Home interiors have most certainly come a long way from the days of yesteryear. Busy wallpaper has given way to boldly colored paint on walls; lime green shag carpeting has morphed into easy-care, laminate flooring that looks just like genuine hardwood; and switch plate covers have become a focal point on an interior wall instead of a piece of plastic or metal that was “hidden from the world” behind wallpaper or paint. In fact, decorative switch plate covers are taking the home fashion and décor industry by storm!

Whether you’re on a mission to jazz up a dreary room, in a mode to completely redecorate, or anything in between, switch plate covers are one of the easiest details to change, as the only tool necessary to install them is a screwdriver. Details are the deciding factor for the design of any room. Think for a minute about every accent in a particular room: the toss pillows on the love seat in the Mediterranean three-season room; the brightly colored scatter rugs to complete your daughter’s “hippy” bedroom; the hand-stenciled movie cameras on the valances of your home-theater family room. Now imagine each room with a coordinating decorative switch plate cover: an olive branch cover in the three-season room; fuscia and orange polka dots on the plate in your daughter’s room; and a drive-in theater atop the cover in your family room. The point is: don’t dismiss the details!

Decorative switch plate covers now come in as large of an assortment of colors, designs and themes as any other décor genre or artwork. One of the latest trends in choosing a particular theme for a room is to actually pick out the light switch plate cover first, and take it with you to your favorite paint store and match the colors perfectly instead of having to “guesstimate” afterwards to decide if the switch plate cover would coordinate. Matching any area rugs, toss pillows and window treatments to your new switch plate décor are also much easier to do before all room accents are in place.

If picking out a decorative switch plate cover is not your idea of an ideal focal point, be sure not to commit one of the biggest home fashion faux pas of this day and age: sticking with a plain white light switch plate cover! Maybe hearts tickle your fancy in a way that nothing else can. Why not try a light switch plate cover that has a subtle, inlet heart design that only the most critical eye can see? Or a bright red heart switch plate cover in a completely white room, with a fire engine red ultra-contemporary sofa? A splash of color in a world of white can light up a room like nothing else (except the light of the switch itself).