Best Practices for Organizing Your Home's Furniture

What people consider comfortable might not be the same for everyone, but most believe having a well-organized room is key. Unfortunately, not everybody knows the best practices for organizing their home's furniture.

Placing your furniture just the way you like it can go a long way in making a space feel like a home. Here are some best practices to use when buying a new house or moving things around for a needed change.

Empty the Space

Some people try to organize their furniture while everything is still in place. This approach is a hassle and can make it nearly impossible to get things the way you want them. Rather than trying to move furniture around while a room is still full of stuff, take the time to empty it first.

Emptying the space before trying to move around your home’s furniture will make it much easier to get a sense of how much room you have. You can also take the time to consider whether a layout will properly fit the space before committing to a design choice.

Measure Dimensions

Once you've cleared your space, there's no point in randomly moving things back in to see how they look. If you want to save time and energy, consider measuring the dimensions of your furniture before deciding how to arrange it.

Doing this for both your space and the items that will go in it will give you a better idea of what will fit, allowing you to take a more realistic approach to the design process. It’ll also save you time and energy because you won’t unnecessarily move things around just to discover at the last minute that they’re not the right size for the layout you had in mind.

Choose a Focal Point

There’s nothing worse than walking into a room and not knowing where to look. Making sure to design with some living room essentials, especially when you’re a first-time home buyer, will allow you to draw in your guests and create a welcoming, cohesive environment.

A clear focal point creates a sense of balance within a space and provides a theme that you can use to center the rest of your furniture around. This technique makes it easier to emphasize a particular aesthetic or style.

Account for Traffic

Your home isn’t static. It’s full of dynamic spaces that people use and move through. So it’s especially important to consider the foot traffic in each room in which you move furniture.

Considering how people will use the space and walk through it will allow you to create a better flow throughout your home, giving it a more comfortable feel.

Creating a Livable Space You Can Enjoy

The best way to enjoy your home is to arrange its interior elements in a way you can enjoy. To do this, you need to understand how much space you have and create a plan based on how you’ll use it.

If you want the best results when organizing your home’s furniture, consider all the ways that placement can impact livability. Creating a living space you enjoy takes time. But with enough effort, you'll have it just the way you want.

Exterior Improvements to Brighten Up Your Home

Whether you want to beautify the exterior of your home or add just enough curb appeal to lure buyers in, preserving and embellishing your property can be easy to accomplish. As such, here are some cosmetic improvements that will look amazing.

Minor Landscaping

First of all, some basic cleanup will be necessary. Yard work such as raking leaves, mowing the lawn, pulling weeds, and removing debris is a great start. Then, take the time to trim hedges and shrubs that are overgrown. Remove limbs from trees that in any way may be hazardous. Afterward, you can fertilize the lawn, add mulch to discourage the growth of weeds, and plant perennials, such as coreopsis, false indigo, or coneflower, for added pops of color.

Roof Replacement

The roof of most homes tends to be completely ignored unless it is breaking down or leaking water. But, you should evaluate its condition at least twice a year, to make sure it is up to par with residential roofing standards.

If you see missing, cracked, damaged, or loose shingles as well as rot, mold, sagging, water damage, or dark spots, it may be time to invest in a replacement roof. Depending on the material used and the weather conditions it has been exposed to, your roof may need to be replaced if it is over 25 years old.

Refreshing the Entranceway

When anyone, including a potential buyer, first approaches your home, they will have time to really observe your front door. If it is covered in faded or chipped paint, it doesn’t make the best first impression. For a warmer, more welcoming entrance, try a fresh coat of neutral-colored paint, such as a satin finish in shades of dark green, navy blue, or black. That said, if your door is actually sagging, drafty, or sticking, you will most likely need to replace it altogether.

Another way to spice up your entrance is to add a basic or small porch by the door. All you will need is enough concrete slabs to create a 4-foot by 6-foot landing. This will make it look much more refined, and it will provide you with a space for décor, potted plants, and outdoor seating. It even makes a great spot for grilling and barbecuing!

In conclusion, these outdoor upgrades will have your home looking brighter and more refreshed than it has appeared in a very long time. Sometimes small changes to your property’s exterior can lead to a dramatic overall improvement.

14 Design Do's and Don'ts to Make Your Airbnb Stand Out

It's easy to neglect careful planning when rushing to prepare your house for visitors. Many Airbnb hosts make the mistake of assuming their guests won't care if the place looks a little sloppy because of the photos, or maybe they're more concerned about the location and the price.

When renters see how much care you took in furnishing your property, they are more likely to treat it respectfully. Care for your guests' comfort through thoughtful design. They will respect your personal space more because of it.

Are you confused about how to get started? Here are 14 simple ways to improve the design of your Airbnb. Read on if you want some do’s and dont’s ideas for a small change or a major overhaul of your home.

The Do's

1. Do Establish a Firm Base

A strong base is the cornerstone of any successful design. Most of your financial resources should be allocated there as well. Invest in high-quality flooring and furniture in neutral tones to lay the groundwork for your design; they will stand the test of time and complement any future color additions.

2. Create a Cozy Atmosphere At Home

Start adding color and warmth once the framework is in place. Throw pillows, cozy blankets, rugs, table lamps, plants, etc. One or two of those additional elements can dramatically improve the visual appeal of a room. If you're adding little details, ensure they fit in with the overall aesthetic and color scheme.

3. Do Design With Comfort In Mind

The area must give visitors the impression it was created specifically for them. Making something with more care and attention doesn't have to break the bank. Put coat hooks in the entryway and a chalkboard in the kitchen with a few quick recipes written. 

Ensure sufficient towel pegs are in the bathroom and provide an ottoman in the lounge for weary feet after a day of sightseeing.

4. Do Create Thoughtful Design Moments

Invest in a bar cart and equip it with essentials like a cocktail shaker. You could also set up a coffee station in the kitchen by placing a coffee maker, jars of coffee beans or tea bags, and a prominent sugar bowl. Vinyl records can be showcased on a credenza next to a record player; featuring local musicians is a bonus.

5. Do Decorate Your Walls With Local Touches

Not having access to family portraits does not mean you have to have bare walls. Display local photographs of the outdoors, vintage postcards, or a travel poster from a popular attraction. Or, you could hang a gallery wall of Chicago-area artwork.

6. Do Choose Well-Constructed Pieces That Will Last A Long Time

Many hosts make the mistake assuming that their guests share their taste in entertainment and food. More people will visit your rental, so investing in high-quality pieces that can withstand heavy use will save you money in the long run.

It will improve in appearance over time and save you a significant amount of money compared to the cost of buying brand-new furniture every few years.

7. Do Think About How Well It Works and How Long It Lasts

Furniture for a rental property needs to be durable enough to withstand frequent use. Choose pieces of furniture that are appropriate for the number of people staying at the property. There shouldn't be a shortage of couches and dining chairs. 

Consider using a commercial rating when making your fabric selection. To increase your earnings, replace your regular sofa with a sofa bed.

The Dont's

1. Don't Make Your Guests Do Work

Having a strategy for watering your plants is a must if you intend to cover your property in greenery. However, it is unrealistic to expect visitors to maintain the garden. Go with succulents, which can go longer without being watered, and incorporate plant maintenance into the responsibilities of your cleaning crew.

2. Don’t Photograph At Night

No one will know that your Airbnb is a work of art if all your photos were taken at night and the rooms look like caves. Unless, of course, your home is literally a cave.

3. Don't Exaggerate The Number Of Available Services To Customers

However, if you advertise a record player but then lock up all of your vinyl when guests arrive, they will be disappointed. Do not show any more than you are willing to share with your audience.

4. Don't Share Photos That Include Other People

You want guests to be able to visualize themselves in your home. Don't ruin it by revealing that you and your loved ones are actually living the good life. Because of this, pictures of people should be avoided when advertising goods online. 

Similarly, avoid making the house a museum of your life by displaying countless photos of your loved ones. Whether staying for a week or just a few nights, visitors to a home should sense that it is theirs for their stay.

5. Don't Make The Space Too Focused On One Thing

There's a fine line between hip and kitschy or bonkers. Consider the locations of your events where guests would appreciate a theme. Your lake house's hallway will look stunning with its collection of vintage fishing lures. Smallmouth bass toilet paper holders are cute, but they might get old.

6. Don’t  Leave Any Of Your Belongings

Don't take this as a green light to start piling clutter in your living quarters. Guests may feel uneasy if too many family photos or personal items are displayed. It's a security risk.

7. Don't Buy Furniture Sets

Choose a variety of statement furniture pieces and one-of-a-kind secondhand pieces to create an intriguing listing. If you want to make an experience and a layout that tells a fascinating story, a furniture set is not the best purchase you can make.

This is the perfect excuse to spend an afternoon browsing through your town's thrift shops, searching for unique and intriguing finds.

Conclusion

You shouldn't let things like unanswered messages from guests or a lack of cleanliness detract from the time, money, and effort you put into decorating your Airbnb. Guests can have a more enjoyable stay if they take the time to do interior design work. We hope you enjoyed the above tricks and found them useful. 

Tips for When You're Running Out of Room in Your Home

Sometimes having a small home can be great and exactly what you need. However, when is a small space too small for what you need? Extra furniture, new family members, and any tenants who are renting rooms can all be taking up more and more space, limiting the useable living areas in your home. Here are a few tips that can help you create more space if your living quarters have started becoming a little cramped.

Do a Major Cleanout

You can go through your entire home and clear out the things that are taking up space that you don’t need. There may be items that you no longer use or want and have forgotten about, and throwing away these possessions, selling them, or giving them to charity can help create more room in your home. Certain items that you wish to keep but don’t need in your home for immediate use can be put into an off-site storage unit.

Add More Shelving

Shelves can be added to different parts of your home to hold many of the items that might be taking up space in rooms and hallways. You can install new shelves on the upper and lower levels of any bare wall. Shelves can even be placed on the insides of the pantry, closet, and bedroom doors. Even floating shelves, which are tied to a string and suspended from the ceiling, can help you save space in your home.

Expand Your House

If you have the money and enough space on your property, you can have new additions built onto your home to make it larger and roomier. Top and ground floor additions along with granny flats are some of the home extensions to think about when deciding on this plan of action. These additions may be necessary if your home is beyond its capacity because of new children or people who’ve moved into your house.

Pack Unused Clothes and Linens in Luggage

If you don’t plan to use any linens or out-of-season clothes for a while, you can pack them in luggage to save closet space. Rolling linens and clothes instead of folding them can allow you to fit more items into luggage pieces. You can also place linens and clothes into vacuum storage bags before placing them into luggage pieces to save even more room.

You don’t have to continue to live in a house that doesn’t give you the space that you need to move freely and feel comfortable. With these space-saving tips, you can reclaim much of your home. The only question now is whether you plan to do it through a small, immediate fix like a little spring cleaning or a big, permanent fix like expanding your house.