Image Credit: Adobe Stock
No matter where you live, you will need things to furnish your home. Household furnishings cover all the basic things you need to live comfortably in your home: furniture, kitchenware, fabrics and textiles, and accessories. How many of these items you use in your home and the types of items you choose helps to define your personal style and puts your personal stamp on your environment to change your dwelling from a house to a home.
There are all sorts of decorating styles and so many decorating advice books, websites, TV shows, and magazines that they would be much too numerous to mention. Any quick web search will turn up questionnaires and quizzes to help you identify your unique decorating style. I’ve scanned many decorating resources and discovered that though there are numerous design styles, 14 of these styles are the most popular. They are:
Modern
Image Credit: Interior Design Ideas
Contemporary
Image Credit: Decor Aid
Minimalist
Image Credit: Livspace
Industrial
Image Credt: Lazy Loft – Froy.com
Mid-Century Modern
Image Credit: Modsy Blog
Scandinavian
Image Credit: ScandiPOP Interiors
Traditional
Image Credit: Pinterest
Transitional
Image Credit: Decor Aid
French Country
Image Credit: Pinterest
Bohemian
Image Credit: Bohemian
Rustic
Image Credit: L’Essenziale
Shabby Chic
Image Credit: Interior Design Paradise
Hollywood Glam
Image Credit: Modsy Blog
and
Coastal Hamptons
Image Credit: NewHomeSource.com
Once you’ve identified your personal style (or styles) it will be easier to design a home that you find comfortable. Not everyone, though, fits neatly into a specific category. If I had to define my own personal style I would say “eclectic.” If I had to define my style as the above categories or some mix of them it would be a mouthful but I would say my style is Industrial Rustic Transitional with a tinge of French County while leaning towards Minimalism. Regardless where you fall along decorating schemes there will be a book or other library resource available to help you in a project of furnishing a comfortable home. You will probably quickly discover that the above schemes, while popular, aren’t the only decorating schemes. Many people have eclectic tastes or choose to go in another direction entirely.
One book I found particularly fascinating was American Junk by mary Randolph Carter.
Image Credit: Amazon.com
American Junk is an actual decorating scheme. While it’s definitely not my style (remember that minimalist lean I mentioned?) I found it really fascinating how one organizes junk into household decor. I really enjoyed “reading” the pictures in this book. The American Junk style often repurposes junk itself and turns items into functional hardworking household furnishings. If you need something to do on a rainy day or a cold wintry evening, this would be a good book to peruse.
Other books I checked out this time were:
Image Credits: Thrift Books, Amazon.com, and Publisher’s Overstock
Do you enjoy decorating? Do you have an easily identifiable decorating preference? If you have eclectic taste, how would describe your decorating style?