Dapper Home Decor

Editor’s note: Our first attempt at publishing an article about interior design was met with some criticism. Some see the focus on material things as superficial. Others enjoy the art of interior design. And still others understand that, whether we like it or not, our living and office spaces communicate nonverbal messages to others. For those interested in interior design, our newest contributor MV is here to offer dapper decorating advice. You can take these tips with you shopping, or share the post with those persistent relatives who are dead-set getting you to decorate your living and office spaces in a manner that does not reflect your identity.

There’s our bow-ties, our wingtips, and there’s even our coveted blazers. Sure, they say the clothes define a person, but what about our living spaces? Maybe you’re feeling stuck about what to do about your currently less-than-stellar looking living space, or maybe you just want to amp up your decorating game. Well, my fellow dapperQs, it’s time to transform that dismal room of yours into the dapper abode of your dreams. Here are some tips to dapper your living space:

Add Color to Your Walls
Darker colors are your best friends for this particular renovation project. Specifically, darker shades of earth tones such as brown and olive green. Also, various tones of gray work pretty fantastic for a room setting. Think this is a little too over the top? Think again. With these colors you will be able to add the perfect amount of contrast and drama to your space.

via Designmup

via Apartment Therapy

via Apartment Therapy

Notice how the colors of the walls in the pictures above give the room an intense feeling? This is what I mean by adding drama and contrast to your living space. However, on that same note, remember it’s your living space, so if you don’t feel comfortable painting your room a dark color that’s quite alright. You could take inspiration from one of the pictures above, and use the darker color for an accent wall, and perhaps leave the rest of the walls lighter color or completely white.

Furnishing your space
Naturally, after you’ve chosen a nice color pallet for your room and your walls are all freshly painted, it’s time to add some furniture to the place. But wait, there’s just one problem. What does “masculine furniture” look like, exactly? Well, this is a tough one, since, after all, when’s the last time someone said that their headboard on their bed sure looked masculine?

While searching, I was starting to see a trend of sorts. It all boils down to wording. So, when you’re on your quest for finding the perfect furnishings, try searching for “minimalistic” or even “industrial” looking furniture . If you’re really stuck, think of the kind of furniture you’d find in an Ikea store. No frills, just very simple and elegant.

via Pinterest

via Pihkala

via Selectism

Finishing Touches
We’ve got your strong dramatic colors and even dapper furniture for your newly renovated pad. Or maybe, you’ve secretly skimmed through all that mishmash and are just looking to maybe slightly dap-up your currently living space. Think about this last bit as adding that perfect necktie or pocket square to bring the over all look together.

Throw blankets: Now, sadly, I’m not talking about the ones your grandma used to make for you, but rather something along the lines of this:

via DigsDigs

via Ikea

via 22 Limes

If you can’t find an affordable throw blanket of your dreams, try thrift stores or etsy for vintage scores.

Candles: Yes, I know what you’re thinking. Candles? What? Hear me out, you’ve gone through all this hard work to make your room look nice, so why not make it smell nice too? The tobacco scented candle from Decoware home is amazing. You can find similar candles by hitting up a specialty department store like Marshalls.

via Arlo Jacob

If the smell of tobacco smoke isn’t your thing, try a sage or pine needle candle, which will give you room a fresh, clean smell. Love the idea of candles, but smelly stuff just isn’t your thing? Why not try adding a little mood lighting with some small tea lights in a old mason jar or a thrifted antique lantern. (Note: just be sure there’s isn’t any old lamp oil in the lantern first!)

Wall decor: What’s a room without a little wall art? Try these cool posters from etsy, or, better yet, find a vintage map of a city you think is really neat and make a giant print of it and hang it up in your room.

via etsy

Bringing It All Together
Here’s more dapper decor from the web to inspire you:

via Amazon

via Style Room

via JZ Way

via Whapin

via Hypebeast

The thought of decorating a room might all seem overwhelming for some, but hopefully now with a bit of patience and simple decor know how, you can easily create some really dapper digs that can shine as much as your outfits do.