Deciding to move into a rental or a home with a partner, friend, or family is a big step and decorating your new space can present many challenges. However, this doesn’t have to be an arduous process, and there are plenty of possibilities when merging styles. We take you through some ideas to make your joint decor fun and not fraught.
Getting on the same pageOn your own, create wish lists separately. At this point, don’t think of the limitations yet; dream big and let your imagination conjure up all that you’ve always wanted your home to be. Don’t be afraid to list the things that you really want.
Next up, after your wish list is complete, make a priority list of your top three to five items you love and have everyone do the same. It’s essential to define your limits too. You are likely to have some major deal-breakers, and now’s the best time to think through them and write them down.
This exercise helps clarify your ideas and thoughts when you come together to discuss how to mix and match your styles, and it helps to avoid conflict later down the road when you’re able to be upfront and honest with your non-negotiables. After this, it’s also a great idea to open the communication in your new joint home and share your wants and needs before getting into the nitty-gritty of decorating.
Declutter for good
Whether you’re a minimalist or a maximalist, during a move, we often find we have a lot more clutter than we like to admit, and this multiplies when moving in with other people. As a result, you’re likely not to have enough space for everything you all own. Not to worry though! This is the best time to go through all your belongings leaving only what you love and need. 
This is a vital process for aesthetic reasons but also the relationships in the household. Limiting what goes into your new shared space will help make sure there’s no resentment about one person’s things taking up too much space. So all will need to edit their collection of items so that you are left with the most functional and well-loved items to take pride in the new shared space.
This edit will help decrease the stress of the move and reduce the general overwhelm as well as help you focus on filling your home with the things that carry a lot of meaning.
Don’t know where to start on the declutter mission? Check out our hacks on decluttering when moving homes to get you started. Interested in Marie Kondo’s method to improve your relationships? Channel your inner Marie with these top tips.
A New Beginning, together
Decluttering provides a great fresh start for all in the home. There’s something satisfying and magical about combing through all of your belongings to get rid of what you no longer need or want to make space for all that’s special.
Now it’s time to have fun and kit out your home together. There’s no need to make major purchases that are costly. Instead, check out the markets, thrift stores and antique shops in your new neighbourhood together and maybe even pick some cost-effective pieces that you can revamp together. This way, you can save money and slowly piece together the perfect items to build a home. It’ll all be worth it when you can sit around your newly thrifted and restored dinner table and chat about the weekend’s DIY fun.
Mix and Match
Your style and decor can reflects who you are, so this means that when you choose to live together with others, it’s important that the shared spaces reflect a bit of everyone in the home. Of course, this can be tricky when you have conflicting styles, but there are no rules in decorating in some ways! There are plenty of ways to incorporate smaller elements of everyone’s taste without trying to match conflicting styles perfectly.
A great place to start is how you would like each of the common areas to feel. Perhaps you’re looking for a room to feel fun and energising or calm and tranquil. Once you’ve settled on this, it’s much easier to begin adding decor pieces to match the mood you’re trying to create. With a bit of creativity, you can start here and move your way to fill out a room that showcases who you are and exactly how you want to feel.
Compromising on styles doesn’t need to clash or be boring! A mid-century vintage couch and a
bold accent wall can go great together, and there is so much possibility in design to mix eclectic styles. It’s just about having the patience to work out how to mix and match your furniture and decor so that you’re proud to invite people over and show off your new shared space.
Larger pieces and recovering upholstered furniture can be expensive, so don’t feel the need to change them because they don’t seem like they match. Instead, you can tie these larger items together with smart decor choices.
Patience and Compromise Is Key
Creating and curating a space will take time, but instead of rushing through all of it, take your time and have fun together. Good communication is essential, and it’ll help you make wise decisions together. Relationally, it’s not worth getting into an argument about whether the terrazzo candle holders must go above the fireplace or on the bookshelf. Be open and ready to have your mind changed.
Compromise doesn’t seem like it’s worth the trouble, but it is just a reality of blending styles, and it’s better to look for the possibilities it opens up rather than the limitations it presents. Compromise is critical because not everyone will have it exactly the way they want, but when you’re patient and calm about the design timeline, the perfect match up of your styles will begin to reveal itself. Furthermore, when you are patient with the process, you’ll find that feelings are less likely to get hurt, and you may discover some incredible, eclectic mix of styles that create an even cooler aesthetic!
A Fresh Perspective
Decorating can take time for everything to feel right, so don’t worry if it seems like it’s taking a long time to settle. If you’re stumped about mixing styles or over the decision fatigue, why not have some friends over to offer some fresh perspective. Sometimes, it takes a new perspective to inject some life into your decor planning.
If you find you’re still bickering about how to organise the kitchen or where the art should go, why not consider hiring a professional interior designer to help you. This may seem over the top, but designers can bring their expertise to bear on your conflicting needs and desires, which can help set up a space that makes everyone happy. Even better, they don’t have any relational stakes and can offer some much-needed unbiased opinions too.
