5 ways to create the ‘modern rustic’ look in your home
What is modern rustic interior style? And how does ‘modern country’ decor differ from a traditional country look?
There are 5 common elements that you can easily adopt, whether you want to bring the look to your whole house or just get started in the bedroom, living room or kitchen.
1. Create a neutral backdrop – a neutral palette for walls is perfect for letting light bounce around, creating an airy feel and providing the perfect backdrop for seasonal changes in colour through home accessories. Popular colours include limestone white; soft warm grey (‘greige’); pale sand (think of faded wild grasses at the end of summer); eggshell blue; sage or sea salt and more recently a range of soft pinks.
2. Use natural materials - if you can expose and create a feature of any structural elements in your home, this is the perfect foundation for the modern rustic look, whether it’s a feature brick wall in the kitchen; wooden floors in the bedroom or exposed (untreated) beams in the living room. Accessorize with natural materials to add more texture - including linen cushions, woollen blankets, baskets, earthy hand crafted ceramics, recycled leather chairs and plenty of plants. A hint of industrial chic is a common blend to give the more modern edge to the look - and if you don't want to go overboard, metal cabinets or metal notice boards and clocks can do the trick.
3. Curate your home - modern rustic homes have a curated feel, which also feeds into our growing desire to shop more sustainably and to recycle. The curation is where the fun really lies - collecting feature items from flea markets, vintage fairs, antique traders, independent makers and shops, salvage yards and holiday finds. For the best success, mix old with new, but crucially, give items room to breathe and stand alone as features. There's less of the traditional country cottage 'cosy clutter' with a modern rustic look.
4. Bring the outside in - bringing nature inside is a key aspect of this look …and has the added bonus that it’s free and fun! Making a feature of nature is the every day equivalent of having a real Christmas tree. You might choose to have a ‘cabinet of curiosities’, full of small items (feathers, cones, seed heads) in a display case in your entrance hall; a 'jar of memories' full of shells and sea glass in an old fashioned sweet jar for the bathroom; a hand painted feature stone for your desk or for a large kitchen door stop or even a large fallen branch to hang seasonal decorations on.
5. Pare back – to bring it all together, declutter to make the space light and airy. You will know if you have got this popular pared back style right if your space feels light, calm and simple with a blend of Scandi and British influences.
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