Not everyone can be an HGTV decorator. Most people don’t have degrees in interior design, and have no concept of what they might like to see in their home. Decorating for the senses is one simple way to select colors, fabrics and accessories for even the most style-challenged.
Touching Your Way Into Texture
Many of the experiences of being comfortable and belonging at home occur in the sensation of touch. Whether it is the feeling of rugs, carpet or smooth hardwood floors underfoot, or the brush of a curtain, or the texture of a pillow against a sleepy cheek.
Imagine running your hands over satin, brocade, velvet and crisp linen, soft sheets and warm, fluffy towels. Close your eyes and feel your upholstery, rugs and window treatments. But don't stop there! Feel your way through your accessories as well.
Is everything ultra-soft and nothing sturdy? Unless it's a baby's room, you may want to add a tapestry or a stiff brocade to make things interesting.
Smelling the Scents of your Home
The old home-staging adage of baking cookies has merit, though to some potential buyers that may indicate you’re trying to mask the day-to-day scent of the home. What is the day-to-day scent of your house? The best time to check this is right after work. Before your nose has had a chance to acclimatize to the scent of your surroundings, take a deep breath as you walk through the door.
If you'd like to change the scent of your home, try to pick a single fresh, clean scent, such as lemon or lavender. Match air fresheners, candles, potpourri and fresh flowers, as well as your cleaning supplies, to this scent so that the entire house smells the same way, and scents aren't warring with one another.
If you don't like the overpowering scents of air fresheners, just focus on your cleaning supplies, after all, no one has ever complained that a house smelled “too clean”.
Seeing is Believing
Walk from room to room and see where your eye is drawn. Is there a focal point in each room? If you are feeling compelled to gaze in several directions at once, you may need to experiment with moving furnishings and accessories to create a clearer focus.
This will also help you notice trouble areas – paint that might need to be touched up on the wall, of a feature of your home that you could better highlight, such as a bay window or fireplace.
Don’t be afraid of color – choose prints and color combinations that are pleasing to your eye. Unsure about what colors work together? Select a brightly striped multicolor throw pillow to use as your color pallet, and select the colors you decorate the room with from those same shades.
What do you hear in your House?
If the pets sound like thundering herds of wildebeests, it's possible you need some throw rugs to muffle the sounds of footsteps in your home.
Energy-efficient windows also help reduce ambient sounds from the street and neighborhood outside.
When entertaining (or showing a home for sale) soft music is the most appealing way to create a cocoon of sound for visitors.
Mouthwateringly Tasteful Decorating
How do you decorate for the sense of taste? Short of leaving that fresh-baked batch of cookies out for your guests or open house, there seem to be few things you can do. However, mouthwatering colors can go a long way to attract the taste buds of your guests.
Try crisp green apples in a black bowl as a centerpiece, or accessorize by showing off your wine collection in a beautiful wine rack.
Don’t forget the “Sixth Sense”
Most of design relies on hunches. The feeling of discomfort you have walking through a room may mean that the focus isn't clear. Barking your shins on a table might mean you don't have enough clearance between pieces of furniture. If you feel restful and relaxed in a room, chances are that you have decorated it well. The key is to trust your instincts and go with your gut.
Decorating is largely a matter of preference, but most people don't remember to check in with all of their senses when making decisions about interior design. It's a good idea to include some element of each of the senses in every room to create a warm, inviting atmosphere.
Alicia King - Alicia King has been writing for Suite 101 since June of 2007. For over a year, she was the Featured Writer for the Suite section about ...
