Designing your home décor with leather furniture is exciting, but can also be tricky. This is primarily because the colors of most leather furniture are heavy and minimal. Having a set of, say, brown leather seats may bring out a dull mood that is undesirable, more so in the living room. If you are one of those people who loves creating home décor ideas and generally changing how the living room looks, here are a few do’s and don’ts for using leather décor.

Do’s

• The first step is to lighten up the room

This can work when you use brighter colors on the chandelier or lighter colors on your walls. Leather furniture, especially the traditional kind, is usually only available in dull shades of gray, black and brown. However, the furniture industry has grown and now manufactures furniture in more contemporary colors, such as red and green.

• Throw in bright pillows on the furniture

Here, you aren’t really tied to any particular pigment because dull shades easily complement any other color. Where the furniture is brighter, though, using pillow colors that will have a neutral effect is advisable.

When using throw pillows, do not simply use a pillow because it is bright, even if using a multi-colored pillow, ensure to check that it has a shade that complements the leather.

Here is a great tip on leather décor: try bringing out the look by using lighter furniture, such as Lucite and metal coffee tables. Where the walls are a bit dull, consider repainting them with brighter hues like white.

• Place a flower vase strategically in the room

A good idea is to use the flowers as the focal point of the room so that they naturally catch the eye of the occupant. Try finding an appropriate point of focus for your room.

You may also consider repainting the frames on the leather furniture to brighten them up, or use a different color while maintaining the leather’s general theme. But this doesn’t mean you can’t use darker colors on the frames.

• Hanging tapestries

Tapestries or some other form of artwork, hanging behind the couch can highlight leather décor wonderfully. When you do, be careful not to place such hangings too high or too low. Ideally, they should be at the eye level; you can figure this out easily using your own discretion.

Don’ts

• If you prefer maintaining the formal look that comes with leather sofas, but still needs to brighten up the place, you can achieve this using less eye-catching colors – like blue and green. Avoid the monotony of using colors that are too uniform; instead, select shades that complement your leather. For instance, if you have a brown leather couch, do not paint your walls brown or gold as they belong to the same family of hues. Gold will only make the room appear browner.

• Lighting up the place with wood furniture is a popular and effective leather décor idea. But keep in mind that the wood must not be dull looking. In this regard, when selecting a table to form the focal point, do not go for one with sharp corners, use the round or oval tables which give a softer appearance.
• Another mistake you may want to avoid is cheapening the overall look by using accessories such as cheap tables and tapestries. Leather by nature is a sophisticated and classy material; mixing it with low-quality accessories only ends up shifting attention away from the leather to the accessories. Not to mention that it also makes the room look messy and clumsy.

• Avoid using cheap looking flowers or cheap plants in the room. If you decide to use fresh flowers and plants, remember to always keep them looking fresh. Once they show the slightest sign of withering ensure you replace them with fresh ones.