3 Clear Lessons to Be a Home Accessory Expert

Learn how to accessorize your home with these inspirational home accessory decorating ideas.

Do you ever look at a room and think: Something doesn’t look right? Or it just feels unfinished, and you can’t figure out what it is.

If you think that the furniture arrangements looks good, scales are accurate, and the colors work well with each other, but something still feels off.

In this scenario, the lack of details is making you feel like something is unfinished.

By the details, I mean the home accessories from vases to plants, pillows to artwork. All of these details matter. How we use the details can make a big difference in how we view a room.

Now you can hire an interior designer to help you, and as a designer myself, I encourage that.

However, if you are more of a DIY person or don’t have a budget for that, then you are in the right place!

I established Art of Living Stylish to encourage you and give you the confidence to take your home design to the next level.

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Pay Attention to Home Accessories!

Accessories are the elements of your home decor that don’t serve a functional purpose, but rather their job is to look pretty.

Are accessories necessary in home decor?

Accessories are the calling card for what type of interior design style you have used in your room.

An ultra-contemporary sofa can be used in the Contemporary style, Modern French, and Zen style.

How do you define a style in that room where the main furniture pieces could be used in multiple styles?

I think you already guess the answer, the accessories, of course!

You can even guess the interior design style easily by only looking at the accessories in the room.

I have some good news about those who don’t know their home style or never think about it. 

You can start by choosing accessories that can define the style you want. You can then see how home accessories all on their own help solidify a style in your home.

Accessories also help you to add texture and dimension to room decor. You add visual interest with accessories to make your home look like it was designed by an interior designer.

Accessories help to tell a story about the people who live there. They characterize your home and give you a feeling of warmth when you walk in (home sweet home).

You know why accessories play such an essential role in the home; don’t ignore them.

Essential Accessories You NEED in Every Room

You may not use all of these accessories in every single room. However, I want you to know that these are the essential accessories that create instant change when you add them to your room.

You need to spread these accessories throughout the room to ensure that they work harmoniously.

Here they are:

• Plants

Adding plants is a great way to avoid blank space in every room. There is no space where you cannot use plants (even the bathroom).

Plants add instant color and texture to a room with the benefit of indoor air quality.

Adding one plant is great, but two is better. 🙂

You can add tall indoor plants in symmetrical corners. Formal symmetry is an easy way to accessorize. 

Alternatively, you can add small plants on your coffee table, console table, fireplace, etc.

I highly recommend using real plants for indoor air quality, but I know that taking care of plants can be a real challenge. I honestly feel sad when my plants are dead (yes, it happens).

Today’s faux silk plants are impressive. Try to combine them with some real plants, and you’re good to go.

•  Artwork

Like plants, artwork can be easily integrated into every room, even an empty corridor. When picking out the artworks, it doesn’t need to match precisely with your room color palette.

If you have some extraordinary artwork in your color palette, then the others may contain different colors.

• Pillows

Never ever leave the sofa with just the pillows it came with or the bed with just the pillows you sleep on.

Pillows are a great way to use your accent colors in your color scheme, and they also strengthen your home style.

• Decorative Tray

A tray is a great way to organize your other pieces of accessories together instead of spreading them out.

For a living room, you can place a tray on your coffee table. Or, if you have an open plan, a dining table is a great option.

For the bedroom, a tray could be on your nightstand or dresser.

Find a tray that can mimic your table’s shape and put three (only three) decorative elements of various heights on the plate like a candle, small sculpture, books, or small plant.

These are the accessories that you need to consider adding to your spaces.

Always remember to add some personal elements to your room.

Individual items could be a framed photo, a vacation memento, or some inspirational quote that you want to see. This will make it YOUR home rather than a model house.

7 Painless Tactics for Accessorizing Your Home

I want to focus on the science behind interior design because knowing the scientific principles behind interior design can help you successfully decorate your house.

Art is unique for each of us. Everyone defines art differently.

However, science is where the art of interior design can be teachable.

You might have natural artistic talent, or maybe you don’t have a knack for design. Either way, you can design your home like a designer if you learn the science behind decorating.

So let’s dive in:

#1 Use Items That Share Some Similarities

Let’s brainstorm. What might these similarities be?

They may share the same color, a theme, or share the same purpose. 

Grouping items with one of these similarities will make your home accessories look more cohesive rather than a random cluster of individual items.

This is pretty easy, so go ahead and try. Let’s redecorate and accessorize your console table.

Gather up all of the items that will fit on your console table and look for things that share a standard color scheme, a purpose, or a theme rather than group them all.

#2 Use Odd Numbers

You might have heard this before, but grouping three items together always works. Arrange them so that the tallest object is in the back.

#3 Vary the Size of Accessories

You can change your object size simply by adding layers underneath. Add some books or boxes below to change the scale.

Use smaller objects in front of the bigger ones instead of side-by-side, making it more visually interesting.

#4 Use Books

Unless you hate books, books are a great accessory to use when decorating. You can use books as an accessory for every room on a bookshelf (obviously), coffee table, side table, or a basket.

Books are inexpensive, and they can allow you to add height, color, and layer to your display.

#5 Use Your Accent Colors in Some of Your Home Accessories

Make sure that some of your accessories reflect your primary accent colors (one or more). Repeating colors is a crucial to feeling the harmony and balance throughout the room.

Ideally, the color should repeat 2 or 3 times to feel part of a color scheme.

#6 Include Something from Nature

Items from nature are an easy way to add texture and an instant warmth to space. Using different textures always takes your home design to the next level.

Don’t forget to add some nature in your displays such as flowers, plants, rocks, or seashells.

#7 Formal Symmetry Always Works

Formal symmetry is using the same object on both sides of your furniture.

You can use identical vases on your bookcase. Or place them on two sides of the same lamps on two sides of a console table.

If you are always considering what to do or where to place your accessories, formal symmetry is an easy way to look polished and pulled together. Symmetry is not the only way, but it is the easiest.

No one can stop you now! You know the importance of adding home accessories to add a lot of value to your home.

I gave you some essential accessories which you can use confidently in every room and the critical points of how to place and group your home accessories. 

If these are not enough for you to start some changes in your home, what else can be? Feel free to add comments or suggestions below; I am more than happy to help. 🙂

So, what is your favorite home accessories?