How to Fix Insanely Boring Home Decor, According to an Interior Designer
Don't worry; you don't have to buy anything new.
In theory, decorating your home should be a fun and exciting experience. You get to choose new pieces that feel uniquely you, test out furniture setups, and look at the things you already own with fresh eyes. In practice, though, it can be a bit more stressful, especially when you're constantly bombarded with different design aesthetics on social media. And that's before you even look at the price tag of the items you're interested in!
Fortunately, many interior designers have taken to TikTok to share their best advice for decorating—as well as what they'd avoid. In a recent video, professional designer Tyke Pryde (@tykapride) shared the decor style she thinks is boring. And thankfully, for those of us who want to decorate our homes as nicely as possible, she also shared how to fix it. Read on for her expert tips.
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Pryde says homes resembling showrooms are boring.
While neutral, minimalist spaces are trending right now, Pryde says some of them veer into boring territory and end up looking like no one lives in them.
"Please stop treating your homes like store showrooms," she says. "Anytime you see boring and bland styling, it's often for real estate staging, and they're specifically designed to be boring and to have no personality so that anyone can envision themselves living in that house."
However, the "showroom" style has become mainstream—and is now popping up in real homes. To illustrate the decor aesthetic, Pryde shows images of shelves decorated with backward books, nondescript vases, and stock-photo prints.
While the design style works for selling a home, you probably shouldn't add it to your Pinterest board. "It's not a decor style you want to emulate for yourself," she says.
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She says a home should reflect your personality.
Instead, you'll want your home to feel uniquely yours. "Successful interior design, at its best, reflects how we want to show up in the world, and it says something about who we are, even if you're just displaying beautiful objects," Pryde explains. "Hopefully, they're from your travels; maybe they have some sentimental value, and they're not just all built around some aesthetic you're trying to achieve."
For example, instead of decorating a mantel with candlesticks from Target, you could search for a pair at a local vintage shop with a cool story behind them. Or, instead of buying a brand-new set of dishes, you could ask for a hand-me-down set from an older relative. When you look around your home, you'll see pieces that mean a lot to you and that you took your time to collect.
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One easy way to do that is with shelves.
Pryde says that bookshelves are one of the primary places in the home that tend to give off a "showroom" vibe.
"Anytime you see styling where the books are turned around, it's usually for commercial use," she says. Of course, it's not all that functional for every day when you'll likely want to see the name of the book you're selecting.
Instead, use the shelves to create a focal point. "Shelves were meant to be functional, and they should serve a purpose, and they should be filled with things that reflect who you are as a person," says Pryde.
If a new guest visits your home, your shelves should be a place where their eye lingers. Maybe, an item you display on them even serves as a conversation starter!
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You can do this while keeping a minimalist aesthetic.
It's possible to stick to a palette of neutrals and keep things streamlined while also showing personality.
"Even if you want to just stick to one interior design style or stick to a very specific aesthetic, you still don't want to be too precious when it comes to styling your home; you want people to walk in and say, like, oh this is so you, this feels like you," says Pryde.
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