How to Make Your Home Feel Unique Instead of Like Everyone Else's
You can make your home feel unique by adding at least one piece with real history, art that means something to you, material contrast, and the objects you actually love.
By Maya Sheinberger | 22.08.26
Scroll through a few celebrity home tours and try a small experiment: cover the owners' faces. Most of the time, you won't be able to tell one living room from the next. Bouclé sofa, walls the color of vanilla custard, a huge kitchen island, and not a single wall with character. In the effort to look like "quiet luxury," many stylish homes end up looking like the same showroom, repeated. The good news is that you don't need to give up a calm, neutral look to make a home feel like yours.
Key takeaways
A neutral palette is fine. A home without a story is the problem.
Bring in at least one piece with history: vintage, inherited or found.
Choose art for meaning, not to match the cushions.
Add hard, darker materials to balance soft, pale ones.
Fill your shelves with things you actually read, collect and love.
Showroom vs. a home with personality
Showroom look | Home with personality |
Everything bought new at once | New pieces mixed with one or two with history |
Large beige abstract prints | Art with contrast, meaning or a wink |
Only soft, round, pale materials | Soft and hard together: wood, metal, leather, smoked glass |
Decorative books chosen by color | Books, records and albums you actually own |
Make your home unique with one piece of history
You don't need to knock down walls to give a home character. You need to break the perfection a little. The first step is to include at least one piece with real depth and history. Instead of filling the living room with furniture that arrived fresh from the warehouse, bring in an authentic vintage piece, something with emotional value, a flea market find, or simply an object that reminds you of something. Its scratches and small flaws are exactly what will cut through all that bouclé and cream, and prove that real people live here.
Hang art that means something
Many homes fill an empty wall with a huge print of beige and sand smudges that says nothing at all. Art should have contrast, presence and a bit of a wink. It can be a dramatic black-and-white photograph, a painting in strong color, a poster of someone you admire, or a family or childhood photo that tells your story. A picture doesn't have to match the cushions perfectly. It should start a conversation.
In the OA apartment, the palette is warm and calm, with a cream sofa and pale wood. What makes the room memorable is the large typographic artwork leaning against the wall, and the two dogs who clearly feel at home. It's still a minimalist room, but nobody would mistake it for anyone else's.
Add contrast in materials
When a living room is made only of soft, round, pale fabrics, it feels like a cloud of cotton wool, and the eye simply falls asleep. To keep a luxurious look while giving the room depth, add materials that are cooler, harder or rougher: touches of blackened metal, smoked glass, natural walnut or a leather armchair with presence. The meeting of soft and hard gives the room the edge that so many identical homes are missing. For a warmer way to add character, see my guide to decorating with red.
Let your shelves tell your story
Buying hollow "design books" by the meter because their covers match the rug is as fake as it gets. Shelves should hold what interests you: personal albums, books you've actually read, a comic collection, CDs or records. Objects gathered over years give a home something no designer can sell you as a ready-made kit.
In the RB apartment, which won an Archilovers Best Project award in 2021, a wall of open black metal shelving holds books, framed prints and small objects. It turns the living room into a portrait of the people who live there. If you worry that open shelves will look busy, my guide to reducing visual clutter shows how to edit them.
Be yourself, not a trend
It may be the most worn-out advice there is, but it's true: stop trying so hard to look unique, and simply be who you are. A home with character isn't born from a TikTok trend. It comes from the people who live in it, the things they've collected, and the story they want to tell.
Frequently asked questions
How do I add personality to a neutral home?
Keep the calm base, then add one piece with history, art that means something to you, and a few harder materials like wood, metal or leather.
Why do so many modern homes look the same?
Many people buy a complete look at once from the same trends and stores, choosing pieces for how they photograph rather than for meaning.
Can a minimalist home still feel personal?
Yes. Minimalism is about editing, not erasing. A few personal objects and a meaningful artwork stand out more in a calm room.
What kind of art should I choose for my living room?
Choose art you have a reason to love, such as a strong photograph, a colorful painting or a family photo. It doesn't need to match the furniture.
Where can I find furniture with history?
Flea markets, vintage shops, auctions and family homes are good places to look. One good older piece is enough to change a room.
Want a home in Tel Aviv or central Israel that feels like yours and nobody else's? I'd love to hear about your project.
Maya Sheinberger is an interior designer with nearly 20 years of experience. She has run her independent studio since 2012, and it is based in Ramat Gan. She holds a B.Des with honors from the College of Management. Eight of her projects have won Archilovers Best Project awards, her work has appeared in more than 100 publications, and one of her Tel Aviv apartments features in the book The New Minimalist Style.
Photography @itaybenitphotographer · Styling @maya_livnat_harush
This post was inspired by my column on Mako (in Hebrew).
