Decorating a new home or fixing up an old one with a partner can be exciting and infuriating at once.
While you’ve always dreamed of deep earthy tones, they’ve always wanted a clean minimalist palette.
That blush sofa you’ve been eyeing up contrasts too much with the furniture they’ve already gone and bought.
Unless you’ve got the same tastes, you’re likely to clash until you reach a happy medium (or one of you backs down).
To make getting to that point less painful, Kelly Collins, head of creative at Swyft, has tips on how to make designing a home with a second opinion easier.
Make a must-haves list
Most of us have a good idea of how we’d like our homes to look.
That’s why a good place to start is for both people to make a list of ‘must-have’ features or items.
Having a list of items and decorations you know you’ll have to fit in makes it easier to allocate them to a room, so no-one misses out.
You’ll also figure out what the non-negotiables are and where there’s room to compromise.
Mood board
It’s much easier to find a balance between two separate styles and make interior design choices when you can visualise them first.
Mood boards are used by all interior designers in the initial stages of the design process.
They are useful as they help put ideas to paper: highlighting colour palettes, bringing furniture items together and showcasing accessories.
This way you can see how your choices could fit together, before making any permanent decisions.
Outline what you want the feel of every room to be
Talking about how you both see different spaces being used is important and can narrow down exactly what you’re looking for when it comes to the buying stages.
The best way to do this is take each room and ask yourself two questions:
What will be the main purpose of this room?
Think about the sole purpose of a room. It may be an office, a reading room or a games room.
What time of day will you be in this room the most? This helps you consider lighting and colour schemes.
Who will use this room the most? If one of you is clearly going to spend more time in a room, it naturally becomes more important for them to feel comfortable in it.
What environment do you want to create/ replicate?
You might want it to feel relaxed if it’s a bedroom, cosy for a living room or energising for a kitchen, for example.
Get an outside opinion
Whether it’s an interior designer, friends, family, or a busy Reddit thread, an outside opinion is a great way of settling disputes.
Browse the many interior articles and blogs online and in print – having a look through the pages together can be a valuable exercise.
Takeaway instead of add
Avoid adding more and more things to a room in order to get both of your styles in – stripping back is much more beneficial.
Try starting with a blank canvas, then add in the large key items and must haves first, such a furniture and focal points.
Then slowly add other items such as smaller goods, lighting and accessories.
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source https://metro.co.uk/2021/03/08/how-to-decorate-a-home-when-you-and-your-partner-have-different-tastes-14205828/
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