A Dozen Things Designers ALWAYS Buy At HomeGoods

The store is a treasure trove for large scale books, especially those that focus on interior design. "I've found colorful and discounted coffee table books on HomeGoods's shelves, for my clients' shelves," says Nikki Pulver, principal of Shaker Interiors in Cleveland, Ohio. "Beautifully bound and photographed books add a layer of interest to a vignette." Pulver looks for two things: colors that gel with the room’s scheme and a genre that interests the homeowner–travel, art, history, animals, sports, or design! Her favorite purchase? Dogs by Lewis Blackwell and Tim Flach, a collection of joyful, artistic photos of mans’ best friend. "It's the best conversation starter," she adds.

To complete a bedroom, Salt Lake City interior designer Hillary Taylor looks for heavy sateen fitted and flat sheets then has them monogrammed. "I'll take any brand, but they often have little known Italian brands and discontinued lines that are great quality," she says.

When projects call for botanicals that require minimal care, Evan Millárd of Millárd in Nashville often finds himself perusing the local HomeGoods store for that perfect touch. "Gone are the artificial flowers of old that appear inauthentic and in are the permanent botanicals that evoke a natural look and feel. To add that special pop, incorporate clippings of natural greenery into each arrangement.”

Taylor also scoops up discontinued lighting fixtures. For example she says, "Ralph Lauren tends to discontinue beautiful designs too quickly, and they are often offloaded at HomeGoods. I feel like I’m stealing when we find these lamps. Even if the lampshade is damaged we can always swap out lampshades and give a beautifully scaled lamp new life."

No need to splurge on fancy candles when you can get them by the bundle in store. Taylor loves that she can snag a bunch for any occasion. She loves monochromatic tapers "for a nice color balance in a room" and switches them out with different seasons and holidays. "You can never go wrong with different sizes of ivory tapers," Taylor adds. "Just use them! They are so romantic!"

Glasses take a beating (you likely run them through a dishwasher 100 times) and occasionally end up on the floor shattered in a million pieces. "Don't cry over spilled drinks," Gannon says. She buys glassware for impromptu parties. "I'll buy a pack of four or eight at a time and keep them in storage," she continues. "It's so much better to put out a tray of fun mixed-matched glasses than having to use plastic because you don’t have enough 'good' glasses."

Her go-to styles are green-hued highball and lowball glasses, as they look perky with cocktail limes. Gannon also loves HomeGoods decanters. "It's all in the layers," she adds.

Sure, your HomeGoods might be in a suburb, but the finds inside are not. Beth Diana Smith, a designer in Kearny, New Jersey, says that plenty of items in store are from abroad. If you're looking for a worldly aesthetic, keep an eye for pottery from Portugal or a Mother of Pearl decorative vase from Vietnam. You can also search online at the HomeGoods Idea Shop and search by location, like "Made in India."

For Fahmy, HomeGoods is a stop for finishing styling touches—particularly accent pillows. To punctuate a curvy gray sofa in a den, Fahmy added a graphic square mustard pillow, next to a smaller one with burnt velvet circles.

To make a space look more lived in and curated, Amber Guyton, interior designer at Blessed Little Bungalow in Atlanta, opts for photo frames. Clients often want to display photos but not on the walls, so Guyton relies on open surfaces to house these personal touches.

Almost all the designers mentioned that HomeGoods is a treasure trove for rugs, especially jute options and those made by Loloi. You can even spot some Rifle Paper Co. designs every now and then.

Kristin Marino of KozyKasa, a design firm in Austin, loves switching and swapping rugs in rooms. "It creates an entirely new feel and look to the space without too much of an overhaul," she says. Taylor is all about finding good deals on jute rugs because they bring "much needed depth to a space as a layer." She even has extra jute runners from HomeGoods stored in the mechanical room at one of her projects, in case the homeowner's dogs have an accident. "They are such a good price point, it's worth it to be able to change them out after normal wear and tear takes its toll," she says.

To bring in personality, Marino is always on a lookout for figurines. "Decorate with them on your shelves, console tables, and even fireplace mantel to show off your fun style and bring life into your space," she says.

Smith always buys decorative pieces like vases, candlestick holders, and bookends because they are often from brands that she regularly shops direct as a Trade resource. “HomeGoods often beats the price,” she notes. Likewise, Guyton has found beautiful marble or brass bookends that can range from $10 to $30.