10 Ways Accessories Can Transform a Room

Accessories – simple accents or dramatic elements – they hold the power to magically transform a room and make it come alive.

Decorative and practical – it could be as simple as introducing accents of color into a room by enriching it with pattern and texture, or simply unleashing your creative juices and tweaking around your decor elements with renewed energy and style.

Simple changes: switch lamp shades to alter the atmosphere; try adding a slipcover, some vibrant pillows, and a colorful, unexpected throw to renew a sofa. Change your artwork or simply add some fresh green apples to a tall vase and make it an art deco statement.

Often it’s the arrangement of accessories, as much as the items themselves that creates a strong impression.

I believe that a room should never be just a place to pass through. Dot it with accessories to lend character to your space and offer a reason to stop and linger.

Simple accents: Let the season inspire you

Bringing in the flavour of the season with palm tree pillows and flowering bougainvillea to infuse color and add definition to a light-filled living room. Simple accents like a cane basket, a vase of fresh flowers and an eye catching wall hanging completes the room. Rotating the accessories and playing with the textures is the thumb rule of creating drama in your living space.

Rugs

Rugs add warmth and help layer a room’s design and they tie all the different pieces of decor accents together visually. If you use more than one rug in a room, make sure they are not the same size. Same sized rugs can cut your room in half visually. When using more than one rug, it’s better when the rugs complement each other in style. Use the rug to accent or tie in your existing colors.

Commonfloor Tip. If your upholstery or wallpaper has an ornate pattern, choose a rug that is more subtle. When walls and upholstery are fairly subdued, you can try a busier pattern to add more interest to the room.

 

 

 

The perfect Lamp 

Amazingly chic, you can transform your living area into a style statement with the perfect lamp. From a stunningly simple glass base to a metal or a wooden base – the lamp adds drama to your decor and gives the living space an opulent touch.

Create a drama with your wallpaper

Pack in a punch with a great wallpaper by papering just the inside back section of a shelving unit or a single wall. From opulent to muted styles, this quick and easy to do decor accent will instantly transform your room into a style statement.

Commonfloor Tip: Use wall paper in unexpected places – on a ceiling in a panelled room, in closets, small foyers or hallways. A great pattern or texture in small spaces can add just the twist that your room needs.

Bring in the natural elements

Nothing works better than playing with natural elements. Fill a tall glass vase of lemons in your kitchen – Fresh, inexpensive style accessory, these also weave in the functionality of being readily on hand for cooking!

Bring in lots of yellow daffodils into your living area to make the space happy.

An instant perk me up, a potted plant or a vase filled with fresh flowers can add just the right drama to the room.

Commonfloor Tip: Dot your area with lush green as they are more cost efficient, last longer than freshly cut flowers and the bulbs can be replanted in the garden at the end of the season.

Perk up with pillows

You can easily provide accents with pillows. This is probably the least costly and most effective way to update your decor. Use strong shapes and colors to give definition if your other furnishings are neutral. Replace the throw pillows on your sofa or bed with brightly coloured ones, and don’t be afraid to mix in a bold print.

Invest in art

The focal point of your room, a piece of work can instantly add that ‘extra zing’ to your room and give it an instant makeover. Depending on your style, choose your art work. If your room is ornate, then reach out to pieces which blend beautifully with the room.  A stark room instantly comes alive with a pop art or a classic piece with bold colours.

Baskets

The perfect accessory – baskets work as the perfect functional yet decorative accent. Play with the size and shape, but stick to the same texture. This keeps the accent from adding to the visual clutter.

Chandeliers

Cascading from the ceiling of an entryway or foyer, a 19th-Century French design — dripping with smoky-crystal pendants, translucent ivory beads, trimmed with mother-of-pearl shells and hand-finished with multiple layers of silver leaf — gives off an aristocratic and breathtaking beautiful first impression in a home.

Nearly every room in a house can be glorified by the addition of a chandelier. Petite versions embellished with graceful, feminine curvature and shimmering crystal drops, flowers, petals and additional decoration, add interest to tiny powder rooms, hallways and even kitchens.

A beautiful chandelier will never go out of style. An antique fixture in a modern dining room, or a red chandelier in a predominantly white room will give you added visual appeal. Chandeliers can be the centre piece of discussion at the table or they can be subdued and blend in beautifully with the surroundings.

Commonfloor tip: The oversize garden lanterns and interesting designs are making inroads into our dining area.

Mirrors

Elegantly chic, they are the perfect add-on to your abode. Instantly creating a glam quotient, it can create a perfect backdrop to your sitting area or make a style statement in your foyer.  From vintage to modern designs, the single decor accent works wonders when it is placed in the living area or just behind the dining table. Mirrors have several benefits – from reflecting and emphasizing views and colours from art and/or adjacent walls and creating special effects to bringing light and depth to the room. To me, they are like decorative windows which you can move around and place as you like.

Commonfloor Tip: Full-size floor mirrors can make a dramatic statement in a small space. Using a framed, full-size mirror placed on the floor and resting on the wall can become an incredible asset in many ways in a bedroom, living room and even at the end of a hallway.