Too often during home makeovers, creating a functional home ends up at the bottom of our to-do lists. No matter how pretty a home is, it also has to work for you and your lifestyle.
We’ve pulled together our favourite tips for creating a stylish and functional home that’s also pretty dreamy and hard to get bored with. If you put our advice to the test, you might love your home so much you never want to get out again!
- A Functional and Stylish Home has Minimal Clutter
The fastest and easiest way to make a space functional (aka useable, available, practical) is to declutter. Decluttering can generally be done by eliminating items or organising them.
Eliminating is hard. Some of us are natural hoarders and everything seems useful. We might say “I might use that in the future.” But let’s face it, more often than not, we don’t. As a standard gauge, if you haven’t used it for the past year, it’s unnecessary – throw it or give it away.
From cabinets to shelves to boxes and all sorts of organizational hacks, everything in your home should be neat and accessible. So, think about the items you really want to see (or people want to see) and add them in front, then hide the rest in boxes or on shelves. That would do the trick!
2. A Functional and Stylish Home has Plenty Of Light
Interior designers and anyone who understands basic design knows this; a brightly lit area livens the mood and brings about a more relaxed feel. You wouldn’t want to be straining your eyes after a long day of work.
To do this effectively, use a mixture of lighting types to fill every corner of the room. As an added bonus, including a variety of light sources gives you more control over the room’s ambiance.
If you’re new to lighting or need a little refresher, here is an overview on the types of lighting you can use:
Ambient: Lighting that’s used to fill most of the room
Undoubtedly, natural lighting is the way to go, unless you really don’t have a choice. One of the best ways to get maximum natural light to radiate your home is to have large windows and mirrors. Playing around with lighting is a cool trick to make your house look more spacious too!
Task: Lighting that fits a specific purpose
Desk lamps and bedside table lamps are the most common types of task lights used in living spaces. You can choose a lamp however simple or sophisticated-looking to suit the vibe you are trying to achieve.
Accent: Lighting that highlights a certain fixture
Usually, homes have some kind of feature wall where there’s a bookcase, art piece, a display collection, or something along those lines. Having some light shine on the showcase items can further add character and style for your home.
3. A Functional and Stylish Home has Defined Spaces
Today’s trend is about flexibility but we still have to ensure a dining area is a dining area and a living room is spacious enough for gatherings. This can be done by positioning furniture and accessories in strategic places or having movable walls.
Use sofas to demarcate the living area and rugs to define two spaces, like a common sitting area and dining area.
A rising trend is having movable walls, or large sliding windows. Having glass in your modern house increases the aesthetic value of your home while clearly (get the pun? Transparent glass is clear..?) drawing the line between kitchen and dining areas.
4. A Functional and Stylish Home Makes The Most Of Available Space
A clever home stylist uses all the space there is. This includes vertical space too. Elevating storage gives you more floor space, creating more flow in your home so you don’t end up bumping into things.
We’ve seen bicycles hung on wall brackets, carousel-like shelves, even cupboards attached ceilings that can be accessed by funky ladders. The idea is to free up as much surface area as possible so you can carry out your activities without obstruction.
5. A Functional and Stylish Home Helps Save You Money
Think multi-purpose. How about chairs you can use as a nightstand or pillows that can double up as seats for your guests? This saves you tons of money on extra furniture and accessories.
Imagine if essential home elements like your windows can also help block out unnecessary sound, light, keep your home cool, act as a safety barrier, function as a door and save you hundreds of dollars in utility bills each month…Crazy huh?
It’s time to start picking items that can serve multiple purposes in your home. You can enjoy more savings, with the same functions, plus a super practical home that you’ll love coming home to every day.
Homes don’t have to be cliche and boring all the time. With the help of a few personal touches, they can become spaces that are as useful as they are fashionable. Now that you have these tips, go and look around your home with a new mind.
How did you redesign your home to be functional and savvy? If you ever need help with saving more money in your home through windows, Talk to us and we can help you!