5 rules that minimalist interior designers swear by to create a cozy living room
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| (Image credit: Nune) |
Minimalist spaces shouldn't mean stark or severe. These are the 5 rules minimalist designers swear by for cozy living rooms :
1. EMBRACE TEXTURE
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| (Image credit: Edmund Sumner. Design: TR Studios) |
Rule number one of adopting a cozy minimalist feel to your living room all comes down to texture. Minimalists typically keep color to a minimum, relying instead on material to bring interest. Textures play a pivotal role in bringing depth and warmth to the otherwise clean and sleek aesthetics of minimalism.
To create a cozy atmosphere in minimalist living rooms, it's crucial to focus on warm shades and layering textures.
It will be better to use similar shades in both paint and fabric, but introduce different textures that add layers and complexity, Additionally, you might incorporate wood elements as they not only infuse warmth but also provide another dimension of texture.
When shopping for texture, think natural. From jute rugs to wicker lampshades, to boucle armchairs to high pile upholstery and mohair throws, building up a layered scheme of texture can bring coziness to your living room in abundance. The trick with minimalism is to keep a cohesive color palette. If your minimalist living room uses white on the walls, build dimension with a neutral, earth tone living room.
2. USE LIGHTING TO YOUR ADVANTAGE
Ensuring you have the right lighting is essential for cozy minimalist living rooms, with a focus on mood lighting to add warmth.
Brightening up your home and flooding the space with a natural feel, natural light should be harnessed where possible, helping you to embrace the great outdoors in your interiors. Encourage natural light during the design stage of your home with floor-to-ceiling windows, skylights and window seat ideas that offer a space to sit and enjoy the view of the outdoors. It's all about the balance of natural and artificial lighting though, so remember to supplement with your lamps, wall lights and ceiling lights.
3. BRING THE SPACE TOGETHER WITH A HIGH PILE AREA RUG
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| Image credit: Nune |
4. DON'T UNDERESTIMATE THE IMPORTANCE OF WINDOW TREATMENTS
Given that light is such an important tool in minimalist interior design, the way we control and block out light in our minimalist living rooms is also of crucial importance. Diffuse the natural light that comes into your room with soft, sheer floor-length living room curtains that bring a beautiful softness to the walls and allow an ethereal quality of light. Remember to keep the color scheme neutral or white, avoid bright or bold color and allow the light that filters through to be the star of the show.
5. BRING WARM COLORS TO YOUR MINIMALIST SCHEME
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| Image credit: Norm Architects |
Minimalism is so much more than just white interiors, and more and more, as minimalism blends with a more luxurious look, we're noticing designers experimenting with other richer and earthy tones.
For your minimalist living room to work come fall, it's all about introducing other colors that have a natural warmth to them. For minimalism, avoid anything too saturated, but introduce earthy, subtle tones. You can use mushroom in a minimalist living room, bringing a brown tinge to grey, and tones of brown from across the spectrum. Avoid anything that carries too much color and energy.
