On a recent visit to a friends home in Brixton, we were amazed to walk into what felt like a seaside retreat in the heart of London. Despite the wail of police sirens screaming by outside, inside our friends' four walls the nautical inspired colour scheme and seaside themed accessories made the hustle and bustle of city life melt entirely away. Replaced by a calm serenity and a reinvigorated feeling you rarely experience away from the beach.
Which got us thinking about the power of interior design to trick our brains and influence our emotions. After all, if our friend can style her house to deliver a true taste of the seaside in one of London's most busy inner suburbs, then surely the same results can be applied to any inner city home?
So, if you long for the call of the sea but are restricted to living inland, try out these tips and ideas for achieving your very own nautical hideaway in the heart of your home. We welcome you to take inspiration from our collage of nautical themed images to recreate your own take on nautical style in your living spaces.
Colours
Blues, reds and white make up the perfect palette of seaside inspired hues. While shades of grey are great for adding a complementary accent colour. Our House Linen Scarlett Red, Broad Weave Linen Shingle, Viscose Linen Eggshell Blue, Washed Cotton Denim, House Wool Ink and Linen Cotton French Navy are just a handful of fabrics in our range that perfectly invoke a fresh seaside feel.
Patterns
Stripes are synonymous with seaside style - just picture lifebuoys and deckchairs, which are both found on British beaches and feature thick-banded stripes. Ticking stripes are also great for achieving a nautical look; as are anchor prints, gull motifs, sail boats and lighthouses.
Textures
If you want to capture an impactful nautical feel with minimal effort then ropes are a great go-to texture to introduce. You can find tons of home accessories made using rope, from side and floor lamps, to picture frames and even decorative balls that sit on shelves and act as doorstoppers. You can even go as far as making your own handrail from rope to feed up the stairs. Wood is another texture that also screams of the seaside. Especially if it's unvarnished, uncoated and distressed. Strip your floors back to wooden boards or introduce panelling on the walls as a statement feature. Wicket baskets are also brilliant for invoking a nautical feel, especially in bathrooms and bedrooms.
Accessories
This is where you can really push the nautical theme without having to do any major home improvements. If your budget for making changes is limited then a few well-chosen accessories can really push the nautical theme. Go for boating memorabilia for an impactful statement, or introduce a few metal fixtures and light fittings. Oars, bunting, and porthole shaped mirrors make great wall hangings. Alternatively, even just a collection of nautical themed postcards framed or pinned to a corkboard can convey a taste of the sea. Check second hand websites like eBay and gumtree and routinely visit car boot sales for treasured finds.
One thing's for sure, when it comes to introducing a touch of nautical to your home interiors you can be as liberal or as selective with the trend as you feel comfortable with. Just a few tweaks can invoke a subtle hint of seaside charm, or if you really want to transform your home into a nautical retreat, you can go all out with paints, patterns and textures.
For inspiration on the best way to channel a nautical feel through your furniture visit us at Willow & Hall. Or, speak to one of our friendly Customer Service team who'll happily recommend some styles, fabrics and designs to match your requirements. You can contact them by phone on 0845 468 0577 or by email at [email protected].
Kind regards,
The Willow & Hall team