Natural materials & textures, cozy rooms

Imperfection soothes the soul, and so does nature. Incorporating natural materials, textures in forms that will age well and acquire character with use, go far in creating cozy rooms. Natural light and visual access to outdoors help, too, as seen in this eat-in kitchen. Those elements also help create timeless spaces which I always prefer over investing in trends that will soon seem dated.

^ Cool cozy kitchen. I like the Thonet chairs, the exposed brick, and the tile by the doors.

^ I love this mudroom with its unpretentious, practical shoe racks, and ample space to hang coats. The art work over the coat hooks seem a bit too repetitive and impersonal though.

^ Love the texture and the warm color of the paint job on the wall.

sources: image 1, images 2,3,4, image 5

Simple and smart DIY furniture

These are some great efficient designs. Intelligence should help us meet our needs more easily with less effort and materials saving us time, money, and creating a less of a burden on resources. These look great as well!

This coffee table made of recycled pallets is one of the best I've seen. The colored tiles add character and look great.

Top image from pleasantlakehardwoods.com, the pallet coffee table with tiles image is from dishfunctionaldesigns, the cool coffee table with 3 boards image is from smartfurniture.com, and the last coffee table made of three pieces of plywood image is from idea-awards.com

Natural materials

Practical, green, ages well, and gorgeous! Who's a better designer than nature anyway?

Images from blog.bodieandfou.com

Simple joys

Hi everyone, sorry it's been a while since my last post. It wasn't because my love for simple, natural, and unpretentious spaces (or things, or people) went away!

Images from breadandolives.tumblr.com

Satisfaction & happiness

It is the modest, the natural, the cozy and the comfortable that soothe our souls and make us happy -not the fancy, the luxurious, and the pretentious.  The former brings us together and the latter feeds the status quo and puts barriers between us.

That's a great simple coffee table in the bottom picture!

Images from brendan-i-am.tumblr.com

Inspiration for a simpler life

Seeking perfection is pathological and wasteful. Don't put yourself in debt and tie yourself down to jobs you don't like, just so you can have a bigger house, fancy furniture, or a brand new car. We have one life and it goes by faster than you think - try to maximize your freedom and enjoy it.

Images from kiyoaki.tumblr.com

Rustic vanity and living room

These spaces are both amazing! Great textures! Especially love that stone sink, the tarnished faucets, and the wood stand in that bathroom.

Top image from CasaDecorada45.blogspot.com, bottom image from houzz.com

Cozy by slipcovers

Cool coffee table, cool rug, and slip covers for couches always make things easier. A cozy living room.

Image from PotteryBarn.com

Casual landscaping

This place has landscaping just the way I like it; wild and casual. It's not too shabby on the inside either - I love those armchairs.

Images from abaton.es but I saw it on DesiretoInspire.net first.

Real definiton of luxury

Easygoing, laid-back, comfortable, practical. What else?

Images from room-galleries.myhomeideas.com

The good life

Clean, simple, rustic, and easygoing place by the interior designer Sarah Lavoine. Notice the lack of status symbols in or around this place. The exterior shots are great, I just wish there were more of them.

Images from CoteMaison.fr

Just say 'no' to perfectionism!

Great coffee table. Instead of over-processing the wood, leaving the slab as it is highlights the beauty of its natural form.

Images from ForwardThinkingFurniture.com

Small is good

A kitchen, a cozy living room and dining area all in a not so huge room... Pretty cozy and relaxing though, right? Smaller homes are easier and less expensive to maintain, lower priced, environmentally friendlier... Who needs a giant house, anyway?

Image from Room-Galleries.MyHomeIdeas.com

Casual living rooms

Couple of casual and easy-going living rooms. The coffee table in the bottom picture is quite nice, it's simple, practical and has rounded edges which anyone with small kids can appreciate, and it actually happens to be safer for people of all ages. The rug in that picture is pretty cool, too.

Top image is from MyHomeIdeas.com and the bottom image is from End8.com

Cozy living room

This is Amanda Peet's living room. It's bright, unpretentious, easy-going and comfortable. Way to go Amanda!

Images from DominoMag.com but I saw them on Decorology.blogspot.com first.

Live simply, be happy!

Really nice and cozy summer house. A lot of inspiration for creating an easy-going relaxing and simple living. Kilim rugs and pillows outside really make the outdoors more livable and those shade cloths are really cool, too. Lots of light in the bathroom and those rustic mirror frames all add to the cozy and cheerful feel.

All images from HouseInteriorHome.com

Celebrate age and character

Cool cozy place with lots of character. Sometimes it's not a good idea to constantly "update" your house. Cherish your home's age and the features revealing its age - as long as they are functional. Let new homes aspire to have the kind of character your place has.

Images from 1st-option.com