Hope you have a great weekend!!

[jetpack_subscription_form]