4 Ways to Bring the Outdoors Inside, Without the Mess

If you like the outdoors, it’s natural to want to bring some of that beauty inside. However, Pinterest boards often suggest adding real branches and pinecones to your home decor in order to bring the outdoors inside — a potentially messy affair, and hard to accomplish if you live in an urban area.

Luckily, there are plenty of ways to bring the outdoors inside without rooting around and disrupting nature. From faux plants to nature-inspired art to a refined color palette, we’ll cover the top ways to make your space a celebration of nature.

Large plants add a natural accent to any room. Image: Thomas Towne Reavey

1. Potted plants

Potted plants are a mainstay in home decorating, and for good reason: They’re incredibly accessible design concepts in terms of bringing the outside in.

When it comes to adding plants to a room, you have a few options. For starters, you can opt for a design like in the photo above, where one large tree adds a natural accent all on its own. It’s less mess and less stress, since you’re only caring for one plant.

The other option is to go for smaller plants throughout the home. If you’re looking to cut back on mess, try succulents, which require less soil than many other plants.

The most low-maintenance option, of course, is faux plants. Faux plants risk looking cheap, but many home goods stores stock plants that look as natural as the real thing.

A tapestry with a forest scene instantly brings the outdoors inside. Image: VSP Interiors

2. Wall art

It’s also possible to bring the outdoors inside without incorporating any outdoors items at all; large wall art with a nature theme gets the job done as well. You have many options for natural wall art:

• Tapestries that depict nature scenes, like in the photo above
• Large-scale, high-definition photography that captures scenes like waterfalls, hiking trails and fields — you can even get these images printed on a tapestry
• Realistic art that captures items from nature, like starfish, leaves, seashells or flowers
• Shadow boxes that contain pre-curated items from nature, like preserved leaves
• Smaller photo collections full of nature art, like photos of animals, seasonal changes, streams or close-ups of plant life

By using one of the ideas above, or even a combination of a few, you’ll have a visual representation of the natural world without having to water plants or disrupt nature trails.

Stonework walls are a powerful way to bring the outdoors inside. Image: Collins Dupont Design Group

3. Natural building materials

If you’re looking for that excuse to do some remodeling, you can also take a look at natural building materials like naturally cut stone or knotted wood.

Naturally cut stone looks great in mosaic backsplashes and accent walls. Natural woodgrain textures work well for flooring, accent walls and even pieces of furniture. For a more classic choice, marble’s swirling designs add a nice texture to countertops or flooring.

All of these options can help bring the outdoors inside by allowing you to feature natural elements in prominent areas of your home.

Green works wonders at giving a room a natural vibe. Image: Vendome

4. A nature-themed color scheme

If you’re looking for a natural theme in your home, don’t forget to work with your color scheme. The photo above shows just how well a bright spring-green wall combines with natural art to create an outdoorsy vibe.

When choosing your color scheme, go for greens and earthy tones that make use of brown shades. Green isn’t your thing? Try an open sky feel with bright blues and white, or opt for oceanic tones like teal and aqua.

If it’s an option, incorporate these tones by repainting walls; if not, bring them out in art and furniture.

Embracing natural elements in your home may feel intimidating, but it doesn’t have to be. With these four tips, your home can capture that outdoor essence without all the mess. How have you brought the outdoors into your home? Let us know in the comments.

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Michelle Honeyager via Freshome.com - Interior Design & Architecture Magazine http://bit.ly/2rQebMR