Minimalist house design is very, very in right now. A well-designed minimalist house blurs the boundary between inside and outside, and presents you with a vast amount of space and flexibility. But how do you go about creating something that could truly be called ‘minimalist’?
Photo Credit: Flickr
Give it wide open spaces
Space is the most important thing when it comes to minimalist houses! So if you want one, you’ve got to de-clutter first. Too many clothes to comfortably fit in a wardrobe? Give some of them away. Too much furniture? Some of it’s gotta go. Don’t forget, vital things like chairs and tables can even be folded up and put away when not in use, de-cluttering the place even more. And don’t even think about storing your DVD collection, for example, out in the open – it needs to go away in a cupboard or drawer! Walls should be bare too, apart from the occasional piece of artwork.
The results of de-cluttering are twofold: firstly, now your room should have lots of strong lines that draw the eye. Secondly, now you have less to clean and dust! It’s that – the lack of later work involved – that makes minimalist spaces so luxurious.
Use modern materials
One of the principals of modern design is the clever use of materials to simultaneously strip a house down to its basics and make the place seem lived-in. Some people choose to have visible brickwork on one wall to create a striking artistic design, for example. Others use plastic, shiny shelves to store a few select items.
Glass is also very, very important in a minimalist home – it can be used to bring in light and make smaller spaces look bigger. A cleverly placed mirror can make a huge difference to a room! Don’t be afraid to experiment with materials you wouldn’t usually use.
Give it splashes of colour
Before you begin any serious work, consider which colours would open up your rooms best. Most people think of the colour white when they think of a minimalist space, but that doesn’t have to be the case. Don’t be afraid to mix things up! Grey can add slick sophistication to a room, for example, and even a brighter colour like green can be used to great effect if combined with other colours. You don’t want a house that comes off as cold and sterile, after all.
If you’re using white, accent it with ornaments or rugs that are brightly coloured. Scan the Internet for ideas – plenty are out there! Ideally, something colourful should serve as the focal point in a white room. Choose a colour that compliments your room – green and blue look fantastic in a room that opens out to a garden, for example. White sofa? Make it look more cosy with some fluffy pink cushions. Indulging in minimalism doesn’t mean having to sacrifice comfort.
Make it open and freeing
The best minimalist houses are, in addition to being simple and stylish, also connected to their environment in some way. Huge glass windows open a living room up to the outside world, for example. This is obviously a huge renovation to undertake, but it can very much be worth it, getting to walk into your living room and see the beauty of nature at your feet!
But a simple thing you can do to make your room appear more open is remove all clutter around the windows. It’s amazing what can accumulate on and around windowsills. So take down things like vases and net curtains, and let the sun shine through your windows with nothing to get in its way.
Get knowledgeable about modern architecture
Even a simple de-clutter of your house could actually add value to your home. Imagine how incredibly in-demand minimalist spaces are right now! If you’re considering having a thorough overdo of your house, study up on modern architecture and its principles. The great thing about it is, your house can be as unique as you like with this style – it doesn’t have to be a simple box!
With enough hard work put into making the outside and inside of your house clean, relaxing spaces, you could find yourself sitting on a goldmine.
