Born out of the trend of creative people moving into former industrial buildings, the incredibly chic industrial décor movement is the interior design trend for the end of 2020. In particular, The New York Times has listed hairpin legs as one of the top features of the year, with its “industrial ingenuity” helping it to become a DIY favourite of many and resurrect the warehouse luxe aesthetic. Think big open rooms, exposed brickwork, metal and concrete, and the raw elements that you might associate more with building sites than your living room!
The beauty of modern industrial design is that you don’t have to change your home too much to achieve the look you want. It is important though to have the mix of contemporary furniture alongside the stripped-back architectural details of your home. If you’re not sure where to start with these changes, we’re here to help with some easy to manage tips no matter how much room you have at home.
What is Industrial Décor and Why You’ll Love It
Industrial décor incorporates many different elements into its design. Using the rawness of modern architectural building work such as concrete, metal and brick, before combining it with the softness and warmth of various colours, textures and patterns to make your house feel like a home. You’ll love to see how much space you can create by stripping interior walls back to their base layers to create as much contrast as possible. Also, the best part is that you’re encouraged to salvage as much furniture and material as possible, so your beautiful interiors will be environmentally friendly too.
Industrial Décor ideas for a Small Indoor Space
Use Minimal Décor
Popular silhouettes of industrial design are straight lines and block shapes, but if you’re looking to change the shapes of your personal items, keep them as minimal and clean-looking as possible. Think basic and stripped back of any extra decorative touches. Slender structures with transparent finishes are the way to go.
Upcycle Vintage Furniture
Industrial home décor encourages you to reuse and bring the everyday back to its raw best. For maximum authenticity, look for furniture that dates back to the mid-20th Century era when old factories and warehouses were being converted into living spaces. Whether that’s repurposing beautiful old pieces of wood to create a new table for the kitchen, or salvaging old chairs to create that mismatched look, make sure you’re using the world around you before you look to buy anything new for the home. It saves you money and keeps our lovely planet happy.
Light It Up
If you have a smaller space to play with, lighting it properly is so important. Find a fixture or fitting that can form a statement centerpiece. Pass on overly ornamental fixtures and choose streamlined geometric shapes. And remember that they’ll be adding warmth, so use dimmed down bulbs and don’t use LED lighting where possible.
Industrial Décor ideas for a Large Indoor Space
Fill The Space, Think Big
Don’t underestimate how much furniture is needed, you’re trying to make this large space feel as homely as possible, you don’t want to make it feel cold with too much room. Make sure to use big rugs, floor-to-ceiling artwork and large sofas and benches to fill the space.
Mixing Textures and Materials
Make sure you have as much soft material as you do hardwoods and concrete, these textures help juxtapose the raw materials that are associated with industrial design. Experiment with different fabrics and furnishings that add warmth to the home, think shades of red, brown, pink and purple, the easiest things to add are throws and pillows onto your furniture to make it look cosy.
Pop Those Colours
Bright colours will bring the space to life, you don’t want to be staring at the same dark colours all day. The contrast of amber, olive and azure blue against the coldness of brick, metal and concrete will add dazzle to your home.
Fill Spaces with Perfect Scents
Once you've added in your larger furniture, you can go in and enhance your other senses with the perfect PartyLite fragrance. Match your minimal Industrial Décor with our Universal Tealight® Candles, whether you want to unwind with Iced Snowberries™ or turn your space into a sanctuary thanks to Sun-Kissed Linen, make a statement with your perfect scent.
Industrial Décor ideas for Your Balcony
Vertical Gardening
If you’re desperate for as many plants as possible but you don’t have the space, then plant up, not out. Vertical planters allow you to stylishly add as many pots of flowers and fauna to a small space. Just make sure you’re using metal and raw elements, like terracotta, stone and cement, to build your planter.
Industrial Planters
Pot your greens in metallic containers, whether that’s old oil barrels or a repurposed metal trough, this is a super-chic way to bring life to your balcony. As a bonus, the lush greenery will add warmth to the rawness of the harsh metal.
Soft Furnishings
Once you’ve added the industrial elements to your balcony, you’ll want somewhere comfortable to admire them. Create a plush, comfortable corner on your balcony by dressing a bench or chair with soft furnishings with blankets, throws and pillows. You’ll never want to leave your little haven.
Industrial Décor ideas for Your Garden
Upcycle Everyday Materials
When it comes to making industrial garden furniture, the world is your oyster, and it’ll appreciate you looking out for it. You could repurpose some scaffolding boards to use as a large family outdoor table, just add some bespoke or reclaimed metal legs. If you don’t have DIY in your DNA, why not strip down some vintage hardwearing furniture to give it a distressed and long-lasting look?
Tiered Gardens
Get the concrete jungle look when you are creating your flower beds. The urban materials will help to complement your softer outdoor plants and allows them to take centre-stage. Another material you can use for your beds is steel. The longer it stays outside the deeper it’ll rust, so the reds and browns will be the perfect contrast for the greenery.
Outdoor Lighting Is Everything
Whether you want to use artificial lighting or you want to elevate the way you display candles outdoors, it’s important that you light your space properly. You could repurpose copper, iron or steel piping to display some outdoor bulbs, these rustic and antique-style elements will bring your garden to life on those balmy summer evenings.
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