Trying to figure out what your decorating style is? Your home style is just as unique as you are. Learn how to find your home decorating style and start making your home beautiful!
Want more ideas for your home? Check out the How to Decorate section.
How many times have you taken those decor quizzes online? The ones that promise to tell you what your home decorating style is by evaluating what kind of coffee you drink or where you want to go on vacation.
Those decorating style quizzes don’t work. And, I can almost guarantee that after you take them, you are just as lost and confused about your style as before.
And in reality, what are you supposed to do with those quiz results anyways? Normally, they just give you a theme or a particular trend that most closely aligns with your quiz answers.
But those quizzes don’t know anything about your house. They don’t know about you, or your family, or how you live in your home. And they don’t give you any direction going forward to show you how to decorate your home.
Your home decorating style is not just a theme or a color. It’s not a pattern or the type of furniture you have.
Your home decorating style is your home’s personality! And, just like your personality, your home decorating style is as unique as you are.
If you don’t know your home decorating style, it’s going to be difficult to make your home cohesive. You’ll always feel like your decor just doesn’t go together, or something about your home just isn’t right.
Knowing your home decorating style is critical if you want to make your home feel good and look good. It will guide every decorating decision you make in your home.
How To Find Your Home Decorating Style
Determine Your Home’s Current State
Before you can figure out how you want your home to look in the future, you need to evaluate your home’s current state.
What does your home look like right now? How does it feel? What are the biggest issues you face when it comes to decorating? And where do you get stuck?
Take some time to brainstorm these questions and write down the first things that come to mind.
Determine How You Want Your Home To Feel
Next, think about your home in the future – the ideal version of your home. How do you want it to feel?
Try to think about a place or environment where your family felt the most comfortable. A great example of this might be a vacation spot or a hotel room. How did you feel in that space?
You can also look at how you described the current state of your home. What about how your current home looks or feels do you want to change?
Write down some words that come to mind to describe your ideal home.
Maybe you want your home to feel relaxed, casual, and simple. Or instead, maybe you want your home to feel elegant, polished, and a little more formal.
There’s no right or wrong answers here. All that matters is that you think about your family, your personality, and your unique home.
Gather Inspiration For Your Home
Once you’ve got an idea of how you want your home to feel, it’s time to get ideas and inspirations for how your home will look.
Search for home style inspiration using Pinterest. Create a new board called “Home Inspiration” and start pinning ideas for your home. Look for things that you love rather than a particular style or trend.
My best advice is to stick with timeless overall design ideas.
A timeless home is one that is beautiful, functional, and simple.
Creating a timeless home is about creating a solid base or backdrop for your home decor. Then you can add elements that you love and let your personality show through your decor.
Trends come and go, and can make your home look dated fast. If you are always chasing the latest new trend, you’ll end up spending a ton of money updating as the trends change.
A timeless home can be adapted over time and still look current.
The 3 Home Style Profiles
There are 3 main style profiles that compliment a timeless home perfectly.
They are Modern, Classic, and Organic.
Each one has subtle, but unique differences in details and elements. But they all have a similar overall aesthetic.
The style profiles are different from a particular home decor trend or style because they are timeless. They won’t get dated over time and they guarantee that your home isn’t tied into a particular trend or color.
Choosing a style profile is about focusing on what you love rather than a specific trend or theme. You will naturally gravitate towards one of these three style profiles.
Try not to get wrapped up in the names of the style profiles. Instead, look at the elements and see which one resonates with you the most. Choose the one that you think best describes how you want your home to look.
Modern
Here are some of the elements of the Modern Style Profile:
- Clean lines
- Straight lines with less curves
- High contrast
- Monochromatic colors
- Muted accent colors
- Solid colors with less emphasis on patterns
- Bold neutrals
- Minimalism
- Simple and uncluttered
- Geometric elements
- Abstract art
- Structural elements like cement and metal accents
- Natural materials, fibers, and wood tones
Classic
Here are some of the elements of the Classic Style Profile:
- A mix of straight and curved lines
- Traditional details
- A variety of finishes
- Balance
- Moody accent colors
- Noticeable patterns that aren’t too bold
- Warm neutrals
- Symmetry
- Thoughtful accessories
- Vintage and heirloom elements
- Impactful art
- Natural textures like woven and upholstered accents
- Dark materials, fibers, and wood tones
Organic
Here are some of the elements of the Organic Style Profile:
- Simple lines
- Curved lines with less boxiness
- Low contrast
- Airy
- Light accent colors
- Subtle patterns
- Soft neutrals
- Earthy
- Lively greenery
- Botanical elements
- Landscape art
- Natural elements like stone and clay accents
- Light materials, fibers, and wood tones
Your style profile is how your personality and tastes will be incorporated into your home decorating style. Each one builds onto the timeless home decor base to create a unique, layered design style.
As you are gathering ideas for your home, try to search for ideas using the elements of your style profile.
Do you feel like you have two style profiles? Don’t worry, you aren’t boxed in. Feel free to mix and match to create your unique home decorating style.
Create a Home Style Vision Board
Now it’s time to pull everything together to create a vision board for your home. Your vision board is a visual representation of how you want your home to look and feel.
Think of it as a collage of your inspiration and ideas for your home. It isn’t supposed to be an exact replica of all the details and furniture in your home. Instead, the vision board is a collection of curated images that represent your unique home style.
How to Create a Vision Board
If you want a super simple way to create your home style vision board, I’ve created a free guide for you. Just click on the button below to get the guide sent directly to your inbox.
You can also create a vision board on your own. I like to use a single sheet of paper so I can see my whole vision board in one glance.
Collect all of your ideas and inspiration together. Then, print everything out and start combining items together on your piece of paper. It’s also helpful to include your “feeling words” for your home on the vision board.
Some elements you may want to include on your vision board:
- Color Combinations
- Wood Tones
- Paint Colors
- Metal and Hardware Tones
- Textile Combinations
- Decor Inspiration
- Room Inspiration and Ideas
What Is Your Home Decorating Style?
The vision board that you create is your home decorating style. It’s the unique aesthetic that you have created for your home. It fits you, your family, and how you want your home to look and feel.
Your home style vision board will be your guide for all future decorating decisions in your home. Use it as a guide and standard as you update, customize, and decorate your home.
I recommended that you take the vision board with you when you go shopping. Or even better, snap a picture of it with your phone so you always have it with you for reference.
When you are out shopping and find something that you “think” will look good in your house, you can check to see if it “goes” with your unique home style. Just pull up your home style vision board and make sure it fits into your home decorating style.
Pretty cool, right?
The home style vision board is the first step towards creating a beautifully decorated home.
