Make way for beachiness
Sharmila Chand
While it may not be possible for everyone to live by the sea, it is quite possible to create an ambience of a beach home with a clever use of colours, textures and accessories. Here’s what interior designers have on their trend list for those looking to create a beach-inspired home:
“If I were to create a luxury beach house/villa- inspired home, I would opt for authentic fish scale tiles for the walls of the living room or bathrooms in the shades of whites or cyan blues. Wooden and jute elements such as stools, chairs, and baskets can also help add a slice of authenticity to your beach house decor. I personally love using mirror elements as part of home décor because they look extremely exquisite. They can help add an exotic feel to your home”, says Nisha Mehta, Founder at Muse — The Store.
The colour connect
Calming hues generally infuse a space with a beachy ambience. Warm creams, natural wood tones, pale turquoise, and lemon yellow are the colours that will give your abode a distinctive sea-side appearance. Another winning coastal colour is ‘seafoam green’. Accents in refreshing shades of teal merge smoothly with natural wood floors, sky blue walls, and crisp white furniture.
“One can use tones of tropical green, kelly green, nautical blue and yellow pear to brighten up a coastal-inspired house. For a retro-inspired beach space, use dazzling yellow, tangy orange, electric pink, and a mix of ocean blues to create an eclectic charm”, suggests Natasha Jain, CEO & Co-founder, Bent Chair.
According to Nisha, “One must experiment with a vivacious colour palette and opt for hues such as aquas, sea greens, indigos, beiges and emerald greens in the form of paint or textured wallpaper”.
Parul Mittal, Director, Greenlam Industries Ltd. is all for playing with different tones of blue. “Blue is a colour that resonates perfectly with beaches and has a calming undertone to it. This season has brought some of the most sought-after trends which include breath-taking shades of blue such as royal blue, sapphire, turquoise and more. These shades allow you to make your space relaxing and refreshed”.
“Rugs and carpets in Bruges, sands and touches of blue can also add a slice of a chic coastal appeal”, says Ekta Khialani, Founder at CASA NOVO
Furnishings & accessories
Beautiful coral, starfish and seashell show pieces, nautical-themed cushions and bedspreads, and beach-inspired wall hangings, can be a great way to bring the seaside to your home.
One can effortlessly re-create a serene and breezy vibe by choosing seafoam curtains or simple net drapes in shades of whites and light blues. “These can help add an element of the sea and the wind to your home and can make it look relaxed yet spirit”, adds Nisha.
Wood, loom, and bamboo are great materials to use for chairs, benches, and side tables for your living room. “One can even opt for monochrome striped slipcovers and fabrics for these furniture pieces”, adds Nisha.
“Add a lot of show pieces in terms of rustic wood tones and twine wrapped wooden lanterns to give a soothing aura to your décor. If you are not fond of rustic show pieces, you can play around with quirky elements too. Explore statement pieces like seashells, glass bottle lamps, dreamcatchers or succulents. Channel these trendy elements in such a way that these balance with your textures and give a calming feel to your eyes”, is what Parul advises.
Lighting
“Opt for loom pendant lights, lanterns and seaside-inspired table lamps for living rooms and bedrooms to create the beach mood lighting,” says Nisha. “Lanterns, can surely light up your living space in a chic yet contemporary manner”, agrees Natasha. However, she advises to choose a lantern with light tone exterior as “darker tones are a bit overwhelming when you are creating a nautical theme”.
A touch of funk
Funky yet colourful little nooks and shelves are a great way to add charm to your interiors. Natasha says, “Enrich these shelves with marine-themed accessories such as nautical tid bits, seashells, fish pots, seascape paintings, etc”.
“One must transform their porch into a cozy dwelling to relax with summertime staples in bright whites and natural tones. Add a colourful striped rug to enhance the overall look”, adds Natasha.
Allowing yourself to experiment and mix andmatch different trends and home decor elements always works well! “To create that perfect beach house look, I would not restrict myself by opting for just the quintessential beach elements, but would also love to experiment and inculcate different trends such as bohemian and neon trends, to enhance the beachy vibe and give it a tasteful, yet unique look”, she adds.
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recipe for a Sea-side abode
1: The focal point to create a beach-like home interior is the colour palette one selects. One should ideally opt for an amalgamation of cool colours such as shades of azure, turquoise, teal, off-white, with a tinge of yellow or green. Using a bleached out, beachy colour palette for the walls, the furniture or the home accessories can instantly help create a coastal chic vibe.
2: A simple technique that one must bear in mind, is to use a diverse range of varied textures and to avoid extravagant multi-coloured fabrics and furniture.
3: Yet another method is to decorate your entryway with furniture that beautifully accommodates beachside essentials such as a woven beach bag, coral and pearl showpieces or even a surfboard. Adding a few plants against blue and white walls in your living room can also help achieve the perfect natural, beachy look.
4: Adding small touches like nautical prints in kids bedrooms, and nautical-themed art on the walls can help do the trick as well. One can also add nautical and coastal themed accessories such as sailing boats and classic bamboo basket swings to take the beachy vibe interiors up a notch.
5: Macramé cushions in shades of indigo, sea-foam, and creams along with monochrome wall hangings are an amazing way of adding a beachy cool decor to your interiors as well.
— Inputs Ekta Khialani, Founder at CASA NOVO