Interiors authority Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen appeared on This Morning this week to share some expert style tips. Speaking from his home in the Cotswolds, he mentioned the concept of 'furniture therapy', and we're keen to give it a go.
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So, how does it work? 'It basically means you take absolutely everything you've got, all your clutter, and you put it in the middle of the room,' former Changing Rooms host Llewelyn-Bowen begins.
'And then you try and find a completely different way of putting it back again. It's the most simple, cheapest, and most extraordinarily clever makeover,' he says.
How to try Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen's 'furniture therapy' tip
If you're not convinced, why not tie a bit of furniture rearrangement in when you do some spring cleaning? That way you'll enjoy the doubly satisfying feeling of knowing that you've hoovered everywhere, and you might also find a small living room idea to make your space feel bigger. It could simply mean rotating your sofa forty-five degrees and moving your TV stand to a different end of the room.
'What I find often happens, though, is a lot of stuff will go back to its original place, which means it was always in the right place,' Laurence continues. It might seem like a lot of effort, and some items may go back where they were.
But, once you've moved every item into the middle, out of its usual spot where you're used to seeing it, you can visualise alternatives more clearly. Moving that one armchair somewhere else and putting a rug beneath it could make a new, cosy reading corner.
Or maybe you've got an IKEA bookshelf that would work better as shoe storage in the hallway with a few woven baskets? Or a lamp in the bedroom that works better elsewhere? Shaking things up, and having a light declutter, will make a space feel totally different. And it won't mean spending any money or losing hours browsing on Etsy.
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A lot of the time, we're looking for novelty more than anything else. Not necessarily making it better, we just want to make it a bit different,' Laurence concludes.
Will you be trying Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen's furniture therapy tip?
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