In an ideal world, you’d have Kevin McCloud on speed dial, Rose Murray is your best pal and confidante, Jo Berryman’s living across the road and you’re married to Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen. Hang on, perhaps not that last one.
Sadly, this isn’t an ideal world, though we’d rather like it if it was.
Luckily, there are ways for you to get an upscale, bespoke aesthetic to your home’s interiors without breaking the bank. Without further ado, here’s how to make your home look more expensive.
BE BOLD WITH YOUR COLOUR CHOICE
When it comes to choosing your primary interior colour scheme, crisp white walls are the obvious choice as they can make a room look bigger – and bigger means more expensive, right? True to a degree, however, we think playing around with bold, rich colours can add a sense of luxury to a room that white simply can’t.
Of course, you have to be mindful of the shades you use to achieve that high end look. Sophisticated, smart and sexy, a dark navy can add an expensive edge to your walls. Indeed, there’s nothing like a rich navy to make your room look, well, rich.
Historically speaking, blue – and particularly the iconic lapis lazuli – was once the most expensive colour to produce and was suggestive of wealth and extravagance in the homes it appeared in.
Alternatively, green is the colour of money and envy, sure, but it also signifies nature and tranquillity. We think a lick of forest green gives a sophisticated, opulent look, especially when paired with bold brass and gold coloured accessories. Teal also brings an elegant tone to a room.
Other colours to consider are purple, associated with luxury and decadence and the colour of royalty. Though when used wrong, it should be noted, purple can come across as obnoxious. Black also brings with it a sense of luxurious glamour and can communicate sophistication when used skillfully. Then, pair any of these colours with a fluffy white rug that feels luxurious on the toes and you’re good to go!
MODERN STATEMENT PIECES
Discreet yet bold choices when it comes to furniture can give the impression that you’ve hired a professional interior designer to make those bold choices for you. This is a risky, fraught balancing act, however; be careful not to add too many statement pieces to one room. If everything is special then nothing is special, as they say.
If you don’t have space to include new furniture additions to your home, consider reupholstering an old chair in some luxe fabric like velvet. Or, place a round rug under an armchair or piece of furniture you already have, framing the piece and giving a ‘look-at-me’ sense of gravitas to an otherwise ordinary living room mainstay.
Of course, if you are bringing new attention to an item through framing or its new placement front row and centre of the living room, do make sure it’s looking its best; a little sand-down, clean-up, re-upholster and tactful use of furniture polish should do just that.
LAVISH LIGHTING
What lighting fixtures do you have in your living room? If it’s just a regular main light, you could be missing an opportunity to impress guests with your ceiling space.
If you’re after a worthy investment to make your room look luxe without spending big bucks on a complete redesign, adding a statement lighting fixture is the way forward. An elaborate fixture that can act as a focal point of the room and draw the eyes up from the floor is a neat touch that expands that sense of space in the room and makes it feel more luxurious.
LARGE SCALE ART
When done right, an inexpensive piece of art can look like a luxury, highly curated piece. Adding an oversized, attention grabbing piece of modern art can offer maximum impact at minimal investment. Alternatively, you could even create your own piece of modern art – all you need is a large canvas and some acrylic paint!
Read: 4 IDEAL tips for adding artwork to your home
ADD SOME ANTIQUES
Antique accessories can add an ‘expensive’ air to your home without actually costing a fortune to accrue. Indeed, nothing gives a room a sense of grandeur like an antique item, tastefully positioned with a subtle standing.
Bespoke candle wax suppliers Scents and Soaps suggest an antique candelabra is the ultimate, subtle centrepiece. Or, why not add an oversized mirror with a gold gilt frame? When paired with gold taps, doorknobs and other fixtures in the bathroom or kitchen, you can achieve a sense of overblown opulence without having to make a huge investment.
MORE MIRRORS
Speaking of mirrors…
Hanging mirrors serves to reflect the light in a room and also increase the visual square footage – giving the appearance of more space than you actually have. As such, hanging mirrors is one of the most failsafe solutions when trying to give the appearance of spaciousness and, accordingly, luxury.
Should you have a home office at home and you’re keen to allow more natural light in, then click here to find out just how to do that.
A PERSIAN RUG
Maybe it’s just us, but a Persian rug has a transformative effect on any room, adding a luxurious aesthetic. A timeless choice, a single rug can take years to craft and at auction, these carpets have been known to sell for over one million smackeroos. There are, of course, different varieties of Persian rugs and most rugs cost in the thousands.
Of course, a genuine Persian rug is out of most people’s price range, but hope is not lost; most modern rug makers sell Persian inspired rugs loomed from synthetic yarns selling them at a fraction of the price. Just pretend you travelled to the Middle East in search of the perfect Persian rug – if you tell the story enough times, you may actually start believing it yourself. If no one can discern that it was just picked up from your local Home Sense or Argos, then job well done.
FRESH FLOWERS
A lovely floral arrangement just makes a home look classy, don’t you think? You don’t need to have a wallet-busting arrangement if you want to add luxury to your space. Instead, a cheap bouquet from your local grocery store is actually all you need to make your home appear more sophisticated.
In fact, it’s as much about how you arrange the flowers and vases. First of all, you have to make sure that you separate the bouquet so that you have some individual stems. You can then create several small arrangements so that you can spread them throughout your home.
If you can do this, then you will soon find that you can improve every room in your house, all for a very affordable price. If you want to freshen up your space, there are many online stores that can help you to make your own scents.
PANELLING & DECORATIVE MOULDING
You’ve probably heard of the saying ‘fake it ‘till you make it’ – well that certainly rings true when it comes to decorating your home. If your home isn’t blessed with decorative mouldings that you find in expensive Victorian and Georgian houses, then simply add them to your home.
Adding period-style panelling to your walls is another powerful way to add a sense of character and expense to a room. This clever interior trick is something that you can do yourself at very little cost. All you need are some sheets of MDF, which tend to cost around £5 per square metre, strips of decorative moulding and some DIY wherewithal.
IMAGE PANELS
Speaking of panels, stylish electric panel heaters which use infrared to heat objects and people in the room rather than wasting energy heating the air are a truly modern innovation currently gaining popularity in British homes.
The frame is heat resistant, and is perfectly safe to handle and move while switched on. The stylish glass front panel, which can be used to display pictures of family, friends, or something more abstract, is also wipe-clean, making it very easy to keep clean.
These image panel heaters come in a variety of sizes and shapes to suit all homes, so finding one to perfectly match your décor is easy. Choose from single or double panels, depending on the size of the room, and even opt for a freestanding model if you don’t have any wall space. These heaters are also extremely lightweight, making them very easy to move from room to room as needed… What a novel way to both display pictures and heat your home! Or, at least one room within it.
UPGRADE HARDWARE
Swapping out your standard hardware for something much more modern and chic can elevate your space. Think gold, brushed brass or copper hardware. Done.
BUILT-IN FURNITURE
Unique, custom-made, built-in furniture tends to look more luxurious than free-standing pieces of furniture. A bookshelf that spans the entire wall gives a sense of grandeur and intent, and more often than not, will look more upscale than your standard standing bookcases, which sometimes feel like they’re just hastily arranged storage. And within the living room, a 360 degree fireplace certainly pulls people (and potential buyers) into the room.
CUSTOM FLOOR TO CEILING CURTAINS
Even if your home doesn’t have soaring ceilings and expansive windows, you can give the illusion of grandeur with some carefully hung floor-to-ceiling curtains. Of course, custom-made curtains that fit a space probably look expensive. However, the trick is to hang your curtains as close to the ceiling as possible. Hanging them high will help draw yours and guest’s eye upwards, giving the illusion of a taller, grander room.
When it comes to choosing your curtains in the most luxurious fabric available to you, make sure they are full length and heavyweight so they probably hang. In winter, sumptuous, sensual velvet curtains are ideal for the job. Not only does velvet drape beautifully, but it also lends a luxurious feel to the room.