6 Low-Lift Upgrades That Will Make Your Home Feel More Luxurious

Luxurious doesn’t have to mean high maintenance or tiresome effort. In fact, making your home feel luxe can be easy and relatively inexpensive. With a little design know-how, you can sidestep the serious renovations and elevate your spaces with nothing more than a few swaps and well-styled pieces.

We enlisted the advice of two interior experts and created a simple guide to support you in leveling up your home’s design with as little stress as possible. Here’s what they had to say.

Banish Builder-Grade Features

When you’re first trying to decide what parts of your home need an upgrade, interior designer Amy Konarzycki suggests prioritizing builder-grade features. These are usually a little bland and rarely reflect your style.

“For example, if the walls are beige, you could find an off-white paint you love and start there,” she says. “Popcorn ceilings can be removed by a professional. Lighting and hardware (knobs, pulls, door knobs) can often be improved by selecting items with more personality.”

Seeing these small changes unfold is often a pleasant surprise, as the impact of their presence can be much greater than we realize when seeing them every day.

Consider Your Window Treatments

It’s easy to avoid giving your windows a second thought, but the drapes, curtains, and blinds you choose can offer a lot in the way of aesthetics.

“Drapery can add a layer of luxurious softness and accentuate ceiling heights,” says Konarzycki. “A simple linen fabric provides organic texture, and bold, colorful prints can bring energy to a space.”

Dressing up any bare windows around your home with these textiles doesn’t take too much time compared to painting or refurbishing. Still, treatments work double-duty as functional and stylistic elements.

Layer Your Bedding

One tip for making a bedroom feel luxe? Layer your bedding. Interior designer Dorothy McGhee and Konarzycki say you can do this through crisp sheets, down-filled pillows, fluffy duvets, coverlets, and cozy throws. Think outside the bed, too.

“Keep your nightstand styled with intention—pretty, but real,” says McGhee.

Implementing sculptural artwork also creates a luxury feel, as can benches and accent chairs—and never forget the lighting.

“Adding layered lighting by the bed, like a sconce or table lamp on a dimmer can improve the ambiance,” says Konarzycki

Elevate Kitchen Hardware and Cabinets

There are numerous kitchen styling ideas that give your cooking space a glam upgrade. However, one that’s a little more permanent and feels ultra-satisfactory is refreshing smaller details that catch the eye.

“Upgrading the faucet and cabinet hardware can make a huge difference in elevating the luxe factor of a kitchen,” says Konarzycki. “Painting cabinetry can make it look brand new. And of course, fresh flowers.”

Silvery or brassy pulls, golden stovetop knobs, or a metallic sink faucet all sprinkle a little bit of luxe. Think about the light switches and pendant chains too.

Add Hotel Touches to Your Bathroom

There are so many opportunities to draw that sense of luxury through your bathroom—most of which are easy and will hardly put a dent in your budget.

“Make it feel spa-like,” says McGhee. “Matching bottles, a good rug, a tray or stool, and a piece of art. Just add a candle and you’re in business.”

Konarzycki agrees with this sentiment. It’s these minor details that really elevate the space (no matter how tiny or large) and make a bathroom look expensive.

She adds that fluffy white towels—akin to those found in hotels—high-quality hand soaps, towel warmers, and a sleek new shower curtain can do wonders.

Curate Intentionally

Sometimes a space already contains all the right elements (or almost all of them), it’s just a matter of rearranging your pieces and adding in a few select items that will have the biggest impact.

“Oversized art instantly elevates a space—it’s bold and personal,” says McGhee. “I also love swapping in sculptural or decorative lighting for builder-grade ones.”

Once you have these bigger pieces covered, think small. It’s fascinating what a few small decorative objects can do for a room.

“Add texture with ceramics, trays, and soft layers,” she says. “And style your surfaces—your home should look curated.”