Interior design inspiration - Decorating your home beautifully, practically and sustainably with our tips
To make your apartment feel like a home, you need to put some thought into the decor. Furnishings that reflect your personality while meeting your everyday needs. With a little interior design inspiration, you can have a cozy apartment that you feel comfortable in. After all, your home is the place where you should be able to relax and feel at home. The interior design of your home is therefore incredibly important and with a little time and thought, your home can get a total makeover, without costing several months' salary.
Here we have gathered our best tips to help you with interior design and also tried to shed light on some details that are often forgotten when we buy interior design items. From the hallway and living room to the bathroom. In this article, you'll find interior design inspiration for every room in your home. For tips on balcony decor, you can also read this article (link to balcony decor).
Put your personal stamp on your home
Your home is not just a dwelling. It is like a gallery that shows who you are. Your favorite colors, shapes and interior design styles are the details that show visitors who you are, as soon as they enter the apartment. Do you love the 50s and colorful sofas and tablecloths? Are you more modern and prefer clean lines with subtle tones? You decide how your home looks, and it's your personal preferences that determine how your home will look.
Luckily, we live in a country where we can easily find interior design inspiration in various furniture stores and interior design blogs. IKEA has always been a big inspiration for how Swedes decorate their homes and that's just as true now as it was 50 years ago. But today there are more exclusive design stores that target specific styles. If you need to find your personal style, you can visit your local furniture stores and see which styles pique your interest.
Light makes a big difference
In Sweden, most of us are used to darkness. The sun doesn't come out as often as you'd like, which means that the light sources in your home are extra important. And we don't just mean hanging a ceiling light in every room to brighten it up. No, light can do so much more for your room and your interior than many people realize. Different types of light sources in different parts of the room can make a room feel cozier, more homely and even bigger. Try it yourself, put different types of lights in different rooms and have different combinations on to see how the whole room changes with different light sources.
In the bathroom, white light ceiling lights combined with a light source above the bathroom mirror are always practical. The white light helps you wake up in the morning and light by the mirror makes it easier to get ready before leaving home. In the kitchen, white light is also preferable, especially over the kitchen counter, while warmer tones of light are perfect around the dining table. Have a low hanging ceiling light above the dining table for a homely feel when you sit down to eat.
In the living room and bedroom, several light sources in the corners can do a lot for the interior. A table lamp by the sofa can make movie nights extra pleasant, and a floor lamp aimed at the ceiling can give the room a more pleasant atmosphere. Thanks to modern low-energy lamps, having several lights on at the same time is also not very expensive or dangerous for the environment.
It's the details that make the whole
A beautiful sofa is not complete without a couple of soft cushions and a blanket or throw. In the bedroom, we often have many decorative cushions and bedside tables with small lamps and maybe a photo frame with pictures of loved ones. It is these small details that can transform a dull room into a cozy oasis. A few personalized photos or beautiful paintings on the walls can really make a huge difference to a room and don't cost very much.
Blankets, cushions and throws are not only practical for chilly fall and winter evenings, but also give your home the feeling that someone actually lives here. Choose blankets and cushions in your favorite colors or in the colors that go perfectly with your existing furniture. Many people often have several matching cushions and a single cushion that stands out with an odd design or in a completely different color from the rest of the room.
Having more than one rug can also be really stylish if you have a large living room with a lot of floor space. It's little touches like these that you can use to make your home unique. With more fabric in your home, you'll also dampen any echoes.
A couple of pots of green plants in the bathroom is a perfect way to make the bathroom feel a little less sterile. Here too, a little fabric can make a big difference; for example, choose a wicker laundry basket with a fabric bag inside or put a towel ladder in the corner where you hang your clean towels. A bowl of potpourri or a nice candlestick are also small, but effective, details that lift the bathroom.
Sustainable design for a better future
Many of us often choose the eco-friendly option when we're at the grocery store or when it's time to give to charity. But can you also decorate your home in a sustainable and eco-friendly way? By decorating for the long term and not blindly following trends, you can be more climate-smart when decorating your apartment.
Every item you buy for your home should be something that you can see yourself having for life. Don't buy things on impulse but put time and thought into every piece of furniture you buy, so that you don't become the kind of person who buys new stuff every few months just because you didn't really think before spending a lot of money on an armchair or a bench that doesn't fit in your home. You can find your perfect condominium or rental apartment on Slättö to create your dream interior.
Another tip to decorate climate-smart is to shop second-hand. Buying second-hand furniture and interior design items is a great way to reduce your impact on the planet and you will also save money by buying second-hand. Going to second-hand stores can give you a lot of inspiration and you are likely to find interior design items in these stores that you cannot find in regular furniture stores.
Second hand is also perfect for those who like retro style and want to decorate their home with inspiration from the 60s, 70s or 80s. Also, try to sell or donate your old furniture and gadgets to give other people the chance to benefit from your old stuff. Together we can create a better future and you can make a big difference.