French Country Interior Design

French Country interior design is rustic, old-world, and welcoming. Wood beams, furniture with delicate, carved details, stone or brick floors covered with rugs, and fireplaces are prominent features. Copper pots, baskets, iron candleholders, pottery, colorful linens, old paintings, and clear glass vases are common accessory choices. You may also see window boxes containing clay pots of geraniums and lavender on window sills.

Modern Interior Design

Callum Dining Table (Acrylic Legs)

Modern interior design derives its influences from the modern art movement that preceded modern design. In painting, Modernism began with the Impressionists and others who used abstraction. Modern interior design grew out of the decorative arts, notably Art Deco, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It reached its peak in the 1950’s and 1960’s, which is why designers and decorators today may refer to modern design as being “mid-century.”

• Shapes: One of the most important elements in modern interior design is form. Modern design uses geometric shapes, including rigid squares and rectangles along with smooth curves (“clean lines”). Perfect circles and ovals are also common in modern interior design. Modern interior design is also generally very simple and even minimal (see: Minimalist), with few ornamental flourishes to interrupt the even, unbroken lines and flat surfaces.
• Materials: Modern interior design makes use of many materials. Wood and plastic are common, though designers often paint over wood with an opaque finish to cover the natural wood grain. Some designers do use natural wood as an organic contrast to more artificial shapes and materials. Glossy metals, such as stainless steel, are among the signature materials in modern interior spaces. The metal may be used for anything from the legs of a chair to the body of a lamp. Modern interior designers also make use of glass and plastic for their smooth, even surfaces.

French Interior Design

Adele Sofa ( Off White Cotton,Jute)

An ornate, fanciful and decorative style is characteristic of French interior design.

• Colors range from rich, sun-drenched Mediterranean hues to softer, muted shades. Often, one color or fabric is repeated throughout the space.
• Accented by rich details and extensive use of gold, bronze and gilt.
• Furniture generally includes French royal style antiques or heirlooms.
• Window treatments feature dramatic layers in the same color theme of the room.
• Flowers fill out a French home.

Shabby Chic Interior Design

Kelvin 2.5 Seater Sofa

Shabby Chic interior design presents a soft, feminine feel that differentiates this look from other vintage styles. It is a uniquely romantic way of decorating that first originated in the the 1980’s in the United Kingdom. Shabby Chic interior design consists of furnishings that are either chosen for their appearance of age and signs of wear and tear, or where new items are distressed to achieve the appearance of an antique. At the same time, a soft, opulent, yet cottage-style decor, often with an affected feel is emphasized to differentiate it from genuine period decor.

• Furniture: Shabby Chic furnishings show signs of wear and distressed, time-worn and painted layers.
• Fabrics: Fabrics tend to be cottons and old French linens. Whites and pastels are favorite colors.
• Decor: Popular decor items are pillows made of vintage fabrics, vintage linens, chenille bedspreads, vintage chandeliers, and anything with roses on it.

Check out our industrial "Abelie Dining Table".  Industrial interior design is popular for decorating lofts and old buildings converted into living spaces, although it can be used for traditional apartments and houses too. What you need for this style is to create an illusion of rough surfaces and materials that suggest an industrial past. The simplest way to show roughness is to leave some walls or surfaces unfinished. In addition to some rough metal elements that will create an industrial atmosphere, you are looking for old industrial-looking objects that are made from steel, metal or wood. These items are preferably worn down or have been salvaged and recycled. For more ideas, check out the gallery below.

• Color: Your color palette should steer clear of bright, bold colors; instead you should look for warm, neutral tones to fill your space. Shades and tones of gray work well when mixed with white to add a crisp, clean look.
• Walls and Structure: Exposed bricks, steel beams or columns, exposed concrete, unfinished wood, and stainless steel work well for this style. Walls should also incorporate large pieces of art.
• Floor: The most used floor option for an industrial style is polished concrete. It can be as rough and patchy as you want it to be. Timber or stone flooring are also good finishes that will help you achieve the industrial look.
• Decor and Furniture: You should find big comfortable sofas and large scatter cushions to work alongside ‘industrial’ artwork and accent pieces. Plants will also inject life and color into any environment so look for a few really great large leaf plants and some significant pots to house them.
• Lighting: Free standing floor lamps in a metal finish are a great source of lighting for this look. Try to add a few pendant lamps into your space as well.

HOW TO DISTRESS FURNITURE

The simplest way to create distressed furniture is to make use of small grain sandpaper. With brand new pieces that are sporting an original coat of paint, it is necessary to apply another coat. Painting furniture with another coat of a different color makes it possible to prepare the piece for distressing. Once the new coat is dry, use the sandpaper to gently thin the topcoat around the angles and any carvings in the piece. The idea is to allow the underlying coat to peek through the topcoat here and there, as if the paint were time worn.

The same basic approach can be applied to stained and varnished wood furniture as well. However, instead of painting furniture with a new topcoat, the object is to use steel wool or sandpaper to gently rub away some of the finish at strategic locations around the piece. For example, if the piece has a beveled lip around the surface, that is an ideal place to apply a light sanding and provide an aged look. Carved legs also offer excellent opportunities to use the steel wool or sandpaper to gently age the look of the piece.

Another way to create distressed furniture is to use lengths of chain that are several different sizes. This idea works especially well with wooden pieces such as dining tables, wardrobes, and coffee tables. To create the look of years of accumulated nicks and dents in the surface of the wood, use the length of chain like a whip and strike the surface of the wood. This action will leave small marks in the grain and give the new furniture an appearance of having seen many years of use. The dings can be filled in with stain, which will help to enhance the overall aged look.

It is important to note that in addition to knowing how to distress furniture, it is also a good idea to know when a particular piece is a good candidate for distressing. If the newly produced furniture is styled after furnishings from several decades back, it will probably look natural to distress the piece. However, if the design of the furniture is of more recent vintage, distressing the piece is likely to look artificial and out of place.

Distressed furniture can create a warm feeling in a room by conveying a sense of continuity with the past. However, care must be taken to not overdo the treatment. The idea with distressed furniture is to create a look that appears to be from years of loving use, not the appearance of a piece of furniture that has been greatly abused.

TUSCAN INTERIOR DESIGN

OLD WORLD TUSCAN ARMOIRE ROSEMONDE - HAND PAINTED IN GREY DISTRESSED WITH BONE SCROLLS. ORIGINAL WROUGHT IRON GATE WITH ANTIQUED KEY

Tuscan interior design draws its inspirations from old rustic villages in Italy. Tuscan interiors feature a rustic, sun-baked look characterized by stone patios; sturdy furnishings with elegant iron accents; terra-cotta tiles; textured wall finishes; elegant, detailed murals and trompe l’oeil designs.

• Colors: The rustic Tuscan interior design color palette leans heavily on earthy, unpretentious hues evocative of a Tuscan hillside.
• Floors: Terra-cotta tiles, stone with mosaic inlay and worn wood covered with antique rugs are ways to bring a Tuscan look down to the floor.
• Accents: Wrought-iron accessories such as candle sconces and light fixtures can reinforce the rustic theme. Other appropriate accessories include painted ceramic objects and tile to bring color and vitality to the design.
• Architecture: Rough plaster walls often meet a rustic beamed ceiling. Windows are simple and left bare to take advantage of unfiltered natural light in Tuscan interior design.