Photographing your moments in San Francisco, California

WORK WITH ME

ABOUT

SHOP MY FAVS

BLOG

CONTACT

HOME

Photographing your moments in San Francisco, California

WORK WITH ME

ABOUT

SHOP MY FAVS

BLOG

CONTACT

HOME

1-final

Putting a home together is one of my passions, and I love that it’s a forever work in process. Your home is a blank canvas, and you can design it based on seasons, your mood for the year, etc. My design taste has changed several times throughout my life and I’m sure this won’t be the last.

A home should be an expression of yourself, almost an extension, and a few tips to make it look luxurious is always a bonus. If you feel stuck and you aren’t sure what your style is, for NOW, start looking in magazines, Pinterest,  and Houzz. What speaks to you? What colors are you drawn to? Does it fit your personality? Start pinning boards together to get a feel for what you like.

Once you have found your style, don’t think for one minute you can’t have a luxurious home even if you are on a budget. Here are 5 things you can start adding that will give your home a WOW factor.

1. FLORALS

Faux or real, well back in the day if you would have told me to purchase faux flowers I would have cringed. Luckily, faux flowers have upped their game and look real and will save you some extra money in the long run. I mean who doesn’t  like some extra money honey!!

As far as faux florals you have to be picky with your purchase; I have found some amazing ones at Michaels they are called Ashland and feel real to the touch. Do NOT buy faux florals that feel like plastic, like EVER! Don’t forget to download the Michals app for discounts; they run coupons all the time.  If you want to invest in some fabulous fauxs, Afloral is a must to check out as well.

This floral arrangement I put together is the Ashland collection.

_s4w6158

Similar Vases

_______________________________________________________________________


our-final

Real florals scream Expensive, especially ones such as roses and peonies, they are also are a mood booster. I mix and match my faux and real florals. I do weekly/ bi weekly florals from my local grocery store. If you are in Southern California Ralph’s or Trader Joes, you can always find beautiful ones at an affordable price.

2. PILLOWS (Chop & Fluff)

I looovvvveeeee pillows; I’m always switching mine out based on the seasons. Ok, so I’ve seen some AHHHHmazing living rooms and some not so good ones. A quick fix to a living room fail, is a great flow throughout an area, when picking out pillows, you always want to go back to your style. So for me, I love a traditional look, with a MEGA pop of glam. Try sticking to 3 colors for the living room theme. I like to use a neutral as my base, that way I’m not limited to designing around one color. I have a soft white Ivory couch, and my secondary color is Navy blue, I use my third color as my transitional piece into each season. Once you have your style and color, play around with textures and different prints.

_s4w6107

The key to making your living room look luxurious as if you had an interior designer on hand is… the chop and fluff. Don’t ask me where I got the name Chop and Fluff; I guess I’ve seen Legally Blonde one too many times.

The BEND & SNAP works every time!

Fluff each pillow front and back and to finish, chop it down the middle, see pic for example. This will only take you a few seconds per day  it will end up becoming a habit! A good habit if that!

Also, mixing different sized pillows will create a WOW factor, Large pillows look plush and scream elegance.

Here are a few great finds for pillows

_______________________________________________________________________

3. MIRRORS

Mirrors are great especially if you have a smaller area, it can open up the entire room. I love framed mirrors however it depends on your style. I think anything that’s framed looks as though it has a higher price value. Here are some gorgeous options regardless of your style.

4. HIGH CURTAINS

Ok, confession, I watch entirely too much HGTV, and I’m preparing myself for 90 hours of design school come this September. I always want to be prepared before I start something new, so I research big time, not only that it is my passion, but because I don’t want to start something new without getting a jump start.

We have shutters all throughout our house; I love natural light, so I decided to skimp on curtains. However, I’m slowly starting to add them throughout the house. Like I said as I’m sure you feel the same way, a house is ALWAYS a work in progress. I’m currently on the hunt for curtains in my office as I’m revamping it! One thing I’ve learned in my research is high curtains make all the difference in a room, it not only looks more high end it makes the room much bigger. I’m a frequent buyer of Joss and Main, and you can find this great read all about curtains here.

5. SIMPLICITY

I’ve made this mistake a million times, except I’m excluding it from Christmas because I like to go overboard during the Holidays. I honestly don’t care if it looks over the top cluttered! Bring on the eggnog, wreaths, ornaments and more! My poor husband!!!!

Simplicity is key to making a house show well and looks more expensive, that’s great news for consumers. In fact, the more nick nacks you have; the more cluttered, unpolished a home can look. I’m a frequent shopper at Scout & Nimble, Pottery Barn, Front Gate, Joss and Main and of course Home Goods, I find myself purchasing way too many nicknacks. For instance, I can go candle and vase overload!

Obviously, your home should have a personal touch such as family photos, favorite family heirloom whatever it may be, but be mindful of the about of accessories throughout your home. This is an area I always have to double check myself, maybe you can relate?

Once I started understanding this notion it took me awhile to wrap my head around it. I LOVE accessories and if you are like me, putting some of it away seems a bit heart breaking….Until you see the final look of how elegant and luxurious your home is without them.

* If you love nick nacks here is a great tip

 Put all of your accessories in a pile, so your room looks entirely naked, pull up your Pinterest boards of your style and see how they are doing it. As you slowly start putting together a room take one piece at a time and start staging it similar to your Inspiration. Before you know it, you will have a look you are trying to achieve.

The great thing is once you have a simple, elegant flow throughout your home the extra accessories you have, put into storage and switch them out. I have a place dedicated to vases and candles that I can’t part with, and I switch them out often, it keeps me sane and always adds a fresh new feel to the home.

_s4w6121

I hope you found this post helpful in designing the home of your dreams. Don’t forget to subscribe as I send out weekly emails to help you stay chic all week.


Comments +

  1. Grace says:

    You have a very nice decorating style! Thanks for sharing your tips.

  2. Kelly S says:

    I am LOVING this! Makin me super excited to move into my new place and follow some of your tips!!!

  3. This is a great post. My mother was the one to turn me on to fake flowers. She uses them all over the house. They really add a pop of color and class to any room and they are so affordable too.

  4. Jaemie says:

    I love the florals and the vases you chose, it looks so classy.

  5. Marissa Baum says:

    I just bought my first apartment so this has definitely come in handy! The florals definitely make a difference. Thanks for reminding me that less is more!

  6. kristal says:

    Love your decor style it is fab. I will look into adding different pillows on my couch. The flower are great I get mines from Michaels and they look so really.

  7. I love using fake flowers to decorate! They also make great props for photos which makes them a multiuse product to have around the house. Love the chop and fluff tip haha!

  8. llcestr9207 says:

    Great Post!! Thanks 4 The Tips!! :-))

  9. Just gorgeous! You have great taste x

  10. Antonia says:

    What great tips! Working on decorating our home now and definitely want to implement these! Thank you for a wonderful post!

  11. Morgan says:

    Some good tips here! I’m already a fan of fake flowers and mirrors; glad to see I’m not the only one!

  12. Beautiful decorating!!! Right now our house is just blahhh!! I can’t wait to trade dark walls for light neutrals! And will definitely add in some of your tips 🙂

  13. Jen says:

    These are great ideas! Thanks for sharing! Fresh flowers are always my favorite way to add to a room!

  14. These decor tips are great. We love using books, textured pillows, and fresh flowers to bring a chic air to ANY living space.

    GlamRockDigital.com

  15. Christie Ku says:

    Ahhh thanks so much Melissa! xx

  16. Ugyen Dorji says:

    Great Ideas, Especially I loved the idea about flowers. Will definitely buy some flower… But what kind of flowers, plastic or natural? As I don’t like Natural flower wilting in few days… What do you say on that?

  17. Amy says:

    So pretty! Thanks for the tips. 🙂

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

posts

recent

GET THE GUIDE

Scenester williamsburg small batch viral typewriter blog, schlitz skateboard squid XOXO four loko.

GET THE GUIDE TO CREATE YOUR CAPSULE WARDROBE

Follow me

Nice to meet you!

I'm a Beauty & Fitness entrepreneur, OBSESSED with helping women look and feel glamorous in their everyday life.

Follow me

Nice to meet you!

I'm a Beauty & Fitness entrepreneur, OBSESSED with helping women look and feel glamorous in their everyday life.

Follow me

Nice to meet you!

I'm a Beauty & Fitness entrepreneur, OBSESSED with helping women look and feel glamorous in their everyday life.

LTK

Amazon

Revolve