Designing a room successfully can be difficult, especially if you don’t have prior interior design experience. From budget and size constraints to outdated styles or less-than-stylish accessories, the problems interior designers face can feel insurmountable. But don’t worry: armed with a little bit of knowledge, it’s easy to avoid common interior design mistakes and meet the challenges posed by your space head-on. Keep reading to learn about four common interior design problems and solutions for making your home beautiful.

Interior Design Challenges and Solutions

What Are the Factors Affecting Interior Design?

“Good” interior design is subjective, but well-designed rooms all share one trait in common: they all succeed in effectively balancing and incorporating the various factors that affect interior design, such as light, color, texture, and form. Each of these elements gives you opportunities to solve pesky design problems, which is why it’s important to learn how to use them. For a full breakdown, check out our article explaining the seven elements of interior design. Whether you’re tackling a single room redesign or top-to-bottom home makeover, try to keep all seven elements in the front of your mind.

You should also be mindful of practical factors, such as your budget, the size of your space, and even the climate you live in, depending on what part of the house you’re redoing. Setting clear, detailed, and realistic goals is the best way to choose materials, accomplish tasks, and ultimately, bring your vision to life.

Challenge (and Solution) #1: Cramped Spaces 

The challenge: Maybe you live in a major city where space is at a premium. Or maybe your home has lots of square footage, but feels crowded by your decor or furniture. Either way, the bottom line is that you don’t have quite as much space as you’d like.

The solution: Unfortunately, there’s no magic wand you can wave to make your home larger (unless you’re ready to commit to some serious remodeling). However, you can trick your mind into perceiving more space by applying some basic design principles. For example, designers often recommend using mirrors to visually amplify small spaces. Light colors and airy curtains can also help to create the illusion of extra room.

Challenge (and Solution) #2: Tight Budgets

The challenge: You’d love to redesign your bedroom, bathroom, basement, or kitchen; but you’re just not sure it’s in the budget this year. How can you get a look you love, while making sure you also get great value?

The solution: There are plenty of ways to save money while redecorating, such as repurposing old furniture, making simple but efficient fixes (like repainting), and using paints or textures to mimic luxury materials like hardwood and marble. With hundreds of budget-friendly products out there, contact our expert flooring team and find stylish looks for less.

Challenge (and Solution) #3: Outdated Features

The challenge: Your home or apartment has great potential, but some of its features look like they’re still trapped in the 1970s (and not in a fashionable way). How can you work around out-of-date fixtures to give your home a more personalized and contemporary feel?

The solution: It might be possible to remove the feature entirely; but if not, you’ll have to either give it a modern makeover, or find ways to incorporate it more seamlessly into the room’s design scheme. For tips on changing the look of your home, see our articles on tropical design ideas, beach house style ideas, or how to use texture.

Challenge (and Solution) #4: Clunky Accessories

The challenge: Your decor and accessories don’t seem to pair with the space around them. You like them individually, but together, they just feel cluttered and disjointed. How do you streamline to show off the space?

The solution: Accessories can bring life to a room; but they can also hog space, block out light, and get in the way of foot traffic. If accessories are taking over your house, start by decluttering; then, try swapping out major, noticeable items such as lamps and carpeting for new upgrades.

Use My Design Finder to Get Style and Decor Ideas

No matter what sort of design challenges you’re facing, our team is here to help you find the perfect solution. From basements and bedrooms to kitchens, bathrooms, hallways, and beyond, Flooring America offers thousands of gorgeous, durable products for any budget range. To get inspired with design ideas and see different types of flooring in action, check out My Design Finder, or visit one of our showrooms. Contact us online to get started, or stop by one of our convenient retail locations across the United States.

Visualize Your Flooring Dreams

Want a preview of how new floors will look in your home? Try our room visualizer, My Floor Style. Upload a photo of your room, select your style preferences, and get a virtual look at each different flooring style. With My Floor Style, there are no surprises. Only beautiful new floors.