Country - "rustic" style - is, in fact, the antipode of urban high-tech and is strongly associated with the image of a romantic, cozy and warm interior. This style was born in the American province, but has long moved away from the original source, becoming international, and exists in many varieties. Country style more than others reflects our idea of a country house - a little romantic, very cozy and comfortable. It sets you up for a pleasant pastime, a calm and hasteless life.
Unpretentious and homely, it symbolizes stability and reliability, designed to convey the spirit of village life, where sophistication is mixed with the practicality of a family way of life. There are no strict laws here, but its secret is simple: the style is, as it were, out of time, as it is in no hurry to part with old things, appreciating functionality and beauty in them.
Modern country-style interiors have said goodbye to rough and naive rustic simplicity and have become more sophisticated, refined and modern, while retaining their main advantages - lack of pretentiousness, softness, lyricism, closeness to nature.
Urban living in a rustic way forces some design compromises. Before anything else, Country style is an ecological interior design. And therefore, it uses natural building and finishing materials.
Floors in a Country interior, is usually done with tiles or decorative stone, massive wooden floorboards, for example, oak, beech, walnut, maple. Decorative plaster is used for walls, or it can be a combination of fragments of plastered walls with partially preserved stone or brickwork.
In walls design paper wallpapers with a soft floral pattern are also a good choice. Very often, country-style walls are finished with a border or stucco cornice; at the bottom of a wall, you can use a decorative panel, wooden or matching the color of wallpaper. Hand-forged items will organically fit in, as for metal, it is better if it will be aged bronze or patina touched brass.
In decoration, colorful and bright textiles are widely used: curtains, rugs, pillows. Priority is given to natural fabrics - chintz, linen, wool. Designing walls, floors, windows, use combined fabrics or fabrics with a similar texture, but different in pattern. In window decor, it is necessary to abandon complex draperies, they are completely compensated by the pattern and texture of the fabric - simple curtains and a minimum of folds. Country style especially appreciates various handicrafts - embroidered towels and napkins, patchwork quilts, wicker rugs.
This style is characterized by multicolor, but not bright, rather slightly muted. The color scheme is dominated by natural, often light and pastel colors. Color balance is important. If, for example, light blue and light beige are combined in furniture upholstery, then it is better to choose light pastel colors for wallpaper, carpet, curtains, tablecloths. If walls and all large surfaces of an interior are designed in the same palette, you can focus on numerous Country style accessories.
Like any phenomenon that has folk roots, country is largely a naive style. Therefore, there are no abstruse ornaments in paintings - only specific floral motifs. For upholstery and draperies choose plain fabrics or bright strip fabric, typical for Country style. Printed fabrics with a pattern of small cute flowers are very often used.
Country-style furniture is often rustic, rough, but regular in shape, with unpolished surfaces. It is arranged in the traditional way for Country style - very at ease. Each piece of furniture should have a minimum of functions and a pronounced rural simplicity. But at the same time, it is not at all necessary to imitate peasant life and slight shabbiness. Comfortable, functional and completely new furniture can also look very natural. Wicker furniture - armchairs, sofas or rocking chairs can be randomly placed throughout a house. In Country interiors an old armchair or an antique wooden chest of drawers will look perfectly.
Also, accessories are extremely important for Country style, that bring a valuable feeling of warmth and comfort to an interior. There are a lot of interesting items: lamps with shades, porcelain figurines, dishes with floral ornaments. Peasant household items, such as tablecloths, ceramic dishes or candlesticks, give a city apartment a special charm. Flowers in pots or lush bouquets are an essential attribute of a Country style interior.
Dried flowers can be a good décor for a Country style home: hydrangeas and roses, marigolds and daisies, arranged in simple vases everywhere from a hallway to a kitchen. On walls you can hang unpretentious watercolor landscapes or framed photographs.
However, remember that in such a room there shouldn’t be any bright and high light. Lighting should be very soft and diffused: closer to the floor, in a corner or behind a wall.
