Design experts share tips to make your home winter-ready

When it comes to winter cheer, there is no wrong way to decorate your home. Still, a little bit of festive inspiration for the holiday season can add that extra joy to your surroundings. "Changing the decor per the season helps augment the positivity associated with it and brings in elements of joy and fervour. The idea is to create a home to reflect the love and harmony within you and of course bring joy to all those around you," shares Pramitha Roche, head of product and design experience at Bonito Designs.

With each passing season, we see many design trends come and go, but at the end of the day, what matters is how you feel in your space. Anand Ojha, principal designer of Anand Atelier Associates, says, "It is the warmth and connection that we try to provide through our designs, which becomes the trend." To get your home ready for the festive season, Ojha and Roche share some simple tips that can add the perfect amount of light and warmth to your winter home decor.

Keeping it cosy
Create small tranquil spaces in your house to snuggle in with a cup of hot chocolate and catch up on your favourite Christmas themed movies. Colourful rugs, carpets, and throws are the best way to add elements of cosiness and warmth. Also, using textures and vibrancy builds the festive spirit and adds to the celebrations.

Depending on the overall theme of the room, you can decide the colour and pattern of the rugs. For example, if the shade of your walls is neutral or white, colourful furnishings look better. However, if the walls are of darker or brighter colours, white or pastel shades are a better fit.

Let the light in
As the sun starts setting earlier, and the access to natural light diminishes, one must find ways to keep the house lit at all times. Adding different coloured fairy lights, scented candles and lanterns to your Christmas décor will not only add to the holiday season cheer but will also keep your home warm and bright throughout.

Invest in warm or yellow lights to accentuate the calmness associated with the room. It's a good idea to keep the decor minimalistic and rely on lighting and furnishing to create the desired effect. Moreover, lamps are a great and inexpensive way to add style and timelessness to your usual decor.

Contrasts are an excellent way to go
This winter, experiment with the colour shades of your walls. Lighter and earthy shades for your walls are a classic and never go out of style. They help add to the feeling of warmth and give you the space to create contrasts and designs by using furnishings in darker shades. They also enhance the effect of the lighting and create an overall cheerful ambience.

You can also add statement pieces of furniture like a yellow armchair, or pillows in bright colours on a neutral colour couch, to instantly uplift the room and add that desired pop of colour.

Winter wonderland
Creating a Christmas theme during the holiday season uplifts the mood almost instantly. Try using elements of nature as decorative items like pinecones, ferns, indoor plants, pebbles etc., to create your own little winter wonderland. Additionally, using make-believe white snowflakes, white drapes, and candles, creates the perfect Winter Wonderland ambience in your home.

Of course, you cannot possibly leave that gorgeous Christmas tree out. Be generous with the Christmas ornaments and lights to make your tree as colourful as possible. Top it off with the biggest and brightest Christmas star you have to kick start the festivities.

Red, white and gold
While decorating our homes, we tend to forget one of the most important elements, which is glassware and cutlery. The holiday season is when all of us host gatherings and parties and have Christmas and winter themed cutlery, completing the décor. White plates, red napkins and gold spoons and forks will completely elevate your dinner table.

Wallpaper
Spaces need to be brighter, appealing, and expressive in the winter. With wallpaper becoming the popular choice, we should keep it in mind that the style of wallpaper must go with the rest of your décor style. It should emphasise the wall and should also go naturally with the rest of your space.

Maximalist interiors
With winters, maximalist interiors - warm and soft, are a way to go. This trend allows us to not hold back, and lets us experiment with bold colour choices such as vibrant green, black, and deep hues. One can even pick from different patterns and select the mementos that might evoke a joyful story to admire. It works with the layering of textures, patterns, colours, and objects in a bold fusion that appeals to our senses.

Multifunctional spaces
Houses are not just the place we live, laugh, sleep and make memories in. They have become spaces where we work, and work out as well. With offices and gyms being incorporated into our personal spaces, they are also moving towards a futuristic approach of technologies. With a change in season, you can convert how you utilise your outdoor spaces. Consider adding a coffee machine to your under-utilised balcony to make it a cosy coffee spot where you can soak up the winter sun.

Also Read: An expert's guide to trending hairstyles for this wedding season