This video highlights seven common interior design missteps that can make a home look cheap, offering practical solutions for achieving a more sophisticated aesthetic without overspending. It covers choosing intentional furniture over bulky comfort pieces, ensuring TV consoles are wider than the screen for proper visual balance, and opting for full-length, quality window treatments over plastic blinds. The guide also emphasizes avoiding excessive glossy surfaces and fake textures, promoting authentic materials and extending cabinets to the ceiling for a custom look. Finally, it encourages personalizing decor with meaningful items rather than generic, mass-produced art to create a unique and lived-in feel.
A living room featuring a large, dark grey sectional sofa with built-in recliners, typical of bulky, comfort-focused "dad furniture" that often makes a space look cheap.
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Avoid "Dad Furniture" (oversized, comfort-only recliners and puffy sectional sofas).
This type of furniture often prioritizes comfort over aesthetics, clashing with an elevated interior design.
A large, dark grey sectional sofa with built-in recliners, typical of bulky, comfort-focused "dad furniture."
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Matching sets of such furniture can further detract from a sophisticated look.
A living room furniture set including a recliner, a sofa with recliners, and an ottoman, all matching in a bulky, comfort-focused style.
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Prioritize intentional pieces that balance both form and function.
Opt for well-designed sofas and sculptural chairs that are both stylish and comfortable.
A sophisticated living room featuring neutral colors, a white sofa, and a dark armchair, demonstrating an elevated design.
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Ensure furniture pieces contribute to the overall feel and aesthetic of the room, rather than solely serving a utility.
A contemporary living room featuring a sleek, comfortable brown sofa, a glass coffee table, and white accent chairs, demonstrating balanced aesthetics and comfort.
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Avoid console tables that are the same width as or narrower than the TV.
This creates disproportion, making the entire setup appear visually awkward and cheap.
A living room with a large TV mounted above a console table that is significantly narrower than the television, creating visual imbalance.
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Ensure the console or credenza beneath the TV is always wider than the screen.
This helps to ground the space and balance the visual weight of the television.
A modern living room with a TV mounted above a long, wooden console table that extends beyond the width of the screen, creating a balanced and visually grounded setup.
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Do not use tiny panels floating in the middle of an empty wall behind the TV.
Such panels look undersized and out of place, failing to properly integrate the TV into the room's design.
A wall-mounted TV set within a small, floating white panel that doesn't extend to the edges of the television, making it appear undersized.
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Instead, create a full feature wall or a gallery wall to properly frame the TV.
A TV panel, if used, should extend well past the sides of the TV to create an intentional feature wall that anchors the setup.
A modern living room with a TV mounted on a light wood paneled wall above a long, matching media console that extends well beyond the TV's width, creating a cohesive feature wall.
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A gallery wall around the TV can help distribute visual weight across the wall, making the TV feel like a natural part of the design rather than an afterthought.
A living room featuring a large TV integrated into a gallery wall, with framed artwork and shelves surrounding it to balance the visual weight.
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Avoid plastic blinds, whether vertical or horizontal.
These window treatments typically have a cold, office-like feel that conflicts with attempts to create warmth or elegance in a home.
An office space with large vertical white plastic blinds covering the windows.
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Opt for alternatives such as roller shades or Roman blinds.
Roller shades offer a clean and minimal look, ideal for modern spaces, and are available in various opacities and colors.
A kitchen window with a clean, minimal roller shade, demonstrating a more modern and elegant alternative to traditional blinds.
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Roman blinds are practical, effectively soften a room, and add beautiful texture without overwhelming the window.
A living room with large windows covered by elegant Roman blinds, which soften the light and add texture.
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Ensure curtains are floor-to-ceiling length and wide enough.
Curtains that are too short or too narrow will immediately cheapen the space.
A bedroom with curtains that are too short and narrow for the window, creating an awkward and unfinished look.
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Floor-to-ceiling length draws the eye upwards, making the entire room feel more elevated.
A bedroom featuring floor-to-ceiling curtains that extend beyond the window's width, enhancing the room's height and creating a sophisticated look.
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Curtains should extend beyond the width of the window to frame it properly and contain enough fabric to drape nicely when closed.
A pair of curtains pulled wide to frame a window, demonstrating ample fabric and proper width for a full look.
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Prioritize quality fabric and ensure curtains are free of wrinkles.
Natural fibers like cotton and linen (or blends) tend to look more refined and hang well.
Close-up of elegant, natural-toned curtains with soft pleats, showcasing quality fabric and proper hanging.
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Even the best curtain fabric can look instantly cheaper if it is full of creases; steaming or ironing them makes a significant visual difference.
A bedroom with severely wrinkled white curtains, illustrating how creased fabric can detract from the overall appearance.
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Ironing or steaming curtains can make a significant visual difference.
A person's hands demonstrating how to create neat pleats in a curtain, suggesting proper care for a polished look.
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An abundance of glossy surfaces, such as high-gloss MDF furniture, shiny tiles, or mirrored finishes, can make a space feel artificial and quickly cross the line from sleek to tacky.
A bedroom with an abundance of glossy surfaces, including shiny floor tiles, mirrored nightstands, and highly reflective picture frames, creating a cold and artificial look.
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Such spaces can resemble a fancy dental clinic or shopping mall rather than a comfortable home.
A modern shopping mall interior with high-gloss floors reflecting light, creating a cold and impersonal atmosphere.
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Glossy surfaces also tend to show fingerprints, dust, and imperfections much more readily than matte finishes.
A close-up of a glossy black surface with visible fingerprints and dust, illustrating how easily imperfections show.
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Ground the space by primarily using matte or low-sheen finishes.
These finishes contribute to a layered, calm, and sophisticated feel in an interior.
A living room with primarily matte and textured surfaces, featuring a subtle glossy accent from a round coffee table, demonstrating effective balance.
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Use glossy elements sparingly as accents, such as a lacquered side table or a polished metal lamp, to add contrast and visual interest.
A sophisticated living room showcasing a mix of matte textures and a subtle glossy coffee table as an accent.
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Avoid fake textures and finishes like peel-and-stick brick or faux marble contact paper.
When something attempts to mimic a high-end material but fails, the illusion quickly falls apart, appearing plasticky, overly repetitive, or obviously manufactured.
A wall covered with peel-and-stick faux brick wallpaper, which looks artificial and lacks the depth of real brick.
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This ultimately cheapens the overall feel of the space, even if other elements are well-designed.
A kitchen countertop covered with faux marble contact paper, appearing artificial and lacking the depth of real stone.
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Choose materials that are honest about their true nature.
If expensive, genuine materials like a solid marble kitchen island are not within budget, opt for affordable yet authentic alternatives.
A luxurious kitchen featuring a solid marble island with striking natural veining.
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Consider options such as a butcher block countertop or a plaster or lime wash finish for walls, which feel tactile and honest.
A modern kitchen with a large wooden butcher block island and minimalist design.
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Real materials can still be incorporated in smaller, decorative ways, such as a marble cutting board or a decorative tray.
A kitchen counter with lemons and limes on a beautiful, authentic marble cutting board, showing how real materials can be incorporated in small, tasteful ways.
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Extend built-in cabinets all the way to the ceiling, whenever possible.
The awkward gap between the ceiling and the top of the cabinets is not only wasted space but actively works against the room's aesthetic.
A kitchen featuring wall cabinets that stop well short of the ceiling, creating an empty, dusty gap above them.
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This gap draws the eye to an empty area, makes the ceiling appear lower, and visually crops the wall in half, resulting in an unfinished and cheap look.
Another kitchen with cabinets that do not reach the ceiling, leaving a large, dusty gap above.
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Attempting to decorate this ledge with fake plants or random baskets often just adds clutter and further highlights the inadequate cabinet height.
A kitchen with cabinets that don't reach the ceiling, where the space above is cluttered with decorative items.
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Taking cabinets to the ceiling offers several benefits:
It elongates the walls and makes the entire space feel more custom and high-end.
A modern kitchen with white cabinets extending seamlessly all the way to the ceiling, creating a clean, custom, and elongated look.
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This rule applies not only to kitchens but also to closets, built-in shelving, and any other millwork for a more intentional and polished appearance.
A walk-in closet with built-in shelving extending all the way to the ceiling, maximizing storage and creating a custom look.
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Examples include word art featuring phrases like "Home" or "Family," canvas prints from big box stores, or generic stock photos of famous landmarks or nature scenes.
A set of three black and white generic canvas prints featuring famous European landmarks above a sofa, illustrating uninspired decor.
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While not offensive, these items lack personality and are so ubiquitous they can make a space feel lifeless, resembling a model unit rather than an actual home.
A model apartment living room with generic, large-scale abstract art and standard decor, lacking personal character.
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Incorporate meaningful and human pieces into your decor.
Instead of generic art, frame a map of a city you love, hang a vintage scarf, or display a collection of postcards from past or dream trips.
A wall display featuring multiple framed vintage maps above a sofa, adding a personal and cultured touch.
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Thrifted art and handmade objects instantly add depth and warmth because they are unique and tell a story.
A corner of a room featuring a mix of vintage-style art prints, a unique lamp, and a textured vase, suggesting a curated and personal aesthetic.
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Don't underestimate the power of thoughtful framing; even a child's drawing or personal family photos can look gallery-worthy when presented with intention, curating your own personal archive.
A gallery wall filled with a variety of framed artwork, including what appears to be personal drawings and illustrations, creating a unique and personal aesthetic.
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