My approach to decorating can be summed up in three words: less is more. I’m at my best in a relatively organized home with clean surfaces and unobstructed corners that allow me to easily assess and access everything. I prefer modern, functional designs that are vibrant yet refined in a way that say, “I live a sophisticated yet streamlined life” (although this isn’t entirely true). In other words, my ideal space feels effortlessly designed, without too many competing elements, accessories, and furniture. We’re talking one step away from minimalist.

But the mere thought of bringing that simple mantra to life honestly feels like too much work/effort/money. Where do I even begin? Since my budget doesn't allow for hiring an interior designer, Wayfair’s AI-powered tool Muse piqued my interest. Released in February, the virtual design assistant is pretty straightforward: upload a photo of your space and use design templates to fill in the blanks. Wayfair’s labeled their pre-decorated AI-generated spaces as Muses, and although they come ready-made, they’re also customizable. Don’t like the recommended orange camel sofa? Swap it for a purple velvet mid-century modern two-seater or whichever alternative the tool or a quick search provides. You can also explore similar Muses until you curate your preferred look and easily shop the recommended products while you design and save Muses to revisit.

“In general, I think the most helpful aspect of this design tool is the opportunity it offers users to see their spaces in new ways,” says Oregon-based interior designer Allisa Jacobs, who consulted with Wayfair on the development of Muse. “By showing how a space might look with chairs placed in a different position or with new colors, I think it makes design more accessible.”

Working with my Muse

My first task for Muses? A living room makeover. I started by searching “minimalist boho living with gold accents,” which yielded a ton of results. Most of them featured a bland, neutral couch—not exactly my style. Having so many options felt like a blessing and a curse, but I finally settled on an ideal arrangement with a spunky orange sofa. Next, I uploaded a photo of my empty living room and selected “apply to my real space,” which produced seven different images, each with the same color palette but different decor and layouts. After choosing one of the presented images, Muse offers you the option to change details (selecting new chairs, adding/removing accents, etc.) which I toyed around with until I felt relatively satisfied with the outcome.

The result? An image that sort of resembles the original space, but doesn't really have the same essence. But the Muse-generated living room came with a rust colored sofa that sparked an interest in a color scheme I hadn’t yet considered. Plenty of the pieces were shoppable from Wayfair, but aside from that, the design didn’t exactly move me to embark upon a shopping spree. Overall, the setup was a bit monotonous and crowded—I need my negative space!—and most of the suggested products weren’t exactly unique or inspiring.

After assessing the aftermath of my initial Muse creation, Jacobs had some tips for maximizing results should you choose to use this for yourself. “The types of photos that seem to work best for this tool are those that focus on one space with the focal point or main feature clearly visible,” she says. “In the example photo, the results were skewed I think as the kitchen is peeking out from the next room and the fireplace is not clearly shown. This tool seems limited in reading room details like angles, proportion, and features not fully displayed (such as a fireplace) which will make it difficult to actually apply results to your space.”

Noted! For my second design attempt, I used a living room photo with a different angle—no obstructing items or connected spaces playing peek-a-boo—in the hopes that the results would be more true-to-life. I chose a Dark Academia theme (think Hogwarts for stylish grownups), then added a few green accents, and replaced a set of upholstered lounge chairs and a rectangle glass coffee table with a pair of suggested products.

This produced a slightly better design. Was it an exact replica of my living room? No, but it gave me some inspiration for furniture orientation and the lighting reflected in my original photo was a close enough match to trust that the shade of green would work in my space.

“The tool provides instant design inspiration that can immediately spark ideas and excitement,” says designer Dara Segbefia of The Zen Experience, who has worked with Wayfair in the past. “You can see your dream space come to life before committing to purchases, making the design process more engaging and stress-free.”

Speaking of stress, I found all the options to be a bit overwhelming. If I was working with a designer, this would be something they could remedy with ease. But for those of us whose brains tend to freeze when met with too many options, Jacobs suggests a perspective shift. “Try viewing it as an overall suggestion or springboard. So, for example, if you’re hoping to get some inspiration with furniture layout, focus on this aspect and ignore all the little details like decor.”

Segbefia recommends breaking the room down into sections. “Start by focusing on a design element you're already certain about a color scheme or a furniture piece you love) or a single area of the room at a time (the seating area before moving on to décor details). This step-by-step approach naturally brings clarity and direction, making the selection process feel more intuitive and manageable.

Overall, I could see Muse working well for someone who’s not sure where to start or what kind of design their space can handle. The tool also seems ideal for someone who already has a color scheme and accessories in mind but is wondering how a particular couch or accents might fit into their current room.

Bottom line, this tool doesn’t pretend to be a replacement for a real life designer or that design-centric pal who gives amazing decor advice on the fly; it won’t tell you when you’ve gone overboard or encourage you to rethink that colorful bathroom idea. But still it’s useful for laying the groundwork to a room’s aesthetic as long as you understand its limits.

“I’d caution against simply selecting the recommended pieces,” says Jacobs. “There is so much more involved in selecting pieces including proportion, quality, sizing, and functionality. Many of the inspired Muse photos display items in a way that feels odd, incongruent to design, and just not realistic.”

After seeing how the tool managed my living room transformation, the non-realistic factor was my biggest issue, one that Segbefia ties to the AI’s many inspiration options. “It often blends multiple aesthetics instead of staying true to a single vision,” she says. She also thinks that the process for building a collection of items to be a little clunky. “Adding items requires manually typing in a keyword each time,” she says—but despite these shortcomings, she sees Muse as a way to cut down on research and shopping time.

“You can input your ideas and see an instant visualization and then shop within the same program and have everything delivered to [your] space.”

Illustration by Kiran Joan

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