7 Great Ways to Update the Look of a Room

7 Great Ways to Update the Look of a Room That Will Help You Sell Your Home


Whether you are selling your home or staying put, the change of season is a great time to update your home. Here are some great ideas that you can start implementing right away

Add a Burst of Color The winter season is now over – so let’s bring on the happier colors of spring into our interiors. Make winter a thing of the past by adding some colorful toss pillows. Mix and match patterns and solids to create an interesting contrast.

Add some colorful lampshades to revive your old lighting fixtures and perhaps a striped ottoman or chair to perk up a room. Add some floral accessories (real or faux orchids) in vivid hues like magenta or add cherry or forsythia blossoms in a beautiful vase and you’ll forget that we ever had as bad a winter as we had.

Add colorful art and accessories to update and add zing.  Source, ivillage.com

Add Texture Whether it’s a seagrass rug, a textured pillow, throw or woven wood shades, adding texture to a room warms it up, makes it more cozy and interesting.

Add texture for added warmth and interest. Images from Crate & Barrel

Add Pattern A beautiful, geometric patterned carpet can warm up a room plus give it a more updated feel. For a more traditional look, try a damask patterned carpet – but perhaps one in a non-traditional color. You can also add patterned vases, pillows and other accessories to add some life to your room.

A patterned tablecloth from Williams & Sonoma

Angle Your Furniture Why be predictable when you can be interesting? Try angling some furniture pieces (a sofa, your bed...a piano) and you may find that your room seems roomier…and much more exciting! It costs nothing but time to experiment with different furniture arrangements - so give it a try.  You may just surprise yourself!

Change Some of Your Wooden Furniture  Dark wooden furniture can look a bit too heavy in the spring and summer – so why not try some lighter tables etc. that will give your room an instant lift. Whether it’s painted wood, wrought iron or other metal – choose something that’s lighter in feel to add airiness and more visual space to your room. Mirrored tables add functional storage – while blending seamlessly into your walls. Glass table tops also lend a lighter, more contemporary feel to a room.

Rococco console from House Eclectic

Playing with the Scale of Some of the Items in Your Room  Sometimes a room can look dated and uninteresting because the scale of some of the furnishings may not be right.  A bulky sofa (or one with oversized arms) takes up valuable real estate in a room.    If possible, purchase a sofa that is sleeker - one with less bulk by the arms.  Not only is this a more modern look - but it helps to make your room seem...well, roomier!

Also, take a look at some of your most important focal points - a beautiful fireplace, for example.  If your mantle or mantle  is too small  and thin as compared to the entire hearth, you may want to add more substance to the mantle (beefing up the size, so that it corresponds better).  Changing the scale of a mantle creates a dramatic and updated look to your fireplace.

Other ways to change scale is to add a tall lamp to bring in some height - rather than use two smaller table lamps.  Or consider hanging a large mirror vertically (instead of horizontally).

Draperies that are hung at the height of a window make a room look shorter. Why not bring the drapery rod up towards the ceiling - and hang the drapes higher?  This will make your room seem taller.

Originally, this fireplace that we staged had only a horizontal landscape picture above it.  Adding a vertically placed mirror brings more prominence and height to the space

Bring the Outside In  Add some spring and summer to any room with a decorative vase and fresh-cut flowers. Bring in natural items like wicker and sisal to give a more natural feel. Decorate with seaside acceessories like coral, a nautilus and sea glass to add a beachy theme. Create a taller feel to your room by adding tall grasses in a long cylinder vase in a corner.

Natural wicker, rattan and sea shell accessories bring the outside in.  Image, organizeeverything.com

Sometimes simple things can change a room dramatically.  Try a few of these suggestions - and let me know how they worked in your rooms!

If you would like to have some of these suggestions and more implemented in your home before you sell it, call me at 631 793-1315 or email me at Linda.Leyble@gmail.com.  I will work within your budget to create a home that buyers will fall in love with - so that your home doesn't linger on the market.  I can also do a staging consultation for you with great suggestions and ideas that you can implement yourself - for a totally budget-friendly way to stage your own home for sale. We have two locations - Great River NY and Huntington NY.