Being an interior designer is not just about finding some great furniture, putting it together, and picking a color for the walls, but about being a great editor. The best rooms work because of what has been left out of them. So we asked some of our most trusted design experts what tropes and design trends they think we should all be saving our money on and leaving out of our homes.
From pieces of furniture that often go underused to bigger design decisions like kitchen cabinets, here's what they had to tell us. 1. New furniture The designer Natasha Lyon of Appreciation Project has a surefire approach to making the budget go further, and not spend out needlessly.
And that's to really take stock of what you already own, and try as hard as you can to give everything a new lease of life. 'Most furniture can be reupholstered or repainted, and this can save you a lot of money,' Natasha says. 'Plus, this makes the overall scheme so much more personal.
' She adds that this approach is not just limited to furniture, but reminds you how often you can just refresh the kitchen you already have to save a ton of cash. 'I come across this a lot with kitchens,' she says. 'Often, the carcasses can be reworked and redesigned with new fronts, meaning you don't have to spend on entirely new units.
' 2. Wallpaper With so many incredible paint effects, paint color ideas and affordable art outlets available, it's hard to justify spending budget on wallpaper if that impacts what you have left to spen.