If you are a big HGTV watcher, you might have noticed that no matter the show, there are certain phrases that come up over and over again when a potential buyer walks the home.
I love that they repeated…
The _____ ties into…
That is similar to…
The ______ is repeated here as well
The home has a cohesive feeling
Whether you are designing a home for the masses on a quick flip or you are trying to design your own home (and you aren’t a designer) you can still achieve that cohesive feeling that your favorite HGTV stars do by following these 5 simple tips.
1 – One Flooring
Having one flooring material run through the whole house will give the feeling of connection between every space in the home. This causes your eye to naturally travel from one room to the next without stopping. When you have a different material or colour of material your eye stops and your brain processes the change. This makes this next space feel separated from the others.
Don’t get me wrong. Creating that separating in spaces isn’t a bad thing. If your intention is to make the space separate from the rest of the home, this is how you would do it. For example, making your bathroom feel like a separate part of the home, isn’t a bad idea.
2 – Repeat Finishes
To simplify your design, choose finishes that you can repeat in different areas of the home. Something that is simple, not too busy of a pattern. Not only will this tie rooms together with repetition, but it will also save you stress by not having to choose too many finishes in the house as a whole.
Look for tiles that could be install in the kitchen as the backsplash but also in the bathroom either in the shower or on the floor. When choosing a countertop for the kitchen, think about using the same for your vanities in washrooms or even in the laundry room.
Try using cabinet hardware in more places throughout the home than just in the kitchen – vanities, closest doors, dresser or furniture drawers etc…
3 – Repeat Patterns
Another way to tie rooms together is by reusing patterns. Repeating a pattern will give you that connection as you move from room to room, similar to how repeating finishes by making the spaces cohesive.
Wallpaper 
Tile 
Area Rug
For example, chose a geometric patterned wallpaper in the dining room and then repeat the pattern in an area rug in the family room. Even if they are different colours, if the pattern is the same, the eye will still connect them as being related. Making your brain think they belong together – tying the rooms together.
4 – Repeat Colours
Have you noticed a trend yet?
Repeating design elements are the simplest way to tie rooms together in a home. Each room can have a different purpose, even a different user, but finding a way to repeat design elements will create a natural connection in the home.
Colours are a great way to do this especially in rooms that may be used by different genders. A floral pattern may not work in a room for a manly man. However, pulling a colour that is repeated somewhere in the home, can be.
This colour could be in a painting, paint colour on the walls, a colour from the kitchen countertop or backsplash or even an accessory or piece of furniture.
By painting the walls of a mancave the same colour blue as the armchair in the family room, for example, suddenly these rooms look like they are connected.
5 – Repeat Fixtures
A little more subtle way to tie rooms together is through fixtures. What do I mean by fixtures? Lighting, faucets, doorknobs, cabinet pulls…
You don’t need to use the same fixture over and over but choose fixtures from the same family. Maybe single pendent lights over the island but then the 5-lamp chandler from the same collection over the dining room table.
Choose fixtures that have the same finish (black metal, brushed brass finish etc) and with a similar shape.
The simplest and safest way to design a home (if you are ever unsure) is to stick to a limited number of finishes and colours and reuse them throughout the home. This can take away guess work and the stress of designing multiple rooms.
The key word in all of this is REPETITION. This also happens to be one of the 5 design principles Interior Designers are taught in school – for a reason. Repeating elements of design from between rooms will give that connection to each room that makes the home as a whole feel united. If only uniting family was that easy.
All that said, if you are EVER confused or looking for some guidance on your home décor, please contact us – designhelp@designonthemind.com or through Instagram @design_on the_mind