Ask Me Anything – Answering Your Design and Lifestyle Questions
I love getting questions about design and lifestyle from clients, social media followers, random people on the street, etc. etc. If you ever have any burning design questions for me, just shoot me a message on Instagram or Facebook and I’ll answer them for you! For this blog, I’m going to talk about a question I get often…
How to incorporate natural elements your home without breaking the bank.
It’s a great question…
In my opinion, there are several ways to incorporate natural elements into your home. The first way you can do this is by incorporating a natural wood and/or stone item into the design of your space. If you are re-designing your home and can do this in the initial design process, then great. If you’re just looking to spruce up an already designed space with natural elements, then try a simple credenza or table made from natural wood or stone. Maybe its boxing out a soffit with barn board or cladding a wall if your budget allows. It gives the space new life without re-doing a whole space. If construction projects aren’t your thing you can add pieces through furnishings, hardware or art work. Check out some of my favorite finds to date.
Seriously…head to the outdoors, or a garden center that has building materials. Grab a table stand – insert natural stone element as the top…. Be practical if your using a slab like pictured here you can keep a glass of wine steady – but it’s just the perfect topper for a plan or maybe a laundry basket. I found this tree base at an antique shop and bought the stone off a guy a bit down the road that was hauling stones around his property. Quick an unexpected find!
Not about to go rock hunting? Try swapping out hardware for petrified wood, stone, or geo hardware like this Frosted Timber Knob by Anthro – there are a million variations on these – not sure what’s right for you? Call me - 617.645.3659.
If the hardware is a bit to rustic or unconventional try framing your own finds in shadow boxes or finding artwork that connects you to the outdoors like botanical prints – insects, eggs, the scientific vibe of this style of artwork is sophisticated but fun.
Another way to incorporate natural elements and a bit of green is by bringing the outside in! I talk about this a lot and over the course of several of my blogs. I recently just spoke about “The Garden that Keeps Growing,” where I give tips on how to properly clip plants and utilizing them in different rooms of your home for styling.. Utilizing plants in your design is a great way to incorporate natural elements at little to no cost!
- Molly