Ever look around your home, which you have put effort and money into so it looks and feels like home—with style to spare—and find yourself admitting that some parts just aren’t working, yet?
You’re not alone. Interior spaces can be challenging still even after the work is done. But then again, anything to do with our home is a work in progress.
If you’re about to start a project of turning those unused or awkward spaces in your home into spots that make you proud and content, we have rounded up 7 areas that often baffle homeowners when it comes to design and décor choices, and along with the proven ways you can transform them with a handful of well-chosen pieces:
1. Staircase landings, ledges, and wall space
For landings, simple is best. A bench, a pouffe, or an armchair with a throw and a pillow should do the trick. Or you can opt for a beanbag—something the kids, and the kid in you, will get a kick out of.
For ledges and wall spaces, think stop-them-in-their-tracks impressive. If you have plenty of wall space, it can’t hurt to put up some spectacular artwork or a collection of framed photos (you can go all black and white, if you have a great collection). If your ledge is deep enough and you have some ceramics, pots, or sculptural pieces of ornaments, then you have a perfect match.
2. Space under a staircase
If the height is right, this would make a cozy reading nook or fit a narrow desk and a chair. Your other options include storage, space for a bench or a chair, or an indoor (pebble) garden, like this work by Brazilian landscaper Gil Fialho:
3. Under tall windows
Tall windows can immediately give you the feeling of having more space, but what to do with the space between the low sill and the floor? The answer is to go low—that is low benches that allow you to lounge by the windows to get a better sense of their height and the amount of view you get.
4. Nooks and tiny corners
What about those weird nooks and corners that resulted from efforts to hide some electric work and/or pipes?
If you have one or two of these spaces—don’t overthink things. You’ll have plenty of options—just try not to go with too many for one space—which include
- A stool with books on it
- A chair or a storage bench
- Hanging planters
- A console table
- Floating/open shelves
- A painting or print or photoraph
5. Top of kitchen cabinets and upper kitchen shelves
It can get tricky, not to mention dusty, up there—neither of which is reason not to do something abou it. Do you, by any chance, own some beautiful ceramic pitchers and canisters? How about a still-life painting or two of food (i.e., fruit, bread, etc.)?
6. Half walls and interior windows
Often used to set off the living room from the kithen or dining room, these spaces require both a creative and practical approach. For example, rather than go purely decorative with flowers or tiny potted plants, why not pots of herbs? Or maybe a bowl of fruit—that is, a really gorgeous bowl.
7. Behind a door
That bit of wall and tiny space behind a door that’s opened becomes very conspicuous without a door to hide behind.
A tall mirror and a narrow console table easily solves the problem, especially if it’s the front door. You get a chance to do a final check of your appearance before heading out, and you have a place to put down your keys when you walk in. If this bit of awkward space is elsewhere in the house, maybe an artwork or a photograph, or a collection of small framed pictures or prints, can take the place of a mirror.
Are you listing your home soon? It can’t hurt to look into the awkward spaces that prospect buyers may not find easy to look beyond.
If you’re looking at houses, don’t write off a potentially great investment just because of a lack of décor initiative in staging.
Call Team Clancy today to talk buying or selling a home with us. We have solutions that cover interior design/décor so you know you’re really selling or moving into a home.