While some people find subtlety comforting, others like to make a statement with their furniture. By choosing items that stand out, you can give each room its own character and bring a sense of fun to your home. However, it’s important to keep your furniture choices practical and to avoid clashes as a result of too many competing focal points. This post explains more on how to choose furniture that stands out.
Embrace bold colours
Boldly coloured furniture is certain to grab people’s attention. Consider different colours for setting different moods: blue for calm, red for energy, yellow for cheeriness and green for vitality. Too many bold colours can be dizzying, so try to balance them out with neutral colours and avoid too many different tones. In many cases, when choosing bold coloured furniture, it’s best to keep the walls and ceiling neutral, or paint one accent wall in a complementary colour.
Try different textures and patterns
Playing around with textures and patterns can also draw people’s attention to certain furniture. Reflective surfaces are great for catching the light and can provide a modern touch – this could include a mirrored chest of drawers or a glass coffee table. Alternatively, you could consider unfinished natural textures such as providing a more traditional rustic look such as wood with a visible grain pattern or veined marble. Patterns like polka dots, plaid, floral patterns, chequers and chevrons can be particularly attention-grabbing, however you should avoid placing contrasting patterns together as it could create a jarring look.
Play with scale
It’s worth considering the scale of different furniture items. Breaking scale conventions can make furniture stand out, but you need to make sure it’s still practical. For example, an oversized armchair in the corner of a living room can amplify the room’s sense of cosiness, however you’ll want to make sure that any side table or lamp is equally large. A low bed in a low ceilinged room can meanwhile add height to the room, but you’ll need to make sure bedside tables are equally low so that you can still reach them from the bed.
Mix and match styles
There’s an art to mixing and matching different styles of furniture. When done correctly, mixing and matching can be a great way to make each piece of furniture stand out while maintaining a sense of harmony. When done incorrectly, mixing and matching may lead to a room feeling messy and unbalanced. Ideally, you should try to choose matching sets of furniture or you should try to make every item unique from the last. If you choose the latter approach, try to still maintain some harmony by keeping furniture the same colour or adding the same styled cushions to each chair.
Invest in an antique
You can also make furniture stand out by choosing antiques. Such furniture can bring an exciting element of history to a room. Antiques can be paired with other old items from the same period, or you can make them stand out more by contrasting them with modern items. When shopping for antiques, make sure to carefully inspect the condition and choose items that are still functional.