Shopping for Your New Home: Accessory Buying Tips

Your dream home is built. Your furniture is placed. But what should go on top of that gorgeous coffee table? What do you put on the bookshelves besides books? Adding accessories to your new home is one of the most fun phases of a project. Accessories look great mixed in among your most personal treasures and also add warmth and interest to your home.

The First Step

Your first step in figuring out which accessories to buy for your new home is to outline your basic needs by walking through room-by-room. Be sure you note furniture, wall and window widths and lengths, as well as ceiling heights.

The Entry

Entrance halls and outdoor area welcome gardens will introduce the style you plan to present for your entire home so be sure to consider this when choosing accessories and accent pieces. They should be practical as well as beautiful. Fresh flowers and potted plants are also great accessories for any home. They bring nature inside and can add a pop of color to any room’s palette.

The Living Room

Look at where the living room furniture is set up and determine what wall and floor space remain available. You can add home decor accents that will bring warmth and personality to the room. Items such as personal travel pieces or a pretty glazed pottery item are great ideas. Try not to overbuy and overcrowd.

FUN TIP: Zebra print is a great way to add instant flair. This print feels right at home with traditional, modern and eclectic styles. So go ahead, add a footstool or pillow that has Zebra print and see how it gives the room a chic feel!

The Bedrooms

Carefully analyze the bedrooms to determine the remaining wall and floor space. If you have flat space on top of dressers, they can be enhanced with textile runners, pictures, or other home accessories. Nightstands are a perfect place to create a cozy and intimate feel with home decor pieces. Lamps are often focal points and can incredibly important additions to any room, but can especially bring warmth and relaxation to a bedroom area.

The Bathrooms

Think outside the box when choosing such items as lamps, woven baskets, and other pieces for your bathrooms. The wastebasket can enhance the view or detract from it, so choose carefully. Since bathrooms do not typically have a view, you might compensate with a gorgeous work of framed art. Nature-themed paintings can add dimension, while water-themed art and seascapes can add that certain wow factor. If ventilation in any of your bathrooms is limited, remember to consider watercolor painting and other works of art that are susceptible to wetness.

The Kitchen and Dining Room

These two rooms represent your signature style. Everything from flatware to cooking utensils to table settings will speak to your style esthetic. Your kitchen is a place where people spend a lot of time, so you want to pick accessories that can transform the functional workspace into a place where people are relaxed and comfortable. Consider putting a bench full of handmade decorative pillows along an empty wall in this area so guests can keep the cook company and the chef can sit down and take a break! Original still life painting of delicious food can help get stir up an appetite.

The Floors

The floors in your new home are an integral part to consider when decorating. Wood floors invite lavish area rugs, especially in areas of high traffic (entrances, hallways, bathrooms and in front of couches). Area rugs help soften the sound in your home and create a more peaceful environment.

• Design
• Interior Design