Why Some Homes Feel Right (And Others Don't): An Interior Designer's Guide

You know when you've walked into a room and it instantly feels welcoming and just right, a space that makes you want to linger. The ingredients that make up these well-designed spaces are not always identifiable but are immediately felt. Just like a Michelin chef approaches a recipe, the right amount of each design element has been considered in these spaces, and they're often not easy to replicate.

Think of a luxury hotel suite where everything feels effortlessly perfect, from the mood lighting, comfortable furniture placements to the subtle layering of textures. Or perhaps it's your favourite coffee shop where you could spend hours catching up with friends or just reading a book in a cosy nook. These spaces weren't accidents. They were thoughtfully composed, like a well-curated wardrobe where each piece works beautifully with the next.

The same is true of spaces that do not feel quite right. Perhaps it's your own living room. You've selected your beautiful paint colours, furniture and accessories, but the space still feels amiss.

As an interior designer, I've helped homeowners across Surrey and London solve these issues. Whether it is a new home where every element is considered from the start, or a renovation where the missing ingredients are identified and added. There is always a reason why a space feels uncomfortable or uninviting, and often there is a surprisingly simple solution.

After over 14 years designing homes from modern family spaces to elegant period properties, I've learned there is genuine science behind why some interiors feel instantly welcoming while others feel... off. Here are the five most common design mistakes I encounter, and how to fix them.

1. Layout and Flow: The Foundation of Good Design

The most common mistake I see is furniture pushed awkwardly against walls, creating an unwelcoming atmosphere. Rather than placing your sofa against a wall, float furniture away from walls and angle pieces toward each other to create intimate conversation zones.

Think about how you use your room. Do you gather to watch television? Use the space for reading? Entertain friends? Your furniture layout should support these activities naturally. Simply repositioning existing furniture can transform how a room feels and functions.

Quick fix: 

Pull your sofa 30-40cm away from the wall and angle armchairs to face it. This immediately creates a conversational zone, which feels more inviting.

2. Proportion and Balance: Getting the Scale Right

Incorrectly-sized furniture will instantly make a space feel awkward and disconnected.  An oversized sofa in a compact living room restricts flow, tiny nightstands paired with a tall king-size headboard look lost, or an undersized rug floating aimlessly in the middle of the room. These are common scale and proportion problems I see.

Selecting the correct scale of furniture and balancing space and heights creates visual interest and elevates a space to look intentional and expensive.

Quick Fix:

Before purchasing any furniture, measure your room carefully and mark out the dimensions of your key items on the floor with tape. This simple step prevents costly mistakes and helps you visualise scale accurately

3. Quality Hardware: The Details That Elevate Everything

Invest in quality hardware that looks good for years and makes your home feel more luxurious and sophisticated. Think of hardware as the jewellery for your home, pieces you handle daily. Standard builder-grade door handles, basic cabinet knobs, and off-the-shelf curtain poles are details that can cheapen an otherwise beautiful space.

In both period properties and modern homes, upgrading hardware such as handles, switches and fixtures always provide the most dramatic impact.

Quick fix: 

Start with the rooms you use most. Replacing kitchen cabinet hardware or bedroom door handles takes minimal time but makes a substantial difference to how premium your space feels. Select quality hardware in brass, bronze, or satin nickel finishes to instantly elevate the look.

4. Proper Lighting Layers: Creating Warmth and Ambiance

The most common problem I see in homes is harsh overhead lighting. Lighting needs to be planned together with furniture layout, which is almost always neglected in builder-grade installations. Rows of recessed ceiling lights create flat and uniform illumination in a room; you will never see this configuration in a thoughtful design. This form of lighting cannot possibly create the warm, inviting atmosphere you are hoping for.

Proper lighting design requires multiple sources at different heights, planned with your furniture layout in mind. This approach allows you to highlight features and create the right atmosphere for different activities and moods. Lighting is layered through the creation of three types of lighting: ambient lighting for overall illumination; task lighting for specific activities like reading; and accent lighting to highlight architectural features or artwork.

Quick fix: 

Start by adding table lamps and floor lamps to create pools of light at different heights. Install dimmer switches on all lights for flexibility.

5. Lack of Contrast: Why Everything Feels Flat

Creating visual contrast in interiors is often overlooked, especially with many homeowners opting for neutral schemes. If everything in a room has similar tones without contrast, the space will feel flat and lifeless. Your eye needs variation to create interest and depth.

In interior design, this contrast is intentional and is referred to as "visual rhythm." It is found in the tone and contrasts of the colour palette, the variation of textures and finishes, and the scale and proportion of furnishings and accessories.

This is why many homes, even with expensive furnishings, can look lacklustre. The solution isn't about creating dramatic colour contrast but considering all the elements and creating thoughtful, distinctive layers.

Quick fix: 

If your room feels flat, introduce contrast through cushions in darker tones against pale sofas, add a textured throw, position a sculptural dark lamp on a light side table, or hang artwork with bold tones against neutral walls. These small additions create the depth and interest that make rooms feel professionally designed.

6. The Professional Touch: When to Call for Help

Many of these design problems can be easily fixed. However, some may require the expertise of an interior designer to be identified and solved effectively. Professional guidance is invaluable for complex challenges like reconfiguring awkward layouts, specifying bespoke joinery, coordinating whole-house renovations, or creating cohesive schemes across multiple rooms.

Working with an interior designer is not about losing control of your project. It is about gaining a partner who can help you avoid costly mistakes, access trade resources, and bring your vision to life more effectively than struggling alone.

As one recent client in Reigate shared: 

"We thought we could manage our renovation ourselves, but within weeks we were overwhelmed. Anita's expertise saved us from several expensive mistakes and the final result exceeded anything we could have achieved alone."

Creating Homes That Feel Right

Creating a home that feels right comes down to fundamental design principles like thoughtful furniture placement, correct proportion, layered lighting, and visual contrast. Some of these are straightforward fixes you can implement yourself. Others require more time and expertise to identify and solve effectively, which is where professional guidance makes all the difference.

Ready to transform your space? 

Struggling with any of these design challenges? I work with homeowners across Surrey to create homes that feel welcoming and just right. Get in touch to see how I can help with your project.