Simple Pleasures: Decorating Is Fun

Just like the title of famed decorator Dorothy Draper’s book, decorating is fun! Or at least, it can be, once you get beyond the practical matters (like covering those windows) and give yourself permission to follow your whims. We want our homes to be comfy, supportive, creative and lived in. Places where we feel genuinely at home, where we can be our full selves. If you’re itching to express your creativity through your decor, here are a few ideas to try.

Improvise. Some of the coolest decorating moments happen when you are just playing around. Write a fun message on a chalkboard, tear out magazine photos and put them in your fanciest frames, or drape a pretty textile (a scarf, tablecloth, whatever is at hand) over an old armchair. An unusual juxtaposition of objects excites the eye.



Art walls can be great places for improvising. Think you don’t have enough framed artwork to fill a wall? Try mixing in other objects, like Grandma’s needlepoint, a crayon drawing from your own childhood or a trio of badminton rackets. If you give yourself permission to think outside the box, you just might come up with something even more interesting than just framed pieces.


Get personal. Keep special mementos on display instead of hiding them — fill a dish with matchbooks from places you have traveled to, frame the keys to your first house in a shadow box on the wall or make a massive family photo wall in a stairwell. And remember, you are the curator of your sentimental items, so you can choose to display only those things that call up joyful memories. That great-aunt Hilda who was always mean to you? Leave her picture out of the photo wall!



Be bold. Craving a leopard print settee or lipstick-red side table? Go for it! You can be bold without spending a lot. Try painting a piece you already own or buy a small accessory in a bold color. If you want to invest a bit more, have an old chair re-covered in a fabric you love. Even one bold decorating move can be enough to invigorate your space and get you excited about coming home.


Be passionate. Love records? Display all of your favorite albums in one place, and set up your record player so you are inspired to play them more often. If you surf, hang your board on the wall. Big reader? Fill a wall with floor-to-ceiling bookshelves or turn stacks of art and design books into side tables (just be sure to put out coasters). Whatever you love, give it a place where it will shine.


Surprise yourself. Sort of like a tattoo hidden under the sleeve of a button-down shirt, a closet or powder room decorated to the max will give you a little surprise each time you open the door. Paint the interior of your coat closet raspberry, or wallpaper your bedroom closet in a bold pattern. A small framed painting or an ornate mirror is like an unexpected treasure hung inside a closet — be sure to add lighting, so you can see it.


Escape. Coming home after a busy day should feel utterly relaxing. Why not boost those feelings by re-creating some of the details from one of your favorite vacation spots? Create an exotic lounge area with floor cushions and a daybed, or dress your bedroom in the airy white and Aegean blue of the Greek isles.


Create the mood of a tropical beach vacation by hanging a hammock on the porch — or even in the living room. Scents can be great reminders of other locales, so consider tracking down a scented candle or an essential oil that brings back memories of a favorite trip. Plumeria for Hawaii, perhaps?

Tell us: How do you decorate for fun?

Browse more Simple Pleasures ideabooks

URL: Simple Pleasures: Decorating Is Fun http://www.decor-ideas.org/cases-view-id-25213.html