Top Five Tips for Decorating your First Home or Apartment

Whether you’re moving into your first apartment or purchasing your first home there will always be the large, and sometimes daunting, task of furnishing and decorating it.  At Belfort Furniture, we love creating beautiful rooms so we’ve put together a list of tips to help you with your first home.  This list can get you started and if you’d like some assistance with your furniture selection be sure to take advantage of our Design Services.

Decide which room is most important for you - and start there!

1. Determine where to start

Choose which room is most important for you and your lifestyle.  Do you spend most of your time at home watching television in the living room, reading in your bedroom, or entertaining in your dining room? Whether your bedroom, living room, or dining room is your first priority start with one room and make your way around your home in order of priority.

Mix and match wood tones and finishes for a designer look

2. It doesn't have to match!

Unless you prefer the look of everything matching, you can often achieve a ‘designer look’ through combinations that coordinate and complement rather than match.  Have fun with your accent chair, don’t be afraid to place pillows asymmetrically, and combine a variety of wood tones!  Incorporating different textures and finishes contributes to a luxury feel that can help distinguish different areas within open floor plans and larger homes.

In the photo above, we combined the Cirrus Slipcover Sofa by BeModern, the Nikko Chair by Sam Moore, the Croydon Cocktail Table and Croydon end table, the Palazzo Double Museum Bookcase, and anchored everything with Surya’s Fallon Rug.  The accessories are truly the finishing touch that completes the room.

Utilize a color palette to sync an open floor plan

3. Choose a color palette to coordinate rooms

With your first home, condo or apartment there may be many spaces you'll need to fill with furniture.  You also may be combining different styles or tastes and if you're moving into an apartment you often aren't able to paint the walls.  Our best advice for these beginner situations is to use a color palette to coordinate your rooms into a home.  When your first home is smaller or features an open floor plan, it's great to have a look that's consistent throughout the home and color can help you achieve this!  Color can easily be added through accessories, pillows, rugs, throws, upholstery, and even painted furniture pieces.

Above, our room setting includes the Four Hands Zhang Medici Media Armoire, the Four Hands Durham Dining Set, and the Molly Sofa and Chair upholstery collection by BeModern.

Choose a unique piece to help fill an odd space and provide storage

4. Take advantage of your space

Take a look around at what your new home has to offer.  Is there a unique alcove, room, hallway or layout that you can call attention to?   Often an odd wall or alcove can be overlooked, but placing the perfectly proportioned piece of furniture or accent piece can create a true focal point in your home.  Many options can also help by adding storage which can be especially important when furnishing smaller homes or downtown apartments.

Above, the Melange Gala Cabinet by Hooker Furniture is the perfect choice for a small, empty space.  From the outside, the piece makes a grand statement and transitions throughout the home’s décor while inside provides some essential storage.

Designed by Staff Designer, Stefani Arnold, this room came together perfectly for her customer

5. Be patient, don’t get overwhelmed, and have fun

This process of moving, decorating, and designing a new home can quickly become overwhelming and stressful.  Take a deep breath and realize that this experience should be fun.  If you're overwhelmed by the numerous options, it's best to start with inspiration!  Take a tour around Belfort Furniture’s Funriture Campus to see complete room settings that are fully decorated or browse through products and room setting images online.  From there, speak with our trained sales staff or any of our Design Consultants or Associate Designers who can help guide you through the process from furniture selection, to paint and accessory selection.

With Washington DC's largest furniture selection, we're ready and eager to help you create beautiful rooms in your new home.  Belfort Furniture offers a variety of furniture to choose from and we're sure we have something that's perfect for you.  Visit our showrooms, conveniently located in Dulles, Virginia, for great inspiration and expert guidance through your furniture selection process.

Read what our customers are saying about Belfort Furniture!  Below are some kind words customer David H. sent us through a personal e-mail:

"My wife and I appreciate Julia McMahon's professional and personal approach to finding solutions that fit our furniture needs. Her knowledge concerning construction techniques, materials, and manufacturing processes made our decisions easy. Further more, she backed up her knowledge with the manufactur's written documentation. Julia McMahon truly made our first purchase with Belfort Furniture a wonderful experience!! I also enjoyed the food, entertainment, and family-oriented atmosphire on Labor Day 2013. It was simply delightful!! Thank you for your time."