With the New Year fast approaching, you may be itching to refresh your home. Maybe you spent more time at home in 2021 because of the pandemic and you’re ready for a change. Or perhaps you just like shaking things up as the calendar turns to January. Whatever your motivation, you can easily refresh your home without spending a dime. All you need to do is rearrange the furniture you already have. Here’s what you need to know to make the job easy and fun.
First, declutter
It should probably go without saying but we’ll say it anyway. Before moving around your furniture you should commit to decluttering first. You will be amazed by how different a room can feel with simple decluttering. This is a great way to start the New Year. And don’t just stuff all of the clutter in a closet. Take a little time to determine what you still want to keep. If an item is unused or broken, then donate it, repair it, or throw it away.
Make seasonal changes
OK, now that you’ve decluttered, you can see what you have to work with. When you’re considering how to rearrange the furniture, think about how you use each space during different seasons. Perhaps in the summer, you like to have easy access to that sliding glass door out to the porch. You can move your furniture around so that nothing blocks the door. But maybe in the winter, you’d rather have the couch face the fireplace instead since you’re not using the porch. Adjusting the layout of the room can help you optimize your space in different seasons.
Swap this for that
We know you bought that sofa for the living room. But that doesn’t mean it has to stay in the living room. You don’t need to commit a piece of furniture to the same room for the rest of your life. Take that end table from the living room and swap it with the nightstand in your bedroom. Or rearrange the lamps to create a different mood with your lighting. You can simply shop your own house to give each room a refresh.
Create space
When you first move into your home, you arrange your furniture in the way that you think will work best. But after living in your home for a few weeks, months, or years, perhaps there’s a better way to do things. In fact, maybe removing a piece of furniture from a room is the best way to make a room feel new again. Creating more space in a room can make it feel more functional. And if you can’t remove any furniture, think about how you can arrange it to create more space. For example, you can move the couch or table against the wall to open up traffic patterns.
Don’t forget about rugs
Finally, don’t forget about your area rugs when you’re rearranging your furniture. Experiment with different combinations of rugs, or swap the rug in your living room for the one in your bedroom. Play with different color combos to see what works best.
