5 Tips for Choosing Wall Décor for an Open Floor Plan House

Since having an open floor plan means being able to see almost the entire living area (and sometimes the kitchen) when you walk in, a color palette helps the spaces flow together. 

Before you start shopping for wall décor, pay attention to the colors you already have in your house. Incorporating these colors in your wall art will make your selections feel intentional. If your home is full of color, neutral artwork will help tone things down. Have a more neutral bohemian palette? Pick a few accent colors to brighten up your living area. 

Experiment with different shades within your color palette. Just because yellow is one of your colors, it doesn’t need to be an exact match with every other yellow element in your home.  Heading into the store with more than one color option in mind will give you a better shot at finding something you like instead of only searching for artwork with the perfect shade of blue.

The hardest part about decorating in an open floor plan is creating visual separation between the different areas of your home without the help of walls and doors. Pattern and color can go a long way in sectioning off different areas within that open floor plan. Use things like peel-and-stick wallpaper and bold paint to help you define each zone. Look around and think about what you need. In a first floor an entryway area, a living room, a place for the dining room table and maybe even a workspace are common. 

Stumped on where to paint or wallpaper? Try to find one wall in the house that has at least one free side that isn’t touching another wall, like next to the stairway. This will give you a bit of that visual separation and give you a natural stopping point.

Choose a bright floral wallpaper within your color palette to bring in a fun, modern vibe. The wallpaper will act as a backdrop for a catchall entryway or seating area. Once you define the zone, add a few pieces of art, or a mirror, to fill in the space. Keep working your way around and then step back and look at the room as a whole.

Scale is everything when it comes to choosing wall decor for an open floor plan house. 

Art that’s too small ends up looking out of place on a big empty wall. Instead try a few larger pieces that fill the wall without overwhelming the room. 

Put together a mini gallery wall with art that coordinates in shape, color or type. Using the same frame for each piece is an easy way to make the prints feel like a collection. The matching frames keep the focus on the art itself and allow the eye to move effortlessly around the room.

It can be tempting to fill every ounce of space with framed wall art, murals, tapestries and whatever else you can get your hands on – but sometimes, less really is more. Having open wall space is important because it gives you room to breathe. Let one wall in the room be the focal point of the room and allow the others to compliment, instead of compete with it.

Focus on hanging one piece of art or one curated collection at once and live with it for a few days before adding more. If after a few days that blank spot on the wall is still bothering you, add another piece of art and repeat the process until your home feels complete. 

If you’re having a hard time deciding when to stop, snap a couple of photos of your home from different vantage points and look at it that way. Sometimes seeing your home through a new lens, literally, is all it takes.