Create a wish list for the New Year and start it off on a positive note. Write down everything you would like to do if money were no object, (like if you own the Powerball tomorrow!). Then figure out which things you can do, which things you can’t do, which things have to be done now and which things can wait. Lists are great tools because they teach us how to prioritize!
If the top of your list is to redecorate your home then these next steps will help you get ready to begin thinking creatively and functionally! First step is to take a critical look at your home – what do you like about it? Don’t like? What would you change- the comfort of the room, the decor or the functionality? As we process these thoughts in each space you can learn a great deal from just by repeating the things that you do like and stop repeating things you don’t – even if they are just because they are familiar to you and you had them for soo long…
Next step that I like to tell my clients is to start collecting pictures of rooms they like. A great tool for this is to create a Pinterest board! Check out ours at the Santa Barbara Design Center! Creating a board will help you to organize your thoughts as well as helping you to get a sense of style you are aiming to achieve. And you can save everything into one Idea Board with wall colors, furniture, accessories, … – they have it all as do we at the Santa Barbara Design Center! Take your time to compile the photos – your taste will evolve or you may find something more suitable!
What is wonderful about compiling photos of images that appeal to you helps you better articulate what it is that your are drawn towards – these photos convey a lot of information if you pay attention to what characteristics pop up again and again. What styles of furnishings, color palettes, materials and patterns, – allow these characteristics to guide you into finding the style you want to embrace and emulate. Trust your instincts because they are the real you!
Next step is to take another look and zero in on the look you want your space to have, make a list of the significant pieces that are “must haves” and delete the ones that you figured don’t have the “it” factor. Also keep in mind that the pieces that you do have can be refurbished in another fabric or finish – they can be re-purposed! At the Santa Barbara Design Center we reupholster, refinish a table or repair an antique carpet!
Next step is to figure out if you can do it all at once or in stages… Living in half-finished space isn’t going to make you or anyone else happy! So choose what you better wait to do when budgeted for it and what you can start now. Best bet is to do the project in phases – complete one room before moving onto the next. There will inevitably be a domino effect – meaning as you change one room the others have to flow so the task may be bigger than what you anticipated.
Stop by the Santa Barbara Design Center today and show us your Pinterest boards – let us help you create the style you want to embrace.