Why You Should (and Shouldn’t) Define Your Design Style

Designers often encourage their clients to define their home design style. Whether it be farmhouse, rustic, contemporary, Scandinavian or a mix of many styles, taking the time to define what appeals to you and how you’d like your home to feel can be a very helpful step in decorating and designing your home. Some people love this step and can easily tell you what design style they’re preferences fall into. Others, much like myself, find themselves drawn to many different styles, and so the process can be a bit of a challenge. 
What follows is an Oxford-style debate, design edition. I will argue both sides!

Why You Should Define Your Home Design Style
​

1. Helps Narrow Design Options ​

How often have you gone searching to find a decorative piece for your home only to come up empty handed, and 100% frustrated and confused? It’s happened to the best of us. If you find yourself overwhelmed when choosing decorative items for your home, defining your style will help you in a tremendous way. 

By defining your style, you will automatically end up creating two lists: 

1. Things/Finishes/Colors to Include
2. Things/Finishes/Colors to Exclude

This will save you time in the long run as you will not have to stop and look at every conceivable finish and/or decorative piece to try to decide if it will work with your finished goal.  

Consider the popular industrial look as an example.
Include: metal accents, Edison bulbs, brick accents, etc. 
Exclude: macrame, tiffany lamps, rattan

2. Creates a Cohesive Design

No matter the style, entering one cohesive room to another cohesive room creates a peaceful home. Every space or area should be unique to itself, but by bringing cohesiveness to the home, you will be connecting each space to the other, uniting the home in a way that will help you relax and feel at home. Keep in mind that this doesn’t mean that you have to use exactly the same items, colors, and materials throughout each room. Instead, repeat a few design elements (color, shape, size, materials, patterns, textures) from one room to the other and you will successfully create a cohesive design in your home. 

3. Create Something Special and Unique

Warning: This point requires a REAL commitment and shouldn’t be done by those who may like to change the style of their homes with the always changing trends. 

Have you ever seen one of those TV reality shows where they show the couple who designed their home 100% in mid century modern (or any other style)? It’s pretty awesome. It’s pretty exciting. I admire individuals who are gutsy and so sure of themselves that they’re willing to put time and money into their vision. 
​
This kind of commitment to a design style can be a challenge to pull off that requires a lot of time (for searching and finding correct items) and financial commitment. However, this kind of passion will give you something unique and memorable for anyone visiting your home. 

Why You Shouldn’t Define Your Style

If you’ve been following me for any length of time, you may have noticed that I’m not one who likes to stick to “rules.” I’ll often give advice about “doing this” but then in the next sentence give you permission to do the exact opposite. This is mostly due to believing that individuals and their design aesthetic is more than just following a set of rules. ​

1. Limiting

For some, limiting what they can or “can’t” add to their home can be a blessing, but for others, it’s a crutch. For those who appreciate many differing styles and have an appreciation for many beautiful items, defining one style and sticking to it may just be too limiting. 
I personally believe in defining a style, but allowing beloved items to make their way into your desired space that will become unique to your home and to who you are.

2. ​Changing Style

If you enjoy following and experimenting with current home design trends, whether it be the New Color of the Year, or whatever new fad is currently in style, in the end, sticking to one design style may be too costly on your wallet.  Allow yourself permission to enjoy what you enjoy, but make sure that whatever you’re DIYing in your home doesn’t clash. 

3. May Be Limited to What’s Currently Available

I like what I like, when I like it and I want it when I want it! This is where my personal largest struggle comes in. If you’re not following the current trends and doing your own thing, kudos! (Not that I have anything against current design trends.) However, I can guarantee you will be insanely frustrated as you're on the lookout for something very specific that may not be currently available. If you’re patient enough to search long and hard to find exactly what you want, then good for you, but keep in mind that in the end, you may have to have specific pieces custom made to fit your vision. At least it will be unique to you and I guarantee you will meet some pretty incredible people on the way. Can you tell this is the point where I hang out? Ah. 

So whether you decide to define your interior design style or not, be sure that whatever enters your home is something that brings you joy. 

If you are wanting help to define that style, feel free to reach out!