How To Find 'The Hero' Of Every Room, According To Joanna Gaines

No offense to Tina Turner when she sang, "We don't need another hero." We always could use another one, even more than one. Joanna Gaines has a go-to styling tip that calls for more heroes in the home, specifically one per room. Gaines states that the "hero" of a room is any element that you love and that you want to be the focal point of the room. She explains that this piece can help unify and give direction to your design plans and act as a building block for a room's style. But what's better, this one element should be something that you love.

There's not much better in home decor than personalizing your space to make it special. Is it a tiled fireplace that's original to the home? Did Grandma bequeath you a brocade couch? Or is it just something you purchased and dearly love?

A design tenet Gaines touts is to add more value, not just more stuff. You may already have meaningful items that are worthy of highlighting and becoming a focus in a room. To find the hero of a room, Gaines advises that you should look for the item that unifies all of the elements and makes the whole effect feel intentional.

Picking the best focal points for your design scheme can be obvious if you're dealing with the right materials. However, not everyone is lucky to have period architectural features or a family heirloom furniture piece. A room's hero can be as simple as a window framing a leafy view. Even a gas fireplace that's lacking character has potential to play this role as long as it's done purposefully. You might fall in love with an unsentimental purchasable that fits the bill; an eye-catching rug, an outsized wall hanging, or a quirky flea market find that you're lucky to snag are all frontrunners for hero. Gaines stands firm that your style isn't about spending the big bucks but more about telling a story.

If your room and your belongings still have you coming up short of a hero, there are scores of ways to create a focal point. Gaines' hero concept does go beyond a simple focal point, though. She stresses that a room's hero should inspire the feeling you want a room to evoke. Statement walls with wood, wallpaper, or a bold color are design go-tos, and if chosen thoughtfully, they can guide the feel of a room.

You might discover a hero lurking in another corner of your home that's just waiting to put on a cape. Gaines is a fan of "shopping your own home." Cast your eyes around the rooms in your house with this in mind; things we take for granted because they've rested in the same spot for years can feel like brand new pieces once you use them in a different way.