Below is a guest posting about using ‘industrial’ design elements in your home design. As we know this is a popular design trend right now. S Interior Design recommends using touches of these elements and not going overboard ……..this advice is sound regardless of design trend being incorporated into an overall design plan. Eclectic mixes of design elements that reflect your personal taste is always a winning way to design your space.
Introduce Industrial Details into Your Modern Apartment: A Simple Guide
Industrial style seems to be taking the interior decorating world by storm- and with good reason. Nothing evokes the feeling of easy maintenance and coolness quite like an industrially decorated apartment.
Exposed materials like steel, stone and brick, in addition to wooden elements give your home a rustic and mature feeling. Combined with layered textures to show that your apartment is lived-in and lights aimed at softening the overall feeling of the place- it’s hard to imagine anything more modern.
A good starting point to figuring out if this style strikes your fancy is introducing some industrial details into your apartment and this article will act as your guide to doing so.
Here are the eight choices you can make to help your apartment gain a more industrial feel:
- Go with Rustic or Solid Colors
The color palette often determines the whole style of the room. If you’re going for industrial, choose more rustic colors for solid pieces of furniture: brown and beige tones; or choose dark, solid shades which will be contrasted with the wooden and metallic elements of the room.
Using brown tones for bigger furniture pieces will allow you to use complimentary colored accents for rugs, vases and other decorations, which will open up the space and give it some warmth.
- Add a Wooden Table
Nothing says industrial design more than a table made of raw, unfinished wood. Wooden elements are a big part of the industrial style, along with exposed brick walls and leather sofas. Start easy with adding one of them to the mix and see how it fits your room.
- Invest in a Bookcase
If you’ve ever wanted to own a library as big as the one in Beauty and the Beast, now’s your chance to design one and keep it in tone with your style. Stack up rows of shelves of solid wood, and be sure to make them ceiling high: this will not only give you a more intellectual look, but will also help bring your living room or study together.
- Let Rustic Metals Tell their Tale
We can’t really talk about an industrial building without taking into account the metals and products that were a prominent feature of plumbing and hardware. To give your apartment a part of that flair invest in furniture pieces with brush nickel, copper and wrought iron elements or accents.
- Make Your Kitchen Stand Out
Choose stainless steel appliances in the tones of industrial era machines, and make sure that the panel on your appliance front (if it’s integrated into the cabinetry) is able to do so as well. Simple hardware details can really help you pull off this modern industrialism mix-and-match game.
Add fixtures with rustic metals and small details, which will make the look work with help of retro lighting.
- Renovate with Industrial Design in Mind
There’s no need for a complete overhaul in order to achieve the look you want. Take baby steps and start with adding an accent wall (for example, an exposed brick wall) or add a fireplace to the room.
Use concrete as a finish because it is not only structurally functional, but it also given a rustic appeal to the room when left unfinished or matte. And don’t be afraid to leave nail heads or seems exposed – they will only add to the room.
- Make Bold Artwork Choices
Art is one of the best ways humans express themselves, and that is also true when talking about expressing a design style. Choose an expressive artwork piece and place it on an exposed brick wall – and you’ll feel like you’ve been transported into a different dimension.
The choice of art is entirely up to you: go with the more classical approach, or for something more abstract; choose a graphic painting or a mural, anything can work.
- Rugs and Accents
You want to go with more neutral rugs, those that blend into the environment of the room and don’t call too much attention to themselves – so stay away from bold, bright colors and distinct, abstract geometrical shapes. I’d recommend going for a more faded and oriental variant.
The accents are where you can let your creativity shine, though bright colors are still a no-go. For throw pillows or blankets choose something that compliments the rug choice, but has a pattern as well. Play around with materials and textures.
With these eight simple additions to your home, you’ll be taking a step in fully decorating your apartment using industrial details. Even if you don’t want to go the whole way, these home improvements will make your apartment a breath-taking and impressive sight, without taking any of your comfort away.
Diogo says
The trend I like the best is having rustic metals showing up in selected places. It always makes for an interesting contrast. Thanks for the list!