Order, symmetry, flow. Say what you will about “organized chaos” and maximalist interior design, there is no denying that a cohesive home interior is what creates a peaceful, stress-free living environment, and ultimately elevates the value of the home so that you can sell it faster and for a better price. Whether you’re organized or disorganized by nature is not the point, the key here is to create a cohesive interior with a distinct aesthetic and functional flow between the rooms, which will imbue the space with beauty and order.
If you’ve been looking for ways to refresh your home this spring, then this little project might just be the thing for you. Let’s take a look at some wonderful interior design tips that will help you create a beautiful flow between rooms to elevate the aesthetic appeal and make you fall in love with your home all over again.
Stop to rethink your floorplan
First things first, take a step back to observe and really appreciate your home’s floorplan. Is everything as it should be, or does the floorplan seem to hinder movement, the flow of natural light, or does it section off parts of your home just a bit too much? If the answer is yes to the last three, then you might want to rethink the floorplan, or at least parts of it.
You might be up for a grand remodeling project, and if you are, then go ahead and convert a traditional floorplan into an open-space design. If not, then consider other ways you can create a flow without any major renovations.
For example, you can replace solid doors with French doors to help natural light flow through the space, but you can also remove some doors completely. You can also open up the space by decluttering your home thoroughly, which will make it feel more capacious and it will improve movement throughout.
Use similar materials in every space
The materials you use throughout your home can have a big impact on the cohesiveness of the design. You can use the same materials but achieve a different style in every room, but generally speaking, the entire design should follow a unique style throughout the space in order to bring a cohesive living space to life.
If you try to mix and match the styles and the eras, most likely you’re just going to confuse the observer and make the space feel tacky or like you are trying too hard. So instead, your goal should be to tie the space together with similar materials boasting a similar finish, preferably using similar or identical materials. This doesn’t mean that the coffee table in the living room should completely match the table in the kitchen, but it does mean that you should use the same materials to create that desired flow.
Use complementary colors throughout
Color is what binds the different spaces in your home together, but it’s also what brings a beautiful living environment to life. You can use color in a variety of ways and to achieve many things, whether you’re trying to tie the space together, create beautiful contrasts and focal points, or if you’re trying to create distinct zones in your home. There is no right or wrong here, but if you are looking to create a more cohesive design, then every room in your home should fall within a complementary color spectrum.
Achieving a cohesive look with the right complementary colors is something that professional painters specialize in nowadays in residential painting services because the goal of this project is not just to repaint the interior, it’s to achieve a cohesiveness and unity throughout the space. The same goes for exterior repainting, because you want the interior and the exterior to complement each other.
Not everything needs to be painted pure white, though, so talk to your painter to get amazing design ideas and color palette that you’ll love.
Stay consistent with the floors
When the flooring differs too much room to room, it can really break the immersion and the design of the interior. If you want to make your house feel more home-y and welcoming, be sure to pay special attention to the floor and how it flows between rooms.
If you already have different flooring in every room, then make sure to use complementary rug designs to bring the spaces closer together and erase those boundaries. No need to go with wall-to-wall carpets, just a few accentuating rugs that create a subtle flow.
Achieve a cohesive look with the right contrasts
One of the key focuses of modern interior design is to transform your home into a stress-free sanctuary, and one of the best ways to achieve that is to build a cohesive look. But that doesn’t mean that everything should look the same. There is a difference between a uniform look and a complementary design, after all.
What you might not have known before is that certain contrasts can help you create a more cohesive look. It might sound counterintuitive, but using accentuating features and décor elements like artisan rugs, or any elements in a striking color can break any monotony and bridge the gap between rooms. For example, a statement black vase in the living room is a great contrast to a neutral foundation, and by putting the same one in the kitchen, you’ll get that subtle yet powerful connection between the two rooms.
Over to you
Building a cohesive interior might seem like a job for a professional interior designer, and most of the time it really is. That said, with these tips in mind, you should have no problems doing it yourself and creating an interior you always wanted.
About the author: Mike Johnston is an experienced writer, blogger, and editor. He’s a regular contributor to the Smooth Decorator blog andnumerous other online publications where he writes about real estate, construction, home improvement, and interior design.