Home Design Inspired by the Rustic Outdoors
Having rustic décor in your home does not necessarily mean you have to live in a rural area.
Often, those living in urban settings view their own homes as somewhere tranquil to switch off from the bustling world right outside their door. They choose to go with rustic designs that invoke imagery of peacefulness and serenity.
Where could be more peaceful than a country kitchen with a window looking out over rolling hills? Or a bathroom, in which you can relax to the sounds of birds singing outside? Whilst these are strong features of homes within a rural community, those same emotions can be conjured up with the right application of rustic materials and aesthetics regardless of where you live.
If you are searching for home design inspiration and want to bring that general ambiance to your existing abode, then we have a few handy tips for you.
Living Area
One of the key aspects of rustic appeal is natural products like wood. Any wooden material can easily be incorporated in any living area. For instance, the Cookham Trestle Console is a great piece of furniture to start a rustic aesthetic with. Choose similar types or finishes of wood for the rest of the pieces in the living room, like the matching Cookham Bookcase and Cookham Hall Bench in grey.Opt for softer colours, nothing too bright or loud. Shades of brown work well for a rustic appeal, but remember to contrast the furniture as well so as not to create monotony. Dark woods and dark walls might leave your room feeling dingy rather than elegant.
Kitchen
Nothing screams ‘rustic outdoors’ more than a traditional farmhouse kitchen, and as Homify explains, you must get the colour palette right before you do anything else. You must consider what colours you are likely to see in a farmhouse kitchen and channel those in your own space.
Think about tones around brick, stone and wood, like the Milano Extending Dining Table. A bigger table also allows for more seating options like an extended bench mixed and matched with a couple of traditional dining chairs. The wood finish is a bit on the lighter side, which allows for more versatility with ornaments. Consider adding a floral arrangement, as House Beautiful notes that they enhance any room without making huge changes. Flowers are great accent pieces that can instantly brighten up a room. You can also drastically change the mood in the dining area simply by swapping out florals.
Bathroom
A rustic bathroom is characterised by natural materials again, and one thing to consider is exposed pipework. Seeing the copper pipes against a plain, tiled wall might look industrial, but it also harks back to basic bathrooms once found in country homes.
Also, consider the bathroom furniture very carefully. Freestanding baths used to be popular and if you have the room, consider moving away from against-the-wall installations. Creating a rustic bathroom may mean extensive re-modelling, more so than elsewhere in the house, so do consider aftercare as well. It is recommended by HomeServe that you get insurance for any new plumbing installation you fit, so if you do go for a freestanding bath, make sure you have peace of mind afterwards too. It would be incredibly frustrating to create the perfect country bathroom, only for an unforeseen plumbing problem to ruin all your hard work.
Maybe consider using a stone sink to really hit home with those natural products. Stone is a sustainable product too, so any future re-modelling would not necessarily mean you had to throw it away. Many rural farmhouses in Tuscany utilise stone in the bathroom, so it is something worth considering.
Finally, add some embellishments like this set of Crosby Metal Framed Mirrors.
Bedroom
Using rustic elements in a bedroom is tricky when you consider you need to merge that with modern comfort. It is all about the wood again here, maybe even going with a wooden floor set off against a large, patterned rug. Whilst exposed brick might be good for the bathroom and kitchen, we don’t recommend it for the bedroom as it does not quite lend itself to comfort and luxury.
The Balham Smoked Side Table is an elegant piece of furniture that is in keeping with the overall rustic theme. The drawer makes it perfectly functional as well as decorative for your bedroom needs. Consider exposed wood around the door frames and maybe even in the ceiling. Striking the perfect balance between rustic and comfort is challenging in a bedroom, but it can be done with a little consideration.
