7 Ways to Ease into a Cozy Minimalist Home Style
Many people today crave comfort, relaxation, simplicity and coziness in their homes. But what interior style takes all these points and unifies them into one look? Well, the answer is cozy minimalism. While many think that these two words (coziness and minimalism) can’t fit together, they actually go hand-in-hand! Here’s how to slowly adapt your home to a cozy minimalist style.
Clear out the mess
Look around your home. Do you see piles of mail, keys on the coffee table, shoes all over your hallway, empty cups on the kitchen cabinet and random things on the floor? That’s nothing new, but all that clutter is clouding your judgment and making your mind all fuzzy and stressed. So, before you do anything else to your interior, start decluttering your space and eliminating unnecessary things. Everything that is essential also needs to be paid some attention and organized according to priority. Once you do that, look around your home again and notice just how much better you feel in your space.
Adopt the “one in one out” policy
It’s really amazing how many things you can accumulate in a very short time without even realizing. Just remember how fast you filled your empty cabinets, shelves and closets once you moved into your new place! And even if you don’t see the clutter, it’s still there, hiding in your storage. So, to prevent clutter from burying you in your home, try living by the “one in and one out” rule. For every item you introduce into your home, some other item needs to be donated, recycled or thrown away. This will ensure you always have a neat and clean space and provide you with a more mindful shopping experience.
Opt for a neutral base
Minimalist interiors are all about the base color—it sets the entire scene. Usually, subdued hues are most desirable (think everywhere from greige to biscuit and all tones in between). These tones look fresh and have a very calming effect on people. If you want to introduce some color to the space, don’t worry—choose solid pigments that will fuse well with the neutral background like earthy tones, tans, greens and blues.
Add interest with texture
Imagine a room with white walls and furniture in neutral colors—it might seem a little bland. However, there’s a trick that will fix all the downsides to minimalism: interesting textures. It’s truly amazing what you can do with a simple knitted throw, furry pillow or a natural textured rug. Check out some gorgeous rugs and discover a huge collection of timeless rug designs perfect for adding texture to simple spaces. These will add warmth, comfort and interest to your space without disturbing the minimalist vibe of your space. As long as they are in the same tonal family, you can really go crazy with these sensory touchpoints.
Don’t go easy on the storage
If you clear your space, respect all your minimalism rules and simplify your décor, it’s time to tackle those stubborn few stragglers that still hang around. The best way to do so is getting stylish storage that will let chaos reign inside your closed storage while you have a cozy and neat space outside. This is a great solution for all those who love the way minimalism looks, but are not ready to say goodbye to the maximalist that still lives inside of them. The key to cozy minimalism is the fact that you don’t have to live like a hermit—you just have to ditch your hoarder mentality.
Get cozy with layering
If you’re not trying to adopt a hardcore minimalist lifestyle, you want to add some coziness to your space. However, be careful how and where you place your cozy spaces. It’s best to contain your items to spaces that don’t get a lot of traffic. While you will undoubtedly pile up coffee cups, books or phones on the coffee table, you won’t do the same on your mantle, so get it all styled without any worry that it will turn into a pile of mess in two days.
Always choose quality over quantity
Most people think that it’s very hard to work with a lot of furniture and décor elements, but what’s actually much harder is choosing the right pared-back aesthetics. When you have so few things to work with, your choice becomes even harder. You need to consider everything carefully, but you’ll also achieve a very mindful space at the end. Usually, best mindfulness is achieved by searching and opting for high-quality items that will stay with you forever instead of ending up on a landfill in a year.
Now that you know a few details about decorating a minimalist home, it’s important to mention the underlying philosophy behind this interior decoration style: just keep it simple! Tone things down, pare things back and live by the “quality over quantity” philosophy. As long as you welcome beautiful, fuss-free and high-quality items into your home, your minimalist design will be simple and relaxing yet cozy, rich and inviting.
