Interior design tricks I learned from working in homes magazines

A peek behind the curtain, so to speak

An old shot from a photo shoot in a glorious home and garden.

Want your home to look like those you see in a magazine? Spoiler alert: yes, you can probably get your rooms looking like the ones you see on those lovely glossy pages, but I reckon it’s near impossible to keep them looking that way. Soz.

As much as I love flicking through inspiring interiors imagery, real life comes with mess, discarded coats, shoes and other paraphernalia clogging up floors, chairs and surfaces. As well as endless toys, parcel packaging and dishes awaiting a wash, let’s be real. Much like ‘Insta versus reality’ there’s a lot of preening, faffing, hiding things away and trickery that goes into creating magazine-worthy shots. However, there are definitely great lessons and design tricks to be taken from them too.

After 10 plus years working for interiors magazines and now as a freelance editor and writer in the industry, I have picked up some hacks along the way. Things that will make an interior more cohesive, more ‘designed’ and a bit more like those images we all aspire to. Here’s what I’ve learned…

Odd numbers are cooler than even

Think three pendants above a dining table or kitchen island, five prints or objects as a gallery wall display, three decorative items making up a nice little vignette, or one statement piece in all its glory. When features are combined in odd numbers, it makes for a more interesting – and less predictable – setup that will draw the eye and allow it to linger with interest. While there might be something satisfying about keeping things even in other aspects of life when fair is fair, it’s worth considering going odd with interior features. All in all, it looks more natural and, well, less forced.

Create a thread

You don’t have to match rooms or have one look throughout the whole house (unless that’s your vibe). You can experiment with different decorating styles in your spaces to suit the mood and use, but it’s helpful to create some sort of link – a so-called thread – to subtly bring things together. Subtle is the key and I often find this happens organically anyway as people typically have specific tastes that translates into their room schemes. For me, I have black accents throughout my home: sometimes as large pieces of furniture where it’s an obvious colour choice, while others it’s more delicate through light switches or picture frames, or even a candle. The other aspects of the room design are quite different, but this thread creates a bit of flow.

Go big or go home

This applies to very specific things: rugs, beds and (in the right setting) sofas. Rugs should go under furniture rather than float in the middle of the floor. Get the biggest bed you can afford without compromising on the room available in the bedroom. And when it comes to sofas, there’s something strange about a too-small sofa looking lost in a room – much better to go bigger and have ample comfy seating than create awkward voids that you don’t know what to do with. Leave some space for say a side table and/or lamp to one side and you’re good, in my opinion. In my living room, we decided on a corner sofa where one length fills the width of the room and the other about half, creating a good-sized seating zone.

Start with your wardrobe

I’ve heard this tidbit a few times from interior designers who ask clients about the clothes they like to wear as part of their research. I’ve written about it before and my advice is always the same: don’t be alarmed if your interior/kitchen/bathroom/other designer asks about your wardrobe. Aside from #dresslikeyourhome posts on Insta, there is some truth in looking to your fashion choices when thinking about your decor. If you’re struggling to figure out what you like or make a start on that moodboard, take a look inside your wardrobe. Are you drawn to a particular colour? Do you love wearing pattern? Are you glam, like refined basics or is relaxed lounging more your style? You might be surprised at the connections you find.

Lighting: it’s all about the layers

When it comes to lighting, the golden word is LAYERS (I can’t say that without thinking of Mary Berry, randomly). Imagine sitting in a room with only one big light on – no thanks. Or being in a kitchen where there are only small lamps – not practical. You need different lighting options to suit tasks and moods. Big light, yes for when you need bright task lighting, lamps, yes for decor and lower-level light, and some ambient lighting is nice too. This could be dim lighting within shelving or a cabinet or even a flickering candle.

Chopping boards can hide a multitude of sins

This is probably one of those not-so-dirty little secrets of the interiors publishing world. Not only do wooden boards provide a beautiful base for a perfectly styled platter on many magazine photo shoots, but they’re also often used to conceal plug sockets on kitchen counters, hide wires and fill otherwise ‘blank’ wall space – all in a bid to get that glossy shot. Personally, I love the look of platters stacked and, if you’re anything like me, the boards get lots of use that keeping them within easy reach is much more handy than going in the cupboard each day. You don’t have to conceal the inner workings of your home, of course, but that’s just a little peek behind the curtain, so to speak.

Ignore the haters!

Haters gonna hate. Let them. It’s your home, you do you. Designing your home should give you joy and, really, that’s all that matters at the end of the day.

Enjoyed this? Part 2 here.

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