Together we figure out how to create an environmentally friendly interior, not only in terms of style but also in terms of materials, the possibility of processing and the environmental impact of production
Responsible consumption and the environment are among the topics of recent years. More and more people refuse plastic bags in supermarkets, sort garbage, and give casual clothes for recycling, and in 2020 this trend will continue to develop. Global warming, air pollution, or the amount of plastic in the ocean, which can soon become equal to the number of fish, is increasingly beginning to affect our lives – and it’s getting harder and harder to ignore. An Eco-friendly approach is also gaining momentum in interior design.
Is it worth choosing an Eco-style for your home?
In recent months, Eco-style has become a popular home decoration option. Along with pop art and a minimalist style, the Eco movement has found its fans in the world. Even though home decoration in this style is not an expensive pleasure, there is still the opportunity to save on materials significantly. You can use not expensive options for flooring, instead of valuable stone or exclusive wooden floorboards. The green “decoration” for the walls can be replaced by painting or finishing with materials in pastel colors.
The ceiling can be made of inexpensive materials, for example, a plain stretch ceiling of a specific color. Along with this, the room should create a feeling of “naturalness”, “environmental friendliness.” Feel free to use green spaces, but do not overdo it. Otherwise, your apartment will become a summer cottage.
Eco-style in modern design: main features
The apartment in Eco-style is a bright and spacious room in which dim light and cluttered space are unacceptable. Minimalism is what you need to adhere to in a natural style.
The Eco-style interior is conducive to rest, relaxation, everything should contribute to this.
It is necessary to try as much as possible to use natural materials: wood, clay, brick, stones, and ceramics. For fabrics, it is best to use cotton and linen.
By color combination, white remains diluted with pastel, sand, and wood shades. Wildlife objects are ideal for decorating a room, and indoor plants are a necessary element for Eco-style but do not forget that everything should be in moderation. A great addition to the room will be the presence of an aquarium with fish.
The decoration uses wood, stone, cork, terracotta, ceramics, glass, paper, wicker from a vine or rattan panel, mat.
Nature dictates its own rules, and the main feature in the design will be:
For an apartment in an Eco-style, wooden furniture of simple shape, quite massive, is suitable.
Five characteristics of an environmentally friendly interior
Eco-friendly and safe materials
Natural materials – wood, wool, or stone – seem like the obvious choice when we think about an environmentally friendly interior. The environmental impact of a product is assessed based on its entire life cycle – from extraction, production, and transportation to the method of its disposal. A synthetic floor finish made from plastic waste in your region may be a more environmentally friendly option than valuable species parquet, a tree that grows on the other side of the globe.
If you want to use natural materials, choose those that renew quickly, such as fast-growing bamboo or cork.
Materials must be safe for humans – with a minimum content of toxic substances. Among the colors, the most environmentally friendly and reliable are those that are made from water-based plant materials and have zero toxic emissions of volatile organic compounds that can harm health.
The second life of things
Conscious consumption, which, among other things, involves the maximum use of the potential of an already produced item (reuse, recycle, up cycle), is becoming a popular concept in all areas of life. Many people realize that natural resources are limited, and it is better not to spend them on the production of new things when existing ones can be used.
Interior items can also give a new life: vintage fabric from grandma’s attic can become the new upholstery of a boring chair, wooden planks can become a tabletop for a dining table, and a glass bottle can be a high vase.
Resource-saving
An environmentally friendly space is also evaluated in terms of how many natural resources are spent on its maintenance. The essential points are heating, lighting, and water consumption.
It is essential for room heating to be efficient and economical. It is necessary to choose windows with excellent thermal insulation since most of the heat goes through them. Curtains and carpets can also help in this – for example, heavy curtains reduce heat loss through windows by up to 14%, and carpet on the floor can save up to 10% of heat.
LED lamps are one of the most energy-efficient lighting solutions. Choose quality options so that the bulbs last for a long time, and be sure to recycle them after the end of their life. Smart home systems, light intensity control, and the use of appliances with energy class A, A +, A ++ also help save energy. You can save water by installing aerators on taps and using sensors to supply water.
Local production
According to the European Commission website, almost a quarter of greenhouse gas (CO2) emissions in Europe are from transport. An increase in CO2 in the atmosphere is the leading cause of air pollution in cities and one of the reasons of climate change occurring on our planet.
A significant contribution to this is made by the transport of goods. Therefore, choosing furniture and materials that were made in your region, firstly, you support the development of local production, and secondly, help the environment – such a product does not need transportation thousands of kilometers to your home.
Especially now, it is much easier to do than before: the local furniture market is overgrowing, and decent companies have appeared that make a high-quality and beautiful product.
Durability and timeless design
High-quality materials and furniture for your interior will allow you not to change it as long as possible. This has a positive effect on the environment, and ultimately on your budget. Also, in this sense, the design is essential. It satisfies all the user needs and, according to stylistic decisions, allows space not to become obsolete in a year.
However, your tastes and habits may change over time, so space should be flexible, quickly adapt to your changing needs and provide an opportunity to change or adjust parts of the interior, without resorting to large-scale changes. For example, a modular carpet will replace only one damaged element instead of replacing the entire floor. The color schemes, expressed in textiles, allow you to update the interior, just replacing the curtains, pillows, and covers for furniture.
How to start finishing Eco-style in the interior of the house?
Eco-style implies the use of exclusively natural materials in the room’s design, from the smallest detail to serious finishing work and furniture. For the floor, it is recommended to use a natural wooden floorboard. Today, manufacturers offer amazing flooring from different types of wood. Stone, marble, and imitations of the natural texture will look good in the design of the room. For the floorboard, we recommend choosing an option that, in your opinion, will be as close as possible to the natural structure. Even the shape of the floorboard can have an “uneven” structure, curved edges.
For wall coverings, you can use natural plants. But, to fully realize this idea, it is necessary watering and lighting in the apartment. Stable moss for the wall will fit perfectly into the design of the room.
Vertical gardening. Expensive pleasure and not everyone can afford it. Also, a fantastic effect will be provided not only for you but also for your guests.
If you do not want to use the vertical gardening option, try using plants that will be placed along the walls indoors. The main thing is not to go too far with gardening. Otherwise, your apartment will turn into a “green garden”.
Stone is ideal for wall decor. If you still think over the wall’s lighting, the result will be an amazing light effect of wall reflection.
If, in extreme cases, you do not want to use an expensive “natural” finish, try to provide a neutral light finish in the room, then, in this case, you must follow the rules for arranging Eco-furniture. Otherwise, all your work will be in vain.
Eco-style furniture
The selection of furniture must be cautious. Some natural wood options are not suitable for the room of an apartment, but can only become an element of decor for your summer cottage. Designers recommend that furniture be made of solid wood or from a lighter and more airy version – rattan wicker. You can, for example, use rattan furniture as a “diluting” element of the decor of the room. For example, you have solid wood furniture used throughout the room, and racks can be installed made from rattan.
In some furniture stores, you can find interesting forms of wooden furniture in a simple design.
It’s nice to use “wooden” motifs in the bathroom. An interesting variant of a bamboo sink is sold in stores.
You can use wooden cabinets, with moisture-resistant facades. A wicker laundry basket will look good. An excellent addition will be exclusively a wooden soap dish, bamboo towels, small baskets, cups made of natural wood, or bamboo. Thus, plumbing can be left traditional, and in the design, make ample use of natural materials for accessories.
Eco-style ceiling
There are specific nuances for the ceiling structure. The main rule is that the Eco-style ceiling should be single-level. Multi-level ceilings are unnecessary, they ultimately narrow the space and does not correspond to the original design of the house. The desired ceiling color is white. If your ceiling height is large, in order not to resort to a multi-level ceiling, we recommend resorting to the replacement of color schemes. Make the walls light and the top dark. In the end, you should not get carried away with bright colors, and at the same time, use dark shades too much. The ceiling should have a light and natural tone, such as blue, which imitates the sky. The ceiling will look good in the following color variations – beige, swamp, cream, shades of brown and green, as well as an olive color. For very high ceilings, it is possible to provide a design of wooden beams, which will be not only decorative elements but also an option for attaching greenery to your room.
Eco-style lighting
It is currently tough to find a manufacturer who produces serial production of Eco-style lighting fixtures. As a rule, such style does not initially involve the use of open forms of lighting; in this case, the built-in flash is used. In some cases, however, you can use fixtures made of natural material. In the past, accessories in which shades were made of wood were trendy. Currently, for safety reasons, such lamps are not used or are rarely used.
Eco-style textile
In order of textiles selection, the recommendation is to use linen material for curtains, and for furniture upholstering, a matting is ideal. In any case, the general recommendations for choosing textiles for the home are that you should choose a material that is as close to natural as possible.
Choosing the right color palette
The color palette is based on natural shades and colors and includes all shades of brown, white, yellow, and green. These are the primary colors of the style, but it is not excluded that others can complement them, often white is the primary color in interior design.
Window curtains are often replaced by bamboo curtains or blinds.
The use of Eco-style in different rooms
Eco-style will fit perfectly into the design of any room; you can design as a separate room or the entire apartment.
The shape should be as natural as possible – either straight and even rough, or, on the contrary, smooth, imitating the natural bends found in nature.
Bedroom
You can create an atmosphere of warmth and comfort by creating a bedroom in a natural style. This design involves the use of natural materials for decoration and a natural color palette. For nature lovers, the Eco-style is a real outlet.
For designing a bedroom in an Eco-style, several style-forming elements are enough, as well as natural decorative materials or natural motifs in the decoration of walls and textiles.
Kitchen
The kitchen in the Eco-style looks harmonious and straightforward. Natural design can be combined with technology; the main thing is to focus on natural materials and natural fabrics, to opt for environmentally friendly dishes.
In the kitchen, like in no other room of the house, it is essential to observe the principles of minimalism – nothing more.
Kitchen furniture is best used from natural oak or birch, and the main thing is that it is not covered with paints and varnishes.
Kitchen furniture is preferable to pure forms, as a material, you can use not only wood but also, for example, transparent plastic.
Living room
The interior of the living room should be perfect and requires great responsibility for the approach of the project. The room should remain spacious, but at the same time, look cozy. It is best to use low upholstered furniture, decorative pillows, and carpets in natural colors.
When designing a living room in an Eco-style, it is advisable to use only natural materials. If this is not possible, it is worth replacing them with imitation.
You can add color to the interior using indoor plants and wallpapers; it will be interesting to look at a bio fireplace, which is ideal for zoning a studio apartment. Originality in the design will be made by fixtures made of natural materials, wicker baskets that can be used as functional or decorative parts of the interior. A stylish solution would be sliding doors and arches.
To create a style, sometimes a few descriptive details are enough – the main thing is that everything else does not contradict the main idea.
Children’s room
Eco-style is suitable for children of any gender and age, and most importantly – it will be safe. The main thing is to leave as much space as possible for games and study. It is worth using pleasant natural shades, prints with animals or floral motifs, or light colors in the decoration of the room – the design should be light and unobtrusive.
Wooden beds, a woolen rug under your feet, warm beige tones of the walls, light curtains – the image of a nursery in Eco-style is ready.
Conclusion+Photo gallery
Psychologists say that only the Eco-style in the house allows you to get the maximum psychological relief. Eco-style possesses attractive energy that helps you to harmonize with nature. The modern fussiness of city life unsettles any of us, and only peace in the house will help restore balance and confidence in the future, and the eco-style in your home can solve many problems. By the way, you can use this style for your peace of mind, the result of which you will be satisfied. In the kitchen, you can provide a corner where you can grow greenery for home, in small quantities, for example, parsley, dill, and celery.
