You’ve bought your dream apartment, found the ultimate leather sofa for your living room and selected décor items to suit your taste. Fast forward a few years down the line and you’ve decided to move into a larger home, but can’t bear the thought of parting with your investment. Now what?

Before you decide to rent out your apartment, you’ll need some guidance from the experts as to how you can transform your space; and Afrochic is the ideal style to solve your design dilemma. If you are wanting to put your apartment up on Airbnb it will need to appeal to an international market that is looking for an authentic African experience.

So what exactly is Afrochic? It’s an eclectic mix of traditional African styles and accessories; from colours, patterns and fabrics, to textiles and furniture pieces that are combined with more modern elements to give your apartment a sense of warmth and character.

Fabric and beadwork in shades of blue, green and deep reds are often offset against a range of subtle, earthy tones. If you are all about vintage hunting, then scour markets for African pieces such as clay pottery, woven baskets and mats, tribal masks and dark timber sculptures. Faux skins and animal prints also work well with this luxurious style.

When it comes to introducing this style into your apartment, there are many creative and inexpensive ways to bring in Afrochic elements. Small changes like new tablecloths, and a sculpture or two; and detailed bead work, or stylish laundry baskets; all add to the feel of your apartment. Keep an open mind and choose pieces that will match the overall look you are going for.

Follow this checklist to make sure your home is both stylish and rental friendly:
1. Select a colour palette to use as a base throughout your home, such as brown tones, and gold and orange shades. Then choose a vibrant accent colour, such as yellow, green or blue, which works well with these earthy tones, to add a bit of flair to the room. For example, you could paint your side tables in hues of this accent colour.
2. Purchase durable good quality furniture. Although you won’t personally enjoy the comfort of the new leather sofa or oak dining room table, top quality furniture will mean you won’t have to replace or fix it regularly.
3. Scotch guard – from now on consider this your best friend, if you want your sofa to still be in pristine condition after you’ve hired out your apartment, make sure to scotch guard it so that no nasty red wine stains are left behind.
4. An animal print rug will give your apartment a homely feel by adding a bit of warmth and character. Rugs are also the perfect solution to avoid stains on your existing carpets or floors.
5. For the bedroom, invest in quality sheets and bedding, both of which need to be washing machine friendly. Then choose a headboard and scatter cushions that incorporate African elements.
6. Texture is an important part of Afrochic. Find grass storage baskets for books and other bits and pieces to bring additional texture to any room and to cut back on clutter.

We’ve given you all the necessary tips and inspiration to make your apartment look and feel like a luxury safari lodge, all that’s left to do now is call in the experts to make your vision comes to life. Contact us to find out more.