How to make decoration look expensive

[Goostacean]

I know there was a thread on how to dress to look expensive, and we're just starting a room-by-room renovation of the house so this was on my mind... any tips? Replaces expensive with tasteful, classy, etc if you prefer- and I appreciate the two are not necessarily the same thing!

I have a mix of Laura Ashley (sale items) and supermarket cushions. Also not too cluttered but with 3 dc and my dh I fail there.

Hmmm - placemarking here because we recently bought a house with interior decor which looks "expensive" and I'm frantically trying to live up to this look when I buy the new stuff we need!

In our case it seems to be based on:

Neutral colours (the pale greyish or sludgy ones which wouldn't have caught my eye on a paint chart)

Lots of texture in curtains, feature wallpaper etc

Muted metallic lamps, mirror frames, picture frames etc (the previous owners helpfully left lots of these behind). Not so much shiny, but matte or distressed.

Hotel-type bathroom styling with yet more neutral colours

Expensive-looking lightswitches, doorhandles, plug sockets etc. No white plastic or lightweight stuff.

Obviously this is only one type of 'expensive' look - I'm sure there are many...

Key thing is to not go for trends. Try to stick to classic , neutral styles as a base.
Investment pieces - a few good quality expensive pieces (not trendy) are worthwhile. They can lift the feel of a room.
Don't go for anything cheap, mdf etc.
Minimalism and good storage solutions will help too.
Diy! Especially painted furniture etc. Better to get 2nd hand wooden furniture from a charity shop that is real wood and well made to paint yourself, rather than the "cheap" mdf knock off (inc. Ikea furniture - it can look so cheap and tatty so quickly)

Unless you live in a French chateaux, avoid the shabby chique/distressed look. Mirror frames can be the exception if the rest of the room is well put together

Texture, texture, texture.

Avoid the well known mass market options if possible. My friend has the most amazing period house, decorated entirely with very well known high street wallpaper patterns. It doesn't look at all expensive unfortunately. It looks nice but doesn't have that "expensive/classy" look.

As pp has said, mix and match it. Nothing wrong with a laura ashley light fixture or an ikea rug combined with more individual pieces.

I think regular maintenance also helps. To my eye, a house can have been expensively decorated but if the white paint has yellowed, or there are chips out of the skirting boards etc then the overall effect is reduced.

Interesting idea.
I am quite fussy about design and colour in particular. I can't stand the bland mass market beige / grey and typical 'love' 'home' etc slogans. There are so many cliches.
I agree with a pp that texture is key, particularly natural textures eg. Stone, brick, wood grain, etc.
Lighting is also very important - worth investing heavily in this area as a well lit plainly decorated room looks far superior to an expensively decorated room with one poor pendant light that doesn't show it off to its full potential.

Also, while I'm not a great fan of farrow and ball paint (just don't like working with it or the muddiness of the colours...) the books are fab particularly 'recipes for decorating'

Curtains make an amazing amount of difference. Something with a double or triple pleat will always look far more expensive than a pencil pleat or eyelet. At our last property which had lots of windows ( some quite large) I couldn’t afford bespoke made curtains so bought Laura Ashley ready mades In the sales and had them altered to be the perfect length with double or triple pleats put in.

Natural materials including plants and anything that is not mass produced which has character via texture, shape, pattern and colour.

It helps if it is also personal to you and speaks to things you love. If you have a passion for something that is shared by the masses or mass produced, you need to have a high end take on it or it needs to be really personal.

Some really interesting ideas here, thanks for humouring me! I'm seeing the same points coming through several times, so will definitely be thinking abut textures and lighting. The house currently looking frankly dilapidated, and not in a French chateau kind of way! So am keen to make good choices as we go through the renovations.

Have a look on instagram at expensive interior designers like Sybil Colefax or Susan Deliss for an idea of how rooms can be put together. Central Asian prints and suzanis are very fashionable in high end design at the moment and can be bought online a lot cheaper than from expensive suppliers! Classic William Morris or Sanderson prints are always good and agree with pp natural textures like stone floors, sheepskin rugs and wood work well. I aspire to country house greatness but the rising tide of kid clutter and lack of keeping on top of DIY always ruins the look.

Ambidexte We've also just bought a house that looks expensive inside, we're worried how our furniture is going to look!

Every room is painted cream, so It's definitely the contents that make it look so good, with lovely pieces of wooden furniture and thick curtains. All the light switches are metal, and the light fittings are chandelier type, not a fabric shade in sight. The paintwork on the doors and skirting boards is definitely a professional job and that was the first thing I noticed.

It's reminded me of when we went to view the house. The owner, (who reminded me of Kate Garraway!) said she had a cat but it had ran off as she'd just 'zoflowed the kitchen with the steam cleaner' She was glued to her tablet while the estate agent was showing us round, and I said to DP afterwards 'I bet she was on mumsnet' He had no idea what she was on about!

Curtains do make a big difference but can be incredibly expensive. We are in the process of redoing our bedroom and the curtains for three large windows will take up a very large part of the budget!

Good (hidden?) storage and/or decluttering so that the rooms don't appear over full.

If you have access to a sewing machine and can sew a straight line you can make your own curtains and save hundreds. Good fabric is still pricey (£10 per metre ++) and you'll need to stump up for lining too, but you can make great curtains for about a third of the cost of even readymade.

Well dressed rooms always have:

• decent wool (not synthetic) rugs, which are the right size to centre the furniture
• cushions with feather inners (not synthetic)
• multiple sources of layered light
• three colours. 60 percent one colour, 30 percent complementary colour, 10 percent accent colour.
• Use the 30 percent colour prominently in prints, accessories or a large art work.
• pick one focal point and arrange the room around that.
• couches should never be placed on walls

If sofas/couches shouldn't be placed against walls where can I put them? Genuine question. I have a standard 1930s living room with a round bay window and fire place on one wall. I'm keen to make it look more stylish but not got many ideas!

@livingthegoodlife we have a similar living room and open plan to dining room so only one wall to our sofa against. After some experimentation we've put sofa in front of round bay window and will have shelves/ plant stand behind the sofa.

My lounge is v small. Sofas HAVE to go against walls.

The nicest houses I have seen are decorated in muted colours and have lots of natural textures. Leather sofas, real wood, wool etc. Good lighting helps too .

Have a flick through a Kelly Hoppen 'Home' book. Classic and effortlessly stylish. Neutral, muted colours - black, grey, white, gold, silver and taupe. Lots of taupe.

Classy yet elegant is what I would describe as expensive.
Agree about muted colours looking more expensive
Invest in good quality, high end furniture, particularly dining tables, chairs , sofas.
If you want to buy leather sofas, buy the good quality ones. The cheap sofas won’t last.
Great lighting is vital- lamps, candles. You can get some great bits from charity shops.
Some lovely ornaments with a theme.
Painting should be done by professionals
Regular cleaning with appropriate products.
A dirty house cannot look expensive