Having a beautiful home with great curb appeal and spacious interior space is great so long as you have a coordinating décor and design scheme. Otherwise, the various elements of your home will seem disconnected and the look incomplete or cluttered. But with a little more effort and coordination, the décor and design scheme will complement the architecture of the home—and itself.



When thinking about what kind of décor and design scheme to use in your home, you must first consider the house itself. When was it built and it what design scheme? If it was built prior to the 1950's, it probably was influenced by the Arts & Crafts or Prairie Style movements. These styles were more naturalistic and would be conducive to a more traditional décor and design scheme.

Homes built from the mid-1950's onward will progressively have a more contemporary feel to them. These homes will feature clean lines, simple design, functional, and very minimalist in nature. The décor and design scheme of these homes need to incorporate open floor plans and a minimalist approach—less is more. Some modern art is fine but rooms full of knick-knacks and keepsakes do not fit well in a contemporary home.

Where each room is concerned, a great starting point to any décor and design scheme is to begin with a focal point. In the living room, a great focal point would be a fireplace. An ornate fireplace screen with matching tools are easy to coordinate other furnishings in the room around—and by doing so—the décor and design scheme will be unified in theme and function.

Bedroom décor and design schemes generally see the bed itself as the focal point. This is why bedroom sets typically all have the same finish. If the home is more traditional in nature, a beautiful chest at the foot of the bed is generally a nice finishing touch to the décor and design scheme. If more contemporary in nature, a platform bed with simple matching elements would be a good start to the décor and design scheme.

The focal point of the room can really be any defining element around which the other furnishings can be coordinated. A beautiful display cabinet, chandelier, fireplace, or even a bed can all be used as the focal point of your décor and design scheme. Just be sure that the design scheme is in line with the basic architecture of the home itself and you should be fine once you find what to make the focal point of each room.