Find Your Personal Style

Let your fashion sense guide you to your home décor preferences.

by Teena Hammond Gomez

Ready to find your personal home décor style and not sure where to start? A few clues might be hiding in your own closet.

Start in Your Closet

Figuring out favorite home décor styles can be tricky for many people. It can be difficult to know what overall style feels the most appealing—are you classic traditional, or a little more country, or completely modern? You may be resolved that you’ll just know it when you see it.

One of the best ways to determine personal style is by looking at the clothes in your closet, says Penny Law, owner of PCL Interiors in Charlotte, N.C.

When Law works with a new client, one of the first things she asks is for them to bring her a few of their favorite things to wear. “If they bring me a lot of cotton, that’s an indication that they like a very comfortable, organic kind of look. If they bring out silks, then I know it’s more luxurious. If they bring out sweats, they’re more laid back. I also look at colors. You can say green is a color you like, but is it lime green or hunter green? Lime green is more contemporary and hunter green is more traditional,” Law says.

Find Favorite Details

Another option is to look at photos of furniture and pick out styles that are pleasing. The smallest details can be a clue. For instance, the arms of a couch can tell a lot about personal style explains Law: a rolled arm with pleats means that someone prefers a more traditional formal feeling, while arms that are more linear have a modern vibe.

Go With Color

Builder and interior designer Tracee Dore, owner of Tracee Dore and Company in Louisville, Ky., says that one of the first steps is to figure out favorite colors. “If you love to wear certain colors, don’t be afraid to put those colors in your home,” she says.

Next, go through magazines and online inspiration galleries. “When you say, ‘Oh, I love that,’ and you want to be in that space, that gives you a good idea of your style,” Dore says.

Don’t be tempted to rush the process. Dore cautions, “finding your personal style doesn’t happen overnight. I think it takes time.” And be open to finding inspiration anywhere. “Maybe you’ll be at a restaurant and see something you love and take note of what that is—a color, a pattern or just a feeling. You’ll find things in your travels, too.”