In interior decorating, working with texture can give a room a personality that is not achieved with colour alone. Rather like a child’s pop-up book, a tactile interior adds depth and contrast, drawing you into a room and inviting you to touch each element of the design. Adding texture to your home is simple, whatever your decorating ideas. Bring neutral walls to life with accessories and furnishings, or ditch the paint altogether and explore the alternatives – get creative and give your home a life of its own.
Material Gains
A great place to start interior decorating with texture is to consider which materials most appeal to you. From stone, wood, or a certain type of fabric, to glass or metal, contrasting textures and patterns will work together in your home to create just about any look you desire. Experimenting with different materials and layering them together will reveal how one complements or contrasts with another, and will help you to create a range of alternative designs. Explore rough and smooth, glossy and matt; creating a versatile, changeable look with your preferred materials.
Side by Side
Away from textured paint, wallcoverings are now available in a wide range of tactile finishes, the most dramatic of which create a spectacular feature wall. Many retailers now stock fantastic embossed wallpaper made to emulate such materials as leather and wood, while other more specialist ranges feature stunning wallcoverings made from foil, grass, cloth, metallics – you name it, it’s probably for sale somewhere. For a more eco friendly look try touchable contemporary natural finishes, think woven bamboo or sisal. Whatever your preference, textured papers, either real or perceived, have the great added benefit of concealing any imperfections on your walls very effectively.
Down Below
Interior decorating with texture under foot can be fun, and though wood finishes can be used to stunning effect, especially when teamed with opulent rugs, there are now many other options to consider. Specialist vinyl flooring retailers have produced range upon range of incredible designs, including those made to look exactly like glass, industrial-style metal and even elaborate mosaics. Carpets are a great way to bring texture to your home too, especially those made from chunky sustainable materials like jute, coir or seagrass. Other natural materials, such as brick or stone tiles are perfect for a contemporary or classic design, and will contrast perfectly with other textures around your home, from the kitchen to the bathroom.
Everything In-between
Depending on the way in which you choose to decorate your floors and walls, you may wish to play up, or subdue the amount of texture you use throughout the rest of your project. Where furnishings and accessories are concerned, texture is an interior decorating dream, bringing together an array of touchable contrasting materials, from fabrics, smooth metallics and glossy glass to warm woods and achingly modern acrylics. Layering textures can inject life into a cold, sterile room and almost envelope you in warmth. Fireplaces, both modern and traditional, can make a stunning feature in a living room, cold stone hearth contrasting with the raw heat of burning firewood and the cosy comfort of surrounding carpeting.
With a bit of interior decorating experimentation you can really let your imagination run wild with texture, particularly using furnishings and accessories. Unlike some decorating ideas, the great advantage of playing with texture is that it’s very easy to mix and match, and if your efforts pass through comfort to clutter, you can simply pare down your look until you get the balance just right.
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