Secrets to a Luxe Look on Any Budget
If you crave the easy elegance of a luxurious abode, but your budget reality is more Target than Restoration Hardware, you’ve come to the right place! From symmetry and understated color palettes to linen on everything, these designer go-tos and insider tricks will make your house look luxurious, no matter your budget.
Chambers + Chambers Architects
Your first step is to streamline the color palette. Luxurious homes, while sometimes bursting with color, are more often than not odes to layered neutrals. Think rich browns, cool grays, sandy beige, and crisp white. One trick, if you’re having trouble winnowing down the color palette of a particular room, is to pull out your phone camera and snap a few pictures — viewing photos of your space can help give you some perspective. Notice which colors jump out at you first, and then take a moment to actually count the number of hues you can spot in the photo of your room. If it’s more than three (not counting neutrals like gray and beige) you probably have some editing to do!
With the color palette in hand, bring your focus to how your furniture and decor is arranged — generally the more symmetry you can introduce into your room, the more formal (and luxurious) it will feel. Try facing your sofas or armchairs towards one another, place a pair of topiaries or potted plants on either side of the mantle, or identical lamps at each end of the sofa.
Chambers + Chambers Architects
Often, simply rearranging what you already own is enough to bring a completely different feeling into your space. For example: pull some gorgeous coffee table books off the shelf (where you rarely notice them) and place them in stacks on a round table, or on the coffee table. Then place a vase in the center. Ta-da, you’ve just created a luxe looking vignette!
If you’re still working through the color palette and find you still have too many competing hues in one space, consider having some of your existing furniture re-upholstered in neutral fabric. The cost can be less than purchasing new furniture, and this one change can completely transform your space.
Another element that can have a massive impact on how luxe your room feels is what’s underfoot. Go for something big — the bigger the better — and in a soft, neutral hue. Too often I see rooms with rugs that are too small for the space, but I understand why: big rugs are expensive … at least, a lot of the time they are! I took the liberty of tracking down four chic options that all come in large sizes (8 by 10 and up) for less than $500:
Luxe rug shopping guide (clockwise from top left): Nourison Enhance in Ivory; Safavieh Cedar Brook in Navy and White; Jaipur Rugs Natural Lucia Marvy in Natural Beige; Safavieh Chatham in Gray and Ivory.
For more inspiration from Laura, follow along with her at LauraGaskill.com!
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