Bored with bare walls? Bring blank spaces to life with these expert design tips

Everyone has walls, but choosing how to style them can be a tricky task.

Too much blank space can feel cold and unfinished, while too much going on can look cluttered and confused. 

Meanwhile, when it comes to selling, your walls can add focal points to photos and turn browsers into buyers, helping you get a faster sale and even boost your price.

In short, your walls are worth some thought, so in this week's blog, we're sharing some interior designer tricks for injecting floor-to-ceiling chic, including:

• Choosing a covering

• Using everyday objects

• Being smart with art

• Making material differences

• Going with nature

Whatever type of home you live in and whatever your decorative taste, you'll find plenty of inspiration to replace any bothersome bareness with wall-to-wall style.

CHOOSING A COVERING

As well as providing the backdrop for whatever you hang on your walls, your choice of covering can be a feature in itself, with various techniques and finishes to suit any period or theme, including:

• Paint. Beyond decorating a room in a single colour, a feature wall in a contrasting tone can highlight a fireplace, add depth to alcoves, or even frame a window.

• Wallpaper. Modern designs give you everything from a blown-up photo of birch trees to a full-height Picasso scene, or even a wall of bookshelves if you're short on space (or books!)

• Going raw. Polished plaster walls add a naturalistic, earthy feel to living rooms and bedrooms, while exposing the original brick or concrete can add a real sense of warmth and history.

Just remember to use a covering that suits its location, particularly in kitchens and bathrooms where hard-wearing surfaces are essential to cope with the heat and steam.

USING EVERYDAY OBJECTS

From practical storage to displaying your favourite things, grouping together objects from whatever you’ve acquired can create a truly unique wall. Some of the examples we've seen include:

• Displaying personal collections with some intentional curation and shelves, from vintage cameras to pottery to memorabilia - almost anything can make a striking vision.

• Hanging up cookware in a wall of pots and pans for easy access and a professional chef’s look, with the bonus of freeing up valuable cupboard space into the bargain.

• Transforming an out-of-control hat collection from a hallway jumble into a stylish work of art by arranging them in a grid.

To add some designer panache, try painting shelves the same colour as the wall for a more cohesive look that focuses attention on your display, or go all out on funky hooks for added visual interest.

BEING SMART WITH ART

You don’t need to spend a fortune or own an original masterpiece to create striking artwork in your home. In fact, art can be anything that speaks to your style and personality.

• Large-format pictures are a one-stop solution for filling a wall: film and music posters look stunning in frames, or get a photo from your camera blown up and printed on canvas.

• Giant scroll maps have graced the walls of grand buildings for centuries, but they also look great at home. Political, geological, nautical - everyone loves a map!

• Or, if you've got a bunch of smaller pictures or photos, you can group them together for a gallery wall. Use matching frames for a design-conscious look, or a mix of styles for bohemian chic.

The best part? You can achieve a high-impact, art-filled home with meaningful and eye-catching pieces that tell your story without breaking the bank - result!

MAKING MATERIAL DIFFERENCES

Although textiles are often referred to as the cornerstone of interior design, they’re usually associated with beds, sofas and windows. But they don't have to be.

• Medieval aristocrats hung large rugs on walls to keep their castles warm, but they also look fabulous as decoration, as do woven bedspreads and throws.

• A piece of fabric picked up on your travels or from your favourite store can dazzle when stretched over canvas or set within a picture frame, particularly silk and linen.

• Japanese kimonos or Chinese hanfus look stunning when they hang on a tall wall, perhaps on the stairs or a double-height space reaching into the roofline.

Hanging textiles in your home gives walls a wonderfully tactile quality and softens a room’s acoustic, helping you create a warm and cosy atmosphere.

GOING WITH NATURE

Finding ways to welcome the natural world into your home is always a good move, creating a sense of calm and connection that enhances any space. And it can be done in every room.

• Plants aren't just for the floor - lined up on shelves, hung on a pegboard or fixed to walls on hooks, they can create a garden wall to bring nature into any room.

• As well as adding depth, mirrors can capture a view of the outside from an inside-facing spot, bringing in the sky, trees and other natural treasures.

• Or combine the two methods and double the leafy effect by layering plants in front of a wall mirror to make them look twice as deep and lush.

Beyond their decorative qualities, natural light and plants have so many wellbeing benefits including purer air, reduced stress, and increased happiness - a truly winning combination!

Could your walls do with a boost?

Not every wall needs a full makeover, but whenever it’s time to sell, having striking focal points for your photos can help you make a bigger splash among the homes for sale in Wokingham.

Call us on 0118 912 2370 or message us at office@pauk.property for a chat about where to focus your attention for the biggest financial gain.